There is a happy inn in the capital.

Chapter 471 is about the Flower Manor.

After the gongs and drums resounded and soldiers were recruited...

Li Shuchen, leading over fifty newly recruited henchmen and his two protectors, the Eighth and Ninth Elders, marched in a grand procession towards the two hundred acres of imperial-granted fertile land on the outskirts of Beijing.

The farmland is in an excellent location, nestled against the mountains and beside the water, and the soil looks incredibly fertile.

The original farmers were somewhat uneasy when they heard that the landowners had changed and that the land was now growing flowers instead of grain.

Li Shuchen waved her hand and said, "Don't worry! Those who want to stay will still get their wages, and we'll even teach you new skills for tending to flowers and plants! Those who don't want to stay will have their wages settled, and we'll part ways amicably!"

She stood with her hands on her hips on the edge of the field, the spring breeze caressing her face, brimming with pride.

"From today onwards, this place will no longer be called Li Family Manor, but—Thousand Flower Manor! Our goal is to grow a thousand kinds of flowers! Their fragrance will travel ten miles, no, a hundred miles!"

Everyone: "..." Boss, isn't this a bit too much of a boast?

Clearing land is hard work.

The eighth and ninth brothers took the lead, along with several strong laborers, wielding hoes and sickles to clear weeds and shrubs and turn over the soil.

Li Shuchen wasn't idle either. She rolled up her sleeves, took out the "flower planting distribution sketch" she had drawn overnight, and started gesturing wildly, making disjointed and illegible marks.

"This side faces the sun, so let's plant roses that love sunlight! That side is near the water, so let's plant jasmine and gardenias! How about planting some lavender on the slope? Oh, and let's reserve a few acres of the most fertile land to try planting precious peonies!"

Just as everyone was busy at work, a donkey cart creaked and groaned its way by.

A sprightly old man with white hair and beard stepped out of the car; it was none other than Grandpa Lin, the most skilled gardener in Baihua Manor.

"Uncle Lin! You've finally arrived!"

Li Shuchen rushed over as if he'd seen a savior, "Quickly, help me see if my plan is okay? How should I care for each type of flower?"

Grandpa Lin squinted at her "sketch," and his white beard twitched.

"Girl, is this a drawing of flowers or earthworms fighting?"

Despite saying that, the old man still carefully inspected the fields, grabbed a few handfuls of soil, rubbed them together, and checked the water source and wind direction.

"The land is good, and the water is readily available. But when it comes to growing flowers, it's all about adapting to local conditions and taking meticulous care of them."

Grandpa Lin began to give his advice, "Rose trees need to be planted on raised beds with good drainage; jasmine likes moisture but is afraid of waterlogging, so shallow ditches need to be dug here; as for seeds? Good flowers need to be easy to grow. Common flower seeds are easy to obtain, but some rare and precious ones need to be searched for in advance..."

With Grandpa Lin as her anchor, Li Shuchen felt reassured. She could simply buy some rare and precious seeds from Xiao Jizi.

Having more debt is not a burden.

In the following days, Qianhua Manor was bustling with activity.

Some dug holes, some fertilized, some sowed seeds, and some watered.

Li Shuchen followed Grandpa Lin around, occasionally coming up with some strange and unusual ideas that made the old man both laugh and cry.

"Grandpa, do you think if we play some music for the flowers, they'll bloom even more fragrantly?"

"Grandpa, if we add some sugar water when we fertilize, will the flowers taste sweeter?"

Grandpa Lin: "...Girl, do you think this is candied fruit? Follow the rules properly!"

Li Shuchen laughed heartily. Of course, she knew it was a joke; she was just trying to cover up her secret use of the potion.

Over the course of a few days, the once somewhat barren fields were neatly arranged, row upon row, ridge upon ridge. Although most of the soil was still freshly planted, one could already imagine the vibrant, colorful flowers that would bloom every day.

