The Emperor's Scheme!
Li Ming, who was in the palace, had actually been anxiously waiting in Fude Hall for quite some time. Although he and the Shangguan Family were on bad terms, he did have some genuine affection for this daughter of his.
So, on the agreed-upon day, Li Ming had his personal eunuch, Fulai, wait at the palace gates while he paced restlessly around the main hall, unable to settle down.
Finally, as evening approached, Li Rong arrived at the palace in a carriage. When she saw Fulai at the palace gates, she hurried to meet Li Ming.
Li Ming first studied his daughter. He saw that after spending a month on the mountain, she hadn't lost weight—in fact, she'd grown even plumper—and felt somewhat reassured.
Li Rong had something on her mind, so she exchanged only a few pleasantries with her father before having Jing Lan bring over a drawing she had made.
Li Ming didn't understand what was going on. He thought his daughter might have suffered some grievance or found evidence of some crime Wang Yue had committed, so he took the drawing and looked it over.
Only after examining it did he realize, to his astonishment, that it depicted a kind of plow he had never seen before.
Li Rong carefully explained it to him, then said very seriously, "Imperial Father, if the common people use this to plow their fields, it'll save them a great deal of effort and be much more efficient than before!"
After hearing her explanation, Li Ming's eyes lit up. He knew how valuable this invention was.
The reason the great clans held such overwhelming power was, in large part, that they controlled not only vast amounts of land, but also books and farming tools. That was why it was