Drive to the Tang Dynasty, where supplies are refreshed daily!

Zhang Dalang could finish the job by himself, but the family's current circumstances don't require that.

I paid several people to help me.

It's fine if Zhang Dalang doesn't go, but he'll feel bad if he doesn't go to the land that was supposed to be reserved for him.

Xiao Ran wasn't going; he didn't know how to grow millet or anything like that, and he didn't want to learn.

Li Lizhi found Xiao Ran and told him about the coal sales situation after the New Year.

Coal sells better in winter, but becomes harder to sell as the weather gets warmer.

Fortunately, other coal mines haven't started selling coal yet, so Li Shimin can buy up all of Kaolao Village's output.

The money has also been delivered.

We can hold off on paying for the glass for now, but not for the coal.

Xiao Ran and Li Lizhi are not short of money, but the people of Kaolao Village are. It is the season of Grain in Ear, and there are many places where money is needed.

When the money arrived, Xiao Ran sent someone to inform Zhang Mingde that they should go to the old locust tree to distribute the money after they finished their work that day.

As the evening sun set, it cast long shadows on the old locust tree. The old wooden table beneath the tree was polished to a shine, and a string of copper coins was piled on it, their brassy light shimmering in the afterglow, warming the heart of anyone who saw it.

The villagers had just returned from the fields, their trouser legs stained with fresh mud, their clothes wrinkled from sweat, and some carrying hoes on their shoulders, yet they all walked briskly towards the tree.

His face was visibly tired, but the corners of his mouth were already turned up, his eyes kept glancing at the copper coins on the table, and even his eyebrows were tinged with a smile.

Li Lizhi sat behind the table, holding a charcoal pencil in her hand, with a small notebook spread out in front of her, carefully recording each entry.

Princess Yuzhang, Zhang Jinhe, Zhang Erya and the others helped count the money. Their fingertips brushed against the copper coins, making a crisp "clattering" sound. Occasionally, the wind would ruffle their hair, and when they raised their hands to brush it back, the glint of the copper coins still shone in their eyes.

Zhang Mingde and several other elderly people sat on the stone benches nearby, watching quietly. The wrinkles at the corners of their eyes held a sense of satisfaction. Occasionally, they would exchange glances, and smiles would spread from their lips.

Someone rubbed their muddy hands as they stepped forward, their fingertips trembling slightly as they took the string of coins. They quickly stuffed it into their clothes, then couldn't resist taking it out and squeezing it. The coolness of the coins spread through their palms, but their hearts were burning with warmth.

A woman took the money, turned around and pulled the child hiding behind the tree over, put the money in the child's small hand and let him hold it. The child held up the money and smiled, revealing a gap in his mouth where he was missing a tooth. The woman smiled along with him, reached out and wiped the sweat from her forehead, but couldn't wipe away the light in her eyes.

The young man took the money and bumped arms with the people next to him. Although they didn't say anything, they were all grinning, clearly thinking that the money could buy a new piece of cloth for their home and some medicine for the old man's leg pain.

After receiving the money, I didn't rush to leave. I was busy in the fields all day, and now I can chat with you.

Let's talk about farming.

Considering that there weren't enough curved plows and oxen, we prepared extra beforehand.

The money was all paid from the village's reserve fund.

The plow and ox are both rented; they will be returned after a period of use.

The sooner the planting is completed, the sooner the coal mines and workshops can start operations.

The last two portions were given to Zhang Jinhe and Zhang Erya.

The family is now very wealthy, but Zhang Erya is still very happy to have the money.

Zhang Erya knew what her family's situation was like before, and she never dared to imagine that she would have so much money now.

Zhang Jinhe arranged for someone to send the remaining reserve funds back.

The elderly people who manage the emergency funds are quite old.

"Alright, alright, let's go back!" Zhang Mingde smiled; it was still a bit cold.

Zhang Jinhe quickly went to help him up.

The others then dispersed.

Xiao Ran stayed at home with the two little princesses and his third aunt; none of them came.

Li Lizhi, Princess Yuzhang, Cheng Tiehuan, and Zhang Erya walked back chatting and laughing.

Even in the village, whenever Li Lizhi and Princess Yuzhang went out, Cheng Tiehuan would accompany them.

Wang Ji had some free time during this period since he didn't have to attend classes.

However, he wasn't idle; instead, he helped Sun Simiao organize his thoughts and experiences.

Xiao Ran had previously mentioned helping Sun Simiao print medical books, and Sun Simiao hadn't forgotten, having been preparing for it all along.

Sun Simiao was also preparing the medical textbook that Li Tai mentioned in class.

These things can help many people, and Sun Simiao felt they were very meaningful.

Printing these now doesn't cost any money.

Such a good opportunity should not be missed.

As soon as Li Lizhi and her companions arrived at the gate, they heard cheerful laughter coming from inside the courtyard.

The three little girls chased each other, and Xiao Hei jumped and ran around with them.

