Chapter 141: Sweet Potatoes

Zhu Cilang lay sprawled on the ground, lifting his face covered in black soot, and grinned at Changping and Erya, who were crouched beside him staring eagerly at the fire—a flash of white teeth showing. "Just a little longer and it'll be ready to eat! My fa... father said these things taste wonderful when roasted!"

A fragrant aroma wafted from the fire built of firewood, where several fresh sweet potatoes wrapped in yellow mud lay quietly among the flames. The mud was nearly cracked and dried through—once the fire was put out and the potatoes taken out and cracked open, the fragrant roasted sweet potatoes would be done.

These came from the dozen-odd mu of trial fields at the imperial estate.

The Chongzhen Emperor had given special instructions and spoken of the sweet potato's importance on several occasions, so Liu Chao took exceptional care with the crop, running out to the fields every few days to inspect them and sternly admonishing the several tenant farmers to tend these treasures with the same devotion they would show their own mothers. Under the farmers' round-the-clock watch and careful cultivation, the sweet potato seedlings grew vigorously.

Zhu Cilang had occasionally overheard his father the Emperor mention the sweet potato matter, and out of curiosity had pestered Chongzhen with questions for quite a while. Chongzhen gave a simple description of what the sweet potato looked like and how to prepare it so it tasted good, emphasizing that roasted sweet potato was a most delicious food.

From then on, Zhu Cilang kept the matter in mind, often finding various excuses to go check on the sweet potato fields at the imperial estate, hoping in his heart that the sweet potatoes would ripen soon—and once they did, he would bring some for Erya to taste.

As for the education of Zhu Cilang and the other children, aside from the normal daily instruction in the classics and histories given separately by the Hanlin Academy's Readers and Expositors-in-Waiting, Chongzhen leaned more toward the multifaceted educational approach of later generations rather than limiting himself to the content of the classics.

Because the fact that the Great Ming had only passed down a little over two hundred years of dynastic mandate proved that the imperial methods and ways of teaching the Crown Prince contained many errors—otherwise, how could there have been so many mediocre emperors?

The classics and histories indeed should be studied, but even more should one come into contact with the outside world, rather than being trapped in the deep palace, lacking sufficient awareness of a world changing every day.

To this end, disregarding the strong opposition of the officials of the Household Administration of the Heir Apparent, Chongzhen changed the Daily Lecture to once every two days, encouraging the children to frequently leave the palace and go see the wonderful world outside.

The Left and Right Supervisors of the Household Administration, Lu Shanjie and Gong Tingxiang, successively went to the Grand Secretariat and to Empress Zhou, threatening to resign as leverage, requesting that everyone pressure the Emperor into revoking the order for lectures once every two days.

But Chongzhen resolutely refused to listen, and even quarreled with Empress Zhou over the matter, angering her considerably—she refused to see Chongzhen for several days running.

In the end, the matter reached the ears of Empress Dowager Yi'an, and under Zhang Yan's gentle persuasion, Chongzhen reluctantly agreed to restore the Daily Lecture, but insisted that every five days there must be two days of rest, on the grounds that the Crown Prince needed sufficient time to digest what he had learned.

Ultimately, through Empress Dowager Yi'an's mediation, both sides very reluctantly accepted this arrangement. Lu and Gong privately grumbled endlessly, deeply dissatisfied with Chongzhen, and deliberately gave him sour looks whenever they met him in person.

Chongzhen didn't mind this at all—after all, the teachers were only trying to better impart their knowledge to the Crown Prince, which was a sign of diligence and dedication to duty.

But Chongzhen thought: the Crown Prince and Prince Ding had no intention of sitting for the jinshi examination, so what use was there in studying so much of the Four Books and Five Classics?

The Crown Prince would one day become Emperor—a passing familiarity with the classics sufficed. Ruling the realm in the future required more firsthand experience of life, knowledge of the people's hardships; only by combining theory with practice could one be complete. Practice yields true knowledge, after all.

After much waiting, late August arrived. Zhu Cilang heard from the farmers tending the fields that, according to the knowledge Eunuch Liu had taught them from books, the sweet potatoes were likely eighty percent ripe.

On the morning of the rest day, Empress Zhou had gone early to Empress Dowager Yi'an's place for some matter or other. Zhu Cilang, accompanied by the young eunuch Zhao Qin, changed into plain clothes and planned to slip out of the palace to dig up sweet potatoes at the imperial estate.

Zhao Qin poked his head out from the main hall's doorway and looked around—no sign of Empress Zhou. Then he turned back and made a gesture, and Zhu Cilang crept up after him furtively.

Just as the two were about to leave the side hall of Kunning Palace, they ran straight into Changping, who was coming over from Consort Li Shufei's quarters in the Western Palace.

Changping, surrounded by several palace maids, immediately spotted Zhu Cilang in his plain clothes and let out a joyful cry as she ran into the hall: "Elder Brother Crown Prince! Where are you off to play? I want to come too!"

Zhu Cilang didn't want to bring his little sister along. Changping was good in every way except that her mouth was too fast. No matter what it was, once Changping knew, soon everyone in the harem—from Empress Zhou and Consort Tian at the top down to the maids and eunuchs—would all know.

Zhu Cilang's eyes darted around, then he bent down and said to Changping with a smile: "I heard that Tutor Gong is unwell, so I'm going to visit him at his home. Be good, Changping—why don't you go play with your brother Prince Ding?"

Changping wasn't buying any of it. She knew Zhu Cilang didn't actually like the tutors, and that he often complained to their father the Emperor, saying they were too rigid and that he already knew the classics they taught—yet still had to recite them aloud every day.

