Chapter 388 Severe Drought
Shen Qingjun's daughter is named Shen Zixin. According to Old Mrs. Shen, this generation should be the "Zi" generation.
Although the Shen family was not prominent in the past, they still named their children according to the family genealogy.
So, what should this generation of children be called again?
Shen Qingjun originally wanted Shangguan Jin to name the child.
Upon hearing this, Shangguan Jin thought, "Forget it, I don't know much about naming."
"Choosing a name is a matter for parents; the name you choose represents your expectations for your child."
"Jun-ge'er, you and Qingqing should name the child!" Shangguan Jin immediately declined.
After some thought, Shen Qingjun and Qian Qingqing chose the character "Xin".
"A precious pearl in one's palm, meaning a comfortable life in the future," Shen Qingjun explained.
Upon hearing this, Shangguan Jin quickly agreed.
Shen Qingjun's first child was undoubtedly everyone's darling.
And isn't the Shen family's expectation for this child to live a peaceful and comfortable life forever?
The entire Shen family truly doted on Shen Zixin to the core.
Not to mention how much Shen Qingjun and his wife doted on this daughter.
It was Old Mrs. Shen who made sure to visit her great-granddaughter every day.
Qian Qingqing originally thought that since the old lady's courtyard was far from theirs, she wanted the wet nurse to bring the child over every day to pay her respects.
Grandma Shen firmly disagreed.
"That won't do! It's cold and windy now."
Don't let my Xin'er feel neglected later.
I'm still in good health; I can manage to make the trip once a day.
And so, Old Mrs. Shen would come to see Shen Zixin every day in a sedan chair.
And each time they come, they don't come empty-handed.
The gold ingots, which came in boxes, and the various small pendants made of gold and jade were all given away in boxes.
Before Shen Zixin was even a hundred days old, the small house was already crammed full of all sorts of gold and jade items.
It wasn't just Grandma Shen who gave it to us.
Everyone gave gifts.
Emperor Xiao Wu and Empress Huangfu, Shangguan Jin, and the other children in the palace all liked to send gifts to Shen Zixin.
When Qian Qingqing's mother, Madam Qian, came to see her, she was astonished.
"This is too much! Even if you wore one set a day and changed them, it would last for several years!"
"Grandmother said that it's not just the elderly who need gold and jade to calm down; children do too."
Grandma prepared a lot of locks, especially various kinds.
They said they were going to lock Xin Jie in our house.
"Grandmother has already had people make gold and jade necklaces, saying that Xin'er will start wearing them after her full moon celebration," Qian Qingqing said with a smile.
“But it doesn’t have to be all gold and jade!” Madam Qian said with a smile.
Qian Qingqing smiled and explained it to Madam Qian.
"Grandmother loved gold and jade the most. She said that in times of turmoil, nothing is worth anything."
Gold and jade are the most valuable.
Grandmother loves Xin'er so much; she gave her her favorite thing.
Mrs. Qian nodded.
It seems I didn't give enough.
When I go back this time, I must prepare more gold and jade items, so that my in-laws won't be outdone.
The birth of Shen Zixin brought liveliness back to the once quiet Shen family mansion.
It seemed as if the entire mansion was starting to revolve again.
From the very beginning, the third-day celebration, the full-month celebration, the 100-day celebration...
The Shen residence seemed to be incredibly lively all the way into May.
However, once May arrived, everyone felt the weather getting hot.
This year's weather got hot earlier and much hotter than usual.
Previously, the weather only really got hot after the Dragon Boat Festival.
But this year... it seems like it started getting hot around late April.
However, what worries the imperial court even more is that the rainfall in Dayu seems to be particularly low this year.
Apart from a heavy rain in February, it didn't rain again until late May.
The air is so dry it makes your nose bleed.
The moat of the capital city has almost dried up.
The farmland outside the capital was so dry that it affected the growth of crops.
Faced with this situation, the six ministries of the imperial court also came up with many solutions.
The Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works joined forces to dig wells for everyone in the suburbs.
But no matter how many wells were dug, it was barely enough for the daily water needs of the people.
The water supply for farmland... is simply insufficient.
At first, everyone thought that the drought was only occurring in the capital and its suburbs.
But as memorials from various regions were submitted, everyone realized that the situation seemed to be even more serious.
Almost all parts of Chongqing have not seen rain since February.
Even the prosperous Jiangnan region, known as the land of fish and rice, has fallen into difficulties this year.
The land of fish and rice has no water...
As the land grew increasingly dry, everyone became restless.
Under the guidance of the government, the young people followed the craftsmen to dig wells.
The elderly stay at home burning incense and embracing Buddha, praying that God will send down a heavy rain soon!
Even in many remote villages, people have already started organizing rain-making rituals.
Even the King of Qin, far away overseas, knew that Dayu had not seen a single rain in three months.
Upon hearing this, the King of Qin immediately began collecting methods for purifying the seawater from the islands he had occupied.
He stuffed all the collected methods into a letter and sent it to Emperor Xiao Wu.
"Your Majesty may implement this method along the coast."
While it cannot fundamentally solve the drought problem, it will alleviate some of the pressure on the southern regions once the coastal areas are properly settled.
Coastal crops can be harvested three times a year, which can help address any problems that may arise.
Upon receiving the letter, Emperor Xiaowu immediately ordered the Six Ministries to send it to the prefectures along the coast.
Even so, there was still no sign of rain in Chongqing.
Wizards from all over shouted themselves hoarse, but they couldn't summon even a single cloud from the sky.
Shangguan Jin was also a little confused.
How could there be a drought all of a sudden?
What is the principle behind artificial rainmaking?
No, artificial rainmaking requires clouds in the sky!
The sky is cloudless every day now; it just won't rain even if it wanted to...
Shangguan Jin misses Shen Qingrui a little.
That kid loves researching these weird and wonderful questions. If he could come up with something that could create artificial rain...
In the future... they will absolutely be worthy of being enshrined in the Imperial Ancestral Temple...
Shangguan Jin was lost in thought when Shen Qingyue suddenly returned from Chunbuwan.
"Mother, something's wrong!" Shen Qingyue said simply.
Upon hearing this, Shangguan Jin immediately led Shen Qingyue into her room.
"What's going on? Is it finally going to rain there?" Shangguan Jin asked.
Shen Qingyue shook her head.
"Mother, something seems off lately."
"A strange argument has suddenly emerged in various places," Shen Qingyue said softly.
"What argument?" Shangguan Jin was taken aback.
"A saying has suddenly emerged in various places."
The severe drought in Chongqing is a punishment from heaven.
"The emperor is unbenevolent, acts perversely, and disrupts the balance of Yin and Yang. The great drought is a warning from Heaven," Shen Qingyue said slowly.
Shangguan Jin sneered.
"Where have these arguments spread?" Shangguan Jin asked.
"They've already reached the outskirts of Beijing! It's estimated that news of their arrival in the capital will reach us in two or three days at most."
"Mother, there must be someone pulling the strings behind this!" Shen Qingyue said.
Shangguan Jin knew, of course, that someone was pulling the strings behind the scenes.
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