Chapter 1053 – Climbing Flower (Part 3)
“Take me to see it—”
Jiang Pengji’s gaze was intense as she requested, and though it was a request, Wan Xiuer had no room to refuse.
Wan Xiuer said, “The residence is a bit of a journey from the camp. Shouldn’t we send someone to prepare a carriage and guards first? You’re a lord with your own territory; if you go alone, who knows what accidents might happen—it’s still planted in the courtyard of the previous residence, so it can’t run away.”
Jiang Pengji wasn’t listening to such talk. She pulled Wan Xiuer out of the military tent and shouted at the attendants waiting outside, “Prepare the horses!”
She was decisive; cotton was a significant matter of people’s livelihood, and she didn’t want to wait even a moment.
It was too rough during the fighting, and she wondered if they had disturbed those few cotton plants.
The attendants brought Big White over, and Jiang Pengji leaped onto the horse’s back, reaching out her hand to Wan Xiuer.
Instinctively, Wan Xiuer reached out her hand, only to feel Jiang Pengji hoist her up onto the horse.
Surprised—
Before Wan Xiuer could react, Jiang Pengji had already galloped out of the camp, followed closely by several attendants trying to keep up.
However, their leader’s mount was too powerful; Big White hadn’t gone all out in a long time and took off without stopping.
By the time the attendants and guards arrived at the destination, their hearts racing, Jiang Pengji had already circled those few cotton plants for quite some time.
Wan Xiuer was still in shock, clothes in disarray, her neat hair now falling onto her shoulders, and the decorative jewels originally holding it in place were nowhere to be seen.
At first glance, one might think Jiang Pengji had pressed someone to the ground.
“Why are you all so slow—”
The panting soldiers looked confused and instinctively apologized.
Jiang Pengji said, “Forget it, go get shovels and dig up these trees, but make sure not to damage the roots.”
“Uh, okay! Oh!”
The crowd was momentarily stunned before scrambling to find shovels.
“Be careful, when digging them up, ensure the roots are wrapped in soil—”
Jiang Pengji commanded throughout the process, causing the soldiers to tread cautiously as if walking on thin ice.
It wasn’t that they were timid; anyone who had witnessed Jiang Pengji in battle would likely fear her.
By the time the sun was setting, the trees were finally carefully extracted. To make transport easier, they even found gigantic ceramic jars!
Jiang Pengji drilled a few holes in the bottoms of the jars for watering convenience later.
The cotton plants weren’t tall; the three stood only four or five feet high, while the climbing flower was slightly taller, just over ten feet.
Seeing them all safely moved, Jiang Pengji finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Wan Xiuer was filled with curiosity.
She knew Jiang Pengji was someone who accomplished great things; if this stuff wasn’t useful, there was no way she’d be so anxious—
“This thing—does it have any unusual qualities?”
Having cultivated for a few years, Wan Xiuer could only think of its attractive appearance and that the dried flowers could be used to stuff pillows, but thought it had no other use.
Thanks to the cotton and the kapok tree, Jiang Pengji’s favor toward Wan Xiuer surged.
She straightforwardly said, “Of course it does; it can prevent the people of the world from freezing and suffering from the cold.”
Wan Xiuer blinked.
She certainly didn’t doubt Jiang Pengji’s words, but—could these ornamental plants really have such power?
To prevent the entire world from freezing?
Even a sage reincarnated couldn’t possibly accomplish that, right?
“You’ve done a great deed!” Jiang Pengji put her hands on Wan Xiuer’s shoulders on either side, “Such kindness goes unspoken, but whatever you need, I will satisfy.”
Though separated by thick fabric and a fur cloak, Wan Xiuer could still feel Jiang Pengji’s lean hands.
They were strong and inexplicably brought her unprecedented comfort—
This sort of ordinary promise, Wan Xiuer had never believed before, but since it was Jiang Pengji, she believed it.
“I can’t accept such a promise.”
“A man’s word weighs heavier than the mountains!” Jiang Pengji emphasized; she wasn’t saying this casually.
Wan Xiuer’s face suddenly flushed, giving Jiang Pengji a sidelong glance and reproachfully saying, “You, after so many years, your sweet-talking skills haven’t declined at all. You said the same to Wei Jingxian back then, and now it’s my turn; who do you plan to say it to next?”
She remembered clearly when Jiang Pengji’s gender was revealed, many noble girls mocked her, and Wan Xiuer had thrown in her own sarcastic remark.
Never would she have thought Jiang Pengji would just recycle her flattery to her.
Really—
Couldn’t she switch it up a bit?
Jiang Pengji: “…”
Wan Xiuer chuckled, “Alright, alright, I’ll believe you. I don’t ask for much; just a place to stay will do.”
Jiang Pengji replied, “Oh, I will definitely take good care of you.”
These words made Wan Xiuer beam with joy; her smile in these past couple of days was worth more than several years combined.
Although Jiang Pengji was familiar with cotton, she didn’t actually know how to cultivate it; Wan Xiuer had years of experience with these plants.
So—
Jiang Pengji asked her, “What plans do you have for the future?”
Wan Xiuer tidied her messy hair and said with a smile, “Under your protection, what other plans could I possibly have?”
Jiang Pengji shook her head and explained.
“What I mean is—have you ever thought about creating something remarkable in the future?”
Wan Xiuer’s hand froze by her ear; she wondered if she had misheard.
“I, I have no special skills, just a woman. What could I possibly create?”
Jiang Pengji said, “You have one skill that others cannot match. After finishing up in Cangzhou, I will definitely need a few months to rest. Being excessively warlike isn’t the right path; I need to give the soldiers and common people a chance to catch their breath and recuperate. I plan to select some quality land to trial plant these cottons and gain experience and good seedlings before expanding the scale. There’s also news from Wanzhou that Hui Jun has made breakthroughs with the spinning wheels, increasing the speed significantly. If these two come together, I can’t imagine how many common people would benefit.”
Wan Xiuer stood there, her mind in a whirl.
Though she didn’t fully understand, she knew Jiang Pengji wouldn’t deceive her regarding such matters.
This was definitely a good thing!
Before becoming a noble wife, Wan Xiuer was a noble girl from an aristocratic family, and after marriage, she became a distinguished lady. Her marriage wasn’t satisfying, but her quality of life was good.
Asking her to mess with cotton planting was indeed pushing her limits.
However, having gone through hardships, she now understood that in a chaotic world without protection, her life wouldn’t be much better.
Even if this thing had no benefits, she wouldn’t refuse if Jiang Pengji suggested it.
Meanwhile, Feng Zhen was terrified after learning that his leader had galloped away from the camp.
There were still enemy remnants outside; if the lord accidentally stumbled upon some ruffians, disaster could strike!
Anxious, Feng Zhen mobilized a group of people to escort him to find Jiang Pengji.
That warhorse was bouncing so much that it hurt his backside!
Hurrying as fast as he could, he happened to arrive as several soldiers were carrying the ceramic jars containing the cotton and kapok trees to the cart.
Goodness—
Aren’t these treasures of Wan Xiuer?
Their lord brought Wan Xiuer here and had them dig up these trees; what on earth did she plan to do?
Feng Zhen clumsily dismounted, flicked his hair tie off his neck, and glanced over.
Guess what he saw?
He saw his lord and Wan Xiuer walking side by side, the former chatting and laughing, and the latter bashfully looking down, twisting her sleeves.
Wan Xiuer’s hair was loose, and her clothing looked like it hadn’t been arranged properly, which shocked Feng Zhen to the core.
Damn it!
Wei Ci—
Zixiao—
You better come and deal with this troublemaker!
