Chapter 319

They really had a lot of nerve!

"Are the losses severe?" For the attack to succeed, was it because the attackers were highly skilled and daring, or because the guards were simply useless?

If she remembered correctly, the head of the guards at the imperial estate seemed to be Emperor Mingxi's own nephew, Shen Kang's eldest brother, Shen Jian.

She heard that this man was highly capable, so how could someone have found a loophole this time? Usually, a great reputation is not built on nothing. Could it be that he was an exception?

"Your subordinate has not yet been to the imperial estate, but according to the people reporting to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, twenty to thirty acres of land caught fire."

As a military officer of the Crown Prince's Six Armies and a trusted confidant of the Crown Prince, Qi Xiang more or less knew what was planted in the imperial estate.

Hearing the report, his heart ached terribly.

Qi Xiang lowered his head slightly, carefully stealing a glance at Yue Fuguang inside the carriage from the corner of his eye.

Through the carriage window, he saw that the Junior Preceptor's face was completely calm. Even after hearing that twenty or thirty acres of land had been destroyed, she showed no extra emotion.

The crops in the imperial estate were also the Junior Preceptor's lifeblood. She might look calm right now, but her heart must be aching too.

Yue Fuguang didn't know what Qi Xiang was thinking. Right now, she was busy looking for the System for an emergency rescue.

Twenty to thirty acres might not seem like much, but if converted into seeds, it would be enough to plant over a hundred acres, and by the year after next, it would be thousands of acres. Thousands of acres of food could save so many people during a famine year!

'System, is the shop still unavailable?'

[Does the host want to buy some seeds to replant?]

'I do have that intention. When exactly will the shop open?'

It had been half a year. No matter how heavily injured the Main System was, it should have recovered by now. If she hadn't had enough points at the time and hoarded enough goods, such a long delay would have affected her plans, even if her secret identity hadn't been exposed!

[Host, there's something I forgot to tell you. Over a month ago, the Main System began to gradually open the system shops across various planes.]

'Then why can't we use ours yet? Hasn't our turn come? No way, don't you have connections with the higher-up systems? We shouldn't have been left behind!'

[Hehehe, the Main System said that the later a system's shop is opened, the greater the discount on goods will be as compensation.]

Hearing that there was an advantage to be taken, Yue Fuguang instantly perked up. Her eyes sparkled, practically taking the shape of points.

But she immediately put on a straight face and pretended to be calm, asking, 'How big? Could it possibly be lower than ninety percent off?'

[All items start at a ninety percent discount, and some items are buy two get one free. Does that count?]

Yue Fuguang's hands, which were holding a slice of watermelon, trembled slightly. At the thought of all the good things in the shop that she wanted but couldn't bear to buy before, her heart grew fiery with excitement.

She coughed lightly and said, 'That's not bad. The key is when it will open.'

[Host, if you need it urgently, I can apply for it right now.]

'Then apply for it quickly. Also, let it slide this time, but if something like this happens again in the future, you must notify me so we can discuss it.'

The System also knew that it had acted on its own and forgotten to explain it to the host afterward, which was its fault.

So it said in a very fawning manner, [Don't worry, Host. There will absolutely not be a next time. I only dared to choose to delay the shop's opening because I knew that even if you needed it urgently, I could quickly get the application approved for you.]

With the Main System around, it wasn't difficult for it to pull some strings for its own host.

Moreover, ever since being locked in the system space once, the System didn't really dare to bother Yue Fuguang with trivial matters right after she fell asleep.

Yue Fuguang felt reassured in her heart, and her face grew even calmer. As long as the system shop was there, she had nothing to worry about in this small ancient world.

Yue Fuguang's carriage passed through three checkpoints along the way. From a mile away, they could see squads of patrolling soldiers moving through the fields.

"Junior Preceptor, you've arrived?"

Yue Fuguang's carriage had just stopped. Before her carriage curtain was even opened, she saw Qian Gui, Eunuch Qian, waiting by the side of the road through the thin gauze curtain.

