Putting the People First

Nie Shi'an took Zhou Wanwan to one of his large estates in the suburbs.

This estate is located in a remote area, far from the bustling city. It covers a vast area with fields stretching out in a continuous expanse, making it exceptionally spacious and quiet.

Zhou Wanwan looked around, her eyes filled with surprise.

Throughout the entire village, many exotic crops that had never been grown locally were being planted.

There are also many fruit, vegetable, and medicinal herb seeds that were secretly collected from overseas.

The vast fields of chili peppers are growing vigorously, along with various unfamiliar vegetable and fruit seedlings, as well as exotic herbs, all of which are rare or even nonexistent in China.

Local products are planted together in a mixed manner, with native crops and exotic species growing in a unique and interesting way.

Nie Shi'an smiled faintly and slowly spoke:

"I had long intended to collect rare species from various places."

However, other countries are extremely strict in their control over this, guarding against all grain seeds and seedlings sent abroad.

It's extremely difficult to obtain, so I've never been able to collect them all.

He gestured to the vast fields around him and said:

"But take a look at the various seeds and seedlings that are currently available here."

If there's anything you can use or like, feel free to choose and take it home to plant yourself.

Zhou Wanwan hadn't expected Nie Shi'an to be so generous. Looking at the crops, she said, "Then I won't be polite!"

There are just too many crops here. Large areas of the fields are planted with all kinds of chili peppers, including long peppers, sweet peppers, small bird's eye chilies, thick-skinned bell peppers, and small pointed chilies.

There are also tomatoes, potatoes, okra, lettuce, cauliflower, and celery, all of which look completely different from the common local green vegetables and wild greens.

The variety of fruits is also very rich, including pumpkin, guava, and dragon fruit seedlings.

There are also exotic small melons that can't be found anywhere else; the vines climb all over the trellis, and the fruits that grow are strangely shaped and quite rare.

The variety of beans is also exceptionally complete, including not only common types but also chickpeas, lentils, and peas.

The field also grows many exotic herbs and spices, such as Honghua, chamomile, mint, rosemary, and thyme, each with a different aroma, which can be used for medicine and seasoning.

In addition, there are many less common imported vegetables: purple cabbage, onions, zucchini, lettuce, asparagus, spinach, green beans, and bitter melon...

Zhou Wanwan carefully examined the plants along the way, selecting five of the strongest seedlings with the best growth and intact roots for each unfamiliar foreign crop she recognized.

Carefully dig it out by the roots, dust off the soil, and neatly gather and store it.

I plan to take them all back to save seeds and cultivate them into seedlings, and then plant and propagate them gradually.

Nie Shi'an's steward chuckled softly, "These crops are extremely difficult to grow. If you can successfully cultivate them, you're sure to make a fortune."

Zhou Wanwan nodded slightly and asked, "Are there any fruit trees around here?"

Nie Shi'an's steward nodded and said:

"Yes, I'll take you to see them. But there are some fruit trees we don't recognize."

"You can't tell what kind of fruit those seedlings will bear at all."

Nie Shi'an said:

"This time, a caravan went out, and I contributed tens of thousands of taels of silver to bring these things back."

Actually, I'm not sure either, and I don't know if these things will even work.

Zhou Wanwan quickly nodded and said, "Lord Nie, you've gone to a lot of trouble. It's useful, very useful."

Nie Shi'an then smiled and said, "It's good that it's useful. Zhou Wanwan, I think you're like me, putting the people first. I admire you."

Zhou Wanwan chuckled. Did Lord Nie misunderstand her?

She doesn't put the people first! She puts her own interests first.

Zhou Wanwan believes that her own interests are the most important thing, and only when she becomes strong can she help others.

This estate has a wide variety of fruit trees: papaya, fig, custard apple, jackfruit, durian, mangosteen, avocado, sapodilla, guava, cherry, almond, passion fruit, wax apple, rambutan, star fruit, olive, blueberry, cranberry, kumquat, loquat, longan, Nanyang olive, milk fruit...

Nie Shi'an's steward said, "We don't know if these fruits can be grown. We have five trees of each kind; you can take them back and try."

Zhou Wanwan picked two of each kind, not knowing if they would grow successfully, but if they did, she could make money.

This haul was really good. Nie Shi'an looked at Zhou Wanwan and said, "Don't worry about the sweet potatoes. I'll definitely put your name on them."

Zhou Wanwan quickly waved her hand and said:

"That's fine. I'm just a powerless little girl. Even if you put my name on the list, it won't make any difference."

"Why don't we just put your name on the list, along with two of my men?"

Nie Shi'an looked at Zhou Wanwan and said, "Your subordinate? Fine! Do whatever you want."

Zhou Wanwan. Nie Shi'an looked at the two names and said, "Tang Jingyuan and Su Yan? Why do these names seem so familiar?"

Zhou Wanwan said calmly:

Tang Jingyuan once held the rank of second-grade official, Su Yan once held the rank of third-grade official.

Both were truly capable and loyal ministers in the Great Xia.

Nie Shi'an paused for a moment and said:

"So it's Lord Tang and Lord Su!"

I had met them before, but unfortunately they were murdered by treacherous officials. I felt very sorry for them at the time.

Zhou Wanwan nodded and said:

"That's right, so we wrote their names down. They've also found evidence that they were framed by treacherous officials."

"We'll take advantage of this opportunity to make a comeback."

Zhou Wanwan currently has no one she can rely on in the court, and she has no idea what is happening there.

Because the trees she planted were not allowed into the palace.

On one occasion, the trees sent to the capital were discovered, and in the end, only some stumps were brought back.

If Zhou Wanwan hadn't used her energy to nourish the tree roots, the tree would probably be dead by now.

I don't know what's inside this palace, but it's pretty powerful. We can't get into these trees, but it doesn't matter if we're people!

Tang Jingyuan and Su Yan were framed by treacherous officials, which led to their tragic fate.

Fortunately, Zhou Wanwan had already secretly collected all the evidence of their innocence.

Once I get back, as long as I find a suitable way to submit this evidence, there won't be any problem.

In addition, the promotion of sweet potato cultivation has made a tremendous contribution to solving the problem of food and clothing for the people, which adds up to the overall success.

Needless to say, there will be absolutely no problem for the two to clear their names, be reinstated by the court, and regain their former official positions.

Nie Shi'an said, "If you have evidence, I can help you submit it, but that's all I can do for you."

Zhou Wanwan looked at Nie Shi'an and said, "Lord Nie is truly wise. Thank you very much."

Zhou Wanwan's main problem is that she has no one in the imperial court. Once Tang Jingyuan and Su Yan return to the court, she can slowly figure out a way to place her people inside.

Nie Shi'an looked at Zhou Wanwan and said:

I didn't realize you knew so many people.

No wonder you weren't intimidated by me; you actually know so many officials of the second and third ranks."