Speaking of Xuan Yuanzhan, Su Xuening's eyes were full of love: "He is very capable. He is the kind of person you mentioned who is both a scholar and a warrior. The emperor of Dong Chu has always said that he has great talent in governing the country. He went to his fiefdom at the age of seven. It was located in the southernmost part of Dong Chu, where there were frequent floods. After he went there for three years, he relieved the floods in Xiangnan. This allowed the fiefdom, which originally needed relief, to have surplus grain to pay taxes, making it the fiefdom that pays the most taxes in Dong Chu."
Helian Rong was somewhat bewildered: "He went to his fiefdom at the age of seven and solved the flood problem there in three years. Wasn't he only ten years old at that time?"
Su Xuening nodded, her brows full of pride: "Yes, he was only ten years old at the time, and he came up with the idea of diverting water from the south to the north to solve the floods in Xiangnan. He even foresaw the drought in the north. A year ago, bandits and drought plagued the northern part of Dongchu. The emperor of Dongchu sent him to the north to provide disaster relief and suppress bandits. In just one day, he subdued all 40,000 bandits in the north. He also distributed porridge and grain to the northern people, who were then forced to dig canals and dig ditches to solve the drought. In just one month, he brought the drought under control in the north, giving the northern people hope for survival."
Helian Rong was somewhat shocked, but also instantly became interested: "So amazing! Our Northern Wei also often suffers from droughts. How did that kid solve the drought?"
Su Xuening blinked and said, "It's the South-to-North Water Diversion Project. When he was ten years old, he had people start digging ditches from south to north to divert excess water from the south to the arid north. He dug for more than ten years. When the north suffered from drought, he guided the people of the north to dig waterways in that direction. Recently, the north and south waterways were officially connected, and water from the south has been diverted to the north. In the future, there will be no more floods in the south and no more droughts in the north."
"What a brilliant idea!" Helian Rong couldn't help but praise, "That kid came up with such a brilliant method when he was just a few years old, and he even had people diligently implement it for more than ten years. He is truly a man of great talent!"
Let alone the South-to-North Water Diversion Project, the fact that they managed to subdue 40,000 bandits in just one day is astonishing enough.
With 40,000 bandits, how could ordinary people subdue them without a life-or-death struggle?
The Emperor of Eastern Chu was right; this young man is indeed very talented!
Su Xuening smiled proudly, "Indeed, he is not only highly talented but also benevolent. He fought his way from the north to the capital without killing a single civilian. This time, when he ascended the throne, many people committed grave mistakes, but he did not take their lives. For the sake of the late Emperor of Eastern Chu, he spared them. The people in various places know about his deeds and love him as the new emperor!"
He Lianrong nodded silently upon hearing this: "He was indeed a good emperor, and the ancestors of Eastern Chu can finally rest in peace."
Su Xuening was amused by him again: "You don't think Yun'an is a good crown prince?"
Helian Rong shook his head: "No, he will be a good crown prince. Even without me, your father, mother, and even your husband can teach him well for me."
Even if he were to die soon, he would not be afraid. He felt at ease handing over the Northern Wei dynasty to them.
He believed that these children would not abandon the Northern Wei dynasty.
Su Xuening smiled and nodded: "I think so too. So if Yun'an can't stay in Northern Wei, we can bring him back to Eastern Chu or to Western Liang for education. Don't worry, we will definitely teach him well."
"Thank you all." Helian Rong said with a smile.
From that moment on, the anxiety on his face seemed to disappear completely.
"The Imperial Observatory just informed us of the date. The ceremony for formally establishing the Crown Prince will be held in three days. You, Yun'an, and Xiaobao should also formally acknowledge your ancestry," Helian Rong said to Su Xuening.
Su Xuening paused in her work, frowned and said, "Could we just let Yun'an go and acknowledge his ancestors? As for Xiaobao and me, let's just forget about it."
"Why?" Helian Rong frowned suddenly, somewhat displeased.
Su Xuening pouted: "As you know, Yun'an and I have also been recognized as ancestors in Xiliang and need to have our marks made. It hurts too much. I also feel sorry for Xiaobao. Xiaobao has already made two marks, one for Xiliang and one for Dongchu, one for the Vermilion Bird and one for the Black Tortoise. He doesn't need to make any more marks, right?"
Helian Rong's face darkened unhappily: "We've already carved the Vermilion Bird and Black Tortoise for Western Liang and Eastern Chu, what's missing is our Azure Dragon for Northern Wei?"
...These words left Su Xuening speechless.
After a long while, Su Xuening said, "I am your great-granddaughter, and Xiaobao is your great-great-grandson. Your great-granddaughters probably don't need to be marked anymore, and neither do your great-great-grandsons."
Su Xuening was right. Like the Western Liang and Eastern Chu dynasties, not every member of the royal family was qualified to have their seal engraved in the Northern Wei dynasty. Only the emperor's third-generation descendants were eligible to have the Azure Dragon seal made. Therefore, neither Su Xuening nor Yun An, nor any of the fourth generation, had yet had their Azure Dragon seal made. As for the fifth generation like Xiao Bao, it was even more out of the question.
Originally, Helian Rong was not in a hurry. Even if he had chosen Yun An as the crown prince to be groomed, he could have waited until Helian Ci ascended the throne before imprinting the Azure Dragon mark on Yun An and Xiao Bao.
But now not only has the Vermilion Bird divine beast of Western Liang appeared, but the Black Tortoise divine beast of Eastern Chu has also appeared, so he is anxious!
At this point, Helian Rong no longer wanted to hide it from her: "It was the Xuanwu divine beast that Xiao Bao summoned, wasn't it?"
“Yes.” Su Xuening nodded and instantly understood Helian Rong’s meaning: “Then let Yun An and Xiao Bao make a copy. I’m a woman, so I probably can’t summon the Azure Dragon Divine Beast.”
The old man saw that Xiao Bao had summoned the Xuanwu divine beast, so he wanted to see if he could help the Northern Wei summon the Qinglong divine beast.
That's quite clever!
Talking to smart people is effortless.
Helian Rong smiled with satisfaction: "Alright, then let Xiaobao and Yun'an give it a try."
If he could see the Azure Dragon divine beast appear in his lifetime, he could die in peace.
After administering acupuncture to Helian Rong, he fell into a deep sleep as before.
Su Xuening gave Yuan Xian a few instructions and then returned to the East Palace.
When she returned to the East Palace, Xuanyuan Zhan had already put Xiaobao to sleep.
During her stay at the Northern Wei palace, Su Xuening barely had time to care for Xiaobao, except for breastfeeding. Xiaobao was always taken care of by Xuan Yuanzhan, which brought the father and son closer together.
"Are you tired?" Xuan Yuanzhan pulled Su Xuening into his arms and massaged her shoulders and legs.
Su Xuening was really tired, nestled in Xuan Yuanzhan's arms, enjoying his tenderness.
Su Xuening pulled down Xiaobao's clothes and looked at the two lifelike marks on his back.
Seeing that she seemed preoccupied, Xuan Yuanzhan frowned and asked, "What's wrong?"
Su Xuening said helplessly, "Three days from now, the old man will hold a ceremony to establish his heir. The old man wants me, Yun'an, and Xiaobao to be recognized as ancestors together."
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