What's wrong with me, a powerful minister, supporting a few female officials?

Chapter 305 This isn't a sweet potato! This is a get-out-of-jail-free card!

When Lin Moyin saw that Su Mo still wanted to mount his horse with a spear, her pretty face turned pale with fright.

How could a bride withstand such torment!
Even Grand Sorcerers at the Returning to the Aperture Realm are no exception!

Fortunately, she heard Liu Siyun shouting outside, which was like heavenly music to her ears. She endured the excruciating pain and pushed Su Mo away with all her might.

"My lord, stop!"

"His Majesty has issued a divine decree!"

Su Mo cursed under his breath.

And just when things seemed to be going well, a divine decree suddenly arrived!
Leng Liuxi should be holding a banquet in the palace now to entertain civil and military officials.

It's impossible that he would secretly come to eavesdrop on me again and ruin my plans with Lord Qianhu, right?

Hmph, it's too late to cause trouble now!

I've done everything I should and shouldn't have done!
However, the imperial decree could not be disobeyed, so Su Mo had no choice but to reluctantly stop and abandon the idea of ​​helping Lord Bai with a second treatment to consolidate the therapeutic effect.

Just as she opened her mouth to call Liu Siyun in, Lin Moyin panicked and hurriedly said, "Don't come in! Go outside and talk!"

They then ruthlessly kicked Su Mo out.

Su Mo sighed at women's fickleness, put on a thin robe, and went outside, looking at Liu Siyun with annoyance: "What imperial decree does His Majesty have?"

Seeing Su Mo's expression, Liu Siyun couldn't help but cover her mouth and chuckle. However, Su Mo glared at her, and she quickly said, "His Majesty said that he deeply regrets not being able to drink with Su Qing at the grand banquet in the palace."

"Therefore, I have specially ordered the palace servants to send over a royal banquet and some wine, so that I may enjoy it with you from afar."

Su Mo's forehead creased with annoyance: "That's it?"

Why does she need someone to bring her food when she has nothing good to eat at home?

I was just having a big meal!
Liu Siyun said with a wry smile, "His Majesty values ​​you highly and has specially sent someone to deliver a royal banquet to you. You must not neglect this honor!"

She paused, then said, "A group of palace servants are waiting at the main gate of the central courtyard. My lord, please go there quickly."

Su Mo knew that this was truly an unparalleled honor.

If the officials knew, they would be incredibly envious!
Even the servants in the household shared in the glory, and their words aroused envy and jealousy among the servants of other officials' households!
However, the Empress was indeed considerate of herself.

After being invited to a banquet in the palace and refused, he specifically instructed palace servants to send him a feast.

Such a skillful way of winning people's hearts is truly remarkable; I really don't know which bastard he learned it from.

It almost made me feel like "a scholar will die for one who understands him".

However, as touching as it may be, we still need to continue building ships as a backup plan.

I wonder how things are going with my second and third uncles, and whether they will come back to Beijing for the New Year.

When he wrote to the Prefect of Wanghai County, he also sent letters to his second and third uncles.

When Su Mo returned to the bedroom, Lin Moyin was already dressed, still wearing her silver-white flying fish robe. She looked majestic and imposing, a truly spirited female imperial guard, showcasing the demeanor of the eldest wife of the Su family!
The sheets on the spring mattress had been hidden somewhere by her.

Su Mo asked Liu Siyun to bring warm water to wipe her body, but when she turned around, she saw Lin Moyin take out a brocade box from the wardrobe, which contained a tiger-patterned robe, a jade belt, and a crown.

Helpless, Su Mo could only let the two women do as they pleased and dress him in a tiger costume.

After the two women tidied him up, Su Mo looked in the bronze mirror and indeed, he looked completely different.

He was already tall and handsome, and the tiger-patterned robe that fit him perfectly exuded an aura of majesty and composure. The gilded silver crown and white jade hairpin on his head added a touch of refined elegance to his majesty.

