Chapter 297

Shami and Conniette
I discussed matters with Young lady Conniette about crops, but it seems there are no other agricultural products besides "Connies" that could serve as regional specialties.
While progress has been made in cultivating improved strains of wheat, making it possible to harvest more abundant crops, the lives of the people are still far from comfortable.
Hmm, is there anything else that could become a local specialty?

In the Galette County, Connies, or lychee, are cultivated.
In my previous world, this would indicate a subtropical climate.
Subtropical crops that might work... Nope, I'll have to consult the goddess’s book for ideas.

Let's see... Pineapples, mangoes, papayas, bananas, and so on.
Hmm, pineapples and bananas seem feasible, but I have no idea how to grow them.
The goddess’s book does explain how, but experimenting with these methods would take both time and resources.
For now, relying solely on Connies seems like the best option.
At least it appears to yield a decent harvest.

"Did you find any promising crops?"

Young lady Conniette leaned over anxiously, but all I could do was share the results of my research directly.
It seemed Young lady Conniette also took into account the time and expense required to acquire the necessary knowledge to cultivate these crops, ultimately deciding to focus on the cultivation and improvement of Connies for the time being.
Young lady Conniette is truly wise.

“... By the way, the Magic Tailor looking after my sister Shami has the same name as yours. Do you know each other?”

“Oh, that’s me. My primary occupation is as a Magic Tailor.”

“Oh my!”

Yes, I introduced myself as a silver-ranked merchant but didn’t mention my primary occupation.
It seems Young lady Conniette hadn’t realized I was Young lady Shami’s tailor, and they appeared greatly surprised.
Well, it’s not every day you find a seamstress offering to invest just because they want to eat fruit.

“Um, is my sister’s dress coming along?”

“Ah~ to be honest, not really. Young lady Shami doesn’t seem to assert herself much.”

“That’s true. My sister has always had a personality that only seeks to avoid conflict. Even this marriage arrangement was driven by our parents’ desire to pocket the dowry from the other side. Yet, they can’t even bring themselves to spend on her dress—it’s utterly disgraceful.”

Ah, Young lady Conniette seems disheartened now.
What should I do? Maybe I should ask them about Young lady Shami’s hobbies.

“My sister’s hobbies? Well, let’s see... She’s very knowledgeable about flowers. Her fiancé’s marquisate is known as the City of Flowers due to its vibrant flower production, and she worked hard to study flowers to keep up with them.”

I see, so she’s well-versed in flowers.
Now that I think about it, she had detected that the tea wasn’t native to this country based on its aroma.
Highlighting such interests might work well.

“So, does Young lady Shami have any favorite colors?”

“Well… I don’t think she liked red hues. However, the first wife always made her wear red dresses despite knowing that.”

Did I step on a landmine?
In any case, red hues are out of the question.
As for what’s acceptable, it seems blues and greens are okay.
That settles the color scheme.

Since she likes flowers, perhaps incorporating that flower would be good.
Just to be sure, I asked about it, but they hadn’t heard of such a flower.
That might make it stand out as a rarity.

For fresh flowers, I’ll check if Gerbera can make it happen.
I once heard from Plum that the Flower Spirits can bloom flowers they like.
It would be even better if Young lady Shami could bring seeds of those flowers as part of her dowry.
Yes, the vision is coming together!

What do you think about this chapter?