Chapter 391: Beauty and ugliness are destined, fat and thin are in the hands of fate! If heaven wants me to be carefree, I’ll leave it to fate!
The newcomer was Princess Ziyue. She followed the direction of the voices and saw a woman of unparalleled beauty, a stranger.
Although she hadn’t seen her before, from her seating position and the imperial robe she wore, it was clear at a glance that she was the reigning Empress, the most powerful woman in the world!
Princess Ziyue suddenly felt a bit nervous. Over the past two years, she had been causing trouble within the Empire’s territory for her own rebel cause. She had established a mysterious sect in the Southern Jiang region and incited rebellions in the Wuxi region, even seducing her loving minister… Any of these actions, if exposed, would lead to her execution!
Now that she had encountered the real ruler, could she remain composed? She hoped that Princess Ziyue wouldn’t reveal anything; otherwise, everyone would be in trouble!
At this moment, Lin Beifan was also very flustered. How had Princess Ziyue bumped into the Empress? These two women were like water and fire—completely incompatible! One was the current ruler of the world, and the other was a rebel and traitor who had engaged in subversive activities. The two women were naturally at odds!
He hoped that Princess Ziyue wouldn’t expose anything, or else they would all be finished!
Princess Ziyue maintained her composure and greeted, “I pay my respects to Your Majesty. Long live our Emperor!”
“No need for excessive formality,” the Empress said with a smile. “You should be called Miss Ziyue, the renowned top courtesan of Xiyue Pavilion, am I correct?”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Princess Ziyue curtseyed once again.
“You are also Prime Minister Lin’s mistress, am I right?” the Empress asked.
Princess Ziyue glanced at Lin Beifan and lowered her head shyly. “Your Majesty is correct. Prime Minister Lin is well-read, knowledgeable, and a great statesman. I greatly admire him, and my heart has long been set on him. I won’t marry anyone else!”
Lin Beifan: “…”
“Not marry anyone else?” The Empress smiled mischievously and turned to look at Lin Beifan. “My dear, you’re quite the ladies’ man. Another stunning woman has fallen for you. I wonder how many people envy you!”
Lin Beifan, with a bitter smile, replied, “Your Majesty, you should be aware of my charm. Beauty and ugliness are determined by fate, and one’s physique is in the hands of destiny. If heaven wants me to be carefree, I leave it to fate! It’s not something I can control.”
The Empress retorted, “That’s just a bunch of nonsense! When someone comes to you willingly, can’t you reject them?”
Lin Beifan was shocked. “Your Majesty, wouldn’t that be going against fate?”
“Hmph!” The Empress turned away, not wanting to continue the conversation.
Princess Ziyue, sitting beside Lin Beifan, felt somewhat relieved. The pressure from this Empress was truly immense! It was as if she knew everything about her!
As she sat down at Lin Beifan’s main table, she noticed that all the women at this table had some connection to Lin Beifan, as if it had been deliberately arranged.
In this setting, the Empress sat to the right of Lin Beifan, as if she were the first wife. Li Shi Shi sat to the left of Lin Beifan, resembling the first concubine. Looking at the other women, they were all arranged according to their closeness or distance to Lin Beifan. Surprisingly, Princess Ziyue sat the farthest away, feeling somewhat out of place.
On the other hand, the Empress, regal and magnificent, stood out the most among all the beauties, making it impossible to ignore her. Her confident demeanor and ability to navigate social situations overshadowed all the other women. It seemed like she had already become the mistress of this household!
Princess Ziyue felt a bit resentful. What was with her arrogance? If it weren’t for the strategist, you would have become the ruler of a conquered nation by now!
I want to be a queen too in the future! I’ll have the strategist sit by my side, and you can be the supporting act!
At another table, people quietly discussed the situation they observed.
Dali whispered, “I don’t know why, but I feel there’s something off about that table! Look, except for the young master, everyone there is a woman, and they all seem to have some connection with the young master!”
Guo Shaoshuai nodded repeatedly. “Yeah, I feel that the table is weird!”
Xiao Cui asked quietly, “What’s so weird about it?”
Guo Shaoshuai whispered, “Look at how the young master interacts with the Empress. It’s like a master and subject relationship! And when the Empress interacts with the other women, it doesn’t seem like a master and subject relationship; it’s more like the relationship between a wife and concubines!”
“Furthermore, the Empress seems to have some hidden hostility towards Miss Ziyue. They don’t usually have any interaction, so why the hostility? And in this place, there are signs of strangeness everywhere!”
“Yeah, that’s what I wanted to say!” Dali said excitedly.
“Amitabha, this humble monk feels that this table is particularly harmonious, as it should be,” the young monk offered his perspective.
At this moment, the old monk coughed and said, “Amitabha! When eating, let’s refrain from talking too much.”
The guests respected the old monk and fell silent.
Afterward, the meal was served. The food was abundant, but everyone ate quietly.
The Empress acted like the hostess, taking care of everyone as if she were their mistress.
After the dinner, the Empress departed.
