Yuan Chu Emperor: King Zhenbei, what do you intend to do?

The next day.

At the Seed Selection Department.

"Where's Sir Xu? Why haven't I seen him today?" Fang Heng asked unhurriedly, taking a sip of the fragrant tea Tian Sheng had brought him.

"Your Highness, Sir Xu caught a cold last night and isn't feeling well, so he took the day off," Tian Sheng replied.

Fang Heng set down his teacup, raising an eyebrow, and said with a strange expression, "Is he really sick? Or is he faking it?"

"Sir Xu is, after all, the head official of the Seed Selection Department. Should I go visit him?"

"This... Sir Xu is getting on in years; catching a cold now and then is perfectly normal."

"On the contrary, if Your Highness were to visit, Sir Xu might not be able to withstand the clash of Your Highness's dragon aura."

Tian Sheng spoke very politely, saying "couldn't withstand the clash of dragon aura."

To put it plainly, his unspoken meaning was that Xu Xingzhi was faking illness.

Xu Xingzhi feigning sickness, while somewhat unexpected to Fang Heng, didn't hinder his grand plan for Hybrid Rice, so he couldn't be bothered to delve deeper.

"Sir Tian, accompany me to the Upper Six Sections."

"Sir Xu isn't here for work, but they can't just slack off. I need to give them some tasks."

With that, Fang Heng led Tian Sheng to the Upper Six Sections.

Fang Heng's arrival made the officials of the Upper Six Sections uneasy.

Everyone was well aware of the conflict between Sir Xu and the Ninth Prince yesterday.

Now that Sir Xu had just taken leave due to illness, and the Ninth Prince arrived immediately afterward, they feared he was here to hold them accountable.

Fang Heng's deep gaze swept over everyone.

His voice was calm, yet it carried an undeniable authority.

"Bring me the roster for the Upper Six Sections."

The head of the Upper Six Sections hesitated, then seeing Fang Heng's unyielding expression, he gave up any thought of resistance.

Silently, he took the Upper Six Sections' roster from a cabinet, holding it with both hands, and presented it to Fang Heng.

Fang Heng looked pleased, nodding slightly.

Having the roster meant that the Upper Six Sections had submitted to him.

"I'm busy planting rice, and the Lower Six Sections are all helping. You in the Upper Six Sections can't just be idle; all of you are to go to the farm."

"Your subordinate obeys."

With the surrender of the head of the Upper Six Sections, Fang Heng effortlessly brought the Upper Six Sections under his control.

Tian Sheng witnessed the entire process, thinking to himself.

Xu Xingzhi, oh Xu Xingzhi.

You fool!

You tried to use sick leave to pressure the Ninth Prince.

But you didn't know that the Ninth Prince would take the opportunity to wipe out your entire base.

Tian Sheng chuckled to himself, eager to see Xu Xingzhi's expression when he recovered and returned, only to find that the Upper Six Sections had all pledged allegiance to the Ninth Prince.

With the help of the Upper Six Sections, the progress of planting Hybrid Rice significantly accelerated.

Fang Heng had already used the Fate Attribute of Awakening of Insects Master to cultivate eight hundred catties of Hybrid Rice seeds.

According to his plan, these eight hundred catties of Hybrid Rice seeds could plant one hundred mu of land.

These one hundred mu of experimental fields would be enough to demonstrate the excellence of Hybrid Rice to his imperial father and the important ministers of the court.

The officials of the Seed Selection Department worked diligently for three days, finally completing the planting of all one hundred mu of experimental fields.

"Aunt Yun, I'll trouble you."

Yun Menglan walked to the center of the one hundred mu experimental fields. With her slender, fair hands, she rapidly moved her fingers, forming profound magic seals.

Wind surged!

Clouds gathered!

The wind blew Yun Menglan's moon-white skirt backward, making it flutter.

The farming divine ability: Spring Rain Like Oil!

A light, drizzling rain began to fall across the fields.

Fang Heng looked up, feeling the coolness brought by the gentle breeze and fine rain.

Soon, the drizzling rain soaked everyone's hair and clothes.

Under the blessing of the farming divine ability, Spring Rain Like Oil...

The Hybrid Rice in the fields was growing vigorously.

As far as the eye could see, it was lush and green.

Accelerating plant growth—this was the profound mystery of the Agricultural School's techniques.

In Fang Heng's eyes, this Hybrid Rice was not just rice; it was Destiny/Luck, and it was national strength.

"Your Highness, let's get out of the rain!"

Tian Sheng scurried over with an oil-paper umbrella to shield Fang Heng from the rain.

"No need."

"Minister Tian, do you know the Agricultural School's techniques?"

"Huh?" Tian Sheng froze, somewhat bewildered, and stammered, "This subordinate is not a spiritual farmer, so I haven't learned the Agricultural School's techniques."

Still the same!

Fang Heng sighed faintly in his heart.

Although Confucianism had not been passed down in this world, the bad habits of Confucian scholars had.

All the court officials paid lip service to prioritizing agriculture, but in reality, they couldn't tell one grain from another.

They often disdained spiritual farmers, believing they were not presentable.