What a handsome young man in this turbid world!
Lin Moyin and Liu Siyun were both stunned for a moment!
I never imagined that my man, with just a little dressing up, would be so dashing and handsome!
The side of the central courtyard has been converted into the main gate, painted red, and the plaque has been changed to Su Mansion—Su Mo shamelessly had Ye Wenshan write it, and it was only hung up today. The calligraphy does look very domineering.

The palace servants who were delivering the meal waited outside for quite some time.

There were more than a dozen people, including palace maids and eunuchs, carrying food boxes, some of which had charcoal stoves placed underneath to keep them warm.

The palace servants were so cold that their faces turned pale, but when they saw Su Mo come out, they didn't dare to complain at all.

The leading eunuch in red robes hurriedly stepped forward and bowed obsequiously to Su Mo: "This servant greets Magistrate Su!"

"His Majesty knows that Magistrate Su is too busy with affairs to attend the banquet in the palace, so he specially ordered me to send a royal feast to Magistrate Su!"

Su Mo naturally bowed towards the direction of the imperial city and said thank you for Your Majesty's grace.

He then instructed the palace servants to deliver the food to the side hall.

After the palace servants had set out the food, Su Mo presented each person with a small red paper packet containing one or two taels of silver.

The head eunuch directly received one tael of gold.

Given Su Mo's current status, he no longer needs to deliberately curry favor with palace maids and eunuchs, but this has become a habit, and it doesn't cost much money anyway.

People braved the cold weather to bring me food and drinks, and with the Lunar New Year approaching, I naturally felt obligated to reciprocate.

After the palace maids thanked him and took their leave, Su Mo, along with a group of women, looked at the food and wine on the table and suddenly smiled: "Your Majesty has been complaining to me about being poor, but I didn't expect the food to be so plentiful, although the dishes are a bit ordinary."

He had assumed that the palace banquet would feature rare ingredients and unusual dishes.

Surprisingly, these were just some very ordinary dishes.

Most of the dishes consisted of common chicken, duck, fish, mutton, and egg custard, along with some dried seafood, abalone, and sea cucumber, plus some pickled bamboo shoots and other vegetarian dishes, but not a single green vegetable was visible.

The portions were enormous, with plates as big as basins, and twelve dishes, enough for more than a dozen people to eat.

The liquor was, unsurprisingly, Chenjia Niang!
The wine was as clear as water, more like the spirit of a scholar than turbid wine, so the empress had no choice but to reluctantly purchase the aged wine.

According to Su Mo's estimate, this meal would probably cost two or three taels of silver.

Of course, what we're eating isn't vegetables.

It's an honor!

It is divine grace!
Moreover, apart from the cold dishes, most of the dishes were still steaming hot.

It's quite a distance from the palace to the Su residence.

The palace servants came over, but they had to be careful not to spill the wine and food, so they walked slowly. It would probably take at least half an hour for the food to stay warm, which showed that the Empress really put her heart into it.

Although the dishes were ordinary, the bowls and plates used to serve them caught Su Mo's attention.

Exquisitely crafted, these are clearly royal artifacts.

If it survives for a thousand or eight hundred years, it will definitely be quite valuable.

The only drawback is that although the design is exquisite and the colors are vibrant, the glaze on the surface is somewhat rough, and it seems to be inferior to the ceramic tiles fired at Gufeng Mountain.

Su Mo estimated that the problem was due to insufficient kiln temperature.

In addition, the chopsticks that were delivered were spotless white, with a bony texture, and looked as if they were made of ivory!
The emperor is too extravagant!

After eating, it must be stored away in the treasure vault.

In any case, the Empress did not ask me to return these imperial porcelains.

Of course, even if the Empress specifically said so, Su Mo pretended not to hear it.

In the eyes of countless people, he is a petty person, and petty people must be vengeful!
Having been exploited by the Empress so many times, Su Mo now had a rare opportunity to take revenge, so how could he not seize it!

