Ch. 301..305: The Princess of Northern Land Chapter 301-305

Chapter 301: Chapter 301 Ask for help(4)_1

"The temperature is not high enough, and the power is insufficient," Lin Ziyin sighed lightly in the face of failure. As expected, without coal, it’s impossible!

"What are you doing?" came Chu Suifeng’s cold voice from behind.

"Making soy milk powder," Lin Ziyin replied indifferently. She had failed, what else could she do? The machine for making soy milk powder was already running at minimum power, but the temperature of the firewood still couldn’t meet the requirements.

The disappointment of her first failed attempt was significant for Lin Ziyin.

"Did you fail?" Si Jinhan’s voice carried an undertone of excitement.

Chu Suifeng gave him a cold stare, and Si Jinhan immediately repressed his smile. Truthfully, he wasn’t intentionally gloating over her misfortune. It was just that Lin Ziyin had always been successful in her business ventures, making it seem as though she was capable of anything. Even when she was creating small mechanical tools, it was an eye-opening experience for him. Even the people from the Tianji Building held her in high esteem.

Today, he finally got to see something she couldn’t do, which made Lin Ziyin seem more real in his eyes.

"There’s not enough steam for the next steps," Lin Ziyin replied lightly.

"What needs to be done then?" Chu Suifeng asked sternly. He didn’t like the defeated look on Lin Ziyin’s face.

"Telling you wouldn’t help," Lin Ziyin retorted. She knew they were just there to mock her failure, and she wasn’t going to let them think otherwise.

"Speak," Chu Suifeng commanded, his face grim. The notion of Lin Ziyin distrusting him did not sit well with him.

"There’s a type of black powder that can burn into a temperature needed to produce enough steam power," Lin Ziyin replied reluctantly.

"Send a search for this black powder immediately. Once it’s found, bring some back for her to experiment with." Chu Suifeng issued the command and a guard immediately disappeared to carry it out.

Feeling somewhat grateful for his help, Lin Ziyin said, "Prince, if you can find this black powder, I can offer you 20% of the profits from the soy milk powder."

Chu Suifeng gave her a glance, not responding. The fact that Lin Ziyin was willing to share her profits was a big deal to him.

"You’ve used up all the beans, what about the horses for the army?" Si Jinhan deliberately provoked.

Feeling uncharacteristically amiable towards Chu Suifeng, Lin Ziyin decided to engage in some friendly conversation. "Doesn’t the Imperial Court supply enough grains and fodder for the border troops each year?"

Si Jinhan couldn’t help but smile at her audacity.

Realizing she may have overstepped her bounds, since military supplies are typically considered classified, Lin Ziyin regretted asking.

"The Imperial Court has always been suspicious of me, and the grains and fodder sent to us each year have always been insufficient. Moreover, sometimes these provisions would get intercepted by other fiefs. Combined with the harsh, cold conditions and sparse population of the Northern Land, border soldiers live a very difficult life," Chu Suifeng explained openly.

Both Si Jinhan and Lin Ziyin were surprised at his candidness.

As Lin Ziyin watched Chu Suifeng, she noticed a far-off yet resolute look in his eyes, a mix that made her respect him for the first time. She began to compare him to her best friend from the modern era. She wondered if he and He Yue had married.

"What are you thinking about?" Chu Suifeng asked, not pleased by the distant look in her eyes, as if she were thinking about someone else.

The idea that Lin Ziyin might still be thinking of another man infuriated Chu Suifeng.

"My senior brother and sister," she replied calmly, "They are a couple and I was just wondering if they have gotten married."

Chapter 302: Chapter 302 Ask for help(5)_1

His explanation was full of reason, and Chu Suifeng stared into his eyes for a long while, finding nothing unusual, and finally calmed down.

"You have elder martial brothers and sisters?" Si Jinhan asked in surprise.

"Yes, my senior martial brother is an expert in martial arts and military strategy, from whom I’ve learned almost everything. As for my two senior martial sisters, one is skilled in medical arts, the other in hand-to-hand combat," Lin Ziyin replied casually. She then ignored Si Jinhan. "Though I am but a common woman who has married up, I still consider the Prince a friend in my heart. As a friend, I want to ask you, are you satisfied with staying where you are, or do you want to make something of yourself?"

