Chapter 316 Water Supply Cutoff
After the court session, the imperial study was crowded with people.
His Majesty sat in front of the table with a stern expression, with important civil and military officials standing on either side, including Shen Qingyuan and the Crown Prince.
Xiao Yechen reported back that Wengzhou had completely become the base camp of the Yuexi people. Xuanyuan Lang had stationed 30,000 troops in the city, intending to use the grain in Wengzhou as military rations after the autumn harvest and provoke war again.
Yuzhou and Lizhou, which are adjacent to Wengzhou, are also deeply poisoned by this incense, and nearly 30% of the soldiers have been contaminated by this incense.
The situation is more serious than imagined.
Wengzhou borders Yuexi, but there is a large desert in the middle as a natural barrier. Now Xuanyuan Lang has used the Soul-Stirring Incense to quietly break through this barrier, and has stationed 30,000 troops in Wengzhou City. After the autumn harvest, the Yuexi enemy army will get enough food and grass, and suddenly provoke a war. It is really hard to say who will win.
Even if they have discovered this conspiracy now, they don't have much time to respond.
"What do you think, my dear ministers?"
His Majesty spoke in a deep voice, and the atmosphere in the entire imperial study was very depressing.
The general who defended the country spoke first: "I believe we should mobilize our troops and rush to Wengzhou immediately. Before the autumn harvest, we should wipe out the enemy forces in Yuexi!"
The Prime Minister shook his head and said, "I don't think we should act rashly. There are tens of thousands of civilians in Wengzhou City. If Xuanyuan Lang uses them as a shield, we can't just attack the city without regard for their safety. If we do, Xuanyuan Lang will have a chance to escape unscathed, and we'll be fooled by him for nothing."
Xuanyuan Lang's evil plot has caused many people to lose their families and their lives. His plan must be crushed and he must be caught and severely punished in order to appease the people and calm their anger.
But it is difficult to do this.
Everyone fell silent again, and then the Crown Prince spoke, "To get the incense into Zhaoling, Xuanyuan Lang sought cooperation with Li Huaijing and his wife. Li Huaijing, in turn, approached Prince Ying. Prince Ying has secretly traveled to Wengzhou to obtain the complete incense-making method. Prince Ying has a man named Lan Shu who is fluent in Yuexi. He will find a way to pass on information. We can use this tactic against him and trap Xuanyuan Lang in the city before the autumn harvest. We can catch him in a trap."
Things will be much easier with an insider.
Everyone was excited when they heard Shen Qingyuan say, "Wengzhou has a dry climate. In recent years, a lot of manpower and financial resources have been spent on digging canals to divert water. Grain production has increased significantly, but it also brings a fatal flaw. If the water supply from upstream is cut off, Wengzhou will become a waterless city."
The Duke of Zhenguo immediately pleaded, "Then cut off their water supply. I am willing to lead my troops to Wengzhou immediately and capture Xuanyuan Lang alive."
Shen Qingyuan shook his head. "It's not that simple. The area upstream of Wengzhou rains a lot in summer and autumn. The diversion of water to Wengzhou has reduced flooding in recent years. If we cut off the water supply to Wengzhou, it would flood the vast fertile fields upstream. This would inevitably lead to heavy losses in this year's autumn harvest, and the people upstream would need to spend a lot of manpower and material resources to relocate and resettle."
The area upstream of Wengzhou is the land of fish and rice of Zhaoling. Once the war breaks out, the consumption of food and military expenses will be huge. If they cannot ensure the autumn harvest this year, they will fall into a passive situation.
Moreover, the timing of cutting off the water supply and the time for the army to head to Wengzhou must be coordinated perfectly. It is necessary not to be discovered in advance by Xuanyuan Lang and the enemy, but also to ensure that the water supply is cut off in time to defeat the enemy's morale, trap the enemy, and minimize our casualties.
The matter was urgent, so His Majesty immediately summoned officials from the Ministry of Works to discuss the matter.
It was not until late at night that Shen Qingyuan came out of the palace.
There were too many uncertainties regarding the water outage, and after discussing it for most of the day, there was still no progress.
Shen Qingyuan's eyes unconsciously showed fatigue. When he returned to the main courtyard, he found that the light in the small kitchen was on.
He walked over and saw Chunxi busy in front of the stove.
