The Great Han Dynasty Volume 2: The mountain has trees, and the trees have branches. One two one, hidden paper.

  It's not actually the season for chestnuts to be ripe, but Zhang Yu walked halfway down the street and finally found some old chestnuts that had been stored away since last year at a market stall, bought them at a high price, and rushed back to deliver them to Zhang Yan.

  Zhang Yan peeled a chestnut shell and put the chestnut in her mouth.

  Chestnuts are getting heavier and sweeter as they settle down throughout the winter, releasing a pure and mellow flavor that spreads from the tip of the tongue to the stomach, with a rich and thick texture.

  But love is a kind that gets deeper and longer. It's always there, savored at all times, growing slowly, stored quietly. Until finally, loving him becomes a part of her life.

  "A Yan," he turned back, smiling at her, "come down. Let's go have dinner."

  "Mm." She nodded unconsciously, with a bright smile.

  It seems she could never refute every single word he said.

  A quarrelsome voice came from afar in the eastern city.

  They followed the sound and went over, seeing a crowd of people surrounding them. A woman in white clothes was crying with her head down in front of a restaurant, while two men were arguing on one side.

  "Is it him?" Liu Ying asked in surprise.

  One of them was Xǔ Xiāng, who was known to both her and Liu Ying.

  "This young lady doesn't seem willing to go back with you, why must you force her?" Xu Xiang stepped forward to protect the woman and questioned the newcomer. Suddenly, he caught sight of Liu Ying and Zhang Yan standing aside, dressed in light attire, and a hint of unusual color flashed across his eyes. Just as he was about to approach them to pay his respects, he saw Liu Ying stretch out her hand and gently shake it once.

  He hesitated for a moment.

  "Lan Niang is just a singing girl, I've taken a liking to her, so she's mine. And who are you?" The young man in black robes shouted loudly, "I'm a relative of Empress Zhang, think twice before messing with me!"

  By the side, Zhang Yan, who was originally holding sugar-roasted chestnuts to watch the excitement, heard this and stumbled. Almost fell to the ground. Seeing Liu Ying's questioning eyes, she quickly shook her head, with an innocent look in her eyes.

  The Zhang family has hundreds of people, but not thousands. How can she know them all?

  And she was his queen.

  Liu Ying's heart skipped a beat.

  He can deceive himself and others by treating her as his little lovely niece as before, but in any case, she is already his queen.

  As if bitten by a snake or insect, he let go of her hand and slightly averted his gaze.

  Zhang Yan looked at her empty palm, feeling a pang of sadness in her heart.

  Just like that, the situation on the scene has changed. A suspected Zhang surname silk son hugged his face and pointed at Xu Xiang, "You, you have a big nerve. If you have the ability to put down your name, Young Master will settle accounts with you in the future."

  Xu Xiang smiled and said, "I am Xu Xiang."

  The people of Chang'an all around let out cries of surprise.

  Suo Yu Dui Xu Xiang.

  Xu Xiang invented advanced farming tools and improved agricultural techniques, making the people of Guanzhong self-sufficient in food.

  The singing girl Lan Niang's gaze at Xu Xiang was also tinged with admiration.

  He sent Lan Niang away. Xu Xiang walked over, cupped his hands and bowed, saying, "Brother Liu, it's not long since we last parted ways, but today we meet again by chance. We indeed have a predestined relationship."

  Liu Ying smiled slightly and looked down, unaware that Ah Yan was acquainted with Xu Xiang. He turned his head to look at Zhang Yan and said, "This is..."

  He hesitated for a moment.

  How to introduce Ah Yan?

  It's not possible for her to be called the queen. Not to mention that the empress should be sitting in the palace, taking care of the harem, which wife would dress up as a man and go out to play in the streets of Chang'an?

  She says she is her own nephew? However, everyone in the world knows that she only has one biological nephew. Xuanping Hou's son Yan is only seven years old this year.

  He hadn't yet turned his thoughts around when Zhang Yan suddenly poked her head out from behind him, laughing and saying, "Oh, so this is the famous Magistrate Xu of Guanzhong, who's been praised by everyone. My surname is Meng, I'm Liu's older brother's cousin."

  She smiled brightly and asked, "Brother, right?" She pinched his finger hard to vent her private resentment.

  "Uh—"

  On the second floor of the restaurant, Zhang Yan looked out from the window and saw an old woman selling cosmetics on the street. Since she had nothing to do while waiting for her meal, she went downstairs to take a look.

  "The young mistress is a golden branch and jade leaf, what precious thing doesn't she have at home, yet she likes these?" The guard Yin Qin, who was ordered to protect her, poked his head out from the side and asked curiously.

  "It's not lacking." Zhang Yan smiled and picked out a wooden hairpin with a carved plum blossom, "But it's still very interesting." She turned her head to ask, "Do you have any money on you?"

  "Uh, no." Yin Qinxiao said stupidly. He was a guard, not a paid follower.

  "Hurry up and go ask Han Changyu for it." Zhang Yan glared at him.

  Yin Qin rubbed his nose, looked around, and saw that the long street was bustling but peaceful. He thought it would be safe to leave for a moment, so he quickly went upstairs, almost colliding with Xu Xiang who was coming down the stairs.

  "Zhang Gongzi," Xu Xiang called out to her.

  Zhang Yan turned around and saw him also bending down to pick out ornaments, and couldn't help but smile and ask, "Are you also picking out ornaments for your wife?"

