The Three Kingdoms: I asked you to save Guan Yu, not to destroy Sun Quan.

Chapter 580 The Despicable Mi Fang

Liu Bei was truly speechless. Mi Fang, that scoundrel, had gone to sea and still wouldn't stop, tarnishing the reputation of the Han Dynasty. He was utterly despicable.

Wait a minute, does the Han Dynasty have a reputation among the surrounding small countries?

The others, however, were filled with gossip and instinctively leaned forward to ask, "He even slept with the king's daughter! How does he manage that?"

Mi Zhu pushed through the crowd and rushed to Fu Shiren, eagerly asking, "Are you really pregnant? Are you sure it's Zifang's?"

Mi Zhu's lips trembled with excitement, and his heart began to race with nervousness. He was overjoyed; the Mi family had finally gained another member.

Although the Mi family of Donghai is the richest in Xuzhou, their population is too small. He only has one son, Mi Wei, and Mi Wei only has one son, Mi Zhao. His younger brother, Mi Fang, and his younger sister, Madam Mi, have no children. If things continue like this, any disaster or illness could wipe out the Mi family line. In that case, how would he face his ancestors after he is gone?

I thought Mi Fang was destined to be childless and without descendants. He was lucky to have survived Liu Bei's clutches, so why would he need any more descendants?

Unexpectedly, after a trip to Linyi, they were blessed with an heir, which was an unprecedented joy for the Mi family.

Fu Shiren nodded and said, "I specifically asked Zifang about this matter. Zifang swore that it was his, saying that Princess Linyi had been with him ever since he entered the royal city and had never met her husband."

"Wait a minute..." Liu Bei asked in surprise, "Princess Linyi has a husband?"

Seeing Fu Shiren nod, he couldn't help but curse, "Damn Mi Fang, it's one thing to snatch a princess, but he snatched a married woman at that. Why didn't he just learn from An Guo Shao Ji and snatch the Empress Dowager of Lin Yi?"

Looking across the entire Han Dynasty, the act of stealing other men's wives was hardly a novelty; just look at how many Cao Cao stole.

What annoyed Liu Bei was that Mi Fang was living so comfortably. "I allowed you to go to sea so that you could suffer and atone for your sins, but you've become happy instead."

Fu Shiren honestly replied, "The Empress Dowager of Linyi is Qu Lian's mother. Qu Lian already has a grandson, how could the Empress Dowager still be alive?"

That's true. Qu Lian is already a grandfather, and even if his mother were alive, she would be in her seventies or eighties. No matter how thirsty Mi Fang is, she wouldn't be that...

Liu Bei said irritably, "And then?"

Fu Shiren replied, "Zifang originally intended to return in person to report to His Majesty, but upon learning that Princess Linyi was pregnant, he stayed behind."

"Your Majesty, there is another matter. King Qu Lian of Linyi has no sons, only a daughter. Before meeting Zi Fang, she had already married and had a son named Fan Xiong, who is almost two years old. Because he has no sons, Qu Lian originally intended to pass the throne to this grandson, Fan Xiong. On the way back, I was thinking, since it is going to be passed to a grandson anyway, wouldn't it be better to pass it to Zi Fang's son instead..."

Although he didn't say the rest, the shrewd people present all understood what he meant, and they looked up at Lin Yi with strange eyes.

Damn Mi Fang, if I remember correctly, you went to sea to atone for your sins, right? And look what happened, not only did you get married and have a child, but the child might even be the future King of Lin Yi?

What the hell did you do in your past life to have such a good life?

However, if Mi Fang's son really became the King of Linyi, it would also be beneficial to the Han Dynasty. Perhaps they could easily take back Linyi without sending troops, and it would be easier for them to expand their territory in Linyi.

While everyone was still considering the feasibility of this matter, Mi Zhu firmly opposed it, saying, "No, absolutely not. If this child is a boy, he must be taken back to the Mi family to be recognized as a member of the clan."

This is a seed of the Mi family, meant to carry on the family line. How could it take someone else's surname, not even the king?

As the head of the Mi family, Mi Zhu had absolute decision-making power over this matter.

