Chapter 580: 580 Arriving at Jiliao_1

Therefore, she decided to keep this secret hidden within her heart for the time being, so as to maintain the close and natural relationship with her second brother.

Wei Jinyi could tell that the “such man” Wei Ruo referred to was specific.

Has she met him?

What kind of man is he?

Thinking of this, Wei Jinyi’s hand underneath her sleeve tightened involuntarily.

Then the two of them looked in different directions, each with their own thoughts.

What was common was that neither continued the topic, nor chose to break the paper-thin barrier.

###

March 6th.

Despite the somewhat chilly weather, the sunshine was bright, much like Wei Ruo’s mood.

Wei Ruo and her party finally reached their residence in Jiliao.

Wei Ruo jumped down from the horse carriage, followed by Wei Jinyi who immediately draped a cloak over Wei Ruo’s shoulders.

“The weather here is not the same as in the Capital City. Don’t get cold.”

“Okay.”

Wei Ruo tightened her clothes and then looked up at the gate.

The entire gate looked old, only the plaque was newly changed, with the three big characters “King Rui Residence” written on it.

This was their new home.

Wei Ruo and Wei Jinyi entered the gate.

This government residence was smaller than their residence in the Capital City, and it was much more rundown, looking somewhat neglected.

But even so, it was still the most luxurious building in the surrounding area.

Observing the journey they had taken, the land was vast with sparse population, the people were poor, the houses were simple, and even the government office looked rundown.

Wei Ruo didn’t mind at all. In fact, she was looking forward to it.

A portion of the rooms had been cleaned by an advance party, and Wei Ruo and the others could move in directly.

Because the house was not large, there were only two spacious and bright courtyards in the backyard, and the rest were relatively small.

Wei Ruo and Wei Jinyi had one each, just like their homes in Xingshan County’s Wei Family, the houses were linked.

Xiumei had just moved a ladder in, and Wei Ruo leaned it against the fence and looked over to the other side.

Wei Jinyi, who was quick to perceive, lifted his head and saw Wei Ruo’s beaming face.

A smile also formed on Wei Jinyi’s face as he gazed tenderly at Wei Ruo.

“What are you looking at?” Wei Jinyi asked.

“Checking if your courtyard is suitable for growing bamboo.”

Because in Xingshan County, Wei Jinyi’s bamboo garden was filled with bamboo plants.

“There’s space in the courtyard to plant them, but I’m not sure if bamboo will survive in Jiliao?”

“I want to give it a try and see if my talent for growing any plants can work on bamboo.”

“Okay, as you wish.”

“Second Brother, should my courtyard be called Tingsong Garden or Songzhu Garden?” Wei Ruo asked.

Wei Jinyi paused, not quite understanding the purpose of Wei Ruo’s question.

“I think both are nice.” Wei Jinyi replied.

“I think Songzhu Garden sounds better.”

“Okay, as you wish.”

“Second brother, will we still eat together in the future?” Wei Ruo continued to ask.

During their last days in the Capital City and on the journey here, they had always been dining together.

“As you wish.”

“Can’t you give another answer, Second Brother? If you always leave things up to me, who knows what I might do,” Wei Ruo said in a mix of jest and seriousness.

“If Ruoruo agrees, I would like to dine with her,” Wei Jinyi replied.

He was willing to do so. He was just afraid that she would disagree, or feel burdened, or be disturbed.

“Great!” Upon receiving a satisfactory answer, Wei Ruo finally came down from the wall.

###

Upon settling in, Wei Ruo immediately began to get busy with matters relating to spring planting.

Everything has its season, and time waits for no one. Wei Ruo didn’t want to miss this year’s best planting season.

Although Jiliao was Wei Jinyi’s fiefdom, he did not have administrative jurisdiction over it. Most of the people and land were still governed by the local government office.

However, as the prince of the fiefdom, a large amount of land was allocated to him. This was the land that she planned to arrange for now.

This round of spring planting would be dedicated to planting potatoes, the new seed that she just unlocked with the upgrade of her space!

Wei Ruo had been waiting for potatoes for quite a while. This crop is very high-yielding. In her previous world, it fed countless people and led to a population boom.

She thought that since sweet potatoes could be unlocked, so could potatoes.

Indeed, they really came—and at the right time!

It was like someone sending a pillow when you are sleepy. She decided to experiment with this black soil!

Not that this place was not suitable for growing rice. As a matter of fact, rice could be grown in Jiliao.

Not only could it be grown, if the variety tolerated cold and frost, the quality of the rice grown on this land was very high.

However, at present, the conditions for growing rice were not met, and there was an urgent need for food. Compared to rice, the potato growth cycle is shorter!

The potatoes from Wei Ruo’s space were early maturing varieties. From sprouting to harvest, they needed only sixty days.

Like this, they could plant at least three seasons before winter came!

Wei Ruo planned not only to plant potatoes on the land under the King Rui Residence but also to encourage the local people to plant potatoes with her.

For this, Wei Ruo needed to prepare. To change the grain type is a big deal. The land resources are limited, and if the crop fails mid-growth, it can’t be easily changed. This affects a family’s livelihood. So, to convince them in a short time, Wei Ruo had to come up with reasons they could believe.

The first thing Wei Ruo planned to do was to distribute grain!

Apart from the portion of grain that was transported by their party this time, there would be nearly a hundred more carts of grain coming later.

This was stored earlier by Wei Ruo in the warehouses of King Rui Residence and near the Capital City.

Because the carts were heavy and needed to be very careful with bandits along the way, it would take more time than Wei Ruo’s main party. Even if they left earlier, they would arrive a few days later.

Wei Ruo planned to keep some of the grain for this year’s food for the residence staff and distribute all the rest according to the population count to the local residents.

Anyway, she has been using excess grain for relief aid. Although the people of Jiliao are not displaced and have not become disaster victims, judging from what she saw on the journey here, they are not far from becoming refugees.

She was going to use this grain for relief aid anyway, so why not use it to help the people of her own territory?

Besides, this move could also earn some reputation for the Residence that would help her in her future work.

Therefore, Wei Ruo called Zhang Yi, Ke Chongshan, Yu Zixiu and others over, circled a place on the map, and told them her decision to distribute food to the people in this area.

This decision of Wei Ruo’s surprised and perplexed Zhang Yi, Ke Chongshan, Yu Zixiu and others.

They felt that Wei Ruo’s move was too risky. Although it’s good to help people, leaving only enough food for the coming year was somewhat risky.