Wealth and glory seek stability

Zhang Cen'er pursed her lips, put her hands behind her back, and looked far into the distance at the mountains. "My father wants me to follow the example of my mother and lead the troops to quell the tribal rebellion."

Jian Xi nodded, "That's great. What Li Cejun said is very true. The princess is very talented, but what she lacks most is experience. I think she will be very different in five years."

The two looked at each other and smiled.

"Then I'll take you to the desert on horseback to drink, and we'll definitely not come back until we're drunk." Zhang Cen'er showed his white teeth.

Jian Xi is pregnant. Although Zhang Cen'er has repeatedly assured her that women who have taken pregnancy-preserving pills can drink alcohol, Jian Xi still insists on not drinking a drop of alcohol.

"it is good."

Jian Xi brought a whole convoy on this trip.

Because of Zhang Qiao's order, she withdrew a large amount of grain seeds from the Ministry of Revenue.

Mo Chuan and others naturally set off with Jian Xi. Although the Saibei grassland is the territory of the Xuanwu Dynasty, it is close to the Xia Kingdom and the White Tiger Dynasty, so the customs and habits have the characteristics of the three kingdoms.

Jian Xi was actually looking forward to the trip to the northern grasslands, as if it was the first time since she became an adult that she would grow up independently, away from the people or forces that protected her.

This was the first time she could be the master of her own house.

So cool.

The climate in November is relatively cold.

Everyone was wearing warm clothes. This time, Jian Xi did not choose to ride a horse. Instead, she took the two little girls, Lingbao and Baizhi, to sit in the warm and spacious carriage.

Zhang Cen'er is an extremely generous partner, and this carriage was sponsored by her as a friendly donation.

It takes nearly a month to travel from Kyoto to the northern grasslands. If there is no comfortable carriage along the way, it will be very difficult.

The interior of the carriage was spacious, and there was a lot of fire in the middle using a charcoal stove.

The entire interior material is very special. When exposed to high temperatures, it will emit a unique wood fragrance.

"Sister, I heard that the Saibei grassland is very close to the Divine Doctor Valley." Bai Zhi's little face had an expectant look.

She hasn't seen her master for more than half a year, and doesn't know how her master is doing recently.

Jian Xi leaned on the couch, holding a book of miscellaneous notes to relieve her boredom, "Yes, I can help you find out the whereabouts of your master when the time comes."

Bai Zhi nodded vigorously, "Thank you, sister."

Lingbao sat on a cushion at the side, staring intently at the charcoal fire in the stove until a sweet burnt smell emanated from it, and his little face lit up with excitement.

"All right!"

Lingbao carefully used a pair of tongs to pick up the black balls baked in the oven and placed them on a porcelain plate.

She stretched out her little hand and handed the porcelain plate to Mo Chuan, who was driving outside the carriage, "Brother, it's cool outside. Let this cool down a bit before eating."

Mo Chuan took it with one hand, "Okay, don't disturb the girl in there." With the other hand, he drove the carriage steadily.

Lingbao pouted, "I'm not bothering my sister. Be careful and don't eat anything secretly."

Mo Chuan looked at it with disdain as he picked up one of the black coal balls and crushed it in his hand, instantly revealing the tender yellow interior.

"I wouldn't eat it secretly. What's so delicious about this sweet potato?" He said and bit off half of the sweet potato.

hiss!

Really sweet and melts in your mouth.

Baizhi was holding the plate with three roasted sweet potatoes on it, puzzled.

"Lingbao, didn't you bake that plate specially for Taoist Mo Chuan? Why do you say that?"

Ling Bao shook his head, raised one eyebrow, and winked, "You don't know this. Of course, the food given for free tastes better than the food I secretly ate. The charcoal fire in my stove is of the best quality, and the sweet potatoes baked in it are sweeter than those baked in ordinary charcoal fires. Brother will definitely be tempted to secretly eat them."

Bai Zhi put down the plate, wrapped a roasted sweet potato in a towel and handed it to Jian Xi who was reading a book.

The center of the carriage was very large, and Jian Xi was lying on the couch in the middle. There were small couches on both sides. The two little girls insisted on sitting on the ground and warming themselves by the fire, saying that it felt better that way.

Jian Xi looked at the tender little girl holding a roasted sweet potato and coming to her, a warm look appeared in her eyes.

"Is this for me?"

"Yeah, this is baked by Lingbao himself, sister, try it."

Jian Xi took the sweet potato with a smile, broke it open, and saw yellow flesh with some pink and glutinous flesh inside. She pinched a piece and put it in her mouth.

His eyes narrowed into slits, "It's delicious. Lingbao's cooking is really good. You guys should try some too."

Sweet potatoes are something that people only eat in years of famine. Lingbao shook her head. She had been hurt by eating these things a long time ago. Now that she can eat her fill every day, she doesn't want to eat them anymore.

He handed the sweet potato in his hand to Baizhi, and took a small piece of cake on the table and savored it slowly.

"You eat it, I'll just eat the cake."

Hearing this, Bai Zhi did not refuse and took a piece and ate it in small bites.

After eating one, Jian Xi felt a little choked.

He pressed a button at hand and the carriage window slowly rose.

It has to be said that the craftsmanship of the Xuanwu Dynasty was truly first-rate; both the buildings and the carriages and equipment were extremely sophisticated.

Before leaving, Jian Xi specifically asked Zhang Qiao for two craftsmen who were good at making mechanical devices. In order to make the craftsmen feel at ease to go with her, she also brought their families along and promised to properly settle them in the northern grasslands.

In the Xuanwu Dynasty, the status of craftsmen was extremely low, just above slaves.

In order to survive, they usually rely on large families, or enter the royal court, so that they can protect their entire family.

A craftsman's skills are generally passed down from generation to generation. Craftsmen with savings will have many children, let one of them inherit their skills, and then support other children to enter the clan to learn martial arts, lead troops to fight and gain military merit. As long as one person can rise up, it can change the fate of the entire family.

Jian Xi specifically secured as many carriages as possible for the caravan. In addition to Mo Chuan and his group, the craftsmen, there were also wizards who predicted the weather, ceremonial officers who were familiar with the customs and practices of the Xuanwu Dynasty... and some people that Zhang Qiao had squeezed in.

According to the law, the families of these officials who went to local posts could be equipped with carriages and horses, but craftsmen and eunuchs had to walk.

Before Jian Xi left, she had seen these people, old and young. If they were to walk in the ice and snow, they would probably die before reaching the northern grasslands.

So they found some carriages with narrow compartments and only a shed to protect them from the rain for the non-official people who were accompanying them.

These were suggested by Zhang Cener.

The Xuanwu Dynasty had a strict hierarchy. If they were too nice to these low-level craftsmen or servants, it would probably cause dissatisfaction among some subordinate officials.

But it is already very good to be able to do this. Some eunuchs and craftsmen can no longer walk, so they can take turns to get on the carriage to rest. This is a great blessing for them.

When passing through some prosperous capital cities along the way, Jian Xi would order the convoy to rest and have a good day in the city.

Because Qi Si was a marginal figure, she was treated as a ceremonial officer and accompanied Jian Xi this time.

The empress granted Jian Xi absolute power, and the first order she gave was to allow family members to accompany her.