Chapter 71 The Sky Curtain Made Me a Historical White Moonlight The Sky Curtain, for publicity...
With clear and concise blueprints, the process of making each tool becomes very simple.
As long as you replicate the product according to the dimensions marked on the diagram, producing the finished product is effortless.
That day, the agricultural official personally went to the imperial estate with those farming tools. There were old farmers in the estate who took care of the plowing.
As soon as the agricultural official carefully brought out the farming tools, the old farmers stood there staring at them with wide eyes. After a long while, they suddenly exclaimed, "These are divine tools that the gods have shown us!"
The agricultural official rolled his eyes in annoyance: "These are agricultural tools personally made by Lord Si!"
"Yes, yes, it's Lord Si!" The old farmer nodded hurriedly, trying several times to reach out and take a look at the farm tools, but he dared not act rashly.
The agricultural official handed over the tools, but they were immediately snatched up by the group of farmers. He quickly shouted to stop them, "Alright, alright, take these tools to the fields and see how they work!"
The results were naturally exceptionally good.
Putting aside other things, experienced farmers have cultivated the land all their lives. They can almost instantly tell whether a farming tool is good or bad, and whether it is suitable or not.
The agricultural official brought several items, and even before they touched them, they could tell that they were all high-quality goods. Once they actually handled them, they realized that these goods were even better than they had imagined!
The original straight-shaft plow, which was difficult to turn and required a lot of effort, has been replaced with a curved-shaft plow (a version modified and enhanced by Siqi). Not only can the plow body be swung freely during operation, but the depth and width of the tillage can also be manually controlled, which is truly eye-opening!
Especially its light and convenient feel, you have to try it to know. Anyway, once they get used to the curved plow, they will never be able to go back to the original straight plow.
"Look at this!" A farmer excitedly ran back and forth in the field, pushing a seed drill. "It's amazing! You just push it forward and the seeds are planted in the soil!"
In the past, to transplant rice seedlings or sow seeds, one had to squat down and plant them little by little in the ground, which was extremely tiring labor. Even the strongest man couldn't withstand working for several days in a row; his body simply couldn't take it.
Now with this thing called a seed drill, three different tasks—sowing, covering, and compacting—can be completed in one go, with an efficiency that is simply astonishing!
Not to mention, this vehicle is not tiring at all; you just need to push it forward while keeping your body upright, which saves you a lot of effort compared to before.
With that extra time and energy, they could cultivate several times more land than before, so they wouldn't have to worry about not having enough to eat.
No wonder the gods in heaven said that after the Prime Minister took office, the people had so much food that they couldn't finish it all, and it all rotted in the granaries.
It must be because these farming tools are so useful that the people have grown several times more grain than before, which is why the granary is so full that it can't hold all the grain!
The agricultural official had the farmers try out each of the farming tools, and after seeing that each tool worked very well, he beamed with joy and said, "Good, good!"
The blueprints were drawn by Si Qi, so the credit naturally goes mostly to Si Qi. But he did contribute something, and when history records this event in the future, his name will be mentioned more or less. He can be said to have made his mark in history!
Moreover, His Majesty the Emperor will surely reward him, making this job both easy and pleasant!
When the agricultural official finished his work and prepared to leave, the farmers hurriedly pleaded, "Sir, sir, could we leave these farm tools with us? We absolutely won't break them!"
"Yes! We would rather break ourselves than break it!"
"We just want to observe it more and see if we can make a few more of the same thing..."
"What do you mean by keeping them or not? These were originally meant for your use!" the agricultural official said with a smile. "Now that it's been confirmed that these farming tools are fine and can be used directly, the Ministry of Revenue will produce them in large quantities and distribute them to the imperial estates throughout the country. If you want them, just take them!"
The farmers were overjoyed and repeatedly expressed their gratitude: "Thank you, sir! Thank you, sir!"
“If you’re going to write it, then thank you, Lord Xie,” the agricultural official waved his hand and said, “I can’t make this myself.”
The farmers immediately changed their tune: "Thank you, Lord Si! May you be blessed with great fortune and live a long and healthy life!"
