Chapter 294: Reward From The Palace
Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
He glanced at Xiaoxiao again. “Dear Official Shen, why did you think of letting a farmer plant this rice seed?”
County Magistrate Shen bowed. “I don’t dare to lie to you, Your Majesty. Actually, I didn’t believe in the new rice seeds after meeting Mr. Yuan, because the yield was unbelievable. Therefore, I just thought that it was a joke and didn’t tell anyone else.”
The Emperor expressed his understanding. He wouldn’t have believed it if it wasn’t for the fact that the item was delivered to him and there were concrete records and Third Prince Rong Yan’s guarantee that he saw it with his own eyes.
County Magistrate Shen continued, “Coincidentally, the Ning Family had just split up and were having a hard time. Other families had planted the rice and only their family had not gathered the rice seeds yet, so I gave the seeds to her.”
At this point, he coughed awkwardly. “At that time, I wanted to tease the child, so I told her the story of the new rice seeds. I didn’t expect her to take it seriously. When she went back and saw that her family had already gathered the rice seeds, she even secretly changed them.”
The Emperor was originally in a bad mood, but when he heard this, his expression relaxed a little. “That was really a freak combination of factors.” After Dean Lu’s teaching, County Magistrate Shen understood how to be an official. He had to flatter the Emperor when he needed to. Hence, he said sincerely, “It should be God’s will. God is protecting Great Xia.” The Emperor relaxed his eyebrows completely. He looked at County Magistrate Shen and then at Xiaoxiao. He really didn’t understand how these two seemingly unrelated people could be friends, so he asked.
County Magistrate Shen said honestly, “Because she is a good cook and my son has a great appetite. He bought pickled vegetables from the Ning Family in the market and we became friends.”
With 90% truth and 10% lies, his words were even more seamless.
The Emperor had actually investigated it long ago, so he did not suspect anything when comparing the information submitted.
The rice seeds were given by others, so Shen Congjun did not have the cultivation process, nor did he know how to develop this new rice seed.
At first, he did not believe it, so he did not tell anyone or report it to the Imperial Court until he found the surprise at the harvest.
It sounded reasonable. The only pity was that the Ning Family actually used the middle quality land to plant new rice seeds because they did not take it seriously. Otherwise, how many more seeds would be produced?
The Emperor asked expectantly, “Has that Mr. Yuan appeared again?”
County Magistrate Shen shook his head. “I haven’t seen him since we first met. I couldn’t find him either.”
“I thought that he might not want to be disturbed, so I gave up.”
“After all, this rice seed has already been planted. As long as it’s planted again, it will still produce a high yield. Even if we don’t look for Mr. Yuan, within three years, Great Xia will no longer have people who can’t eat their fill!” The Emperor slapped the table. “Good, what a good ‘no longer have people who can’t eat their fill’! If this wish is really fulfilled, Dear Official Shen should receive the first credit!”
Eunuch De heaved a sigh of relief. His Majesty finally relaxed.
After talking about the rice seeds, the Emperor noticed the quiet girl next to County Magistrate Shen. “Is this the Ning Family that Dear Official Shen mentioned?”
County Magistrate Shen said, “That’s right. The eldest son of the Ning Family is preparing for the academy examination. The others are going to continue to tend to the autumn harvest, so they let their daughter come to the capital as the representative.”
The Emperor did not mind that the Ning Family let a girl into the palace He only asked, “Your family has contributed to planting rice. What reward do you want?”
Xiaoxiao thought for a moment and really answered, “Silver?”
The Emperor was stunned for a moment before he laughed out loud. “You’re quite honest.”
He had seen all kinds of people asking for rewards, and he had also seen hypocritical faces that pretended to be noble. This was really the first time someone had said her request so bluntly.
County Magistrate Shen was worried for Xiaoxiao. Little did he know that she had learned from the envoy that His Majesty didn’t like pretentious people the most. Recently, he had been favoring those straightforward ministers.
The Emperor asked again, “Is there anything else you want other than silver?” When he said this, no one saw the coldness that flashed across his eyes. Xiaoxiao pretended to be in deep thought and said, “Farm land?” County Magistrate Shen’s heart was in his mouth. Little Girl Ning, you really dared to answer His Majestys question. It was fine if you answered, but why did you increase the reward?
The Emperor laughed for a while more. “Are you sure this is all you want?”
Xiaoxiao was respectful. “Your Majesty, yes. My family farms, so the reward I can think of is to have land to plant and money to spend.”
The Emperor held his chin. “I heard that your brother is studying. Why don’t you beg for something for him?”
Xiaoxiao still said in a childish voice, “But he has to study by himself. He has to take the exams for his achievements. There’s nothing to ask for. It’s better to eat and drink our fill.”
***
A few days later, the government office of Fortune Village sent a decree from the Imperial Capital, bestowing the Ning Family with 100 acres of the best quality land and 100 taels of gold.
In the Imperial Capital, this reward might not sound like much, but it was unprecedented in Fortune Village. However, after this decree was issued, the Ning Family was troubled. They could not settle down in the best quality land. After all, Fortune Village was just a small place. It was not that they could not gather too acres of the best quality land, but it was definitely not placed not together.
The envoy who reported the news brought a letter to Ning Fengnian. In the letter, Xiaoxiao suggested buying a house in the county. This way, her brother would not have to go back and forth to study in the future.
The second half of the reason was too convincing. Ning Fengnian agreed not long after. After all, it was indeed too tiring to watch his son wake up early and travel in the dark every day. Hence, after sending the messenger away, the villagers fought to come and congratulate them. Chen Kuan, Wang He, and the others, who had worked with the Ning Family before, also made appointments to sign up to work on the 100 acres of the best quality land.
Ning Fengnian had never dreamed that he would become a landlord one day He even woke up laughing several times in his dreams. As he smiled, he could not help but sigh. “Xiaoxiao is indeed a benefactor of our Ning Family.” However, when would this “benefactor” daughter return after being gone for so many days?
As he had long known that the road to the Imperial Capital was long, this trip was rather important. Ning Ansheng had already made plans that she would not be able to make it back in time before the exam, so he was not disappointed. If he wanted to part ways less in the future, he would have to work harder today.
Under the meticulous care of his family and the patient guidance of his Teacher, Ning Ansheng was thirsty for knowledge. He was humble and hungry for knowledge. He wrote essays and did not let go of his scrolls. However, he did not forget to ensure that he had enough rest. From time to time, he would take care of the flowers planted in the courtyard for his sister when his eyes were sore.
At this moment, Xiaoxiao was shopping under the enthusiastic lead of the Shen Family.
The Imperial Capital was truly prosperous. The liveliness made Xiaoxiao want
to buy a shop and open a shop every minute.
His Majesty had not thought about County Magistrate Shen’s reward yet. Also, he had an idea and asked County Magistrate Shen to teach him how to farm every day.
Since the Emperor gave the order, County Magistrate Shen had no choice but to do it. Therefore, Xiaoxiao could only stay in the Shen Family for a few more days.
Most of the Shen Family welcomed Xiaoxiao, especially after she made snacks for everyone, except for a girl who liked to wear yellow.
This girl’s surname was Gu. The Gu and Shen families were long-time friends, so the children of the two families often played together. When Xiaoxiao realized that everyone was snatching the Cloud Cake she made, only this girl ate the snacks she brought and looked angry. When Xiaoxiao went to ask, this girl snorted and turned her head away, ignoring her..
