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

Li Wu naturally couldn't refuse Xiao Ran. In addition to sending betrothal gifts, Xiao Ran also wrote a letter to Li Shimin.

Li Lizhi accompanied Xiao Ran to find Li Wu.

"Fifth Uncle!" Xiao Ran called out.

Li Wu walked over with a smile, "Young master, is it time to send something to Chang'an City?"

"I'd like to send something to my uncle, so I'd like to trouble you, Fifth Uncle, to make the trip."

Li Wu quickly accepted it with a smile, "Okay!"

"Also, please give the letter to Uncle Shi as well!"

"it is good!"

Previously, it was always Li Lizhi who sent things to Li Shimin; this was the first time Xiao Ran had sent something.

Li Wu didn't delay and immediately rode his horse to the palace.

Xiao Ran was very important to Li Shimin, and Li Wu knew that.

Li Wu, carrying a food box and a letter, walked briskly through the palace road, led by guards to the outside of the Lizheng Hall.

The sound of Li Shimin and Empress Zhangsun chatting could be heard from inside the hall. Then a guard announced, "Li Wu from Kaolao Village requests an audience."

There was a pause in the conversation inside the hall, followed by Li Shimin's voice: "Let him in."

Li Wu bowed as he entered the hall, carrying a box, and reported, "Your Majesty, this is a gift and a letter from Young Master Xiao, who asked me to deliver it to Your Majesty personally."

"Xiao Ran sent it?" This surprised Li Shimin quite a bit, as it had never happened before.

The things Li Wu sent were all arranged by Li Lizhi.

"I want to see what this boy gave me."

Upon hearing Li Shimin say this, Zhang Anan took the box and handed it to Li Shimin.

Li Shimin opened it and saw that it was wrapped in red rope and red cloth.

This left Li Shimin even more perplexed.

Untying the red string revealed a sweet potato inside, another a potato, and Li Shimin could guess the third one without even opening it.

It's corn, very tender corn.

The sweet potatoes, corn, and potatoes that were brought back from Kaolao Village are still stored in the cellar. Why did Xiao Ran send another portion?
"Why is this kid sending all these again?" Li Shimin picked up a sweet potato, raised an eyebrow, and turned to ask Li Wu, "Didn't he tell you what he's going to do with these?"

Li Wu quickly shook his head: "Young Master only said to send the items and the letter together, he didn't say anything else."

Li Shimin grew increasingly curious, casually picked up the letter on the table, opened the envelope, and unfolded it:

Uncle:

Let Uncle Wu bring you some things—sweet potatoes, potatoes, and a few ears of tender corn. The corn is too tender to be used as seed, and it won't keep for more than a few days. Your Majesty, please have a taste.

Are those things you brought back from Kaolao Village still stored in the cellar?
I'm giving you this because I have something important to tell you.

I like Wu Niang and want to arrange a marriage with her first.

She shouldn't get married now; she's still young. Getting married too early wouldn't be good for her health. As for why it's bad for her health, it's hard to explain in a few words, and even Grandpa Sun Simiao agreed with that.

We were always working together in the fields, and we were worried that people would gossip and it would affect Wu Niang's reputation. So we settled down first to feel at ease.

I'll wait until she's a few years older and her body is more stable before I marry her according to the rules.

The betrothal gifts consisted of potatoes, corn, and sweet potatoes.
Li Shimin placed the letter on the table, paused for two seconds, and then burst out laughing.

Still holding the sweet potato in her hand, the doubt in her eyes had long since vanished, replaced by a warm feeling of relief: "You little rascal, Xiao! So, this sweet potato is here as a betrothal gift!"

Empress Zhangsun leaned closer, picked up the letter, glanced at it, and smiled. She lightly pointed to the line, "The corn is too tender, Your Majesty, please try some," and said to Li Shimin:
“Look at him, he even thinks of such details. Knowing that tender corn doesn’t keep well, he specially let me try it. He’s much more practical than those who give gold and silver.”