"Are you encouraging the Prince to rebel?" Si Jinhan’s gaze turned icy.

"The third master is overthinking. I just want the Prince to have more freedom, and more resources at your disposal for self-protection," Lin Ziyin replied.

"Go on," Chu Suifeng was always cut to the chase.

"The Northern Land is the Prince’s bestowed territory. Although it’s vast and sparsely populated, which could be seen as a disadvantage, it can also be a unique advantage," Lin Ziyin explained.

Si Jinhan and Chu Suifeng exchanged glances, then immediately ordered the guard next to them to secure the entrance.

"Every year, criminals are sent to the Northern Land. Sending these criminals to fight the frontier wars is a death sentence. The Prince could select a portion of them, those not guilty of heinous crimes, to let them cultivate the waste land freely. Of course, each person is only allowed to cultivate a limited amount of land. They will own that land as long as they abide the law and labor honestly. No taxes for the first three years. If their family commits no crimes for five generations, they will be allowed to become free citizens," Lin Ziyin pointed out.

The Northern Land here is not like the North Wilderness of the Tian Dynasty, where a hundred thousand workers and farmers plough the fields. The only people available to use here are these exiled convicts.

Shock registered on the faces of Chu Suifeng and Si Jinhan.

"Lin Ziyin, do you know what you’re talking about?" Si Jinhan asked coldly.

"Wounded soldiers can be encouraged to stay, and they can even bring their family members. The officialdom could allow their children to receive free education. If they commit any crime in the future, these benefits would be removed. For these people, the quantity of wasteland that they are allowed to cultivate can be a bit more, but not too much. After being tax-free for three years, they will only need to pay half of the tax in the fourth and fifth years," Lin Ziyin continued confidently, "only when the people are rich, can the country be strong..."

"Miss, the old master is calling you to the main room urgently. Something has happened," Duo’er’s voice suddenly called from outside.

"I am sorry, I have something to take care of. I shall leave first," Lin Ziyin quickly followed her own people out.

Chu Suifeng and Si Jinhan stood in the workshop staring at each other.

"My lord, do you believe what she said?" Si Jinhan asked excitedly, "My lord, you have suffered so many humiliations over the years. If we had some money, surely we could make a stand."

As he got to his last sentence, his voice dropped lower and lower.

Chu Suifeng glanced at him, "Some things are better left unsaid."

"Let’s see what happens come spring," Si Jinhan was truly stirred up. With all the internal suppression from the Imperial Court, the discrimination from the various princes, and the external harassment from the Tatars, only they, the loyal followers, knew how hard Prince Ling had it.

"Let’s go to the main room and see what’s going on," Chu Suifeng changed the subject.

"Okay." If he didn’t bring it up, neither would Si Jinhan.

Upon returning to the main room, Lin Ziyin found Lin Changshu and Lin Zige, along with several strangers.

"Uncle, aunt?" Lin Ziyin recognized at a glance the relatives she had only met once before.

Chapter 303: Chapter 303 Ask for help(6)_1

"Ziyin." Upon seeing her, Uncle He Fuxing’s face turned completely red, and he bashfully lowered his head.

Lin Ziyin was surprised to see them ages so intensely in just half a year, their hair turned grey. In the heavy snow, they were still wearing thin jackets with cotton seeping through the holes.

"Is that Ziyin?" A young man who was talking to Lin Changshu looked at Lin Ziyin with surprise.

Looking over, Lin Ziyin found that he had a striking resemblance to her uncle, so she guessed he must be one of her cousins.

"Ziyin, this is your eldest cousin," Lin Changshu introduced him to her.

Zige was also holding a young girl’s hand while speaking, she chimed in, "This is your cousin, Chun Ling." She proceeded with introducing the rest of the people.

