At the end of October, the memorial from Su Prefecture finally arrived in the capital city.
When the Emperor saw the yield of the new grain crops in the memorial from Su Prefecture, as well as the other outputs from Su Prefecture this year, he said "good" three times in a row. Looking up to the sky, he sighed: "If everyone were like Prefect Jiang, how could my Great Xia not prosper?"
In just one short year, Prefect Jiang had broadened and repaired the official road from Su Prefecture to the capital city, making travel between Su Prefecture and the inner land much more convenient.
He had undertaken water conservancy projects, ensuring timely irrigation for every piece of farmland in Su Prefecture.
He had cultivated corn that could yield 1,000 catties per mu even in Su Prefecture's harsh cold climate, and potatoes that could yield over 2,000 catties per mu. The output of existing grains had also grown, especially cotton, which had tripled.
He had also planted large amounts of precious medicinal materials like meaty sophora root and black goji berries on barren lands. According to memorials from the Minister of Agriculture, they were growing well and could be harvested next year.
For such a capable and talented man, the Emperor felt bad not rewarding him properly. After some thought, he bestowed a large amount of precious medicinal materials on Prefect Jiang.
Prefect Jiang worries day and night for the people of Su Prefecture, working diligently and conscientiously. He must take good care of his health in order to serve them better... Ahem, to seek welfare for the people of Su Prefecture. Thus, health supplements and medicinal materials are a must.
He was also granted a steed that could travel thousands of li a day. Having heard that Prefect Jiang often went down to the countryside to inspect, a robust horse would also be more convenient. Therefore, a fine steed was indispensable.
As for gold, silver and treasures, he did not seem to care much for them. Not that he did not care for money, after all, no one dislikes money.
It was just that there had been an earthquake in the southwest, and Prefect Jiang had just allocated a large sum of money for disaster relief. He had also supplemented food and winter supplies for garrisons along the border. Currently, the national treasury was so empty that even rats did not want to visit it. Thus, this item had to be, ahem, skipped for the moment.
A beauty? Better not.
It was said that Prefect Jiang and his wife were deeply in love. Bringing two beauties over would surely lead to domestic battles. Not every woman was as open-minded as the Empress. Causing fires in the inner palaces would be counterproductive.
Land, now land he could use!
This man was most skilled in cultivating land. Su Prefecture had endless tracts of ownerless wasteland. Bestowing 10,000 mu on him to cultivate as he pleased could contribute greatly to Su Prefecture’s grain production – killing two birds with one stone.
Having made up his mind, the Emperor ordered a decree to be drafted, stamped with the great seal, and sent to Su Prefecture.
Su Prefecture.
The snow this winter fell exceptionally heavily, with an average of one snowstorm every few days. While far from a snow calamity, the accumulated depth of snow was enough to make one’s hair stand on ends.
The military doctors were all discussing this matter, saying that if the snow was too thick, many cattle and sheep on the Xiongnu grasslands would freeze to death. With less food and drink, the Tartars would launch a major invasion. When that happened, it would be another bloody battle.
Jiang Yuqing had only read about such events in history books in her previous life. Witnessing it firsthand now was naturally shocking beyond words.
Wars in the cold weapon era were far crueler than those in the age of hot weapons. The two armies contests relied entirely on flesh and blood. The battlefield was also a meat grinder.
Jiang Yuqing felt that she could not sit idly by as things developed without doing anything. She was a Da Xia person, and had to do something for Da Xia’s soldiers and for this land she loved deeply.
What decided the outcome of a war was not only the quality of the soldiers, but even more importantly, the logistics - weapons, food, and medicine. For any one of these critical factors, she had to provide as much support as she could.
Her capabilities were limited, so she could not offer much help with the first two. But for the last, medicine, she had as much as needed.
When necessary, she could even turn He'an Clinic into a field hospital at any time.
Preparing for a rainy day, she immediately told Doctor Qiu and Senior Brother Lu about the possibility of a Tartar invasion, and her own plans.