She shouted loudly: "Elder Brother Crown Prince is lying! You're definitely going out of the palace to dig sweet potatoes! Little Qinzi told me all about it yesterday! If Elder Brother Crown Prince doesn't take me, I'll tell Mother! Hmph!"

Hearing this, Zhu Cilang straightened up and glared at Zhao Qin, scolding: "When did I ever say I was going to the imperial estate? Little Qinzi, if you keep spouting nonsense, I'll punish you by not letting you eat dinner tonight!"

Zhao Qin beside him muttered aggrievedly: "This servant never said Your Majesty was going to the imperial estate! The Princess is tricking me!"

Changping turned her head away, angry: "I don't care! Today wherever Elder Brother Crown Prince goes, I go! Father said an elder brother must take good care of his little sister! Elder Brother Crown Prince, you wouldn't dare disobey Father's words!"

"Who dares disobey my words?" Following the voice, Chongzhen in a bright yellow dragon robe appeared at the hall's entrance with Li Erxi, looking at everyone inside with a smile.

"Father!" Changping spread her two little arms and ran over with a coquettish laugh. Chongzhen hurried forward and scooped her up in his arms. The maids and eunuchs hastily knelt in salute, and Chongzhen waved for them to rise.

"I just heard you saying who wasn't being obedient?" Chongzhen asked with a smile.

"Elder Brother Crown Prince won't take me to play! He's disobeying Father! Father said long ago he has to take care of me!" Changping clung to Chongzhen and began lodging her complaint.

Chongzhen looked at Zhu Cilang and laughed: "Lang'er, where are you off to? Didn't I instruct that whenever you leave the palace, you must bring your sister along?"

Zhu Cilang bowed with clasped hands and replied with a grin: "Reporting to Father, I was just teasing her a moment ago. Every time I've left the palace I've brought her along—how could I dare forget Your Majesty's teachings!"

Chongzhen didn't press further—children had their own unique way of getting along.

Carrying Changping, he walked toward the main hall of Kunning Palace, asking as he went: "Why hasn't your mother the Empress been keeping you in line today? Could she have changed her temperament?"

Empress Zhou was very strict with the children, especially with Zhu Cilang. She often scolded him, saying that since he was already the Crown Prince, his every word and deed should carry the bearing of a Crown Prince, and he must not lack upbringing like the wild children outside. Zhu Cilang, Changping, and Zhu Cihuan were all somewhat afraid of being around their mother, but when with Chongzhen they were unconstrained and far more relaxed.

Zhu Cilang replied with clasped hands: "Mother has gone to Empress Dowager Yi'an's place. Today happens to be my rest day, and having heard some days ago that the sweet potatoes were nearly ripe, I wished to go take a look."

Hearing that Empress Zhou was absent, Chongzhen stopped in his tracks and asked Changping in his arms with a smile: "Does my good daughter also want to go see what sweet potatoes look like?"

Changping nodded vigorously: "Father hasn't taken Changping out of the palace to play in so long! Father, why don't we all go together! Changping wants to taste the roasted sweet potatoes Father talked about!"

Chongzhen nodded with a smile: "Fine! I haven't left the palace in quite a while either—today we'll go to the imperial estate!"

Changping squirmed happily in Chongzhen's arms. Seeing that his father was also going, Zhu Cilang knew they would head straight to the imperial estate from Xihua Gate, and the northern city was out of reach. In his urgency, he pretended to remember something and muttered to himself: "I recall Father saying he would have someone bring Erya to the palace to play. So much time has passed—it seems Father has forgotten the matter. Sigh! Erya is probably still hoping for it!"

How could Chongzhen not see through his little scheme? He laughed heartily: "How could I forget anything I've said? I'll go change clothes. Li Erxi, go inform Cheng Qianli and have him arrange for someone to go to the northern city to pick up Erya—he knows the place!"

After changing into plain clothes, Chongzhen took the two children into a carriage and, escorted by several dozen Embroidered Uniform Guard officers, left the Forbidden City through Xihua Gate, heading straight for the imperial estate.

Because the Eastern Depot had just been established, Wang Cheng'en and Liu Chao, busy day and night with Depot affairs, were waiting outside the imperial estate.

Chongzhen alighted from the carriage with Zhu Cilang and Changping, and seeing that Wang Cheng'en was also there, couldn't help feeling somewhat surprised.

Wang Cheng'en and Liu Chao stepped forward, knelt, and performed the full ceremonial bow. Chongzhen bade them rise and said to Wang Cheng'en with a smile: "Companion, I haven't seen you in quite some days—how is it you've come to the imperial estate today?"

Wang Cheng'en bowed with clasped hands, then straightened up, tears glistening in his eyes: "In reply to His Majesty, this old servant has been busy with Depot affairs these past days and has not seen His Majesty's family for a long while—this old servant has missed you dearly! Today I had intended to go to His Majesty's residence to report a matter, but learning from Li Erxi that His Majesty was coming to the imperial estate, this old servant came on ahead to await His Majesty here!"

Chongzhen felt warmth in his heart and said gently: "Companion, you are most thoughtful! With you out there, I need not worry about my eyes and ears being blocked! The Eastern Depot is a heavy instrument of state—in your hands, I am most at ease!"

Wang Cheng'en turned his head slightly, quickly wiping the tears from the corners of his eyes with his sleeve, then faced Chongzhen with a forced smile: "Rest assured, Your Majesty! This old servant will exert every effort to repay Your Majesty's grace. Anyone who is disloyal to Your Majesty is this old servant's enemy!"

Chongzhen strode into the estate, saying as he walked: "I well understand your sentiments, Companion! Liu Chao, lead the way—I want to see how the sweet potatoes are growing. This is a matter of vital importance to the Great Ming's rivers and mountains!"