Chapter 215: Don’t Dislike Anyone
In the northern part of Zhongzhou Province, which borders Fenxi Province, when Commander Shen was escorting grain seeds over, a team of soldiers immediately came forward to greet him.
Commander Shen breathed a sigh of relief when he recognized the leader as a close confidant of Governor Guo.
Because of the last incident where his grain seeds were robbed, he was very nervous along the way and didn't dare to be careless at all.
"Brother Lu Shuo."
“Brother Shen.”
The two men greeted each other.
Lu Shuo clasped his fists and said with gratitude: “Brother Shen, you have worked hard along the way.”
Commander Shen smiled and waved his hand: "Brother Lu Shuo, there is no need to talk nonsense. We are all working for the Governor." He was the father of Governor Guo, and now he is a soldier under the command of Duke Dingguo Guo Mao. Naturally, he has to do his best to handle the affairs of his old master's family.
Lü Shuo looked at the carts of grain behind him and said with delight, "How could they have collected so much grain?"
Commander Shen smiled and said, "It was thanks to the young prince's mediation that we were able to raise over 20,000 shi of grain from the Yan family."
Seeing that the grain seeds they brought could make up for the ones they had lost before, Lu Shuo felt relieved. He smiled and pulled Commander Shen and said, "Let's go. The Governor has been waiting for a long time. Come with me to see him."
Soon, the group met Governor Guo in the nearest provincial capital.
“Okay, okay!”
Seeing the more than 20,000 shi of grain seeds that his nephew had raised for him, Governor Guo said "good" three times, and then looked at Commander Shen: "Li Fu, this time it's all thanks to you."
Commander Shen quickly shook his head: "You are too polite, Governor. If it weren't for the Duke's support back then, how could Li Fu be so glorious today?"
Governor Guo patted Commander Shen on the shoulder and stopped talking politely: "I'm busy distributing grain seeds here, so I may not be able to entertain you. Next time, when I return to Zhongzhou, I will treat you to opera and drinks."
Commander Shen agreed with a smile, and knowing that Governor Guo was busy, he withdrew with his men to rest.
As soon as he left, an official came over and said, "Governor, the prefects of several nearby prefectures are here."
Governor Guo nodded. It was almost November now, and they had to quickly distribute the newly collected grain seeds so that the people could plant them.
"After distributing the grain, in order to prevent any more fearless bandits from stealing the grain, send me more people to escort it this time. Anyone who gets in my way must be killed."
Governor Guo said this in a murderous tone as he walked out.
As soon as he stepped out of the door, he saw his personal guard Guo Qiang running in excitedly: "Governor, in addition to sending grain seeds, the young prince also sent you a large cart of vegetables, fruits and melons as a tribute to you."
Governor Guo, who was about to leave, paused and asked in surprise, "What did you say? What else did Yang'er give me?"
Guo Qiang excitedly said, "Vegetables, fruits, and melons." Then, a look of regret appeared on his face. "What a shame! One basket of green leafy vegetables has rotted, but it doesn't matter. We still have a lot of cucumbers and beans, all very fresh. Oh, and there are also several large boxes of persimmons, apples, red dates, pears and other fruits."
Upon hearing this, Governor Guo grinned broadly, laughed a few times, and then said with a smile: "It's worth all my hard work in teaching him. In order to be close to him, I even took on this hard job of suppressing bandits."
As he spoke, a look of regret appeared on his face.
"Yang'er will be fifteen next year, an adult now. He's sensible now and knows that we can only eat pickles and meat here. He even sent me a cart of green vegetables as a filial gift. Great!"
"Go, tell the kitchen to stir-fry some vegetables today so we can have a feast tonight. I've been eating only meat lately and my stomach is hurting."
"Yes!" Guo Qiang had been waiting for this and answered loudly.
There are not many vegetables in winter. Fenxi is suffering from disasters and banditry. The people can't even fill their stomachs, so how can they grow vegetables?
After coming here, they can only eat pickles, and in very small quantities.
He had been craving for some fresh and refreshing food.
The young prince is a good man.
At the same time, in Zhongzhou Province, Wangyue Academy.
