Chapter 268: Willingness to Let Go

Yuan Jiaqi finished this matter, finally breathed a sigh of relief and could go home to see.

When he got home, he learned that Fengyun had gone to enlist, and he was frozen on the spot, truly not knowing what to say.

"My lady, such a big thing—how could you not tell me? I, as a father, am terribly unfit."

"What are you saying? Whether you say they're going or not, they're going. You're already busy enough; there's no time to tend to the household."

"It's all because your husband is bad, he should be punished, should be punished."

"How's the Zuofang?"

"It has already started production, and your husband has also secured the market; my lady need not worry."

"Alright, you can keep the profits the Zuofang earns in the future; taxes will also be paid from there. I will no longer intervene, nor will I give you more silver."

"Ah?"

"As the trees grow, the oil yield will increase each year; once Pine Nuts can be produced, it becomes another income. Ten years later, the Zuofang's land and people will be no problem—I have already calculated it."

"Anyway, your husband can't help, and only someone as capable as my lady can aid them."

The Emperor immediately summoned the official in charge of agriculture, handed him this small bag of Wheat Seed, and attached a book on fertile land.

"Eh, that's also fine; we can become grandparents early."

So we still have to wait, but Yuan Jiaqi is not in a hurry; he has already implemented it here, and the common folk are willing to plant along.

"Let's talk about it then; plans can't keep up with changes. Once they start families, they'll face having children—being first‑time parents, they can't manage without us nearby."

"Immortal, may Heaven protect our Ming Emperor."

"To put it bluntly, they're all loss‑making goods."

"Great, great! If we have such excellent Wheat Seed, the people of Beifang will no longer suffer; the Imperial Treasury will soon become abundant—great!"

In mid‑July, rain fell incessantly; in the Imperial Palace of Jingcheng, the Old Emperor stared at Yuan Jiaqi's Qin Zhe, his excited hand trembling.

"Hurry and find the most fertile land for trial planting; when harvest comes, inform me, for I will personally oversee the collection."

Qiao Mai imagined a granddaughter in her left hand and a grandson in her right, and instantly felt a chill run through her body.

"Would you like your husband to ask someone to give Feng'er and Yun'er a special favor?"

"This fellow is a bit selfish; the fertile water is not given cheaply to other County Magistrates, only tinkered with on his own territory."

"That makes my heart burst with joy; does this count as a confession to me?"

"My lady, thanks to you, your husband's career has been so smooth."

"Haha, you, when they all settle down, your husband will resign from office, okay? Then the two of us will travel the world, see the beautiful mountains and rivers of the Ming Emperor, and experience the customs of different places."

Yuan Jiaqi's face flushed, "My lady, everything your husband says is sincere; in your husband's eyes, no one compares to you. Having you in this life is enough; never mention any other woman again."

Only when ordinary folk eat their fill, clothe themselves fully, and have no worries about food and drink does the Ming Emperor truly become prosperous.

The County Magistrates of other counties, after hearing this, deliberated repeatedly and finally also rallied their own people to imitate and start planting trees.

The Emperor was extremely excited, and he grabbed a handful of the wheat that came with the memorial and examined it repeatedly.

"No, I'm not giving you a cold shoulder, my lady; it's your words that make me very upset. Most of my remaining life will be with only you, and you know that you always use words to tease your husband."

The two sat down, sipping tea and sighing, "The eldest son's wife is a princess; lacking a hundred thousand taels of silver in the Betrothal Gifts would be disgraceful."

There are all kinds of crops, each with its own little thoughts; regardless, planting trees is the right direction—at least the pruned branches can be used as firewood each year.

In Beifang, winter without firewood is impossible; just this alone makes tree planting's benefits very clear, not to mention using the mature timber at home, and if the trees bear fruit, harvesting and selling it also provides income.

"In your husband's eyes, my lady is the most beautiful, the best, the most capable!"

