“Impressive, simply impressive! How did you even come up with such a machine? Surely no one would dare to doubt the Heavenly Master Craftsmith title that His Majesty conferred upon you!”

“Hahaha, you’re flattering me, Brother Liang! I’m getting embarrassed…!”

“Don’t be so humble! When I was in Yue Province last year, your newly-invented spinning frame and loom that could improve work efficiency several dozen times caused quite a huge stir among the local merchants and businessmen there. They even sent people to Gan Province to procure them back! Every household originally raised silkworms and weaved for a living in Yue Province. The silk produced there is very well-known. When the machines you invented reached that area, it instantly raised the efficiency of large-scale businesses by a few dozen times. Even the efficiency of the smaller household businesses increased by tenfold…”

Yan Liqiang showed Liang Yijie, Yuan Beihong, Zhang Rui, and Zhang Yunduan around the Greatest Mill. As they walked around, Yan Liqiang explained to them the process of spinning yarns.

The Greatest Mill had a great reputation. Almost everyone who came to Pingxi Prefecture would want take a tour. Liang Yijie and the others were no exception. After the group settled down in Yan Fortress, had a meal and a short break, Liang Yijie expressed his interest to tour the Greatest Mill so Yan Liqiang brought them there.

The ladies working in the mill were pretty used to things by now. They had face masks on and were busy working.

The entire production process and job arrangements in this mill were personally designed by Yan Liqiang. He was good at things like these. Anyone who came in would realize that the Greatest Mill was a very neat, tidy, and highly-efficient place. Everyone knew their own tasks well. No one was seen idling around and there wasn’t even a piece of garbage on the floor. Everything was in perfect order, and it was a very impressive sight.

“Oh, I heard that silk embroidery is very trendy right now in Yue Province. How’s it there now?” Yan Liqiang casually asked since Liang Yijie had mentioned Yue Province.

“When your spinning frames and looms reached Yue Province, many businesses expanded to generate more profit. In fact, the biggest weaving mill in Yue Province increased the number of spinning frames to a thousand and its workers to more than three thousand people just last year. In the past, only very few people in Yue Province were specialized in raising silkworms and planting mulberry trees. Now that the silk production capacity suddenly increased, the demand for silk naturally increased too. This caused more people to start raising silkworms and planting mulberry trees. Even Lord Sun said this was all thanks to you. Oh right, and the four-wheeled carriages are extremely useful for transporting both goods and people. It really made life a lot more convenient compared to before. Most places in Yue Province could pretty much replicate the four-wheeled carriages as soon as Lord Sun and I received the one you sent us!”

“Such changes in production method tend to bring about improvements to labor and work divisions…” Yan Liqiang remarked.

“Liqiang, there seems to be some profound meaning behind your words…” Liang Yijie knitted his eyebrows together as he pondered the meaning behind Yan Liqiang’s remark while walking through the spinning frames.

Yan Liqiang was slightly taken aback when he realized that he had absent-mindedly uttered something that was difficult for people of this era to understand. However, Yuan Beihong and the others didn’t seem too bothered as they were curiously watching how the workers operated the machines attentively. Yan Liqiang just laughed it off, “Hahaha, I was just saying nonsense. Oh right, now that Brother Liang mentioned it, I really want to find an opportunity to visit Yue Province…!”

“Without the White Lotus Society, Yue Province can be considered one of the greatest places in the world. Yet those demons started chaos and reduced the flourishing cities into ruins in just the blink of an eye!”

“Does the White Lotus Society have a powerful influence in Yue Province?”

“The White Lotus Society has infiltrated the bureaucracies and lower-ranking officials in most places. It’s hard to clear them out. Although Gan Province and other places in the northwestern region are less flourished than Yue Province, they are more peaceful as the White Lotus Society’s influence is weaker here!”

Liang Yijie cast a glance at Yan Liqiang, then a strange smile appeared on his face. “But I think you should be a little more careful when you go to Yue Province!”

“Why?”

“I heard that people in Yue Province are saying that you have invented these machines to support the female population. When the weaver girls there heard that you were a handsome young man, they started idolizing you and they are now obsessed with you. Many of them even have a picture of you in their homes. Just a few months ago, I saw many painters in Yue Provincial City drawing portraits of handsome men to sell on the streets, claiming that they were portraits of you. In just the blink of an eye, they were all bought by a group of weaver girls. If those girls knew you were coming to Yue Province, I’m afraid you wouldn’t be able to come back anymore!”

When Yan Liqiang heard that, he burst out laughing.

…

Yan Liqiang showed Liang Yijie and the others around the Greatest Mill first, then gave them a tour around Yan Fortress and showed them the future development plans inside the fortress. After that, he brought them to the archery academy and let them watch the new students practice their formations. Just like most people who saw the scene for the very first time, Liang Yijie and the rest were stunned by the students. It was certainly an eye-opener to them.

An entire afternoon had almost passed by the time they finished visiting these places. The group then returned to Yan Fortress once again.

