Lucky Farmer Girl: I rely on metaphysics to support my family

Upon hearing Zhou Sicheng's words, Tang Bojun clasped his hands together and raised them to the right, saying humbly, "Lord Zhou, you flatter me. Thanks to His Majesty's blessings, my Tang family has only done our humble best."

Although Zhou Sicheng was a pragmatist, he was also quite adept at basic social skills. Upon learning about the yields of the two new plants, he became even more optimistic about the future of the Tang family, and his demeanor became slightly more respectful.

After all, this Minister was someone I couldn't possibly be close to if he hadn't been exiled. Now that he has achieved such results, it's possible that he might even be reinstated.

We dare not act rashly at this time.

So he greeted him sincerely, saying, "Lord Tang, you are so kind. Such achievements are worthy of being recorded in history! I admire you!" Of course, he was more envious than anything else.

This busy day can last a long time, with a lot of work to be done from measurement to weighing.

Just as the Tang family was busy working with Zhou Sicheng in the fields, carefully measuring and weighing the crop yield, an unexpected diplomatic crisis was brewing in the imperial palace in the capital, thousands of miles away.

Inside the imperial study, the emperor sat behind his dragon desk, while the Prince of War stood to one side.

The Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies bowed and presented a letter of state, his tone grave: "Your Majesty, the Southern Desert delegation has delivered a letter of state with vehement words. They were already dissatisfied with the Southern Desert princess only being granted the position of a concubine to Prince Kang, and now they are even more upset that Your Majesty has bestowed the title of Grand Tutor's granddaughter upon her as your principal wife, and specifically stated that the rites for the principal wife will be performed first. The Southern Desert is vehemently criticizing this, claiming that Your Majesty is deliberately humiliating the Southern Desert and treating them as nothing! At the same time, there are also reports that the Southern Desert seems to be making unusual moves, and may be considering restarting the war."

The emperor accepted the letter of state presented by the eunuch, gave a faint hum, and handed it to the War King who stood guard beside him: "In the end, I couldn't resist. Take a look too."

After quickly reading through the document, the War King cupped his hands and said in a deep voice, "Father, the Southern Desert's actions were somewhat expected. They dare not confront our dynasty head-on on substantive issues such as the ownership of Haiyue City, so they can only make a fuss about the princess's rank and etiquette, merely to save face. This so-called 'humiliation' is utter nonsense. As for their unusual actions, they are mostly just bluffing, trying to gain more benefits at the negotiating table."

He said it was mostly bluffing, but he knew in his heart that it was just a trick used by Nanmo. If Nanmo had the strength to fight, there would be no peace talks.

Besides, what a coincidence! The news of the disturbance in the Southern Desert came just after the Kang Prince's principal wife was appointed.

The royal intelligence network hadn't received any information, so how did outsiders find out?

The emperor understood the war king's meaning, and simply nodded slightly, saying, "That's true, but it's ultimately a matter of diplomatic relations, and we can't completely ignore it. What do you think we should do?"

The War King stepped forward and bowed, calmly saying, "Father, I believe that this matter should be responded to with swift and decisive action, and we must not allow the Southern Desert to take an inch further."

"Oh? Tell me your thoughts," the emperor said expectantly.

After all, among his sons, only this one is both scholarly and martial, with extraordinary courage and vision.

The War King's gaze was firm as he calmly stated, "First, immediately strengthen border defenses and order the garrison commander of Haiyue City to be on high alert, ready to fight at any moment. Second, order the Court of State Ceremonies to clarify that our Celestial Empire adheres to its fundamental principles, and that the grand ceremony of establishing the Grand Tutor's granddaughter as the principal wife was precisely an act of upholding these principles and following ancestral rules. As for the Southern Desert Princess, now that she has entered the imperial family, she should naturally follow the rites and laws of our dynasty. Third, order the Court of State Ceremonies to reply to the Southern Desert with even stronger language, clearly stating that if they insist on disrupting the peace talks, our Great Xia will not hesitate to take another city."

The War King paused slightly, then continued, "In addition, we can appropriately reveal the news of the Tang family's greatly increased crop yield to the Southern Desert delegation. The Southern Desert does not produce abundant grain, and upon learning this news, the arrogance of the pro-war faction within the country will likely be greatly dampened."

Upon hearing the War King's words, the Emperor was overjoyed: "Very well! As you have suggested. The Southern Desert's actions are nothing more than a desperate struggle. The Court of State Ceremonies will take full responsibility for responding to the Southern Desert delegation, as the War King has just suggested."

The Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies bowed and accepted the order. Since the Emperor had already devised a solution, he would simply follow the Emperor's plan. If necessary, he could consult the Prince of War. After the Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies left to carry out the order, the Emperor pondered for a moment and said to the Prince of War, who was standing to the side, "After Zhou Sicheng has completed his inspection and returned to the capital, 'casually' inform the Southern Desert delegation of this information at an appropriate time."

"Your subject obeys the decree." The War King bowed slightly to accept the order, but his heart inadvertently drifted to the image of the young woman far away in the Southern Desert who stirred his emotions.

After discussing official business, the Emperor invited Prince Zhan to stay for a meal.

Before the meal, they played a game of chess. Halfway through the game, the Emperor dropped a bombshell that caught the Prince of War off guard.

"Yesterday you said that the mission of escorting the envoy from the Southern Desert was completed and you wanted to return to the Northern Desert to guard the border as soon as possible?" the Emperor asked somewhat casually.

"Yes, Your Majesty, it's been almost half a year since I left the Northern Desert, and I'm a little worried," the War King replied earnestly.

"The war with the Southern Desert ended quickly this time. If the Southern Desert had dragged on for a few more months, I'm afraid you wouldn't have been able to return to the Northern Desert for a while. Are the deputy generals you left in the Northern Desert just sitting around doing nothing?" The Emperor retorted without any politeness.

"No, that's not it. It's just that I'm a little worried! Besides, the terms of the peace talks in the Southern Desert have already been agreed upon, and there's nothing to do in the capital now!" the War King replied neither humbly nor arrogantly.

Hearing the King of War say this, the Emperor was immediately annoyed: "Nothing to do? There are plenty of things to do while staying in the capital!"

Then, the Emperor took a breath, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly, put down a chess piece, and said indifferently, "But it's good that you go back. When you return to the northern desert, you can transport the grain grown by the Tang family and those other families to your camp in the northern desert as military rations."

Upon hearing the Emperor's words, the War King was startled and his heart tightened. He asked, "Is it all to be used as military rations?"

"Yes! Even so, it's probably still far from enough, after all, your army of 100,000 requires a lot of food and supplies!" the Emperor replied calmly.

Upon hearing the Emperor's words, the War King was somewhat flustered. He didn't know where to put the chess piece he had picked up. Not wanting to think about it, he casually tossed the piece into the chess box.

The crisp sound of the chess pieces colliding instantly snapped the War King back to his senses.

He hurriedly composed himself and said cautiously, "Father, it would be cheap to use the grain grown by a few families as military rations, but it might not be appropriate to use it all. We should leave some for people to use for their own purposes."

The Emperor smiled slightly and said, "They are all going back to the capital, and it's inconvenient to take them with us. They can be used as military rations."

The War King looked at the Emperor in surprise and asked in confusion, "Return to the capital? All of them?"

Seeing the somewhat anxious look on the King of War's face, the Emperor did not rush to answer, but instead reminded him, "It's your turn, play chess!"

The War King found the smile on the Emperor's face increasingly irritating. He picked up a chess piece, suppressing his anxiety, and calmly looked at the expectant Emperor. After a moment, he placed the piece back down, his expression returning to normal. (End of Chapter)