Chapter 106

Chapter 106

That evening, the siblings dined with their father and Consort Li. Emperor Xingwu truthfully praised his daughter’s performance that day to Consort Li.

Knowing Consort Li’s temperament, the more the Emperor praised their daughter, the more she felt compelled to find ways to uphold Prince Jing’s dignity.

Emperor Xingwu then also praised his son: “Indeed, although the second prince didn’t fully grasp the details of the Yingyang Guard, he managed to boost his own reputation, making sure Yingyang’s five thousand soldiers learned that I have a son with exceptional martial arts skills.”

Consort Li felt awkward—was that really praise?

Qin Bing flushed instantly. Though he wasn’t fond of studying, he could still tell sincere praise from sarcasm.

He didn’t blame Consort Li for her good intentions backfiring, because he had already guessed during his report to the Emperor with his sister that his father was dissatisfied with him. The Emperor hadn’t scolded him then, probably waiting until he botched the levee inspection the next day to reprimand him all at once. After all, this was the same father who had been chewing out all three of us for over twenty years—he wouldn’t go easy on him.

Qin Bing, thick-skinned and tough, wasn’t afraid of his father’s scolding. However, unlike his third brother, he had a stronger sense of shame. The Emperor had specifically brought him on this southern tour, and if he messed up his duties in the very first major city, Yingyang, he would feel guilty even if his father didn’t scold him. After all, he couldn’t have traveled all this way just to build up his own “reputation,” could he?

At that moment, Qin Bing was entirely focused on how to handle the levee patrol the next day.

Without his sister’s comparison, Qin Bing would have thought inspecting the levees was straightforward—just ride out to check if the embankments were sturdy, similar to observing the soldiers’ physique, morale, and training in the Yingyang Guard. But with his sister’s example, he realized that his task was far more than a simple “levee inspection.”

After the meal, Qin Bing invited his sister to his courtyard for a brief chat and said bluntly, “Your second brother is a rough man. I didn’t handle today’s military assignment well, and I’m even less confident about tomorrow’s levee inspection. Quick, teach me what to do, sis, or else if I mess up, it’ll delay Father’s southern tour.”

Seeing her brother’s determination, Qingyang asked Jie Yu, who had returned from her separate courtyard: “I requested the water system map of Yingyang from the Directorate of Waterways. Has it been delivered?”

Jie Yu: “It has already arrived.”

Qingyang: “Go get it.”

Qin Bing: “Don’t trouble yourself. I’ll go with you instead.”

So Qingyang brought her brother back to her quarters. The water system map, when unfolded, took up the whole tea table, so the siblings stood to examine it.

The longest and widest river on the map was, naturally, the Yellow River.

Qingyang observed the other water systems below and asked, “Second Brother, guess which section of the river embankment Prefect Shang and the others will ask you to inspect tomorrow?”

Qin Bing pointed to the section of the Yellow River straight north of Yingyang: “Naturally, this section. It’s close and convenient to travel to.”

Qingyang: “Since it concerns the safety of Yingyang City, the embankments in this area must be the most well-built. Second Brother, you might as well skip this section and directly take them to inspect the northeastern section. At a gallop, it would only add a few dozen miles at most.”

Qin Bing: “Right, that area would be easier to cut corners.”

Qingyang: “Since ancient times, the Yellow River has frequently flooded. Across its thousands of miles of embankments, there are always weak spots that are hard to avoid. In areas like Yingyang and Kaifeng, where silt accumulation has raised the riverbed above the ground, breaches and floods are most likely to occur.”

Qin Bing: “So the embankments in this area must be built even sturdier.”

Qingyang: “Yes, but simply reinforcing the embankments isn’t enough to solve the Yellow River’s flooding problem. Instead, a four-part water management strategy must be implemented. Tomorrow, Second Brother, you will also need to inspect Yingyang Prefecture’s measures in these four aspects.”

Without waiting for her brother to ask, Qingyang explained each character in detail.

