114 Red Envelope
"Take it or leave it."
As Liu Zimu approached, she stepped aside to let him pass, but he still leaned in close, his cheek almost brushing against her shoulder.
Shen Suqin felt a little uncomfortable. When she looked up at him, she saw that he was expressionless and realized that she was overthinking things.
Then, she saw Liu Zimu expressionlessly drink up the remaining sugar water he had finished.
Shen Suqin: ......
She stammered, "I've had that."
Liu Zimu turned to look at her: "Red bean paste is very difficult to make. I cooked it for a whole day and night. I would feel bad if I wasted it."
Shen Suqin: "Oh. Sorry."
"Teacher, there's no need to apologize. It's getting late, I'll take you home."
"No need, the driver is waiting for me outside."
"Okay, then I'll see the teacher to the door."
After seeing Shen Suqin off, Liu Zimu returned, holding the bowl in his hand as before. He slowly stroked the rim of the bowl with his fingers as he walked to the bookshelf and took out the book that Shen Suqin had just reached for.
He turned the pages, which were filled with annotations written by Shen Suqin himself. He gently stroked each page, and when he reached the last page, a small portrait appeared on the paper with delicate brushstrokes. The paper was rolled up, and it was clear that it had been read more than once.
He pressed his finger against the side of the small statue's lips, applying pressure with his fingertip, causing the paper to wrinkle slightly. He quickly released the pressure, as if afraid of hurting the small statue.
That day, after arranging his affairs, Liu Zimu set off for the capital.
I returned two weeks later.
Upon his return, he went directly to the Shen residence to find Shen Suqin, only to find that Shen Suqin was not there, but Yan Lin and Su Yubai were.
He hadn't had much interaction with them before, mainly because he had always worked for Shi Ye and had little contact with them.
But in the past two years, as he took charge of Jinzhou, the group would meet from time to time for official business.
He walked in, and the two people in the courtyard looked at him at the same time.
They seemed to be building a wooden frame, a very tall and large frame, big enough for several people to sit and cool off underneath.
"Where's the flower stand from before?" he asked.
“I said I don’t like it anymore and want to change it,” Yan Lin replied.
"Change it to what?"
“The grapevines brought in from outside the pass need to be trellised.”
Liu Zimu nodded, without asking what a grapevine was, and put down the letter in his hand, voluntarily rolled up his sleeves and came over to help.
"You're quite perceptive," Su Yubai said.
Liu Zimou: "Thank you for the compliment."
Su Yubai snorted.
"Lord Liu just returned from the capital and came here immediately?" Yan Lin asked.
"His Majesty has sent a letter that I must personally deliver to my teacher."
Upon hearing this, all three fell silent.
After a while, Su Yubai said, "Go open the letter and let me see what's written inside."
Yan Lin: "Don't be ridiculous. That's His Majesty's letter. Do you want to commit treason?"
He had barely finished speaking when Liu Zimou said, "I've seen it. It's all words of advice for the teacher to take care of his health and to visit him in the capital more often."
Yan Lin: ......
Su Yubai chuckled.
The three of them worked quietly and in perfect harmony to build the frame. When the frame was almost finished, Liu Zimu suddenly suggested, "How about we build a swing? I think little girls like those."
The other two thought for a moment and said, "Okay."
When Shen Suqin returned, there was not only a grape trellis in the yard, but also a swing.
However, none of the people who were supposed to be on the swings were there.
She didn't like having strangers in her home, so there were no maids or servants in the mansion. As a result, when she returned home near dark, the entire house was empty.
She didn't want to go inside, so she went to sit on the swing. The night breeze was a bit cool, the sky was deep blue, the stars hadn't risen yet, and the surrounding area was completely silent.
Shen Suqin rested her head on the swing, lost in thought.
Spring passed and autumn came. Emperor Xingwu issued an imperial edict to the world, and a vigorous tax reform began.
Unsurprisingly, dissenting voices arose one after another in the imperial court.
Emperor Xingwu abandoned his usual mild-mannered approach and became unusually resolute. Those officials who dared to remonstrate to the death were either imprisoned or beheaded.
