Chapter 369 Isn't he worried that his son will rebel? (3000 words)
The first day of the Lunar New Year.
Visit close relatives first.
Although Xiao Mo's status was now equivalent to that of a legitimate son, and Zhou Ruoxi was no longer a concubine.
But in any case, Xia Qingke, the eldest wife of the Xiao family, is still the matriarch of the Xiao family.
According to Qin customs, Xiao Mo still needed to pay a visit.
After having breakfast in the courtyard, Xiao Mo and Qin Siyao went to visit the mistress of the Xiao family.
"Mo greets Auntie."
"Siyao greets Auntie."
Upon arriving at Xia Qingke's courtyard, Xiao Mo and Qin Siyao exchanged greetings.
“Your Highness, the Frost King, please don’t stand on ceremony. Please have a seat.” Upon seeing Xiao Mo and Qin Siyao, Xia Qingke quickly stepped forward and helped them up. “Huan Ying, quickly bring some tea and snacks.”
"Yes... Madam."
Huan Ying quickly withdrew and took out the pastries from the house.
Xia Qingke personally brewed tea for the two of them.
Looking at the huge courtyard, Xiao Mo saw that there were only Xia Qingke and her maid Huan Ying there.
Xiao Mo thought about it and felt sorry for Xia Qingke.
Although she was the Princess Consort of Zhenbei and held a special status, her second son had passed away, and her eldest son was now devoted to cultivating Taoism and had not even been able to return for the New Year, only sending letters.
The Prince of Zhenbei, on the other hand, often guarded the frontier, and his return was always in a hurry.
Xiao Mo glanced at Xia Qingke again.
The young woman from before now had some gray hairs among her strands.
"Auntie, we have prepared some New Year's goods. We hope you won't find them too shabby."
Xiao Mo gestured to Qin Siyao, who smiled and placed the gift box on the table in the courtyard.
"Your Highness, what are you saying?" Xia Qingke poured a cup of tea for Xiao Mo and Qin Siyao. "How is your mother's health?"
"Thank you for your concern, Auntie. My mother is doing well."
Xiao Mo nodded and exchanged pleasantries with Xia Qingke.
Xia Qingke asked Xiao Mo about some recent trivial matters, and also inquired about Qin Siyao's father and mother.
Xiao Mo and Xia Qingke deliberately avoided talking about Xiao Yishe.
After chatting for less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Xiao Mo made an excuse to say goodbye and leave.
After leaving the Xiao residence, Xiao Mo took Qin Siyao's small hand and walked towards the palace.
On the way, Qin Siyao kept her head down, looking lost and forlorn.
"What's wrong?" Xiao Mo gently stroked her hair.
"Husband." Qin Siyao raised her head and looked at Xia Qingke. "I think Madam Xia is so lonely. Her own child is not here, nor is the Prince. She has to spend the New Year all by herself."
“Yes.” Xiao Mo also sighed softly, “She also has to deal with family matters and maintain connections in the capital. All the big and small things are handled by her, which is indeed very difficult.”
Looking at the woman beside him, Xiao Mo guessed what Qin Siyao was worried about, and said with a smile, "Don't worry, after we get married, I will come back whenever I have time. And when the world is at peace and there is no more war, I will retire from the army and return to my hometown. The two of us will travel the world together, with mountains and rivers by our side."
That's not what I'm worried about.
Qin Siyao shook her head.
"Although Madam Xia is lonely, I think she must be very happy when she does things for the Prince of Zhenbei."
If you, Xiao Mo, go to war in the future, I will take good care of things at home for you and won't let you worry.
This is what a wife should do.
I was just thinking... if Madam Xia had given birth to a few more children, would the courtyard not be so deserted now?
"That's possible. So, shall we have five children in the future?" Xiao Mo asked.
"So-and-so wants to have five kids with you?" Qin Siyao blushed and muttered, head down, "They're not even married into the family yet."
Xiao Mo smiled gently, simply holding Qin Siyao's hand, and continued walking forward.
Upon entering the palace, Xiao Mo and Qin Siyao greeted the King of Qin and Empress Shi.
Xiao Mo originally thought that the King of Qin was in the harem garden or his bedroom.
Unexpectedly, on the first day of the Lunar New Year, the King of Qin was still handling state affairs in the Imperial Study, with Empress Shi by his side.
Upon seeing Xiao Mo arrive, the King of Qin pulled Xiao Mo aside and discussed state affairs.
Empress Shi knew that it was boring for two grown men to discuss politics, and it was not good to disturb them, so she took her daughter and left, intending to give her daughter some more advice on how to be a wife.
After all, his daughter was too unruly and had been spoiled by His Majesty and her two brothers since she was a child. He didn't want her to still be like a little girl and need Xiao Mo to take care of her when she got married.
Not long after, the eldest prince and the second prince also arrived at the palace with their respective wives.
Around noon, Xiao Mo and Qin Siyao stayed and had a meal together as a family.
In the afternoon, everyone bid farewell and left. Xiao Mo and his companion went to the First Prince's place for tea and then paid a visit to the Second Prince.
By the time Xiao Mo and Qin Siyao returned to the Frost Prince's Mansion, it was already evening.
On the second day of the Lunar New Year, Xiahou Nan brought Lian Li to the Frost King's Mansion to pay New Year's greetings to Xiao Mo.
At this time, Lian Li had nowhere to live, so he stayed at his uncle's mansion.
After having a meal with Xiahou Nan, Xiao Mo took the opportunity to discuss some matters.