“The first character is ‘block’ (lan). When the river rises, the simplest and most direct method is to build embankments to block the water. So, the first thing you’ll inspect is the embankments along the Yellow River section.”

“The second character is ‘divert’ (yin). The Yellow River often floods catastrophically. Local authorities can dig canals in advance to channel the river water to arid and barren lands. During droughts, the water can be released for irrigation; during floods, it can ease the pressure on the Yellow River embankments. The second thing you’ll inspect is these canals. Check if the existing canals are blocked or obstructed, and ask the officials from the Directorate of Waterways about their strategies for preventing breaches in these canals.”

“The third character is ‘store’ (cun). Only after diversion can storage follow. The capacity of canals to divert water is limited. If there are low-lying areas between mountains or hills, canals can be used to divert water, and embankments can be built to store water, creating reservoirs to retain part of the Yellow River’s flow. Tomorrow, ask the Directorate of Waterways how many such reservoirs exist in Yingyang Prefecture. If there are none or too few, instruct them to survey potential sites for building more.”

“The final character is ‘dredge’ (tong). In this area, the river channel is higher in the north and lower in the south. The water carries large amounts of sediment, which settles and easily forms sandbars of varying sizes in the middle of the channel. Once sandbars appear, the water tends to flow only to one side, increasing pressure on the southern embankments. Therefore, local authorities should organize labor during the dry autumn and winter seasons to clear out the sediment and sandbars, restoring the main channel’s flow.”

Qin Bing tried to memorize each character as she spoke, but by the time she finished the fourth, he had already forgotten the first three. He asked his sister to explain again.

Qingyang’s index finger traced the Yellow River’s course. “Block” meant building embankments, and “divert” meant digging canals.

Since the map didn’t show canals, Qingyang pointed to a river south of the Yellow River named “Hong Gou” (Vast Canal) and said, “Second Brother, you can think of this river as a canal. Look, if we dig a channel here to connect the Yellow River to the Hong Gou, wouldn’t the Hong Gou also become a river capable of diverting and flood diversion? But if we’re going to use it for flood diversion, we must ensure its channel is clear and its embankments are sturdy enough to avoid causing floods here…”

Midway through, Qingyang’s finger followed the Hong Gou southward as it merged into another wider river, the Ying River. The Ying River flowed further south beyond Yingyang Prefecture, but based on Qingyang’s knowledge of Great Qi’s water systems, she remembered that the Ying River eventually merged into the Huai River.

Historical records of Yellow River floods proved that simply building embankments couldn’t control this great river. Small canals had limited diversion capacity, but if a major river could be artificially connected to ease the Yellow River’s flow…

Qingyang excitedly turned to her brother beside her.

Qin Bing: “…Alright, I’ll go tell Father that you should handle the levee inspection instead. This is all over my head, I can’t remember it, and if I mess up, it’ll only cause more delays.”

Qingyang, now onto something big, felt she needed to personally investigate. Only she could clearly instruct the local Directorate of Waterways on what needed to be done.

With the levee inspection responsibility handed back to his sister, Qin Bing sat down in a chair. Thinking about how he still had to visit the Yingyang Guard tomorrow, he sighed in frustration: “I also want to figure out what these military officers are really about, but how should I go about getting them to open up?”

Qingyang looked at her brother and said, “Second Brother, you’re thinking about it the wrong way. The governing accomplishments of civil officials like the Prefect are reflected in how the people throughout the prefecture live. We can’t cover the entire prefecture in two or three days, so we need to understand these civil officials’ temperaments, carefully discern the truth in their words, and simultaneously make them aware that we know everything. This way, in the future, they won’t dare to half-ass imperial directives or cook the books in their reports.”

Qin Bing: “Is it different for military officers?”

