It wouldn’t be difficult to collect good seeds given the Wang family’s position in Jinyang, and horses could be provided after reaching a trade agreement with the Southern Xiongnu.

He immediately decisively said, “Marquis Qiao, feel free to ask for what you want.”

He even contemplated whether he should select a fine horse from those collected by the Wang family as a gift for Qiao Yan.

Perhaps he should have Uncle Shuyou pay special attention to this matter in their future dealings with the Xiongnu.

After receiving the Nine-Brew Spring Wine method from Qiao Yan, he finally felt relieved.

As he handed over the record of this new method to his servants, he invited Qiao Yan to a feast at his place.

During the banquet, when he heard Qiao Yan speak about Wang Rou, saying that she had heard about him from her grandfather when they were in Luoyang and praised him for his qualities of a great leader, Wang Yang’s smile became even more sincere.

“By the way, there’s another matter I’d like to trouble you with,” Qiao Yan added.

Wang Yang wasn’t surprised.

What she asked for was still something easily achievable from her end.

It simply required him to act low-key when transporting the ten thousand stones of grain to Leping from Jinyang, but to act more conspicuously after they had reached the border of Leping.

Whether Qiao Yan wanted to create an image of surplus grain in the granary to stabilize the people’s hearts,

Or she wanted the people of Leping County to know about her cooperation with the Wang family so that her policies could be implemented smoothly,

Or if she had some other idea, it was all beneficial to the Wang family.

“Marquis Qiao, rest assured, I’ll handle this matter for you. I’ll also send a few Wang family soldier to deliver it for you.”

Why would Qiao Yan refuse his gesture of goodwill? After all, the trade between them was mutually beneficial, and there would be future opportunities for dealings.

Apart from Wang Rou( Shuyou ), who was already the Protector of the Xiongnu, in the Wang family of Taiyuan, his younger brother was currently acting as the interim governor of the commandery and would eventually rise to the position of General Who Maintains the East.

There might be opportunities for dealings with Qiao Yan in the future.

She replied, “Thank you in advance then.”

After the enjoyable exchange, Wang Yang had the good seeds loaded onto the carts and personally escorted Qiao Yan out.

Such treatment undoubtedly meant that Qiao Yan had gained the friendship of the Wang family of Taiyuan.

As she turned back towards Leiping, she couldn’t help but notice Yang Xiu’s unusually complex expression.

Even though Yang Xiu had known in Luoyang that Qiao Yan was far more strategic than he had imagined,

As evidenced by her ability to write a treatise on the governance of a province from the perspective of an outsider,

Today’s comparison between his proposal to seek trade with the Tang family for greater profit and Qiao Yan’s proposal to sell fine wine to the Southern Xiongnu, which directly garnered support from the influential families, clearly highlighted the difference in their strategic thinking.

“How did you come up with this method?” Yang Xiu asked, still puzzled.

“My grandfather told me about his experiences, especially during his tenure as the Commander of Duli.

The discussions on the experiences of the previous Commanders of Duli in suppressing the Xiongnu,

and the several months my grandfather spent in training soldiers and nurturing talents after taking office, gave me insights into the balance of power between the Han Dynasty and Xiongnu. This is what he taught me.”

Then, based on her comprehensive assessment of the situation as someone who came later,

She foresaw the Southern Xiongnu’s rebellion three years later and had to plan ahead to avoid being caught off guard after dealing with the Black Mountain Bandits,

Especially considering the chaos caused by the Xiongnu in Bingzhou.

Even with mountainous terrain as a barrier, there would be no peace under the iron hooves of the barbarians.

Under such frequent disturbances by war, there would be no opportunity for development in Leping.

Qiao Yan added, “It’s thanks to you coming along. If I hadn’t wanted to give you a puzzle, I wouldn’t have thought of this.”

That’s how inspiration struck.

But while she saw it this way, for Yang Xiu, it didn’t sound like something a person would say!

He couldn’t help but turn his head to the other side, thinking to himself that no one gives someone else a puzzle only for them to answer.