"Oh, you can give me a cold look now."

"Tch,"

Qiao Mai grinned, and Yuan Jiaqi stared at her seriously.

"And also our Ling'er, the dowry must be prepared thickly, so no one looks down on us."

In her hand were many new seed varieties, all provided by her for the Ming Emperor, such as drought‑resistant rice and high‑yield cotton, which are urgently needed resources.

"There's no guarantee; they might not need us then. Besides, would you be willing to resign?"

"No need; my Dizi, relying on real skill, doesn't need any special favor at all."

"Don't think that just because reports go up will make the Emperor easily believe; he wants people to implement it, and only if it matches the memorial will he grant rewards."

"Understood."

He also persuaded the county's wealthy households to donate money and goods, first planting cold‑resistant trees along both sides of the Guan Dao, but only within his County Town.

"Then let's manage the Zuofang well; soon our two Dizi will be getting married, we need to prepare Betrothal Gifts, and the two of us will be grandparents while still young! Haha!"

Many people only know to plant fast‑growing trees; some even plant fruit trees in their own yards.

"Willingness—actually your husband just wants to travel the world, see all the great mountains and rivers, and having you accompany me is all I seek in life."

"Not necessarily; as long as you're willing to marry, it can be smooth as well."

Qiao Mai wasn't in a hurry either; she wanted to promote the new Wheat Seed, and without a timeline it's impossible.

Because the authorities backed it and the Wheat Seed was free, many farmers were tempted.

In other places the new Wheat Seed promotion wasn't so smooth, but north of Shexian it was extremely successful; not only smooth, but even a long queue formed at the Yamen.

Many households that planted pine trees together with the County Magistrate also began learning to harvest and sell oil; regardless of profit, as long as they sell to the Zuofang, it's income.

Although Qiao Mai didn't give Zhu Xianling tree seedlings, this fellow still urged the people to plant more trees; he wrote the benefits on a notice, sending officials to each village to promote it.

"Mm, our second Dizi is also ambitious; the Betrothal Gifts definitely won't be less then, and there's Chuan'er—still young, his mouth sweet as honey, sure to attract young ladies."

She's only in her early twenties, yet about to become a Grandmother—truly feels odd.

Anyway, the memorial requesting credit has already been reported, so Qiao Mai generously gave Zhu Xianling five thousand jin of Wheat Seed and gave Prefect Wang ten thousand jin, letting them oversee the promotion.

The long term is far‑reaching; Shexian, because of early tree planting, began reaping harvests within a few years.

He first promoted it within Shexian; Zhu Xianling and Prefect Wang had known about it long ago, and as soon as they got concrete news, they came to Qiao Mai's place to request Wheat Seed.

"Then why wouldn't I, as a father, do something for them? How could that be bad?"

Farmers can grow seedlings themselves; with some trees, just break off a branch and stick it into the ground and it will live, so many villages have begun planting trees in front of and behind their houses.

All nine counties of Weicheng have started planting trees.

"Yes, Emperor."

Yuan Jiaqi immediately lowered his face and said, "Madam, I am not the type to forget gratitude or be ungrateful; besides, I like you, not them."

Qiao Mai watched the man before her speak earnestly, and slowly nodded, "Alright, as long as you need me, I will stay with you."

For the bitter‑cold people of Shexian, this is undoubtedly a great benefit.

Yuan Jiaqi showed Qiao Mai the earnings from the first month of the workshop, "Madam, look, this is only the first month: the Honghua Oil workshop, after all expenses, netted five hundred taels of silver; that's just the pine oil from the first forest. The shampoo paste earned six hundred taels, the pine oil earned a little over one hundred taels, totaling more than a thousand taels."

"Hmm, over ten thousand taels a year, not bad. When those few forests mature, the oil output will be greater."

"Indeed, I believe it won't be long before our workshop's goods are sold throughout the Ming Emperor's realm."

(End of chapter)