Allure of a Country Maiden
Chapter 819 - 817_1

Chapter 819: Chapter 817_1

Following the resolution of the locust plague, Shangguan Xuanyi and Xiao’er continued to travel south, in search of a suitable climate to cultivate a large quantity of yellow dragon fruit.

The idea was to aid the common people in Shangguan Xuanhao’s fief in becoming prosperous — a fitting present for his son’s one-month-old celebration.

Shangguan Xuanyi was pleased with how his son had taken the initiative to stay in the Imperial Capital, allowing them to enjoy their travel for a year and a half without worry. Of course, it was largely because their son was still too young to travel far. Otherwise, they would have brought him along.

In certain overseas countries, the dragon fruit is revered as a holy fruit. During religious ceremonies and important events, it is offered at the altar. Currently, these fruits fetch high prices in our country.

Now, with the Minze Dynasty opening up trade ports and overseas trade becoming more frequent, large-scale cultivation of the yellow dragon fruit could bring considerable income to the people in the south.

Xiao’er and Shangguan Xuanyi went through numerous local records to find a location suitable for cultivating yellow dragon fruit and plan to visit in person. They would then arrange for the government to organize its cultivation and promotion among the people. Meanwhile, they would also seek a port in the south for surfing at sea.

The pair spent about ten days traveling by land before switching to water transportation.

To reach Zhenyang County, they could travel by water for a section of the journey and then proceed by land for a few more days.

They would be staying at a Post Station for the night and head for the pier to board a boat the next day.

In the evening, Shangguan Xuanyi received a Pigeon Post message from the emperor. The letter asked them to visit the drought-stricken area in the north and bring some good fortune with them, in hopes of inducing rain.

Shangguan Xuanyi couldn’t help but laugh and cry after reading the letter. Was Xiao’er now being considered as some kind of deity, capable of controlling the weather?

Luckily, the emperor’s ideas were only expressed in the form of a casual family letter and not as an imperial edict. Shangguan Xuanyi decided to ignore these absurd thoughts.

Xiao’er, noticing Shangguan Xuanyi’s look of exasperation, curiously asked, "What does the letter say? You..."

Shangguan Xuanyi handed over the letter to Xiao’er. After reading it, she also found it amusing, "Is His Majesty treating me like some sort of god? As if I’m capable of making it rain just by showing up!"

"I’m sure the emperor was just speaking casually. We can deal with locusts but we’re helpless when it comes to rainfall. Are we supposed to mimic the future and make artificial rain? We cannot be bothered with this. Let’s continue heading south," Shangguan Xuanyi folded the letter and put it away.

With the drought in the north, many people have already migrated to the south. The Imperial Court has arranged for county magistrates to set up refuges and assist the disaster victims.

In the past few years, the country’s granaries, thanks to bountiful harvests, still have a sizeable stock. Setting up shelters, distributing free foods to the disaster victims are not issues. Furthermore, Shangguan Xuanyi knew that the refugees had brought some grain from their own homes. They simply had no access to water in their hometowns and had to find a place with water to cook meals. Once it rained in their hometown, they would naturally return home.

The next day, the pair arrived at the pier early in the morning.

The ship they took was not a government ship, it was a passenger ship filled with common people.

As the journey wasn’t long, it only took a few days from Yizhou Prefecture to Zhenyang County with the favourable wind and current. Xiao’er didn’t want to cause a stir, so they decided to take the passenger ship.

Moreover, this was Master Shi’s ship. Master Shi had given a 20% share of his water transportation business to Xiao’er as part of her dowry, so they were essentially traveling on their own ship.

With Shangguan Xuanyi’s assistance, Xiao’er boarded the ship. Xiao’er then showed a token to one of the sailors on the ship. Upon seeing it, the sailor hurriedly bowed in respect and enthusiastically guided them to the largest and most elegantly furnished private room on the second floor.

This ship was quite large and had two decks. The second deck was intended for the wealthy while the lower deck was meant for common folks.

On the second deck, there were several independent private rooms, each tastefully decorated. The ship’s cabin was adorned with various paintings and calligraphy, lending an exquisite elegance to the surroundings. Each cabin was equipped with a small bed and a tea table. The ship had a total of twenty private rooms.

Of course, the private room that Xiao’er was currently in was the largest room, completely furnished with a bed, dining table, desk, and tea table.

For the second deck, from Yizhou Prefecture to Zhenyang County, each private room cost ten taels of silver. For every stop at a pier, the fare reduced by one tael of silver.

The lower deck’s fare was set at 100 coins per person for the shortest journey, with an additional 100 coins per person required per additional segment of the journey. Thus, the total fare came to one tael of silver per person. The lower deck could accommodate over a hundred people.

Thus, with each round trip, the ship earned a considerable income.

Xiao’er and Shangguan Xuanyi were in one private room, and Yang Mei and Yang Liu were in another.

As they were being led to the upper deck by the waiter, a woman in one corner of the ship lowered her head. As soon as they had ascended to the upper deck, she shot them a venomously hateful glance. Although she attempted to mask her hatred, it was impossible to fully conceal it.

Worried that someone might notice her strange behaviour, she quickly lowered her head, clasping her hands on her lap and resting her head on her arms, feigning sleep while internally plotting.

Luckily, the ship was going downstream, so it was moving at a good pace. If they continued at this speed, they should reach their destination a day or two earlier than expected.

After the ship had been underway for about half an hour, Yang Mei became seasick and began to vomit uncontrollably.

Yang Mei had always suffered from severe seasickness, and each journey by ship left her severely nauseated. As a result, she rarely ventured out, and it was generally Yang Liu who accompanied Xiao’er. She dreaded the possibility of having to travel by ship.

While undertaking her own tasks, Yang Mei preferred to travel on horseback, only resorting to sea travel when absolutely necessary.

Even though seasickness is not life-threatening, the discomfort it causes is indeed unbearable.

From her room next door, Xiao’er could hear the sounds of Yang Mei vomiting. She knew about Yang Mei’s seasickness but was not aware of its severity, since the sound insulation in previous boats was not as good as in this one.

"Brother Guan, I’ll go check on Yang Mei."

Shangguan Xuanyi nodded his assent and didn’t try to stop her.

Xiao’er knocked on their door, and Yang Liu opened it. Seeing Xiao’er, both of them looked startled, and Yang Liu hurriedly blocked the doorway, "Miss, it’s quite messy in here. You’d better not enter."

Yang Mei also nodded in agreement, "Miss, I’m fine. I’ll feel better after vomiting. Don’t worry about me..."

Before Yang Mei could finish, she began to vomit again.

"Why didn’t you come to me when it was this bad? These are seasickness pills. Take them, and you’ll feel a lot better!" Xiao’er didn’t insist on entering, seeing how determined Yang Liu was to keep her from going in. She handed a bottle of pills to Yang Liu, "If the pills don’t work, just press her sleep acupoint and let her sleep through the journey!"

"How could that be possible? I need to protect you and the young master."

Upon hearing this, Xiao’er couldn’t help but jest, "Come on, you’re like a clay idol crossing a river, barely holding onto yourself, and yet you want to protect me! Rest well. Don’t worry, the ship is safe."

Having provided instructions, Xiao’er returned to her own room.

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