A few days later, the Spring Festival finally came to an end. Princess Ziyue also left to continue her efforts in her rebel cause.
The court resumed its activities and focused on the construction of the new year. Spring planting began.
For this year’s spring planting, Lin Beifan and the entire court took it very seriously. After experiencing a once-in-a-century ice disaster, both the Great Wu and the common people suffered heavy losses. The speed of recovery depended on this year’s spring planting.
In the court, Lin Beifan reported loudly, “I inform Your Majesty that the Eight Agricultural Methods and the new fertilizer production methods have been promoted throughout the country!”
“Since last year, we have been actively repairing water facilities! Up to this point, water facilities all over the country have been significantly improved, and there are no longer issues with sewage and water drainage!”
“Now, the high-yield Taiping rice seeds have been distributed to various places and will soon be sown!”
“If all goes well, this year’s grain production is expected to increase by more than 50%!” The Empress was very pleased. “Excellent! A year’s plan starts with spring! We have just experienced an unprecedented ice disaster, and although the losses were severe, people have survived! Therefore, the most important thing now is to ensure production and increase income quickly so that our Great Wu can recover as soon as possible. All my ministers, let us work together to rebuild Great Wu!”
“We obey!” the officials responded in unison.
From the court to the common people, everyone rolled up their sleeves and worked hard, pushing forward with enthusiasm. Although they had suffered greatly from the recent ice disaster, they refused to be disheartened.
They couldn’t believe that, with the promotion of the Eight Agricultural Methods, new fertilizer varieties, improved water facilities, and high-yield rice varieties like Taiping rice, this year’s agricultural prospects were better than ever.
They were determined that, with these advancements, they would produce more food than ever before.
Great Wu was filled with hope, and everyone worked diligently for the upcoming spring planting season, eager to overcome the challenges they had faced.
In contrast, other countries were not faring as well. They hadn’t recovered from the recent disasters. The new year had not started well, as they were forced to engage in a new year’s production without adequate resources.
The situation was dire. About one-tenth of the common people at the grassroots level had perished, and some villages had become deserted, turning into ghost towns. These were the main labor force for farming. Without enough farmers to cultivate the fields, how could they ensure food production?
To safeguard food production, these countries had to implement strict measures, relocating urban residents to rural areas to engage in farming. They even required soldiers to lay down their arms and return to farming. However, with urban areas depopulated, there was no workforce to support economic recovery, resulting in continued economic hardship.
But for now, they had to prioritize food production due to the dire circumstances.
Due to the Darro incident, the Great Yan Dynasty had 400,000 troops threatening the borders of Great Wu. However, the internal labor force was insufficient, so they had to mobilize 300,000 troops to go back to farming. They also sent a diplomatic message, indicating that they wouldn’t attack anymore and hoped to resume trade and economic recovery between the two countries.
The Great Xia Dynasty also sent a diplomatic message, explicitly stating that due to the ice disaster, there were shortages of supplies, significant loss of population, and limited productivity. Therefore, they couldn’t provide compensation for this year’s damages and would assess the situation next year.
Inside the imperial prison, Lin Beifan and the Crown Prince of Great Xia, Xia Tianqiong, were drinking together.
“Crown Prince, you must have heard about the situation outside. The entire world has experienced a terrifying ice disaster. Great Xia lost 25 million people, and the losses in resources are incalculable. Therefore, compensation for this year has been canceled, and you may need to stay in Great Wu for some more time,” Lin Beifan said.
“Ah,” the Crown Prince of Great Xia sighed, drinking and pouring more wine, clearly in a gloomy mood. “We always thought we had tomorrow, but everything is so unpredictable. I had prepared to return already, but who knew that a natural disaster would strike, disrupting everything and causing unimaginable pain to Great Xia. However, what I hate the most now is myself!”
The Crown Prince of Great Xia lamented, “At the time when Great Xia needed me the most, I was not there! During Great Xia’s ordeal, I was powerless to help and instead dragged down Great Xia… I am a dirty stain of Great Xia!”
“Your Highness, please don’t blame yourself. The will of heaven is unpredictable and hard to defy,” Lin Beifan advised.
“How is my father’s health?” the Crown Prince of Great Xia asked.
Lin Beifan shook his head, “I’ve heard that his health isn’t too good. He fell seriously ill during the recent ice disaster. Although he has recovered, his health has weakened significantly.”
“Ah,” the Crown Prince of Great Xia sighed deeply, overwhelmed with a sense of powerlessness and bitterness.
His father was getting old, and after experiencing a severe illness, he had become physically weak, possibly not able to last much longer. At the same time, Great Xia was in its most challenging period, and his younger brother was showing signs of unrest. He was far away from his homeland and powerless…
Great Xia was on the verge of turmoil.
The Crown Prince of Great Xia felt helpless, so he kept drinking to numb his emotions. “I wonder if I will ever see my father again in this lifetime… I am a dirty stain of Great Xia…”
He didn’t know when Lin Beifan had left, but his heart was heavy with worries and regrets.
