Chapter 57 The sound of crickets
Although Zhu Qizhen had some complaints about the study plan formulated by Zhang Fu, with Zhu Yuhuan watching, he had no choice but to do as he was told.
After a month, Zhu Qizhen had practiced quite well and became more and more courageous. Sometimes he dared to let the eunuchs who were leading the horses let go and he would walk back and forth holding the reins by himself.
Thanks to Zhu Yuhuan who was right next to him, although Zhu Qizhen had some complaints about not being able to draw the bow, his sister was watching him, and Zhu Qizhen didn't want to embarrass himself in front of his sister, so he did it seriously no matter how reluctant he was.
At this moment, Zhang Fu couldn't help but sigh that Your Majesty's arrangement was really good.
Not to mention him, even if the Three Yangs were to teach the prince, who would dare to say anything? Only the eldest sister, Princess Shunde, had some authority over the prince.
Zhu Yuhuan had originally had a chair moved nearby to read a book, but when he noticed Zhang Fu's gaze, he asked, "Speaking of which, I forgot to ask the Duke of Ying..."
Before she could finish her words, Zhang Fu said, "Princess, please ask."
"How's Zhong'er's marriage going?" Zhu Yuhuan saw Zhang Fu's surprise and said with a smile, "Father asked me to help teach Zhen'er riding and archery, and I can't leave the palace often. I heard about the Duke of Ying'er's wife looking for a date from Doctor Xu... After all, Zhong'er helped me a lot before. If there's anything I can do for you, I'll do my best."
Zhang Fu understood and said he dared not, "Princess, Zhong'er's marriage has been decided, and they will be officially married next year. However, he suffers from a leg disease..." Before he finished speaking, Zhu Yuhuan already understood the implication.
Zhang Fu is now just trying his luck. He has to give birth to a grandson first no matter what. As for whether he can inherit the title, he can only wait and carefully ask for the emperor's will later.
Zhu Yuhuan nodded in understanding and said, "It's better to settle important matters in life as early as possible."
Zhu Qizhen happened to be riding back. He dismounted by stepping on a stool and asked curiously, "What are you talking about, sister?"
Zhu Yuhuan looked at him and changed the subject, saying, "My sister is discussing with Duke Ying that autumn is coming soon and it will snow in the capital. You should take a break from riding and shooting and concentrate on your studies."
Zhu Qizhen sighed in disappointment and said, "I finally managed to ride a horse by myself. If I don't practice for a whole winter, won't I forget it later?"
What's more important is that riding a horse is much more interesting than reading motionlessly. After finishing the enlightenment book sent by his sister, Zhu Qizhen found the bitter words in the book boring, but he didn't want to read the enlightenment book again after reading it once. Only the stories told by Wang Zhen were interesting.
Zhu Yuhuan patiently advised, "Not only will we have to clean up the stables after the snow, but people's bones are brittle in winter. If you accidentally fall, not only will you injure yourself, but who knows how much trouble you'll get into later." She smiled and praised, "You've practiced for so long, you've memorized it. With a little practice next spring, you'll be able to get back on track in no time."
Zhu Qizhen was still a little reluctant, but Zhu Yuhuan had already said, "If you accidentally fall, will Grandma and the Imperial Concubine blame you again?"
Zhu Qizhen immediately became serious and said, "I understand. Sister is right."
When Concubine Sun was nagging him, he could pretend to be busy with his studies and slip away, but Empress Dowager Zhang was his grandmother who raised him, and his father was the most filial. Even if he had ten times the courage, he would not dare to contradict or neglect them.
Zhu Yuhuan then smiled and said, "Okay, I'll have a new Cuju sent to your palace. If you have nothing to do in winter, you can ask Yu Ge'er to play Cuju with you. It won't be boring, right?"
Zhu Qizhen then smiled happily and said, "Big sister is still good to me."
When Zhang Fu saw this scene, he knew that the brother and sister had a very good relationship and were almost no different from siblings in ordinary families.
If Princess Shunde had not been so intelligent and upright, who knows how much trouble the prince would have caused if he had been so obedient to his sister.
As the weather grew colder, Zhu Yuhuan went out of the palace less frequently. Since he no longer had to stay with Zhu Qizhen, he finally found time to visit Wunong Temple.
