Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!

Chapter 1440: Chapter 1440: Failed to Show Off

As time flowed, the situation at the Dongbei frontier kept reaching the capital, bringing with it a continuous stream of panicked refugees.

The rent in the capital has increased substantially, and many more people are hurrying toward the capital.

From within the carriage, the Retired Emperor looked out at the streets, noting how some small vendors were gone, with the most common sight being carriages entering the capital, ”Hmm.”

Zhou Shuren said, ”Recently, there have been many spies stirring up the common folk in Dongbei, which has already sparked a chain reaction.”

The Retired Emperor turned, ”This is the incompetence of the parental officials.”

Zhou Shuren thought to himself, how capable must a parental official be to stabilize panic? Even with advanced information technology today it is impossible, let alone in ancient times when information was inconvenient, ”The parental officials in each state of Dongbei have also done their best.”

Zhou’s family also has clan members serving as officials in Dongbei, and He Shu and Wu Ning are there as well, so he hoped the Emperor wouldn’t condemn them all with a single verdict.

The Retired Emperor fell silent for a moment, ”What you said is also true, the tribes have been plotting this war for a long time.”

Zhou Shuren did not continue the topic; some things are best said only once, as repeating them may backfire. He silently reflected on the advantages of being a close official to the Emperor—indeed, advice can affect some of the Emperor’s thoughts.

Suddenly, the Retired Emperor asked, ”Has anyone from the Zhou clan come to the capital?”

Zhou Shuren answered, ”My granddaughter has not returned to the capital, so the Zhou clan can still maintain stability.”

The Retired Emperor was surprised, ”Your family is really trusting of your granddaughter, not even calling her back to the capital?”

Zhou Shuren replied, ”My daughter was afraid and wrote back home; the child sent an urgent letter here, worrying that her departure might cause a chain reaction of panic, as you know the Zhou clan holds a very esteemed position in Pingzhou due to my influence.”

The Retired Emperor knew Zhou Shuren would not reveal the Emperor’s plans, which piqued his curiosity. Acknowledging what he heard, he said, ”Your granddaughter is commendable.”

If the Zhou clan remains unshaken in Pingzhou, then Pingzhou itself will be relatively stable.

Zhou Shuren smiled, ”If this girl were a boy, she would be stronger than her father.”

In truth, he would have liked to say stronger than his grandson, Jiang Zhu, but that was not possible as the grandson still had to tread the path of an official; should he be outshone by his sister, it might leave the Emperor with a poor impression of him.

The Retired Emperor initially had no specific impression of Zhou Shuren’s son-in-law, who was content with his lot; then Jiang Sheng slowly became a master artist. Although the Retired Emperor did not pay much attention, he did comment that rare is the temperament that can produce paintings with spirit, and left it at that.

With a smile, the Retired Emperor said, ”Your son-in-law is not bad either; a father with a good temperament can surely raise children with good temperaments too.”

Zhou Shuren smiled, seizing the chance to speak favorably about his granddaughter as the Retired Emperor had inquired; it was the praise she deserved. Her merits were important not only for herself but also for the Jiang family. Though the Jiangs could sit for the imperial examinations, the Emperor would consider past events, and Jiang Ming’s issues could still affect her.

In Zhangzhou Province, Yushuang looked over the fields, ”These recent rains are indeed life-saving.”

Liufeng hugged his restless son, ”Indeed, without these heavy rains, this year’s harvest would have been halved at least.”

With the harvest halved and the taxes paid, the people would be left with almost nothing for the year’s provisions, leading to many deaths by starvation, particularly in an already impoverished county, which would only get poorer.

Yushuang furrowed her brow, ”And with the war in Dongbei, who knows what’s happening.”

Liufeng looked at the toiling villagers in the fields, ”The war needs provisions and this year’s taxes are probably unavoidable,” ”No news coming through is good news.”

Yushuang nodded, ”Ahead are the medicinal herb fields of the various villages, right?”

