Chapter 81: The Fifth Princess Consort

Chapter 81: The Fifth Princess Consort

The first class of An Qing's agricultural school officially began. Early that morning, a group of people gathered at the experimental fields of her Royal Manor.

The Royal Manor had been in An Qing's possession for over half a year and was already well-organized. The various experimental plots were clearly demarcated, and management was orderly.

It was just past dawn, around five o'clock in the morning, but since summer brought early daylight, An Qing decided to start early. First, farming seasons wait for no one, and secondly, it was cooler to work in the early hours.

Initially, she expected some tardiness due to the early hour, but to her surprise, everyone arrived on time when she got there.

Even the six-year-old fifteenth prince stood neatly at the field edge.

Well... she seemed to have underestimated the ancient people's ability to rise early. But then again, most people here were either officials going to court or scholars, both of whom were accustomed to waking up early.

Alright, now An Qing understood why Yinqi had given her that look last night when she expressed her concerns. She had indeed worried unnecessarily.

She had a basic understanding of the people attending today, roughly divided into three groups. The first group consisted of officials from the Agricultural Administration Department and the Ministry of Finance, ranging in age. They were the main participants in this agricultural training and would be the first batch of professionals dispatched by Kangxi to promote agriculture across the country.

The second group comprised the children of high-ranking officials, led by Zhang Tingyu. Most of these officials came from Manchu noble families. An Qing knew little about the officials except for Zhang Ying, Zhang Tingyu's father, and Ma Qi, the Minister of Finance who had sent his second son, Fucha Fuching.

Interestingly, An Qing only recently learned that Ma Qi's surname was not Ma but Fucha, a member of the Bordered Yellow Banner clan. Historically, Empress Xiaoxian Chun, the first empress of Emperor Qianlong, was his niece.

The third group was the princes, whom she simply regarded as children she was babysitting for Kangxi.

Standing at the front, An Qing looked at the crowd of several dozen people below her. She didn't bother trying to distinguish them; she wasn't conducting a census. Regardless of their motives, they all had to work—tilling the land.

"Princess Consort, may I ask what you plan to plant after tilling?" asked an official from the Agricultural Administration Department, puzzled.

An Qing didn't hide anything and explained her intention to plant another crop of summer corn in the wheat field. As expected, the officials from the Agricultural Administration Department showed evident surprise.

She smiled and said, "Don't be too formal. Feel free to ask any questions. This is a mutual exchange."

After a moment of hesitation, a fifty-something official stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Princess Consort, this is prime farmland. If you plant corn, won't you be unable to plant wheat in the fall?"

He also wanted to add that the land had just produced a wheat crop, and planting corn immediately afterward might result in poor yields. Moreover, corn was not a primary grain crop in Great Qing, and using prime land for it could reduce wheat production.

Thus, experimenting with corn on this land wouldn't provide useful data for promoting it among the common folk. So, what was the point?

Unexpectedly, An Qing shook her head and said, "I will still plant wheat in the fall. It won't interfere."

While others might not understand, those familiar with agriculture immediately grasped her intention: she was attempting to achieve two crops per year.

A wave of astonishment swept across the faces of the officials.

An Qing knew their concerns. Great Qing's agricultural structure was traditional, with rice and wheat accounting for about seventy percent of agricultural production. The remaining thirty percent consisted of cotton and other grains.

Although corn had been introduced, it was not yet widely cultivated in Great Qing. Historically, its widespread adoption occurred during the mid-Qianlong era.

However, the current agricultural structure was struggling to meet population growth, necessitating change. This was something An Qing had considered during her southern tour.

She had been working on developing high-yielding varieties of wheat and rice, dedicating specific plots at the Royal Manor to such experiments. However, she knew that scientific breakthroughs take time.

Moreover, without any shortcuts, achieving the high yields seen in later times was nearly impossible. This was not just an agricultural issue but involved chemistry and technology.

But there were ways to alleviate food shortages, such as altering the agricultural structure. Coarse grains like corn and sweet potatoes could save lives, especially in impoverished mountainous regions where corn could become a staple.

