She looked at the food street at the fork in the road. Alas, it was almost noon now. She said goodbye to her third uncle, left the nanny alone, and took the three of them to find food.
We walked, shopped and ate as we went. We each had a bowl of cross-bridge rice noodles, which filled our stomachs. We also bought piles of flower cakes, rice cakes, and broken crispy buns... and when we couldn't carry them all, we asked Xiaomei and the others to put them on the carriage.
He went to the market and did a big shopping spree, buying out many shops of dried mushrooms, peppercorns, walnuts... and had them delivered directly back to the palace.
They thought it was normal to buy these little fruits, but when Gu Xinran bought various fruit seedlings such as loquat, mango, grape, and also bought the local unique little black sheep and little black pigs, they became a little uneasy.
Xiao Ba laughed and said, "Master, it's all right for you to plant fruit trees in the palace, but raising pigs and sheep is too much."
Gu Xinran didn't want to explain and squinted at him. "Don't worry about it. I'll take care of it."
After shopping for an afternoon, she returned home with a lot of things and put most of them into her space.
The fruit trees have been planted, and now she has also bought the grape seedlings. How far can the wine be?
The types of poultry have also increased. In addition to the chickens, ducks, and geese that were raised before... there are now two more varieties.
The space is becoming more and more perfect, but it is still not vast enough.
After the sumptuous dinner, my third uncle brought the winery account book and 70,000 taels of silver.
Gu Xinran thanked him and took it. There are so many places to spend money in southern Xinjiang!
The next morning, Gu Xinran left Xiaolan to protect Gu's mother and Tingting, and took Xiaoba and Xiaomei to southern Xinjiang.
More than two hundred miles south of Yunzhou Prefecture is the newly built Nanyi County. The few people rode their horses at full speed and arrived there in three days.
Nanyi County is surrounded by mountains on all sides, with a huge basin in the middle. When Gu Xinran was passing through the mountains and forests, he happened to see a large amount of limestone, and a good idea flashed in his mind.
She immediately retreated into the carriage, took out a charcoal pencil and started writing. Another copy of the Nanyi County Development Plan was added.
This place is only about seventy or eighty miles away from the border. In the past, there were occasional harassments from the Qiyu Kingdom, so the indigenous people moved to safer places.
So even though the land here is fertile, it was abandoned until the refugees settled here and it regained its vitality.
Entering Nanyi County, we saw many temporary thatched huts along the way, and many refugees working in the fields. The crops planted early were already green, while those planted later were still being reclaimed.
Although they have settled down, most of them are still ragged, pale and thin, with no smiles on their faces. It is obvious that their life is very hard.
Finally arrived at Nanyi County. Alas, it was too shabby. The so-called county town was made up of a dozen brick and tile courtyards.
It was the first time that Gu Xinran had seen a county town without even a city wall. She shook her head and smiled bitterly.
Although the place is small, it is very popular. The shops selling farm tools, grain, groceries, etc. are crowded with people. After all, this is a county town with hundreds of thousands of people.
Xiao Ba and Xiao Mei were also shocked by Nanyi County. Xiao Ba blurted out, "Wow, this county is extraordinary. It doesn't even need a city gate!"
Xiaomei echoed, "We can save the trouble of guarding the city gates!"
Gu Xinran smiled and nodded, "You don't understand, this is called openness and tolerance! Welcoming guests from all directions!"
Duan Yunze allowed them to tease him, touched his nose and chuckled, "It's a little crude at first, please bear with me."
Gu Xinran comforted her, "It's okay, as long as there are people, there's no need to worry about not being able to develop."
As he was speaking, four people came over.
A handsome man in his thirties, dressed in a brocade robe, howled at the top of his lungs, "County Magistrate Duan, you've finally returned. If we don't replenish our food and grain, Nanyi County will be unable to survive. I'm quitting my position as County Magistrate. Please seek another capable person."
After saying that, he pretended to wipe his eyes which were completely dry. When he saw that Duan Yunze did not follow the grain transport convoy, his eyes were full of disappointment.
Then she cried, "You've been out for several days, collecting food and seeds, recruiting soldiers, you won't return empty-handed, will you?"
Duan Yunze quickly interrupted his endless chatter, "Uncle Xia, please stop. The grain will be delivered tomorrow, and the good seeds will also..."
He turned to look at Gu Xinran, and she immediately said, "The improved seeds will arrive tomorrow. Just tell me where the warehouse is."
Hearing these words, Uncle Xia smiled and looked at Gu Xinran, asking curiously, "Excuse me, young lady?"
Duan Yunze's lips curled up slightly, "This is my cousin, the Princess of Funing County, the future Princess of Qi, and also my specially invited advisor."
After that, he introduced to Gu Xinran, "This is Xia Jing, the young marquis of Wu'an Marquisate. He is currently serving as the county magistrate. He has contributed both money and effort to the resettlement of refugees and is a great contributor to Nanyi County."
Gu Xinran's heart skipped a beat. This was the "Brother Jing" who had driven Li Shiyin crazy and was almost engaged to her mother!
I couldn't help but take a few more glances at him. He was a handsome middle-aged man, not greasy at all. Judging from his performance just now, he should be an interesting person.
Although he was responsible for his mother's misfortune, he could not be blamed for everything. Let the past be forgotten.
She smiled and bowed, "Hello, young marquis!"
As Gu Xinran looked at the young marquis, Xia Jing also looked at her, feeling a mixture of emotions. The woman he had been thinking about all his life, his daughter was so grown up and still so promising. How wonderful! As long as Yuanyuan was doing well, he would be at peace.
There was a touch of kindness in his eyes when he looked at Gu Xinran. He clasped his fists in return and said, "Hello, Princess Funing. Don't call me Little Marquis. It's too distant. Just call me Uncle Xia like Yunze."
Gu Xinran readily agreed, "Hello, Uncle Xia, then you don't have to call me the Lady of Funing County anymore. Just call me Xinran."
"Okay, Xinran is a good kid. I'll have a good chat with you when I have time. Now, can we talk about the grain first?"
Duan Yunze interrupted their conversation, "Uncle Xia, let's not stand around at the gate. Let's go into the government office first and sit down to discuss. Ranran has a lot of good ideas for refugee resettlement. Let's talk about the improved seedlings together."
After saying that, he led everyone into his study. After a round of introductions, Gu Xinran got to know Wang Zhubu, Sun Dianli, and Li Xunjian. The leadership team of Nanyi County was complete.
After greeting each other and taking their seats, the servant brought tea. After Duan Yunze's opening remarks, Gu Xinran asked Xiao Ba to bring up three bags of high-quality seed samples for everyone to see.
After seeing this, several people were shocked.
Gu Xinran also talked about the quantity that could be provided and introduced the advantages of potatoes. Everyone was instantly convinced by the new advisor.
Wang Zhubu and Sun Dianli, who were dissatisfied with the female legal advisor at first, also became humble at this moment.
Since I have taken up the position of advisor, I must be an outstanding advisor, let the refugees, no, let the people of Nanyi County live a good life, and build the county well.
It would be best to strengthen the city walls of Southern Xinjiang to block the harassment from the Qi Yu Kingdom and allow everyone to live here in peace.
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