freenovelworld Chapter 681 The New Situation
Chapter 681 The New Situation
Lu Yangyang leaned slightly and hugged Rong Xin from behind, whose body was so thin it seemed like she was just a skeleton.
There was no bronze mirror in the room, so only Lu Yangyang could clearly see Rong Xin's tormented body.
Now she only hopes that her aunt can one day completely resolve her inner conflict.
Wenren Jing cooked the meal quickly. Lu Yangyang took Rong Xin out, afraid that Rong Xin would not be used to it. There were only the girls at the table, and even Wen Yu did not come.
Rong Xin hadn't lived a normal life for too long. Even sitting quietly at the dinner table facing people made her feel uneasy. It wasn't until she tasted the familiar food that she felt a long-lost warmth in her stomach. It was as if she had just experienced a long dream, and even when she was awake, it still felt unreal.
After eating, Rong Xin's mental and physical strength had reached their limit, so she went back to rest.
Seeing that she had fallen asleep again, Lu Yangyang and Wenren Jing finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Hypnosis awakened Rong Xin's memories, but her body cannot be restored in a short time, and her mental state is still unstable. However, it is good that there has been a good start and that the attack has not recurred.
Sure enough, in the days that followed, Rong Xin spent most of her time in a daze, either sleeping or resting. When she was awake, she did not have any more episodes, and the time she was awake became longer and longer.
Despite Wenren Jing's persistent nagging, they actually managed to produce refined salt and white sugar, and even soap, toothpaste, shampoo, and shower gel.
Then, in Wenren Jing's eyes, these things automatically transformed into money.
However, salt and sugar involve too many issues, so Wenren Jing didn't dare to take them out rashly, but he didn't have so many concerns about other things.
They directly repackaged the soaps and added them to Zhenyanfang, especially the soaps, which were low-cost and effective, and sold out immediately upon release.
Without hesitation, Wenren Jing found people to increase production, directly set up a workshop, and then used the business to quickly promote the soap. In just two or three months, he made a fortune.
Before we knew it, the year was drawing to a close.
They harvested two crops of potatoes, the sweet potato harvest was even more astonishing, and they even harvested corn once.
The people of Changyang County were astonished by the high yield of the crop. With limited seeds, they planted the seedlings in batches in each village. Jiang Zhiyi found someone to buy rice and used it to exchange for seedlings. The people of Changyang County had not gone hungry for several years. They kept some seedlings for the next season and exchanged the rest for rice from the government.
Besides these new, high-yield crops, Changyang County has also seen the emergence of several other avenues for earning money in the past six months, including medicinal herb cultivation, flower cultivation, and soap making workshops, regardless of gender. Under the county magistrate's leadership, the people's spirits have been completely transformed. The most obvious change is that the few scattered shops on the main street of Changyang County have now filled the entire street, and even the people's clothing has become brighter and more vibrant.
Lu Yangyang showed Jiang Zhiyi the letter she had received from Zong Que. Jiang Zhiyi took her directly to the granary. "These are seeds we obtained from the people after the county-wide planting program was launched. Except for tomatoes, which are more vulnerable in winter and require specific conditions to grow, I've had the rest compiled into a book and recorded the data. Even in the most barren areas, the harvest is several times higher than that of rice. I've already discussed it with Aunt Jing and arranged for a caravan to depart for the Northwest after the New Year."
At this point, Jiang Zhiyi couldn't help but sigh, "If such a crop could be promoted throughout the entire Great Zhao, it would surely be a great thing for the country and its people. However... the court is currently in turmoil, and if these things were leaked out at this time, it would probably bring disaster."
Although Lu Yangyang had been hiding in Changyang County for the past few months, she still managed to keep up with news from the court through occasional letters from Zong Que and news brought by Tiancheng Trading Company.
Around the time of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the emperor had a new prince, who was raised under the care of Xue Wanyue, the emperor's current favorite concubine.
Since entering the palace, Xue Wanyue has been favored by the emperor because of her face, which is very similar to that of the late empress. However, her rank was not high at first. Later, as the struggle for the crown prince became more and more intense, especially with the growing popularity of the Third Prince, almost half of the court officials supported the Third Prince to be the crown prince. Naturally, the harem was also filled with fierce fighting.
At this time, Xue Wanyue, who did not compete or fight, benefited. The emperor was already infatuated with her face, and she quickly gained his exclusive favor, was conferred the title of Consort Duan, and was almost equal to Consort Xiao in the harem.
The Marquis's mansion behind Xue Wanyue couldn't offer her any support, and even if she gained favor, it wouldn't make much difference. Originally, no one paid her any attention, but when the emperor brought the newborn prince to Xue Wanyue's palace, the winds of change in the harem completely shifted.
With a prince by her side, a favorite concubine of the emperor, young and beautiful, and resembling the late empress whom the emperor cared about most, and most importantly, the emperor is still in his prime, if he lives another ten or twenty years, the position of crown prince will be even more uncertain.
Even if Xue Wanyue doesn't become a favored concubine, the other princes in the harem should be gradually maturing.
This put the Third Prince's supporters in a real panic.
After the Mid-Autumn Festival, he submitted memorials almost one after another requesting that the Third Prince be made Crown Prince.
However, at this very moment, another piece of news reached the capital.
The news that Crown Prince Chongwen had a son who had fallen into poverty and was now the new leader of the Salt Gang caused an uproar in the imperial court.
According to bloodline, Crown Prince Chongwen's lineage also qualifies him to inherit the throne.
In particular, Crown Prince Chongwen risked his life to go north as a hostage for the sake of peace in the Great Zhao Dynasty. Such integrity still has a large number of supporters who are waiting for an opportunity to bring him back. Now that his descendants have appeared, they naturally have supporters.
The pattern of establishing a crown prince in the central government has been broken once again.
News of Lin Wuji, the leader of the Salt Gang, has also become a focus of attention for various forces.