The agricultural official was both amused and exasperated.
From that day onward, the Ministry of Revenue dispatched numerous drawings and samples to various provinces and regions at breakneck speed. Officials in each province then distributed these materials to county towns and villages.
Presumably, within half a year, these farming tools will gradually appear in fields in various places, and people will personally experience the convenience of the new farming tools and realize that the future depicted in the sky is not so far away from them.
During the development of these agricultural tools, the celestial screen, just as it had predicted, successively played content related to medicine, humanities, and mathematics. While the effect wasn't as dramatic as that of the grain harvest, it certainly had a profound impact.
For example, they would inform people about the smallpox vaccine, which is effective in preventing smallpox; they would tell people that raw water contains parasites and that drinking it could easily lead to illness and a shortened lifespan; they would inform people about the dangers of foot binding, as prolonged sedentary lifestyles would prevent women from exercising and open their pelvises, potentially leading to death during childbirth; they would tell them that the apparent health benefits of "rare medicinal materials" like Wushi San (五石散) were not due to the drug's effectiveness but rather to poisoning; and they would also tell people that marriage between close relatives, such as cousins, could easily result in birth defects in the offspring, and so on.
These things, which are common sense to modern people, were a complete reshaping of the worldview of ancient people. They followed the instructions of the heavens in disbelief and discovered them. Finally, they were shocked to realize that these things were all true in the face of irrefutable facts.
The moment the smallpox vaccine was mentioned in the heavenly curtain, the emperor immediately summoned the imperial physicians to work overtime on its research. Regarding the other mentioned issues, Si Qi had Xiu Xiu provide the most suitable recovery plans in the video, and he vehemently condemned the atrocity of forcibly binding women's feet, expressing extreme dissatisfaction. He believed that if the people had enough reverence for the "divine beings," they would spontaneously take corresponding measures to "atone for their sins."
This process must be extremely painful for those who have already suffered. But the pain of stopping foot binding and restoring the bones is certainly better than enduring a lifetime of broken bones and dying in bed during childbirth in one's teens or twenties; the feeling of stopping taking Wushi Powder must be very difficult to bear, but even the most difficult feeling is better than the skin ulceration all over the body caused by heavy metal poisoning.
Of course, there will be people who won't listen to advice, and there will definitely still be people who insist on taking poison, binding their feet, and having children with their cousins. But most people will choose to cut their losses in time, remove the rotten flesh, and welcome a new life.
This single act of creating a canopy in the sky will save countless lives over the next thousand years.
Thus, starting with agricultural videos, the sky continued to appear.
Because of the sky screen, people all over the world are having their worldviews reshaped every day, as if they are rapidly stepping from one era into another, with earth-shattering discoveries every day.
Through videos related to humanities, they saw the entire planet and learned that the world is a sphere. They also learned that the continent where the Qi Kingdom is located is not the center of the world; there are several other continental plates outside of it, inhabited by people with different skin colors, hair colors, and languages.
The so-called theory of the interaction between Heaven and humanity is utter nonsense. Many pedantic scholars, upon seeing natural disasters or meteors streak across the sky, blame the emperor for not being wise enough and demand that he write an edict of self-reproach to quell public anger. However, natural disasters are actually events that occur naturally under the influence of various factors in nature, and have nothing to do with whether an individual human being is humble or diligent.
If all of these things were said by Si Qi himself in history, many people would surely accuse him of spouting nonsense and spreading rumors.
However, Si Qi never spoke of these things to outsiders in history. He simply recorded his observations of natural science in his notebooks as a form of exploration and discovery, such as merchant ships that set out from the south but returned from the north...
From the perspective of people behind the celestial curtain, the book analyzes Si Xiang's many notes. It presents the entire process of the planet's rotation around the sun in video format, demonstrating the causes of natural phenomena such as rain, snow, wind, and earthquakes.
By doing this, people will not feel that Si Qi maliciously altered the mainstream doctrines of today, but will instead feel indignant that they have been mistaken all along and that it was only through the personal demonstration of the gods in heaven that they realized their limited knowledge and narrow-mindedness.