Her uncle’s entire family had come, eleven of them in all. There were three children among them, two boys about the same age as Changting, who were timidly looking at Lin Ziyin. The other child was a girl who was being held by her second cousin sister-in-law, her face covered with frostbite scars. Overwhelmed by the crowd inside the house, she hid her face in her mother’s bosom, not daring to peek out.

"I’ve been saying, Uncle should have brought his family out long ago. What was the point of staying in such a home?" Lin Zige spoke with indignation.

"What happened?" asked Lin Ziyin, who always liked to get a clear understanding of things. With so many people, it was obvious that they were seeking refuge in her family’s home. In this snowy weather, with their thin clothes, they wouldn’t be out unless something big had happened.

"Our family has been driven out. We’ve cut off relations with others and have nowhere to live, so we..." Eldest cousin He Dingyi choked on his words and couldn’t continue.

Both of Ziyin’s cousin sisters-in-law lowered their heads, their eyes brimming with tears.

"They are bad people, they mistreated Grandma," a child suddenly spoke up. "Grandma almost got pushed into the river and drowned, and they hit Grandpa."

"Is what the child just said true?" Lin Ziyin asked sternly.

"They were too much. Normally, we did all the work in the house, and all the silver we three brothers earned from working outside was given to them. When winter came and there weren’t many jobs, they started to cause trouble seeing Dad’s leg wasn’t well," her second cousin said angrily.

"Mother went out to fetch water and was almost pushed into the river and drowned by Auntie. If it weren’t for the neighbour who saw and helped her change into dry clothes and then made her some ginger tea...," the second eldest cousin choked up, unable to continue. "Dad argued with them, but he was beaten up and was accused of being disobedient and unfilial. The dispute reached the clan elder and cut off our relations. They are some heartless people - we weren’t even allowed to take anything, apart from the clothes we were wearing upon leaving. On a snowy day, they didn’t even leave any food for the children, and Mother was sick, too."

"It’s good that you’re here now. The priest will come tomorrow, and he will take a good look at Auntie," said Lin Ziyin, noting the signs of illness on Aunt Yin’s face.

"Big brother, the courtyard of Changting’s house is currently empty. Let’s house Uncle and his family there temporarily," Lin Ziyin suggested.

"No, Ziyin," He Fuxing hurriedly intervened, "It’s not right for us to move in before the owner. You go around the village and see who has a spare room. Just help us find a place to stay temporarily. Come spring, and we will go out to work and pay back the silver."

"Please, cousins, help us secure a rental. Come spring, we will definitely find work to repay the silver," the eldest cousin also insisted, "We certainly cannot move into Changting’s courtyard."

"Why not stay at my place?" Wu Dayou suggested. "My courtyard is also big enough."

"We, the whole family, cannot impose on your hospitality, renting a house would be enough. But right now, we don’t have any silver. If Ziyin could help us secure a place, that would be enough," insisted He Fuxing, stubbornly refusing to move into Lin Ziyin’s house.

Chapter 304: Chapter 304 Ask for help(7)_1

"Here’s a plan - there are many empty houses by the workshop where you all practice martial arts. Uncle He’s family can stay there for now. It’s where the workshop is, has always had people living there, the space is vast, and the houses are also sturdy. It’s just a bit far from the village," said Lin Ziyin.

"We don’t mind the distance, if there’s any issue, we’ll just make more trips." He Dingyi replied.

Lin Ziyin nodded. Uncle He’s family indeed comprised only of simple folks. In her view, temporary poverty was nothing as long as one was willing to work. There’s nothing that can’t be overcome.

"There are a few baths in the village to the left, always with hot water available. Later, Uncle He’s family can all go take a bath - think of it as saying farewell to the past. Seeing your ragged clothes, I wanted to provide you with new ones, but since you’ve just arrived, you might feel awkward accepting my goodwill. So, I found an excuse. "Eldest cousin sister-in-law and second cousin sister-in-law, your figures are similar to Eldest Sister. Can you find some clothes for them? Aunt, you might be able to fit into the servants’ clothes, while cousin and Uncle He can wear my brothers’ clothes."

"How could we?" said He Fuxing blushing.