Liu Bei patted him on the shoulder and said, "Recognizing one's ancestry and inheriting the throne are not contradictory. Who says that someone with the surname Mi can't be the King of Linyi?"

"Alright, the baby has only just been conceived, and we don't even know if it's a boy or a girl yet. It's too early to talk about that now. Let's get down to business first. What did you just say, Fu Aiqing? That this kind of rice can be harvested in at most two months?"

Guan Xing had previously said that Champa rice would mature in about fifty days, which matches Fu Shiren's report.

In other words, the rice in his hand was undoubtedly Champa rice.

Upon hearing this, everyone realized they had missed such important information, and their eyes blazed with anticipation as they looked at the rice.

It only takes two months to mature; that's such a short growth cycle!

Although the climate in the Great Han is not as mild as that of Linyi, and it may not be possible to achieve three harvests a year, two harvests a year is still easily achievable. Two harvests a year is equivalent to doubling the harvest, which is a great thing.

Fu Shiren nodded and said, "Yes, I have asked many people and they say the same thing, but I cannot guarantee whether it can be matured in two months in the Great Han Dynasty. We need to try it to know."

Liu Bei continued, "How much rice did you bring back? It can't be just this little bit in the bamboo tube, can it?"

Fu Shiren shook his head and said, "I brought back all the rice I personally harvested from the ten mu of land, but there were too many weeds in the fields, which resulted in a poor harvest. The ten mu of land yielded less than five hundred jin. On the way back, the water was too high at sea, which caused some of the rice to become damp. Currently, there are not even four hundred jin left."

This was only because Fu Shih-jen took over and took meticulous care of the project midway through; otherwise, the harvest would probably have been severely damaged.

Liu Bei cursed and insulted the Lin Yi natives, saying, "This rice should still be on its way to Jiangling, Prime Minister. Leave two hundred catties of rice and arrange for people to plant it in the paddy fields themselves. Distribute the rest of the rice among your ministers and plant it separately. Try planting one season first to see the results."

Zhuge Liang bowed and accepted the order. Liu Bei looked at Fu Shiren and said, "Fu Shiren, you and Mi Fang have done a good job in bringing back rice. Your previous crimes are wiped clean, and from now on you will be a good citizen."

The rice hasn't been planted yet, and the exact harvest is still unclear, so it's impossible to reinstate him. Exonerating him is already a great act of mercy.

Upon hearing this, Fu Shiren was overjoyed and wept with emotion, saying, "Thank you for your mercy, Your Majesty! I will never dare to do it again! I will never..."

"Alright, alright!" Liu Bei was too lazy to listen to such empty oaths, and waved his hand, saying, "You must be hungry on the way back. Go find something to eat yourself. It's all leftovers, so don't mind."

Fu Shiren didn't mind at all. He got up, found an empty table, and began to wolf down his food. Although it was leftovers, it was still a grand feast, and the cooking was superb. Fu Shiren, who had been starving for many days, was completely satisfied with the meal.

Of course, the main thing is that I'm free from guilt and psychological burden, and I feel much more relaxed.

Liu Bei couldn't help but smile as he watched Fu Shiren wolf down his food. Fortunately, the envoy to Linyi was the convicted Mi Fang and Fu Shiren. If no convicted officials had gone, they would have been promoted and ennobled upon their return. But it was different for Mi Fang and Fu Shiren; they were pardoned, which meant zero cost.

It seems we should use more convicts in the future to save money.

Thinking this, Liu Bei waved his hand and said, "Disperse, everyone. Those who have taken the grain seeds, go back and find the best farmland to plant them. Try to test the rice planting season, maturity time, and specific yield per acre as soon as possible, and see if it can be promoted on a large scale."

"Yes..." The group bowed and took their leave.

Liu Bei then turned and went straight to Guan Yu's study, saying, "Second brother, third brother, Prime Minister, and Anguo, come in with me. Everyone else, stay away and don't come near."

These words displeased Liu Shan, but he dared not refute them. He could only put his arm around Zhang Bao and Jiang Wei's necks, put his arm around their shoulders, and mutter as he watched their backs as they walked away, "What are they talking about? And why did they only call Anguo and not us?"