Chapter 403: A Thousand Miles of Red Earth

Da Wang acted frequently in a short span, stirring up a great storm outside, yet he himself didn't care at all.

First, the Floating Tower Pavilion auction sold three Rejuvenation Pills. The three families who bought them naturally kept them hidden, unable to resist the initial Floating Tower Pavilion sending people to secretly deliver them out; this twist made the mysterious attribute even more pronounced, and anyone with some means and connections is inquiring who bought them, wondering whether this thing is actually useful.

The Northern Border Medical Bureau also officially began registration; regardless of whether one truly wants to study medicine or is just coming to get a free meal because they're poor at home, every day the line of people queuing to register at the bureau's door stretches out of sight.

The most significant thing is that the newspaper publishing the parade news has finally been issued.

Xie Tu's four realistic sketch drawings were printed in the newspaper; besides causing a stir among some people in the south, the Northern Border populace kicked off a craze for collecting newspapers.

Da Wang somewhat understands them—who wouldn't want to pull out such a magnificent spectacle now and then for a look? Back then he had worn out everyone's parade videos.

So Da Wang waved a hand and ordered an extra fifty thousand copies for this issue! The newspaper's profit is imminent.

After the matter passed, Da Wang waved a hand and easily moved on; even the Snow Riders, Da Wang didn't give them extra thought. Even if you don't believe Changli, you believe in the Snow Riders' armor sturdiness—there's nothing to worry about, and even if there were, it wouldn't be his concern.

Da Wang's life returned to normal, and the academy's attendance rate suddenly rose sharply.

One day on his way to the academy, Da Wang, not taking a carriage but riding his White Dragon, under the blazing sun, as he ran, the creature first felt something…… wrong! The weather feels a bit dry?

From the day Da Wang used the City Lord's Heart, his physical quality stepped beyond the normal human range. He's the type who would jump straight into the sea to catch fish in winter, and even in the hottest summer he never sweated, yet this summer he actually felt a hint of dryness.

The whole You Province City was stuffy and dry; even the cicadas' chirping seemed noisier than in previous years.

Da Wang wavered between 'he is sick' and 'the weather is abnormal,' feeling uncertain.

"Ling Yin, this year's weather… isn't it hotter than in previous years?" Upon closer look, it's fine—the roadside big trees are all wilting, their leaves turning yellow.

"... Probably about the same? My subordinate hasn't really felt anything."

Well, neither of them is a normal person, so they're not much of a reference.

He went back and told Zhao Bao, who found it strange, saying, "Haven't the lower levels already reported drought? The populace is now busy with anti-drought efforts."

He then asked the Minister of Agriculture up front, who had been worried for days, fearing that some places might face total crop failure this year. Moreover, the Northern Border's current financial pressure is no ordinary matter.

He worried for Da Wang to the point of anxiety—formerly feeding forty thousand soldiers was already a strain, now they need to feed over two hundred thousand. He dare not even calculate the yearly grain and fodder for over two hundred thousand soldiers...

Da Wang was also shocked, saying, "I only knew the Yellow River had breached its banks, but these past few years the weather hasn't been normal at all—I didn't expect it to be this severe…" Thinking back, he seemed to have heard about drought at the court assembly; back then hearing it was enough, that so-called Little Ice Age—normalcy would be weird. He hadn't expected it to have reached the point of total crop failure.

The next day at the court assembly, Da Wang inquired in detail; reports of drought came from everywhere, with Bing Province saying many places had already dried into red earth, all vegetation dead. The Northern Border finally began to confront the drought problem.

Da Wang belatedly realized, 'We're doomed; we may have to tighten our belts again.'

Da Wang first went to look at his hundred-mu farm base, finding the crops there perfectly normal. Then he visited the pasture; the fodder was lush and still glistening with morning dew, he breathed a little easier—Mengmeng's product is still reliable, so it seems his warhorses' feed is unaffected for now; only people remain.

Da Wang again led a team out of the city to the northern garrison's reclaimed farmland, where everyone had already mobilized to carry water and irrigate the fields.

The soldiers need to train half a day; it's now afternoon, and their families are laboring in the fields. Men, women, old and young all pitch in, and Da Wang even saw a three-year-old bare-bottomed child carrying a water jar walking in the fields…

Da Wang grew worried.

"This won't do! We need to think of a solution!" The little stream that carries water looked about to run dry.

Wei Shen heard this, spat out the dog-tail grass in his mouth, and said, "What solution? Do you still know how to pray for rain?"

Da Wang spoke righteously, "Praying for rain is what feudal superstition; we must trust science! Praying for rain is worse than digging a well!"

Zhao Bao heard this and hurriedly reminded, "Your Highness, the ground is now cracked dry—are you sure water can be drawn from a well?"

Who says it isn't.

If no water comes out, isn't that just wasting labor for nothing?