Category: The Big Landlord

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Chapter 60.2 – An Qiao E’s Determination

Fu Wu Tian quickly wrote up a letter, and this time Ge Qian An personally went to deliver the letter back to Jun Zi City.

The content of the letter was mainly to have Fu lao wang ye ask the Chong Ming Emperor on his behalf to take the initiative to check and control the disaster in the Chang Province.

The New Years have just passed, but the people of Chang Province were all migrating away. It’s been fours years since the first occurrence of natural disasters in Chang Province. Every year, the people would migrate away. This year, the phenomenon was especially serious. If things continued like this, Chang Province may soon become uninhabited.

Although the Chong Ming Emperor was not a good emperor, he also knew that things could not go on like this. He has long wanted to send someone to investigate, but he has not been able to find a suitable candidate.

Ge Qian An soon arrived at Jun Zi City with Fu Wu Tian’s letter.

In the study

“Wang fei, this prince took a great risk for you.” Fu Wu Tian turned his head and went to An Zi Ran to sing his own merits, as if there was such a thing.

An Zi Ran did not even raise his head. “En*. You have worked hard.”

[*T/N: Sound of acknowledgement indicating approval]

Fu Wu Tian leaned over towards him. When he exhaled, his breath brushed against the other’s forehead. “Wang fei, go to bed a little earlier tonight.” The night before, An Zi Ran stayed up really late to draft up his plans. As a result, he fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

The brush in An Zi Ran’s hand stopped at that moment. He leaned back and then lifted his head. The distance between their faces was very close. After getting used to it, he no longer felt uncomfortable now. This was not a good phenomenon!

“I’ve finished drawing up the plan. Take a look.”

An Zi Ran passed over three sheets of paper that were covered with writing.

Fu Wu Tian took a look. “Wow, wang fei’s handwriting is very good.”

An Zi Ran’s facial nerves became paralyzed. “…I’m showing you the plan, not my handwriting.”

It’s not as if An Zi Ran was not aware. Fu Wu Tian’s handwriting was much better than his. If they were to compare handwritings, it would be enough to make him feel ashamed of his inferiority, because Fu Wu Tian’s handwriting was indeed really good. Even simple fonts were written with sharpness and charm. Each stroke, each line was penned with confident ease. It is said that the handwriting reflected the writer. This saying was indeed true!

Fu Wu Tian finally looked at his plan.

An Zi Ran thought that he would take some time to look it over, so he placed down the brush and reached back to rub at his tired neck. Then he stood up, prepared to call out to Steward Su. But when he looked up he saw that Fu Wu Tian was looking straight at him.

“What are you looking at me for?”

Fu Wu Tian waved the papers in his hand. “I finished.”

An Zi Ran blinked. “So fast?”

There was a hint of a smile in Fu Wu Tian’s eyes as he looked at him. “Wang fei, this prince can read ten lines with one look.”

An Zi Ran asked suspiciously, “Then do you have an eidetic memory?”

Fu Wu Tian said, “At the moment, I have not reached that state yet.”

An Zi Ran was disappointed.

“But there are not many…”

An Zi Ran said, “…Can you not finish it all at once?”

Fu Wu Tian’s mouth quirked up. “Since it is wang fei’s request then this prince will comply from now on.”

An Zi Ran didn’t want to talk to him anymore. Fu Wu Tian could always change the topic easily. In the past, if someone told him that he would live with another man like this one day, he would have never believed it. He would even think that the other person must be burning a fever.

“After looking over my plan, do you have any thoughts on it?”

The plan was written as a countermeasure for the disaster situation in Chang Province. Although it has not happened yet, this kind of thing had to be prevented in advance to see the effect. Furthermore, he understood how high the risk was that Fu Wu Tian took.

An Zi Ran did not understand the situation of the imperial family, but he has heard of the saying ‘gong gao zhen zhu,’ which meant that if a subordinate’s achievements were too great it would shake the master. Fu Wu Tian’s merits were too great, and he also held a five hundred thousand strong army in Da Ya, even though he was the nephew of the Chong Ming Emperor. However, he still made the emperor afraid.

This time Fu Wu Tian calmed the war at the border and came back with a triumphant return. He was expected to stay in Jun Zi City for a long time. His power was too great. On the surface, the Chong Ming Emperor expressed great appreciation for his nephew, but in actuality, he was already thinking up ways to get back the five hundred thousand troops from his hands.

The disaster in Chang Province was a turning point.

If Fu Wu TIan could not solve the problem in Chang Province, then the Chong Ming Emperor would have an excuse to recover the five hundred thousand troops under his command.

Therefore, the emperor will certainly agree.

“This prince believes in wang fei. We will just do as you say.”

Fu Wu Tian chose to believe him without hesitation.

Upon hearing this sentence, An Zi Ran’s face turned wooden. He looked at Fu Wu Tian for a long while in silence. Then he turned and walked out of the study room. Fu Wu Tian stared at his back. A strange light flashed through his eyes. Then he followed An Zi Ran out of the room.

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Chapter 60.1 – An Qiao E’s Determination

News of the situation concerning An Ke Xin and Lin Xin soon spread to the ears of Fang Jun Ping and her daughter, An Qiao E. They immediately began to panic.
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Only now did Fang Jun Ping realize something that made her frightened. After the master died, the young master, An Zi Ran took over as head of the household. It was just like the time when the master was still alive. He held absolute authority over the family.

And it was as An Zi Ran said.

The eldest brother was like a father!

An Zi Ran had even more power to decide their future.

“Mother, I absolute, absolutely, must not let him decide my future!” The gloomy character of An Qiao E raised her head after hearing the news. She stared straight at Fang Jun Ping. The always dull and wooden face of An Qiao E suddenly held a tint of determination.

Fang Jun Ping immediately tried to placate her daughter and said, “Qiao E, Mother understands. Mother also doesn’t want him to decide your future. Rest assured. If he dares to casually marry you off, Mother will fight him to the death with these old bones.”

An Qiao E took hold of her mother’s hand with a blank expression on her face and said, “Mother, I swear to get married to a member of the royal family. Even if it is only as his concubine, that is still fine.”

Fang Jun Ping’s heart trembled and her eyes widened in disbelief, “Qiao E, you really think like this?”

An Qiao E nodded firmly.

Fang Jun Ping’s agitated mood suddenly fell back down. She had an expression that reflected her desire yet hesitation to say something. Finally, looking at her daughter’s unshakeable expression she couldn’t help but to say, “Qiao E, you must think about this carefully. Once you become a concubine, people will always look down on you. Just like your mother. In front of Liu Mei Xiang, I could never lift my head. People say that the matriarch of the An family is Liu Mei Xiang. And when they speak of me, their faces are full of disdain. You should know this clearly…”

“I don’t care.” An Qiao E interrupted her words.

