CHAPTER 171 - A PILOT-ENTIALLY FUN SOAR-PRISE
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Since the Demon Chef wanted to familiarize himself with the flying ship’s kitchen, we decided to spend the rest of the day on the [Floating Solarium]. Fengying made lists of what we would need since I was bringing the whole household along, plus some very important guests.
The kids went back downstairs to call dibs on the bedrooms they wanted while Prince Baiyu and I sat on the viewing platform.
“Do you think your parents will come with us?” I asked him.
“I sent them a letter strongly urging them to accept your invitation. I’m pretty sure at least my father will come, but my mother’s very busy and will have to cancel quite a few appointments.”
Prince Baiyu “casually” stretched an arm on the back of the sofa we were on and placed his hand on my shoulder. I snuggled closer, and we stayed there like that until Fengying arrived to announce that Shuye was here.
“So fast?” I’d only just sent the invitation to my Farm Guide. “Okay, I’ll meet him at the seating area in front of the kitchen.”
That was the slightly more formal area that could serve as a reception room.
Prince Baiyu and I reluctantly pulled ourselves apart and made our way to the lower level where Shuye was already waiting for us.
“Shuye! What happened to you?” I ran towards him and circled him while examining his new look. “Your hair! Your clothes! Your shoes! You’re wearing accessories!”
Shuye crossed his arms on his chest and shook his head at my theatrics. He and Prince Baiyu greeted each other politely, while I continued to marvel at how different Shuye looked. His long, shaggy, and slightly disreputable hair had been cut into a neat short layered style. Instead of the plain brown cotton robes and pants he always wore when he visited, this time he was wearing a deep blue outer robe made of rich silk, with an intricate abstract pattern embroidered on it. The wide sleeves and hem were bordered with silver, and his inner robes and pants were a lighter shade of blue and likewise made of silk. Jade ornaments hung from his belt, and even his boots were clearly made of expensive leather.
I gave Shuye a [Crocus] flower as a gift as was customary with Farm Guides in Adventure Incarnate. Then we sat down and the maids served us tea and snacks. Since Shuye and Prince Baiyu kept up their image by refusing the food and drink, I was the only one who ate and drank heartily while Shuye explained his makeover.
“When I was single, I used to wander in the forest alone, with only the animals for company. The blue sky above was my ceiling and the green grass was my bed. It was only when I got married that I settled down.” Shuye smiled. “My wife has never been the fussy type, so we were both satisfied with living a simple life in the village.”
“Did something happen to change that?” I asked.
“My child was born! A few weeks ago I looked around my house and thought ‘This isn’t good enough for her’ and since then I have been busy making sure that my daughter will have the best of everything. That includes my image in the community.”
“Wow. You look like a prosperous city merchant now,” I said. “Wait, did you do something to your face? You seem younger.”
Shuye scratched his head bashfully and looked away. “I’ve been using your beauty elixir.”
He must mean the [Dewy Glow Potion]. I smiled and said, “Good for you!”
“I’m also building a new, better house.” Shuye sighed in a melancholy yet satisfied way. “Now I know why people are ambitious. This is the first time that I’ve felt the hunger for more.”
This was fascinating. To think that Shuye had changed so much because he had become a father was eye-opening. “For your child?”
“And all my future children. My wife and I plan to have more kids.”
“How many?”
“We’re not sure. At least three, I think.”
Prince Baiyu said, “It would be good if we could replenish our numbers in a few generations. Many villages are in danger of dying because of our fertility problems.”
“Thanks to Lady Violet, our problems are solved,” said Shuye.
I chuckled. “Does this mean I’ll get a tax exemption?”
Prince Baiyu smirked at me. “No.”
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I playfully tried to flick him on his forehead but he dodged.
Shuye patiently waited until we were done playing before saying, “I came to tell you in person that I can’t go with you to the Great Western Mountain.”
“Because of your newborn? Okay. What about the Commander?” I asked.
“If the Lady of the West is coming, she’ll bring her guards along and you won’t need the Commander,” said Shuye.
“It’s not that I need her. I just thought she might like to watch the event with us,” I said.
Shuye’s brow furrowed. “What event is that?”
“Well… it’s a secret.” I took a sip of tea.
Shuye gave Prince Baiyu a questioning look, but the latter shrugged to indicate that he didn’t know about it either. They both tried to get me to tell them more, but I resisted because I felt it would be unwise.
After that, Shuye left, and Fengying asked my permission to use some of our more precious supplies, such as the saffron, to use during the trip. She also gave me a list of things she needed to buy in Anwei in order to properly prepare for the royal visit. I winced a little at her estimated expenses but approved it. Apparently, we needed better clothes for the staff, incense for the bedrooms, a gong to summon people for meals, folding screens, carpets, and so forth.
