Chapter 1557 Extra: Mother's Most Beloved Subject (Part 1)
The next day at court, Shen De keenly noticed the intense gaze coming from the Censorate. A quick glance out of the corner of her eye revealed, unsurprisingly, that the gaze belonged to Vice Minister Cui. Remembering the explosive news she'd learned the previous night, her expression flickered strangely, and she felt inexplicably guilty.
No, why is she acting so guilty?
It is one of countless possibilities in the future, but it is not something that will necessarily happen.
Even if it happens, so what?
Shen De closed his eyes to calm his chaotic mind.
When I opened my eyes again, I happened to hear the appointment.
She and Xun Gong stepped forward one after the other: "Your subject/Your subject obeys the decree."
The excitement and anticipation of officially starting the mission dispelled any distracting thoughts, leaving only the task at hand. The civil and military officials, observing the Crown Princess who bore a striking resemblance to the young Emperor, were each lost in their own thoughts. It wasn't until the court session ended that Shen De approached Xun Zhen.
He called out from afar, "Lord Xun, please wait."
Xun Zhen stopped before she could speak: "Your Highness."
The emperor never hesitated to show his affection for his only daughter. He bestowed upon her the title of Prince Yuan upon her birth, and within two years, he made her Crown Princess. Her Crown Princess residence shared the same setup and staff as the royal court. Scholars in the common people, fond of grand pronouncements, would often remark that if the emperor were to suffer any mishap, the Crown Princess could smoothly ascend the throne without any adjustment period.
Xun Zhen did not like this kind of talk.
Our Lord is in the prime of his life, how could anything happen to him?
But people are all made of flesh and blood. Having watched Her Highness the Crown Princess grow up for more than ten years, and with many senior officials frequently visiting her residence to lecture her, they had long since accepted her as the heir apparent. Yet they still hoped that the day of the transition between the old and new dynasties would be delayed.
"I have some questions to ask Master Xun."
"Yes, Your Highness, please."
Today's court assembly was unusually free of violence, but the high frequency of mental exertion was still exhausting, and the small breakfast they had eaten this morning had long been digested. The two followed the crowd to eat at the canteen, occasionally hearing their colleagues complaining about the Guanglu Temple's menu.
"I really hope there will be fewer impromptu innovations..." Shen De was tempted by the plump white bun. After taking a bite, he found that the filling was neither meat nor vegetable, but fried noodles. The key point was that the fried noodles also used green tangerine pulp as an ingredient.
She couldn't waste it, so she finished it with a frown, and at the end commented, "It's sour and salty, the imperial chef should try it himself."
The imperial chef was so engrossed in his own art that he lost all sense of the world around him.
Other officials also complained and expressed their dissatisfaction.
For over a decade, the imperial chefs did have moments of inspiration and created new recipes, but 99% of them were still culinary disasters. Perhaps the Court of Imperial Sacrifices also felt that these imperial chefs were letting themselves go, so they mandated that only two new dishes be created each day, with the rest being old dishes.
Xun Zhen: "What does Your Highness wish to ask?"
Shen De swallowed hard: "About this assignment."
This was the first time in her life she had formally gone out on official business, and there were many unfamiliar places. She also knew that she was her mother's only daughter, and if she didn't handle this first task well, it wouldn't just be a disgrace to herself, but also to her mother, and it would also allow those behind the scenes to mock her mother for choosing the wrong heir—in the past two years, Shen De had seen several memorials implying that her mother should have another child, as entrusting the affairs of the country to Shen De was not very secure. Perhaps the second child would be a male heir, which would be less risky than choosing Shen De as heir.
Shen De was shocked when he first saw these contents.
Why is it riskier to appoint her as a concubine?
Would establishing a male heir reduce the risk?
Is there something wrong with what I did?
The mother glanced at it, tore the memorial to shreds, ordered someone to reprimand the short-sighted official, and then comforted the still-young Shen De: "Don't pay attention to such a fool. Offspring come too easily to him, which is why he can so casually utter such inhuman nonsense. If he truly knew how precious and hard-won offspring are, he would shut up."
Although Shen De didn't take these prejudices to heart, as the crown princess, she didn't want to be looked down upon. Either don't do it at all, or do it to the best of your ability. Her mother had already told her about the task, and she had also consulted a lot of materials beforehand, but the actual implementation was different from what the ancient books described. At times like this, she needed the guidance of an experienced senior like Xun Gong.
Xun Zhen: "First of all, don't be nervous."
Shen De listened attentively to what followed: "And then?"
Xun Zhen smiled and said, "Secondly, don't be soft-hearted. However, the most important thing is to sharpen His Highness's sword."
It's easier to turn around and kill someone by slicing off their head with one sword, rather than leaving it stuck in the bone, which makes it harder to exert force.
Shen De: "..."
Xun Zhen said, "Your Highness, people will definitely die."
Perhaps many more people will die.