Fang Jun Ping suddenly had nothing to say.

“In order to break away from the An family and to put An Zi Ran beneath my feet, the imperial family is the best choice. I know that they may not look upon me highly, but I still have beauty. I still have my means. Men are lascivious. Based on my qualifications, I can do it!”
Translations by Vanilla Muse
An Qiao E proudly raised her face. Her pale white face seemed to glow differently at this moment.

Fang Jun Ping looked at her daughter. She never knew that her daughter could be so beautiful. Just like she said, which man was not lascivious? And her daughter was so beautiful; she could definitely do it.

Although the concubine of a high-ranking official and the concubine of an imperial family member were both concubines, the status and identity of the latter was higher than the former by a big gap.

“But Qiao E, not being able to leave the An family, your goal is…”

Fang Jun Ping suddenly thought of this problem. They were now living in the An family residence and freedom was also restricted. An Yuan County was far away from Jun Zi City. It was impossible to achieve that goal from this small place.

An Qiao E lowered her eyes. “Mother, no matter what, I will not change my mind.”

An Zi Ran, don’t think that you can control my life!

She must marry into the imperial family!

Fang Jun Ping looked at her daughter and was very shocked. This was the first time that she discovered that her daughter could be so decisive.

In Da Ya, the parents arranged the marriages of their children. Most of the children had no right to choose. They could only obey and could not defy. Otherwise, they were not filial.

When he was alive, An Chang Fu was very concerned about the marriages of his two daughters. He was a selfish person, so he had hoped that his two daughters could marry someone with good status and identity to help pave a path for himself. As a result, he rejected many marriage proposals. The families that came to propose marriage were actually well matched in terms of social status, but they were all business people, and not the type of in-laws that An Chang Fu wanted.
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An Chang Fu often expounded on the benefits and advantages of marrying a high official or a dignitary in front of his daughters, An Qiao E and An Ke Xin. Plus, Fang Jun Ping and Zheng Bi also hoped for their daughters to become phoenixes, often brainwashing them. Over time, they really did succeed in brainwashing their daughters.

After that, An Chang Fu often bought some beautiful jewelry and clothes for his two daughters, hoping that they could dress up beautifully to catch the eye of some big fish, and then he would occasionally let his two concubines take them out to the temple to pray.

An Qiao E and An Ke Xin found their father being good to them, and there were even pretty clothes and jewelry to wear everyday, so they became even more convinced that they would marry someone of a high post. Therefore, this thought process of An Qiao E’s was not without an origin.

–

When An Zi Ran heard about this from Steward Su, he was very silent.

Perhaps not all women were brainless, but he could be sure that An Qiao E and An Ke Xin were absolutely brainless vases.

If An Chang Fu was really being good to them, why didn’t he let An Yu Zhi also be like them? Instead, he limited An Yu Zhi’s freedom and very rarely let her go out.

Unfortunately, in their eyes there was only short-lived glory and wealth.

However, what An Zi Ran did not expect was that he had yet to think of anything, but An Qiao E and her mother were already beginning to plot how to leave the house. At the moment, he did not bother to pay attention to them.

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Chapter 59.2 – Admirer

“I am afraid that I will have to ask wang ye to step forward for this one.” An Zi Ran looked at Fu Wu Tian.

………

The three people returned to the An family house.

Fu Wu Tian was preparing to go to An Zi Ran’s study to write a letter to Fu lao wang ye. His trusted aide did not have enough status before the Chong Ming Emperor, so this matter must be done by Fu lao wang ye personally to settle it.
Translations by Vanilla Muse
But when they arrived at the great hall, they heard raucous sounds coming from within. Before they could go in and check it out a fat man fell out of the great hall. The fat man’s balance wasn’t very good. Before he could steady himself on his feet, he rolled down the steps and came to a stop right in front of An Zi Ran. The fat man’s anguished wailing sounded like a dying pig. A small servant boy cried “Young Master,” and hurriedly rushed over to help the fat man.

An Ke Xin appeared at the top of the steps, shouting abuse, “You, the one with the surname Lin, why don’t you go look in a mirror? You want to take me, An Ke Xin, as your wife, with a pig face like yours? Dream on. Even if I die I won’t marry… An Zi Ran?”

When she saw An Zi Ran standing at the bottom of the steps, she was so surprised that she switched the word “you” with his name. She even called out his full name.

Hearing the noise, Zheng Bi also came out. Seeing An Zi Ran’s quiet face, her heart thudded and she hurried down. With a brilliant smile she said, “So Zi Ran came back. Today, what…”

“What is this?”

An Zi Ran indifferently interrupted her words. He looked sharply at An Ke Xin and then his gaze fell upon Zheng Bi. Both of them jumped.

Zheng Bi revealed a stiff smile. “Zi Ran, don’t misunderstand. It’s this person, he wants to marry Ke Xin no matter what, but Ke Xin thinks he does not measure up. He shamelessly refused to leave. Ke Xin only chased him out because she got angry.”

An Ke Xin noticed An Zi Ran’s eyes on her and immediately raised her chin proudly. Her ambition was to marry a big official and become the lady of a government official. A merchant in the district wanted to marry her. Wasn’t he only dreaming? She didn’t feel that she did anything wrong.
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An Zi Ran coldly said, “No matter the reason you shouldn’t kick people out. You weren’t taught to be rude. Immediately apologize to Lin gong zi.”

An Ke Xin grinded her teeth together. “I didn’t do anything wrong. I won’t apologize.”

With the help of his servant boy, the fat man stood back up. His name was Lin Xin. He was the son of a wealthy businessman in Tong Tai County, which was next to An Yuan County. His figure was very fat. He fell in love with An Ke Xin at first sight and originally wanted to come propose marriage to An Chang Fu. But then he found out that An Chang Fu and his wife both died in an accident, so this matter was delayed, but he never gave up on his notions of marriage.

Lin Xin turned and smiled at An Zi Ran. “This must be the young landlord of the An family. My name is Lin Xin. My family is in Tong Tai County. I have heard about the young landlord all along. Seeing you today, your reputation is indeed well deserved.”

An Zi Ran looked him up and down. This was the sole son of the Lin family in Tong Tai County. Although he was fat, he was a polite person. His upbringing was not bad.

“Lin gong zi, you flatter me.”