When it comes to the field of mathematics and physics, there is even more to talk about.
The vital roles of mechanical engineering, applied fundamental physics, and materials science in various fields... each could be discussed at length. They are all beneficial things that can bring tremendous changes to people's lives.
The more people looked at him, the more they felt that Lord Si was simply a genius sent from heaven, able to do everything.
They couldn't help but feel grateful to God for allowing Lord Si to appear and bring hope to their lives.
Of course, some people felt it was unfair the more they watched, questioning whether the gods were deliberately supporting Si Qi, piling all the good things on Si Qi regardless of the consequences, and saying that it was Si Qi's achievement, which was ridiculous.
They can accept the idea of heroes who saved the country, since such heroes did exist in history.
But Si Qi is a national hero who saves the country, and he is also good at medicine, humanities, farming, mathematics and physics... This is outrageous. How could there be such a powerful person in the world!
Si Qi was, after all, a newcomer with no real power base in the court. Amidst the repeated questioning from the nobles led by Zhao Ren, sarcastic remarks in the court grew increasingly rampant, mocking him for being unworthy of his position and a mere facade.
The emperor knew that these people were just jealous and were deliberately attacking Si Qi under the guise of "reasonable analysis."
Take Zhao Ren's family, for example. Ever since the appearance of the Heavenly Curtain and the shift of public opinion in favor of Si Qi, Zhao Ren's father and uncles have been constantly mocking him, saying he was just a greenhorn with no real ability. They claimed that the Zhao family could not possibly disobey the Emperor and swore that everything the Heavenly Curtain said was completely unbelievable.
The nobles did not want to become the rebellious ministers who "rebelled against their superiors and seized power" as the gods had described. Even if they really hoped for it, they certainly wouldn't dare let the emperor know openly. So they stood on the same side as the Zhao family, constantly denying the prophecies of the heavens and saying that they were all nonsense.
The more Tianmu talked about the many influences Siqi brought and showed the world one amazing thing after another, the more they attacked Siqi as if they had found a handle to use against him, claiming that it was all a lie and that no mortal could possibly have such abilities.
Not only them, but many self-righteous court officials were also wary of Si Qi, the emperor's favorite minister who had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
Although they believed in the prophecy spoken by Tianmu, and thought that the future Siqi might really be that powerful, a prophecy is ultimately just a prophecy, something that has not yet happened—didn't they see that the emperor didn't take the lives of the Zhao family because of the "Regent" matter?
Si Qi is just a young man who hasn't even reached thirty yet. He hasn't experienced the rest of his life. How could he possibly create those things? Could he quell a natural disaster without conducting any research? Could he maintain his composure and remain humble and courteous?
As the saying goes, a child who gains power becomes arrogant. If you praise someone too highly and exaggerate their abilities, you can easily end up with a lawless and self-important individual.
Whenever they saw the emperor treat Si Qi with such enthusiasm, as if Si Qi had already saved the Qi Kingdom and made great contributions, they naturally became wary of Si Qi, or even hostile towards him.
That's how it is with the current prime minister.
Even though he was the prime minister, the people outside, the heavens above, and even the emperor all regarded Si Qi as the prime minister, calling him Prime Minister Si Qi with great ease.
Si Qi has only just entered officialdom and hasn't accomplished anything yet, while he has been working diligently for over forty years and has truly made significant contributions to the country! How can Si Qi surpass him from the very beginning?
These past few days, he has suffered countless grievances because of this matter, being repeatedly mocked by his enemies and subtly provoked by those nobles.
He didn't actually cause trouble for Si Qi because he was still rational and knew that this matter had nothing to do with Si Qi himself. Si Qi was just implicated, and others were just deliberately stirring up trouble.
But when the time comes to get angry, I still get really angry.
On this day, after the celestial canopy was released, the emperor was filled with longing for everything described in it.
He habitually assigned these tasks to the ministers in charge, instructing them to devise plans.
