Allure of a Country Maiden
Chapter 289 - 287

Chapter 289: Chapter 287

"Our two families are inseparable like the sinew that ties broken bones together. There was some misunderstanding at that time..."

"Madam, your daughter is on the brink of childbirth. Do you really plan to continue discussing the matters of our two families? While you can dwell on this topic, I’m afraid I don’t have the time! Our paths do not converge, from now on, let’s not interfere with each other."

Having said that, Xiao’er called Mrs. Liu and Mrs. Lu, and they retreated back into the grain and oil store.

Mrs. Lan thought of her own daughter, stomped her foot and, despite her reluctance, decided to give up. She gritted her teeth and hurriedly rushed towards the Prime Minister’s Mansion.

Among the crowd, some people were talking about the past with great interest.

However, what the truth was, wasn’t at all important to these busy members. Some garrulous women even created their own versions of the story, telling them with great eloquence and making it sound as if they were true. For them, it was an entertainment during their free time.

Shen Bao’er didn’t successfully give birth to a son in the end. When the wife of the Prime Minister found out it was a daughter, she didn’t even look at her granddaughter and turned her head away. An illegitimate daughter is not worth her concern at the moment, it depends on the looks and talents she develops as she grows up.

Nevertheless, Shen Bao’er moved into the Prime Minister’s Mansion. At first, the prime minister’s wife intended to keep her daughter with her, but the Prime Minister disagreed. The entire Imperial City is watching this matter now, one wrong move, and his reputation is in tatters.

Mrs. Zhang fainted of anger when she heard of Shen Bao’er’s successful move. Later, when the imperial doctor was called in, he confirmed that she was pregnant. The Prime Minister’s wife cheered up once again.

And for the sake of her highly anticipated son, Mrs. Zhang decided to temporarily disregard Shen Bao’er. Now that she herself is pregnant, she needs a maid to serve her husband. Instead of having one or two more women to compete for favor, she might as well let Shen Bao’er do it!

The imperial doctor also said that Shen Bao’er’s body had been damaged by giving birth, and it would be difficult for her to conceive again in the future.

A concubine without a son, no matter how competent, cannot turn the tables!

She has also figured it out. The concubines under her scrutiny are still at her disposal - she can shape them however she wants. Do they dream of living a good life? Keep dreaming!

...

The weather was getting drier and drier, and there were water leak accidents in the Imperial City for several consecutive days.

The crops in the fields had already been harvested and stored in the barn. The yield was nearly 600 pounds per acre, compared to nearly 1,000 pounds per acre in the past! But this was still enough to make the people cheer! Some hardworking individuals can even get an extra hundred or so pounds.

A drought for three months still yielded a higher output than when the weather was stable in the past. How could they not be happy!

Some farmers remarked that even though they broke a few shoulder poles carrying water to irrigate the fields, they still felt it was worth it!

Therefore, even though the land was dry, people’s enthusiasm for farming did not diminish. They were bustling to plow the fields in time, planning to plant winter wheat as usual, and then fetch water from the river.

However, the water levels in rivers and lakes were decreasing day by day.

Shangguan Xuanyi, Di Shaowei, Xiao’er and Shen Chengyao all came out to inspect the drought.

The situation was quite severe.

"Are we risking losing the seeds by planting winter grains now?" Di Shaowei was worried looking at the cracked land.

Those healthy women generally only have two children in three years. Why would the heavens dare to gamble with a natural disaster just over a year after a suitable climate was established!

"The condition isn’t as dire as to completely lack water. Proper irrigation before sowing the seeds fosters strong winter wheat seedlings, a key factor influencing high yield. If it doesn’t rain, it now relies on manpower, but it will be a lot more laborious."

Winter wheat are being planted in their family’s farmland.

She didn’t know if there would be any rain in the spring next year, but during the whole winter, the water demand for winter wheat is not very high.

Just water them well when sowing the seeds, and then conduct one winter irrigation.

"As for how to irrigate winter wheat in a drought year, let’s post a notice tomorrow morning." Xiao’er felt that sowing seeds gave a larger probability of hope than leaving the land vacant.

They can’t just stop doing anything because it doesn’t rain, right?

When Xiao’er thought about this, she realized there was an important task she needed to undertake!

This could be considered a blessing in disguise!

"Let’s go to the Huai River and see the water level situation."

"The North Huai River is almost dried up. I expect the water level of Huai River won’t be encouraging either!" Di Shaowei looked at the brilliant sun in the sky and really wanted to mimic Houyi in shooting down the sun.

"Let’s go and see." Xiao’er didn’t disclose her thoughts in advance.

"Now? I’m afraid we won’t be able to get back to town by tonight." Shen Chengyao frowned.

"We leave now. Send someone to pass on the message to my mother. If we can’t make it back tonight, we’ll stay at the Post Station." Xiao’er then explained the irrigation methods for winter wheat to Xiao Fuzi and asked him to arrange someone to post the announcement early the next morning.

Then, the group quickly rushed to the bank of Huai River.

"Look, the water level has dropped by more than half! In another month, I’m afraid the Huai River will dry up!"

Seeing that the water level of the Huai River had dropped by more than half, Xiao’er laughed: "This is even better, more convenient."

If anyone else heard Xiao’er speaking like this, they might think she had gone mad.

But the three people present knew that Xiao’er wouldn’t say such a thing without reason, so they all looked at her.

"Girl, what grand plan do you have?" Di Shaowei was filled with anticipation.

This was an emotion that came with absolute trust in someone’s abilities.

Shangguan Xuanyi seemed to have guessed it, he stared at this chasm, his eyes illuminated with anticipation.

Huai River is the big river that divides the north and south of the Minze Dynasty. The entirety of the Minze Dynasty’s territory is split in half by this river.

There are two tributaries of the Huai River, one that flows north is called the North Huai River, and one that flows south is the South Huai River.

"The labor service for this year will start very soon, right? I plan to build a bridge on the Huai River."

Grandpa Mao once said: "A single bridge built across the north and south, turning a dangerous gap into a smooth path."

She also wanted to build such a grand bridge here!

A bridge with a milestone significance in the history of bridges in this world.

Happening to coincide with a severe drought, the water level is extremely low, it was a perfect combination of timing, geographical and human conditions.

"Build a bridge on the Huai River? How is that possible! Girl, do you know how wide the Huai River is!"

"Why is it impossible? There aren’t any impossibilities in the world, only unwilling hearts! Although it may be a bit challenging, it’s not entirely impossible. However, to accomplish this feat, we need the heavens to be favorable and prolong the drought." Xiao’er wouldn’t underestimate the wisdom of ancient people. In ancient times, there were many architectural structures that modern people couldn’t explain how they were built. Building a bridge shouldn’t be too difficult.

Moreover, the Huai River was not as wide as the longest river in modern times.

She didn’t have a workaround for deep water, but now that the water level had reduced significantly, and it would continue to drop, it was close to the depth of an average river which is why she proposed this idea.

"Xiao’er, a large river like the Huai River, no one knows how deep it is in the middle..."

"Whether the bridge can be built, we’ll find out once we try. It’s not every year that there’s a drought, and even if there is a drought, the water level of the Huai River won’t always be this low. We can’t miss this opportunity."

"Build it! And not just one!" Shangguan Xuanyi was decisive!

The Huai River flows through two prefectures and several counties within the territory of the Minze Dynasty.

If time allows, build one in each county! Don’t miss out on this opportunity!