However, Su Mo was unaware of this.

In fact, after the banquet for all officials, they would pack up the leftovers without any hesitation, including the bowls, plates and chopsticks.
This is the royal palace distributing benefits!

The imperial bowls and plates can fetch a good price if you take them back with you!
The officials, driven mad by poverty, would never leave anything for the Empress on the dining table!
Having cultivated with Lord Qianhu earlier, Su Mo was already starving, so he immediately invited the women to sit down without saying any polite words.

Just as she picked up the ivory chopsticks, Lin Moyin suddenly said, "Please wait a moment, my lord!"

Su Mo was taken aback: "Is there something else?"

Lin Moyin solemnly said, "Before the banquet begins, I must first express my gratitude to the Emperor!"

Su Mo...

Even hosting a banquet is so troublesome; I'm glad I didn't go to the palace for a feast.

Lin Moyin added, "Today is the 27th of the lunar year. His Majesty has just sent over the imperial banquet. I think it would be better to have the New Year's Eve dinner today."

"My lord will go to Lonely Peak Mountain tomorrow."

"In my opinion, it would be better for you, my lord, to personally distribute the New Year's goods to the people, artisans, and laborers in the fiefdom. It would not be too late to go to the capital at the beginning of the year."

Su Mo thought about it and agreed.

Gufeng Mountain was his fiefdom, and it was the best he had ever spent the first New Year there.

This is also an excellent opportunity to unite the people of Gufeng Mountain.

Especially the refugees, even though they found work and had enough to eat and stay in Gufeng Mountain, they were not easily at ease. They might think that if they lost their jobs, they would be driven away by the lord of the fiefdom.

As the pillar of the nation, I should really go and stabilize people's hearts.

Therefore, Su Mo nodded: "Mo'er is right."

"The Wulongtan mansion is almost finished, let's all go and take a look and see if there's anything that needs to be modified."

Although the Dabieye project has only been under construction for a little over two months.

However, with more people building houses, the speed is naturally faster!

Theoretically speaking, a house that ten people can build in a hundred days can be completed in a day if a thousand people build it.

If we mobilize 10,000 people, it will only take an hour!
Don't try to reason with Su Mo about practical matters!
Mathematics doesn't lie!

In order to fulfill his dream of owning a villa in ancient times that he couldn't achieve in modern times, Su Mo devoted a great deal of energy to this villa.

Two brick kilns and one porcelain kiln were specially built.

The houses have granite foundations, are mostly built with blue bricks, and have tiled floors.

It also used a large amount of cement, bamboo reinforcement, and a considerable number of steel bars, making it incredibly sturdy and capable of being used as a fortress!
If it's a wooden structure, there are many trees in the mountains, and Su Mo is afraid it could easily start a fire.

The whole family will be roasted like pigs!

After a considerable delay, we can finally start eating.

As Su Mo ate, she felt that the imperial chef's skills were nothing special, and his own skills were inferior.

No wonder the Empress often comes to my house to freeload.

This is normal, though, as the imperial chefs prioritize stability, so they mainly use common ingredients.

If we make some strange and unusual dishes for the emperor or his concubines, and then the emperor suddenly wants to eat them, but the imperial chefs can't find the ingredients to make them, wouldn't they be doomed?

In contrast, Liu Siyun and the others were all enjoying their food immensely!
Lin Moyin was no exception.

It tasted even better than the dishes that cost over ten taels of silver each at our own restaurant! After the imperial banquet, there were still quite a few dishes left uneaten.

Su Mo naturally wouldn't waste anything, so she had the servants who were clearing the dishes take the leftovers back to share.

Liu Siyun, Xue Yishu, and the others were about to say goodbye to Su Mo and Lin Moyin and return to their rooms to rest.

The lives of people in ancient times were so simple.

After dinner, it's basically time to sleep, though there might be a little incident or something.

