The four men carefully inspected the two plots of land, then went to the shade of a tree to give their reply.
"We all think the two plots of land are good, but we don't know what the county magistrate thinks?"
"I have just arrived in Jiaozhou. The four of you are more familiar with the situation here. Why don't you tell me about the harvest in Jiaozhou over the past few years and your insights into the development of agriculture in Jiaozhou?"
Jiaozhou is far from the capital, and the officials there have been lax in their duties. When Fang Qing suddenly asked this question, they had no recollection of it.
"Well... it's hot here. Why don't you come back to the government office with us, Princess? We can have some refreshing herbal tea and talk things over."
"Very well, then Lord Qian, please lead the way."
Fang Qing and Zhao Shi'an boarded the carriage.
Back at the county office, Magistrate Qian had people bring out the account books for farmland and grain harvests from the past few years.
“Your Highness, these are all that can be preserved for now.”
There were three boxes in total, and a hundred ledgers of various sizes.
Zhao Shi'an glanced at them and then fixed his gaze on the four adults.
"So, the esteemed gentlemen intend for my wife and me to look through these things ourselves?"
Lord Qian quickly put on a smile.
"Of course not. I'll have someone organize all these account books right away, so the county magistrate can see whatever she wants anytime."
These ledgers were then carried away.
Fang Qing also learned about the population distribution and the amount of farmland in Jiaozhou from the government office.
That was all the information the officials knew. Fang Qing went home, and that evening the yamen delivered the compiled booklet.
The next day, Fang Qing stayed home looking at these booklets, while Zhao Shi'an led people to inspect the farmland near Jiaozhou Prefecture.
The couple's movements were reported in detail to the Prince of Nan's residence.
In the study of the Southern Prince's mansion, the Southern Prince sat behind his desk, closing his eyes to rest.
The Prince of the South sat casually in a chair nearby, and the advisors of the Prince of the South's residence told the father and son what had happened.
Prince Yin Macheng of the Southern Kingdom had a sarcastic expression.
“I told you they’re just here to farm, what kind of threat could they possibly pose to us?”
He yawned nonchalantly.
The King of the South finally opened his eyes.
Even though she's getting older, you can still see the charm she had in her youth on her face.
Especially her eyes, which are very bright, yet give the impression of having a story to tell.
"Cheng'er, don't underestimate your opponent."
Her voice was slightly hoarse but very gentle, giving people a feeling of compassion.
“Father, I’m not underestimating the enemy. Yesterday, I learned about the three people who came this time. As for Gao Ren, let’s not talk about him. He’s Gao Wancheng’s adopted son. He only survived because he betrayed the royal family. However, he is not valued by the court. He has only been looking for someone to treat his mother these past few days. He doesn’t care about anything else.”
"As for Zhao Shi'an, news has also come from the capital that the Emperor has even taken back the mansion that was given to him. In the court, the Emperor even flies into a rage whenever anyone mentions Zhao Shi'an. What do we have to fear from someone like that?"
"That young lady Zhao Shi'an does have some ability and can be useful to us. But once she boosts the grain production in Jiaozhou, she'll be useless to us. Father, you didn't see it, but that young lady is beautiful. If she's no longer useful to us, you'll have to give her to me so I can enjoy her..."
When the Prince of the South looked over with a gentle, helpless gaze, Yin Macheng immediately shut his mouth.
“Zhao Shi’an and the county magistrate of Sinong are unfamiliar with Jiaozhou, so we should arrange some manpower for them.”
The advisor understood the King of the South's meaning and quickly responded.
"Tomorrow is the fifteenth again, Cheng'er, come with your father to the Living Buddha Temple to offer incense."
Yin Macheng instinctively wanted to refuse, but when he met the Southern King's gaze, he immediately shut his mouth.
"Okay, son understands."
"Go out."
"yes."
Yin Macheng left the study, and his advisors looked at the Prince of Nan.
"Your Highness, Zhao Shi'an and Gao Ren are both searching for Master Gao's whereabouts. It seems they are not trying to capture the traitor, but rather simply looking for Master Gao, as if they want to get something from him."
The Southern King had a kind and gentle expression as he looked through the well-worn Buddhist scriptures in his hands.
"It seems their goal is the same as ours."
The advisor opened his mouth, hesitated, and said, "Your Highness, Master Gao has been keeping us in suspense. Why don't we deal with him first, and then slowly look for the things?"
The Southern King paused in his actions, and when he looked up again, his gaze fell on his advisor with a cold indifference.
The aide realized he had said the wrong thing and quickly shut his mouth.
"Get out, and don't make decisions for me."
"yes."
The aide left the study and carefully closed the door behind him.
I breathed a huge sigh of relief as I stood outside.
Outsiders say that the Prince of the South is an incompetent ruler who can't be helped, and that he is a good-for-nothing controlled by women. But who knows that this is not just the Prince of the South's way of deceiving people?
Only those closest to the King of the South know the true extent of his madness beneath his compassionate exterior.
*
Zhao Shi'an had been away for several days and had visibly gotten much darker.
He brought back many rice seeds for Fang Qing after being busy outside all this time.
Fang Qing exchanged some more from her spatial storage.
These seeds were planted and bred, and Fang Qing began to gather people to start the cultivation work.
For the first half month, Fang Qing explained the cultivation principles and process to these people, and then she spent her days in the fields with them.
At first, these people were mindful of Fang Qing's identity, but after seeing her planting rice seedlings and learning about the local situation from the old farmers, they gradually became closer to her.
That day, Fang Qing had just led people to observe the situation in the fields. The sky was originally clear and blue, but suddenly dark clouds gathered.
Fang Qing followed the others to the houses where the trainees lived, and then it started to rain heavily.
Fang Qing only brought Seventeen with her this time, and they rode horses, so they can't go back for a while.
The staff invited Fang Qing to sit down and served her hot tea.
After some time has passed, Fang Qing, who initially couldn't speak the language, can now communicate with the other party in a simple way.
During their conversation, they mentioned the temple not far away.
Looking south from their experimental field towards the mountain peaks, one can indeed see the pagoda of the temple.
"That temple was built by His Highness the Prince of the South. I've heard that it's as magnificent as the royal temples in the capital, but we don't know if that's true or not."
“My neighbor often went hunting on that mountain. Once he was injured and taken to the temple to treat his wounds. He happened to see that they were renovating the Buddha statues inside. The Buddha statues were all made of gold.”
"Really? Such a big temple with so many Buddha statues, how much money must it cost?"
"The Southern Prince's Mansion is rich, so what's wrong with making Buddha statues out of gold?"
The heavy rain pounded the earth, and they had to speak very loudly.
After listening for a while, Fang Qing couldn't help but ask, "None of you have been to that temple?"
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