Chapter 392: Reject
Editor: Atlas Studios
Li Jinghua agreed with a smile. After he left, she brought Wen Cui back to the room, then waved her away and leaned against the bed to read. Wen Cui went out for about 45 minutes before coming in. Smiling, she said, “Madam, do you know who Miss Mu is?”
Li Jinghua looked up at her. Wen Cui said with a smile, “She’s our future fourth madam. I heard that they’re waiting for you to marry into the family before confirming her marriage.”
Li Jinghua was slightly stunned. Her eyebrows relaxed slightly as she smiled and said, “So she’s Fourth Young Master’s future fiancée. Then, the Mu family…”
“Old Master Mu is an assistant commander under Eldest Young Master, currently guarding Xingzhou Prefecture. Miss Mu has known Fourth Young Master from a young age, and Eldest Young Master also respects her very much. Since she often comes to the residence to play, perhaps you will be able to see her in two days.”
In less than two days, Qi Xiuyuan invited her over that afternoon because he opened the box and found the characters of the second chapter of ‘The Analects’ carved in wood. He couldn’t understand it after looking at it for a long time, and Mu Yangling wouldn’t send useless things to prank him, so he could only invite her over.
Mu Yangling excitedly described Lin Ke’s invention and then looked at Qi Xiuyuan eagerly. Qi Xiuyuan laughed and said, “It’s just a creation by a craftsman. Ah Ling, why did you think of giving this to me? I don’t have a bookstore under me.”
As he said that, he tilted his head slightly and said hesitantly: “Could it be that Zijin has recently dabbled in bookstores? Why does this child do all kinds of business?”
“Big Brother Qi, the significance of this invention doesn’t just lie in the bookstore.” Mu Yangling said, “This is a major matter that benefits the country and the people. I brought it to you because I want to contribute to the country through you.”
Qi Xiuyuan stared into Mu Yangling’s eyes for a while and knew that she wanted him to submit a memorial to the Imperial Court. Not only could she obtain enough benefits for that little boy called Lin Ke, but she also wanted Qi Xiuyuan to take the credit for discovering the talent. However, this was just a printing method that was only useful to the bookstores. How could this be considered a great contribution?
He did not want to make a fool of himself.
He put the box aside and crossed his hands on his abdomen. Smiling, he said, “Ah Ling, I know that you want to help that child, the nursery, or even me, but this really isn’t much of a contribution. We can sell this method to a bookstore. However, there’s no such thing as an absolutely secret technique in this world. Considering this thing can be learned very easily, the bookstore won’t offer a very high price…”
Mu Yangling’s mouth fell open. So this was how important the movable type printing technique was in the eyes of the ancients. Indeed, there was a big generation gap. Her younger brother, with his foresight, was the best.
Mu Yangling looked at Qi Xiuyuan in distress.
Seeing that her face was scrunched up, Qi Xiuyuan joked, “This is at most a business. In terms of merit, you only have a huge merit in your hands. If you really want to gather merit for me, are you willing to give that merit to me?”
Mu Yangling looked up weakly and asked, “What merit have I achieved?”
Seeing her confused look, Qi Xiuyuan couldn’t help but shake his head secretly. “Geez, you’re like Haoran.” He said, “Your rice fields yielded 245 catties per acre this year, right?”
Mu Yangling tilted her head. “Big Brother Qi, are you talking about the military fields in Chenggu Garrison?”
Qi Xiuyuan nodded. “Ah Ling, do you know what the yield of rice fields in your area is this year?”
Seeing Mu Yangling looking at him, he said word by word, “Only 82 catties. Because of the drought, the average yield in your area is only 82 catties per acre. I heard that you divided ten acres of rice into four different methods. Do you mind telling me?”
Mu Yangling naturally did not mind.
Four planting methods were used. Two used drought-resistant seeds. One was sufficiently irrigated to ensure that moisture was sufficient. The other employed the dry seeding technique—aside from watering it once during the grain filling stage, it would not be watered again.
Two types used good seeds bought from the grain store. The above two planting methods were employed, and there were four different harvests.
Sighing, Qi Xiuyuan said, “Food is the priority of the people, and the country values the people. The one in your hand is the real merit. Four years ago, I still laughed at you for being as mischievous and stubborn as Haoran, but now it seems that we’re the real fools.”
“But Big Brother Qi, this drought-resistant seed has only been tested for a year, and it’s still unstable. There are still many issues that haven’t been confirmed. What if something happens after we report it?” Mu Yangling said with a frown, “Why don’t we wait another two years? By then, we should have figured out the issues with the seeds and the planting technique. Big Brother Qi, we can report it to the higher-ups then.”
Qi Xiuyuan was stunned for a moment before laughing out loud. Looking at the serious Mu Yangling, Qi Xiuyuan’s heart warmed slightly. He shook his head and laughed. “You, I was just joking with you. Just do whatever you want. I’m still waiting for you to develop good seeds. When the time comes, the seeds for planting rice in the West Camp will come from you.”
Mu Yangling agreed happily. She looked at the box of type matrices and couldn’t help but feel vexed again. She asked, “Big Brother Qi, are you sure you can’t report this?”
Qi Xiuyuan shook his head and smiled. “You can’t let Big Brother Qi lose face in front of the ministers. This won’t do. You should show it to Zijin and let him help you sell it for a good price.”
Mu Yangling was reluctant to sell it like this.
“Alright, since you’re here today, have dinner with us. Stay here tonight.” Qi Xiuyuan stood up and said, “I’ll bring you to see your sister-in-law. You didn’t go to the bridal chamber yesterday and haven’t seen her, right? Ah, no, you’ve already seen her before she married into the family.”
Mu Yangling smiled embarrassedly. “I forgot to prepare a gift for Sister-in-law this time.” After saying that, she said in distress, “I originally wanted to present this to you as your wedding gift, but I didn’t expect it to be botched.”
Qi Xiuyuan comforted her with a smile. “Haoran gave us something valuable, though. I’ll just treat it as a gift from the two of you.”
Mu Yangling blushed and muttered, “Who’s with him?”
Seeing her childish attitude, Qi Xiuyuan laughed heartily. “If you really want to gift me something, I think the leather jacket you gave Haoran last time is pretty good.” Qi Xiuyuan’s smile faded slightly. “That jacket saved Haoran’s life. If you really want to make up for my wedding gift, teach your sister-in-law how to make one for me.”
“Good idea. When the time comes, with the heart-protecting mirror in, it can save your life at critical moments.”
Qi Xiuyuan nodded with a smile. That was right.
Actually, as long as he handed that piece of clothing to the servants, they could also make one, too. However, he did not know how Mu Yangling had dealt with the leather back then that made the leather jacket very tough. Ordinary knives could not cut through it. Previously, he had many things to deal with, so he had forgotten about this matter.
Qi Xiuyuan didn’t stand on ceremony and directly asked her how to deal with the leather. Mu Yangling found a pen, ink, paper, and inkstone and leaned on the table to write it for him. The formula and processing steps were written clearly. As she wrote, she said, “Aren’t you wearing armor? Brother Haoran can’t stand to wear metal armor, so I made the leather armor for him to wear.”
In front of Qi Xiuyuan, Mu Yangling had always been very obedient. She had to add the word ‘Brother’ when addressing Qi Haoran and Fan Zijin.