After thinking for a moment, Doctor Qiu and Lu Yi both agreed with her approach.
Doctor Qiu said, “Without a country, how can one have a home? If the Xiongnu Tartars invade, none of us will have good days. Bianque Valley is willing to lend a hand.”
Jiang Yuqing had only meant to discuss her thoughts with her master and senior brother. She did not expect to receive such a promise from Master Qiu.
One must know that Master Qiu was the Valley Master of Bianque Valley, the leader of a major power. With his words, it meant that all the best doctors in the world would stand behind the border troops.
Tuanzi moved to tears and hugged her master: “I thank you on behalf of all the border troops, Master. You are so kind!”
Master Qiu stroked her little head, “Silly child, what is there to thank? Don’t forget, your teacher is also from Da Xia. It is only right to do something for one’s country and people.”
“Mm-hmm.” Tuanzi nodded with tears in her eyes as she broke into smiles.
After returning home, Jiang Yuqing told Jiang Wenyuan what she had heard from the military doctors, as well as her and her master/senior brothers’ plans.
With a grave expression, Jiang Wenyuan said, "Better safe than sorry, darling. You’ve made the right decision."
Jiang Yuqing then asked, “Daddy, are those carpenter uncles from the Ministry of Works still here?”
Jiang Wenyuan replied, "They're still here. Now that the autumn harvest is over, they don't have much to do. What do you intend, darling?”
Jiang Yuqing said, "Yes, I want to make some portable foldable camp beds, as well as some simple coffins." She uttered the last few words very softly and heavily.
Jiang Wenyuan squatted down and pulled his daughter into his arms, patting her head gently as he sighed softly, “Darling, sometimes Daddy wonders if it would be better if you were an ordinary child. That way, you wouldn't have to shoulder so much, only needing to grow up happily by Daddy and Mommy's side...”
Getting the carpenters to make camp beds was no problem, but making coffins was somewhat offending.
In the eyes of the world, only the most unsuccessful carpenters made coffins. Those who could get on the government's payroll all had superb skills.
To avoid any misunderstanding by the craftsmen, Jiang Wenyuan went personally to the yard where the craftsmen lived and talked privately with them for a full hour.
When he emerged, the craftsmen's eyes were red as they said, "Just send over the materials, sir and my lady, leave the rest to us.
We don't have many skills, but we can handle making small items.
As for buying timber, Jiang Yuqing paid out of her own pocket again. The huge amount of gold mined from the cavern would not keep for long if not put to use now.
As to why Jiang Yuqing wanted to make such ominous items like coffins—
It was because she had learned from the military doctors that due to the long distances, limited military funding, the remains of soldiers killed in action were often unable to be shipped home for burial.
Also to guard against epidemics after major battles, the deceased were usually buried on site.
A white cloth, a grass mat, a shovel of lime, just like that, the final page was turned on their lives. As a former soldier herself, Jiang Yuqing could not accept such an outcome.
A thin coffin cost only a few coins, but it could at least allow the fallen soldiers a minimally dignified send-off, their last honor.
The next day, Jiang Wenyuan also convened his staff for a meeting. Though it was not openly stated, the message conveyed was very clear – prepare actively for war.
Thus, security was secretly tightened across Su Prefecture City, outwardly relaxed but inwardly vigilant.
During the day, Jiang Yuqing continued working at He’an clinic, not only treating patients, but also conducting first aid training for battlefield emergencies for all the medical staff there in batches. At night, upon returning home, she would enter the spiritual realm to produce medicine.
Hemostatic, anti-inflammatory, alcohol swabs, she moved as many as she could. Unpack, repack, she unpacked until her hands trembled. She figured this would not do.
She gave it some thought, then focused her mental power to form a beam, shaping it into a pair of hands.
Initially when the pair of hands took shape, they dispersed immediately. But Jiang Yuqing was not discouraged. Dispersing then shaping again it was.
Shaping then dispersing, dispersing then shaping, after failing countless times, the Pneuma-formed hands could finally remain as long she willed them to.