"Eunuch Qian, why are you here?"

Yue Fuguang got out of the carriage and looked ahead. She saw the vermilion gates of the royal villa, which she had passed by twice before with only a fleeting glance, now wide open, hidden amidst the lush forest and tall bamboo.

Inside, shadows were moving about, and guards stood in large numbers. Even from a distance, one could feel an atmosphere of chilling solemnity.

"This old servant was ordered by His Majesty to come here specifically to receive the Junior Preceptor." Qian Gui carefully held up an umbrella for her to block the still fiercely hot afternoon sun.

Yue Fuguang followed Qian Gui inside, passing through corridors and alleys. The further they went, the more guards there were. Everyone was on high alert, and whenever someone approached, their eyes would turn sharp for a moment.

Even such a tense atmosphere did not affect Yue Fuguang's appreciation of the royal villa's scenery.

It was midsummer now, and the flowers in the villa were a bit wilted from the sun. Only the Chinese roses of varying shades were blooming fiercely.

Eunuch Qian, seeing her calm face and that she was still in the mood to enjoy the scenery, inexplicably felt much more at ease in his heart as well.

He even smiled and said, "When we are done with our work, if the Junior Preceptor has free time, this old servant will take you on a proper tour of this garden."

Yue Fuguang smiled and said, "That would be wonderful."

Thinking of Eunuch Qian's daily care for her, and seeing his face covered in sweat while still holding an umbrella for her, she said, "Old Qian, my estate is quite nice too. When you have time, come over to escape the summer heat! There will be plenty of big watermelons!"

Hearing Yue Fuguang's invitation, Eunuch Qian's old face immediately wrinkled into a smile like a chrysanthemum, thinking of the big watermelons the Junior Preceptor had ordered to be sent to the palace.

He had the honor of being rewarded with them twice by His Majesty. That taste was indeed much better than what was produced on the royal estates.

"Then this old servant is in for a treat. When I have some free time, I will definitely go and bother the Junior Preceptor."

Qi Xiang, who was following behind, couldn't help but glance again at Eunuch Qian, who was respectfully leading Yue Fuguang inside.

How did he also manage to win the Junior Preceptor's favor?

Qi ​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‍Xiang was a studious person who wanted to make progress. He couldn't help but recall the similarities between Shen Chunying and Eunuch Qian.

If he could figure it out, it would probably be his opportunity...

Yue Fuguang arrived at the main courtyard without any hindrance. Before she could even enter the courtyard gate, she saw Xie Zhiyan coming out to welcome her.

"Junior Preceptor, you've had a hard journey." Xie Zhiyan naturally took the umbrella from Qian Gui's hands.

Yue Fuguang nodded. "How are things at the estate now? I heard from Qi Xiang that twenty to thirty acres of land were lost?"

Xie Zhiyan's face didn't look too good. As he led her toward the main hall, he said, "We just tallied up two ignition points. A total of thirty-six acres of crops have suffered!"

When he mentioned the thirty-six acres, Xie Zhiyan's hand holding the umbrella handle subconsciously tightened. Yue Fuguang worried that if he used a little more force, he might crush the handle to pieces.

"Which seedlings were destroyed?" There was only a little over a month left until harvest. If it was high-yield crops like sweet potatoes and potatoes, calculating it meant suddenly losing enough seeds for over a hundred acres. By the year after next, that would mean a harvest of hundreds of thousands of pounds of food. It truly made one's heart ache.

"It was mainly the cornfields, and about seven or eight acres of the adjacent sweet potato fields were also affected. Fortunately, the stalks were still green, so the fire burned slower. If it had been a month later, the consequences would have been unimaginable."

Just thinking about that possibility caused the color to drain from Xie Zhiyan's face.

Yue Fuguang still maintained a calm expression, but the words she spoke deeply thrilled the three people present, including Xie Zhiyan.

She said, seemingly casually, "It's not a big problem. There's still time to replant a season of autumn sweet potatoes."