"Huh?"

The various leaders looked up, never in their wildest dreams having imagined that the first thing Si Lingxi asked about would actually be spring plowing and agriculture.

This is… understood!

One City Lord's eyes lit up. He stepped forward and said, "Reporting to the Palace Master! Spring plowing in Ai Ka City is already more than halfway done. Last year was also a bumper harvest, we have ample grain, it will not affect the war!"

Another Mountain Master hurriedly chimed in, "Feiliang Mountain has little arable land to begin with. Even if the old, weak, women and children all go out to spring plow, we still have enough grain and warriors for Phoenix Mountain to command at will!"

Another Clan Leader said excitedly, "The inherited Cultivation Techniques of the Nuotang Race were all bestowed by Phoenix Mountain. We are willing to go through fire and water for Phoenix Mountain!"

Si Lingxi: ???

Lu Zheng: ???

Si Lingxi couldn't help but look over at Bi Hu and Xuan Mei, who were standing off to the side. "Did you tell them that Phoenix Mountain was going to war?"

Bi Hu and Xuan Mei exchanged looks, both completely baffled, then shook their heads in unison. "We didn't?"

So Si Lingxi turned back to the several leaders who had spoken, her eyes narrowing, doubt flashing in her gaze.

With one cold sweep of her eyes, the several leaders shivered, a chill shooting through their hearts.

Since ancient times, presumptuously guessing at a superior's thoughts has always been the greatest taboo before a superior. In their eagerness to show loyalty, they'd gotten carried away and actually forgotten such basic common sense.

"Pa…Palace Master…"

"We…we…"

"Enough…" Si Lingxi waved a hand, cutting off their explanation.

She couldn't care less about these people trying to guess her thoughts. After all, would an Immortal care about the speculation of mortals? If they really could guess right, an Immortal might even be happy—kindred spirits are rare.

What annoyed her was that they didn't even guess in the right direction. The moment she gathered people, they thought it must be war, war, war—hit, hit, hit, that's all they knew. Why not bash their dog brains out while they were at it?

Did none of you notice I also called in some talent in agricultural cultivation?

"Answer my question and speak honestly: how is the spring plowing going?"

This time, no one dared to say anything irrelevant.

"Reporting to the Palace Master, half done."

"Reporting to the Palace Master, my clan is in the northern mountains; we've only just begun spring plowing."

"Reporting to the Palace Master, Late Summer Blue City organized spring plowing early, it has already finished."

…

Si Lingxi nodded, then said to the leaders whose spring plowing was not yet complete, "I acquired some seeds of high-yield crops elsewhere. In a bit you'll take some and distribute them, plant them in the lands under your rule."

"High-yield…crops?"

"Seeds?"

The many leaders all looked at each other.

Si Lingxi nodded, flicked her finger, and a dozen streams of Spiritual Light shot into the souls of the dozen or so farmers.

"These are the key points for cultivating corn, potatoes, and sweet potatoes. Study them, and help them plant these crops."

"Yes!"

"We obey the Palace Master's command!"

"We will devote ourselves fully to our research and will definitely grow these crops!"

"If we fail, we shall atone with our lives!"

Si Lingxi nodded and said to the leaders of these forces, "Don't underestimate these seeds. If planted well, one mu can yield over a thousand jin."

"Over a thousand jin!?"

All the leaders' eyes lit up, and the dozen or so farmers' eyes shone even brighter.

As managers of mortal powers and professionals in agriculture, they knew all too well what a yield of over a thousand jin per mu meant.

"That's the minimum," Si Lingxi said lightly. "If cultivated well, two thousand jin is also possible. Potatoes and sweet potatoes will yield a bit more, corn a bit less.

But potatoes and sweet potatoes aren't suited to be staple food, and corn doesn't taste as good as wheat and rice, so you can't blindly let them take over all the fields."

"Hiss—"

Sounds of collective inhalation rose one after another in the hall.

Si Lingxi hadn't pushed the numbers to their limit. After all, there was no chemical fertilizer in Great Jing, and the faint Spiritual Qi in the air didn't do much to boost yield.