"That's absolutely true!"

Li Shimin put the sweet potato back on the red cloth, his fingertips brushing against the stitches, his tone full of approval, "He knows that Lizhi is still young, so he doesn't rush her to get married, fearing that marrying too early will harm her health."

"Even Mr. Sun was brought up, which shows that he wasn't just saying it casually, but truly cared about Lizhi's body."

"She's worried about gossip and is protecting Lizhi's reputation; she's more thoughtful than many others."

"It would be a waste to let the corn go bad, so let's pick it up and cook it now," Li Shimin said with a smile.

As for potatoes and corn, Li Shimin also wanted to eat them, but he couldn't bear to part with them.

"Ananda, put the potatoes and sweet potatoes together with the previous ones. These cannot be eaten; having an extra seed means we can plant one more sapling next year."

"It's your Majesty!"

Li Shimin and Empress Zhangsun stared at the sweet potatoes wrapped in red cloth on the table, already having a clear understanding of Xiao Ran's value.

The marriage arrangement between Lizhi and Changsun Chong was originally a natural "marriage between relatives," and was considered acceptable by the nobility.

Even they themselves felt that this was the best solution for "marrying someone of equal social standing and strengthening family ties," and no one thought there was anything wrong with it.

After all, in the Tang Dynasty, it was common for the royal family to marry into noble families or for cousins ​​to form marriage alliances. So what was there to say about it being "inappropriate"?

But Xiao Ran's appearance tells everyone the dangers of consanguineous marriage.

Not only was Li Lizhi's wedding canceled, but this also made her known to the public.

Xiao Ran made great contributions to the Tang Dynasty, so much so that Li Shimin didn't know how to reward him. A marriage alliance was a good option.

When a meritorious official's achievements exceed the scope of the conventional reward system, marriage is never a simple "marriage alliance," but a "top-level favor that transcends material rewards and titles."

It used the most core "kinship ties" of the royal family to firmly bind the interests of meritorious officials to the dynasty.

It is both the ultimate recognition of merit and a compensation for the inability to reward through conventional means.

Conventional rewards have a "ceiling," but marriage alliances do not.

In ancient times, titles, land, gold, and silver all had clearly defined levels and upper limits:

The highest rank was Duke, and even if someone owned a lot of land, there was a system of "perpetual land ownership," and gold and silver were "valuable items."

But Xiao Ran's contribution was to "cut off the root of famine for the people" and to "enable the Tang Dynasty to feed hundreds of thousands more people every year".

This merit, which "benefits future generations," has long exceeded what is meant by "founding county magistrate" and "ten acres of permanent land."

If the title were to be elevated further, it would disrupt the balance of the nobility system, which prioritizes military merit over political achievements, and discourage founding veterans such as Li Jing and Fang Xuanling.

Adding only gold, silver, and land would diminish the significance of "saving millions of lives," and even Li Shimin himself felt it was "unworthy of recognition."

Unlike arranged marriages, which offer not "quantifiable benefits" but the status of being "family members of the royal family," arranged marriages provide access to the royal family.

Marrying Princess Chang Le to Xiao Ran is tantamount to declaring to the world that "Xiao Ran is my family." This honor is more precious than any dukedom and is more in line with his merits that cannot be measured by titles and emoluments.

Their marriage is a "long-term commitment," which is more secure than a one-time reward.

Conventional rewards are a "one-and-done" transaction: you've rendered meritorious service, I reward you, and that's it. But Xiao Ran's value is "continuous."

He needs to continuously improve and promote the new grains, he needs to impart agricultural techniques, and even the new ideas he brings need to be gradually guided by him.

If only conventional rewards are used, and Empress Xiao is no longer willing to serve the court, or is ostracized or framed, the Tang Dynasty will lose "the fundamental source of new grain".

A marriage alliance would tie his interests to those of the royal family:
He became the princess's husband and a core member of the royal family. From then on, his honor and disgrace were closely linked to the rise and fall of the Tang Dynasty.

