The paddy fields were still being planted. There was a lot of land, but there were only a few people who could farm. The others were busy building houses or doing other things.
Li Longji stood on the ridge of the field and watched the people working. Empress Wang did not feel that those people wearing only boxers were unsightly.
She knew that Li Yi had specially made an oilcloth set for them, but the farmers found it inconvenient.
The boxers were already used in the palace. It was convenient and comfortable, and there was no need to worry about the summer dress being empty.
There was also the toothpaste that she did not know how to make. It was much better than the other things she used before.
The toothbrush looked better than before, especially the shape of the toothbrush handle. It was curved back and forth. The bamboo strips used to wear the toothbrush hair were indeed comfortable after being curved.
A group of ducks passed by the paddy field. Someone was driving them. The big ducks walked in front while the ducklings followed behind. They lined up in a row and quacked.
"The ducks don't go into the water." Zhang Shuo was curious and looked at Li Yi.
"Because the ducks know that there is better water, they are not allowed to go into the paddy field. They dug a shallow pond over there and used a waterwheel to draw in the water. The ducks go there to play every day."
"There is also food for the ducks there. The ducks can't eat good food in the paddy field."
Li Yi did not keep this a secret. If Zhang Hong had Zhuangzi, he could learn from him.
Zhang Shuo understood Li Yi's intention and secretly praised him.
He asked, "Can you tell me about the normal operation of Zhuangzi?"
"Sure!" Li Yi was willing to say. Everyone should develop well and increase their lifespan.
"Aren't you afraid that others will learn from you?" Zhang Shuo asked.
"It has always been imitated, but never surpassed." Li Yi said very naturally.
Zhang Shuo shouted 'Six, six, six' again.
Crazy, too crazy.
Young Dongzhu, you're really good! You're better than me, but I don't dare to learn from you.
"Hahaha …" Li Chengqi laughed, "Brother Yi's words are comfortable. What do you think, Third Brother?"
Li Longji nodded gently to express his agreement.
"In Uncle's manor, there is a great principle behind every small matter." Empress Wang reached out and rubbed Li Yi's head.
She liked to listen to what Li Yi said. It was satisfying. Yes, he had always been imitated, but never surpassed.
After observing for a while, Zhang Shuo had another question, "Your paddy field is different from other paddy fields, the ridges are too wide."
"If you want to rear crabs, look over there. There's a silk cloth around the ridge to prevent the crabs from running away." Li Yi pointed into the distance.
"Silk paddy? You … "Zhang Shuo wanted to say that Li Yi was a wastrel.
"Crabs are expensive," Li Yi said.
There were few paddy fields and many rivers in Chang 'an, but there were not many river crabs, especially those that grew well.
How many people are there in Chang 'an? There were those who couldn't afford to rent a house, and there were also those who ate an entire acre of land for a meal.
"I don't have money, so I use silk to surround my fields." Zhang Shuo spoke of his difficulties.
"Then you raise fish. Fish and shrimp can also be raised separately in the paddy field." Li Yi gave a new idea.
"Fish and shrimp are not as expensive as crabs." Zhang Shuo was picky.
"But fish and shrimp can be eaten, and it won't affect the growth of rice. Besides, fish and shrimp are not cheap. "
Li Yi thought that Zhang Shuo really wanted to raise crabs, so he persuaded him.
"Don't ask if you don't want to raise crabs." Li Chengqi was unhappy.
"If I ask, how can I tell others?" Zhang Shuo said righteously.
Hearing that, Li Longji ignored him and looked around.
He was distressed. If he only looked at Brother Yi's Zhuangzi, he would think that the people of the Tang dynasty were all rich.
However, the people of other places were not like this. Brother Yi took care of Zhuangzi with ease, as if he had a set of ready-made methods waiting for him to use.
How could other people know these things? Let's push the paddy fields to the south and see who can raise crabs.
This year, there are no paddy fields near Chang 'an. Let's put some fish and shrimp in. The imperial court will be the guarantor.
