kingnovel Chapter 1337 Believe whatever she says
Chapter 1337 Believe whatever she says
Follow your heart...
Shen Zheng vaguely understood that she belonged to the type of person her elders described as "not perceptive".
But she just felt that seeing Tongan County becoming more and more prosperous and seeing the people of Dazhou living better and better lives made her feel happy and satisfied.
This sense of satisfaction may be different from the feeling that romantic love brings, but there is no denying that she was thoroughly enjoying this feeling at that moment.
In the end, it all boils down to one sentence.
—Having grain in the homes of ordinary people is better than anything else!
She rose and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I thank you for your understanding."
The Empress Dowager helped her up, glancing at the unopened scrolls in the box: "Won't you take a look at a couple more?"
She paused, then said, "No, thank you..."
After learning that the people in the paintings were her "blind date partners," she could no longer look at the portraits directly.
Although... Xiao Ce was indeed quite handsome.
"Then so be it." The Empress Dowager turned her head and instructed Granny Chang: "Move all these portraits to Zheng'er's courtyard, and let her see them when she wants to."
After saying that, she looked at Shen Zheng again: "The people in the painting all have clean family backgrounds and bodies. If you like them, just tell me anytime. If you don't like them... just throw them aside."
Shen Zheng secretly breathed a sigh of relief: "Thank you, Your Majesty the Empress Dowager."
The Empress Dowager nodded slightly.
As the night breeze grew cooler, the maids Huang Jin and Luoluo, after tidying up the courtyard where the Empress Dowager was temporarily staying, brought over two cloaks.
One was the Empress Dowager.
One is Shen Zheng's.
As for Yu Shizhang...
We rely on shivering to keep warm.
The three drank two more cups of hot tea. Shen Zheng's gaze fell on the cobblestones outside the pavilion, and she suddenly remembered something important: "Your Majesty, I wonder if you remember that I discovered a new crop on my way to the banquet in the capital?"
The Empress Dowager pondered for a moment: "I remember, you entrusted that crop to the Ministry of Revenue for planting?"
Shen Zheng nodded: "Your humble servant brought back a batch of plants, which have been planted in the county's public fields. They will be ready for harvest tomorrow."
The Empress Dowager was slightly surprised: "You actually brought some back? How are they growing?"
Shen Zheng pondered for a moment: "Not bad. According to my estimation, the yield per mu of this crop is very likely to be higher than that of high-yield rice."
And it wasn't just a little higher, it was several times higher.
Even if Shen Zheng didn't say the second half of her sentence, the first half was enough to shock the Empress Dowager: "Can this crop really yield more per mu than high-yield rice? Before I left the palace, I heard the Emperor mention it, but at that time, his expression was uncertain, and his words were slightly hesitant, so I..."
So he didn't pay any attention to the new crop that looked like a taro.
She once thought that Tongan County's ability to grow high-yield rice, yielding a thousand catties per mu, was already the pinnacle of agriculture in the Great Zhou Dynasty.
But now, Shen Zheng is telling her with almost certainty that the new crop that looks like a taro and that she hadn't paid any attention to at all could actually yield more per mu than high-yield rice.
Isn't this... a bit shocking?
"Zheng'er, you..." The Empress Dowager's throat tightened slightly, as if giving Shen Zheng a chance to take back her words: "Do you know that a yield of a thousand catties per mu is already an insurmountable barrier in the hearts of the people of the world?"
Shen Zheng was well aware of this.
But at this moment, she dared to pat her heart and say to the Empress Dowager: "Your Majesty, I dare not presume. But the growth of the new crops is indeed very pleasing, so I humbly request that you accompany me to the public fields tomorrow."
The Empress Dowager's hand tightened slightly as she held the teacup.
After a moment, she said, "You all go back and rest. Tomorrow, I will go with you."
Shen Zheng and Yu Shizhang stood up: "Your humble servants take their leave."
