Kangxi first looked at the clothes of his sons. He didn't think there was anything wrong when he saw the first few sons, but when he saw Yinzuo, he felt something was wrong no matter how he looked at it.
"Yinzuo, isn't your face a little too pale...it doesn't match the clothes you're wearing."
"Haha, if you knew you didn't want to go, you shouldn't have brought me along. I'm living well in my garden, but you insisted on pulling me out. Did you get my consent? Now not only am I being laughed at by my brothers for being a gigolo, but you're also making fun of me, right? You'd better restrain yourself, or I'll make a scene."
"Ahem, okay, let's get down to business. Remember, from now on, I'm a businessman who travels all over the country. My surname is Huang, Liang Jiugong is our housekeeper, and you are my sons. Now, before we set off, you should give yourselves a name to use when you're out, so you don't call yourselves the wrong names when you're out."
It was obvious that Kangxi knew Yinzuo well. One look at the expression on his face told him that if he continued talking, he would probably get anxious. So he didn't give him any chance to make a fuss, cleared his throat and quickly changed the subject.
Yinzuo's interest piqued upon hearing Kangxi's words. A businessman? Cosplay? Picking his own name? He understood. After all, his identity as a foreigner was his own, so he had to choose a name that was resounding.
After hearing what Kangxi said, Yinzhen and the others nodded to show that they understood. They did not think as much as Yinzuo did, and the names they chose were quite simple. They just used the last character of their current name and added a surname.
"Sixth Brother, you haven't decided on a name yet. It's just a pseudonym, don't take it so seriously. If you haven't decided on one, why don't you let your elder brother give you one?"
Seeing that Yinzuo was still hesitating after thinking for so long, Yinzhi couldn't help but feel a little anxious. He strode over, put his arm around his shoulders and said.
"I've thought it through, I've thought it through. I want to call it Yellow Crane Tower. That way, when I announce the name, the first thing people will think of is, 'The yellow crane has gone and never returns, the white clouds drift across the sky for a thousand years.' Then I... Hey, big brother, why did you hit me?"
Yinzhi let go of the hand that was around Yinzuo and waved it in front of him, indicating that he was wronged and that someone else had beaten him. Sure enough, when Yinzuo turned around, he saw his fourth brother staring at him with a cold face.
"Restart."
Well, it’s probably that the Yellow Crane Tower can no longer be called that today. Yinzuo could only reluctantly remove the last word “Lou” and gave it a name similar to that of his brothers.
Although Yinzuo had learned from his elder brother before setting off that the purpose of their trip was to inspect the drought situation around the capital, he had seen a vibrant and green scene everywhere he looked, whether in Changchun Garden or Enze Garden. This led him to make a wrong judgment about the severity of the drought outside. He thought that even if there was a water shortage outside, it should not be too serious.
But after leaving the capital, Yinzuo hadn't been walking for long when he noticed something was amiss. At this time of year, shouldn't the wheat in the fields along the official road be lush and green, heading for ear? But this year, the wheat in the fields was either sparse or listless and withered, completely lacking the signs of a bountiful harvest that had characterized previous years.
The further out you go, the more severe the drought becomes. In order to avoid a total harvest this year, many farmers are still working under the scorching sun to scoop up the little water in the ditches to irrigate the crops in the fields, even though they know there is little hope. They hope they can hold out a little longer and that God will show mercy and send down a rain as soon as possible.
It is said that Yinzhen is a man of action. Kangxi and his men were still staring at the drying wheat fields with frowns on their faces. The old man had already dismounted and was resting under a tree by the roadside. Seeing this, Kangxi and his men also hurriedly dismounted and walked towards the tree.
"Brother, how long has this drought lasted? Do we have enough food at home? Has the government sent anyone to check on the situation and come up with a plan?"
The old man saw that although Kangxi and his entourage were dressed simply, they all had extraordinary demeanor. When he heard Kangxi's questions, although he had some doubts in his heart, he dared not refuse to answer.
"In reply to this gentleman, it has only rained once since the beginning of spring, and we haven't seen a drop of rain since then. This has lasted for more than two months now. At the beginning, there was water in the river, and we could still carry water to irrigate the fields, but the water will eventually run out. I estimate that in a few days, the water in the river will dry up, and there will be nothing to irrigate. We still have some food at home, but it won't last much longer. If God doesn't rain again, the wheat in the fields will not be harvested this year, and the whole family can only wait to starve to death. As for the government, they sent people to inquire about the situation a few days ago, but if God doesn't rain, what can they do..."
The old man couldn't help but burst into tears when he said this. Kangxi's face became more solemn after hearing what the old man said. Yinzuo walked to the edge of the field and carefully inspected it. He found that the field was dry and cracked. In many places, the soil turned into sand when you dug with your hands. In this case, the little water everyone brought from the river was like a drop in the bucket.
For several days in a row, the situation was similar wherever they went. After coming back from a walk outside, everyone was in an extremely heavy mood. Faced with a table full of delicious food, even Yinzuo, who was usually carefree, had no appetite. Everyone reluctantly ate a few bites and then had the food taken away.
"As you've seen today, the drought around the capital is so severe. You can imagine the situation further afield. Do you have any plans to deal with this drought?"
Faced with Kangxi's question, everyone couldn't help but frown. As the saying goes, if it doesn't rain, what can they do? Everyone looked at each other, and finally Prince Yinreng was the first to stand up.
"Khan, I believe our most urgent task is to first determine the extent of this drought, then open the granaries and release grain to prevent panic and unrest caused by food shortages. After that, we must do our utmost to find water sources and save the crops in the fields. Finally, if you decree to reduce taxes, this will also relieve the people of their worries."
Kangxi agreed with Yinreng's words. After all, the process of dealing with disasters in the past was almost the same. The most urgent task was to find a water source as soon as possible, or for God to send a heavy rain, otherwise it would be difficult to have a harvest this year.
"Khan Ama, you can have the people in the Ministry of Works speed up the production of a few of these shovels. Let them take a few with them when they go looking for water sources. These tools can bring up soil from deep underground, so they won't have to dig for a long time only to find that there is no water underneath and waste their efforts."
Yinzuo forgot where he seemed to have seen such a method before. It was said that in some places in modern rural areas, people still use Luoyang shovel to dig wells. He thought that the Luoyang shovel itself was invented for exploring underground soil. Isn't this just right? So, while Kangxi and Yinzhi were discussing, he ran to the table next to him, took paper and pen, and drew the appearance of the Luoyang shovel.
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