Of course, breaking a millennia-old agricultural structure was challenging. There was no immediate need for drastic changes, but if left unchecked, the consequences could be dire.

An Qing, unfamiliar with political intricacies, chose the simplest method: promoting corn through two-crop cycles.

Seeing tangible results would be more convincing than words.

"Princess Consort, forgive me for being blunt, but your method may not work," said the official from the Agricultural Administration Department. "According to my knowledge, many farmers near the capital outskirts tried two crops in three years or four crops in three years, but the results were unsatisfactory."

Due to An Qing's status, he spoke diplomatically, but the results were worse than unsatisfactory, causing numerous problems.

An Qing did not rush to defend herself but asked, "May I ask, sir, what do you think caused the unsatisfactory results?"

The official listed the issues, which aligned with An Qing's expectations: insufficient soil fertility and pest and disease problems associated with crop rotation. She knew these issues but believed they were solvable.

She smiled and replied, "Sir, you are right. But knowing the problems, why should we stick to old methods instead of finding solutions?"

"If the soil lacks fertility, we must improve it. If pests and diseases arise, we must address them. These experimental plots are meant to discover the right path through trial and error. Farming requires continuous learning and adaptation. Without precedent, we must pave the way!"

"As the gentleman mentioned, the people are trying, so we must try harder. Our failures don't mean hunger, but theirs do."

Hearing this, everyone was stunned, and Zhang Tingyu looked at An Qing in surprise.

Her words made the officials from the Agricultural Administration Department and the Ministry of Finance feel ashamed. Indeed, their failures wouldn't lead to hunger, but the people's would. Thus, they should take the lead.

Worst case, they would learn from failure and set a precedent.

After delivering her inspiring speech, An Qing felt satisfied. Her words were not mere rhetoric but conveyed a genuine message: farming must evolve and break boundaries.

She hoped for more capable agricultural officials in this era.

But she also added, "Of course, I understand your purpose here. Rest assured, the corn experiment is just part of our curriculum. We will cover rice and wheat as well. If there are no objections, let's get to work."

With a gesture, she signaled for tools to be distributed to everyone present.

When planting summer corn, it doesn't require the deep plowing that winter wheat does in autumn.

The air temperature in summer is relatively high, and so is the soil temperature. Additionally, rainfall is generally more abundant during this season. Therefore, the layers of soil are not as distinct. If the soil is deeply plowed, it can lead to a depletion of its fertility, which in turn affects the growth and development of the corn.

However, some necessary plowing is still required for preparing the land, which benefits the next crop. For example, after harvesting wheat, the leftover stalks can be turned into the soil, making them easier to decompose and thus enhancing soil fertility. This also helps reduce the occurrence of pests, diseases, and weeds to a certain extent.

There is an art to this plowing, and An Qing personally demonstrated and explained it to everyone. She then assigned each person a specific area and urged them to get to work quickly.

After a moment of hesitation, they looked at their farming tools and then at the fields beneath their feet. Resigned, they began working, with each person accompanied by a dedicated helper.

Some of these helpers were originally from the Royal Manor, while others were individuals An Qing had intentionally trained in farming when she was at the Horqin estate. Later, her parents included them in her dowry, along with their contracts. They had been settled on her dowry estate in the capital outskirts until last year, when Kangxi granted her the Royal Manor. Then, she brought all of them over.

These people now served as excellent assistants during An Qing's teaching sessions, allowing her to focus on other tasks.

For the officials from the Agricultural Administration Department and the Ministry of Finance, learning to plow wasn't too difficult since they often dealt with land. However, for the sons of officials and the princes, who had never done such work before, it was a different story.

Growing up in luxury, they had never experienced such hardship. After a short while, they found it hard to keep going.

They had initially thought that the agricultural school would simply involve understanding the basics without having to do the actual work themselves. After all, there were servants for that. Moreover, why were there so many rules about plowing? If it weren't for An Qing's status and Beile Yinqi watching closely, they might have already given up.

Glancing at each other, they silently communicated through their expressions. Eventually, Ninth Prince stepped forward.

After all, An Qing and Yinqi were his own sister-in-law and brother, so he could appeal to them for leniency.