The ministers, assigned the task, racked their brains but couldn't come up with a solution. It was like the emperor pointing to the cover of a textbook and asking them to copy the contents of the book based on the titles—it was simply impossible.
The emperor was very disappointed. Why was it that no matter what he ordered his ministers to do, they all reacted this way?
He couldn't help but mention Si Qi, saying that Minister Si must know, and that if they really couldn't figure it out, they should consult him.
Even if the emperor's words were unpleasant, the ministers dared not contradict him.
But they still felt bad inside, and had a sense of being compared and belittled.
Before Si Qi appeared, everyone wasn't under so much work pressure. Now that Si Qi has arrived, they've become inferior in the emperor's eyes, and they can't do anything right.
They had heard that officials in charge of agriculture, the vice minister of the Ministry of Works, and others had consulted Si Qi, who had immediately provided them with detailed drawings and instructed them to produce the items quickly.
But the things they were asking about were, after all, farm tools! And wild herbs!
Si Qi came from a family of farmers and scholars, and it's normal that he had some prior thoughts about farming since he was exposed to these things from a young age. In the prophecy, after Si Qi wandered to the Liang Kingdom, his first fame came from his farming skills.
But apart from that, Si Qi is just like those nobles said, a young man who has just started out, whose life is limited to his hometown. He has not even been an official for more than a month. How could he be as capable as His Majesty said, knowing everything? Aren't those things that Si Qi figured out after he became prime minister in his fifties or sixties?
His Majesty believes too much in the words of the gods and overestimates Si Qi.
The ministers, harboring their discontent and thoughts they could not share with outsiders, went to the Eastern Palace with their companions.
Recently, in order to make it easier to take care of the injured Si Qi, and also to help the Crown Prince build a good relationship with the future pillars of the country, Si Qi stayed in the Eastern Palace after repeated requests from the Emperor and Chu Feng.
This is something that is very irregular, but when faced with a situation like Si Qi's, rules and regulations are not important at all.
After all, the Heavenly Curtain is set off every day, while Si Qi needs to recuperate. It's not feasible to make Si Qi run back and forth between the palace and the outside world every day just because of these things, causing him unnecessary trouble.
This is clearly another reason why some ministers are dissatisfied with Siqi – it's not enough that you have to ride in a sedan chair to court, you don't even want to make the round trip.
The more they thought about it, the angrier they became. The group gathered together and headed aggressively towards the East Palace. They were calculating that since they were such a large group, if Si Qi dared to put on airs, they would expose his true colors as someone with a hollow reputation, let the emperor see through Si Qi's bluff, and let Si Qi know his true worth.
After being informed that they had been granted permission to enter the Eastern Palace, the Crown Prince's men quickly met him inside the hall, along with the young man sitting beside him.
The Crown Prince was still standing, but this person was sitting still. He really doesn't know any manners at all!
The group of people were furious when they saw Si Qi's calm and composed demeanor.
"What are you pretending for? You clearly didn't have this aura before."
Someone muttered to themselves.
Since Si Qi passed the imperial examination with top honors and became a compiler in the Hanlin Academy, everyone had seen what a newly appointed top scholar looked like. Back then, Si Qi was nothing like this, with an air that inspired admiration at first glance. His features weren't as dignified and reserved as he was now; at best, he could be described as a dashing and spirited young man.
It must be that Si Qi deliberately put on this noble and otherworldly appearance to match the description in the sky—just like those wandering Taoist priests who pretend to be profound and unfathomable in order to swindle money.
The result of Xiuxiu's excessive flattery was that these privileged individuals, who had always been pampered, developed a rebellious attitude.
Looking at Si Qi now, even knowing that Si Qi is a talented person, one cannot help but feel some criticism and scrutiny, and subconsciously raises the bar for Si Qi.
Before anyone could even utter a sarcastic remark or interrupt Si Qi's question about his rudeness in front of the Crown Prince, Si Qi spoke first, sitting down and bowing, saying, "This humble official has difficulty walking, and His Majesty has granted me permission not to stand up to greet you for the time being. Please forgive me, esteemed officials."
The ministers: "..."