With three little girls and a dog at home, there's never a moment of peace.

When I'm not busy, I watch cartoons.

Upon hearing about the current situation in Kaolao Village, Li Shimin also wanted to come and see for himself.

He also brought Li Yuan, Empress Xiao, Empress Zhangsun, and others to see a doctor.

Having been rebuked by Wei Zheng before, they brought more people with them this time, but didn't bring them into Kaolao Village.

It still has a bit of an undercover mission feel to it.

Early in the morning, a group of people arrived outside the courtyard.

Just like before, it's a bunch of stuff.

Upon hearing that it was Li Shimin and Li Yuan who had come, Sun Simiao and Wang Ji also put down their work to greet them.

"Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle," Xiao Ran said with a smile as he walked over.

"Grandpa~" The little princess ran up to Li Yuan.

"Hehe, Sizi."

"Haha, old sir." Li Shimin greeted Sun Simiao.

Empress Zhangsun looked unwell, as if she were about to fall ill.

"It's windy outside, let's go inside to talk," Xiao Ran quickly said.

Xiao Yu smiled at Li Lizhi and the others, it had been a long time since she had come.

Back in the living room, Zhang Erya made tea for everyone, and Sun Simiao examined Li Yuan and the others.

Empress Zhangsun has a slight cough.

Li Lizhi looked worried and glanced at Xiao Ran, then hesitated to speak.

Although she didn't say it, Xiao Ran knew what Li Lizhi wanted to say.

Xiao Ran returned to his room and went to get some cough medicine.

The medicine that Xiao Ran brought from the modern era has a remarkable effect on Empress Zhangsun's condition.

"Madam, the weather has been quite cold lately, please keep warm and wear a mask when you go out." After saying this, Xiao Ran handed a bag of medicine to Empress Zhangsun.

These medicines were familiar to Li Shimin and Li Lizhi; in Li Shimin's eyes, they were priceless treasures.

"Alright, alright," Li Shimin said, bringing Empress Zhangsun with him because he wanted these medicines, but he couldn't bring himself to ask.

Xiao Ran has quite a few now, so it's only right to give him some.

Li Shimin's family was very generous to Xiao Ran, giving him so many things.

Sun Simiao was aware of some of Xiao Ran's medicines.

"Sir, shouldn't we get my condition checked more thoroughly?" Li Yuan glanced at Sun Simiao, his expression suggestive.

Sun Simiao immediately understood, "Li Gong's condition definitely needs to be observed for a few more days."

Li Yuan simply wanted to stay, so Empress Xiao stayed as well.

Li Yuan and Empress Xiao were quite happy to live in Xiao Ran.

Although it wasn't as grand as the imperial palace, it was very comfortable.

Consort Zhang had to stay with Li Yuan, so naturally she had to stay as well. The most excited was Xiao Yu, who could now legitimately stay.

The house suddenly became even more lively.

It's reasonable that Li Yuan and Empress Xiao were left behind because they were patients.

Now that he was here, Li Shimin was in no hurry to go back.

I'd like to visit Kaolao Village.

Xiao Ran and Li Shimin strolled around on horseback.

"Coal is still in high demand in this cold weather, so continuing production shouldn't have any impact!" Li Shimin said.

"It won't make a difference if we take a few more days. Let's just take a break. Besides, farming isn't easy either."

"It's not easy for anyone," Li Shimin sighed. "All year round, there's no free time, and sometimes we even have to endure hunger. Do you think there's a place where people are wealthy enough to eat and stay warm without all this?"

“Yes, yes,” Xiao Ran knew which era Li Shimin was referring to.

Aren't I someone who's been through it all?

"Hmm?" Li Shimin was just expressing his surprise; he hadn't expected Xiao Ran to say that.

"Have you seen him before, kid?"

"No, I read in a book that in this situation, ordinary people can eat their fill and stay warm without worrying about natural disasters or going hungry."

"Is this kind of thing possible, as described in the book?"

"Yes, I think so!"

Xiao Ran reined in the horse, letting it slowly walk along the ridge of the field, his gaze sweeping over the newly planted millet.

"Uncle, take farming as an example. In the past, the people in our village used old plows to farm. It took two people and two oxen, and they could only farm a few acres a day."

"Now that we have the curved plow, one ox can pull it, and one person can plant several acres a day. That's what 'working faster' means."

"It's a pity that the yields of millet and rice are too low. If only they were higher. If there were high-yield grain varieties, the yields would be different—if all the land in the world could be cultivated like that, the grain harvest could more than double, and would the people still lack food?"

Xiao Ran paused, then pointed to the printing workshop in the distance: "Let's talk about the work. In the past, it would take a scholar several days to copy a book, and it was easy to make mistakes; now, with printing technology, one plate can print hundreds or thousands of copies, and a whole set of the Analects can be printed in just a few days."

"And in coal mines, without good tools, you can only dig a few baskets of coal a day. With tools, the efficiency is different."