Even so, her words already had an enormous impact on everyone present.

"Still, this batch of seeds hasn't been planted near Phoenix Mountain before. Whether they'll adapt to the soil and water remains to be seen."

She said to those agricultural experts, "That's why I'm having you follow along and study. If it doesn't work in one year, try two. If two don't work, then three, until you grow them successfully."

"Yes!"

"As you command!"

The agricultural talents and the force leaders all bowed in unison to receive the order.

Then Si Lingxi glanced at Red Crane, who waved a hand and released several hundred bamboo baskets. In the next instant, the baskets were suddenly filled with the three kinds of crops.

Everyone looked over and saw one type that was a cob wrapped in green leaves with specks of golden flesh peeking out, one type that was a yellow-brown round object still caked with dirt, and one type that was a dark red elongated object also covered in soil.

"Take them back," Si Lingxi said mildly. "If there's good news at the autumn harvest this year, come report back."

…

And so the dozens of force leaders and agricultural experts were sent off.

They left both excited and apprehensive.

Of course, this time the excitement and apprehension definitely weren't because they thought a war was about to start.

"Who knows how it'll turn out," Lu Zheng said with a shake of his head.

Si Lingxi blinked, casually waved her hand, and a sweet potato was sliced open. Then a small piece flew out of the hall and shot into the soil outside.

In the next moment, Si Lingxi pointed, Spiritual Power surged around them, and a cluster of tender sprouts pushed up from the ground, growing bigger and bigger. In just a few breaths, they covered quite a large area.

Then Si Lingxi raised her hand slightly, and that patch of earth instantly cracked open as a string of sweet potatoes broke through the soil together.

A smile tugged at Si Lingxi's lips. "Let's have roasted sweet potatoes tonight?"

Lu Zheng, "…"

And that night Lu Zheng personally took charge and made sweet potato porridge, roasted sweet potatoes, candied sweet potatoes, steamed sweet potatoes, and deep-fried sweet potato balls.

The four girls including Red Crane ate to their hearts' content, clicking their tongues in praise, saying these sweet potatoes tasted really good!

…

The moon curved like a hook, the stars strewn across the sky.

On Phoenix Peak, the night wind flowed like smoke.

"Zheng—zheng—zheng—"

"Wooo—wooo—wooo—"

Lu Zheng, in a green robe, sat beneath a green pine at the summit, his sleeves fluttering as he played the qin in the wind.

Si Lingxi stood not far from him, a blazing red dress flowing like fire as she stood tall, a jade-green Dongxiao in hand, joining in response.

The two hadn't deliberately empowered the performance, but neither did they suppress themselves. The feelings and Spiritual Power naturally infused in their playing spread with the sound of qin and xiao in duet, reaching over a hundred li around Phoenix Mountain.

The graceful, melodious music was like a clear breeze, like flowing water, like falling leaves, like flying petals, brushing softly past the ears of those with someone in their hearts.

"What a beautiful piece."

"It's coming from Phoenix Mountain."

"Is it Lord Phoenix playing the qin and xiao?"

"How fortunate we are, to hear Lord Phoenix's performance with our own ears!"

"So beautiful!"

…

When the song ended, Lu Zheng and Si Lingxi stood quietly for a long while before exchanging a smile.

"You've improved again." Si Lingxi looked at Lu Zheng, eyes full of delight.

This was a piece Lu Zheng had composed using Qin Guan's "Queqiao Immortal·Xianyun Nongqiao" as the foundation, blending the musical styles of Hua Country and Great Jing, with emotions brewed from a year of longing and the climax of a single day's reunion.

In Si Lingxi's opinion, in both technique and emotional expression, it was a notch above "Phoenix Seeking Phoenix."

"Low profile, low profile. It's mainly because you matched me so well, Lingxi." Lu Zheng said with a smile.

Si Lingxi covered her lips and laughed lightly, feeling her mood thoroughly relaxed after a duet with Lu Zheng.

"Lingxi sure plays a fine xiao." Lu Zheng leaned in close to her, his words teasing. "How about playing another tune for me tonight?"

Si Lingxi: ???