Adoption brings disaster

It is said that because I was unwilling to present the method of purifying wine to the emperor, I almost angered His Majesty and scared everyone.

Everyone saw how I served lunch and knew that I was a stubborn person. They were all afraid that I would anger the emperor again in the future because of something, and eventually be disliked by the emperor and end up in a miserable situation. Therefore, everyone tried to persuade me in their own way.

The Seventh Prince bribed me with benefits, the Taoist priest pressured me with the justice of the world, servants like Chunyu begged me with emotion, and even the silly girl Xiaotao knew that my behavior was not good, but she was timid and advised me directly.

In fact, I also understand that everyone is doing this for my own good. After all, in this palace, the emperor's favor is the greatest reliance, and other fame and fortune are just icing on the cake.

If you are disliked by the emperor, even if you have the best reputation in the world, in the mouths of those servants, it will only be a name-seeking.

I also know that although you have a special status, these slaves are the ones who flatter the powerful and look down on the weak, and you are no exception. But as for me, due to my personality, I would rather be disliked than get close to the leader, and I will not do things against my will to please the leader.

I feel really bad that everyone is so worried about me, but fortunately, Your Majesty is very busy with government affairs and has to treat all the ladies equally on weekdays, so the ladies from all the palaces have to go everywhere.

Therefore, after that visit to Qianqiu Pavilion, I have never been there again, which also made everyone less worried.

For Qianqiu Pavilion, this is better. At least I don't have to work so hard to please this big boss, and everyone doesn't have to worry about my poor speaking ability and stubborn temper.

It is said that people feel sleepy in spring, tired in autumn and weak in winter. The hot summer is a good time to sleep. People feel sleepy when they have free time.

I practiced martial arts every morning, and as soon as the Seventh Prince left, I would go to take a nap. At noon, I would have lunch and then take another nap.

As a result, Ada and Aer couldn't go out because they had to look after me every day. They couldn't do anything interesting at all, and there was no light in their eyes.

I continued like this for more than ten days, and still felt sleepy every day. Seeing this, Chunyu was already very worried. Without waiting for me and the Seventh Prince's permission, he immediately sent someone to go to the Imperial Hospital to ask the imperial physician to take a look.

When the Taoist priest saw this, he stopped her and said that it was normal. She had been injured a few years ago and had recently practiced the White Rat Magic Skill to repair the injuries, so she slept more.

Chunyu waited for another half a month with half belief and half doubt, and my condition suddenly improved.

I am full of energy every day and have endless energy. I take Ada and Aer for a stroll every day, and I still have the energy to bother the Seventh Prince at night.

By the way, the Seventh Prince has been troubled by me recently and is not as affectionate with me as before.

The Seventh Prince was a little fed up with my torment, and since it happened to be the day for me to leave the palace, he suggested that I go out for a walk, relax and take a look at the property.

The weather has been very good recently, and I have been strolling around and joking in the palace every day. I have already visited almost all the places there are to visit.

After I heard the Seventh Prince say this, I calculated the time and found that there were still a few days before leaving the palace, so there was no need to rush.

But the Seventh Prince was really annoyed with me, so he ignored the palace rules and asked A Da to make arrangements quickly.

Ah Dashu was an old hand in the palace, and with the order from the Seventh Prince, this little matter was naturally easy for him to handle. He finished it in no time and planned to leave the palace the next day.

It is said that early the next morning, I took Ah Da and Ah Er with me without bringing anyone else with me, and left the palace in a carriage.

It’s not that it’s inconvenient to take Chunyu and the others with them, but the village outside Beijing is far away, and the roads outside the capital are difficult to travel. Chunyu and the other girls are fragile and cannot stand such fatigue. It would be bad if they get sick or injured.

After leaving the palace, Li Er was waiting outside early. He changed the carriage and rushed towards Zhuangzi without stopping.

I was bored in the carriage, so I chatted with Li Er. During the chat, I found that Zhuangzi was really great.

Li Er said that the two farms were the old lady's favorites during her lifetime. Both farms were close to the capital, had excellent paddy fields, and were not far from the official road.

The old lady was afraid that someone might covet such a good thing, so she gave it to the third young master early.

Also, since Zhuangzi came to the Third Young Master's place, Li Er had been in charge of it, so Li Er knew everything about Zhuangzi.

After hearing what Li Er said, I also became interested in Zhuangzi, so I asked Li Er to explain it in detail.

Li Er obeyed the order and naturally hurriedly picked up some important or interesting things to tell me, which took him half a day.

Li Er was very good at talking, and these little country stories were very interesting when he told them. Before we knew it, we arrived at the place where we got off the bus.

When they arrived at the place to get off, Ada got out first to wait, but he saw a narrow and muddy path.

How could Ah Da bear to see the deer in such a tattered state? He immediately shouted with his eyes wide open, "Your Highness said two months ago that he would come to inspect the manor. You didn't even build a road for the carriage to pass through, you at least made it easy to walk on. You are no different from a slave bullying his master."