The two had only taken a few steps when two Imperial Guardsmen carrying a box of scrolls followed them.
Shen Zheng, hurry up, they must hurry up.
Shen Zheng stopped, and they stopped.
Shen Zheng turned and went to the public kitchen to sneak a bite, and they followed her, secretly swallowing their saliva.
"..."
Helpless, Shen Zheng shared half of the roast chicken with them.
In the pavilion, the Empress Dowager remained in the same posture as when Shen Zheng left, her eyes filled with shock and bewilderment.
She didn't know how much time had passed, and even the light inside the glass lampshade had dimmed. Finally, she came to her senses: "Chang Rong, did you hear what Zheng'er said?"
Granny Chang glanced in the direction Shen Zheng had left, "Your Majesty, this old servant heard it."
"Then you..." The Empress Dowager tilted her head, as if considering her words: "Do you believe that there is a crop in this world that yields more per acre than high-yield rice?"
Granny Chang was silent for a moment: "Your Highness, if these words had not come from Lord Shen's mouth, this old servant... would not have believed it."
The unspoken meaning was exceptionally clear.
"Do you believe everything Zheng'er says?" The Empress Dowager lowered her eyes, then asked herself, "I... it seems so."
Granny Chang refilled the Empress Dowager's cup of hot tea. "Your Majesty," she said, "forgive my bluntness, but since Lord Shen dared to speak so frankly to you, he must already be certain that the new crop yields quite high. As for exactly how high..."
The Empress Dowager looked out of the pavilion.
The night at the Tongan County Government Office was exceptionally quiet.
"We'll know for sure tomorrow."
......
The next day, before dawn, Shen Zheng jumped out of bed, washed up and ate breakfast in one go, and it was still dark.
After strolling around the backyard and confirming that the Empress Dowager had not yet gotten up, she quietly slipped away to the courtyard where Mu Ruojue lived.
"Zizzi-"
Just as I was about to raise my hand to knock on the door, a buzzing sound came from the courtyard.
Immediately following was—
"Cluster—Pfft—"
The sound almost immediately awakened Shen Zheng's long-dormant memories.
If she remembered correctly, that distinctive "buzzing" or "clustering" sound came from...
"boom--"
As Shen Zheng was still pondering, a not-too-loud thud came from inside the courtyard, followed by Mu Ruojue's painful gasp: "Hiss—"
Shen Zheng jumped in surprise and immediately raised her hand to knock on the courtyard gate: "Xiao Mu, are you alright?"
The courtyard was quiet for a moment.
A few breaths later, Mu Ruojue's slightly panicked voice came: "Please don't come in..."
Shen Zheng was about to push the door open when she heard this, so she withdrew her hand and asked, "Are you alright?"
Footsteps echoed in the courtyard again, and Mu Ruojue's voice faded into the distance: "The clothes...the clothes are burned. Please wait a moment."
Shen Zheng's breath hitched.
Did he injure himself in the explosion?!
Time passed slowly amidst anxious waiting, and as dawn broke, footsteps finally echoed in the courtyard.
"Squeak-"
The door opened a crack, and a pair of almond-shaped eyes peeked out from behind Shen Zheng.
After confirming that Shen Zheng was the only one outside the gate, Mu Ruojue opened the gate and said, "Please come in."
Shen Zheng looked him over carefully: "Are you hurt anywhere? Are you burned?"
Mu Ruojue's ears turned slightly red: "No... I took it off quickly, I wasn't hurt."
"Really?" Shen Zheng openly expressed her doubt: "You mustn't be lying to me just because you don't want to see the doctor."
Mu Ruojue paused slightly and secretly withdrew her hand.
Before she could finish speaking, Shen Zheng grabbed his sleeve and said, "If you dare to hide it again, I will tell Jin Yin about this and have her come to watch over you every day while you apply the medicine."
Cui Jinyin, who had just arrived, paused in her steps, her cheeks flushing bright red.
Such a good thing?