Lin Xin smiled and said, “Young Landlord, I really like your younger sister. I hope to receive her into the Lin family (as my wife). I will definitely not mistreat her. I hope the young landlord will agree (to my wishes).”

“Dream on!”

As soon as he finished talking, An Ke Xin interjected. Her screech was really loud.

Lin Xin’s face did not change. His smile was very sincere.

An Zi Ran looked back and forth between the two, and finally settled on the angry and reluctant face of An Ke Xin. He suddenly said, “It is true that the age of marriage is reached.”

One sentence suddenly changed the faces on the mother-daughter pair.

“Ah Ah Ah!!! I won’t marry. Even if I die I won’t marry Lin Xin, this disgusting man.” An Ke Xin screamed like a madwoman, then she turned and ran away.

The expression on Zheng Bi’s face was really ugly. “Zi Ran, Ke Xin is still young. There is no need to rush her marriage, and as you can see, she is not willing.”

An Zi Ran calmly said, “The eldest brother is like the father!”

Zheng Bi listened to his words and knew that he had made up his mind. She could no longer control the expression on her face. Her voice grew loud. “An Zi Ran, don’t forget that you already married someone. You are no longer a member of the An family*. My daughter does not want to marry. Nobody can force her.”

Throwing down this sentence like a gauntlet, Zheng Bi also left.

Lin Xin saw that the atmosphere was not right, so he quickly excused himself and escaped the scene.

[*T/N: Women who marry out are considered part of their husband’s family and no longer part of their birth family.]

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Have you checked my Chinese New Year post yet?

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Chapter 59.1 – Admirer

When Ge Qian An arrived, the people in front of the rice shop had already scattered.

An Zi Ran was standing in front of the counter and talking with Manager Feng. Although not many people were hired this time, it did not mean that others did not have a chance. In the future, he intended to recruit more workers. Hong Province was known as the province of rice paddies. Of course he had to make good use of this to increase the production of rice and at the same time promote the development of the county.
Translations by www.vmnovels.com
Ge Qian An glanced at them once, but did not go over to disturb An Zi Ran. He went over to Fu Wu Tian, who was the only one leisurely drinking tea inside the rice shop. “Master, this subordinate has returned.”

Fu Wu Tian nodded at him. “Wait until we find a quiet place and then talk.”

Ge Qian An stood behind him and stopped talking.

By the time that An Zi Ran and Manager Feng were done talking, the hired workers were nearly done moving the bags of rice. The shop’s warehouse was almost filled to the brim with bags upon bags of rice. Manager Feng then settled the wages with the workers based on the amount of work that each person put in. Those who were more muscular and had better stamina were able to carry more bags of rice, about twenty to thirty bags, those who were weaker carried about ten bags. When the people got their wages, their expressions were very excited.

An Zi Ran came in front of the crowd.

The people immediately stopped talking and looked at him with bright eyes.

To this young landlord, the people only felt respect. In their eyes, every time this young landlord made a decision it was to benefit the masses at the expense of himself. Just based on this bit of heart, not even his father, An Chang Fu, could catch up to him.

Of course, they didn’t actually know.

An Zi Ran’s actions were all made to pave the path for his following plans.

“The An family is preparing to recruit a group of workers. If you are interested, you can go to Manager Feng to find out more and sign up. In terms of monthly wages, the An family will not treat you badly.”

When An Zi Ran finished talking, everyone cheered and ran to Manager Feng to sign up.

Although they managed to grab this job of moving the rice, it was not a long-lasting job. So when news spread that the An family wanted to recruit some people, those who heard were very jealous, because it sounded like long-term employment. As for monthly wages, people were already clamoring for information from those who have just been hired.
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The average monthly salary of the common folk in Da Ya was two strings of four hundred coins*, and the monthly salary given by the An family was three strings of coins. Compared to the country’s average, they were earning an average of twenty coins more per day. If they saved a bit here and there that meant that each family could amass up to twenty or thirty coins. Such good treatments, how could it not make others jealous?

[*T/N: 文钱 wen qian: this is ancient money, but there doesn’t seem to be a proper English translation, so I used ‘coin.’ I’m not sure of its exact money value, but one wen qian should be the lowest denominator of money and it is less than a tael 两 liang]

As a result, this news spread through An Yuan County with lightning speed.

Rumor has it, that Manager Feng’s sign up register was almost full.

But these were all after words.

An Zi Ran told Manager Feng not to let anyone near the back courtyard.

The three people entered a room in the back courtyard. Ge Qian An, who was walking in the back, closed up the door as he entered. When he turned around he saw his own master personally pull up a chair for his wang fei. His eyes could not help but flash.

He knew that wang ye didn’t actually care about taking a wife in marriage. Whether the marriage partner was rich or poor, a man or a woman, none of that mattered, because the things that the wang ye cared about were too few. So he always thought that wang ye took An Zi Ran as his wife out of a moment’s interest. But he never would have guessed that the wang ye would capitulate and become a good husband.

Ge Qian An put away the complicated thoughts in his head and said, “This subordinate went to investigate as per wang fei’s words, and indeed learned about a few situations. There has been no rain for three consecutive months in many places in Chang Province. Furthermore, summer had yet to arrive, but the temperature in Chang Province has started to rise rapidly and the water level in the river is also falling. It is said that the water level is still falling. It fell nearly one meter in a month, and the drought that wang fei speculated should happen soon.”

An Zi Ran murmured, “And the other thing that I had you take note of, what have you found?”

Ge Qian An paused. “Wang fei’s conjecture is… correct.”

When he went to investigate yesterday, he did not believe it, because that kind of thing happened only once in the history of Da Ya, and it was twenty years ago. The consequences were very big at that time, and the local elderly people were not even willing to think about it.

Because as time passed and no similar disaster had happened since then, many people thought that this would not happen again, including Ge Qian An, but once he understood the situation, his thoughts changed.

“Wang ye, if both of these natural disasters break out at once, a lot of people will die in Chang Province,” Ge Qian An said with concern.

There was no expression on Fu Wu Tian’s face. It was impossible to guess his thoughts. He looked towards An Zi Ran. “Wang fei, you had Qian An run to Chang Province to investigate, is it because you already have a countermeasure?”

According to his understanding of wang fei, if he only wanted to make a fortune, then he didn’t need to do so many things for the people of An Yuan County. He could’ve just oppressed them like his father, An Chang Fu, did. Not to mention conducting an investigation. He only had to stuff his warehouse full of provisions and then wait for the disaster to happen.

