Locked: God is the matchmaker, neither you nor I can escape

"The imperial edict has arrived!"

Ren Huaimin's voice broke the peace of the Dashan Village.

"The Emperor, by the Mandate of Heaven, proclaims that Dashan Village villagers Li Xinye and his wife Li Yanshi have discovered new grain varieties and cultivated a large number of sweet potatoes, and have reported their meritorious service in a timely manner. They are hereby rewarded with ten acres of high-quality farmland, ten acres of high-quality dry land, and one thousand taels of silver. This is my decree."

Chen Yong poked the stunned Xin Ye and reminded him in a low voice: "Hurry up and accept the order and thank the emperor."

"I, Li Xinye, accept the decree and thank the Lord for His grace."

After completing the ceremony of receiving the imperial edict, the Li father and son stood up and faced the officials who came to congratulate them. They were still a little overwhelmed, but they maintained a polite smile and thanked them.

They made eye contact with Chen Yong, and after confirming that the report was successful, they breathed a sigh of relief.

Yan Yiyi lowered his head, his eyes flickering. It seemed that this emperor was worth further testing. For now, he had passed the first level.

Chen Yong understood their feelings very well, because not long ago he had received an imperial edict of praise from the emperor, as well as a reward of five hundred taels of silver. In addition, Ren Huaimin also brought him a message that Lord Mu, the Minister of the Ministry of Agriculture, was very optimistic about him and asked him to cooperate with the officials of the Ministry of Agriculture to learn how to grow sweet potatoes.

The villagers who were watching only then realized that what the Li family was growing was called sweet potato, and that because of the sweet potato, they received commendations and rewards from the emperor.

Oh my god! Ten acres of high-quality farmland, ten acres of high-quality dry land, and a thousand taels of silver. The Li family is rich!

It's a pity that the Li family has no other sons or daughters, otherwise... Oh, by the way, isn't Dahong still unmarried? It wouldn't be bad to marry him!

Many villagers immediately became active and started thinking of women who were suitable for Father Li, even girls who had just come of age were included.

The three members of the Li family were completely unaware of all this.

County Magistrate Chen immediately introduced the four people who came this time to the Li family, the general person in charge Ren Huaimin, and three middle-aged men, namely Mr. Xu, Mr. Ma, and Mr. Liu.

In order to make it more convenient for them to learn how to grow sweet potatoes, County Magistrate Chen rented a small courtyard from the village chief and arranged for someone to take care of their three meals a day, wash their clothes and clean their rooms, so that they could learn how to grow sweet potatoes without any worries.

Yan Yiyi didn't expect that the emperor would arrange people to come and study so early. It's only January now, and sweet potatoes can only be planted in April next year. Are they on vacation in the village for these three months?

It was impossible to take a vacation, mainly because it took them a month to travel from the mountain village to the capital, and they would have to rush back soon after they returned, which was too troublesome.

So before they decided to plant sweet potatoes, they carefully surveyed the land here and the planting conditions of the local people.

"Brother Li, could you please take us to see if sweet potatoes are okay?" Except for Ren Huaimin, the other three adults had never seen sweet potatoes!

"Okay, please come in, gentlemen." Father Li quickly invited them in. In order to prevent the common people from disturbing them, after Yan Yiyi entered the room, he directly said "sorry" to the villagers and closed the door.

Aunt Qi and Uncle Zhang naturally became an important channel for the villagers to inquire about information, and they were surrounded and questioned.

Aunt Qi and Aunt Zhang Wu had never been surrounded by villagers like this before, and they were at a loss for a moment. Uncle Zhang Wu was worried that Aunt Zhang Wu would be squeezed and the baby in her belly would be hurt, so he held her tightly in his arms with a frown.

"Okay, shut up!" Uncle Zhang shouted, and the villagers gradually stopped talking, and then he spoke, "Whatever the Li family grows has nothing to do with you.

The emperor has sent other people to take charge of this matter. If you leak the matter, exile and confiscation of property are considered light punishments. If you anger the emperor, you will be beheaded and your whole family will be exterminated. You can ask around, but we won’t tell anyone anyway. We don’t want to die.”

After saying that, Uncle Zhang Wu took Aunt Zhang Wu's arm and squeezed out of the crowd to go home. Aunt Qi took her son and ran back while the villagers were still not able to react.

The villagers knew that Uncle Zhang's words were a bit alarmist, but they also knew that the emperor attached great importance to the sweet potatoes grown by the Li family. If they caused unnecessary trouble because of their gossip, they would definitely not end up well.

The village chief was accidentally locked outside by Yan Yiyi, and he was too embarrassed to knock on the door to get in. After all, he didn't know much about the sweet potatoes grown by the Li family. If he was asked by those officials in the past, and he didn't know as much as the county magistrate who was far away in the county town, wouldn't it be his dereliction of duty?

He couldn't interfere in the sweet potato matter, but managing the villagers was within the village chief's responsibility. If he failed to control the villagers and any news leaked out, he would certainly be held accountable.

The village chief said with a sullen face: "Zhang Wu is right, everyone present must watch their mouths, especially Mrs. Huang, Mrs. Zhang, Mrs. Ge and you!

Normally, you three are the ones who love to gossip. If the emperor holds you accountable for your nonsense, your whole family will be in trouble and the reputation of the entire village will be implicated by you.

Everyone else should also keep an eye on them. Don't think that it's okay just because you didn't say it. Once the emperor thinks that our Dashan Village is full of unruly people and our reputation is ruined, how can the girls in the village get married? Can the young men in the village still marry good girls? "

The village chief's questions silenced everyone present. For them, all they wanted in life was to have enough food and clothing, raise their children to adulthood, watch them get married and have children, and then take care of their grandchildren.

If they get into trouble because of their careless words, they are afraid that their ancestors will blame them and that their family members will be implicated.

The village chief immediately realized that it was not enough to just instruct the people present, so he asked them to help gather all the villagers so that he could explain everything to them.

The villagers who didn't know what was going on were confused until the village chief repeatedly emphasized it, only then did they realize that the Li family had grown something extraordinary, and had been praised and rewarded by the emperor, who had sent officials to take charge.

The village chief repeatedly warned the villagers not to spread rumors or make inquiries, and even more so not to go around the adults. If the adults needed help, he would arrange for someone to go there, so they didn't need to worry.

Finally, the village chief explained the seriousness of the matter one by one, describing how serious it was, which frightened all the villagers so much that they dared not say a word.

On the day before the New Year, the village chief once again summoned the villagers and specifically warned them not to lose control of their mouths after drinking a few cups of horse urine. Those who knew they could not control their mouths should not even visit their relatives to avoid making their entire family suffer.

There are indeed a few families who feel they cannot control their mouths. Not only do they not return to their parents' home, but even when their married daughters come back, they claim to be sick and stay in their rooms, not going out to see anyone.

The daughters who returned to their parents' homes also discovered that something was not right at home, no, or in the village. This year's New Year seemed to be a little quiet. It was rare to see people visiting. When they asked about their family members, everyone in the family looked terrified and said nothing.

Of course, the above is all afterward.