Ninth Prince approached An Qing with a smile, trying to flatter her: "Fifth Sister-in-law, teaching us some agricultural knowledge would be enough. There's no need for us to actually plow the land ourselves."

An Qing glanced at him, annoyed: "Knowledge gained from books is shallow; true understanding comes from practice. Do you understand?"

She understood their thoughts but couldn't help laughing. Learning to farm without actually doing it? Even if they wanted to just get a degree, they still needed her approval.

Farming involves many details, and understanding versus not understanding often hinges on small differences. If it were that simple, a written document would suffice for the common people. The purpose of her agricultural training program was not to produce armchair experts.

Without mincing words, An Qing raised her voice and said sternly: "This is my rule. If you want to learn, you must follow my rules. If you don't want to learn, you can leave now. I won't stop you."

Hearing this, everyone's thoughts shifted. Regardless of their reasons for being here, they couldn't afford to be sent back on the first day.

Entering Fifth Princess's agricultural school wasn't easy. For the sons of officials, their families had gone to great lengths to get them admitted. Some, like Zhang Ying and Ma Qi, wanted them to learn practical skills for future careers. Others simply wanted them to gain prestige and recognition before Kangxi, hoping for future opportunities.

Regardless of their reasons, being sent back on the first day would be disastrous.

For the princes, it was even clearer. They knew why Kangxi had sent them here and didn't dare cause trouble.

Ninth Prince quickly returned to the field, bowing his head and working diligently. His Fifth Sister-in-law had said she would check later, and he didn't want to face his father's scolding or his mother's willow branches.

He glanced at his Fifth Elder Brother, who had given him a terrifying look earlier. He regretted stepping forward.

Satisfied with the effect of her intimidation, An Qing maintained her stern demeanor, determined to uphold the principle that strict teachers produce better students.

She suddenly understood what her mentor had once said: "If I were to joke around in class, would you listen to me?"

Exactly. Class isn't a marketplace where you haggle. Sometimes, dealing with lazy students requires firmness.

Yinqi, unaware of An Qing's thoughts, saw her seriousness and worried about her health. Pregnant women shouldn't get upset.

But he knew he shouldn't interfere during her classes, so he waited until the session ended and then whispered: "Don't be angry. Let's go rest under that big tree. I'll have Ma Xiang watch over things here."

An Qing nodded slightly, relieved to take a break.

Yinqi led her to a nearby tree, where Cui Liu promptly brought a stool for her to sit on.

As soon as she sat down, An Qing turned to Yinqi eagerly: "How was it? Did I look like a teacher with authority?"

Yinqi, surprised, nodded instinctively.

Indeed, An Qing's performance had surprised him, quite different from her usual demeanor.

Seeing his reaction, An Qing laughed. "So, I did a pretty good job pretending, huh?"

Yinqi: "..."

So, she hadn't been angry at all?

Well, she did a convincing job; he almost believed it himself.

As they spoke, Fifteenth Prince ran over.

In no time, he reached An Qing, tilting his head and asking in a soft voice: "Fifth Sister-in-law, why don't I have any farming tools?"

An Qing was instantly charmed by the little boy, forgetting all about maintaining her teacher's authority.

Fifteenth Prince was the son of Noble Consort Wang, and his features were clearly inherited from his mother. He looked adorable.

Smiling, she replied: "Little Fifteen, you're still young. Just watch and learn for now; you don't need to plow yourself."

He was only six years old. Even if she were a heartless employer, she wouldn't hire child labor this young.

Unexpectedly, Fifteenth Prince shook his head, insisting: "No, Fifth Sister-in-law, I can do it. Please give me a small set of tools."

An Qing was taken aback. "Little Fifteen, are you sure? Plowing is very tiring."

Fifteenth Prince nodded vigorously, his bright eyes shining. "Fifth Sister-in-law, I'm sure. Mother said I should learn well from you and acquire real skills."

Hearing this, An Qing burst out laughing.

Usually, she was the one flattering others, but now she experienced the joy of being flattered. It felt good.

Wanting tools wasn't a big deal, so she waved her hand and instructed Cui Liu to fetch a smaller set of tools for Fifteenth Prince.