An Zi Ran nodded and said, “Yes, I do have a way.”
Translations by www.vmnovels.com
“What kind of solution?”

Fu Wu Tian had yet to open his mouth, but Ge Qian An impatiently spoke up. When he went to Chang Province, he saw a lot of miserable scenes that shocked him to the core. It was only after he finished asking that he realized he had overstepped. He quickly withheld the anxiety that was beginning to leak onto his face.

“I am afraid that I will have to ask wang ye to step forward for this one.” An Zi Ran looked at Fu Wu Tian.

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Chapter 58.2 – Hemp vs. Sea Ban

“Because I want to have someone go out to sea to help me find something.”

“What thing?” Fu Wu Tian asked.

An Zi Ran carefully recalled. “The thing is called xi ma*. Its flowers can be both white or purple, with white being the dominant color. In the autumn it will produce something shaped like a peach. When the peach splits, it will reveal a bunch of white things inside. I want to find the seeds of this plant, and the more the better.”

[*T/N: 枲麻 xi ma translates as “male nettle-hemp” (flax fiber for textile materials)]

Xi ma was also known as mian hua (cotton), but xi ma was the older term for it.

Because xi ma sounded like da ma (marijuana), he thought that this name was more likely to be used during these olden times.

He wasn’t sure if this world had the thing called cotton. He has searched through various books, but there was no description of xi ma, so he thought of searching for it overseas. According to his calculations, this was the most crucial step. Without the seeds of the xi ma plant, his plan could not be implemented.
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“This prince has never heard of such a plant.” Fu Wu Tian blinked faintly. Although he stayed at the country’s border for many years, he was also very knowledgeable. Even he had never heard of it. So this xi ma must be very rare. “It is not difficult to go out to sea. This prince can have someone go out and help you search. But it’s just looking for seeds, so why did wang fei mention the sea ban?”

Guessing that he would ask this question, An Zi Ran calmly replied, “It’s true that the sea ban can prevent foreign enemies from invading, but if the ban can be lifted wouldn’t that create more profits for Da Ya?”

“The profit of foreign trade is indeed very big, but that is not enough to convince the Chong Ming Emperor. In the past he dogmatically decreed the sea ban regardless of opposition in court. If you want him to remove the sea ban, that would be very difficult.” When the sea ban was passed, Fu Wu Tian was still young, but he was still able to see the situation clearer than the Chong Ming Emperor.

An Zi Ran looked at him and said, “You have a solution, right?” He felt that Fu Wu Tian was speaking about this situation very lightly. Although Fu Wu Tian said it would be difficult, his tone of voice was too unconcerned.

Fu Wu Tian fixed his gaze upon An Zi Ran. After a long while he said, “Wang fei, from the time we married until now, it seems that we have not kissed once?”

Black lines appeared over An Zi Ran’s forehead. He thought that Fu Wu Tian was silent for so long because he was organizing his thoughts in preparation of what to say. It was always like this, An Zi Ran would understand him at the beginning, but could never guess what he was thinking at the end. An Zi Ran said stiffly, “So what do you want, for me to give you a kiss?”

“Of course not,” Fu Wu Tian unexpectedly denied.

An Zi Ran looked at him flabbergasted.

Fu Wu Tian continued, “As long as wang fei no longer turns his back towards this prince while we are sleeping. That is this prince’s only request.” Wang fei likes the outer side of the bed (the side not against the wall). Every time he goes to bed, he would face outwards and motionlessly maintain that posture, very stubborn and obstinate.

An Zi Ran was astonished. Such a good move of retreating in order to advance. But… “Okay, I promise you.”

[T/N: What AZR means is that FWT started out with what seemed like a big request, but then retreated to a smaller demand to secure AZR’s agreement. ROFL.]

Isn’t it just facing him while they sleep? What is there to be afraid of? But what he didn’t know was that the pressure of facing Fu Wu Tian wasn’t a measly thing.
Translations by www.vmnovels.com, if you find this anywhere else then it was stolen
Subsequently, Fu Wu Tian sent a letter to Guan Su who was still staying in Jun Zi City. Guan Su was one of the capable people among his subordinates. Because An Zi Ran wanted to keep this matter undercover, Fu Wu Tian had Guan Su personally carry out this task. It was not difficult to borrow a government ship under the wang ye’s name. As long as it was slightly concealed, then it would not attract too much attention.

The next day, Ge Qian An, who had headed to Chang Province, finally returned.

The distance between An Yuan County and Chang Province was much closer than that of Jun Zi City. The horse that Ge Qian An rode was that brown horse that had pulled the carriage. (That very good horse that An Zi Ran commented on.) The horse had very swift hooves, and it didn’t even take a day to go there and return, so the task was completed quickly.

When Ge Qian An entered the door, Steward Su told him that the young master and the wang ye were not at home. The two had went to Manager Feng’s rice shop, and it might take a while before they come back, so Ge Qian An had to change destination to the rice shop to find them.

The rice shop’s business was getting better and better.

Recently, the shopkeepers under An Zi Ran have been going around purchasing large quantities of rice from outside. The goods arrived, one cart after another, it was a very spectacular scene. Because there was too much grain, they had to hire some people to help move the goods. An Zi Ran already informed Manager Feng in advance, and had him hired some people to help out, with their wages being calculated based on the amount of work.

In An Yuan County, there were a lot of people with nothing to do. As a result, when the news had just been transmitted, the people who came to sign up formed a long queue. Even the figures of women could be seen among the line. The wages were not low. This situation caused Manager Feng quite a lot of headache. There weren’t many positions to fill, but everyone wanted it. As a result, some people would start fighting without a word, and the scene was very chaotic.

Manager Feng could not control the situation, so he had to send someone to find An Zi Ran.

When An Zi Ran rushed over, a few troublemakers ran off quickly like a wisp of smoke. In comparison, the one’s who didn’t run off were beaten bloody and bruised. These were all honest and well-behaved farmers. At that point, they didn’t have to guess to know that those people deliberately came to make trouble.

When An Zi Ran thought about it for a bit, he could guess who was behind it. Shao Fei had not returned yet. It seemed that the other party apparently had not found any favorable ‘evidence’ against An Zi Ran, and didn’t want him to be too comfortable, so they had instructed others to come cause trouble for him. In the end, he told Manager Feng to hire those beaten peasants and had medicine bought for them. After all, this matter originated from him.

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Chapter 58.1 – Hemp vs. Sea Ban

Lan Xiang Courtyard (Fragrant Orchid Courtyard)

Once Wang Qing Lan stepped foot into her room she kicked a chair over.

