Chapter 186: Ah~ you little rascal, big sis is practically becoming your pillow

Lu Yuan had a look at this 'National Fortune' thing.

This thing is a bit mystical.

In Lu Yuan's words, this thing is……

It's a bit like feng shui.

It's about teaching people to examine terrain, to spot auspicious sites.

It's like in grave-robbing, where 'one layer of mountain is one layer of pass'.

Lu Yuan still doesn't get what connection this thing has with the National Fortune.

As for putting it into practice, well…

Lu Yuan simply has no time; he's been tinkering with a train steam engine every day.

Where would he find the time to mess with these things?

Now, regarding this 'National Fortune' thing, Lu Yuan just treats it as a joke to look at.

Some of the stuff on it is not much different from feng shui.

Mysterious and mumbo-jumbo.

When bored, he can give it a look.

Treat it like a fantasy novel.

After finishing the cigarette in his hand, Lu Yuan also looked at the Imperial Guard elder brother and said:

"Alright, elder brother, let's go."

Lu Yuan said that and then rode off on his bicycle.

Meanwhile, that Imperial Guard elder brother, watching Lu Yuan's back, couldn't help but sigh.

Living to see Lu Yuan's level in this lifetime is truly worthwhile.

His wife at home is as beautiful as a fairy.

Even outside, His Majesty still dotes on her so much.

Even if it's Prince Lie, I doubt he gets this treatment.

Lu Yuan rode his bike and in a flash arrived at Chonghua Hall.

Just as that Imperial Guard elder brother said, Lu Yuan headed toward Chonghua Hall from the eastern side gate.

All the thresholds along the way have been torn down.

Lu Yuan's path was smooth and unobstructed; he no longer needed to, as before, get off and carry his bicycle past each gate.

Thus Lu Yuan reached Chonghua Hall, where Gu Qingwan was, in about five or six minutes.

At this moment, inside Chonghua Hall stood a huge locomotive, with iron rails encircling the hall in a large loop.

As for the locomotive's parts, basically once produced they were sent straight to Chonghua Hall, and Lu Yuan had already assembled them in advance.

Now only a few critical parts are missing; once they arrive tomorrow, Lu Yuan will install them and be able to start the locomotive.

He parked his bike beside the huge locomotive, then Lu Yuan went inside Chonghua Hall to greet Gu Qingwan.

Now Lu Yuan and Gu Qingwan's relationship is simply excellent.

Their relationship is just like that of an elder sister and younger brother.

Lu Yuan arrived at the door, and without waiting for the little eunuch standing there to announce him, he pushed the door open and walked straight in.

But after pushing open the great door, Lu Yuan looked at the scene inside the room.

He froze for a moment, then immediately went 'plop' and knelt down, shouting loudly:

"I pay my respects, Your Majesty."

Today, inside the room there is not only Gu Qingwan, but also another person.

The Vice Grand Secretary of the Cabinet, Yan Shijin.

When it's only Lu Yuan and Gu Qingwan, Lu Yuan is never formal.

Even……

Lu Yuan even dares, during his nap, to climb straight onto the imperial throne, bury his face in Gu Qingwan's soft, fragrant belly and rub back and forth, making Gu Qingwan let out a coy reproach.

But if there are proper officials present, Lu Yuan becomes completely serious and respectful.

Lu Yuan entered and knelt on the ground.

This made Yan Shijin turn his head to glance at Lu Yuan, his eyes showing considerable displeasure.

After all, how could this guy not even have someone announce him before just pushing the door and walking in?

And Gu Qingwan, leaning lazily on the imperial throne, upon lifting her head and seeing Lu Yuan, had her eyes fill with tenderness and indulgence, about to spill over like water.

"Get up~"

After saying that to Lu Yuan, Gu Qingwan then turned her head to look at Yan Shijin and said, raising her chin:

"The battle report has arrived; Vice Grand Secretary Yan, you may go back and rest."

Yan Shijin stared for a moment, then gave a slight bow and said:

"Your Majesty, today when I and two fellow cabinet members came to the palace, we noticed some thresholds in the palace had been torn down; I don't know why."

After Lu Yuan rose and stood aside silently, he knew that this Vice Grand Secretary Yan was likely coming to pick a fight.

And Gu Qingwan seemed to have long anticipated that Yan Shijin would ask about this; she immediately tilted her head slightly, expressionless, and said:

"The thresholds are really in the way, so I ordered them removed; Vice Grand Secretary Yan, do you have any objections?"

Yan Shijin immediately bowed and said:

"Your Majesty, in carrying out your affairs, I dare not have any objections."

However, according to ancestral statutes, there has never been an instance of removing palace thresholds; does this violate the ancestral statutes?

Upon hearing this, Gu Qingwan leaned her body to the side of the throne, her beautiful leg lightly swinging, her face utterly indifferent, and said:

"Whether it violates the ancestral system, I, however, am unaware."

