The Lucky Farmgirl

Bai Shan and the other two did not engage in their conversation but stood aside, discussing the shops along this street.

Wei Yu shook his head, "It’s rather extravagant."

No wonder his father recently spoke of the emperor with a less favorable tone, worried about Jian’an gradually becoming indulgent.

Many court ministers shared the concern with Wei Zhi, especially the Minister of Revenue, who has been submitting petitions lamenting poverty, with one goal only.

Emperor, don’t be fooled by the current appearance of prosperity; the nation still cannot endure much turmoil. We are still quite poor; look, even after you’ve been emperor for nearly twenty years, the treasury still runs dry by spring.

Supporting agriculture requires funds, developing water conservancy projects requires funds, disaster relief in some areas requires funds, the Ministry of War requires funds, construction of the imperial tomb requires funds, and we must save some for unexpected incidents, like last year’s campaign in the west; wouldn’t the treasury have to allocate funds for the military?

So, dear Emperor, we are still poor. Don’t contemplate grand constructions, extensive awards, or the acquisition of luxurious tributes...

Some officials even mentioned that the dowries given to the two princesses greatly exceeded the ritual norms, and even though the money didn’t come from the national treasury, it should still not be allowed, thus suggesting taking back the extra portion...

The emperor humbly received the advice but acted as if he hadn’t heard regarding taking back the excessive dowry.

Even the Crown Prince had opinions, privately telling the Office of Palace Affairs, "These censors are bullying the soft and fearing the hard. When Father gave so much to Third in the past, it exceeded the ritual norms early on, didn’t it? Why didn’t they petition to retract it?"

"Mingda and Changyu are princesses, yet they choose to bully them instead. Hmph, they really know how to pick soft targets."

Minister Guo couldn’t help but say, "His Highness is clearly looking out for the princesses; why bring up Prince Gong? If word spreads, His Majesty will merely see it as you not showing brotherly affection, so such words must not be spoken again."

The Crown Prince fell silent.

Now, Wei Yu worked at the Censorate, doing exactly the work of a censor, but because the matter involved Princess Changyu, and Wei Zhi personally advised him that since it was already dealt with in the past, it would be of no further significance to pursue, instead annoying His Majesty. Better to focus on advising the emperor on present and future behavior, ensuring he doesn’t forget thriftiness.

But upon truly seeing the street given to Princess Mingda by the emperor, Wei Yu still couldn’t help but say, "It’s truly decadent."

Bai Shan, however, was curious and called over the estate manager and the chief to ask, "What’s beyond the end of the street?"

"That is outside the New City," the chief laughed, "That’s the emperor’s estate bestowed upon the princess."

Bai Shan narrowed his eyes, relying on the imperial estate near New City.

He asked, "How does this area relate to the previous Liyang Ancient City?"

The estate manager was startled and then replied, "It’s not too far, but there’s no direct road. You have to detour around and it takes about an hour by carriage."

Bai Shan asked, "If a road was connected from here directly to the estate?"

The estate manager laughed, "That would be much closer, under three quarters of an hour."

Bai Shan nodded with a smile and then sought out Manbao to discuss the matter.

Thus, Manbao’s eyes lit up, suggesting that they should travel through the estate, pass Liyang County and head to Wan’an County, returning to the capital through the East City Gate.

Previously, they came out of the capital to Yongzhou via South City Gate, had to detour before heading north to Yongzhou.

The estate manager couldn’t help but quietly remind, "Princess, much of the road from Liyang County connecting to Wan’an County is small paths, not as wide and smooth as official roads, and might be bumpy."

Mingda, hearing this, became more excited and immediately said, "Then let’s return via Wan’an County, and take the opportunity to inspect the farm."

Manbao understood well, nodding, and told her, "My fief is on the other end, I also want to see my fief. Would you like to visit my family’s workshop?"

Then Changyu nodded; she wanted to take a look.

After they finished shopping in New City, they headed directly to the imperial estate.

Changyu rode on horseback, and seeing the horse wasn’t fast enough, Mingda also mounted the horse. The spring breeze gently touched their faces, bringing joy and comfort.

It was late February, a time when the earth was reviving, with many green grass shoots sprouting from the ground. Mingda and Changyu have both tested farming with the emperor, so they are not completely ignorant of grains.

But now, wild grass and young wheat looked incredibly alike.

Mingda looked for a long time yet couldn’t tell the difference, so she turned her head and whispered to Bai Erlang, "Is this piece of land weeds?"

Bai Erlang glanced at it and shook his head, "No, it’s wheat seedlings."

Mingda then pointed to a piece of land opposite, "So this piece is also wheat seedlings?"

Bai Erlang glanced at it, paused for a moment, "No, that’s wild grass."

Mingda:...

She frowned, "How come the wild grass grows better than the wheat seedlings? And they’re both plots of land, why isn’t this one planted with wheat seedlings?"

Bai Erlang glanced briefly and said, "That side is closer to water, it should be reserved for planting rice in the spring. This side is farther from water, so they’ve planted wheat."

The estate manager, sweating on his forehead, quickly nodded, trotting forward, "That is indeed what the prince said, the estate has been reserving one side close to water for spring planting of rice, and the other side is for wheat. After harvesting, depending on the situation, they might plant either rice or beans."

As for why wild grass grows better than wheat seedlings, Bai Erlang glanced at the manager and said, "Last winter was particularly cold, central regions had snow disasters, and this area likely struggled against the disaster, resulting in many wheat seedlings freezing and dying."

Manbao wholeheartedly agreed, nodding as she complained to Mingda, "Last year, all three of my fields suffered from disasters. Although we spread leftover rice straw and wheat straw on the land for warmth, many still died from the cold. This year’s summer harvest will surely be less than last year, requiring reduction in rent."

Mingda paused and asked, "Then should I reduce the rent for my tenants?"

Manbao laughed, "If you have this good heart, go ahead and reduce."

The manager in the back quickly said, "Princess, we have few tenants on this imperial estate; most laborers are palace servants."

Which means long-term workers, but with no wages, where the estate provides food and lodging, and they just work the fields.

Manbao glanced at the fields along the roadside, nodding slightly, indeed, without paid workers, if it were her father, he could make the wild grass grow taller than people, not just taller than wheat seedlings.

Once out of the estate, Manbao told Mingda, "If you want to manage this estate properly, you can’t just let it go like this; without incentives, who would be willing to work hard for you?"

She said, "Talented individuals may wish to serve in the homes of emperors, but only if the emperor can pay a corresponding price. Otherwise, talented individuals would rather retreat to the mountains than bend down and serve the monarch."

This analogy was immediately understandable to Mingda, and she nodded thoughtfully, "You’re absolutely right, it needs management."

Out of the estate, the road led to a junction with one path heading to Yueyang County and another to Wan’an County, where the border of the counties marked Zhou Man’s fief.

Everyone went together to see.

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