The two maidservants standing by the door were so scared that they couldn’t speak. The door was closed and they couldn’t see inside the room, but the sound of tables and chairs falling over was constantly coming. This wasn’t the first time that they saw Concubine Wang throwing such a huge tantrum. Before, this happened whenever she suffered a lost to the main wife.

However, Wang Qing Lan was obviously smarter than Fang Jun Ping.

Things like porcelain tea sets and such, if these things were broken then An Zi Ran and Steward Su would eventually find out. But the table and chairs were a different matter. When An Chang Fu favored her, he sent a lot of good things to her courtyard. The table and chairs were made of high quality wood and very resistant to abuse. Every time she got angry she took her anger out on the table and chairs, but they were still not broken.

After venting for a while, Wang Qing Lan let the two maidservants come in to fix up the room.

The table and chairs were returned to their original positions. Although they suffered more dents and scratches, this did not affect the integrity of the furniture.

“You, go call Qi Qiao over here.” Wang Qing Lan said to one of the maids. Qi Qiao was her confidant. She followed Wang Qing Lan when she married into the An family and was the only person Wang Qing Lan trusted.

Qi Qiao had not heard about the incident in the dining room yet. She only knew that Wang Qing Lan was looking for her, so she hurried over. Once she arrived in the room she sent the other two maids out and carefully closed the door. Then she turned around to face Wang Qing Lan. “Madam, what happened?” She was the only one who addressed Wang Qing Lan as Madam and not as Concubine Wang.

Wang Qing Lan gave her a brief explanation of what happened in the dining hall.

Qi Qiao thought for a bit and then said, “Madam, about the second young master, it’s better not to mention anything about him in the future. The young master is shrewd. He won’t let you take care of the second young master. If you persist it will only make him more wary of you.”

“He has never relaxed his guard around me,” Wang Qing Lan sneered. She wasn’t a vapid bimbo. She had taken note of An Zi Ran’s transformation. Compared to before, he was now a hundred times more astute. This type of person was the hardest to deceive. “Today, he suddenly said those words, obviously he’s saying that he suspects us of harming him.”

Qi Qiao nodded. “Madam is right.”

An ominous glint flickered in Wang Qing Lan’s eyes. “If we knew that it would become like this, then at that time…”

“Madam!” Qi Qiao suddenly shouted.

Wang Qing Lan quickly swallowed down the rest of her words.

Qi Qiao whispered, “Madam, these words definitely cannot be said. Be careful of eavesdroppers.” Regardless of whether the young master had ears around the house or not, being careful was always the best policy.

……

At the same time, An Zi Ran arrived at his room with Fu Wu Tian. The two servants standing by the door were sent away. Only the two of them were left inside the room. An Zi Ran closed the door and turned around to the eyes of Fu Wu Tian. “There’s something I want to talk to you about.”

Fu Wu Tian’s eyebrows arched precipitously. “That’s all?”

An Zi Ran calmly countered, “If not, what else do you think there is?”

Fu Wu Tian stared at him for a long while, and eventually he actively shifted the topic. “Nothing. What does wang fei want to tell this prince?” It seems that it will still take some time to win wang fei over.

“Is there a way to lift the sea ban in Da Ya?” An Zi Ran asked.

Hearing this sentence, Fu Wu Tian arched an eyebrow in surprise. “Why did wang fei ask this question?”

The sea ban in Da Ya was issued a few years after the Chong Ming Emperor was enthroned. When the sea ban came out, many businessmen mourned at the time, especially the merchants who depended on the sea routes to buy and sell goods. As a result of the prohibition, many businessmen’s lives were ruined. At the time, it was a topic of hot debate, but the Chong Ming Emperor was resolute in his attitude. Even though there were ministers that advised against it, he was still determined to execute it.

As of today, the sea ban policy has been implemented for more than a decade.

Although there were still businessmen who were interested in trading by sea, they also knew that it was a taboo in the heart of the Chong Ming Emperor to lift the sea ban, so it was nearly impossible to lift it, not unless a new emperor was enthroned.

However, the sea ban did not mean that all foreign ports were closed. There were still several ports that were engaged in foreign trade, but the vessels allowed to go out to sea could only be official ships.

It’s not that An Zi Ran wanted to have a sea trade business. Although the profit of maritime trade was huge, he did not have the prerequisites at the moment. So the idea could only be placed on the backburner.

“Because I want to have someone go out to sea to help me find something.”

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Chapter 57 – Hidden Assassin

In the blink of an eye, seven days have passed since An Zi Ran returned to An Yuan County.

Generally, after the bride returned to visit her parental home, it was time to go back to the husband’s house, but no one raised any questions about this issue, including Fu Wu Tian. Steward Su was too happy to say anything. He’d much prefer the young master to stay at the An family house.

Of course, there were some people who couldn’t wait for An Zi Ran to leave.

There were still five more days till May.

In other words, Fang Jun Ping and them would have to continue spending their own private money for another five days.

Those four rarely appeared at the family dining table.

When Zheng Bi stepped through the door, she shouted at the servants standing on the side with a high and mighty voice, “You people go and bring me a table here. Today, I, along with Concubine Fang, and the two young misses are going to eat here.”
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After the table was moved in, they sent people outside to go buy food. Then they had the food placed on the table one plate at a time. Because it took some time to gather the food, it was no longer hot by the time it arrived. But the dishes still looked very exquisite. One of the dishes was the signature roast duck of An Yuan County. There was a layer of honey brushed along the outside of the duck, which was said to be very delicious, but the price was on the expensive side, so very few farmers could afford to eat it.

The women’s dining table was placed directly opposite An Zi Ran.

At a glance, the dishes on his table were comparably shoddy.

An Zi Ran never paid any special attention to food, but he also didn’t abstain from eating certain foods. Today he felt like eating lighter dishes, so the food cooked by Chef Wang were not greasy.

Zheng Bi wanted this precise effect, and immediately smiled with smugness. “Zi Ran, ah. Why are you eating so plainly today? Is it that An family has nothing good to eat? Do you need your third mother to share some food with you?”

“Mother, what are you saying? His body is so precious, he should be having plain tea and simple foods.” An Ke Xin said with a sneer.

“Oh my, blame this Yulin* head of mine, I almost forgot this.” Zheng Bi quickly patted her head. Then she smiled at An Zi Ran and said, “Zi Ran, ah, Third Mother will stop asking you to eat (my food) then. If you eat it and your body becomes upset, then Third Mother will become a sinner. Third Mother can’t afford to bear the responsibility of such a sin.”

