"Sit down and eat," Helian Zhicheng said, waving them over. "Today, there are no distinctions between ruler and subject at this table. There's no need to be so cautious; it'll spoil your appetite!"
The Prefect and the Governor repeatedly nodded. "Yes, yes, yes!"
Seeing that the two were still hesitant, Helian Zhicheng didn't say anything more and directly stated the purpose of inviting them to dinner.
"My restaurant has opened. From now on, when the Empress and I are away, you two must take good care of it!"
The Prefect immediately understood and bowed repeatedly. "Your Majesty, your subordinate understands. We will certainly take meticulous care of it!"
Upon hearing this, Helian Zhicheng knew he hadn't understood his meaning.
Without anger, he said, "What I mean is, the restaurant should operate as usual. However, if there are people deliberately causing trouble, they absolutely cannot be tolerated!"
"Secondly, if the restaurant causes guests to fall ill or engages in cheating, you must handle it as you normally would. You cannot let it go unchecked!"
"I am a person who tolerates no wrongdoing. Have you two understood what I have instructed you?"
"We understand clearly, Your subordinate understands everything. We will never tolerate such behavior!" the Prefect stated.
It was an emperor's establishment; no matter how daring they were, they wouldn't dare to punish it.
However, ensuring there was no forced patronage was already no small feat. For the remaining matters, the Governor and the Prefect didn't need specific instructions; they understood the principle of turning a blind eye.
With the restaurant opened, Duan Yao and Zhao Jiaqi felt they had accomplished a goal. What remained were the two major tasks: building greenhouses and cultivating seawater rice.
Especially for the seawater rice, whenever Duan Yao and Helian Zhicheng had time, they would rush to observe the growth of the seedlings.
It was even more successful than they had anticipated. Looking at the lush, green rice seedlings, their faces were filled with uncontainable joy.
While everything here was under control, unexpected situations always arose.
Baili Kaen arrived, bringing the Crown Prince with him.
Helian Zhicheng was delighted to see his elder brother bringing his son to join the fun. Thus, he hosted a banquet at the restaurant he co-owned with his second brother to entertain the guests who had come from afar.
"Brother, it's only been a little over a month since we last met, and you miss your two brothers already?"
Baili Ji Kaen smiled and didn't hide anything. "Even from the distant imperial court, I heard about your seafood processing workshop. It's selling very well in the inner city, but I can't get any there. You tell me, am I not anxious?"
These words made Helian Zhicheng feel a sense of pride.
He chuckled heartily. "Haha, then today we must arrange all this seafood for Brother. And please give us your evaluation of how the dishes at my seafood restaurant are!"
How could Baili Kaen respond to this? If he said the food was bad, he would be offending them. If he said it was good, he would be contradicting himself, as their Xuanyuan Kingdom had no such seafood.
Thus, with Fan Zehao's intervention, the matter was smoothly glossed over.
At the dinner table, Baili Fengge didn't see Jinli and proactively asked Helian Zhicheng, "Second Uncle, why don't I see my cousin Jinli?"
Zhao Jiaqi and Fan Zehao also looked at Helian Zhicheng. They hadn't seen Helian Jinli in the more than a month they had been here.
Since the affairs of the court were managed by his second brother's subordinate, where was Helian Jinli, the Crown Prince?
Seeing his second brother's hesitant expression, Zhao Jiaqi and her husband understood what was happening. However, they were not worried.
With the chief executive between Yu Meng and Jinli, she was certain Jinli would not succeed, and they were quite confident about this.
Helian Zhicheng said, "The child is out inspecting the people's conditions and is not here!"
Baili Fengge saw his evasive gaze and didn't ask further. However, he knew Jinli was definitely not inspecting the people's conditions but was doing something else.
When he considered the possibility that Jinli might be in the inner city with Yu Meng, he felt as if nails were poking him from under his seat, making him restless.
The meal was eaten without savoring the taste, and they had to agree with the adults that it was delicious.
Zhao Jiaqi, seeing Baili Fengge's embarrassed face, quietly lowered her head. This young man had called her "little lady" as soon as they met. He was glib-tongued and flirtatious.
If Yu Meng dared to like someone like him, she would break his legs!
In the afternoon, Helian Zhicheng took Baili Kaen to inspect the workshop. The laborers inside were busy, and the horse-drawn carriages delivering seafood were arriving one after another without stopping.
This made him envious. He pressed Fan Zehao, "Younger Brother, you can't favor one over the other. When will you come to my place? Brother has already prepared a temporary palace for you!"
See, with one sentence, he had outdone Helian Zhicheng.
Fan Zehao would stay in a temporary palace, while he only had a separate residence; the treatment was completely different.
"After things are done here, we still need to build greenhouses and cultivate seawater rice."
Fan Zehao said this without any hint of boasting, but Baili Kaen didn't take it that way.
"Younger Brother, you're saying that grains can be planted here? You're not deceiving Brother, are you!"
Fan Zehao looked at his astonished expression and furrowed his brow. "What's so deceptive about this? If you don't believe me, ask Second Brother!"
Helian Zhicheng repeatedly nodded in response. "Yes, so far, the seedlings have been cultivated. The remaining step is to plant them in the paddy fields and see the results!"
Hearing Helian Zhicheng's firm words, Baili Kaen realized he had come to the right place, and his heart was greatly stirred.
He had seen the situation at the restaurant and the bustling scene at the workshop with his own eyes. Seeing boxes and boxes of goods being shipped by boat to the inner city, he knew that selling so much would bring in a lot of profit, and his eyes gleamed with greed.
When they returned to the separate residence and saw the lush, green seedlings growing vigorously, Baili Kaen immediately gave them a thumbs-up. "This is incredible, simply miraculous!"
Helian Zhicheng didn't dare to accept the praise and quickly said, "This is all my sister-in-law's credit. Without her, how could I have achieved these things!"
Duan Yao also spoke the truth. "Indeed. I have been following my sister-in-law for over a month and have learned a lot."
Everyone praised Zhao Jiaqi, and her husband, Fan Zehao, beamed with pride. He modestly replied, "My wife is just a bit more dedicated to research; she's not as good as you say!"
Baili Kaen stared at Zhao Jiaqi for a moment before smiling and replying, "Too much modesty is affectation!"
The group chatted and laughed. Baili Kaen couldn't help but glance at Zhao Jiaqi a few more times.
In the evening, the three brothers reunited and drank a few more cups.
Zhao Jiaqi and Duan Yao didn't linger. After finishing their meal, they excused themselves. The next day, they had to go to Baihuazhou to see if Governor Li had finished his work.
That night, Zhao Jiaqi slept soundly. She didn't know when her husband returned.
As soon as dawn broke.
After breakfast, the two women set off by carriage. As they left, Baili Kaen also came out, ostensibly to learn how to plant in greenhouses so he could build one back home.
Duan Yao heard this and chuckled. "Big Brother is truly impatient. It won't be too late to learn when Zehao and my sister-in-law go to your place. Why the rush!"
As for what was causing the rush, only he knew, but he put on a calm facade. "It's always good to learn more skills."
Duan Yao strongly agreed with this sentiment. Skills learned and mastered were truly one's own.
Duan Yao lowered the curtain of the carriage and sat back inside. Baili Kaen looked at the lowered curtain, feeling a slight sense of disappointment. He hadn't heard his sister-in-law speak a single word on the journey.
This time, they had an escort, and the carriage had been changed. It was still a double-horse-drawn carriage with two Swift Redhorses, which increased their speed.