"But why don't we invite them to the palace? Why should His Highness be bothered to come to them?" Qu You lifted an eyebrow.
Chen Suibo replied with his usual nonchalant expression, "Not only the peasants, we will also meet the Nature who is the Protector God of the peasants. It is the Protector God whom we need to meet. When the peasants come to the palace, their contact with God has been cut off, so when you ask them, they may not be able to answer it. It's different when we are in Nature. Nature will help them tell you everything you want to know."
"From the topic you explain, you must be a very profound Daoist Master," Zhu Youdun commented.
"Not so specific to Taoism. I appreciate all beliefs that are virtuous for mankind. But indeed, I feel Daoism is in synergy with me the most. We humans are only a small part of Nature, we must surrender and thus receive Nature's protection, then we will surely live happily. And the Nature becomes serene, too."
"There is a hut over there," Zhu Youdun pointed his finger at a hut not far in front of them. The hut was quite large. There were four people sitting at the front. They seemed to be a family, consisted of one woman and three men.
"Hey, how can we find the settlement so fast? It wasn't this fast before." Yes, Zhu Su was quite surprised, before he must travel a few more kilometers to meet a hut.
"Besides, more than one hut exist here. Look over there." Hu Nayin squinted so as to look at the huts standing further ahead. It was more crowded there. About a dozen people were working and singing, some of them were kids and teenagers.
"It's getting denser, Your Highness. This is a good sign." Qu You smiled. "Our assistance to the people has attempted to elevate their standard of living."
Zhu Su also smiled. He loved to know that his efforts got paid off, it made him more convinced. His walking speed increased, and shortly after he had been standing in front of those people.
The four people who were initially busy with their activities immediately approached Zhu Su and his cortege. One of them, a middle-aged man, asked awkwardly, "Excuse me, is that something you need from us?..."
Qu You stepped forward. "We are all from Zhou Fan Wang Guo, Kaifeng government. And they, are Zhou Wang, Zhou Shi Zi, and Wang Fei."
As expected, their expressions soon changed - as if they had just been struck by lightning. They automatically fell to the ground and kneeled down. "M... may we pay respect to Your Highness Zhou Wang!..."
"Alright, stand up." Qu You said again.
They still kept their head down even though they had been standing. Their hands squeeze each other in front of their stomachs. The middle-aged man stuttered, "Wo... would you please... to tell us... why Your Highness is looking for us?..."
"Just relax, Sir, have no worries. After all, why I'm looking for you is for something good," Zhu Su smiled, assured them. He looked at the trees that lay on either side of the hut, and approached them. "Do you plant all of these?"
"Pardon... we don't plant them... they grow all by themselves..."
"Really? The plants that grow all by themselves are apparently fresher and stronger than those that are intentionally planted. Then, is there any land that you use for farming?"
"Yes, Your Highness... over there..."
"Can you escort us?"
"Of course!... Such a big honor for us..." And the man led them to his farm, which was near to the cluster of huts further ahead, while three other people followed awkwardly from behind.
"Here it is, Your Highness." They had arrived at a piece of land very close to the cluster of huts. Their eye-catching entourage immediately caught the attention of other people. They were soon gathered, watching them with curiosity. And the call "Your Highness", the respectful attitude of the peasants, as well as Zhu Su's entourage which indeed appeared different and eye-catching, attracted their curiosity much more. "But this land doesn't only belong to me, I share it with other farmers. Only this one belongs to me."
The land the farmers used for planting was vast, yet the farm owned by the man was not large. But what were growing there surprised Zhu Su.
"It is not grain. It is... what is it? What is its function? Why do you plant this?"
While continuing to ask curiously, Zhu Su now took out a note containing the results of his research which he always carried everywhere. He even crouched down so as to see "the strange plant" more clearly.
"Ah yes... it's not grain. It is a kind of legume, called Candou (Vicia faba L.). Nowadays it's difficult to get good seeds for rice, wheat, and such kinds of things. But it's quite nutritious and satiated, that's why we planted this. All of the villagers like it."
"You use this... as food?!..."
"Yes, Your Highness."
"Can you guys cook it for us?"
"Oh, of course, we'll do it, Your Highness! My wife will gladly do it for you." The man turned to his wife, who immediately nodded quickly. He invited Zhu Su and his cortege to follow him. "Please come with me, Your Highness!"
"We are really sorry, our house is shabby and uncomfortable." That was what the farmer always said, he was obviously very ashamed of his house. At this moment they were all sitting in the front yard, since the farmer's hut was indeed so little for lots of people to enter at one time. Meanwhile, the dozens of villagers who had flocked from earlier still huddled together in a circle around them.
Wu Qi and several other soldiers immediately felt uneasy with their treating, as if they thought Zhu Su as a strange creature to be viewed. "Why the hell do you look us like that?" Wu Qi asked sharply, he raised the sword from his waist.
Wu Qi and the soldiers glared fiercely at them, made dozens of residents be immediately terrified. "Ah... um, Sir... we just want to know..."
"So you want to know, whom you are facing with?" Wu Qi lifted an eyebrow. "Well, I'll tell you. You are now facing with Zhou Wang. So be respectful of him!"
This time the villagers quickly fell themselves onto the ground, kowtowing. "Please forgive us for our dummy, Sir! We don't know that we are facing The Dragon!"
"It's okay, Wu Qi. No problem." Zhu Su tried to calm Wu Qi. "The reason why I come here is to meet Kaifeng people in person. They are also among the people I want to meet." Zhu Su turned to the villagers who were still kowtowing. "Stand up, all of you. I want to speak to you."
"Thank you very much, Your Highness!"
"You are also farmers?"
"Yes, we are farming at nearby. Just at the farm next to Mr. Xue's."
Zhu Su nodded. At the same time, Mr. Xue's wife had finished cooking Candou. She put it in a large bowl with a slightly damaged edge, and served it to Zhu Su.
"Your Highness! I really apologize... but this is the only bowl in our hut! And... and... we don't have so many bowls to serve your subordinates..."
"We have! We'll get them in a moment!" And those villagers returned to their homes in no time. Each person took three bowls, and so many people did the same, so you can imagine that plentiful bowls full of Candou were immediately served on the table.
Slowly, Zhu Su spooned the Candou and tasted it. He had been prepared mentally, in case Candou was actually despicable to eat, as for it became popular among the people because they were just in a state of urgency. He must be ready even if this food tasted very, very bad...