Since no one dares to touch him easily, he will be more proactive in planning for the Tang Dynasty.

For Li Shimin, this was not a "reward," but rather "using kinship to secure this 'stabilizing force'" to ensure that the benefits of the new grain could be used by the Tang Dynasty for a long time.

The marriage alliance could satisfy Xiao Ran's "unconventional needs".

Ordinary meritorious officials seek titles, emoluments, and wealth, but Xiao Ran is a person who is "without desires or wants".

He was not a corrupt official, did not covet wealth, and did not enjoy crowds. The only things he cared about were "growing grain peacefully in Kaolao Village" and "protecting Li Lizhi."

Conventional rewards simply don't meet his needs, and may even make him feel "bound".

And the marriage alliance perfectly satisfied the two things he cared about most:
First, it gave Li Lizhi a "legitimate identity," protecting her reputation and preventing her from being gossiped about.

Secondly, his status as a "royal relative by marriage" provided him with the "highest level of protection" for his stability in Kaolao Village.

No one dared to disturb his farming anymore, nor did anyone dare to harm the people around him.

For Xiao Ran, this "security and protection" was more precious than any gold, silver, or rank.

For Li Shimin, this was "to reward him for his immeasurable merit with what he wanted most," which was both in line with his own wishes and fulfilled the relationship between the ruler and his subject, making it the "optimal solution."

Ultimately, when the merits are so great that "the regular system can't contain them," marriage becomes the only "extraordinary favor" that the royal family can offer.

It replaces material things with blood ties, one-time transactions with long-term bonds, and rewards according to rules with "meeting the other party's core needs".

This not only solved the problem of "having no one left to reward," but also strengthened the relationship between meritorious officials and the dynasty. This was the underlying logic of the ancient court's practice of "matching great merit with marriage."

The next day, around 7:30 AM, the tranquility of Kaolao Village was broken by the sound of orderly horses' hooves.

Unlike the last time, this time the messenger was not an ordinary messenger, but a team personally led by the Vice Minister of Rites, a far more prestigious event than in the past.

The procession slowed down as it reached the village entrance. At the head of the procession were two guards carrying wooden signs that read "Silence," their armor gleaming and their steps steady.

Following closely behind was the Vice Minister of Rites, dressed in a third-rank scarlet official robe, with a jade belt around his waist, and holding a scroll of bright yellow brocade imperial edict, which appeared more substantial than the ordinary imperial edict from the previous one.

Behind him followed four eunuchs and more than ten guards. Each eunuch carried a black lacquered tray, containing the marriage contract and the betrothal gifts bestowed by the royal family. There were no superfluous decorations, only the formality of the arrangement to show the solemnity.

The villagers had already stood quietly on both sides of the threshing ground as instructed by the village head, and no one made a sound.

When the Vice Minister of Rites arrived at the center of the threshing ground, the eunuchs quickly set up a table covered with dark-patterned yellow silk and neatly arranged the imperial edict and marriage contract.

The Vice Minister turned to face Xiao Ran and Li Lizhi, first gesturing for everyone to rise, then unfolded the imperial edict and read it aloud in a steady, resonant voice:
Disciples:

Xiao Ran, the Earl of Nongji County, was a man of great talent and insight. He worked the fields diligently, yet harbored a heart dedicated to saving the world.

In the past, new grains were cultivated, such as sweet potatoes, potatoes, and corn, with yields exceeding 1,000 catties per mu, relieving the hunger of countless people and consolidating the foundation of the people's livelihood in the Tang Dynasty.

He also spoke frankly about the drawbacks of consanguineous marriage, broke the old customs, and protected Princess Chang Le's health. His contributions were to the country, and his virtue was widely respected.

Princess Chang Le is beautiful and is my eldest daughter. She is gentle and kind, and she personally engages in agricultural work. She and Xiao Ran have gone through the hardships of raising seedlings and harvesting crops together, and they are of one mind.