He immediately tried to intimidate them by invoking His Majesty; this guy is really annoying.
However, after Si Qi was released from prison, the emperor did indeed tell everyone in front of them that Si Qi did not need to bow, so they could not say anything.
But Si Qi continued, "Once I have fully recovered from my injuries, I will apologize to all of you."
He said this with a smile, without a trace of arrogance in his tone. His words, delivered with a mix of gentle persuasion and subtle criticism, somewhat eased the dissatisfaction in the ministers' hearts. They reflexively replied, "Lord Si, you are too kind. We understand that your injuries have not yet healed."
After saying that, Qi Qi was stunned for a moment, wondering why she had said that extra sentence and even made excuses for Si Qi—weren't they here to cause trouble for Si Qi?
Si Qi then politely inquired, "May I ask what brings you gentlemen here?"
They were led astray by Si Qi, but before they could react, they subconsciously replied, "We have some questions we'd like to ask Lord Si."
Si Qi smiled and nodded: "I dare not presume to ask for your guidance, but I hope that I can do my best to help you all."
The ministers said, "You're too kind, Lord Si. Don't be so modest." But in their hearts, they were somewhat displeased by the young Si Qi's lack of fear and timidity.
They were all seasoned veterans, and they could naturally see that Si Qi was confident; he was just being modest on the surface.
This made them even more critical of Si Qi. If Si Qi's answer was not brilliant or outstanding, and his level was just that of an ordinary court official, they would certainly not be satisfied, and might even think that Si Qi was "nothing special".
Having lived in the palace for a long time, Chu Feng could see through the thoughts in the minds of these ministers at a glance.
Seeing the ministers bring up what Tianmu had said today, and the many policies implemented by the Prime Minister that were extremely beneficial to the people's livelihood, and asking Si Qi about them, he couldn't help but feel worried for Si Qi.
After all, that was something that Si Qi would spend a long time exploring, trying, and repairing countless times after he became a high-ranking official in the court over the next few decades.
Since it is so outstanding that even people a thousand years later would specifically emphasize and praise it, its complexity is certainly beyond the control of ordinary people. Even the current emperor might not be able to understand it.
Asking Si Qi, who is only in his early twenties, directly is asking him a lot of questions.
Just like the great poets, if you asked them, young and inexperienced, to write those poems that were full of wisdom and wisdom, they certainly wouldn't be able to do it; that's due to the difference in their life experience.
But the officials in the court, and even his father, the emperor, were not so understanding.
Especially for ministers who had been subtly "spiked" by the emperor many times, even if they didn't say it, they must have thought to themselves, "Since you are the 'Minister of State' praised by the gods in the heavens, how could you possibly know nothing and be completely incompetent?"
If you can't do it, then you're not good enough. You don't deserve such high praise from everyone. You should work harder.
Otherwise, why should we let you take away our position as prime minister? Why should we have to be inferior to you in every way when your abilities are not yet high enough?
Most people would be under tremendous psychological pressure if they were surrounded by such an environment. Some might even be driven to despair by the excessive expectations of those around them.
Chu Feng knew this all too well.
As the crown prince, he was treated with high expectations by everyone from a young age. Whether it was etiquette or knowledge, if he was not perfect in any way, he would be met with pity and dismay, as if he had done something terribly wrong.
He was clearly more outstanding than all his peers, and he had worked hard enough, but in other people's eyes, being outstanding and hardworking was obviously not enough. He had to be the best to be worthy of the position of Crown Prince.
As Chu Feng grew up, he overcame those difficulties and achieved everything everyone expected, thus becoming the perfect crown prince in the eyes of outsiders. While he appeared outwardly glamorous, the hardships he had endured were completely unknown to others.
He didn't want Si Qi to experience the same thing as him.
He interrupted gently: "These political affairs, can't even you ministers understand them? I believe that you ministers are the most outstanding pillars of our Great Qi, and you should be able to easily understand the policies that Minister Si has figured out on his own after decades of hard work."
The ministers were quite embarrassed. They couldn't agree or disagree, so they could only say, "What the Celestial Immortal said was a bit hasty. Your Highness has not yet grasped the whole picture. Please forgive my ignorance."