Qingyang: “In times of peace, the military officers’ primary duty is to diligently train troops to maintain fighting shape. With over five thousand soldiers gathered together, you can assess their physical strength and camp morale through troop reviews. Then, by checking the condition of military equipment and armor, and asking the regular soldiers about their usual pay and winter gear issuance, you can determine if the commanders are guilty of obvious corruption or treating their men poorly.”

Qin Bing: “But I did both those things. I inspected the troops, and I had Zhang Su check the equipment.”

Qingyang: “Second Brother, you should personally conduct these inspections. Because local soldiers might never see a member of the royal family in their lifetime. Only if you inspect meticulously will the commanders respect you and the royal family. Only if you personally engage with the regular soldiers will they, feeling valued and honored, recognize you and our royal family even more. By delegating to Zhang Su, you’re giving him all the credit and the troops’ loyalty. Then what is the purpose of Father bringing us on this southern tour?”

The Wise Emperor implemented benevolent policies and indeed won over the people. But by getting out among the people and comforting them, creating numerous stories about the emperor connecting with regular people, he further solidified that popular support.

Having ruled for over a decade, achieving both civil administration and military strength, with peace throughout the land, no local force could shake the Emperor’s reign. Understanding this, the Emperor gave the eldest brother the opportunity to supervise the state, allowing him to lead the court’s civil and military officials in advance. He gave her the chance to interact closely with local civil officials, enabling her to establish authority among them so they could no longer oppose her entry into court. He allowed the second brother to make a name for himself among local armies, letting soldiers across the land know the royal family has a remarkably capable prince.

Only with sibling unity, only with the Qin royal family firmly holding the people’s hearts, could the Great Qi remain stable when the Emperor eventually passed away one day.

Qin Bing was dumbstruck. When he regained his senses, he saw his sister carefully studying the water system map on the table again. He couldn’t help but stare at his sister’s face, really looking at her properly for the first time since she had grown into a young woman. Then he voiced the confusion in his heart: “Sister, did Father teach you all this, or did you come up with this yourself?”

Qingyang glanced at her brother and said, “Some I learned from books, some I absorbed from observing Father and the ministers, and some I thought of myself.”

Compared to empty talk, Father preferred leading by example. By watching how Father interacted with civil and military officials, one could naturally learn how the royal family should manage subordinates. By observing how Father inspected border troops during northern tours, one could see from the high-ranking officers’ respect and the common soldiers’ enthusiastic excitement the subtle effectiveness of the Emperor’s every word and action.

In short, the core principle never changed: to gain the people’s hearts, one must treat them well; to win the loyalty of civil and military officials, one must mix generosity with firmness.

Qin Bing: “…”

His sister made it sound so simple, making him look slow for not learning it!

Qin Bing didn’t think he was lacking in intelligence—it must be because his sister was too clever. A little princess who memorized the Thousand Character Classic at three years old—he really shouldn’t compare himself to her!

Taking one last look at his sister, who regarded the map as a treasure, Qin Bing strode off to find his father.

Emperor Xingwu was very interested in his daughter’s four-part water management strategy: “Which four characters?”

Qin Bing: “…”

He strained to recall but could only repeat three characters.

Emperor Xingwu stared expressionlessly at his son: “You’re the older brother. You know less than your sister, and you can’t even remember what she taught you. Tell me, aren’t you ashamed?”

Qin Bing: “I never studied water management. Ignorance isn’t blameworthy, so why should I be ashamed? Besides, I’m not interested in water management anyway. But sister is truly impressive. I’m completely convinced about her entering court affairs now!”

Emperor Xingwu: “Get out!”

It's been almost a year since our daughter entered court service, and this oaf only accepts it today?

After sending away his useless second son, Emperor Xingwu thought for a moment and decided to bring Consort Li along to hear their daughter's flood control strategy.

The emperor and his consort were gone for over an hour.

Though Consort Li couldn't fully grasp the details, seeing her daughter discuss governance with such ease and brilliance in front of the emperor made her finally understand why His Majesty always spoke so highly of their child.

Because her child was truly, truly remarkable!