"Let’s settle on this. After you’ve bathed, you can come back for a meal. Changting has the children’s clothes. Big sister, please lead them there." Lin Ziyin urged.

"Alright." Zige happily agreed. She then whispered, "She likes cleanliness, she won’t bear with us if we don’t wash for days. Besides, we have distinguished guests at home. Even if we don’t care, we shouldn’t startle the important person, right?"

Her words were somewhat impolite, but they were the most effective.

Upon hearing this, He Fuxing looked at the Lin family and noticed that they were all very clean. They, on the other hand, had been wearing the same clothes for at least half a month. It wasn’t that they didn’t care for cleanliness, rather they were so poor that they had no clothes to change into. "Then, we’ll trouble you."

"Your Highness." Chu Suifeng and Si Jinhan walked in as they were speaking.

Zige immediately paid her respects. Since the prince hadn’t been in good spirits these past few days, she decided it was better to stay in line.

The prince? Upon hearing this, the He family was dumbstruck. How did the Lin family end up having a relationship with the prince?

"Commoners greet Your Highness." Shocked, all the members of the He family knelt down, even the children.

Lin Ziyin glared at Chu Suifeng.

Chu Suifeng stared back at her provocatively. Then he said coldly, "Stand up. You are not required to bow when you meet me in Lin House from now on."

Even giving them special privileges, Si Jinhan sneered and glanced at Lin Ziyin.

Lin Ziyin chose to ignore the eccentric pair and stood up. "I need to check on the kitchen and decide what’s for lunch."

"Spicy chicken, cumin lamb chops, smoked chicken, Gui Fei pork knuckle," Si Jinhan listed a long array of dishes.

He was not a person that could do without meat. Besides, when he came to eat, he had paid money, so of course he couldn’t let his stomach suffer a loss.

Lin Ziyin rolled her eyes at him, then went to the kitchen to prepare.

Chu Suifeng and Si Jinhan headed to the study, not even giving the He family a glance.

Frightened and sweating, the He family immediately understood why the Lin family had asked them to bathe.

The family, holding their kids and the parcels prepared by the Lin family, followed Zige into the bathhouse.

Taking a hot bath in winter was a luxury. The villagers of Shili Village worked every day, and the village’s bathhouse nominally charged a small fee, just enough to cover the cost of firewood and water but was meant only for those who came to work.

Zige paid some silver for the He family, watched them go into the bathhouse, and then went back.

Si Jinhan still had an unasked question he wanted to ask Lin Ziyin, but Lin Ziyin disappeared into the kitchen and never showed up again.

His heart was tormented as if being scratched by a cat’s paw.

Seeing the unease visible on his face, Chu Suifeng’s eyes darkened. Finally, he impatiently glared at him. Si Jinhan settled, becoming a bit anxious!

By the time the He family were cleaned up and dressed in new clothes, the Lin family’s meal was ready.

Due to the presence of Chu Suifeng, Si Jinhan, and the Master Hui Zhen who always showed up for meals, Lin Ziyin has asked for them to be seated in a separate room.

She and the rest of the Lin family took charge of accompanying the He family in another room.

"Tasteless." Without Lin Ziyin at the table, Chu Suifeng found the meal unappetizing.

Si Jinhan chuckled, not pointing out the obvious, and the three of them began to eat silently.

The side of Lin family was more lively, "Zige is getting married? The He family, upon hearing the news, were all happy for Zige.

But thinking about having to provide a dowry for Zige, they all became embarrassed.

"Uncle He is skilled at woodworking, could you help me rush the making of a set of furniture?" Lin Ziyin asked.

"I haven’t done it for a while and may be a bit rustic but if Zige doesn’t mind, we’ll give it a go. Your three cousins can also help, but we don’t mind if it takes a while. We’ll start right after we finish our meal." Upon hearing that he could be of help, He Fuxing was immediately delighted.

The rest of the He family was also pleased. Despite the Lin family’s goodwill, if they only enjoyed the benefits and didn’t reciprocate, even the best of relationships could become strained. Living at the mercy of others could be even more challenging, at least in their minds.

