Chapter 110 My Lady Loves Me
That day, Xiao Ji was pushed by Zhao Tong to travel all over Hedong Village. Although the road was uneven and bumpy at times, he never complained.
They walked through the green vegetable plots and past the homes of the villagers, quickly attracting their attention. In the first few days of their arrival at the palace, most of the villagers took turns working there, so they all knew Xiao Ji and Qing Wu.
As soon as they saw them coming, they immediately put down their work and surrounded them, greeting them with concern, but of course they were more concerned about whether there was any work for them to do.
But Xiao Ji hadn't expected him to keep asking the village head about local customs and farming matters—was this something the nobles would care about? After listening for a long time with doubt, the people following him couldn't help but talk about the troubles in the village.
"The well in the village dries up every summer..."
"In the forest behind the mountain, wild boars always come and destroy the crops..."
"It would be great if there was a school in the village. Children have to go to the next village to go to school..."
An old farmer immediately smiled bitterly and said, "Even if the village can afford to run a school and have a teacher, how many children can afford to go to school?"
"Too……"
Xiao Ji didn't respond, but he quietly took note. As the sun set, he circled the circle, even in his wheelchair, his clothes stained with grass seeds, his hips and legs aching from the jolting, but his eyes were brighter than when he arrived. What he saw and heard that day transformed all the agricultural books he'd read into real experiences, giving him more ideas and a clearer direction.
Seeing that it was getting late, Qing Wu persuaded Xiao Ji to go back and come back tomorrow. She was not idle today: while Xiao Ji was looking at the farmland, she observed the herbs in the nearby woods and secretly memorized their locations.
As the group was about to return, they suddenly saw a hunchbacked old woman staggering towards them, holding an exquisite straw basket in her hand.
"My wife..." The old woman's voice was hoarse. It was Granny Liu, whom Qing Wu had treated the day before. "There's nothing good about this old woman..."
Qing Wu hurried forward to support her: "Grandma, you just recovered from your cold, why did you come out?"
Granny Liu pressed the basket into Qingwu's hands with all her might. "I heard you were coming to the village, so I waited for you." A shy smile crossed her wrinkled face. "This is for you, please don't despise it."
Xiao Ji curiously peeked inside the basket and saw seven or eight black and brown beetles, motionless. He was just beginning to wonder when Qing Wu exclaimed in surprise, "Gold-edged earthworms! Where did Grandma find them?"
Seeing Qingwu like this, Granny Liu smiled and said, "Under the old locust tree in the back mountain, I remembered that this was a good bone-setting thing, so I caught it for you. Let's see if it can be used by your husband."
"That's right!" Qing Wu carefully closed the lid of the basket, with joy in her eyes. "This insect dried and ground into powder will really benefit Liu Lang's leg injury." Xiao Ji had almost finished the medicine she brought from the palace, and she was thinking about making some medicine herself.
Xiao Ji was stunned when he heard this. He didn't expect that this ordinary beetle was a medicinal herb, and he didn't expect that the poor old woman would take this matter to heart.
Qingwu took out her purse, but Granny Liu repeatedly waved her hands and refused: "Madam, you didn't accept the money for the medicine that day. I feel bad about it..."
"But this earthworm is more valuable than those herbs from that day..."
Granny Liu grabbed Qingwu's hand and said gratefully, "How can you say that? Madam, you helped me first, and that's a favor. And this earthworm wasn't raised by me, so please keep it."
She looked at Xiao Ji kindly, as if she was looking at her own grandchild, "My wife understands medical principles, so please give this earthworm to my husband. My husband must take good care of himself..."
Xiao Ji met Granny Liu's gaze, and his heart moved again. Back when he was the Crown Prince, no matter how many precious gifts others gave him, he had never felt this kind of bittersweet yet warm feeling.
The young man fell into deep thought. When he came to his senses, Qingwu had already put away the basket and said goodbye to Granny Liu.
"We are going back now. Don't send me off, mother-in-law. You are old and your legs are not in good condition."
He watched his wife waving to Granny Liu with a smile, hesitated for a few moments, then slowly raised his hand and waved, his posture rather stiff.
This action caught Qingwu and Zhao Tong's eyes, both somewhat surprised. As they walked further, Qingwu couldn't help but say, "Sixth Prince, look, this is the simplicity of the people. Treat them well, and they will treat you well."
Xiao Ji didn't answer, but looked back. The old woman in the distance was still standing there. Seeing him turn around, she waved again.
He turned his head instantly, with a look of bewilderment on his face, but the emotions in his heart gradually settled and brewed, as if he understood something, but also seemed to be still in chaos.
After returning to the palace, Xiao Ji thought about it for a long time and always felt a mysterious feeling in his heart. Finally, he asked Zhao Tong to find a blank notebook and decided to write down everything he needed to do during this period.
He thought for a moment, then picked up his pen and wrote, "On April 16th, the 23rd year of Deyou, I was inspecting Hedong Village. The old woman, in gratitude to the Madam, gave me eight earthworms... I felt sad, but also happy."
After finishing this line, the young man felt as if something was missing. His eyes fell on the lady who was collecting herbs in the courtyard, and suddenly an inspiration came to him. He picked up the pen and wrote: "Yesterday, the lady listened to my concerns, and today she accompanied me on my inspection tour. The lady loves me."
As the last four words were written on the paper, the young man couldn't help but raise the corners of his lips.
That's right. If it's a note, how can it not have a wife?
After rolling up the Qingwu straw mat and collecting the herbs, he went into the room and found Xiao Ji sitting at the desk, grinning foolishly. He couldn't help but ask, "Why is Liu Lang so happy?"
But he immediately closed the book on the table, as if he had done something shameful.
"No, nothing." Xiao Ji's ears were slightly hot. "I was preparing to draw a picture of the drum cart."
Although Qingwu was a little suspicious, she didn't think much about it. She just thought that he had contact with the capital and it was inconvenient for her to know, so she went out to see if it was time for dinner.
Seeing her leave, Xiao Ji breathed a sigh of relief. He opened the book again and saw the words. He pursed his lips and couldn't help laughing. He laughed for a full quarter of an hour before carefully putting the notes away and pressing them at the bottom of a pile of books.
This way, Madam won't find out.
*
At night, the spies reported all of Xiao Ji's actions of the day to their respective masters. The princes had different reactions to the news, but none of them took it seriously.
If Xiao Ji contacted officials in the capital, they would be afraid, but he went to contact a village head - a village head who was in charge of dozens of households. What kind of trouble could this cause?
"Could it be that my sixth brother wants to imitate the ancient sages and 'cultivate the land himself' to gain fame? But can he plow the land with his broken leg now? Hahahaha." Prince Wu stroked the golden Buddha worshipped by the princess and laughed out loud without any hesitation.
Prince Wen was no less egregious: "He can't be the crown prince, so he wants to be the emperor of a village? If I ascend the throne, what does it matter if I give him a village?"
Only Emperor Xiao Yuancheng paused as he scooped up the medicinal soup after hearing the spy's report. "You said Xue Nu insisted on going to the river?"
"Your Majesty, it is true. Sixth Young Master, despite his inconvenience, had sunk into a riverbank and insisted on entering. He stared at the stream for a long time. Fortunately, Sixth Madam held his arm firmly."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