Only then did everyone realize that the young emperor had developed an iron fist.
However, since it concerned the interests of powerful families, no one wanted to give up easily.
So, someone secretly went to the palace villa and contacted Pei Ruhai, hoping that he would come out of retirement and help uphold justice.
Unexpectedly, Pei Ruhai claimed to be ill, saying he was bedridden and unable to care for anyone.
At this point, the attitude of the leading family of Daliang was clear, and no one dared to voice any opposition.
The following year, a new tax system came into effect, and in order to reduce taxes, some large landowners gradually began to sell their land.
At first, they sold the land at a high price, but then the price gradually decreased, and more and more land was released.
At the same time, the imperial court also encouraged landless people to reclaim wasteland on their own. Unlike in the past, the imperial court would provide subsidies for reclaiming wasteland and exempt them from taxes for three years.
Therefore, for a long time, reclaiming wasteland became a nationwide craze, which greatly increased the land area of Daliang.
The situation of land consolidation has been alleviated, people now own land, the number of migrants has further decreased, and living in peace and contentment has become the norm.
On New Year's Eve of another year, Xiao Pingchuan returned from the Shule River.
He has been training troops in preparation for war for the past two years and rarely returns to Ningyuan.
His main purpose in returning this time was to inspect the firearms workshop and confirm the stock of firearms.
Yan Lin can now be considered the number one expert in firearms within the Great Liang territory, wielding heavy cannons and a large number of muskets.
The cannon weighs several hundred kilograms, is made of pure iron, and requires four wheels and the combined efforts of eight people to move it.
“Don’t let its bulky appearance fool you. No matter how thick the city gate or how high the city wall, three cannon shots will surely blast it open,” Yan Lin said. “See that one over there? It was completely flattened by cannon fire.”
He pointed to the hilltop not far away and said.
"How many do you have on hand right now?" Xiao Pingchuan asked.
"Twelve units. Next year when you go on the expedition, I guarantee you'll get at least twenty units, enough to shear a layer off Mount Nichijin."
Xiao Pingchuan clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Thank you for your trouble."
Yan Lin patted his shoulder: "I'm not doing this entirely for you. Hurry up and finish fighting the Shatuo and come back. Zhao Zhao misses you."
Xiao Pingchuan's originally cold and hard aura softened instantly, and he said gently, "I will."
"Alright, go back and keep her company after you've finished watching the muskets."
"good."
The muskets were in another warehouse; it would take a while to walk there.
On the way, Yan Lin said to Xiao Pingchuan, "The use of firearms requires instruction from a master, especially muskets, otherwise it is easy to injure others or yourself. You set a time yourself, and once it's set, I will have a master take the firearms to the Shule River to teach the soldiers how to use them. Don't worry about this."
"Yes. I will."
The warehouse was crammed full of muskets.
Xiao Pingchuan knew that these preparations had been underway for several years, and there would be no problem with the quantity.
"I'd like to ask how lethal the muskets are now?" he asked.
"The effective range is 150 paces. It can go further, but the lethality will be weaker. It still can't fire in bursts; you have to reload after each shot. However, the reloading method has been improved, and once you get used to it, it will hardly affect the use."
"What should we attack? Can we use area-of-effect attacks?"
"Look at the ammunition. Some ammunition contains multiple iron balls. Firing these can knock down a whole group of people."
"How many?"
"Not many, five thousand is barely enough to keep us going."
Xiao Pingchuan nodded: "That's enough."
After returning from Laomaoling, Xiao Pingchuan went to the Shen residence.
Shen Suqin only occasionally inquires about Xingyuan Restaurant these days. Unless there's something extremely important going on at Guzongfang, Su Yubai generally won't bother her.
She originally wanted to simply hand over the management of Xingyuan Restaurant to Yan Lin, but he was too busy, so she had to continue managing it herself.
“You’re back, so it’s a family reunion. I ordered a reunion hot pot from Xingyuan tonight,” Shen Suqin said. “I don’t think you’ve had it yet.”
Xiao Pingchuan sat down at the table and replied, "Indeed, no."