The child was almost six months old, and Chunxi's belly was already bulging. Shen Qingyuan frowned and walked over to hold Chunxi: "Didn't I tell Madam to rest early and not wait for me? Even if Madam wants to wait for me, she shouldn't prepare these foods herself."
Shen Qingyuan's tone unconsciously carried a reproachful tone. Chunxi quickly stood on tiptoe and covered his mouth: "Husband, please keep your voice down. If Nanny Li or Nanny Zhang hears you, all my efforts will be in vain!"
After saying that, Chunxi took out two roasted sweet potatoes from the stove.
Nanny Li and Nanny Zhang had spent most of their lives in the palace, and they were very particular about Chunxi's diet during pregnancy. Chunxi had wanted to eat roasted sweet potatoes for a long time, but Nanny Li and Nanny Zhang would not let her. She woke up hungry after a nap, so she sneaked to the kitchen and got two sweet potatoes to roast.
"I wasn't waiting for my husband specifically. I had already taken a nap and was woken up by hunger."
Chunxi patted the two roasted sweet potatoes clean with hay, compared them carefully, and took the slightly larger one and handed it to Shen Qingyuan: "My husband, eat the big one, and I'll eat the small one. Don't tell the maids, okay?"
"good."
In response, Shen Qingyuan took the sweet potato.
Chunxi couldn't wait to break open the one in his hand, and the soft, sweet smell immediately hit his nose.
Chunxi didn't care about the heat and took a bite impatiently. His brows immediately relaxed in satisfaction: "Finally, I got to eat it. It's so delicious!"
Shen Qingyuan was just worried about the water shortage, but when he saw Chunxi was so happy about a roasted sweet potato, his expression unconsciously relaxed and he followed Chunxi to savor the taste of the roasted sweet potato.
The roasted sweet potatoes were not big, so the two of them finished them quickly.
Chunxi clapped her hands and suddenly hugged Shen Qingyuan.
Shen Qingyuan was stunned for a moment, then responded to the hug and asked gently, "What's wrong? Aren't you full?"
Chunxi shook her head: "No, it's just that my husband looked a little tired when he first came back. I couldn't help him much, so I could only hug him with the child."
The two were very close, Chunxi's belly was just touching Shen Qingyuan. As soon as Chunxi finished speaking, Shen Qingyuan felt a very light touch on his abdomen.
"Husband, the child is moving, can you feel it?"
Chunxi looked up, her eyes sparkling. Shen Qingyuan had felt the fetal movement with his hands before, but he was still moved at this moment.
He nodded and told Chunxi in a gentle voice about the plan to cut off the water supply and lay siege to the city.
Chunxi didn't know much about water conservancy, but after careful consideration, he said, "Although the Minister of Works is proficient in water conservancy, he's held a high position for so long that he probably doesn't understand the actual situation. To develop the best plan, I think we still need to conduct on-site inspections, communicate more with local people, and understand the climate changes in recent years."
Shen Qingyuan praised generously: "Madam, what you said makes a lot of sense."
Chunxi smiled, staring at Shen Qingyuan for a moment before suddenly asking, "This plan was first proposed by my husband. Why didn't he volunteer? Isn't that giving away the great credit to someone else?"
"Anyone can do this, but my wife and children need me, I can't leave."
"My husband, what are you talking about?" Chunxi pushed Shen Qingyuan away, glaring at him with her hands on her hips. "My husband is neither a doctor nor a midwife. He can't do anything except stay in the delivery room. Moreover, the country is in crisis. In my husband's mind, am I the kind of person who only cares about myself and doesn't care about the overall situation?"
"I didn't think so..."
Shen Qingyuan tried to explain, but then heard Chunxi say, "These past few days, the princess, He'er, and I have witnessed firsthand how much pain and suffering those ladies from aristocratic families endure when they're addicted. The people of Yuexi have harmed so many innocent people with such despicable methods. Cutting them into pieces is not an exaggeration. If my husband were to go far away because of this, my child and I wouldn't feel helpless. We would only be proud of him."
“…”
On the second day, Shen Qingyuan volunteered to go to the upper reaches of Wengzhou for an on-site inspection with eight officials from the Ministry of Works.
On the same day, the Duke of Zhenguo secretly left the capital and took the tiger talisman to various places to mobilize food and troops.
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