Chu Feng: "I see. However, Lord Si has only recently entered the court and is not as experienced as you gentlemen. We still need to rely on you gentlemen to handle these matters."
On the surface, it seemed like the Crown Prince was belittling Si Qi and elevating them, but everyone present was shrewd enough to see that His Highness was actually backing Si Qi up and warning them not to try to push everything onto Si Qi. They chuckled awkwardly and said, "We wouldn't dare."
Si Qi's eyes curved slightly, and Chu Feng, who was looking after his son with a smile, spoke up for him, saying to the officials, "Since that's the case, then I'll offer some of my humble opinions."
He picked up a record of the heavenly curtain brought by the minister, glanced at the contents, and pointed to a section, reminding him, "Your Excellency, there is a missing word here. There should be an extra 'fu' (赋)."
Language is such that adding or omitting a single word, or even making a mistake in punctuation, can completely change the meaning.
The ministers looked down, added the word "fu" (赋) to the text, and read it aloud. The originally obscure and difficult-to-understand sentences suddenly became clear, and they exclaimed in realization, "So that's how it is!"
After saying that, they were stunned and couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed.
How come Si Qi caught my mistake before I even had a chance to test him?
They got off to a bad start and lost face. They were quite worried that Si Qi would become arrogant and look down on them, so they secretly glanced at Si Qi.
Si Qi showed no unusual expression and continued to read the manuscript attentively, not paying any attention to the error.
This put them at ease, but also left them with a sense of disappointment, like punching cotton.
Before she could even savor the feeling, her attention was drawn away by Si Qi's next words.
"Sir, look at this place..."
Just as a teacher in a classroom was explaining the meaning of classical Chinese to students sentence by sentence, Si Qi explained to them the specific plans and arrangements of these policies, explaining why they were done and what the benefits were.
They were already so troubled by the hastily scribbled-down celestial content on the paper that they were practically losing their hair. But when they suddenly heard Si Qi's textbook-like explanation, their attention was instantly drawn to him. They quickly took out their pens and ink and started writing on the paper, asking Si Qi questions from time to time about things they didn't understand.
As I said before, you don't need to test someone to see if they are capable; you can find out just by having a brief conversation with them.
Chu Feng stared blankly for a moment as Si Qi spoke eloquently, then couldn't help but chuckle softly.
It turned out he was worrying unnecessarily.
His laughter was soft and shouldn't have been noticed by the crowd engaged in their lively discussion. However, the officials present were all accustomed to paying close attention to their superiors' reactions, and their attention was always slightly diverted to Chu Feng.
When Chu Feng suddenly laughed, his laughter carrying an unexpected tone, they were momentarily stunned, then quickly realized what was happening and couldn't help but cover their faces with their sleeves, feeling extremely embarrassed.
Clearly, His Highness the Crown Prince had noticed their hostile, condescending attitude as they assessed Si Qi's abilities.
This was actually what they had hoped for at first; they wanted to take this opportunity to deflate Si Qi's arrogance and let His Highness the Crown Prince see Si Qi's true capabilities. However, things didn't go as planned. Before they even had a chance to make things difficult for Si Qi, they were taught a lesson by Si Qi's abundant talent.
A group of ministers, all well past their forties or fifties, set aside their prejudices and looked at the young man before them. They found him to be handsome, with clear eyes and impeccable manners.
Given his humble origins, yet his ability to achieve the highest honors in the imperial examinations at the young age of twenty, making him the top scholar, would undoubtedly be considered a remarkable young talent.
Judging from their own experience, if they were young and impetuous and encountered such a thing, just entering the court and about to make their mark, they would definitely be praised by the gods and known throughout the world, and they would definitely be filled with fantasies and feel smug.
So they subconsciously felt that Si Qi, this young upstart, would definitely do the same.
In reality, someone who receives such high praise from even the gods must possess exceptional qualities that are valued by the gods, setting them apart from ordinary people. How could they possibly be as frivolous and restless as these mortals?