She then began practicing controlling these hands to perform actions, starting from the simplest movements, again and again.
After more than a thousand times, the Pneuma hands she formed finally succeeded in removing the outer packaging from a box of medicine, flawlessly.
Bolstered by this success, Jiang Yuqing’s confidence grew greatly. She attempted to form a second pair of hands, then a third, a fourth...until she had ten pairs and her Spirit Sea started to strain under the effort.
Jiang Yuqing's hands kept moving, while her consciousness simultaneously controlled another ten pairs of hands working together. Some were responsible for unpacking, some for repacking, some for attaching explanatory notes, accomplishing many things at once.
She felt like the thousand-armed Guanyin from myth and legend, single-handedly supporting a whole production line of medicine repackaging. She was simply awesome.
At the same time, Doctor Qiu also issued a summons to assemble at Bianque Valley, gathering disciples who were free and idle from all over the world to rush to the northwest border.
He also sent a letter by carrier pigeon to his second disciple in the capital: "There's going to be a war, send me more medicine."
What could Guo Jieneng do? He had to dote on his master. Not only did he send supplies, but he sent a lot. If it wasn't enough, the old guy might give him a hard time.
At the same time, there was news of unrest among the Xiongnu, which was also reported to the capital by carrier pigeon. Just when things had started looking up in Su Prefecture, the Xiongnu Tartars pulled this stunt, clearly unwilling to let Da Xia thrive.
Emperor Xia Jing's face was solemn as he immediately convened key ministers in the court to discuss countermeasures at night.
He was already in a bad mood, and the next day as soon as he held court, an official came forward to memorialize. And who was he memorializing?
He was memorializing Jiang Wenyuan, the prefect of Su Prefecture, saying that last year he had sent 100,000 pairs of lambskin boots to the barracks at Yumen Pass, and this year he sent another 100,000 cotton-padded mattresses, blatantly buying the loyalty of the troops with ulterior motives.
Moreover, these items together were worth several hundred thousand taels of silver. Where did he get so much money? His Majesty was urged to thoroughly investigate.
The words of his memorial were so vehement, his passion so ardent, it was as if he would smash his head to death on the floor of the great hall if His Majesty did not issue an edict to punish Jiang Wenyuan for his crimes.
He completely ignored that both His Majesty Xia Jing and the Crown Prince had black faces.
Before he could even finish, the generals couldn't stand it any longer.
Yuan Yun, Heir Apparent of Prince of Zhongguo, Acting General of Huaihua, immediately went up and viciously kicked him to the ground. He cursed loudly: "Keep your fucking bullshit to yourself. What qualifications do you have as a rice bag lunch box to talk about him?
When Prefect Jiang sends something to the brothers on the border, it's harboring sinister intentions, and I saw you whispering with the barbarians just yesterday. Should I memorialize you for the crime of colluding with foreign enemies and betraying your country?!"
The imperial secretary was kicked half to death, fuming with exasperation: "You, you're making wild unfounded accusations."
Yuan Yun said: "I'm making wild accusations while you're spewing shit from your mouth." He turned his head and knelt on one knee, memorializing: "Your Majesty, as far as I know, Jiang Wenyuan has never had any dealings with the generals on the border.
Every time things were sent to the barracks, it was the county magistrate who handled it, or people were sent to deliver them. Besides, Prefect Jiang's family sent so many things to the soldiers, spending money that could empty his family fortune, yet he never asked for anything in return. Just on this point, I deeply admire him.
As for what the imperial secretary said about the unclear origins of Prefect Jiang's huge assets, I dare not agree at all.
The origin and use of the huge amount of silver earned from the previous merchant recruitment drive are clearly accounted for, with detailed records posted outside the government office for all the commoners of Su Prefecture to know. I don't know where he got the means to be corrupt! I urge Your Majesty not to listen to the honeyed words of petty men."
The imperial secretary was left thumping in indignation from his rebuttal. He said: "Your Majesty, I did not say Prefect Jiang was corrupt, only that the origins of his massive assets need to be thoroughly investigated."