A hint of a smile appeared on Liufeng’s face, ”Yes.”

Growing medicinal herbs was an idea he came up with after consulting many books and hiring herbal farmers to ensure the land was suitable. He had purchased the seeds with his own money.

The medicinal fields managed by each village were only two acres in size, cleared under the auspices of the county government to avoid using the villagers’ farmland.

This was his idea, and surprisingly, the herbs were thriving. Although not much was planted, he could estimate approximately how much they would earn, especially as there was a shortage of medicinal herbs this year.

Yushuang stood by the edge of the herbal field, where the herbs were growing well.

Liufeng said, ”If successful this year, each household can clear two mu of land to cultivate herbs annually, so it won’t occupy the fields for grain cultivation.”

Yushuang smiled, ”Your hard work will be rewarded.”

Liufeng, ”I only hope that all the people under my governance can have enough food.”

”They will.”

In the capital, Zhou Shuren followed the Retired Emperor to the greenhouse, staring at the expanse of greenhouses without moving.

The Retired Emperor looked back, ”Well, come on, what are you staring at?”

Zhou Shuren pointed at the greenhouses, ”Your servant is looking at silver.”

In recent days, with various expenses in silver weighing on his mind, he deeply regretted approving so much silver for the Retired Emperor.

The Retired Emperor stroked his beard; he hadn’t expected this year’s flood disaster to be so severe, ”Are you not looking anymore?”

Zhou Shuren clenched his teeth, ”Look, of course I’ll look.”

This was all built with silver, he must see the results.

The Retired Emperor reached one of the greenhouses where several old farmers were tending to the wheat carefully, ”This is the wheat from the selectively bred high-quality seeds.”

It took a lot of manpower to select for the best seeds initially, painstakingly choosing grain by grain, planting seeds of the same size together, and finding experienced farmers to care for them. Considering the pleasant growth rate recently, he felt a bit eager to show off.

Zhou Shuren stood between the field ridges, a remark on the tip of his tongue; he didn’t understand farming, indeed, to his eyes the wheat seedlings were growing quite well, and that was all; he couldn’t discern any specific differences in the patches of fields.

The Retired Emperor boasted, ”How about it, I told you the silver was well spent.”

Zhou Shuren, ”These are just the initially selected good seeds, it’s still unknown how the next generation of seeds will turn out!”

The Retired Emperor, ”I know, so I am not in a hurry, we’ll take our time with the matter of food security.”

”The weather this year is abnormal, causing large-scale reduction in grain production; the common people are not going to have an easy time.”

So no need to take it slow, he always felt it was the prelude to a Little Ice Age.

The Retired Emperor regretted bringing Zhou Shuren along; not only did he fail to show off, but his own pressure increased even more.

At the Zhou family, Chang Li said, ”Mother, the grain merchants who buy grain from our estate every year asked me if they could purchase some grain this autumn.”

”Have you already told them that we’re not selling grain this year?”

Chang Li nodded, ”Yes, now that everyone knows about the reduction in grain production everywhere and with wars breaking out, the merchants are also afraid they won’t get their supply.”

The Zhou family sells a significant amount of grain annually, including what’s produced by the estates of various family branches and their parents, plus the Zhou family’s reputation for not cheating merchants by adulterating grain with substandard products or adding sand or stones, no merchant wants to lose their business.

Zhulan always believed in leaving some leeway for future dealings, and after thinking it over, said, ”Then sell twenty percent of the grain, and store the rest. You have worked hard; you have been managing these matters for years.”

Chang Li laughed heartily, ”Your son hasn’t found it hard.”

He quite liked being busy; it made him feel competent. Although he couldn’t become an official like his younger brothers, he was able to manage the family well. For years, he had been entrusted with dealing with the grain from all branches, and this trust made him feel gratified.

Zhulan added, ”Don’t sell the fish from the fishery this year either; just freeze them all in the ice cellar.”