Zhou Yanqing immediately knelt down, saying, "This humble official is guilty; I made such a weighty promise without reporting it to the imperial court."
Qin Zhaoqiong narrowed her eyes.
The night rain fell like arrows, and the pine resin torches cast ghostly shadows in the mud.
The walls made of bamboo cages could not stop the river water from seeping in, leaving layers of reddish-brown mud.
The seriously ill Keng Dinghu had a rope digging into his festering shoulder blade, with rotten flesh mixed with pus and blood sticking to the knot.
He gripped the edge of the bluestone with his ten fingers and pushed forward step by step with his knees against the water.
It was as if with each step forward, the tattoo of the slave mark on his forehead would fade a little.
Despite the thick humidity, my throat still felt dry and hoarse when I opened it: "How will the laborers be conscripted?"
Zhou Yanqing remained kneeling and replied, "One out of every three men will be conscripted, and two out of every five households will be exempted."
Qin Zhaoqiong exhaled a breath of stale air, realizing that the forced labor was within the minimum acceptable limit and should not incite a popular uprising.
"I will write to His Majesty. Go and attend to your duties."
"yes!"
The county magistrate and the forge magistrate immediately withdrew. Qin Zhaoqiong turned around and looked behind her, only to find that her sixth sister's pretty face was tense.
He took a step closer, grabbed her hand, and asked, "Zhaoyue... could your injection method cure it?"
Qin Zhaoyue raised her head, her somewhat unfocused gaze meeting her elder sister's. She pursed her lips, "I'm afraid that won't work..."
She had excellent eyesight and saw the wounds on the bodies of those who had fought desperately in the pit.
The reason the doctor determined that there was no cure was likely due to a severe infection of the wound. In this case, the best course of action is to use antibiotics.
Qin Zhaoyue only knew about penicillin. She had heard a little story about the invention of penicillin, but that was all she knew.
First, they don't know the detailed steps, and second, they don't know how to determine whether the injection criteria have been met.
There was no hope; even trying anything as a last resort was futile.
Upon hearing this, Qin Zhaoqiong tightened her grip on her hand. "It's alright. Eldest sister, you must stay here. Be careful."
They all knew the true meaning behind it.
"Elder sister, I will go to the treatment area and do my best."
Another suggestion, listen to it and see if it suits your needs…
Seeing the laborers carrying stones to build a temporary retaining wall, Qin Zhaoyue's first thought was cement.
However, this world uses a mixture of soil, cement, and mortar, and using cement in rainy weather isn't very practical. Nevertheless, an idea did emerge:
Is it possible to fix the outer layer of the slag heap using a method similar to casting, so that it can truly become a mountain?
As for whether it is feasible and what materials are needed, that is left to the officials of the Imperial Workshop to consider.
Qin Zhaoqiong nodded after listening, "Okay, I've got it."
The two looked at each other, and everything was understood without a word.
Watching her elder sister rush into the rain, watching the fallen pit dweller being pulled out of the river and lying on the muddy ground, no longer breathing, Qin Zhaoyue lowered her eyes.
Just then, a majestic figure blocked the view.
“Pretty sister,” Ping An said, pointing to the busy laborers behind her, “I can move stones.”
Qin Zhaoyue tilted her head back sharply, her silly child's eyes clear and bright, revealing everything at a glance.
The sorrow and grief of Iron Slag Mountain were not tainted in the slightest; instead, they were tinged with a strong sense of... excitement?
Ping An has been extremely anxious lately.
He had the deepest memory that he had: you have to work to get food.
Sometimes he worked but didn't get to eat, but now he does nothing all day but eat, which makes him very uneasy.
He saw it clearly; it was just moving stones, very simple, something he used to do often, and he was capable of it!
Qin Zhaoyue paused for a moment before understanding Ping An's eagerness, then raised her hand and patted his forearm, "You don't need to do this job..."
As soon as he finished speaking, the light in his grape-sized eyes immediately dimmed.
"Ping An, your task is to protect me, that is, to stop anyone who tries to hurt me. You don't need to do those other tasks."
"All right……"
The registrar of Chiyan County had just walked nearby when he heard these words and stopped in his tracks.
With this guy's physique, he's perfect for moving stones.
As expected, the Sixth Princess is completely different from the Eldest Princess...
Suppressing his emotions, he bowed respectfully and said, "This humble official, the registrar of Chiyan County, greets Your Highness, and is here to guide you."
A procession of carriages left the slag heap. Besides the chief clerk leading the way and Qin Zhaoyue's carriage, there were also some officials who were not needed.
For example, there's the elderly Junior Officer Gu Tingyun of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, a certain top scholar who didn't come from the Three Departments, Fifth Brother, and a hundred Imperial Guards accompanying and protecting him.
On the other side, Qin Zhaoyue, accompanied by Chief Engineer Wang of the Heavenly Crafts Bureau, began her inspection.
Everything was as described by the county magistrate. Leaving aside his overstepping measures, the effectiveness of the water control still needed to be seen with one's own eyes. He rode his horse slowly around the Iron Slag Mountain.
The rain was torrential, and even the pine resin torches were easily extinguished. The guards were forced to work in pairs, one holding an umbrella and the other a torch for illumination.
The method of filling bamboo cages with stones was adapted to local conditions, because Chiyan County was short of resources, but it also had some bamboo forests and stones.
This method does not involve enclosing everything in bamboo cages all at once, but rather adopts a tiered approach.
The innermost layer is about the height of two people, and then it gradually decreases in height. The second layer is built about ten feet apart, and so on.
The third layer of retaining wall is currently being built, and judging from the extent of the slag heap, the work must have been underway for many days.
The first wave of flooding has only affected this county so far, but if it is not properly controlled and the entire Tiezhashan Mountain is subsequently washed away, it is foreseeable that the ecology of Qingyao River will suffer a devastating blow.
General Wang dared not slack off, frequently dismounting to inspect the retaining wall, pulling on it to check its stability, and even going so far as to be helped by guards to the innermost layer for further inspection.
"Your Highness, this should be the best approach at present."
Small torrents should not be a problem, and the seeping iron slag should not cause too much damage.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
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