Unexpectedly, Su Mo suddenly laughed and said, "Everyone, don't rush back to bed."

"I haven't cooked in a long time. It's rare to have everyone here today, so let me personally cook you a sweet potato soup to aid your digestion!"

Lin Moyin was immediately taken aback: "Sweet potato soup?"

In ancient times, most people relied on fruit to enjoy sweetness.

Sugar is a real luxury.

Whether it's maltose, brown sugar, or even honey and candied fruit, these are all things that only the truly wealthy can afford.

Even in the 1970s and 80s, brown sugar was still used as medicine and supplement.

This shows how precious sugar is.

The Su family had rarely eaten sweet soup.

Su Mo smiled and said, "That's right!"

"We can't get white sugar right now, but we can make do with brown sugar."

"The sweet potatoes in the greenhouse should be ready to be dug up. Let's try them first and see if they taste good!"

Liu Siyun and the others looked at each other in bewilderment.

Can the vines in the greenhouse be used to make sugar water?
Only Lin Moyin's expression changed drastically, and she blurted out, "My lord, you absolutely mustn't!"

Su Mo naturally understood Lin Moyin's meaning.

But he waved his hand and said, "It's alright!"

"His Majesty wanted to go to Gufeng Mountain to dig sweet potatoes at the beginning of the year. Although I am confident, I will only be truly at ease after digging them up and seeing the yield!"

"Besides, sweet potatoes are grown to be eaten!"

In Su Mo's heart, sweet potatoes are his most direct connection to his past life, and now he can only experience the taste of his past life through sweet potatoes.

As for leaving potato seeds to benefit all people, that was just a side benefit.

The primary and secondary relationships must not be confused!

He not only wants sweet potato soup, but also roasted sweet potatoes!

Thinking back to those cold winter days, I would buy a roasted sweet potato, piping hot and golden brown, and take a bite of the sweet potato flesh oozing with sweet juice. The taste was simply wonderful!

Su Mo's mouth was practically watering!

Su Mo became more and more excited as he thought about it, and immediately slammed his hand on the table and stood up abruptly: "Come with me, all of you!"

"Come dig sweet potatoes with your husband!"

After saying that, he took the lead and strode towards the courtyard of the Central Court!

Lin Moyin was speechless, but what Su Mo said made sense. How could she feel at ease without checking the sweet potato yield first?
What if the empress gets excited and starts digging, but only a few sweet potatoes come out?

She could only greet the bewildered women and follow Su Mo.

Yin Rou hesitated for a moment, but finally gritted her teeth and followed.

Arrived at the middle school.

Unexpectedly, Jiang Laoshi, the head steward of the Su family, dutifully lit a bonfire and stood guard outside the greenhouse.

He was holding a large porcelain bowl in his hand, enjoying his chicken with a satisfied expression.

Su Mo was speechless.

He was eating leftovers that he had just given to the servants.

The person clearing away the dishes wasn't Steward Jiang; it was clearly another servant who, trying to curry favor with Old Man Jiang, brought them to him.

When Jiang Laoshi saw Su Mo appear, he was followed by a large group of female house owners.

He was startled and quickly put down the porcelain bowl, stood up, and subconsciously wanted to put his hand, which was covered in chicken oil, into his mouth.

Immediately realizing something was amiss, he could only wipe it on his sleeve with a heavy heart.

He first stole a glance at his younger sister behind Su Mo, then bowed and scraped, saying obsequiously, "Master! First Madam! Second Madam! Third Madam!"

What brings you here?

Su Mo glared at him with exasperation, feeling incredibly embarrassed.

It was as if the steward of the Su family couldn't get enough to eat.

He snorted irritably, "You're doing your job quite well, staying here in this freezing weather!"

Jiang Laoshi hurriedly replied, "Master instructed me to guard the warm room well, not allowing even a single mouse to enter. This shows how much Master values ​​me, how could I dare not be diligent!"

Su Mo nodded. Her expression softened: "You really put your heart into it."

