Chapter 32

A pair of slender hands gently plucked the strings, and the zither case resonated with a melodious sound like flowing water. The incense burner beside them emitted wisps of smoke, and the bamboo branches inside the door trembled as the zither table swayed. Qingyun simply sat quietly to the side, listening to the music and letting her mind wander.

After the song ended, Song Chaohua took the towel handed to her by the maid and washed her hands. Then she focused her gaze on the person who had come in and asked, "Do you have a fever?"

Qingyun shook his head, finally snapping out of his reverie from the music. He was still marveling at how elegant it was! It was truly exquisite! [The interior design of these wealthy homes is truly eye-opening, from ancient times to the present.]

She shook her head, as if remembering something, "Is there any painkiller? This pain is so bad I can't sleep." She kept sleeping and waking up all night, and couldn't get any rest at all.

Song Chaoyun picked up her teacup and nodded in agreement, "I'll have the imperial physician prescribe some medicine for you later."

Qingyun had to come to the mansion to apply medicine before she recovered, which was perfect, as it made things easier for her to talk. She recounted everything she had seen yesterday, and Song Chaohua indicated that she knew. Then she looked up and asked, "Do you have something to say?"

“The current situation is like having a pile of gold in front of everyone, but we’re telling people not to use it. It’s normal for them not to cooperate,” she pondered, and tentatively suggested, “Why not use the explanation of ghosts and gods? Why not invite a Taoist priest or a Buddhist monk to come and disturb people’s hearts? Maybe then they will all cooperate.”

"Using witchcraft?" Song Chaoyun raised an eyebrow, then put down his teacup, signaling Qingyun to continue.

"We don't have to rely on that entirely. We can also persuade people with reason, and if necessary, we can use the government troops to suppress them," Qingyun replied. "The root of this problem is that the villagers have suffered a lot. In the days when there was no water to drink, each household only received a few bowls of water, and they still had to work in the sand dunes and fields. It would be better to dig a few more wells and solve the problem at its source."

Song Chaoyun gave a soft "hmm," drawing out the sound with an ambiguous tone. She looked at Qingyun and simply said, "Not bad." She didn't say anything more. Qingyun was confused and didn't understand what she meant, but took it as Song Chaoyun knowing.

As soon as Qingyun stepped out of the room, she saw Song Chaohua. The other party only gave Qingyun a cold look, just like when she looked at Qingyun on her sickbed. Qingyun felt goosebumps all over from being stared at, and a strange feeling lingered in her heart. Seeing this, she quickly suppressed her emotions, lowered her head and walked out. She didn't notice and bumped her head on a very heavy object.

Looking up, she saw Song Junwu, who was still wearing armor, as if he had just returned from the army. Qingyun held her reddened forehead and before she could speak, she heard a voice behind her, "You dog servant, you don't even kneel down when you see me? Are you blind enough to run into someone else's arms?"

Qingyun: "..." I've discovered that you little brat are really good at changing your mind.

Upon hearing this, Qingyun immediately knelt on the ground, dragging her injured hand to bow to Song Chaoyun, and then said to Song Junwu, "This servant is terrified. I am clumsy and have offended Lord Song. I hope Your Highness and Lord Song will forgive me."

Not wanting to argue with a brat, Qingyun was a man of principle who could bend and stretch. However, Song Junwu, standing to the side, frowned and was speechless as he looked at the dignified Qingyun. After a while, he waved his hand to let Qingyun go down first. Before Song Chaohua could speak, Song Junwu grabbed him and led him inside, saying, "Why do you need to get angry with a servant?"

Song Chaohua scoffed, "Lord Song may have the belly of a prime minister, but I don't. I won't let a dog of a servant climb over me." Her hand, hidden in her sleeve, clenched and unclenched, veins bulging. "She dared to question me; I've already been magnanimous by not sending her to her death."

As she spoke, she turned around and took Song Junwu's hand off her shoulder. "No matter how much you and your sister like her, there's a limit. She's of lowly birth, and once she gains power, she tramples on my head." Song Chaohua's eyes were filled with hatred. "You'd better pray that she doesn't fall into my hands again."

Along the way, Qingyun saw many riotous crowds, their chatter giving her a headache. She was wondering how everyone was doing with the seedlings of the longhorn beetle, but then she saw that Mu Helian was also being disturbed. Many people were saying directly that they couldn't drink the hot water and didn't want to drink it.

“If you don’t drink it, you’ll all get sick and die, so I’ll throw you all into the ground as fertilizer,” Mu Helian replied loudly, frowning.

“Lord Mu, it’s so hot today, we really can’t drink anymore. This isn’t something we can do out of friendship,” said the elderly woman at the head of the group, and the people around her quickly echoed her sentiments.

Seeing this, Mu Helian said, "Then let someone set aside each day to boil water the night before and let it cool so everyone can drink it the next day." Many people were puzzled. It was one thing to not allow drinking the water from the pit, but everyone used to drink well water directly without Mu Helian saying a word of objection. Why was she putting on an act now?

Qingyun didn't put a water purifier in the well outside the sand dunes, so boiling water was definitely necessary.

