Douluo, my martial soul is a mushroom

Chapter 71: Great Harvest, Toys
The imperial palace, the main hall, and the court meeting.

"In the Di'ao Province, 63 billion catties of grains were stored, 4 million catties of beans, and 16 billion catties of potatoes, totaling 83 billion catties, a 3% increase!"

"Xueling Province... a total of 29 billion jin, an increase of 2%!"

"Fasno Province... a total of 110 billion jin, a 3% increase!"

"The northern provinces... a total of 14 billion jin, an increase of 2%!"

"The province of Edfu... a total of 42 billion catties, a 3% increase!"

Sitting on the golden throne, Emperor Xue Ye stroked his beard with a ruddy complexion.

Although he had already heard the minister's report once, even hearing it for the second time still made his heart beat fast.

Food is the foundation of a country, and the increase in food production is a direct manifestation of the growth of national strength. This year, the average food production of the five provinces of the Tiandou Empire increased by 2%, which is an unimaginable increase.

There was a commotion in the court, all of it was voices of joy and congratulations.

As the Tiandou Empire becomes stronger, the status and power of these ministers will naturally rise.

"Your Majesty, the bumper harvest of grain in the country this time is all thanks to the good recipe found by the Crown Prince."

A minister who supported Xue Qinghe stood up and spoke loudly.

The princelings all boasted about Xue Qinghe's achievements.

The news that "the crown prince has found a good way to increase grain production across the country" had already spread throughout the court and even across the country under the arrangement of someone with ulterior motives. It was convincing with reason and evidence. Even the forces hostile to the crown prince, such as Prince Xuexing, could not find any point to refute.

After all, this is the fact.

Xue Ye nodded.

"Qinghe did a great job this time."

Xue Qinghe said modestly: "It is all my responsibility as a son and subject."

"what do you want?"

Xue Qinghe bowed and said, "I have no other request but to do something practical for the people of the world. Therefore, I dare to ask the emperor to order a 10% reduction in grain taxes for the people of the country on the existing basis."

After Xue Qinghe finished speaking, the court suddenly fell silent.

The snowy night frowned, and the joy of the good harvest was extinguished.

He said coldly: "This is not something you should consider."

Prince Xuexing walked out and said with a faint smile: "Your Majesty, calm down. The Crown Prince just made a slip of the tongue. Taxation is a major issue of the country. How can it be changed at will?"

Xue Qinghe insisted, "Father, I guarantee that the increase in production across the country is not a temporary blessing. The empire will definitely become more prosperous. I beg you to consider the people of the world!"

"Are you saying I'm a tyrant?!"

"I have absolutely no such intention!"

"No need to say more, let's leave now."

After saying this, Xue Ye left the court directly.

The court officials left one after another, and Xue Qinghe stood still.

"Ah!"

Xue Xing walked past him and sneered.

The court meeting ended hastily, and Xue Qinghe returned to his mansion early and was not seen for the whole afternoon.

The steward of the Prince's Mansion was well-informed and considerate, and somehow he managed to let Chi Ping know about the court meeting.

"Ugh!"

In front of the laboratory table, Chi Ping sighed deeply.

How could Xue Qinghe be such an impulsive person?

In this feudal era, even if he was the crown prince, he could not discuss tax issues without authorization, especially since he was embarrassing Xue Ye.

"Tax cuts are good for the people."

……

In the evening, after asking the housekeeper, Chi Ping walked into Xue Qinghe's bedroom with gifts.

As soon as he entered the door, he saw Xue Qinghe drinking alone. Chi Ping shrugged his nose and showed a helpless look. After thinking for a while, he removed the disguise he had maintained for half a year after the auction house slave incident and revealed his true face.

He walked forward, put the gift on the table, and snatched the wine glass and jug from Xue Qinghe.

"Brother Chi, give it back to me..." Xue Qinghe said drunkenly, reaching out to snatch the wine back from Chi Ping.

Chi Ping pushed him away and said, "Don't pretend. I may have eaten pork, but I have seen pigs run. Is this how you drink alcohol in silence? You don't smell of alcohol at all, and your face isn't even red."

After being exposed by Chi Ping, Xue Qinghe stopped pretending and his eyes instantly became clear.

He slapped his face and asked, "Is my acting bad?"

"Very bad."

"It seems I need to practice more."

Chi Ping rolled his eyes, "It'll be the same even if you practice more."

He pushed the gift in front of Xue Qinghe and said, "I made this toy for you to relieve your boredom. If you anger the emperor, you will not have an easy time even if you are the crown prince. You will probably have to stay in the mansion for the next two days. Use this to relieve your boredom."

"Actually, I'm almost thirty and too old to play with toys." Xue Qinghe said nonchalantly, but his expression showed uncontrollable joy as he held on to the gift tightly.

"It's really strange. This is the first time I've received such a gift. How do you use this doll?"

The gift that Chi Ping brought was two one-foot-tall stickman-style dolls. The main body was made of wood, with jade ball joints and distinct fingers. Except for the lack of faces, everything else was perfect.

Chi Ping took out two modern-style game controllers, and weaved the mycelium in his hands into strings to connect the controllers and the puppet's limbs.

"Okay."

In the name of the developer, Chi Ping input soul power to control the puppet to walk, run, punch, do somersaults... and finally performed a set of silky little combos.

"puppet?"

"Well... you can understand it that way, but it's not that advanced."

Chi Ping threw the other handle to Xue Qinghe.

"Try?"

"Teach me the basic operations first."

So Chi Ping taught Xue Qinghe one key position at a time.

An hour later, the two controlled the puppets and fought passionately.

"Spinning kick! Two dragons coming out of the sea! Blue dragon spreading its claws!"

Chi Ping manipulated the puppet to perform incomprehensible combos while saying incomprehensible words. He was a complete loser with a big addiction to being a loser.

"This isn't a fight that can be won by just talking."

Xue Qinghe smiled contemptuously, seized the opportunity, turned around with his puppet, and knocked down Chi Ping's puppet with a punch.

"Tsk! Lost again." Chi Ping said unwillingly.

"Where did you learn these fighting skills?" Chi Ping put down the controller and asked in confusion.

Xue Qinghe's cultivation level is only Soul King, but his combat skills and soul power control are surprisingly high! He doesn't look like a young man who doesn't stand under a dangerous building.

After the initial adaptation period, Chi Ping could only fight Xue Qinghe on equal terms when controlling the puppet without activating his intuition.

"The emperor cannot be powerless. I have several martial arts teachers." Xue Qinghe answered casually, and then asked, "By the way, how much does this puppet cost?"

"Ten gold soul coins. I'm not looking for combat effectiveness, and the materials I used are not very good, all of them are inferior materials." Chi Ping put the doll on the table. It was getting late, and he should go back to his room.

"Can an ordinary first-level soul guide do this?"

Chi Ping raised his eyes and asked, "You want to sell this thing?"

Xue Qinghe nodded. "This way of playing feels very novel and interesting. Perhaps it can become a trend among the nobles. I want to take over this business, and I think Tiandou Academy may also be interested in it."

"I'll sort it out and give you the design book tomorrow."

Chi Ping resumed his disguise and left his bedroom under Xue Qinghe's gaze.

When he reached the gate of the courtyard, he looked back at the extinguished lights in the room and smiled with relief.

(End of this chapter)