Spiritual farmers, even with the "spiritual" prefix, couldn't escape the realm of "farmer."

Not to mention the civil and military officials in court, even within the Daoist School, spiritual farmers were at the bottom of the pecking order.

Yet, in Fang Heng's view, the productivity liberated by spiritual farmers far surpassed that of puppeteers, alchemists, or talisman makers.

"Minister Tian, when you have time, practice the Agricultural School's techniques diligently."

"From now on, the Seed Selection Department is going to change."

"Knowing how to farm and understanding farming will be the main priority of the Seed Selection Department."

"This subordinate obeys."

Tian Sheng secretly resolved in his heart that he would buy an Agricultural School inheritance manual after work today.

Whether the Agricultural School inheritance was useful, he didn't know.

But since the Ninth Prince valued it, he had to perform well in front of the Ninth Prince.

After a light rain for two kè (about 30 minutes), the sky finally cleared.

"Aunt Yun, I'll have to trouble you to summon rain again in the future to make these rice plants mature as quickly as possible," Fang Heng said.

"Understood, Your Highness."

Yun Menglan didn't ask further, simply obeying Fang Heng's orders silently.

Yaoguang Palace.

Consort Ning had just finished her afternoon nap, half-reclining on a soft couch, her pretty face flushed, her expression languid.

"Any news from the Prince?"

"Reporting, Your Ladyship, after His Highness entered the Seed Selection Department, he spent the first few days farming in the manor."

"These past two days, he hasn't been going to the manor anymore."

Upon hearing this, Consort Ning nodded slightly, her beautiful eyes holding a knowing look, as if expecting it.

The Seed Selection Department was tough work. Once Heng'er's initial enthusiasm wore off, he finally understood that the Seed Selection Department was not a good place.

After this setback, Heng'er would surely mature.

He would understand his mother's painstaking efforts.

"Zhishu, go to the Lu Family and tell my brother to help smooth things over with the Divine General's Estate."

"Also, bring me the storybook. This storybook for young ladies is quite interesting."

The rustle of pages could be heard.

Consort Ning, book in hand, was engrossed in The Legend of Heroine Shen.

This was currently the most popular storybook in Yujing City.

Because the protagonist was a woman, it especially attracted young ladies from prominent families and noblewomen in the deep palace.

Hall of Mental Cultivation, brightly lit.

It was solemn and quiet, with only the occasional sound of a pen writing.

"Godfather, news from the north." The young eunuch lowered his voice.

Eunuch Su opened the secret letter, and the moment he saw its contents, his expression instantly changed. Two sharp beams of light burst forth from his usually subdued eyes.

"Have these contents been shown to anyone else?"

"Godfather, how could your son dare to violate the rules you've set?"

"This secret letter, Godfather, you are the first to see it."

"You may leave."

After dismissing the young eunuch, Eunuch Su took the secret letter and entered the Hall of Mental Cultivation.

His steps were steady, like a nimble cat; he moved without a sound.

He passed through the shadows cast by the oil lamps and approached Emperor Yuanchu, respectfully stating, "Your Majesty, news from the north."

"Is it Shang Hongye? Where has she reached?"

Emperor Yuanchu didn't look up, his eyes fixed on the memorial in his hands.

It wasn't until Eunuch Su remained silent for a long time that he suddenly realized something seemed amiss.

"Give it to me."

"Your Majesty, it's a family letter written by Prince Zhenbei to Shang Hongye, intercepted by our scouts."

"Your health is paramount; please don't let it upset you."

Emperor Yuanchu glanced at the contents of the secret letter.

The next instant, a cold snort escaped his nose.

The entire Hall of Mental Cultivation dropped several degrees in temperature because of that single snort.

Eunuch Su stood motionless, like a stone statue, his eyes fixed on his nose, his mind on his heart.

In his perception, Emperor Yuanchu at this moment was like a volcano on the verge of eruption.

Undercurrents surged, unstoppable.

He had long since read the secret letter.

Its contents had filled him with dread.

The letter was from Prince Zhenbei to Shang Hongye, instructing Shang Hongye to choose the Crown Prince as her husband.

In Eunuch Su's opinion, this letter was nothing short of Prince Zhenbei's provocation of the Emperor.

Prince Zhenbei, oh Prince Zhenbei!

What exactly are you thinking?

Inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the atmosphere remained heavy for a moment.

Emperor Yuanchu looked up and asked coldly, "How many scouts does the Black Ice Platform have in the Northern Border?"

"Two thousand three hundred and fifty-seven."

"Send another thousand scouts to the Northern Border."

"I want to know Prince Zhenbei's every move immediately."

"Your servant will see to it right away."

Eunuch Su had served Emperor Yuanchu for decades and knew that this time, Emperor Yuanchu was truly enraged.

After Eunuch Su left.

Buzz!

A terrifying surge of energy instantly erupted.

It shattered the secret letter into dust.

"Shang Junluo, what is your intention?"

Emperor Yuanchu's voice was cold, like ten-thousand-year-old profound ice.

Within his deep-set eyes, a chilling light swirled.