The ones who are truly arrogant, complacent, and look down on others are actually them.
Si Qi was humble and polite from beginning to end. The first thing he did upon meeting them was to apologize for his leg injury that prevented him from bowing. He spoke in a very gentle manner, without any of the arrogance they had imagined.
Recalling the calamity Si Qi suffered not long ago, remembering the prophecy of Si Qi's magnanimous help to the State of Qi, and thinking about all the contributions Si Qi has made to the people throughout history...
The more they thought about it, the more guilty they felt. They couldn't understand how they had been so blinded by greed, targeting Si Qi as if he were a vicious villain who had been prophesied to constantly harm Si Xiang, ostracizing and suppressing him, unable to bear seeing Si Qi do well.
That was really wrong.
Listening to Si Qi's friendly words, which were clearly instructive but sounded like he was asking them for advice, the ministers felt increasingly uneasy. Their guilt turned into heartache for Si Qi and admiration for his talent.
Just like the expressions on the faces of ordinary people when they talk about the Prime Minister in their daily lives.
Chu Feng witnessed the group's sudden change in attitude and felt very proud.
However, seeing Si Qi's effortless demeanor before the assembled officials, his simple white robes exuding a pure and aloof air, showing none of the instinctive trepidation a young minister would feel in the face of such powerful figures, he couldn't help but recall the whispers of the guards not long ago, who said that Lord Si was a celestial being who had descended to the mortal realm, and that he would eventually return to heaven after achieving his goals, to enjoy the offerings of the world.
He is a different being from ordinary people.
Chu Feng lowered his eyes.
But what if he really is a god?
Could he leave God behind? Could he make God look more at him?
Blasphemy
These two words inexplicably popped into Chu Feng's mind, and he was slightly startled. He quickly composed himself, put on a gentle demeanor, and acted as if he hadn't thought of anything at all.
Meanwhile, as the ministers listened to Si Qi's explanation, they were increasingly impressed by his exceptional talent at such a young age. He effortlessly presented the complex and often perplexing policy arguments in a clear and organized manner. They couldn't help but praise him inwardly, thinking that Si Qi truly possessed the qualities of a legendary prime minister; his talent was already beginning to show from this moment on.
They exclaimed, "As expected of an article written by Lord Si, we have been looking at it for a long time and still can't find a clue, but Lord Si understands it immediately. It is truly admirable."
Si Qi humbly replied, "This was done by me in the future (several lifetimes ago), and I benefited somewhat from the advantages of my status."
"You're too modest, sir." They don't think their younger selves could understand what they're writing now. Back then, they were just kids; what could they possibly know?
Si Qi smiled but remained silent.
The group spent the whole day at Si Qi's place, even shamelessly mooching meals from Chu Feng.
When they got home, their beaming appearance aroused the curiosity of their family members, who asked what good thing had happened.
They found someone to confide in and couldn't help but talk at length to their families about just how outstanding Si Qi's talent was and how much they had achieved that day. They were so full of vigor that they seemed to have become several years younger, leaving their family members stunned.
"Didn't you dislike Lord Si before, saying he was young and immature?"
This made them too embarrassed to call Si Qi "Prime Minister" at home, for fear of angering the real Prime Minister of the Great Qi.
The prime minister puffed out his beard and glared, stubbornly saying, "Lord Si is younger than me, am I wrong?"
As for being ignorant?
When did he ever say that?
The old man was stubborn and refused to admit that he had ever spoken ill of Si Qi. He even instructed his family not to be prejudiced against Si Qi just because he was the prime minister. Those around him exchanged glances, too embarrassed to admit that they had actually always supported Si Qi, but no one had told the old man.
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Author's Note: --
Si Qi: I don't want to maintain a bitter, patriotic, and worried appearance all the time like in Tianmu. I'd rather pretend to be a "deity descended to earth." It's easier that way.
#On the aftereffects of over-praising Xiuxiu#
Swoosh (frantically wiping sweat): Ah, this...
#I haven't even unleashed a tenth of my previous talent for writing effusive compliments online#
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