The Humble Family’s Daughter Has A Spatial Pocket!
Chapter 705 - 633, Let’s Farm Together_1

Chapter 705: Chapter 633, Let’s Farm Together_1

A meal at noon, Granny Gu and Gu Jian had almost eaten with stiff faces. They neither dared to talk much with the Emperor nor appeared too eager, fearing that Daohua would detect something and then investigate the Emperor’s identity.

The Emperor also found the meal quite disagreeable. In the palace, he mostly dined alone, accustomed to the silence during meals. Faced with the enthusiastic and chatty Daohua, who incessantly engaged him in mundane conversation, he really felt somewhat overwhelmed.

Especially since this girl was playing mind games in front of him. During idle chatter, she occasionally beat around the bush to inquire about his identity, which made him both amused and exasperated, reminiscent of the mental fatigue of matching wits with the officials at court.

Daohua, on the other hand, was eating quite well. Although Gu strongly dodged her when she asked key questions, she wasn’t disappointed. Through their conversation, she could sense that Gu truly respected her master and granny, and knowing that was enough for her.

Seeing that Granny Gu and Gu Jian were almost done eating, Daohua smiled at the Emperor, noticing that he had barely touched the dishes in his plate, and couldn’t help but ask, "Your Highness, do our home-cooked meals not suit your taste?"

The Emperor, who had only taken a few bites, forced a smile, "No, they’re quite delicious." It was just that he didn’t have the time to eat properly.

Daohua breathed a sigh of relief: "So it seems that Your Highness doesn’t eat much."

The Emperor, feeling indescribable, glanced at Daohua. Didn’t this girl have any idea why he ate so little? If she hadn’t been constantly bombarding him with questions, would he not have dined properly?

Gu Jian didn’t want to see his apprentice dangerously probing further, so he glanced at Caiju, signaling her to clean up the table.

Seeing that Daohua stayed seated, ready to continue playing host, the Emperor silently took a deep breath and, using convenience as an excuse, took the opportunity to slip out of the main room.

As soon as he left, Daohua looked disapprovingly at Granny Gu and Gu Jian: "Master, granny, I know you’re hospitable, but even hospitality should have limits, right? The millennium ginseng is precious, and master, you never indulge in it yourself. Why did you serve it to a stranger today?"

Outside the house, the Emperor referred to as a stranger: "..."

Gu Jian’s mouth twitched: "... Well, I thought, since we didn’t have much to offer..."

Daohua glared: "The meal we just had was abundantly rich, wasn’t it? Caiju even served potatoes."

Granny Gu fell silent: "Well... Didn’t you say potatoes weren’t anything special?"

Daohua: "Potatoes may not be rare, but the thing is, haven’t they just been cultivated recently? Even the Emperor hasn’t had them yet, which makes them rare."

Granny Gu stopped talking then.

Outside, Eunuch An looked at the Emperor and whispered softly, "My lord, should I get Caiju to prepare something else for you to eat?"

The Emperor shook his head: "Forget it, I’ll just end up being lectured by that girl again. Better not trouble ourselves." After saying this, he turned and went into Xiao Yeyang’s room.

Later, when Daohua went back to her room to rest at noon, Gu Jian came over with a bowl of medicinal cuisine.

The Emperor, upon knowing the ingredients of the medicinal cuisine, shook his head, "Uncle, keep this for mother. The palace has plenty of good medicinal herbs, I don’t lack medicinal cuisine."

Gu Jian set the medicinal cuisine in front of him: "I know you’re not short of medicinal herbs, but can you provide those over a thousand years old? Come on, eat up. This medicinal cuisine is very nourishing, and don’t worry about sister, I’ve saved some for her too."

Hearing this, the Emperor no longer resisted. He had been there for a few days now, eating medicinal cuisine every day, and the results were truly good. He had always had trouble sleeping, often waking up during the night, but after taking the medicinal cuisine, he had slept soundly each night until morning, waking up feeling refreshed and invigorated.

"By the way, uncle, what’s the story with the potatoes? I heard from Dongli that the yield seems to be very high."

Gu Jian smiled and nodded: "Yes, it’s quite high. The estate down the mountain is growing them. I personally went to see their harvest, and one acre yielded about 20 bushels."

The Emperor’s expression brightened, asking eagerly, "The yield is that high?"

Gu Jian nodded: "However, this is also because Daohua takes good care of the fields. Others might not get such high yields."

The Emperor calmed himself: "Even if the yield is halved, it would still be a high-yielding crop." He frowned slightly, "Why hasn’t Yan Zhigao reported this?"

Gu Jian helped explain: "The potatoes have only been harvested recently, and since it’s the first cultivation, many of the conditions are still unclear. Yan Zhigao, being cautious by nature, collected all the potatoes. They are currently being tested throughout Ningmen Prefecture. Probably by the time the next crop is harvested, he’ll report to the Imperial Court."

The Emperor nodded: "Yan Zhigao is still very practical and serious in his work."