Oh well, even if it costs a lot, it will be worth it for sure. I pitied Shuye for missing the upcoming epic game event.
***
During the next few days, we took care of the crops and animals while I secretly made more [War Fans]. The plants in the [Herb Garden] grew big enough for us to identify using the System.
“Yes! I’m the winner!” Lari raised a fist in a victory pose.
“No way, the Chef won’t make his judgment until the plants are fully grown. I could still win if your plants die.” Despite her words, Mo gave Lari’s garden plot an envious look.
Kharli gave her a sly grin and fake-whispered, “You’re not saying you’ll make his plants die, right?”
“Stop that,” said Lari. “Don’t be a sore loser.”
Scholar Wu and I let the kids banter while we inspected the herbs. Lari had five rare plants while Mo had three, and Kharli and I had only two each.
Most of the plants were simply spirit versions of ordinary kitchen or medicinal herbs like [Mint], [Basil], [Oregano], [Rosemary], [Thyme], [Dill], [Lavender], [Chamomile], [Ginger], etc. There were one hundred of them, and the System helpfully provided the details.
Yarrow, for example, was something I was unfamiliar with, but the item description made it clear how it could be used.
[Yarrow:
A healing herb that has been used for centuries to treat wounds by stopping bleeding, reducing inflammation, and speeding up healing.
To use yarrow for wound care, the leaves and flowers can be crushed and applied to cuts and scrapes, or made into a tea to wash the wound.]
Lari was crowing because he had lucked out by growing [Ginseng], the rarest and most expensive plant in the garden.
[Ginseng:
A valuable herb used to enhance physical and mental performance, reduce fatigue, and support overall well-being. It is believed to strengthen the immune system, improve cognitive function, and promote longevity.
The herb can be consumed as a tea or added to foods.]
“I think I can say the [Herb Garden] is a success,” I said to Scholar Wu as we strolled through the paths examining the plants.
“Yes, and it’s quite lovely, too. By the way, I think this is a good time for a writing project about the garden,” said Scholar Wu.
“To record the results? Yes, that would be very useful,” I said.
“And good practice for them. I’ll bring the materials,” she said.
Scholar Wu left and then returned shortly with a box containing inksticks, inkstones, and bamboo slips. The narrow strips of bamboo were around ten inches long and half an inch in width.
“Use as many strips as you need for each herb,” Scholar Wu instructed the kids. “Put the number on top and then write the name of the herb and the description.”
We retired to the shaded area on the northern side of the [Herb Garden] where I set up writing desks and chairs. Lari and Kharli went back and forth from their desks to the garden beds to write down the information while Mo and I checked each one for accuracy. Scholar Wu helped Lari and Kharli write the characters when they didn’t know the order of brush strokes, which happened a lot, and showed them how to correct their errors by using a small knife to scrape off the ink from the bamboo slips.
It took us two days to finish, and at the end of it, Scholar Wu used an awl to make holes in the bamboo slips and then bound them together with silk thread.
“Then I will fold the strips into ‘pages’ like so.” Scholar Wu demonstrated this by folding the long scroll into sections to create 'pages' of fifteen strips each.
“It’s a book! We made a book!” said Kharli.
Scholar Wu unfolded it again and said, “Here are two plain wooden boards. They will be the book covers. What shall we write as the title of the book?”
My three apprentices went into a huddle and discussed it among themselves. Finally, Kharli said, “Teacher, how about calling it ‘The Emberstone Farm Herb Guide’? It’s simple but good.”
“Sure, let’s call it that,” I said.
Kharli, who had the best handwriting of the three, wrote down the title on the front cover while Lari wrote on the back cover.
“Congratulations, you three have written your first book.” Scholar Wu wrote our names on the inner cover. “You all did a great job.”
Mo didn’t look as thrilled as the rest of us did. Though she didn't say anything, I knew she was fretting because she hadn’t written anything on the bamboo slips.
I went over to Mo and put an arm around her. “Hey, you’re not thinking that you didn’t write the book, are you? Dictation is a perfectly acceptable way of writing.”
Scholar Wu said, “Mo, do you remember the book by the Sage of the Xinmao Forest that we read?”
Mo nodded.
“The Sage was illiterate.” Scholar Wu smiled at our reactions. “The book of his teachings was written down by his disciples.”
I squeezed Mo’s shoulder. “See? The Sage is the author because what matters is that the thoughts were his.”
Mo didn’t look quite convinced, but she did seem to perk up a little. “I understand. Thank you, Teacher. Thank you, Scholar Wu.”
“You’re welcome.” I took the book and said, “I shall put this on display in the main hall. Let’s go!”
We had a lot of fun in the main house where everyone loved the first Emberstone book. The kids promised to make copies for the staff to read, and we spent a lovely afternoon reading the highlights of the book out loud to an appreciative audience.