Ah Er was immediately annoyed when he saw Ah Da put such a big hat on Li Er. He grabbed Li Er's clothes and said, "Your Highness is kind, but we are not. You are so disrespectful to your superiors. I will kill you here today."

"Spring planting is a busy season. If we pull people out to repair the road, it will delay farming. If we really do that, we'll be driving the farmers to death." I said in the carriage as I got out.

When I got out of the carriage, I saw that there was really no place to put my feet. I felt unhappy for a moment.

But the words had already been spoken, so he had no choice but to say: "Besides, I am not a lazy person, and this kind of path is not impossible to walk."

After saying that, he walked along the path pretending to be indifferent. When Li Er saw this, he quickly broke free from Ah Er and ran over to lead the way.

It is said that this village is indeed not far from the official road. It only takes the time of an incense stick to reach the village.

As soon as I entered the village, I saw an earthen house in the distance. Thick smoke was coming out of the house. Farmers were walking in and out in twos and threes. It looked a bit strange, so I stopped to take a look.

It looked like a fire, but the farmers were not panicking at all. They were talking and laughing as they went in and out.

Seeing this, I became even more curious, so I pointed at the mud house and asked, "What is that house used for?"

When Li Er heard my question, he said with a hint of excitement, "Your Highness, that is your ancestral temple."

"Temple of the Living?" This is the first time I've heard of this term, and I really don't know what it is for.

"The benefactor's kindness is greater than the sky. How can we repay him? The only thing we can do is to build a temple for the living, wishing that the benefactor can become an immortal or a Buddha and live forever. This is the temple for the living." Ah Er explained.

"You mean to say that my kindness to these farmers is greater than heaven, so in order to repay my kindness, they have no other choice but to build a living temple for me?"

When Li Er heard me ask him, he kept saying yes. Ah Da and Ah Er also agreed. But I thought about it and asked with some doubt: "But I didn't do anything."

"Reducing the rent by 10% will allow these farmers to have surplus food and not starve to death in the winter. This is a great favor to them," said Ada.

In fact, what the lower-class people want is very simple, just to survive. Letting them survive and not starve to death is a great blessing.

This is the case for the farmers today, and it was also the case for me in the past. When I couldn’t find a job and was about to live on the streets, a school accepted me. I was so moved that I cried.

Thinking of these past events, I felt sad for my own miserable life in the past, and sad for the difficult lives of the people. I didn't want to talk for a moment, and just walked towards the temple.

Walking into the Shengren Temple, I was touched by the incense burners in the mud houses, and by the burning paper money in the basins. But after a moment's thought, I said, "Tell the farmers I don't like these things. If they really appreciate my kindness, they can pick some pretty wild flowers."

"Your Highness, you absolutely cannot do this. These incense sticks represent your magical powers after you become an immortal, and these paper money represent your immortal body after you become a god. The more incense sticks, candles, and paper money you have, the more powerful you will be after you become an immortal. What's the big deal about getting some wild flowers?" Li Er said.

I knew in my heart that everyone respected me, but I didn't believe in such things. I looked at Li Er and said, "What have the flowers done to deserve being picked and offered to me? I feel guilty towards them for offering them to me. Don't offer flowers, just be sincere."

After hearing this, Li Er was so moved that he nodded repeatedly in agreement.

I knew how grateful people are, and I figured they wouldn't be easily persuaded by me, so I added, "If one truly becomes an immortal or a god, then magical powers and physical form aren't the most important. Only merit and virtue are what matter. If you truly appreciate my kindness, why not do one good deed a month to accumulate merit for me?"

"Your Highness is kind and does not want to see others suffer. He is unwilling to hurt even a small flower. It is really admirable. But the matter of the Living Temple has been reported to the master and to heaven and earth. Your Highness must not break the rules." Seeing me say this, Ada advised again.

I know that it is extremely difficult to change the ideas of the feudal and superstitious ancient people, and no matter how much I say, it will be of no avail.

And I couldn't force them, so I could only find a compromise and said, "Since that's the case, let's take some money out of the account every year to prepare some incense, candles, and paper money. We can't let the farmers waste their livelihood in vain."

When Li Er heard this, he was grateful to me again. The matter was settled and not mentioned again.

At that time, I watched from afar and saw several people walking towards the Shengren Temple angrily. Two of them were still cursing each other and fighting from time to time. If there was no old man to mediate, I'm afraid there would have been a bloody incident today.

"Is this what's going on with them?" I was also surprised when I saw it, so I asked.

"The people in this village are simple and honest, and the neighbors are very kind. This is the first time I've seen this happen, and I'm curious about what happened."

This incident made Li Er unhappy, but he couldn't show it. He could only hold his breath and speak with a gloomy look.

"Since you don't know, let's go and take a look."

The mud house was not big, and the entrance had long been blocked by farmers. When everyone saw Li Er coming, they all made way for him to get out.

When we got inside, we saw an old man sitting on a chair and two other people talking about something.

When the old man saw Li Er, he immediately stood up and said respectfully, "Greetings, Chief Manager."