Xiao Ran used fresh grain as a betrothal gift to express his sincere love. Moreover, considering that the princess was still young, he insisted on waiting until she was older and more stable before getting married. This shows that he valued the princess's health and reputation, and that his feelings were sincere and rare.

I believe that a wise ruler should reward meritorious officials and also fulfill the wishes of his children.

Xiao Ran's merits are the foundation of the nation, and his virtue matches that of the princess; the princess is delighted with Xiao Ran, and her will is as firm as metal and stone.

Special imperial edict: Xiao Ran is hereby granted permission to establish a marriage contract with Princess Chang Le, Li Lizhi. The wedding ceremony shall be held when the princess turns eighteen and all the necessary rites are completed.

During this time, Xiao Ran continued to study agricultural techniques and protect the experimental fields.

The royal family must protect the princess's reputation and ensure her safety and stability, forbidding foreign officials from making unwarranted comments and preventing idle gossip from disturbing her.

The title of Earl of Nongji County bestowed upon Xiao Ran still includes ten qing of permanent farmland and one hundred mu of royal experimental farmland. The imperial guards sent to protect him and the agricultural officials to assist him in all matters are as before.

I shall also send an official to Kaolao Village to establish a marriage contract and proclaim it to all corners of the land, so that the world may know my purpose of rewarding merit and caring for the people, and upholding human relations.

Announce it to the world, and the envoys will hear about it.

When the imperial edict was announced, many people were happy for Xiao Ran.

Xiao Ran has been in Kaolao Village for a year and has helped the village a lot, leading it to prosperity.

But soon, the people of Kaolao Village were a little confused.

I don't know the identities of the princesses, and I don't know that Princess Li Lizhi and the others are royal daughters.

Only a few people, such as Li Tai, Li Ke, and Cheng Chumo, knew about it.

Li Lizhi followed Xiao Ran to receive the imperial decree.

At this moment, Zhang Jinhe, Zhang Erya, the old village head Zhang Mingde, the village head Wang Shen, and the people of Kaolao Village realized what was happening.

This beautiful and well-educated Fifth Sister is actually Princess Li Lizhi, the eldest legitimate princess of the current dynasty.

Li Lizhi is a princess, and the Yuzhang Princess, who calls Li Lizhi "elder sister," immediately reveals her identity as the little princess and the Chengyang little princess.

There was also Li Shimin and Empress Zhangsun, who were the emperor and empress.

Wang Shen's hands were still frozen at his sides, as if he had been nailed to the spot.

He stared at the inconspicuous wooden hairpin on Li Lizhi's plain-colored dress, and his mind exploded.

During the busy farming season, he even advised her, "Young lady, don't overwork yourself, take a break before you start."

How could she be described as "a girl from an ordinary family"?
This is the eldest princess of the current dynasty!

Cold sweat trickled down his temples, and he even held his breath.

All those "unruly" interactions before were simply because the princess wasn't putting on airs. If it were anyone else, they would have been punished for "disrespect."

Zhang Jinhe gripped Zhang Erya's wrist so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

She was more perceptive than others and had long suspected that "Fifth Sister" was no ordinary person.

She can read and understand the farm tool drawings made by Xiao Xiaolangjun.

She speaks softly, yet she always manages to say something fair when villagers are arguing, winning their hearts and minds.

But he never thought of the word "princess," only that she was "a scholar's daughter from the city."

Hearing "Princess Chang Le, Li Lizhi" at this moment, and recalling the gentle way "Fifth Sister" called "Sizi" and "Sixth Sister," I suddenly understood.

Those who came to the village with "Fifth Sister" are probably princesses too!
Zhang Jinhe's eyes were filled with shock: it turned out that the person they worked with every day was actually a royal princess, and that the young master Xiao was going to be engaged to the princess!
"Wasn't it His Majesty the Emperor and Her Majesty the Empress before?" Zhang Mingde thought of Li Shimin and Empress Zhangsun. (End of Chapter)