The task assigned to them by the Lord can be divided into two parts. One part is to investigate local finances. There were some problems with the tax silver sent to the Phoenix Court last year. The loss accounts did not match. Although the accounts were done very well, Xun Zhen still found the clues with his years of experience.
Before the royal court could even make a move, several key figures had already died. Although each death seemed plausible, it was unusual for it to happen at this critical juncture. They were most likely scapegoats. Xun Zhen, upon hearing this, was furious and decided to take matters into his own hands!
Shen De was in charge of locust control.
Although the peasant scholars could use the power of words to eliminate locust eggs, the scope was limited, and the talent for this skill remained extremely scarce after so many years. The peasant scholars' primary task was still the spring and autumn planting seasons; they simply couldn't spare the extra energy for locust control. Even if they could, this method was only a temporary solution. Last year, the Left Minister Liao Jia and his cousins Liao Qian and his sister returned to their hometown for ancestral worship and unexpectedly found something.
I thought it was some lost ancient book or rare copy.
After buying it and opening it, I found it was a hastily prepared locust control strategy.
He initially paid it no mind, but after a couple of glances, he became interested and studied it all night. Back at the Phoenix Court, Liao Jia immediately sought out the Right Minister Lin Feng to discuss it, and Lin Feng was overjoyed. This locust control strategy was almost entirely unconventional, using a completely different approach from contemporary locust control methods, and the data showed great potential. Lin Feng inquired about its origin and immediately ordered people to follow the clues to find the author.
They were lucky; they actually found it.
This locust control project was a joint effort by a couple.
The couple experienced no fewer than twenty locust plagues, large and small, throughout their lives, each one threatening their entire family with annihilation. Coincidentally, it was Li Lianghua's story that inspired them to write this article on locust control strategies.
They wrote down the patterns they discovered.
However, they only knew a few characters and could only ask a fellow villager to help them write it down. Unexpectedly, this fellow villager became greedy and knew about Li Lianghua's ennoblement. He actually took the strategy for himself and then deceived the couple, saying that the government didn't care about what they had written.
The fellow villager secretly sent the strategy to the local government.
The official in charge glanced at it a few times and then threw the item out.
[Go away, what kind of nonsense is this?]
Do you really think everyone is Li Lianghua?
The fellow villager, feeling humiliated, was furious and sold the item, along with some old books, to a bookseller at a low price. The bookseller then set up a stall at the market to swindle unsuspecting buyers. Little did he expect that it would end up in Liao Jia's hands, and Liao Jia, intrigued by it, eventually attracted Lin Feng's attention.
If the strategy is feasible, it may be able to fundamentally solve the locust plague.
After years of observation, the couple discovered that the locusts' egg-laying locations were related to the nearby water level. When the weather was dry and the mudflats were exposed, locusts would lay their eggs there. If, at the same time, rainfall increased suddenly and the water level rose, the locust eggs on the mudflats would die.
In other words, the key lies in water.
If the locusts' egg-laying patterns could be controlled by managing the water, wouldn't the root of the locust plague be solved? Lin Feng consulted a large amount of water level data from locust plagues and led his team on a months-long journey, finding that the farmer couple's words were indeed reasonable. As for the strategy of raising ducklings to combat locusts, this method had been implemented for many years.
According to the strategy, the first step in controlling locusts is to improve water conservancy.
The water conservancy projects need to be investigated on-site first, and this locust control approach needs to be tested at experimental sites. If it proves to be feasible, it can be rolled out to the most severely affected areas of Kangguo, which are prone to locust plagues. These water conservancy projects are all large-scale undertakings, and local finances alone are far from sufficient.
Wang Ting's side also needs to provide a considerable amount of subsidies.
Unfortunately, the local finances were found to be embezzled by the Ministry of Revenue.
That's why Xun Zhen and Shen De went out on official business.
Xun Zhen wasn't worried about Shen De's abilities, but rather that she was too soft-hearted because she was so well protected. That place was known for its ability to produce murder witnesses, so it was clear how much bloodshed this trip would bring.
After finishing his shift, Shen De took the opportunity to go to Xun Zhen's residence.
Xun Zhen's residence was divided in two.
Xun Zhen lived in the left courtyard, and Xun Ding and his family lived in the right courtyard.
In fact, the father and son had already separated their households and could have lived separately in their own residences. However, when Xun Zhen saw the construction bill for the bestowed residence submitted by the Ministry of Works, he felt extremely distressed: "I can live in a golden palace or a doghouse; I'm not some pampered nobleman."
Do the father and son have to each build large mansions?
The Ministry of Revenue is facing a severe cash shortage!
They don't know how to save money, it's infuriating!
Xun Zhen voluntarily halted the construction of one of the houses, and the father and son squeezed together to live. Although it was said to be squeezed together, the entire bestowed residence was actually enormous; even ten times more people could live comfortably, let alone the small family there. Xun Zhen's actions caused many officials to cover their faces in shame, and they no longer spoke ill of Xun Hanzhang behind his back for being stingy.
