The prince consort led the way toward the location where the dam was to be built, and Lords Xiao and Meng followed quickly, holding up the corners of their robes as if afraid of falling behind.

"Just do a perfunctory job, why go through all the formalities? Aren't you tired of this?" The giant man sighed and shook his head, then walked towards the fenced courtyard.

On the other side, Yu Rui said to Hong Xiaoduo, who was walking beside him, "Actually, we can take a carriage."

“It’s not far. Taking a carriage up and down will only take up time. If the prince consort is tired, he can take a carriage himself. It’s alright,” Hong Xiaoduo said, looking at the scenery around her.

"Miss Hong, don't underestimate me. I am the son-in-law of the emperor, but I am not delicate. This job often involves climbing mountains and crossing valleys, so I'm used to it."

"But these two kids are really amazing," Yu Rui said.

"Your Yaoguang could have easily gone up against those two, but I didn't let her and Yuheng go up to save face for those two guards," Hong Xiaoduo told her with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Yu Rui turned around and looked at the distance between his daughter and himself. Seeing that she couldn't hear him, he smiled and said, "Yaoguang is a girl after all, and only six years old. She definitely can't handle the strength."

To reassure me and her mother, she even demonstrated the moves to the accompanying guards, but given her status and her young age, how could the guards possibly use their full strength?

“Your Highness, you are mistaken. She is young and not as strong as an adult, but martial arts skills are not determined by age or size.”

Technique, the skillful use of leverage, and a calm and composed mindset when facing an enemy are all very important.

These few have followed me around for the past two years, and the dangers they've faced are probably more than your guards and protectors have ever seen.

I don’t know if she told you, but the six of them once fought alongside me on the southwestern border, charging into battle and clashing with the soldiers of Yunwu Kingdom.

That scene was completely different from the bandits and pirates they encountered along the way. "Hong Xiaoduo told him again.

“My uncle did tell me this time, but I thought he was exaggerating,” Yu Rui said honestly.

Hong Xiaoduo nodded in understanding. Few others would truly believe what she said.

At this moment, seeing the wooden marker sticking out by the roadside, he knew he had arrived at the location, so he immediately stopped chatting and used his mind to control the sparrow-shaped drone to fly away.

She wasn't idle either. She collected soil samples along the way, took out a small cloth bag that Feiyan had sewn for her from the bag carried by the prince consort's attendant, put the soil samples in it, and took out a pen and ink from another bag to make markings on the bag.

All of this shocked and excited Yu Rui and the two officials, Xiao and Meng. She had even thought of this and made preparations in advance.

Around noon, Yu Rui said apologetically that there were no villages nearby and he had carelessly forgotten to bring any food. He suggested that they go back to have lunch and rest before coming out again in the afternoon.

Hong Xiaoduo said that going back and forth would be a waste of time, and that there was no need to worry about going hungry. Then she turned around and asked Tian Shu, who was not far away, loudly, "Have you gotten lunch yet?"

The prince consort and Xiao and Meng listened as the children cheerfully held up the things in their hands: several wild rabbits and a few fish.

The three of them were completely focused on Hong Xiaoduo's actions and didn't notice what the two adults and seven children behind them were doing.

With the ingredients sorted, let's find a flat spot with clean water to prepare lunch.

So the prince consort, Xiao Meng, and their two attendants watched as the children methodically gathered firewood and prepared the game, and soon the aroma filled the air.

"We weren't prepared, Your Highness, please make do with what we have," Hong Xiaoduo said as Tian Shu and the others handed over the roasted rabbit and fish.

Reaching out to take the fragrant, roasted game meat still seasoned with spices, I thought to myself, "This is what you call not being prepared, just making do?"

"Young Lady Hong, it's so delicious even without any preparation. What would it be like if we were prepared?" Meng Sheng asked, having tasted such delicious roasted wild game for the first time in his life, after taking a bite.

"My lord, you'll find out this evening," Tianquan said playfully from the side.

Hong Xiaoduo had already told his master that he would go back to Luohua Prefecture first and bring the two carriages carrying the outdoor equipment.

She said she wanted to get things settled here as soon as possible so she could leave sooner.

In that case, it would be more convenient to find a place to scout and spend the night.

While they were enjoying their roasted wild game, in the simple residence of the Water Conservancy Bureau, the person in charge of preparing lunch was still worriedly asking the Grand Master, "They came from the Prince Yi's residence, and the princess and her husband's young princess are also here. Is it inappropriate to prepare such a simple lunch?"

“What’s wrong with that? Our Water Conservancy Department isn’t some luxurious place. We eat like this every day. If they’re unhappy about it, they can go to a fancy restaurant in Luohua Prefecture.”

When they return, I'll have to ask them what they discovered during their investigation. They even brought a bunch of kids on a picnic...