In short, everyone was unhappy when they heard that someone had to sacrifice their sleep to boil water. "Lord Mu, why bother? Why make such a fuss!"

Mu Helian stared at the man who had spoken and said sarcastically, "Why don't you go ask Lord Song why he has so many fussy rules?" She walked over and patted him on the shoulder. "How about I take you there now?"

The man lowered his head in fear, but still muttered curses under his breath. Seeing this, Qingyun stepped forward and said, "In that case, everyone should bring their own water bottles and drink water separately. If any of you drink untreated water and get sick, you will be responsible for your own actions."

When Mu Helian saw Qingyun arrive, she chimed in, "That's true. I'm not begging you. Since none of you want trouble, let's just mind our own business." The scar on her face twitched with her facial movements, and her expression was enough to intimidate a large group of people.

There were many different opinions. Everyone was arguing in hushed tones, while some people set an example by declaring that Mu Helian didn't need to pretend to be a good person and that whatever happened was their own fate.

Mu Helian was so angry she laughed. She couldn't control someone who was eager to die. She led Qingyun out of the crowd and then asked about her injuries. "You were too impulsive. You dared to take a knife directly at the Second Prince."

Seeing the shocked expression on the other party's face, as if he had asked for death, Qingyun chuckled. He had no other choice. To be honest, threatening others like that was not a good idea. His hands were sweaty and his grip on the knife was unsteady.

"She actually didn't sentence you to death, that's really amazing." Mu Helian pondered, then suddenly had a bright idea and hurriedly asked if Song Chaoyun had pleaded for her.

Qingyun didn't know this, but the child was holding a grudge against her very tightly. "I was a bit impulsive, but I won't do it again next time."

"Is this an impulsive act?" Mu Helian asked, her voice a profound question.

Qingyun: "..."

Mu Helian realized that Qingyun was the kind of person who acted without considering the consequences; in a moment of impulsiveness, he would dare to commit any crime punishable by death. "Didn't you see that none of those people were arguing with you today?" Mu Helian pointed behind her with her thumb. Qingyun looked in the direction of the gesture and revealed a smug smile.

"Isn't that because of that whip you wore last time?"

“Wrong!” Mu Helian crossed her arms and shook her head, saying, “That’s because they’re afraid you might dare to kill people if there’s a riot.”

Hearing this, Qingyun realized that he was now truly infamous. "How come those people dared to talk back to you? Aren't they afraid of your whip?"

Upon hearing this, Mu Helian touched her nose and coughed a few times. She couldn't very well say that she had been called over by Liu Er to be reprimanded after that day, and that he had beaten his people. This guy still held a grudge to this day, and even a few days ago he told her not to use torture so easily and not to engage in such cruel practices.

No more exploitation? The pancakes we eat are all made of meat, right? So much money went into Liu Er's pocket, and that bastard still dares to act innocent after getting a good deal.

However, after seeing this today, Qingyun's thoughts became even stronger; he was determined to ingrain hygiene habits into everyone's minds.

Seeing this, Mu Helian quickly changed the subject, asking Qingyun why he had come despite being injured.

Upon hearing this, the poor Qingyun, whose body was wrapped in bandages, gave a smile that was more like a grimace. Even in her condition, she still had to worry about planting trees. The main reason was that she had only seen a little progress in treating the longhorn beetle in the past few days, and she wanted to see if any more problems had arisen.

"Everyone is busy replanting seedlings, but don't worry, we've been keeping an eye on pests and diseases," Mu Helian replied.

Seeing this, Qingyun was relieved. She touched the fabric of Mu Helian's body and then looked at her and said, "I really wish I could do it myself."

Mu Helian truly believed these words. She wasn't stupid; she could see how hard Qingyun had worked on this mess. Since she and the princess arrived here, Muyun City's policies had been constantly being reformed. The trees in the distance had grown several meters tall, forming a continuous canopy. Everything was visibly improving, and perhaps in the near future, the entire Muyun City would be reborn.

"Qingyun" Mu Helian turned to look at her and suddenly said solemnly, "Thank you." She was thanking her on behalf of the villagers, and her words were sincere.

Upon hearing this, Qingyun simply grinned and said, "I know."

"Qingyun!" Suddenly, a shout came from behind, and the person who came was Lin Wanjun.

Lin Wanjun came running over, panting heavily, looking like she might be blown away by the wind. She smiled and hurriedly greeted Qingyun, "I went to your house, but I couldn't find you." She walked over and tried to take Qingyun's arm, but Qingyun subtly dodged her.

Qingyun looked at the basket in surprise. When she saw that it was meat, she was overjoyed and quickly took out the braised beef.

Lin Wanjun stared at her empty hand, frozen in place, lost in thought.

All of this was observed by Mu Helian, who scrutinized the two of them.

"Did you buy this?" Qingyun asked, chewing on her beef. As she spoke, she picked up another piece from the porcelain dish and began to eat it.

The person standing nearby finally snapped out of their daze, gathered their thoughts, and came over with a smile, saying, "I bought it. There are also pastries downstairs." As she spoke, she invited Mu Helian to come and eat with her.