The Minister of Revenue was truly incorruptible and righteous.
Shen Degang sat down in the left courtyard, and Gong Xidou ran over.
"Your Highness has come to our door, why didn't you allow us to greet you?"
Xun Zhen said, "A Dou, don't be rude."
“My sister and I are as close as siblings, so I cannot be considered rude.”
Gong Xidou's smile deepened upon hearing this. He immediately gave Shen De a bear hug, wrinkling his nose and pouting, "Ru Gui, I missed you so much."
"I also miss Crown Power."
Gong Xidou was several years older than Shen De, but she was simple-minded and had been raised by Gong Xichou since childhood. The more she spent with Shen De, the deeper their bond naturally became. As Gong Xidou came of age and joined the army, while Shen De went to court to assist in governance, their opportunities to meet decreased.
Now that we've met, we naturally have a lot to talk about.
Xun Zhen, unable to bear watching any longer, coughed several times.
Gong Xidou smiled and stepped forward to massage Xun Zhen's shoulders and back, coaxing, "Grandpa, I just haven't seen Ru Gui in a long time..."
Xun Zhen sighed: "Your Highness is the Crown Prince."
"He is the crown prince, and also Ru Gui."
Xun Zhen: "..."
Before long, the Right Court sent someone to invite Xun Zhen and the others to a meal.
Besides their daughter Gong Xidou, Xun Ding and Gong Xilai had two more sons and a daughter, making a total of four children. Both sons were of school age, but their youngest daughter was still learning to speak. She was often taken to the palace by Gong Xichou to play, and Shen De was also familiar with her.
"Ball~"
Shen De smiled and bent down to pick her up.
"Uncle Qiu is not here right now."
The little girl blinked and drooled as she opened her mouth.
Pointing outside, it called out indistinctly, "Qiuqiu~"
Just then, a maidservant brought back a small ball made of scraps of cloth, which made the little girl giggle. Even the usually stern Xun Zhen held the child and comforted her for a while. This little granddaughter's features resembled his deceased wife's; she was his favorite.
He had long ago divided the dowry and belongings left by his deceased wife into two parts: one to Gong Xidou and the other to his granddaughter. Only a few of her favorite accessories were left as keepsakes.
"Grandma~"
He pulled a half-melted candy out of his mouth with his finger.
He held it to Xun Zhen's lips.
Xun Zhen smiled and said, "Good child, Grandma won't eat it."
"Seven~"
Xun Zhen could only open his mouth and eat it.
A short while later, the little granddaughter carefully put the candy from the plate into her mouth to taste it, then took it out and wobbled over to Shen De and the others, feeding them one by one. Seeing the saliva on the candy, Shen De wanted to refuse, but he couldn't resist the innocent, adoring gaze of his best friend's little sister…
Gongxilai instructed the servants to bring the child back.
Shen De smiled and said, "It's nothing."
Seeing her friends with younger siblings to play with, she sometimes felt envious, but when reason returned to reality, she knew this thought was wrong. Others' siblings might be siblings, but her siblings might be the murderers who stabbed her in the back.
Yeah, it's always more fun to have someone else's younger siblings.
Before long, Gong Xichou, who lived next door, was also invited over.
Upon seeing "Qiuqiu," the little girl immediately abandoned the servants and rushed to his lap. Gong Xichou flicked his finger, and his martial energy condensed into a python that coiled around the child and placed her on her special dining table. The snake's tail, wrapped around a spoon, fed her spoonful by spoonful of egg custard.
Gong Xilai: "Brother, you still have a way to deal with her."
The child's problems come in waves.
A few days ago, it recognized people, but these past two days it's started being picky about food again. Gong Xilai is busy checking and reconciling accounts, and really doesn't have the extra energy to take care of it.
Gong Xichou was slightly proud: "One monkey, one tethering method."
He has kept "five monkeys" on a leash over the years.
Two nieces, two nephews, and one named Rugui.
He was the one who looked after the children most of the time.
"Did my brother say you're going out on business?"
Shen De nodded: "Yes, Mom said I'm not young anymore. When she was my age, she could beat up Uncle Chou."
Gong Xichou: "..."
It was clearly him who hit Mama back then.
However, she saved face for the child by saying, "Here you go."
Shen De took it, puzzled: "What is this?"
Gong Xiqiu said, "The token for opening the safe."
"A safe? It contains a treasure map?"
Mentioning this made her feel awake.
Strangely enough, Shen Tang never neglected her in terms of food, clothing, shelter, and transportation, yet Shen De still had a strong fondness for gold, silver, and worldly possessions.
"No, they are some old things that have been around for many years."
"Huh? Old things?"
"You might find some of your connections useful."
|ω`)
Xun Zhen: Ah, yes, yes, that's me.
(End of this chapter)
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