[*T/N: The dictionary says this is the Yulin prefecture level city in Shaanxi, so my guess is that Zheng Bi is from there. Probably.]

Fu Wu Tian said to An Zi Ran, “Are they always so noisy?”

Without a change in expression, An Zi Ran picked up a piece of green vegetable. After eating it, he replied, “You get used to it.”

This was not the first time he has had to dine with them. In the days when he first came (to this world), they were noisier than crows. At that time, there was also a Wang Qing Lan. Their there mouths were like a thousand ducks quacking in his ear.

Fu Wu Tian’s eyes revealed a hint of a smile. “It’s been hard on you.”

An Zi Ran nodded. “It was quite hard.”

Sitting opposite them, Wang Qing Lan’s expression stiffened. She knew that Zheng Bi and them were preparing to come out to eat, so that’s why she came out to eat with them today. The purpose was naturally to watch the show, but she didn’t expect that the show has just started and she was already implicated with them through a casual insinuation, and she could not say anything about it.
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Wang Qing Lan changed the topic and said, “Zi Ran, actually Fourth Mother always wanted to ask, why didn’t Zi Ming come back with you? He is only five months old. Is it all right to hand him over to strangers to care for? If anything happened to him, we would be too far away to help. Why don’t we have him come back to us?”

An Zi Ran raised his head and gave her a look.

A flash of discomfort flickered across Wang Qing Lan’s face. She always felt that his eyes seemed to hide a hidden implication. Just when she wanted to say something to ease this feeling, An Zi Ran leisurely moved his gaze away.

“There’s no need. If we bring him back, I will feel even less at ease.”

Wang Qing Lan did not hear the implication in his words, and she subconsciously said, “What is there to worry about? If you don’t have time, Fourth Mother can help out.” This last sentence was her true motive.

A baby was like a piece of white paper. Keeping him by her side would allow her to easily influence his thoughts. If Zi Ming were to be placed under her care, then she would have an ace up her sleeve. An Zi Ran have already been married, so the An family would definitely be inherited by An Zi Ming in the future.

Her words also shook Fang Jun Ping and Zheng Bi’s hearts.

What Wang Qing Lan was planning, anyone with a brain could guess.

But was it so simple? They didn’t think that An Zi Ran would give An Zi Ming to her to take care of. Forget the fact that An Zi Ming was a boy; even if it was a girl it would be impossible. Wang Qing Lan’s thoughts were undoubtedly idiotic.

An Zi Ran’s indifferent gaze swept across the faces of the three people and immediately said, “No need. I don’t want to see my brother fall into the snow in the future and almost die while clinging to life by a thread.”

[T/N: He is referencing to how the original An Zi Ran died.]

The expressions of the three people froze, especially Wang Qing Lan.

Out of humiliation, Wang Qing Lan flew into a rage. Her pretty eyes widened into saucers and she said, “What kind of words are these? Can it be that I would harm Zi Ming? I can’t harm a human life, not to mention that of a baby’s. Since you are unwilling then I have nothing to say. This meal, you guys eat it yourselves.” Finished talking, she got up with a huff and left.

Once she left, the other four calmed down.

Zheng Bi, who was originally irritated by his words, unexpectedly no longer shouted loudly and challenged An Zi Ran. She became as silent as Fang Jun Ping, who hadn’t opened her mouth from beginning to end.

An Zi Ran and Fu Wu Tian were pretty fast eaters. They soon finished their meal and left the room together, side-by-side.

When they were far away enough from the dining hall, Fu Wu Tian said some words that held a deeper meaning.

“Wang fei, have you found the answer you want?”

An Zi Ran was slightly surprised, but he quickly understood. As expected, he couldn’t hide anything from this man. Asides from that secret, he feared that there was nothing else that Fu Wu Tian did not know. He simply replied, “At present, I cannot find any flaws. It is impossible to determine who it is.”

This was beyond his expectation. The opponent was too good at concealment. It seemed that once he became aware, the other party got scared and retreated into their tortoise shell. It’s not like he hadn’t investigated. After the incident, he interrogated all the servants that had contact with An Zi Ran on that day. But no one was clear about the situation at that time, and none of them lied. Then, he changed the direction of the investigation and started to look at the concubines and young misses. As a result, he found that each of them was suspicious.

Fu Wu Tian said, “Do you need this prince to help?”

An Zi Ran looked straight forward with a chilly gaze, “No need. I will personally find this murderer hidden in the dark.” No matter how deeply they hide in the shadows, there will come a day when they expose themselves, as long as they’re still trying to attempt something with the An family. But perhaps they could really consider bring the little bun back.

“Wang fei.” Fu Wu Tian suddenly stopped walking.

An Zi Ran also came to halt. “What?”

Fu Wu Tian suddenly smiled. The handsome face revealed a clear smile for the first time. It was so bright that it made people feel like they couldn’t open their eyes. Even An Zi Ran’s spirit was slightly stunned. Fu Wu Tian spoke into An Zi Ran’s ear. “Wang fei, this prince seems to have no use at all. Next time feign a little weakness and lean on this prince’s shoulder, would you?”

The corner of An Zi Ran’s mouth quirked up softly. He decided to ignore the man. He didn’t need his shoulder, but he needed the person. Not now, but when he really needed the help, he certainly wouldn’t be polite with him.

“Follow me.”

An Zi Ran suddenly grabbed his hand and hurried to his room.

Fu Wu Tian looked down at their joined hands. He noticed that they were not going towards the study. In broad daylight, they were going to the bedroom and not the study? His expression suddenly became meaningful. “Wang fei, where do you want to take this prince?”

An Zi Ran looked back at him with a suspicious look. Why did he feel like his voice suddenly held a hint of excitement? But he didn’t think much of it and just said, “Didn’t you say you were feeling useless? I will use you right now.”

After hearing those words, a look of subtle expectation crossed Fu Wu Tian’s face.

An Zi Ran’s heart was a little uncertain.

He always had this feeling like he didn’t know what Fu Wu Tian was imagining in his head.

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Chapter 56 – Evidence

Soon there was movement on An Chang De’s side.

This time, in addition to Qian You Hao, there were two more people. They were all Jiang Zhong Ting’s trusted aides.

In the letter, An Chang De wrote that he was very certain that the other party was a mere businessman. But they were still not at ease, so they were ready to investigate again. Although Jiang Zhong Ting was an official, it was still impossible for them to strike the An family immediately.

Right now, in An Yuan County, the An family’s prestige would not lose to County Magistrate Zhang.