"However, the Great Zhou Dynasty renews itself day by day, and all the grand Siheyuan within Huangcheng have already had their thresholds removed."

"I am merely renewing myself with the people; even Grand Secretary Yan should keep up with the times and go out more when there's nothing to do."

"If one always stays indoors, it's inevitable to pick up the decaying air of an old house."

"Yan Shijin stared for half a second, wanting to say something, but ultimately he bowed and said:"

"Yes… Your Majesty."

"However, after Yan Shijin finished speaking, he did not leave, but instead said again:"

"Your Majesty, in the Chonghua Hall's courtyard, all this clutter and disorder—does it harm the imperial dignity?"

"This is Your Majesty's bedchamber; such a messy appearance truly loses the imperial dignity."

"As soon as Yan Shijin finished speaking, Gu Qingwan immediately raised her head and spoke coldly:"

"Precisely because this is my bedchamber, that's why it's fine."

"Gu Qingwan's voice, which does not conceal killing intent at all, echoed in the great hall."

"This made Yan Shijin's body involuntarily tremble."

"Thereupon, Yan Shijin immediately said:"

"Yes, Your Majesty, I have spoken too much."

"Finally, Yan Shijin withdrew from Chonghua Hall."

"When the great hall's gate was closed."

"Standing below, Lu Yuan raised his eyebrows and said:"

"He's come again to stir up trouble."

"You say this old fellow is also, always lacking."

"Every time he's rebuked by you, yet he keeps coming back for scolding."

"Isn't this just him making himself unhappy?"

"Gu Qingwan looked down at Lu Yuan; the frost on her face had already melted."

"Hearing Lu Yuan's words, Gu Qingwan gave him a charming, flirtatious glance and said coquettishly:"

"You little rascal, what do you know? If they always rely on the elder sister and always follow her, then wouldn't the power in their hands be lost early?"

"The more this is the case, the safer they are."

"Thus, if the elder sister were to act rashly against them, the world would likely place upon her the great hat of not heeding loyal advice and slaughtering loyal officials."

"The elder sister would not dare to wear such a hat."

"Gu Qingwan finished speaking, then looked down at Lu Yuan and pursed her lips, saying:"

"What are you still standing there for? No one else is around—hurry up and come over~"

"Hearing Gu Qingwan's words, Lu Yuan walked toward her dragon desk."

"At this moment, the Grand Eunuch had already brought Lu Yuan's chair up."

"Lu Yuan stepped forward, and before he could say anything, Gu Qingwan immediately took out a memorial and excitedly handed it to him, saying:"

"Suppressing bandits in the south—great victory!!"

"With only six wounded and one dead, in a single day they cleared six mountain strongholds, two of which were the largest bandit gangs in the province."

"In total, they killed over three hundred bandits and captured over fourteen hundred."

"Lu Yuan opened the memorial while asking curiously:"

"How come one person still died?"

"Gu Qingwan was startled, then said:"

"The mountain path is treacherous; one person slipped while climbing and fell to his death."

"Hearing this, Lu Yuan nodded, indicating that was indeed the case."

"Lu Yuan also didn't say much; after glancing at the memorial, he prepared to look at a map."

"And Gu Qingwan, seeing Lu Yuan's current reaction, said coquettishly:"

"What kind of reaction is this, you little rascal? You're not happy at all!"

"Lu Yuan was startled, then shrugged and said:"

"Isn't this normal? Using mortars to blast a band of bandits who don't even have rifled muskets—of course it should be like this."

"Hearing Lu Yuan's words, Gu Qingwan gave him an extremely charming, flirtatious glance, then jabbed his forehead with her jade hand, coquettishly scolding:"

"Alright, alright, it's all because you, little rascal, are awesome~"

"Gu Qingwan, upon seeing this battle report today, was truly overjoyed."

"Gu Qingwan knew this bandit suppression operation would certainly go smoothly."

"But after all, some things are merely drills on paper; once on the ever-changing battlefield, who knows what might happen?"

And when she truly saw the report, and it was such a great victory, Gu Qingwan really was happy enough to almost jump up.

In that case.

The bandit trouble in the south will likely be settled in a short time.

If every time goes as smoothly as the day before yesterday, the original anti-bandit plan called for three months of preparation and three months of resolution; now it looks like it might be settled in just one and a half months?

Gu Qingwan watched Lu Yuan searching around, immediately knew what he was looking for, and then said:

"The map is here."

Saying that, Gu Qingwan stood up, opened a map, and placed it before the dragon throne.

Lu Yuan also immediately stood up to look.

On this map, six places are marked with red crosses.

Hmm…

Immediately, Lu Yuan nodded and said:

"Almost done, these six places are among the hardest to crack, and in half a month the southern bandit troubles will be wrapped up."

Half… half a month??

Gu Qingwan looked at Lu Yuan, somewhat astonished, and said:

"No… can't be half a month, this… even if it were driving pigs, you couldn't drive out the bandits within the three provinces in half a month, could you?"