But he couldn’t help but admit that he had indeed benefited greatly from Qiao Yan’s actions.

Even someone as talented and resourceful as Qiao Yan had to make concessions in the balance between fame and profit to ensure the development of Leping.

Yang Xiu, who wasn’t as clever as her, had no reason to be proud.

He turned his head back and asked, “Should I continue researching this wine-making method?”

“Of course not,” Qiao Yan replied. “I had you focus on the Nine-Brew method earlier just to produce convincing results quickly.

With each addition to the Wang family’s wine industry, the scale will expand, which is beyond our comparison.

But since we took the lead, I don’t intend to give up just like that. I plan to use some tricks.

During these two years, you can oversee the improvement of techniques and the development of new varieties of wine. I have other tasks for you.”

Hearing Qiao Yan mention “these two years,” it was clear she wasn’t going to easily dismiss him.

Yang Xiu couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.

“What can I do?” he asked.

Qiao Yan replied, “Since I control Leping, I need people to handle administrative tasks.

However, many people are illiterate, and officials rarely come to remote places like Leping.

It would be better to select talented young people to teach, similar to the situation with Xu Fu.”

“Even though you started your education early, it hasn’t been many years since then.”

So, he was tasked with writing a primer for beginners, and if he had any uncertainties, he could consult Cheng Li.

Yang Xiu accepted this task, feeling somewhat bewildered.

Only someone like Qiao Yan could come up with such a use for children’s education.

But Qiao Yan vaguely remembered a person named Li Han from the Tang Dynasty, who compiled a textbook for children to learn to read, called “Mengqiu”.

There was a line in it that said “Yang Xiu responds quickly, Luo You memorizes silently”.

Such a method of combining famous people with their deeds seemed suitable for today.

With Yang Xiu’s quick wit, using it to fill out the entire primer was undoubtedly appropriate.

This approach also seemed less conspicuous than classics like the “Three Character Classic”.

Of course, she wouldn’t tell Yang Xiu about her thoughts, but seeing Qiao Yan entrust this task to him with such seriousness,

He knew she wasn’t just trying to get rid of him.

So, he started planning on the way.

Teaching people to read required thinking about which characters he learned when he started reading.

He certainly didn’t think about why Qiao Yan herself didn’t do this, given she was close to his age.

Being the Marquis of Leping, Qiao Yan had too many matters awaiting her attention, and she didn’t have the energy to do this task.

Cai Zhaohui could have assisted with this task, but upon returning to Leping, Qiao Yan gave her another assignment, leaving her with no time to spare.

Qiao Yan instructed Xu Fu to collaborate with Qin Yu, her mother, to categorize the good seeds brought back from the trip.

They were to integrate planting methods, write them down, copy them for the county officials, and then have each household come to collect them.

They would register and record them to ensure that the good seeds were distributed to every household and used effectively.

Considering Jinyang and Leping were not far apart, and the good seeds were not introduced from elsewhere, this was a solid improvement measure.

Qin Yu, Xu Fu’s mother, was evidently more knowledgeable about agriculture than Cheng Li and Xu Fu.

She was also well-versed in literacy and was the most suitable person for this responsibility.

Her dignified arrival by carriage left a strong impression on Qiao Yan.

Additionally, her exceptional guidance to Xu Fu made Qiao Yan consider her potential in education.

Now, entrusting her with agricultural matters was a wise move.

Qiao Yan thought recruiting Qin Yu was indeed beneficial, and she even generously offered her the position of steward of the Marquis of Leping’s household, confirming Cheng Li’s earlier speculation.

Upon receiving this position and the important task of distributing good seeds, Qin Yu immediately took action, along with Cai Zhaohui.

After entrusting her with this responsibility, Qiao Yan said, “Your demeanor reflects stability. I wonder if one day I can attribute the stability of Leping to you.”

This was not just a compliment. Qiao Yan was indeed impressed by her calm and efficient demeanor.