"Then it’s settled. You don’t need to rush about your rooms, I’ll arrange for people to help. We have a lot of kitchenware and furnishings over there, so we’ll just send over some bedding and firewood." Lin Ziyin had thought of everything that was needed.

Chapter 305: Chapter 305 Meeting an Old Acquaintance in a Foreign Land (1)_1

In the afternoon, Chu Suifeng and Si Jinhan wanted to continue the morning’s topic with Lin Ziyin, but Ziyin was too busy to give them the chance.

Seeing that the Lin Family was indeed busy, Chu Suifeng and Si Jinhan left with their guard.

Having Master Hui Zhen around at noon, Lin Ziyin took the opportunity to ask him to check on her aunt’s health condition.

"She’s just caught a chill and her body is a bit weak, but it’s nothing serious," Master Hui Zhen said.

"Could you prescribe some medicine?" Lin Ziyin asked.

"What’s the need for a prescription? Just one of these pills will cure all ailments." Hui Zhen was particularly generous to Lin Ziyin, treating her with a bias. Others would usually find it more challenging than scaling the heavens in order to convince him to hand over a single pill, but to Ziyin, he was always willing.

"Could you also check my uncle’s leg?" Lin Ziyin requested.

"What’s the advantage for me?" Hui Zhen replied, smiling.

"I’ll cook something delicious for you. I’m not sure how far we are from the sea here. If there are available ingredients, I could cook the most delicious seafood. What a pity." Lin Ziyin sighed.

"Who told you that we are far away from the sea?" Hui Zhen gave her a quizzical look, "Can you really make something delicious with seafood?"

"I wouldn’t lie to you."

Hui Zhen nodded, "Fine, you don’t have to worry about the ingredients. I’ll arrange them. Just think about what you want to cook for me."

He Fuxing was somewhat confused. In his view, his leg had been broken for several years and it could not heal.

Hui Zhen examined him with focus, shaking his head afterwards. "The bone has set firmly, but wrongly. If he was younger, I would have suggested re-breaking it and resetting it. However, given his age, it’s best to make do with it as it is. It would be painful and the healing process would be even slower."

Lin Ziyin felt a bit disappointed hearing this, but He Fuxing comforted her, "I’ve grown used to it over the years. Don’t worry; this is fine."

"Is there any way to alleviate the pain?" Lin Ziyin asked again, she could hardly bear seeing her uncle suffering such pain.

"The pain is due to catching a chill, the best remedy is to soak in herbal soup every day. I will bring over some herbs for you tomorrow," Hui Zhen said, laughing.

"Thank you very much, Master," Lin Ziyin expressed her gratitude cheerfully. He Fuxing’s family also thanked Hui Zhen profusely.

Unfortunately, Hui Zhen paid them no mind.

"Take these pine cakes and bring them to your fellow brothers for a taste." Lin Ziyin had Qiaoqiao bring over a basket, filled to the brim with assorted pastries.

"You certainly are a sharp-witted girl." Hui Zhen laughingly commented. He then stood and sat back down, his face suddenly turning serious. "But you’re also a sly one. I was almost fooled by you. ’Lie to you?’! You actually dared to set a trap for me," he complained.

Lin Ziyin burst into laughter, "You’d better keep away from that fox spirit, Si Jinhan. If someone as sincere as you get led astray by him, I have no other choice. Alright then, I’ll change my words. If I lie to you, then I’m a puppy. Is that acceptable?"

"That’s better." With this assurance, Hui Zhen happily left with his basket of pine cakes.

"Cousin, we may not be skilled in other areas, but simple embroidery we can handle. If you trust us, we can help you with the embroidery." Guihua, the older cousin sister-in-law, shyly offered when she saw that people from the Lin Family were coming one after another to help Ziyin with her dowry embroidery.

"That’s great." Lin Zige said cheerfully, "I was just worrying about that. Bai’s sister-in-law and her crew are here for the day, and I don’t know how many pastries the Dim Sum Store will fall short of."

"We can’t do it this afternoon. You should first finish embroidering the covers for your own quilts," Lin Ziyin suggested.