Lu Yuan shook his head and swayed, saying:

"This is called 'defeat collapses like a mountain'; these bandits have no way to handle mortars, this gang of bandits can at most hold out for a few more days."

"After a few days, as more and more mountaintops are easily taken, this gang will surely not be able to hold on, and some will come out to surrender."

"You think these people are soldiers with some belief or faith? They're just a bunch of bandits."

"Once one of them surrenders, soon a large group will surrender."

"By then, only a few utterly wicked bandits will remain—the kind who would die whether they surrendered or held out."

"Finally, mopping up will cleanse these people, and the matter will be over."

Lu Yuan spoke confidently, and Gu Qingwan, watching that head-shaking, swaying Lu Yuan, felt her affection grow ever stronger.

After Lu Yuan finished speaking, Gu Qingwan pursed her lips and said in a coquettish voice:

"Yes yes yes~ you little rascal are awesome~~"

Lu Yuan didn't pick up on that, but instead, while looking at the map, said:

"In that case, we can already notify the south to go ahead and build the railway."

Regarding this railway network.

For the past two or three months, construction has been ongoing in the north of the Great Zhou Dynasty.

Because the north is a vast plain and still has no bandit trouble.

For example, the south couldn't be built before, firstly because the south has many hills and mountainous terrain.

Of course, the most important reason is that there are too many bandits.

If the bandits aren't dealt with, how can you build a railway?

Then it would really be like those scenes in movies, right?

Master Tao and his wife were eating hot pot and singing, when suddenly they were intercepted by the numb bandits.

Now this is fine.

Once Gu Lie's side wraps up, we can start construction.

And once the railway is in place,

For example, steel, heavy machinery, can also be transported south via the railway.

By then, cities throughout the south will also be able to set up factories.

Such as bicycle factories, threshing machine factories.

Once the railway is built, we can transport goods over.

How many job opportunities this will bring to the local area!

Moreover, the first batch of potatoes from the northern greenhouses was also harvested a few days ago.

By then, large amounts of grain can also be transported over.

One could say that the Great Zhou Dynasty is now thriving and prospering day by day.

Once this is done, Lu Yuan will have nothing left to do and can truly take a break.

By then, he can continue studying the Medical Sage and the State Fortune.

Gu Qingwan, listening to Lu Yuan's words, also smiled and nodded repeatedly, saying:

"I have already had the cabinet draft the southern railway."

"However, the south has many mountains and hills, so the railway needs to be laid according to local conditions."

"These can only be truly finalized after the local southern authorities send over the actual terrain for study."

Lu Yuan nodded; this matter is no longer something he needs to worry about.

After looking at the map for a while longer, Lu Yuan also couldn't be bothered to look.

Today, Lu Yuan came here just to see how the situation is on Gu Lie's side.

Now, I'm quite satisfied, and there's nothing else to do.

Before, Lu Yuan was somewhat nervous, but now he's relaxed.

Instantly, Lu Yuan yawned, feeling a bit sleepy.

Now Lu Yuan again stays up late each night playing with his wife, unlike before when he used to go to bed early and rise early.

Now Lu Yuan basically gets up at nine or ten every day.

Today he came early because he was in a hurry to see the battle report.

Now he's feeling sleepy again.

Immediately, Lu Yuan bent forward and bowed, and in the midst of Gu Qingwan's soft hum, he rested his head on her warm, fragrant thigh.

He buried his face in Gu Qingwan's soft abdomen, preparing to nap.

"Oh~ you little rascal, big sis is practically becoming your pillow!"

Gu Qingwan's face flushed with a rosy glow, she lowered her head and gazed at the adeptly pillowing Lu Yuan, speaking in a coquettish voice.

Gu Qingwan said that, but her mouth seemed unwilling.

But her eyes were full of amusement.

Gu Qingwan, as soon as Lu Yuan leaned on her, immediately reached out to embrace his back, gently patting him, just like soothing a child to sleep.

These all show that Gu Qingwan is truly willing, a hundred times over.

Lu Yuan, on the other hand, remained motionless, eyes closed, muttering:

"Back then, it was you who let me sleep like this, huh? What's up, you regretting it?"

Gu Qingwan gazed at Lu Yuan lying on her leg, her eyes full of affection, while gently patting his back, she said tenderly:

"No regrets~"

"Sister lets you keep using me as a pillow~"

The great eunuch below, like a stone Buddha, tilted his head slightly, glanced at the scene above, then continued standing like a stone Buddha.

His heart was also utterly undisturbed.

He was used to it.

Over the past two or three months, Lu Yuan and the imperial lord have been up to many wanton things.

This is just the beginning.

Thanks to Brother Vast Heaven and Earth for the 1500 book coin reward, thank you very much~

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Thanks to Brothers 'Wrong Then Regret', QI Fengyun, Four Seasons/Give You, Han Mang for the 100 book coin reward, thank you very much~

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(End of chapter)