  "Cough," Xu Xiang coughed and sighed softly, "I still don't have a wife until now."

  "Sorry." However, what happened to Xu Xiang was not something Zhang Yan was interested in understanding, and she lowered her head again.

  "Master Zhang," Xǔ Xiāng said from behind, "just now you mentioned my affairs, others may not know that I have been honored, but I myself am aware that Master Zhang has helped me greatly in the past. I shouldn't be ungrateful, it's just that my ambition is not in farming, and having toiled away in the palace for so many years, can I temporarily leave?"

  Zhang Yan unexpectedly turned her head and asked him, "Isn't it good like this now?"

  After this incident, Jian was favored by the Emperor and gained popularity among the people. The three years of farming practice in the detached palace were indeed beneficial for Xu Xiang without any harm.

  "I am a Confucian."

  "Oh?" Zhang Yan replied.

  The Confucians honor Confucius, but Confucius despises farmers. In the past, Fan Chi asked to learn about farming, and Confucius said, "How petty! Fan Chi!"

  She just didn't expect that such thoughts would also be deeply etched in Xu Xiang's mind.

  It was clearly farming that provided Xu Xiang with the capital to enter the imperial court, but he still looked down on farming in his bones.

  "Your Majesty has also said that agriculture is the foundation of the world, what's so special about Confucius?" She couldn't help but say, "If there wasn't a single farmer in the world to cultivate the land, does he plan on breathing wind and drinking dew?"

  "Zhang Gongzi." Xu Xiang couldn't help but slightly change color.

  "Alright." Zhang Yan shook her head, "I don't like to force you either. Since you don't like it, then let's not do it. No need to ask me. Actually," she said thoughtfully, "I have an idea in my mind, although it's not mature enough, but if it can succeed, there's a position that would be quite suitable for you."

  "However, everything that has a beginning must have an end. Since you've been doing this for so long, before you leave your post, why not compile the insights you've gained over the years, combined with the writings of past masters, and write a book on agriculture, which can serve as a reference for people all over the world."

  What else do you have in mind? Xǔ Xiāng couldn't help but ask, however a group of people came down from the restaurant above. Liu Yīn hastily said, "ā Yuān, something has come up at home, I must go back for a while."

  She let out an "ah" and stood up. Her interest had waned.

  "Sorry, Ah Yan," he apologized, "I promised to be with you, but I broke my promise."

  After a while, she smiled and said, "It's okay, 'Gege'." The corners of her eyes were gentle. "As long as you have that heart, Ayan will be happy."

  Jiāo Fáng Diàn

  Jie You held a lacquer box and entered the palace. She bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I have received news from the Ping Hou Mansion that the first batch of high-quality paper has been produced?"

  "So soon?"

  Zhang Yan bathed and changed clothes, shaking her hair which was still dripping with water. She turned back in surprise.

  "It's not bad." Zhen comforted with a smile, "The gentlemen of the Mo School were all astonished. According to Your Ladyship's method, using mulberry bark and other things to make paper is indeed better than hemp. After adding the sizing, it transforms the rotten into the magical, and the paper made from it is like being reborn."

  She shook her hair dry, took over the wooden box, pulled out a piece of paper, tapped it, pursed her lips and said, "It's still not enough. - You tell him Wei Kui to try another method, it should be whiter and more shiny."

  "Your Majesty," Shen Dongshou, who was standing by, asked, "Can this new paper really make writing more convenient and durable for long-term storage?"

  "Of course." Zhang Yan smiled and replied.

  "May I borrow it for a look?" Shen Dongshou asked eagerly.

  She smiled and handed it over.

  The paper was light, thin and white, its quality was already quite beyond her expectations. She stroked it with admiration, pulled out a bamboo pen from her sleeve, dipped it in ink and began to write on the paper.

  The ink flowed smoothly and freely, revealing the texture of the paper. The color was vibrant and dazzling, and Shen Dongshou was enchanted, unable to resist touching it again and murmuring, "If I had this kind of paper, in the future, when writing history, I wouldn't have to worry about the length or number of words, and I could fully express what's in my heart."

  "Enough." Zhang Yan withdrew the paper in her hand and said, "You're already doing well now. If you write more, won't everything I say and do in this palace be exposed to the light of day?"

  "His Majesty has arrived at the Pepper Chamber."

  A sudden and abrupt announcement sound suddenly came from outside the palace.

  Zhang Yan was startled and hastily crumpled up the paper and stuffed it into the lacquer box, slamming it shut with a "bang".

  Outside the hall, Liu Ying's footsteps were quite fast, as if she was about to lift the curtain and come in.

  She looked around, and the tables, chairs, and screens in the hall were all in sight, but she couldn't find a place to hide things. In her anxiety, she hid the wooden box behind her back with her hands. Turning her head, she smiled and called out, "Your Majesty, isn't it usually at noon that you come to my place? Why did you arrive so early today?"

  She saw her forced expression and Liu Ying smiled, "I suddenly remembered something I wanted to talk to you about, Ah Yan, so I hurried back - your hair is still not dry, how many times have I told you, this way you'll catch a cold..." Suddenly turned around and asked, "What are you hiding behind you?"

  Today I've been busy running around outside all day, this chapter was just rushed out, and it's still piping hot.

  Jiang Zai once again thanked everyone for their support in May. I am very touched by every bit of your kindness.

  At this point, 316 votes. It seems that if there are no mistakes, tomorrow or the day after tomorrow should be the time for my first update.

  Then, after washing and resting, I plan to write more chapters.