Xiao Yeyang, who had been given the "nice guy" card, was looking at the only plate of vegetables on the table with dissatisfaction. He frowned and looked at Defu: "What's going on?"
"In the past, the vegetables and fruits that Daohua sent me were enough for me to eat until the end of each month when the academy closed for the holidays, and there was always some left over."
"I went to Daohua's house again in the middle of this month. Given Daohua's personality, she would definitely prepare food for me. It's only been less than two weeks, how come the vegetables are gone? It's okay if the vegetables are gone, but where's my fruit?"
He has to eat an apple every day. Daohua said it is good for the body.
Defu lowered his head and said weakly, "Master, the vegetables and fruits sent by Yuezhong should have been sent to Fenxi together with the grain seeds."
Xiao Yeyang was stunned for a moment: ".Did you send it to your uncle?"
Defu looked up at Xiao Yeyang's face and saw that he showed no signs of anger. He said tentatively, "Master, how about I write a letter to Miss Yan and ask her to send another car?"
Xiao Yeyang glared at her immediately: "No!" Then, his expression became a little awkward, "Rice flowers are given to us as a token of friendship. We can't refuse them, but if I take the initiative to ask for them, what's wrong with that? It makes her think I'm a foodie."
Defu lowered his head and curled his lips.
Master, aren’t you a foodie?
When he was in the capital before, his master was never one to guard his food. Even if it was the imperial meal, there would be some left over for his personal eunuch to enjoy.
Compared with the personal eunuchs of other princes, he has a much better appetite.
However, his good fortune in eating was gone after he arrived in Zhongzhou.
The master almost always finished the vegetables that Miss Yan sent him at every meal, and there were no leftovers even if he wanted to eat some.
Defu was silent for a moment. "Then, by the end of November, the master will have no choice but to buy food from outside."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yeyang's face fell.
In the past, he didn’t think the vegetables from outside were bad, as long as they tasted good. But ever since he got used to eating the vegetables sent by Daohua, he no longer wanted to eat vegetables grown by other people.
It's not that he's picky, it's just that the taste is really different.
Suddenly, Xiao Yeyang's eyes lit up: "I've got an idea. Doesn't Daohua run a fruit and vegetable shop in Xingzhou City? So, you can have someone go to the shop to buy it quietly, without anyone discovering your identity."
Defu nodded in agreement, but he was speechless in his heart.
Miss Yan is a generous person and she is such a good friend of the master. It’s just a cart of vegetables and fruits. Why can’t she just write a letter to ask for it?
Even if Miss Yan knew that the master was a foodie, so what? Wasn’t she a foodie too?
Who can still dislike whom?
Time flies and it is mid-November.
After receiving the letter from his uncle, Xiao Yeyang learned that the grain seeds had been distributed to the people and planted in the fields, and he finally felt relieved.
Now that I was free of worries, my appetite improved, so I ate even more.
I used to go to Xingzhou to shop only once every few days, but this time I go there every three or four days.
It’s not that they don’t want to buy more, but the business of Daohua’s fruit and vegetable shop is so good. In order for more people to eat fresh vegetables, people entering the store will limit the amount they buy.
If we don't do this, some big families will buy up all the vegetables in the store.
As the year draws to a close, it’s time to start preparing for the New Year gifts.
In order to train the rice flowers, Mrs. Li gave her the entire responsibility of preparing New Year gifts for her sister-in-law's family in the capital this year.
So, Daohua would occasionally drag Old Lady Yan out shopping, under the pretext of checking out the market prices for New Year's goods this year.
The two men did not take a carriage, but walked.
The streets were bustling with vendors of all kinds hawking their wares and people coming and going. Both the grandparents and grandchildren enjoyed watching this scene filled with the atmosphere of life.
"Hey, that person looks familiar, I think I've seen him somewhere before?"
When passing by her vegetable shop, Daohua was happy that the business was good, when she suddenly saw a familiar figure in the crowd.
Seeing her granddaughter standing still, Old Lady Yan pulled her arm and said, "Who do you know, the people outside?"
Daohua cried out, "I remember now. I saw him in the palace. He's Xiao Yeyang's man."
(End of this chapter)
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