After saying that, he quickly stood down and gave his seat to Li Er.

Li Er nodded in response, but did not sit down. He just walked to the side and stood respectfully.

A Da wiped the chair that the old man had sat on over and over again until it was clean, and then asked me to sit down. After I sat down, A Da and A Er stood behind me again.

Li Er saw me sitting down, asked for my instructions, and then turned to the old man and asked, "Manager Zhang, what happened?"

The old man, seeing the question, naturally dared not refuse to answer. He bowed and said, "Please let the shopkeeper decide. This matter is not a big deal. A family starved to death years ago, and no one has rented their land since then. Today, we are going to decide who should rent it to in front of the statue of Your Highness."

As soon as the old man finished speaking, a man immediately said, "Sir, the man who died was my brother, so his land should naturally be rented by me."

The other man, hearing this, was unwilling to comply and quickly said, "This land belongs to His Highness. Why are you still playing the brotherly role?"

After saying this, the man realized he hadn't saluted, so he quickly bowed and said, "Sir, my family has the most children on this farm, but we have the least land to rent. If there's any vacant land, it should be ours to rent."

"Didn't the rent get reduced? How can people still starve to death?" I asked in confusion when I heard the two people fighting over the land.

Everyone looked at me in surprise when they heard this. The old man knew I was a distinguished person, so he didn't dare to act rashly. He could only smile bitterly and say, "In this farm, if several people don't starve to death every year, it's already considered a good year for this family to die of starvation. If it weren't for Your Highness's kindness in reducing the rent, I'm afraid half the people on this farm would have died."

I felt sad after hearing this, and looked at Li Er with a sad face and said, "Why have you never told me these things?"

Seeing me sad, Li Er was naturally even sadder. He also laughed miserably and said, "That village must have starved to death in the winter. I thought Your Highness knew about it, so I didn't mention such a trivial matter."

It turns out that in Li Er's eyes, starving a few people to death is a trivial matter. I feel more and more uncomfortable, but I can't blame Li Er. This is the way of the times, and it's nothing new.

It’s just that I grew up in an era when people could have enough food to eat, so I can’t stand seeing this kind of thing.

I felt I should do something, so after a moment's thought, I said, "If there are farmers who have trouble getting through the winter, as long as the account can be used, I will help them out."

After hearing this, everyone immediately knelt on the ground, shouting their thanks to His Highness, saying that His Highness was truly a living Bodhisattva.

When I heard this, I didn't feel happy at all. Instead, I felt even more distressed. I suppressed my discomfort and pressed my hands down to ask everyone to be quiet.

Then he ordered everyone to stand up. When they stood up, I saw that everyone had unstoppable smiles on their faces and tears of happiness in their eyes.

“How much land is unrented?”

"Your Highness, there are only three paddy fields and two dry fields."

"If that's the case, then each family can rent one more paddy field and one more dry field, and I can keep the extra paddy field for my use."

Although this arrangement is not entirely in line with Zhuangzi's philosophy, it is not wrong either, and the farmers naturally approve of it.

After arranging everything, we decided to go for a stroll inside the farm. The farmers followed us and were reluctant to leave. In the end, we had no choice but to ask Manager Zhang to drive them away, and then everyone dispersed.

Although the crowd did not follow us, each one of them in the fields, in the woods, and in front of the houses kept staring at us, as if they were following us.

"If Your Highness feels sorry for these farmers, why don't you reduce the rent a little more? The rent in this farm is too little. Reducing it by 10% is only the monthly income of a good shop." Ah Da suggested.

"Because the rent cannot be reduced." I said calmly.

Ah Er was very confused and asked, "Your Highness, what do you mean by this? Why can't you reduce the rent?"

I turned my head to look at them, sighed, and said, "Because all the manors in the world collect 40% rent, I'm breaking the rules by collecting 30%. If I reduce it by another 10%, I'll be making an enemy."

"Who should I be enemies with?" Ah Da was a fierce man. After hearing this, he rubbed his hands and said, ready to fight.

"I am the enemy of all landlords, all landowners, and all those who collect 40% rent."

Ah Er didn't take it seriously. He just snorted coldly and said, "Enemy, so what? When have we, the Zhenbei Army, ever been afraid of these termites?"

I glanced at Ada and then at Aer, both with complicated expressions. I turned my head to look at the fields in the distance and said, "Of course, the Zhenbei Army is not afraid, Chongguang is naturally not afraid, and I am not afraid either, but these farmers are afraid. These people dare not touch us, so they will naturally extend their butcher knives to these poor unarmed people. These ordinary people have done nothing wrong, they just want to survive."

Ah Da and Ah Er were even more puzzled and wanted to say something else, but Li Er said, "Your Highness is very thoughtful and far-sighted. I thank you on behalf of these farmers."

I waved my hand and said with a smile, "There are many ways to solve problems. We don't have to conflict with others to solve them. Let's go and see how we can ensure that these farmers have surplus food and food to eat through the winter without reducing the rent."

Find out how to solve this problem without conflict. Stay tuned for the next article.