"What! You want to clear out that river that has been dry for hundreds of years?"
Shi Simian looked at Song Qiming as if he had been struck by lightning. His mind buzzed, and he felt as if he would faint in the next second.
Song Qiming nodded. "The wasteland lacks water. I plan to cut through the mountain so the waters of the Suiyu River can flow out again. The current riverbed is too shallow; it must be dug out."
They couldn't reveal the secret of the explosives to outsiders, so Song Jinzhao and Song Qiming planned to use cutting through the mountain as an excuse to first repair the riverbed. Then, they would find a stormy day to blow up the mountain, claiming that a heavenly thunderbolt had struck and split it open.
"My Lord, that is a mountain of solid stone. To call it an impenetrable fortress would not be an exaggeration. It would take at least decades to carve through it."
Shi Simian clutched his chest, gasping for air. He advised earnestly, tears almost springing to his eyes.
Just as Suining City was showing signs of improvement, how could the Prefect's brain suddenly become so foolish?
Song Qiming spoke with righteous conviction, "As long as it solves the irrigation problem in Suining City, let alone decades, even if it takes a hundred years, I am willing to do it."
Shi Simian grew even dizzier. Just as he was about to kneel and continue his pleading, his vision went black, and he collapsed to the ground.
Lan Xi rushed forward and caught him. Shi Simian's eyes were tightly shut; he had passed out.
Song Qiming stood up, a bit bewildered. How could the man faint after just a few words?
"Someone, quickly fetch a doctor."
Not long after, Song Shixue ran in carrying a medical box.
She placed her fingers on Shi Simian's wrist. After a moment, a strange look flashed in her eyes. Her lips parted and closed as she swallowed her original words and phrased it differently.
"Lord Shi is simply suffering from overwork. He will be fine after a few days of rest."
Song Qiming came to a sudden realization, but at the same time, he furrowed his brows.
During the days he wasn't at the government office, Shi Simian had been supervising the work outside the city. But supervising wasn't the same as doing physical labor in the fields—how could he be overworked?
Just as he was about to reflect on this, Song Shixue suddenly nudged his arm. Looking up, he found her winking at him meaningfully.
His heart stirred slightly, and he silently followed her outside to a secluded spot.
Song Shixue looked at him, her voice pitched very low, her face flushing slightly.
"Lord Shi is nearly sixty years old and needs to exercise moderation in the bedroom. Otherwise, his kidney essence will be depleted, and situations like today's sudden disruption of vital energy will happen again."
Song Qiming froze. When he realized what she meant, his face turned red and then dark. The words caught in his throat, and he didn't know what to say.
"I understand. I'll mention it to him once he wakes up."
To still have such vigorous energy in his sixties—it seemed the tasks assigned to him were not enough.
If he were so tired that he fell asleep the moment his head hit the pillow, he wouldn't have the energy for anything else.
Seeing that he understood, Song Shixue pressed her lips into a thin line and nodded.
She had encountered several cases of young men suffering from kidney essence deficiency, but this was her first time seeing it in a sixty-year-old man.
Judging by his pulse just now, the frequency last night was definitely not low.
When Shi Simian woke up and Song Qiming told him the matter, he was so ashamed that he wished he could bury his head under the covers and never see anyone again.
He completely forgot about opposing the river clearing project. By the time he rested for a few days and went outside the city to take a look, Song Qiming had already started the construction.
Looking at the excavated earth, Shi Simian wore a bitter face all morning before finally resigning to his fate.
At worst, they would toil for three years and leave behind an unresolved mess. When the time came, he could just push the blame onto Song Qiming. The new prefect would have to accept the bad luck, and no one would hold him accountable.
Inside the Imperial Study in the capital's royal palace.
Emperor Xiao Chengjing looked at Gu Zhongxun's memorial, his face as dark as the bottom of a pot.
He forcefully slammed the memorial onto the imperial desk, his chest heaving violently.
"What a Jia Demao, this treacherous ingrate! I will have him executed."
"Cough, cough, cough—" Choking on a breath, he clutched his chest, his face changing color from the discomfort.
Zhao Yande quickly walked over to rub his back and soothe him.
"Please do not be angry, Your Majesty. It is not worth damaging your dragon body over such people."
Xiao Chengjing slumped back into the dragon throne, his gaze somewhat unfocused.
"Yande, is my health not as good as it used to be?"
Alarm bells rang in his head, but Zhao Yande forced a smile and offered comforting words.
"Your Majesty's dragon body is robust and healthy. It is just that you have been staying up late reviewing memorials these past few days. You should take a good rest."
Xiao Chengjing closed his eyes and remained quiet for a long time. Once he recovered some energy, he spoke, his tone somewhat heavy.
"Draft a decree. The Magistrate of Qingxia County, Jia Demao, colluded with corrupt merchants and smuggled official salt, shaking the foundation of the state. Order the execution of his entire family."
"The confiscated two hundred thousand taels of silver shall be deposited into the national treasury. The remaining smuggled salt is to be handed over to Song Qiming to handle, so his efforts were not in vain."
"As for the Yang clan in Panzhou, hold off for now. Just take careful precautions against them."
By the time the imperial decree reached Suining City, two months had passed. Looking at the river channel, which was now over a dozen meters deep, Song Qiming curled his lips in a satisfied smile.
"Tell Deputy Magistrate Hai to sell the stored smuggled salt to the local salt merchants as soon as possible, and then bring the silver to the government office."
The labor was free, but daily food and drink required grain. What he lacked most right now was silver.