"With the same amount of effort, more work can be done, and more money can be earned. People don't have to work in the fields before dawn every day and not finish until dark. They can also have spare money to buy cloth and medicine. Isn't that easier?"

"Actually, none of these are the most important things!"

This puzzled Li Shimin. "These aren't important? Then what is?"

"Throughout history, the vast majority of wealth has been in the hands of a few. I don't think Uncle would object to that!"

Li Shimin frowned, sighed, and nodded. "That's true."

"You mean the distribution issue?" Li Shimin realized.

"Yes, it was like this hundreds of years ago, it's like this now, and it will be like this in the future. Nothing has really changed. No matter how high the grain yield or how efficient the work becomes, the rich will still be a minority."

Li Shimin nodded.

"Your words have hit the nail on the head regarding the difficulties faced by ordinary people."

“My family manages many estates and shops, and I’ve seen a lot of things in the past—some estate managers keep the good land for themselves, while giving the tenants only the poor land, and they even charge higher rents; the shopkeepers embezzle profits, while the runners can’t even get a full meal.”

Although Li Shimin knew that his identity had long been exposed, he still expressed it in a very subtle way.

He turned to look at Xiao Ran, his brows furrowed slightly, but the emperor's majesty was gone, replaced by a genuine sigh: "I've always felt that people are different in their diligence and laziness, and their abilities vary, so it's normal for their lives to be different."

"Just like someone in the village is willing to put in the effort to learn woodblock engraving, they will naturally earn more money than just farming. But if someone takes advantage of others by using tricks and taking advantage of them, that is not their duty."

"That's just human nature, there's really nothing we can do about it."

"Everyone has a different personality, and therefore a different fate." Li Shimin shook his head.

"But I think that if, as you say, grain production is high and work efficiency is high, ordinary people's lives will be much better."

Li Shimin smiled and said, "If those rich people go too far and ordinary people can't survive, they will take their lives."

“Then another group of people will be replaced, becoming rich and continuing to exploit ordinary people below them,” Xiao Ran said.

"That's just human nature, there's nothing you can do about it." Li Shimin smiled. "Alright, let's stop watching and go fishing! It's been a long time since I've gone fishing."

"Row!"

The two of them turned around and headed back.

Xiao Ran's arrival has indeed made Kaolao Village quite different.

Li Shimin felt that the place was full of life. Although he hadn't been in close contact with the villagers, he could feel it just by looking at the people working in the fields.

The lives of the people in this village are definitely getting better and better.

There is no doubt that they live much more comfortably than people in other ordinary villages.

Xiao Ran went back to his room to get his things.

Seeing that Xiao Ran and Li Shimin were going fishing, Li Lizhi, Princess Yuzhang, and the others also wanted to go and watch.

The three little girls, in particular, love to join in the fun.
I knew we'd have fish to eat again.

Fish were nothing special to the princesses.

You can eat it anytime inside the palace.

But none of them taste as good as what Xiao Ran makes.

When Xiao Ran and Li Shimin arrived at the pond, Li Shimin asked, "Where would be a good place to fish?"

Knowing that Xiao Ran was more knowledgeable, Li Shimin asked Xiao Ran directly.

Xiao Ran looked around, pointed to a place without hesitation, and the two of them went there directly.

"Little Nangjun~ Seven Fish~" The little princess tugged at Xiao Ran's clothes.

"Okay, we can eat fish in a little while."

"Hmmmm~"

Li Lizhi stood not far away, watching this scene, her heart filled with mixed emotions.

We first met here.

Several months have passed without us realizing it.

Now she is very familiar with Xiao Ran, and even lives in Xiao Ran's house.

While Li Lizhi was in a daze, Zhang Jinhe, Zhang Erya, and Xiao Yu also came out.

Only Li Yuan, Sun Simiao, Empress Xiao, and Empress Zhangsun remained in the household.

Zhang Erya felt much the same way as Li Lizhi.

I thought of many things I knew from before.

The first time wasn't at the pond, but in the millet field.

Xiao Ran now seems pretty much the same as before. He looks very familiar with people, and his personality doesn't seem to have changed much.

"Second Aunt, what are you thinking about?" Princess Yuzhang asked, pulling on Zhang Erya's arm.

“Time flies so fast, it’s been a few months since the young man came to Kaolao Village.” Zhang Erya smiled.

"Elder sister, who met the young master first, you or your second mother?" Princess Yuzhang asked.

Li Lizhi snapped out of her daze, "I don't know either!"

Hearing their conversation, Xiao Ran turned around and said, "Let's get to know Fifth Sister, Si Zi Fan Yin, first."

"Hehe~ It's so cute~" the little princess exclaimed excitedly, "My little darling is eating so well~"

"The cookies smell delicious too!" Princess Chengyang added.

"The young master gave me so much," San Niang also remembered.

The three little girls also had a deep impression of those previous events. (End of Chapter)