“These past few days, have there been any changes within the An family?” When Qian You Hao entered the door, he unceremoniously sat down in the main seat of the great hall, taking up the position of master of the house as if nothing was wrong.
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An Chang De was too busy tripping over himself to please the other party, so of course he wouldn’t oppose this action.

An Chang De immediately reported what he had heard. “Qian da ren, there has been no big change in the family. There is only one thing to say. Some time ago, many people in An Yuan County borrowed rice from the An family, so yesterday they went out and bought a lot of grains.”

“As far as I know, some rice fields in An Yuan County are almost ready to be harvested. Is there any other purpose for purchasing a large amount of rice at this time?” Qian You Hao have also heard about this matter, but he has more considerations.

An Chang De thought for a moment, “It shouldn’t be. The area affected by this year’s snowfall is bigger than ever. Even when it comes to the harvest, the An family will not receive much rice.”

Qian You Hao nodded and accepted this explanation.

An Chang De smiled obsequiously and said, “So, Qian da ren, when will you be ready to target the An family?”

Qian You Hao shot him a contemptuous glance. “The An family is not loved by the people of An Yuan County. The method that you used before is no longer suitable. We can’t use any old reason to arrest the An family. An Zi Ran has only took over the An family for a short time, and have not yet revealed any weaknesses that we can exploit, so we can only start from An Chang Fu’s angle.”

“Um…” An Chang De was dumbfounded. “But isn’t he already dead?”

Qian You Hao said impatiently, “He is dead, but there might be evidence of his misdeeds from the past. If there is evidence, then the government can hone in on this angle to attack.”

An Chang Fu was not an honest businessman. He must have committed a lot of illegal acts in the past. This method was much more useful than deliberately trying to frame the An family. At that time, even if the man from Jun Zi City wants to intervene, there would be no way. No one can fight against the law in Da Ya, unless he wants to throw himself into the mess along with his male-wife.

“That is indeed a good method.” An Chang De thought about it and then realized abruptly.

Although there was no way to directly target An Zi Ran, as long as the wealth of the An family is proven to be obtained through illegal means, then the government could confiscate the property of the family.

The more he thought, the more excited he was. He completely forgot that when the wealth of the An family was taken over by the government, it would be impossible for a nobody like him to pocket any portion of that wealth. It was a gamble with a tiger.

Qian You Hao looked at An Chang De’s excited expression and his eyes were full of ridicule. He was only a mere xiu cai*. But An Chang De did not notice it at all.

[*T/N: a person who passed the county level imperial exam]

Inside the house, the schemes of the occupants were different. Outside the house, there was someone who carefully remembered every word of their conversation.

When the sound of footsteps approached his hiding place, the man quietly made his exit.

…..

Steward Su went into the study room. Fu Wu Tian, who often stayed in the study room, was not there this time. The study was quiet. There was only An Zi Ran sitting at the desk and drawing up a plan. “Young Master, there is news from Ah Ye* again.”

[*T/N: Nickname for Xiao Ye, the one spying for AZR]

An Zi Ran looked up from his writing. “What is the situation?”

“They want to dig up evidence on the late Master’s crimes.” Steward Su’s expression was a bit complicated. He followed the late Master for many years and was the most trusted person of the Master, so he was well aware of all of the late Master’s actions. If the other party managed to dig up evidence, it would indeed be detrimental to the An family.

An Zi Ran was silent and did not speak.

Steward Su knew that the young master was not aware of certain things within the family. Worried that he would misunderstand, he explained, “Young Master, in the past the late Master did indeed commit unscrupulous acts, but it’s definitely not to the point of ruining the family. I can guarantee this point. What I’m worried about is the other side falsifying evidence and making things go out of control.”

“I understand. It is useless to pursue the past.”

Steward Su thought that the young master really wasn’t concerned about the past, and then asked, “Then, what do we do next?”

An Zi Ran tapped his pen lightly against the table top. He said, “No matter what the evidence, it would not be good for the An family. We can’t give them any excuse to target the An family.” The internal affairs of the family have not been resolved. He did not want to have even more troubles.

“Then I will have Ah Ye continue to monitor them, and if they find any evidence, we’ll snatch it?”

“Inappropriate!” An Zi Ran shook his head. “This matter is very important. I still don’t know whether we can trust Ah Ye or not. We must find someone trustworthy for this task. Furthermore, they must know martial arts.”
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Steward Su immediately thought of a potential candidate.

At this moment, Fu Wu Tian’s leisurely figure came in.

The eyes of the master and servant both fell on him.

Fu Wu Tian was not surprised at all. He had already heard their conversation from outside. “Since wang fei trusts this prince so much, it seems that this prince will have to personally take up the task to live up to wang fei’s trust.”

The corner of An Zi Ran’s mouth turned up lightly. “Wang ye, I just want to borrow one of your subordinates.” He couldn’t afford to employ a prince.

Fu Wu Tian sighed. “What a pity.”

An Zi Ran’s face revealed no expression. “It’s not a pity at all!”

“…Wang fei is really heartless.”

“Thank you for the compliment.”

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Big hugs to all the fabulous people who provided me with warm drinks for the cold winter season! ☕
Lady J 😊
Reall 😄
Cici 😃

Question: I see the phrase “to hug a thick thigh” a lot in other stories, but does anyone know the Chinese characters for that phrase?

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Chapter 55 – Tribute Rice

An Yuan County was a small county in Hong Prefecture, and Hong Prefecture was known as the land of rice.

The area of An Yuan County was small, but the land was fertile. It had sufficient water sources and the soil quality was good. The climate was also better than most of the other counties, so it was a good place to grow rice. It was also suitable for the cultivation of gong mi* and black rice.

[*T/N: gong mi literally translates to “tribute rice”]

For the precious rice varieties like gong mi, the manpower and financial resources required were not affordable for the average family. Therefore, the amount produced in An Yuan County was not much. The gong mi produced by the An family accounts for nearly half of its total production, but the amount was still small. However, the wealth that these gong mi brought to the family was far higher than other types.

An Zi Ran only knew about this after having reviewed the ledgers.

The gong mi produced by the An family was not for sale, but for giving away (as a gift).

Gong mi was a kind of high-quality rice that has been carefully selected. The appearance of this rice was as crystal clear as pearls. In the early days, it was mainly dedicated as a tribute to the emperor.

However, as the output of gong mi increased, some high-ranking officials also began to eat it.
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The An family’s gong mi existed to please these types of people. An Chang Fu used gong mi as a way to pave the path to fortune. The results were not bad. It could be seen that the An family charged a high amount for renting out land, and also gave out a lot as disaster relief funds. It was no wonder that things have always been smooth and steady for the An family. An Chang Fu’s means of doing things were not honest, but he could still be regarded as a successful landlord.

