Disaster Apocalypse: Farming, Family, and My Hidden Secret Space

"To Your Majesty, there is some left... but it is less than ten thousand jin."

So little, the current Saint frowned: "... Distribute them together with the grain seeds."

"I obey, Your Majesty," Minister Zhao bowed his head.

He sighed inwardly, the Emperor really has a good memory.

Even if His Majesty hadn't issued the order, he was already prepared to distribute these seeds. In fact, a batch had already been given to the people. Regardless of whether the yield was as rumored in Lingyun Prefecture, seeds were still seeds; one must try as long as they can be eaten.

Seeing the Saint's face finally soften a bit, the courtiers in the hall discreetly wiped cold sweat from their brows.

Especially Minister Zhao, who almost lost his head over it, feeling his heart pounding intensely.

The Emperor sat back on the dragon throne, gazing intensely at the ministers, frowning.

"Where is the Directorate of Astronomy?"

The courtiers exchanged glances, no one dared to speak out of turn, and the court was silent. A moment later, it was the eunuch serving by His Majesty's side who answered tremblingly.

"To Your Majesty, the Directorate of Astronomy failed in their duty to monitor the heavens, and has already been punished by Your Majesty."

At present, he frowned, his memory resurfacing, and he waved his hand, allowing the eunuch to retreat as if granted a great pardon.

He had forgotten that the Directorate of Astronomy had already been punished and imprisoned for their negligence due to his rage, all because of these people angering him.

"Release them and let them redeem themselves with their work."

"Yes," someone accepted the order.

In truth, everyone understood that although the Directorate of Astronomy was at fault, it wasn't that they hadn't done their job at all. Nobody had anticipated that the disaster would be so severe, affecting such a wide area with such intensity, otherwise, the Directorate of Astronomy wouldn't have survived.

The Emperor understood as well; otherwise, he wouldn't have released them.

A moment later, the Left Chancellor stepped forward and raised the memorial in his hand to report.

"Your Majesty, I have a report to present."

The Emperor glanced at the Left Chancellor and then at the people around him before the memorial was presented.

"Your Majesty, this is concerning the epidemic. Currently, there is a severe shortage of herbs in various places..."

"Minister Zhao..."

Once again named, Minister Zhao stepped forward again, his mind almost exploding at the mention of needing something. He had already started thinking about resigning to retire, wondering if his life was at its end during such times.

"I am here!"

"I give you five days to prepare medicinal herbs to aid each state."

"Yes, I obey Your Majesty's order," Minister Zhao said with a pained expression and stepped back once more.

Fortunately, at this season, herbs were plentiful, and unlike food, their consumption was not very high. With the storage room and emergency acquisition and picking, it could temporarily cover this shortfall.

The Emperor nodded, his face no longer tense all the time, but the upcoming report made his complexion turn grim once again.

Not just a disaster, neighboring countries were also starting to act suspiciously.

This was a disaster that swept across the entire continent, sparing no country, and everywhere was filled with suffering and death.

In order to survive, to compete for resources, a major battle was inevitable, though no one expected it to come so soon.

"Ministry of War..."

Upon hearing this, just as Minister Zhao was about to relax, he felt his good days were over again, as his head began to ache once more.

The tense atmosphere continued for a long time, until after the court session, the ministers, soaked in sweat, hurriedly left the hall, leaving the frowning Emperor in the hall to continue reviewing the memorials.

...

"Jin'er, look at the ruqun your mother made. Do you like it?" Along with the voice, the gentle Qi Shi walked in, holding several sets of clothing, looking at her grown daughter affectionately.

She couldn't help but sigh at how quickly time had passed. It seemed like just a moment ago she was holding her in her arms, and suddenly, she had grown into a young lady, leaving a sense of inexplicable reluctance.

"So beautiful, Mother, you're amazing." In the room, playing with Huo'er, Hua Jin immediately noticed the clothes in her mother's arms, though they were a bit too bright, made from the cloud brocade favored by the daughters of noble families. It was said that a bolt cost at least several hundred taels, and even then, it was scarce on the market.

She still had some because Luo Song, big brother Luo Song, had sent it over years ago as a thank-you gift. At the time, she only knew the fabric was very fine, delicate, and luxurious, but didn't expect its price to be so high.

Her mother's hands were truly skillful; not only did she make it according to her design, but she also embroidered exquisite patterns using gold and silver threads, decorated with small pearls.

There was no need to think about where the pearls came from; they must have been bought by her mother from big brother Luo Song, as no one else could have gotten them.

She herself had a set of pearl jewelry in her space, but those were large and full pearls, and the clothes were too extravagant; she couldn't bring herself to use them.

Originally, she meant to take them out for her grandmother to wear, since things left unused were just left unused, and besides, pearls were something that looked better with age.

But her grandmother couldn't bear to wear them either, saying they were too precious, and that if they accidentally broke or lost one or two pearls, her heart would ache to death.

"How is it?" Hua Jin, whose mind had wandered, was pulled back by her mother, excitedly looking at the clothes in her hands.

They were really, really beautiful, Hua Jin really liked them. Her mother was truly amazing, even though she hadn't seen her mother making clothes; she suddenly gave her such a big surprise, and they were so exquisite and heartfelt; Hua Jin was very touched, but... it was too beautiful, too exquisite, so exquisite that she didn't dare to wear it. Mainly, a person like her, who was climbing high and low all day and couldn't sit still, wasn't suitable for wearing it.

"Thank you, Mother, Jin'er loves them very, very, very much, they're wonderful, they're beautiful, you're really amazing."

"But making these clothes must have been very hard for you..." She said, taking her mother's hand and indeed finding a few needle marks on her fingertips that hadn't fully healed yet, feeling heartache.

"It wasn't hard at all. They were just a few clothes your mother made in her free time. Try them on and see if they fit; Mother will adjust them in the next two days if needed, as you'll be wearing them for your coming-of-age ceremony the day after tomorrow."

Mentioning her daughter's coming-of-age ceremony, Qi Shi couldn't help but sigh again!

"They fit, they fit," Hua Jin said, while trying them on with her mother's help.

"Mother, there's really no need for all this fuss for the coming-of-age ceremony. We could just celebrate among our family."

Thinking about the whole village coming to watch the ceremony, she felt like she'd be like a monkey, making Hua Jin feel uncomfortable.

"How could we? This is the most important moment for my daughter. Even if we couldn't afford it, we would still do it right; this is not something to be taken lightly. The coming-of-age ceremony not only signifies my daughter is grown up but also shows the family's care for the child. The more people who know about it, the better; that way, even when you're married, nobody in your husband's family would dare to look down on you."

"Mother, isn't that a bit too exaggerated!" Even though she said this, with a family that loved her so much, Hua Jin felt very happy.

She unconsciously twisted her body, hugging her mother who was helping her with the clothes, being playful so as not to let her mother help her wear them properly.

"You don't understand. I've been through it; now stand still and stop moving," she said, tapping her disobedient daughter, helping her take off the clothes she was wearing.

Looking at her daughter's tender white skin, with even pores invisible, even as a mother, Qi Shi couldn't help but feel a little envious.

Though her children's fair skin was inherited from her, it was even more beautiful than hers. She was fair compared to ordinary people, but she didn't have skin like her daughter's, like the finest white jade, flawless and glowing.