The craftsmen of Wunong Temple were the most idle people in autumn. When they saw Zhu Yuhuan finally had some free time to come, they immediately offered him warm hospitality.
They were responsible for researching agricultural tools, but after looking around, there seemed to be nothing that could be improved. Princess Shunde, who had made suggestions many times before, was not here, so the craftsmen were inevitably a little passive and lazy.
However, he did not expect to hear the chirping of crickets as soon as he arrived at the door of the greenhouse of Wunong Temple, which gave Zhu Yuhuan a startled shock.
The last time she heard the chirping of crickets in the greenhouse was during the Yongle period. If Zhu Yuhuan had not been sure that she was completely awake at this moment, she would have wondered if she had returned to her childhood.
Seeing her astonishment, the craftsman at Wunong Temple explained, "It was arranged by Wang Dayong, one of His Majesty's attendants. He said that the ones His Majesty originally kept were eaten by the imperial cats, so they ordered new ones to be raised and then given to the eunuchs in charge of insects in the Palace of Heavenly Purity. It's no big deal if they can't keep them alive; people outside the palace have gone out to find new crickets."
Zhu Yuhuan fell silent, her emotions mixed. After a long moment, she said, "This greenhouse is back to its old ways..."
She once asked Hu Shanwei to raise crickets in the greenhouse to please Zhu Zhanji, and Zhu Zhanji used the greenhouse as a way to get his work done. In Zhu Yuhuan's view, crickets were just a medium, but she didn't expect that the greenhouse would now become a place to raise crickets.
The craftsman thought she was worried that raising crickets would affect breeding, so he quickly said, "Your Highness, don't worry. It's not breeding season right now. The new wheat has already been planted. Raising crickets in this greenhouse won't be a problem."
Zhu Yuhuan waved his hand and said, "I know."
She also made her fortune from this, so of course she knew very well the time and season for using the greenhouse, but she just didn't expect Zhu Zhanji to do this.
After all, Wunong Temple is a government office. Even if it has been idle recently, it is still government-owned. Using public property for private purposes to raise crickets for the emperor... This will not sound good if it is made public.
Zhu Yuhuan changed the subject and asked, "By the way, I haven't had much time to come to the Wunong Temple recently. Have you been researching farm tools recently?"
Hearing her question, the craftsmen felt a little embarrassed and said, "To answer the princess, there is not much that can be studied about farm tools, and it is also very inconvenient for the palace, so we haven't studied and improved farm tools recently..."
"I see……"
Zhu Yuhuan also knew that there was not much room for improvement in things like agricultural tools. After all, no matter how sophisticated the agricultural tools were, they were nothing more than harnesses on oxen. Without increased power, no matter how much the agricultural tools evolved, their upper limit was destined to be limited.
In fact, Zhu Yuhuan also wanted these craftsmen to study gunpowder and the like, but these things were contraband, so Zhu Yuhuan had no way to ask Zhu Zhanji for them and had to give up.
Zhu Yuhuan only regretted that he was not an engineering student. After living in the Ming Dynasty for so many years, apart from a few celebrities, he had almost no skills necessary for a time traveler.
The craftsman didn't know what Zhu Yuhuan was thinking, so he just continued, "We've looked at the loom drawings the princess sent us earlier, and we're trying to figure out if we can come up with something new."
Zhu Yuhuan was curious when he heard this and asked, "New stuff?"
"The princess's water loom is quite unique. We plan to also use water power to make water mills and water saws. We already have simple blueprints, but the water flow in the palace is a bit slow, so the effect is not great. To let the princess see the effect, we made a few small ones and placed them in the house."
Like Zhu Yuhuan, these craftsmen realized the limits of improving agricultural tools. His Majesty had previously advocated for the elimination of redundant officials. If the Wunong Temple failed to produce further results, and if it too were to be abolished someday, wouldn't they be forced to return to their old ways? We've only heard of people getting better, but never of people going back to their old ways.
Zhu Yuhuan immediately threw all other thoughts out of his mind and said excitedly, "Take me to see it!"
Her own power was ultimately limited, and she could only offer advice. But now that these craftsmen were actively creating new instruments, she couldn't help but feel a surge of pride and anticipation.
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