He reached for the money pouch at his waist, only to find it empty.

He then realized he had just changed into the tiger-patterned clothes and forgotten to fasten his money pouch.

He could only turn to Liu Siyun and instruct her, "Give him ten taels of silver later, so that the neighbors won't see it and think the Su family is starving!"

"Hmm... I'll get him two more wool sweaters!"

Liu Siyun nodded in agreement.

Jiang Laoshi was overjoyed and quickly thanked Su Mo.

Su Mo glanced at Jiang Laoshi, then suddenly pointed to the greenhouse and asked, "Butler Jiang, do you want to know what exactly I've been having you watch over?"

Jiang Laoshi was taken aback upon hearing this: "Master, I do not know."

Su Mo nodded: "Come in with me too!"

After saying that, he pushed open the tightly closed wooden door, let it ventilate for a moment, and then stepped into the greenhouse.

The others followed and went inside.

Although the greenhouse was converted from a woodshed, it was quite large, with a floor area of ​​over thirty square meters, which was definitely considered a luxury in the capital.

There were many braziers burning inside.

Despite having some ventilation, Su Mo still felt extremely stuffy and hot once inside.

Naturally, everyone's gaze fell upon the sweet potatoes planted in bamboo baskets.

Lin Moyin, in particular, had a sharp gaze.

Deep within his eyes, however, lay a hint of worry!
Su Mo had no reason to put on airs in front of his own woman.

He roughly grabbed a bamboo basket, turned it upside down, and shook it. The slightly clumps of mud and sand inside the basket poured out in one piece.

Su Mo gently patted the sand with his palm.

Mana surge!

In an instant, the mud and sand dispersed, revealing chunks of dark red sweet potato roots, each as big as an adult man's fist.

Su Mo glanced at it and couldn't help but be slightly surprised.

Unexpectedly, this bamboo basket and two sweet potato vines yielded a total of thirteen or fourteen sweet potatoes of various sizes.

It should weigh about seven or eight pounds in total.

That's definitely considered high productivity.

Normally, even though the sweet potatoes are well cared for, with ample fertilizer and water, and even bone meal is sprinkled on them.

However, it is still not as high-yielding as chemical fertilizers in later generations.

It's possible that the potato seeds given as a system reward have a higher yield than ordinary potato seeds.

Now I can finally relax.

Over at Gufeng Mountain, with the system reward of a 20% increase in production, the yield will certainly not be lower than that of sweet potatoes in long bamboo baskets.

I won't mess things up in front of the Empress.

The Marquis title is secured.

Su Mo wasn't afraid of getting dirty. She picked a large sweet potato, casually wiped off the dirt, and took a bite!
Ok……

Sweet, crisp, and juicy, it tastes just like it did in my past life.

It's a relatively sweet red watermelon variety.

Su Mo closed her eyes, savoring the taste of her past life.

After a long while, he opened his eyes, ready to invite the women to taste the flavors of their hometown together.

Then, Su Mo was stunned.

But all the women, including Jiang Laoshi, stared wide-eyed at the sweet potato in their hands, their faces filled with disbelief, frozen in shock.

Even Lin Moyin, a well-informed commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, was no exception.

Even more shocked than others!

Only she knew the true purpose of this sweet potato!
Jiang Laoshi stared intently at the sweet potato on the ground, his body and voice trembling, his legs shaking: "Master... this... this is for eating?"

"The sweet potato vines that I've been guarding all this time, could it be... could it be... could it be grain?"

Su Mo was surprised that it was Jiang Laoshi who recovered the fastest, and nodded with a smile: "That's right, this is called sweet potato, it can be used to fill your stomach!"

Jiang Laoshi swallowed hard, took a deep breath, and his tone suddenly became incredibly excited!
"master!"

"This is not a sweet potato!"

"This is a get-out-of-jail-free card!"

　I'm asking my godfathers for a monthly allowance of 5,000 words!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)