This year the rice seedlings were planted in April, so there was still some time away from the harvest.

However, not all rice was harvested in the same period, and the precocious varieties could be harvested in about seventy days. This rice was commonly called “jiu gong ji” or “hou xia ji.”*

[*T/N: Literal translations are “rescuing public hunger” and “urgently going down the throat”]

Just from listening to the name, one knew that the quality of this type of rice was not too high, but this was precisely what made the people of An Yuan County most happy.

The climate in Hong Prefecture was warmer than other places all throughout the year, and the chances of snow were low.

But this year there was a rare heavy snowfall in the winter. The snow covered the rice fields. The rice that could’ve been harvested in just a few more months, half of it was frozen to death. Although the rest survived tenaciously, the harvest was not expected to be too much.

This was also the reason why the people were borrowing such a huge quantity of rice.

After a round of inspections, it seemed that the growth of rice was quite prosperous.

Although the rice paddies of the An family were also affected (by the snow), their response was relatively timely, so the damage was not large.

An Zi Ran didn’t know much about rice paddies, so he just spent an hour to give them a cursory inspection. When the sun was about to climb to its zenith he got ready to return.

Just as they were preparing to enter the county, a crying voice not far away caught their attention.

In the middle of the road a woman was kneeling on the ground and looking towards the fields with dull eyes.

The person who made the cry was a peasant standing in the field. There was a cow in front of him. He looked at the situation and it seemed that the cow had a problem. Many people were gathered around him and whispering.

“It’s too bad for the Zhou Laohan’s family. The harvest day is coming soon, but the cow died of sickness. Without the cow how can they cultivate their land? They will certainly starve to death!”

“That’s just the way it is. Due to the snowfall a large part of their fields were destroyed. It has been very unlucky. Now even the cow is dead. I don’t even know how we’ll survive through this year. My family still has three children waiting for food at home.”

“It looks like they can only borrow rice from the An family this year.”

“Sigh…”

Almost every household in An Yuan County had cattle. In order to buy a cow, they spend a family fortune. Some don’t even hesitate to borrow a large amount of money from the An family. As a result, the debts get bigger and bigger until it was almost impossible to repay. If it weren’t for An Zi Ran waiving their debts, some people might have to sell their daughters to repay the debts.

Now their days were a little better, but they still had to depend on a cow to survive. The cow was more important than their lives. Now that it was dead, it was like their lifeblood was dead.

“The young landlord is here.”

Someone saw An Zi Ran standing now far away, and suddenly shouted out loud.

Everyone’s attention immediately shifted to him, including Zhou Laohan* and his wife. Zhou Laohan immediately stopped crying. He was not an old man. He was only thirty years old this year, but he looked like he was in his forties, so everyone called him Zhou Laohan*.

[*T/N: The “Lao” in Zhou Laohan means “old” and it’s used like a nickname. I guess you could think of his nickname as “old Zhou Han” in English.]

An Zi Ran came over and took a look at the cow collapsed on the field. April was beginning to warm up, so the cow couldn’t have frozen to death. The only possibility was like the farmers had said, the cow died of illness. There was really no solution for this kind of thing.

Seeing the young landlord frown, the Zhou couple had looks of mourning on their faces. They thought that because the young landlord was no longer charging them high rent that their family could finally have a better life. But they didn’t expect the cow to die. How will they go on living now?

“Zhou Laohan, if you and your wife do not use cattle to cultivate the land, how many acres can you cultivate yourself?” An Zi Ran suddenly said.

Zhou Laohan raised his head and showed his red eyes. He didn’t know why the young landlord had to ask this question. He thought and thought and replied, “If my wife and I are diligent, when it comes time to transplant rice seedlings, we should be able to cultivate five acres of land.”
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An Zi Ran thought for a bit, “Then, I suggest that you change the ten acres of land you contracted to six or seven acres. After the autumn harvest, you don’t have to trouble yourself over cow feed or grazing fields. In your excess time you can grow other things in other places, for example, crops such as beans and vegetables. This should be able to offset some losses.”

Zhou Laohan and his wife were stunned, but they never thought about it.

Although a cow could farm the land faster than people, it was also very troublesome and laborious to keep the cow. They had to consider the cost of water and grass feed, and accidental death or old life (of the cow).

If they follow the advice of the young landlord, they may be able to make up for the loss of losing a cow.

Zhou Laohan and his wife no longer frowned, and they all saw hope in each other’s eyes.

In the past, they were too dependent on cattle and never even thought about other means of survival.

The onlookers also realized that this was true. In An Yuan County, not every household can afford a cow to cultivate the land. Some farmers who live in poverty have problems feeding themselves, but everyone always thought that Hong Prefecture was the hometown of rice, so they weren’t flexible enough in their thought pattern to think of other methods.

“Young Landlord, then the ten acres of land that we contracted…” Zhou Laohan said vaguely. They had contracted ten acres of land from the An family for five years. It was only the second year. If the left over fields were deserted then it would be a wasteful pity. The most important point was that the previous landlord didn’t care if there was unused land or not, the rent would still be the same.

An Zi Ran knew what he wanted to say. “You can rest assured that if you plant a few acres of land, you will receive a few acres of land, but it is a pity that the other places are abandoned. If you have no objections, I will find people to look after them.”

Zhou Laohan and his wife agreed without saying anything. Anyways, their cow had already died; they couldn’t take care of those extra fields by themselves. If it weren’t for the young landlord’s advice, they wouldn’t have thought to plant other types of crops in the fields. After the crops ripen, maybe they could even bring the excess to the market and sell them. Thinking about the prospects, they suddenly felt that even though the cow died, there was nothing to regret.

“Wang ye, wang fei is very capable,” Shao Fei, who saw the whole thing, couldn’t help but say.

Fu Wu Tian’s eyes have been staring at An Zi Ran and he has not moved away. Hearing those words, he said in a seemingly proud tone, “Whose wang fei do you think he is.”

Shao Fei felt himself sweating. He must have heard wrong. How could the general be proud? He has always been arrogant.

It didn’t take long for An Zi Ran’s proposal to spread throughout An Yuan County.

The farmers who did not have cattle also followed the example of Zhou Laohan’s family. Later, they found that the effect was really good, and the rent collected by the landlord of this area was low, so the days of some poor households gradually improved.

The living standards in An Yuan County have also improved a little.

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