Finally, Xiao Mo decided to buy a four-courtyard house next to the Frost King's Mansion, so that they could gather in that courtyard if there were any matters to discuss.
Time passed day by day.
Before we knew it, the festive atmosphere of the New Year gradually faded away, and once the Lantern Festival was over, the New Year celebrations were truly over.
Xiao Mo continued his daily cultivation, and in his spare time he would read books and fish, which gave him a rather leisurely lifestyle.
Since Xiao Mo entered the Nascent Soul Realm, Qin Siyao has also begun to cultivate diligently.
Qin Siyao's talent for cultivation is truly remarkable.
Furthermore, Qin Siyao possessed a clear Dao mind; she knew the purpose of her cultivation. In addition, with the resources of the Qin Kingdom at her disposal, Qin Siyao quickly entered the late stage of the Dragon Gate Realm.
After the New Year, as the Second Prince's wedding date drew closer, the Qin capital gradually became lively again after the Spring Festival.
The news of Qin's recruitment of foreign advisors gradually spread throughout the other states.
More and more talented people came to the Qin state, hoping to find a discerning patron to recognize their potential and realize their lifelong ambitions.
And among these people...
There are those who seek fame and fortune.
There are mediocre people who are incompetent but want to try their luck.
But there are indeed many talented people who are not given the opportunity to shine.
Some states even took this opportunity to send their talented individuals to Qin as spies.
The Qin state will naturally intensify its investigation into the backgrounds of these guest advisors.
But some people's talents are so exceptional that it's hard to let them go.
For example, a guest advisor named Li Bin.
Li Bin was well-read and read all kinds of books. Although his knowledge was diverse, he had many areas of expertise.
Moreover, Li Bin highly values the principle that "practice makes perfect." He is pragmatic and can make different judgments based on different issues.
The Qin state had annexed the Shu region for fifty years.
The Shu region, with its natural defenses and abundant resources, is truly a treasure trove.
However, the Sichuan region suffered greatly from floods.
Successive rulers of the Qin state all wanted to govern this land well and build it into a "granary of abundance" and strategic rear to support their unification of the world.
However, the Qin state tried countless methods, but none of them were very effective.
At this moment, Li Bin directly offered a solution for flood control.
This water management strategy was written by Li Bin after three years of personal investigation in Shu (Sichuan).
Upon hearing this, the King of Qin summoned him for a long talk that lasted all night.
Although Li Bin was found to be a spy sent by the ruler of Zheng, the ruler of Qin pretended not to know.
He simply felt that if he didn't employ this person, he would be unworthy to be a ruler.
After several days of long talks with Li Bin, the King of Qin finally decided to send Li Bin to Shu to manage the floods.
After taking office, Li Bin organized the people of Sichuan to begin water management, with "water diversion for irrigation, flood control and sediment removal" as the core principles.
Li Bin built the Fish Mouth Diversion Dam, which is shaped like a fish mouth and can divide the water into four parts and six parts according to the river topography and water flow inertia.
During the dry season in spring, the Minjiang River has a low water volume, with about 60% of its water flowing into inland rivers to ensure irrigation water supply.
During the summer flood season, the water volume is large, with about 60% of the river water flowing out of the outer river and 40% flowing into the inland rivers.
To prevent flooding in the Chengdu Plain.
In addition, the Li Binjian Feisha Weir spillway is located between the inner and outer rivers behind the fish mouth.
Its height is carefully designed so that when the water level in the inner river is too high, the excess water will carry a large amount of sand and gravel over the Feisha Weir and discharge into the outer river.
Utilizing the principle of bend circulation, it can also remove 80% of the sediment entering Neijiang, achieving "secondary sediment removal" and effectively solving the problem of sediment accumulation in the irrigation area.
In addition, Li Bin rebuilt the Baopingkou water inlet.
Li Bin and his son led a group of people to carve out a gap in the hard rock of Yulei Mountain, about 20 meters wide and shaped like the mouth of a bottle, using the method of "burning with fire and pouring with water".
This gap can control the total amount of water entering the Sichuan Plain. Because of its narrowness, it can limit excessive floodwater from entering the irrigation area, thus acting as a "control gate".
The six-character mantra for water management, "Deepen the riverbed and lower the weir," is Li Bin's summary of water management practices. Li Bin inscribed it on a stone so that future generations could learn from it.
As for Li Bin's requests during the flood control process, the King of Qin personally reviewed and approved them, and almost always granted them. He also provided substantial financial support. If any official disobeyed Li Bin's orders, he was simply expelled from Sichuan.
The Qin ruler even summoned independent cultivators from all over Qin, offering them rare and precious materials as rewards if they could help Li Bin build the Great Dam.
Thus, in just six months, the dam built by Li Bin had taken initial shape, but there were still larger projects to be completed.
Even with the help of tens of thousands of independent cultivators, it is estimated that it will still take a year to complete the construction.
But this is a great undertaking that benefits the present and future generations, and the King of Qin would not allow it to be affected in the slightest.
In the past six months, in addition to the Qin state recruiting more foreign advisors, other things have also happened.
The second prince, Qin Jingyuan, was enfeoffed as the Prince of Jing, with his fief located in Luzhou and Jinzhou, which border the State of Jin.
When Xiao Mo learned of this appointment, he wondered if he had misheard.
Luzhou and Jinzhou were Qin Jingyuan's fiefdoms, but Qin Jingyuan was also the son-in-law of the State of Jin.
If Qin Jingyuan had any ideas, it would be tantamount to Qin opening its doors wide to Jin.
Could it be that the ruler of Qin was not worried about his son plotting a rebellion?
(End of this chapter)
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