The group parted after dinner. It was only then that Liang Yijie finally found the chance to have a private conversation with Yan Liqiang at the Guest Pavilion he was staying at. Naturally, Yan Liqiang knew Liang Yijie’s trip to Pingxi Prefecture this time wasn’t only to reminisce with him.

The Guest Pavilion was a quiet, luxurious courtyard that was newly-built within the Yan Fortress. It would house important visitors to Yan Fortress since it would be inconvenient for guests to stay in the Yan Residence and a little too rude to let them stay in inns. It was something similar to the designated guesthouses or hotels specified by the government in his previous life to accommodate VIPs.

As soon as the maid exited the room and closed the door after serving tea, Liang Yijie took out a letter and handed it to Yan Liqiang. “This is from Lord Sun!”

“Oh, has he been well over the recent years?” Yan Liqiang inquired as the accepted the letter.

“He is doing great. But when he was in Yue Province, he was often worried that you would fall victim to Lin Qingtian and his comrades. After knowing that you left the Imperial Capital and returned to Gan Province, he was relieved. He firmly believed that you would lead a bright future in Gan Province after leaving that dangerous place, and he was right about that!”

“Hahaha, I was really too weak to continue staying in the Imperial Capital a few years ago. So I had no choice but to come back here!” Yan Liqiang smiled and didn’t try to avoid the topic. He then opened the letter from Sun Bingchen and started reading it in front of Liang Yijie.

Sun Bingchen didn’t really mention anything special in his letter. It just contained some greetings, some inquiries on Yan Liqiang’s current situation and cultivation progress, some updates on the current situation in the Imperial Capital, especially the changes that occurred after Lin Qingtian was ‘assassinated’, and then the Heavenly Tribulation that would occur next year…

Yan Liqiang turned the page and continued reading…

“The Great Han Empire is going through troubling times right now. The moving of the capital has been put on the agenda in the imperial court. However, there are still some hopeful officials who wish to wait for the news from other provinces in the eighth lunar month.

“According to the bureaucracies of other provinces, the weather is indeed unusual this year. This year is indeed hotter than the previous year, with abnormally lesser rainfall in the fourth and fifth lunar month. There are already signs of drought. In my opinion, it is imperative to move the capital. Even if there’s only one in ten possibilities that the stone turtle was right, the Imperial Capital is no longer a suitable place for the Emperor to stay in next year. We must make early preparations. It will be an extremely challenging feat to migrate so many citizens. Any careless mistake can be grave.

With the aftermath of Lin Qingtian’s incident, it has been difficult to settle down the situation in the imperial court and other places for the time being. With the evil White Lotus Society spying at the side, the future of the Great Han Empire is nothing but a dangerous violent sea. His Majesty is aware of the perils and summoned me back from Yue Province. Although I now hold heavier responsibilities as the Grand Secretariat, the thoughts of the Great Han Empire’s future haunt my dreams at night…”

…

…

“The Gulang Plains have always been the Great Han Empire’s territory. Yet, the Dark Ram Tribe is waging wars against the Shatu Seven Tribes there. I am truly ashamed of the officials of our Great Han Empire. However, with all these consecutive major events happening here, the Emperor and the central administration are really unable to attend to the matters on the Gulang Plains. Not only that, but we also are not willing to waste our country’s resources and sacrifice our men to help the Shatu Seven Tribes.

“Lin Qingtian’s action was inexcusable, so the army was recalled by the imperial court and Wei Wuji was taken down. As the Qiyun Protectorate General, the Gulang Plains is still rightfully under your control. Amidst such chaos, this is the time for us to prove our loyalty to our country and lessen His Majesty’s burden.

“When you were appointed as the Qiyun Protectorate General by the Emperor that day, you weren’t granted real authority. So even though you have the best of intentions and extraordinary strength to deal with the Shatu Seven Tribes and the Dark Ram Tribe, you are still limited in what you can do.

“The day before yesterday, His Majesty discussed with me that he was ready to cut Pingxi Prefecture out of Gan Province and rename it as Qiyun Prefecture. Together with the Gulang Plains, it will be under the jurisdiction of Qiyun Protectorate — something to secure your title as the Qiyun Protectorate General as part of the plans to recover the Gulang Plains. This is also to show the Great Han Empire and His Majesty’s determination in regaining the Gulang Plains to boost the morale of our people and stop the scoundrels who ran amuck on our homeland.”

“Do you still remember the plan of recovering the Gulang Plains that we discussed back then? This is the right time. You have already established yourself in Pingxi Prefecture with no shortage of money. Not only that, but you have also befriended the local officials and have a great reputation. I see that you have already made preparations by setting up an archery academy and manufacturing bureau in Pingxi Prefecture. You are the only person who can carry out this important mission. His Majesty and I have high hopes for you. Yijie will be in the northwestern region working as the Northwestern Transport Commissioner. He will be of help to you. If you continue to work hard, you will surely achieve great things…”

They were going to cut Pingxi Prefecture out of Gan Province for him so that he could secure his seating as the Qiyun Protectorate General and recover the Gulang Plains…

Yan Liqiang was stunned into silence by the contents of Sun Bingchen’s letter…