Seeing the Emperor’s interest in the potatoes, Gu Jian continued: "Daohua says that potatoes can be planted in two seasons. Her estate is currently planting the next crop; you can go take a look later."

The Emperor was intrigued: "Sure, I’ll go down the mountain to have a look in a while."

...

When Daohua woke up from her nap, Wang Manman went to the kitchen to heat up some water for her to wash her face. That’s when she noticed the medicinal cuisine was missing from the porcelain jar, so she immediately ran to tell Daohua.

Upon hearing this, Daohua fell silent.

Wang Manman: "Could it have been Granny Gu or Master Gu who ate it?"

Daohua shook her head, "Granny will not take the medicinal meal before noon rest, and Master... will definitely not take it either."

Wang Manman said, "Then it must have been Xiaowu who ate it."

Daohua sighed, "Well, if Master wants to give it to Xiaowu, let him have it. We should pretend we don’t know."

Wang Manman nodded, "Miss, do you feel that Master Gu favors Xiaowu a bit too much?"

Daohua harrumphed, "How could he not? He cooks millennia-old medicinal herbs without a second thought." Saying this, as if something occurred to her, she stepped out of the room and headed straight to the dispensary.

Seeing the locked dispensary, Daohua was stunned, "Why is it locked?"

Daohua turned to look for Gu Jian, and after going around in circles and finding neither him nor Granny Gu, she asked Caiju in the yard, "Caiju, where are Master and the others?"

Caiju replied, "Seems like they have gone down the mountain."

Upon hearing this, Daohua also went down the mountain with Wang Manman, and soon, they found the two elders in their own fields.

Seeing Xiaowu standing on a ridge, watching the tenant farmers picking potatoes, Daohua hurried over, "Granny, Master, why have you come here?"

Granny Gu smiled and said, "Xiaowu wanted to see how potatoes are grown, so your Master and I accompanied him to have a look."

Daohua uttered an ’oh’, her gaze shifting to the Emperor, "Xiaowu, you are also interested in farming?"

The Emperor smiled and nodded, "The people consider food as their prime want; farming affairs are indeed crucial for their livelihood."

Daohua smiled, and then her eyes twinkled mischievously, "Xiaowu, just standing and watching won’t give you a real understanding. You have to personally try planting in the field to truly grasp farming affairs. Otherwise, it’s merely armchair strategy, and you won’t be able to manage agriculture properly."

After all, he had consumed the thousand-year-old fleeceflower root from her home, how could she not make him plant for a while?

Hearing this, Butler An immediately started coughing violently.

The Emperor, looking at Daohua who was encouraging him to plant, said with a smile, "I heard from the old gentleman that you are quite skilled at planting. I suppose you must personally take to the field. Why don’t you demonstrate for me?

Daohua chuckled inwardly, this Xiaowu was as cunning as ever, even when asked to plant, he managed to pull her in too.

After a moment of thought, a smile broke on Daohua’s face, "Of course, Xiaowu, you are so robust and mighty, you must be quite formidable. Planting a bit in the field will definitely be a piece of cake for you."

Having said that, she took the lead and stepped into the field, waving enthusiastically at Xiaowu.

"Xiaowu, come down. I’ll teach you how to plant potatoes."

The Emperor hadn’t expected Daohua to actually get into the field just like that and was silent for a moment on the ridge. Nevertheless, he steeled himself and stepped down.

Then, the Emperor began his first experience of planting potatoes.

At first, the Emperor learned with great enthusiasm.

Half an hour later, the Emperor’s expression became somewhat strained.

An hour later, the Emperor felt his back could hardly straighten. He wanted to say he was done with planting, but Daohua was constantly on the side exhorting him, muttering things like ’he couldn’t possibly be outdone by a young girl’, which left him utterly exhausted in spirit.

On the ridge, Butler An watched with concern as the clearly struggling Emperor toiled in the field, "Elders, perhaps we should call the Master back? If he continues, he will be sore all over."

Gu Jian glanced at his enthusiastic apprentice in the field and said, "All right, that’s enough learning, he can come up now."

Upon hearing this, the Emperor heaved a great sigh of relief.

Yet Daohua pursed her lips and, once she had gotten up on the ridge, seeing the Emperor with a stooped back and rubbing his waist, shook her head and said, "Xiaowu, you’ve only been planting for a short while and you’re already this tired. It seems you’re lacking in exercise."

The Emperor looked mournfully at Daohua and said with a mocked smile, "In the future... In the future, I will definitely seek out Miss Yan to plant fields more often."

Seeing her foolish disciple willing to agree, Gu Jian quickly interjected, "What does a girl need to plant fields for? It’s enough that she knows how to collect the rents. Now that we’ve watched and learned – and planted – let’s head back."

The Emperor didn’t say much after that.

On the way back, Daohua enthusiastically introduced the various matters of the field to the Emperor.

The Emperor listened intently, realizing that this girl truly did understand agriculture.