Chapter 459: This Won’t Work
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation , Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Wei Zhongming felt that his flattery towards Su Ying seemed to come a little too naturally.
He kept telling himself that she was an impostor and that he did not have to be afraid of her at all!
“Wei Zhongming.”
“Yes, Your Imperial Highness. What instructions do you have?” Wei Zhongming bowed in front of Su Ying in a groveling fashion. His flattery was only to numb Su Ying and prevent her from discovering any flaws!
“You’ve performed well these few days.”
Wei Zhongming’s grin almost reached his ears. “Your Imperial Highness, you flatter me. It’s my duty to take care of the welfare of the people.”
Su Ying raised her eyes and glanced at him. Wei Zhongming really did look like an honest official. He was skinny and small-sized. If it weren’t for his cheeks which still had four ounces of flesh, he would really look like a human skeleton.
Just by looking at his external appearance, he really didn’t seem like someone who dared to steal from the Imperial Court’s granary.
What she said just now were not exactly empty words. Wei Zhongming’s work ability was indeed not bad. Otherwise, with his poor family background, it was impossible for him to climb to this position without some ability.
“I heard that when the disaster first started, some commoners went to the government office to suggest that you draw in water from the south to resolve the crisis. Is this true?”
Wei Zhongming’s face stiffened and then he said helplessly, “Your Imperial Highness, there is indeed such a matter, but this proposal simply won’t work.”
“Oh? Why?”
Wei Zhongming took out a map from the bookshelf and spread it on the table. He stretched out his hand and pointed at a mountain range on the outskirts of
Luo City.
“Luo City and South River are separated by a mountain range. If we want to bring the water from the South River over, we have to bypass these mountains. How much manpower, material resources, and financial resources will we have to spend? Luo City has already been affected by the disaster. If we spend so much money to cut through mountains and dig channels, Luo City won’t be able to support itself.”
Su Ying saw that Wei Zhongming’s analysis was spot on. If this were an easy maneuver, he had no reason not to do it. After all, the merit would go to him if he accomplished this.
She looked at the mountains on the map and suddenly thought of a good way to relieve the disaster. However, she still needed further confirmation to know if this method would work.
“Where is this place?”
“This place is at the junction of Lin City and Luo City. It’s actually not far away.” By the time Su Ying finished asking about the detailed geological conditions of the area, the sky had already darkened.
“Your imperial Highness, you have been busy for a whole day. Why don’t you have dinner first?” Zhou Qing approached and asked softly.
After Su Ying left the city today, she ate some dry food at noon to cope with her hunger. Zhou Qing couldn’t imagine how a delicate and noble person like the Empress could still remain unflustered and relaxed after riding a horse and climbing mountains when Zhou Qing herself was so tired that she couldn’t quite catch her breath. She admired the Empress from the bottom of her heart. The Empress was truly thinking of the people.
■Mm-hmm, Serve the food.”
“Your Imperial Highness, please enjoy your meal. Your humble servant will
take his leave.”
“You may leave.”
“Yes, Your Imperial Highness.”
After Wei Zhongming withdrew, Zhou Qing walked into the room with the food container.
“This guy Lord Wei is truly resourceful.”
Zhou Qing laid out the dishes on the table. There were two dishes and one
soup.
There was a bowl of bean sprout and egg soup, a plate of scrambled egg, and a radish and meat stew.
The dishes looked simple and plain, but the bean sprout soup was made from thick chicken broth. There was meat wrapped in the egg. The last dish was fried with boneless fish. At such a critical juncture, they could still serve fish. Even for a wealthy family, it would be difficult to get a bite of fresh fish in this current situation. Yet, Wei Zhongming had managed to serve it to Su Ying.
Su Ying would never hold anything against food. She would simply teach Wei Zhongming a lesson later.
Zhou Qing stood at the side and watched Su Ying eat. The more she watched, the more she found her actions familiar.
She felt that she might have been overthinking things. Why did the speech and mannerisms of the Empress before her look a little similar to that of the Young
Master?