"Then you should try it. Nowadays, anything can be grown in greenhouses, and there's no shortage of vegetables all year round. The food you eat in Shule River isn't as plentiful as what you get here."
"Okay, I'll try it."
The two chatted as they ate at the steaming hot pot.
“Every year on New Year’s Eve, Su Dangjia, Brother Yan and I spend it together. This year, Liu Zimu said he had nowhere to go, so he wanted to come too,” Shen Suqin said.
Xiao Pingchuan nodded: "If you want to come, then come."
"Well, let me tell you, this kid is really something now. He's decisive and efficient. Didn't they say the court was going to reform the tax system? Shi Ye directly sent him to various places to supervise the implementation. Guess what he did? Before he went, he thoroughly investigated those wealthy gentry, got their dirt on them, and used a combination of coaxing, deception, and threats. He did a really good job."
"It's all thanks to your excellent teaching," Xiao Pingchuan replied with a smile.
Regarding this, Shen Suqin has always been very proud: "That's right. I took him back to Fuliang Mountain to meet my teacher before. My teacher liked him very much and said that he had a bright future."
"Professor Ji also praised me," Xiao Pingchuan said.
"Yes, yes, my teachers all like you very much."
"Eat your food," Xiao Pingchuan said, putting some food into her bowl. "We can talk as we eat."
Before you know it, it's New Year's Eve, and the Shen family mansion is unusually lively.
Yan Lin was still in charge of cooking, Su Yubai was in charge of playing with Shen Suqin, Xiao Pingchuan helped Yan Lin with the cooking, and the newcomer Liu Zimu was in charge of putting up window decorations and Spring Festival couplets.
The fireworks made by the firearms workshop this year are very beautiful. I heard they even have blue ones, which is very difficult and rare.
Shen Suqin had been waiting for nightfall since dawn, eagerly watching those few fireworks.
“Once the arsenal no longer needs to manufacture firearms, I’ll have them manufacture fireworks to sell, high-end fireworks, and sell them at the highest price,” Shen Suqin said. “Think about it, can fireworks made by cannon makers be sold cheaply?”
Su Yubai didn't like hearing about business during the New Year, so he interrupted, "It's New Year's, no business talk. Liu Zimu, get your teacher and me some more tea."
Liu Zimu arrived quickly with a teapot, but he only refilled Shen Suqin's cup, completely ignoring Su Yubai.
Su Yubai pouted, got up and took the teapot to pour tea, saying to Shen Suqin as she poured, "It's so good to have a son, he's so filial."
Shen Suqin chuckled: "He hits really hard, so remember to run fast later."
"You think I'm afraid of him?"
Before he could finish speaking, he was hit by a paste brush that Liu Zimu had casually thrown at him.
"Hey, you!" Su Yubai was going to take revenge.
"Su Yubai, come and start a fire," Yan Lin called out to him through the window.
Su Yubai didn't move, but Shen Suqin did, leaning on the windowsill and asking him, "Let me do it, Brother Yan."
Yan Lin said expressionlessly, "I don't want to watch you burn down the kitchen during the New Year. Go play somewhere else."
Shen Suqin grinned.
Xiao Pingchuan handed over a washed fruit and said, "We'll be eating soon, just wait a little longer."
"good."
After the New Year's Eve dinner was ready, the group sat around the table and asked each other for lucky money.
These few, taken together, represent half of the nation's strength, arguing back and forth over a few coins' worth of red envelopes.
Everyone else prepared gifts for Shen Suqin, but Shen Suqin only prepared gifts for Xiao Pingchuan.
The other three disagreed and insisted that Shen Suqin fill in the gap immediately.
Shen Suqin planned to slack off by collecting all their red envelopes, shuffling them, and then sending them back, but the group discovered this and wouldn't let it go.
"How can you be so shameless? You earn so much money in a year, and you have to ask someone else for a red envelope to give out?" Su Yubai said.
Shen Suqin: "Take it or leave it."
"I want you to wrap them yourself," Liu Zimu said.
Shen Suqin replied as before: "Take it or leave it."
Only Xiao Pingchuan sat on the sidelines, watching the spectacle with great interest.
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