Lu Yanzheng looked at her with slight surprise, not expecting her to agree. "You... won't you reconsider?"
"The harvest in the border town is of utmost importance. Although I am a woman, I understand the principle that a country must come before a family. Only when the grain production in the border town increases and the border troops no longer go hungry can you win the battle," Jiang Qin said earnestly.
Village Chief Li gave Jiang Qinyu a thumbs up, "My niece is truly insightful!"
Seeing this, Lu Yanzheng thought for a moment and then nodded, saying, "Alright, Qinqin will come with me!"
...
Just as Jiang Qinyu was planning to go to the border town with Lu Yanzheng, Liu Ruyi also found some villagers and borrowed a mule cart to go to the county town.
After returning to the county town in a daze that day, Wu Jingyao checked into Jingyue Inn, the largest inn in Yongshan County.
Although Liu Ruyi rejected him, he still told her where he was staying.
At this moment, Liu Ruyi went straight to Jingyue Inn and found Wu Jingyao.
"Cousin Ruyi?" Wu Jingyao opened the door and was surprised and delighted to see Liu Ruyi. "Why are you here? Come on, let's go to the lobby to talk."
Wu Jingyao was genuinely in love with Liu Ruyi, so he was very careful about her reputation. In the past, if this had happened, they would have talked openly and honestly in front of others.
But this time Liu Ruyi stopped him, saying, "Cousin, I have something important to tell you, and it's not appropriate for outsiders to know."
Liu Ruyi looked at him with a serious expression.
Wu Jingyao paused for a moment, then took two steps back. "Cousin Ruyi, please come in."
Has she come to her senses? Is she willing to become his concubine? Or has she thought of some other way?
Liu Ruyi entered the room and immediately closed the door.
While Wu Jingyao was still lost in thought, Liu Ruyi spoke up, "Cousin, I know a piece of information that can immediately earn you the Emperor's favor."
"Huh?" Wu Jingyao snapped out of his daze and asked hesitantly, "What news?"
Why did my cousin Ruyi not tell Duke Yun about this news, but instead came to tell him? Could my cousin have been deceived?
Liu Ruyi placed the bundle she was carrying on the table. "Cousin, do you know what the Emperor and the court are troubled about?"
"Is that even a question? It's definitely a food problem!" Wu Jingyao blurted out.
Currently, people in various regions are frequently putting pressure on the imperial court because they are not getting enough to eat, and it is said that some people in the north have already started a rebellion and looted the government's granaries.
Although the emperor doesn't do much, he'll probably be happy if no one bothers him.
Moreover, Prime Minister Su and others deliberately raised grain prices, making it impossible for more people to survive, and the Emperor was powerless to do anything about it. If the imperial granaries were full, these situations would not have occurred.
Liu Ruyi took the contents of her bundle out and placed them on the table. Pointing to the items on the table, she said, "This is sweet potato, a grain that came from a foreign land. Cousin, why don't you guess how much it yields?"
“Since my cousin specifically asked, the yield of these sweet potatoes must be higher than that of grain in my Great Yue. It must be at least six or seven hundred catties, right?” Wu Jingyao guessed.
He held a sinecure in the Ministry of Revenue. Although he didn't have to report for duty every day, he still knew some common sense.
Liu Ruyi chuckled and shook her head, "The highest yield in Dayue right now is probably rice, right? Less than 600 jin per mu. But the yield of sweet potatoes can reach 5,000 jin!"
"What did you say?" Wu Jingyao was stunned. "Five thousand catties? This is all?"
Liu Ruyi nodded vigorously, "That's right, I saw it with my own eyes. The highest yield of sweet potatoes exceeded 5,000 jin, and the lowest was more than 4,000 jin!"
She went to the fields with Lu Yanzheng and the others. Because Jiang Qinyu and Lu Yanzheng were together, she didn't get close. But she heard everything they did and said afterward.
At that moment, not only were the people of Dingshui Village so excited they were speechless, but she was also so excited she couldn't utter a single word.
Unlike other young ladies, Liu Ruyi has been concerned with people's livelihoods since childhood, such as grain production, cloth production, annual expenses of ordinary people, and how ordinary people access medical care.
Therefore, she knew very well what a yield of more than 5,000 jin per mu meant.
Lu Yanzheng is only thinking about planting sweet potatoes in the border town now, and hasn't thought about using this to get promoted. She can still make a fuss about this.
"This... where did you see it, cousin?" Wu Jingyao asked blankly.
If such a place existed in Da Yue, how could the people possibly go hungry?
"The first batch of sweet potatoes from Dingshui Village was harvested just yesterday," Liu Ruyi said without hiding anything.
Wu Jingyao paused, "How could they not report such things to the imperial court?"
"Cousin, don't worry. The people of Dingshui Village are simple and honest. No one has thought of this yet. If you are the first to bring this news to His Majesty..." Liu Ruyi didn't finish her sentence, but the unspoken meaning was self-evident.
Aside from being love-struck, Wu Jingyao is quite intelligent in other areas; otherwise, he wouldn't have only been willing to give Liu Ruyi the status of a concubine.
“This is a major matter. Cousin, don’t tell anyone yet. Come back to the capital with me, and I will take you to meet the Emperor. We’ll take credit for this!” Wu Jingyao looked at Liu Ruyi with bright eyes.
The two exchanged a smile. They knew exactly what to do next. In short, the people of Dingshui Village would receive a benefit, while they would gain both fame and fortune.
...
Since deciding to leave with Lu Yanzheng, Jiang Qinyu has been very busy.
"Auntie, are you going on another long trip?" Shufan asked, pursing her lips.
Pan'er pouted, looking unhappy, and said, "Will it be a long time before we come back again this time?"
Jiang Qinyu blinked, looking at the two of them helplessly, and said, "Yes, I have to go help my uncle. I don't know when I'll be back. You guys..."
"Waaah!" Pan'er suddenly burst into tears, "Auntie isn't coming back, Auntie doesn't want Pan'er anymore..."
Jiang Qinyu was completely bewildered by her. She paused for a moment before reacting, then hugged the little girl tightly, both amused and exasperated. "Little crybaby, you're already crying so hard before your auntie has even finished speaking. What if you find out there's a chance things will turn around? You'll be crying and laughing at the same time!"
"A turning point?" Shu Fan's eyes lit up. "Auntie means..."
Jiang Qinyu put her other arm around Shufan as well, "The timing of this trip is uncertain. If it's for a month or two, I'll be worried about you two. So, I'm planning to bring you both with me."
Given Lu Yanzheng's status, his family members can accompany him to the military base. She won't be without a place to stay if she takes Shufan and Pan'er there. Moreover, given his status, the two little ones won't be bullied.
"Auntie is taking us with her?" Pan'er's crying stopped abruptly, a few glistening teardrops still clinging to her long eyelashes, making her look both cute and adorable.
Jiang Qinyu looked at her, her heart melting completely. "Yes, Pan'er is so adorable, how could Auntie bear to be separated from you?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