Moreover, ever since the Empress appeared, she had not seen the Young
Master again.
Zhou Qing thought of a possibility, but she didn’t dare to think too deeply about it. It wasn’t something she should know.
After eating her fill, Su Ying did a simple washing up and lay down on the bed. She still had to wake up early the next day to go to the mountains to check out the situation.
Zhou Qing lowered the bed curtain, blew out the lights in the room, and left.
Early the next morning, Su Ying left the city after breakfast.
As he watched Su Ying’s back profile while she bustled around, Wei Zhongming became even more certain that Su Ying was an impostor. What kind of Empress would do things personally like her?
The mountain range shown on the map was about 10 miles away from Luo City. As soon as they left the city, they found that many more disaster victims had settled down outside the city. If this continued, the outskirts of Luo City wouldn’t be able to accommodate any more people.
“Look for an open space to settle down the disaster victims who rushed here today first. Don’t let them cause trouble.”
“Yes, Your Imperial Highness.”
Su Ying rode her horse and brought her men to the foot of the mountains about
10 miles away.
Su Ying took out her binoculars and looked at the condition of the mountain range. Thereafter, her brows furrowed.
“South River is behind these mountains?”
The minor official who was leading the way for Su Ying replied, “Yes, it’s behind these mountains. That’s why it’s so difficult to bring the water from
South River here.”
“Then which route do you guys usually take to get to South River?”
“Over there. There is an official road over there which goes around the foot of the mountains.”
Su Ying turned her horse around and headed towards the official road. “How long will it take to reach South River by the official road?
“At the fastest, it will take five to seven days. At the slowest, it can probably take half a month.
“However, even if it takes half a month, it’s still better than not having a drop of water at all. Quite a number of disaster victims are heading over there. At least there’s a chance of survival there.”
Su Ying nodded slightly and reined her horse back. She said to the minor official leading the way, “Are you familiar with this mountain?
“Your Imperial Highness, I have lived in the village at the foot of the mountain since young. I am very familiar with this place. Where do you wish to go, Your Imperial Highness? I will bring you there.”
“Take me to South River over the mountain.”
“Your Imperial Highness, I’m afraid there are ferocious beasts roaming in this mountain. It’s too dangerous,” Zhou Qing said worriedly. There was a drought around Luo City now. Not only did humans lack water, but animals also lacked water. The animals would also try to find a way to go to a place with water. At this point, the possibility of encountering a ferocious beast on the mountain road was very high.
“We have many people with us, so there’s no worry. Let’s hurry up and go up the mountain.”
“Yes, Your Imperial Highness.”
Fortunately, the mountains were not that steep, and they could still travel on horseback. However, their speed slowed down by a lot. They only reached halfway up the mountain when it was dark. It was not easy to travel at night, so they could only look for a place to rest temporarily and continue their journey the next morning.
Su Ying leaned against a tree to circulate her energy while Zhou Qing waited by the side with a water bag and some dry food.
She made the campfire bigger to prevent any wild beasts from attacking.
Su Ying took a deep breath, allowing her breath to flow through her entire body and clear up her blocked meridians. In this way, she was able to relieve her fatigue and strengthen her yang energy.
After a quarter of an hour, Su Ying slowly opened her eyes and instructed the guards to bring some wet soil over to surround the campfire to prevent the mountain wind from blowing the sparks out at night and causing a wildfire.
“Your Imperial Highness, please eat something.” Zhou Qing handed the steamed bun and dried meat to Su Ying.
Su Ying accepted them and ate them.
The night on the mountain was much colder. As soon as she had eaten her fill, Su Ying leaned against a tree trunk and felt sleepy. She yawned and slowly closed her eyes.
Barely a moment later, all the guards who accompanied Su Ying fell asleep. Zhou Qing also fell asleep at Su Ying’s feet.
All that could be heard was the sound of branches crackling in the fiery campfire.
At this moment, a sleeping figure stood up in the darkness..