Li Shuchen was exhausted, his back ached, and he even had a small blister on his hand, but looking at the Qianhua Manor taking shape, he felt incredibly satisfied.

She stood by the field, hands on her hips, and announced to the crowd, who were also covered in dust but had bright, sparkling eyes.

"Phase one a complete success! Tonight, we'll celebrate with a whole roasted lamb back at the inn, and the wages will be doubled!"

"Long live the boss!" The cheers were deafening.

Back at the Happiness Inn, Li Shuchen felt like he could swallow a whole cow.

Just as she instructed the kitchen to quickly prepare the victory banquet, Grape came running in: "Miss, Lord Cheng has arrived!"

Before the words were finished, Cheng Zhi'an, dressed in a light blue casual suit and possessing a refined and gentle demeanor, walked in.

He seemed to have lost some weight in the few days I hadn't seen him, but there was a faint smile and a hint of barely perceptible fatigue in his eyes.

"Shu Chen," she called out gently.

"Oh, Grand Compiler Cheng, what brings you to my humble shop today?" Li Shuchen dusted himself off and greeted him with a grin. "Inspecting the people's conditions?"

Cheng Zhian looked at her, covered in dust, her hair slightly disheveled but her spirits high, and his smile deepened.

"I heard you received a royal grant of fertile land and are now busily managing the estate, so I've come to offer my congratulations. It seems... you're working quite hard."

"That's right! Starting a business is tough."

Li Shuchen led her to the Sanbao Hall and poured her a cup of tea.

"It's worth it! Once my Thousand Flowers Manor is established and my floral essential oils are sold throughout both countries, I will be the richest woman in the capital... no, the richest woman in the world!"

Cheng Zhi'an listened with a smile as she described her grand plan, and only spoke slowly and deliberately after she had finished a section.

"Besides offering my congratulations, I have some news to share today that you might be interested in hearing."

"What news?" Li Shuchen leaned closer.

Cheng Zhian looked into her bright eyes and said slowly.

"Yesterday, the imperial court promulgated a newly revised article of the Household and Marriage Law... which allows women, for legitimate reasons, to redeem actors from their registered status for themselves or their relatives."

Li Shuchen was stunned, blinked, as if he hadn't heard clearly: "...Huh? Say it again?"

"The law has changed; women can now also pay to redeem actors from their servitude, following the same procedure as men," Cheng Zhi'an clearly repeated.

"real?!"

Li Shuchen jumped up, almost knocking over his chair. "My God! Cheng Zhian, are you serious?! You're not lying to me?"

“The imperial edict has been issued; how could it be false?” Cheng Zhi’an nodded.

"Great! Great!"

Li Shuchen excitedly spun around the room twice, then grabbed Cheng Zhian's sleeve. "Cheng Zhian, you're amazing! This... this must be incredibly difficult, right? Would those old fogies agree to this?"

Cheng Zhi'an smiled slightly, speaking casually.

"It just so happened that the law was being revised, so this proposal was put forward, and some colleagues seconded it, so it was passed by sheer luck."

She didn't mention how many cases from previous dynasties she had consulted at the Hanlin Academy, how many memorials she had drafted, or how she had argued forcefully with those old ministers who held the "moralistic" view, even citing the precedent of a princess from the previous dynasty bestowing favors upon actors to pray for the late emperor.

Li Shuchen looked at her calm face, but his mind was perfectly clear.

This guy must have put in so much effort behind the scenes. A warm feeling welled up in her heart, and she let go of Cheng Zhi'an's sleeve, feeling a rare bit embarrassed.

"Um... thank you. I know about this; it must have been you... who went to so much trouble."

Cheng Zhian shook his head, his gaze softening: "It's good that I was able to help, Shu Chen... no need to thank me."

The atmosphere suddenly became subtly quiet.

Li Shuchen rubbed his nose: "Ahem, well, we're celebrating tonight with a whole roasted lamb! Why don't you stay and eat with us? You'll be eating alone at home anyway."

Cheng Zhian readily agreed: "Okay."