This was something she had specially arranged, ostensibly for the Fifteenth Prince. But when she saw this little boy in person today, she couldn't bring herself to be strict with him. Who knew he would come looking for her on his own?

An Qing patted the Fifteenth Prince's little bald head and instructed, "I'll have someone teach you how to plow the land, but you're still young. Don't try to compete with your older brothers. Learn as much as you can, but don't overwork yourself, understood?"

The Fifteenth Prince nodded obediently, thanked her, and then was taken to the fields by the people An Qing had arranged.

Yinqi watched from the side as An Qing interacted with Little Fifteen, his eyes filled with tenderness.

He seemed to see what their future children might be like, with her teaching them patiently and gently.

An Qing's agricultural training program wasn't like a regular school with fixed days off; it was more of an intensive, phased training. This was the first phase, scheduled for fifteen days.

She had divided the plowing area for each person today, which would temporarily serve as their experimental plots.

During these fifteen days, besides practical corn planting, she would also take them to the rice paddies for hands-on learning, such as field management, pest and disease identification, and so on.

In addition, she would assign homework at the end of each day, based on the day's or the next day's lessons.

For example, after plowing today, they would need to fertilize their experimental plots next. Fertilizing is a crucial step in improving soil fertility. Today's homework was to go back and read agricultural books to find various methods of fertilizer production and application.

To prevent wasted effort, An Qing provided a specific range of agricultural books for them to consult. For Little Fifteenth, however, this part of the assignment was waived because he was too young and could barely read.

Initially, Little Fifteenth felt quite disappointed about this arrangement, but An Qing reassured him that she would teach him again when he grew up if he still wanted to learn, which cheered him up.

To avoid the daily commute, An Qing and Yinqi decided to stay in the garden of the Royal Manor. The others came early in the morning and left in the evening, gradually adapting to this routine over a few days.

The officials' sons and princes struggled with plowing on the first day, but when An Qing told them that the land they were plowing would become their individual experimental plots, they all became very serious about it.

The officials from the Agricultural Administration Department and the Ministry of Finance were truly impressed with An Qing after these few days. For instance, regarding fertilizer production, she had them personally read agricultural books and then took them to a fertilizer area in the Royal Manor the next day to make compost according to the methods they found.

But the most impressive part was when she gave each of them a thin booklet containing her years of experience and detailed methods of composting and fertilizer production, including which types of fertilizer were suitable for different stages of crop growth.

Only then did they realize how far behind they were compared to Lady Fifth in terms of farming knowledge.

That evening, after a day of work in the fields, everyone was getting ready to leave by carriage.

An Qing waved to the Fifteenth Prince. "Little Fifteen, come here."

The Fifteenth Prince skipped over. "Fifth Sister-in-law, what's up?"

An Qing smiled. "Nothing much, I just wanted to ask if you find it tiring to travel back and forth by carriage every day."

The Fifteenth Prince, being honest, replied, "It's okay, but sometimes the carriage moves too fast and my bottom hurts a bit."

As he said this, he instinctively touched his bottom, which made An Qing laugh.

All the princes now lived in Changchun Garden, and it took half an hour to get to the Royal Manor. They had to come early in the morning, so it was bound to be tiring.

Feeling sorry for making such a young child commute daily, An Qing discussed with Yinqi and thought about letting Little Fifteenth stay at the Royal Manor to get more rest.

"Little Fifteenth, talk to your mother and see if she's willing to let you stay at Fifth Sister-in-law's manor. That way, you won't have to travel back and forth every day."

The Fifteenth Prince's eyes lit up at this.

He liked Fifth Brother and Fifth Sister-in-law, and he loved the manor, where many fruit trees bore delicious fruits, and there were plenty of vegetables and poultry!

"Okay, thank you, Fifth Sister-in-law. I'll talk to Mother when I get home."

An Qing pinched his chubby cheeks and sent him off to the carriage beside them.

However, when she turned around, she saw a row of people standing behind her: the Ninth Prince, Tenth Prince, Twelfth Prince, Thirteenth Prince, and Fourteenth Prince.

When did they get here?