Li Longji dismissed the idea of using government decrees to push the practice in the south. If things went wrong, the officials there might force the people to raise crabs.
What if the crabs died? What if the rice production was reduced?
Li Longji looked at Li Yi as he pondered. Li Yi was the one who had told him all this. There were many difficulties when the government decrees were passed down. The local officials ignored the lives of the commoners for the sake of political achievements.
"Let's raise ducks." Li Yi gave another idea.
"Ducks don't eat rice?" Zhang Shuo looked at Li Yi as if he was looking at a fool.
"They don't." Li Yi didn't explain. Ducks didn't eat rice seedlings unless they waited for the rice to ear. At that time, the ducks would have to move to another place.
"I don't believe it." Zhang Shuo straightened his neck.
Li Yi: "…"
What does it have to do with me whether you believe it or not? If you don't believe it, then don't believe it. You don't have to raise them. Who forced you?
"Chase a few ducks down for me to see." Zhang Shuo saw that Li Yi didn't say anything for a while, so he made a request.
"Big Brother, Third Brother, Sister-in-law, let's go over there and take a look." Li Yi ignored Zhang Shuo.
Zhang Shuo had a stomach full of anger. He came to Li Longji's side and pointed at Li Yi. "How can he be like this?"
"Zhang Hong, watch more and think more." Li Longji warned.
He knew why Zhang Shuo came. He really did want to demote Zhang Shuo for Yao Chong's feelings.
Wei Zhigu was demoted to Minister of Works precisely for Yao Chong to see.
Now, he didn't want to think about it because he had Brother Yi. Brother Yi's way of doing things was more stable than Yao Chong.
But if there was a question, there would be an answer.
In many things, Yao Chong wasn't that important.
With Brother Yi keeping Yao Chong in check, Zhang Shuo wasn't in a hurry to demote him.
Li Longji thought.
Zhang Shuo didn't know that his fate had changed because of Li Yi's appearance. Otherwise, he would have continued.
In recent days, he felt like the calm before the storm. It was so quiet that he couldn't breathe.
The few of them strolled around. Li Longji mainly wanted to relax. When he saw Zhuangzi, his mood immediately brightened.
Zhuangzi was orderly. The children were cute, the students were diligent, and the farmers changed shifts to work. Dongzhu was always so confident.
Most importantly, if he thought of a difficult question, he could ask it at any time.
If the court officials couldn't answer, Brother Yi could.
If the court officials were troubled, Brother Yi was relaxed.
Eating was more enjoyable. He could ask Brother Yi to cook, or he could eat in the dining hall. Who would poison there?
The food was hot and tasted better than the ones in the palace. The palace learned to cook more dishes, but the taste was always wrong.
The eunuchs and palace maids who went back in shifts had already tried their best to teach the Imperial Kitchen of the Food Bureau how to cook Zhuangzi's dishes.
Unfortunately, they only learned the surface and didn't know the essence.
"Dongzhu, Dongzhu, someone from the government is here. He said he's the minister counsellor of the Ministry of Water under the Ministry of Works. His name is Zheng Guang."
Steward Song De appeared from the ground and shouted as he ran.
"What rank?" Li Yi was stunned and introduced him.
He belonged to the Ministry of Works. Under the Ministry of Works was the Ministry of Water. What was the minister counsellor of the Ministry of Water?
"Seventh rank." Zhang Shuo's expression was ugly. He thought, 'I didn't even dare to mention my identity when I came here. You, a seventh rank minister counsellor, are you looking for death?'
Li Longji, Empress Wang, and Li Chengqi suddenly became nervous. At the same time, their hearts were filled with hatred.
"What minister counsellor? I don't believe you. I'll go take a look." Zhang Shuo took the initiative.
He was afraid that if the minister counsellor revealed their identities, the minister counsellor would be dead for sure.
The next one to die would be him. He also came here today. If His Majesty was angry, who would care if he exposed his identity?
He stepped on the ridge and jogged over.
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