Chapter 229: Chapter 211, The Grain Seeds Are Lost_1
After the Double Ninth Festival, another activity was added to Daohua’s daily life, and that was to ride horses in the suburbs of the city.
Sometimes she went with Zhou Jingwan, and sometimes she went by herself.
Madam Li was worried about accidents, so each time Daohua went out, in addition to being followed by Wang Manman and Qin Xiaoliu, she also had to bring along an old maid and two young servants.
As days became busier, time flew swiftly, and before they knew it, it was mid-October.
One day, when Daohua returned from outside leading the red jujube horse back to the main courtyard, she saw Madam Li sitting with a worried frown on her face.
“Mother, what’s wrong? Did someone upset you?”
Madam Li glanced at her daughter, beckoned her over to sit beside her, and then smiled, “With you around, who would dare to bully me?”
Daohua smiled, “Then what’s the matter?”
Madam Li let out a sigh, “Your father just came back and said that the batch of grain seeds sent to Fenxi has been lost!”
“What?!” Daohua’s eyes widened in surprise, “How could they be lost? Wasn’t it said that the grain seeds were to be escorted by the military? How could they still be lost?”
Madam Li: “It is said that they encountered bandits.”
Daohua could hardly believe it, “Are bandits so powerful these days, daring to rob even the military?”
Madam Li sighed and said, “It’s all because of the severe drought in the north two years ago. Many people couldn’t survive and turned to banditry. Though the past two years have seen slightly better times, the fields have not yet recovered, and the grain yield is low, unable to fill bellies, so the banditry has become more and more serious.”
Daohua furrowed her brows, “Don’t those bandits know that what they are robbing is the grain seeds to be planted soon? By stealing them, how are other people supposed to live?”
Madam Li: “Can you really expect people who have turned into bandits to have a conscience, to consider others? We should already be grateful that the bandits don’t kill people recklessly.”
Daohua looked worried, “What do we do now? Wasn’t it said that the people of Fenxi were waiting to sow these winter wheat seeds for food next year? Now that the seeds are lost, won’t there be a disaster again?”
Madam Li shook her head, the matter concerned the people’s livelihood and was not something a woman from the inner house could resolve.
Daohua sighed, lamenting how difficult life was for the people in ancient times.
Suddenly, Daohua raised her head sharply and asked urgently, “Mother, with the grain seeds lost, Father won’t be held responsible, will he?”
Madam Li shook her head and reassured, “No, your father had delivered the grain seeds intact to Governor Guo, and there is official documentation for the handover. If the higher-ups are to blame anyone, it would be Governor Guo, not your father.”
Daohua then felt relieved.
In ancient times, the practice of implicating the whole family was common. If her father got into trouble, their entire family would suffer.
Madam Li furrowed her brows, “However…”
Daohua’s heart skipped a beat, “However what?”
Madam Li let out a sigh, “Your father had hoped to accumulate achievements through the grain seeds. If the food problem of the people in Fenxi Province had been solved, even if your father wasn’t an official there, providing the seeds would still be credited as meritorious. It’s a pity that it has all come to nothing now.”
Daohua nodded, then said with a worried look, “Governor Guo… is Xiao Yeyang’s uncle. If he were to be punished, that fellow would likely be worried.”
Speak of the devil, and he shall appear.
The very next day after Daohua learned of the grain seeds being lost, Xiao Yeyang arrived at the Yan Residence.
At that time, Daohua was in the stable feeding the red jujube horse, when she saw Butler Sun and Qin Five and a few others rushing over to the stable, leading the horses away in a hurry.
Normally, upon encountering Daohua, Butler Sun would always stop to exchange a few words, and Qin Five would also pat the red jujube, but this time, they only greeted Daohua briefly before quickly departing.
“What’s happened? Butler Sun and the others look like they’re setting out on a long journey,” Daohua said, puzzled as she watched the group of people leaving.
Qin Xiaoliu, standing nearby, also looked confused and quickly spoke up, “Miss, shall I go and inquire?”
Daohua nodded her head, “Go ahead.”
No sooner had she spoken than Qin Xiaoliu ran off like a shot.
Before long, Qin Xiaoliu came running back, “Miss, the master has returned, and the Little Prince too—he’s also come to our residence. They’re in the front courtyard now!”
Daohua swiftly threw the handful of fodder into the manger and frowned, “The Academy doesn’t end its term until the end of the month. Why have they come back now? Could it be because of the grain seed issue?”
Daohua hurried toward the main courtyard. Just as she reached the doorway, she saw Madam Li and Yan Wenxiu rushing out.
“Mother, Brother, where are you going?”
Madam Li: “Your brother and I have some urgent business to attend to. Once we’re done, we’ll talk to you,” she said, and the two of them quickly left.
Seeing this, Daohua fell silent for a moment, then turned to Wang Manman behind her and said, “Let’s go to the front courtyard to have a look.”
…
As she passed through Chuihua Gate, Daohua saw Xiao Yeyang seated in the pavilion of the outer courtyard.
Unlike his usual confident and elegant demeanor, at this moment, he looked troubled, his brows furrowed with anxiety.
“What’s wrong with you?”
Daohua approached the pavilion.
Xiao Yeyang was worried about his uncle, the Governor Guo, and was about to snap at the intruder, but when he looked up and saw it was Daohua, he quickly suppressed his irritation and said wearily, “Why are you here?”
“Shouldn’t I be the one asking you that?” Daohua sat down opposite him, noticed him knitting his brows, and asked, “Are you worried about your uncle?”
Xiao Yeyang glanced at Daohua and nodded, “The drought these past two years caused bandit issues to rise in many places up north, and my uncle was appointed as Governor to eradicate them.”
“Among these places, Fenxi suffers the most severe disaster, hence also harbors the most bandits.”
“At the root, banditry arises because there’s no food. So, to truly eliminate the bandit problem, we must find a fundamental solution.”
“Honestly, Lord Yan creating high-yield grain seeds not only delighted the Emperor—he’s like an uncle to me—but also filled my real uncle, the Governor, with joy since he could resolve the bandit issue sooner.”
“But now, at this very moment, the grain seeds are lost!”
If Fenxi fails to have a yield next year, the bandit problem will definitely worsen, which would constitute a serious dereliction of duty for my uncle as the Governor in charge of eradicating bandits. Even if there’s a valid reason, he would still be subject to punishment.
“If it leads to major disorder, losing his position and titles would be the least of his worries.”
The Guo Family has quite a few political enemies at the Imperial Court; they would not miss such a perfect opportunity to heavily damage the Guo Family.
Hearing all this, Daohua felt a heavy heart too.
If things got out of control, it could possibly lead to exile and even confiscation of property, right?
At that moment, Yan Wenxiu came over and said to Xiao Yeyang, “Little Prince, my mother has already sent people to collect whatever grain seeds are left from each of our estates, but I’m afraid it won’t be much.”
There was no helping it; the high-yielding strain hadn’t been planted for long—our family had only harvested it for one season. Aside from our own seed stock, we’ve given out some to our close allies, so we haven’t stored much.
Also, the timing of the seed loss could not have been worse; it was the beginning of October, and the Yan Family’s fields had just sown the winter wheat seeds.