Even the Emperor, who had looked so resolute just moments ago, now seemed somewhat shaken after hearing Mu Xueshi’s words.
“Father Emperor, no matter what Emperor Hao Lin does, his ultimate goal is to permanently solve Lubei’s famine problem. Once war begins, both sides will suffer heavy losses. Even if land is gained, it would still take decades to recover and rebuild. That is truly the worst possible option, only to be chosen when there is no alternative. But if the problem can be solved while avoiding war entirely, why would Emperor Hao Lin refuse?”
“Yes, exactly!” Seeing that the Third Prince had accepted his suggestion, Mu Xueshi immediately chimed in excitedly from the side. “If Emperor Hao Lin wanted war from the start, he wouldn’t have come for a political marriage, right?”
Mu Xueshi looked toward the Third Prince.
The Third Prince merely smiled without speaking. The way he looked at Mu Xueshi now carried even more affection than before.
The Emperor fell silent for a moment, his expression complicated. He did not rush to respond. Instead, his gaze settled on Mu Xueshi as he slowly sized him up from head to toe.
“You truly came up with that idea yourself?” the Emperor asked.
Seeing the suspicion in the Emperor’s eyes, Mu Xueshi panicked and did not know how to answer, so he instinctively looked toward the Third Prince.
The Emperor followed his gaze and looked at the Third Prince as well, clearly suspecting that the idea had been planned beforehand by him. He simply could not believe that someone who appeared so lacking in scholarship could propose such an insightful plan.
Seeing both pairs of eyes fixed on him, the Third Prince parted his lips slightly and said, “Father Emperor, that idea truly was not mine. In fact, this is the first time even I have heard of diverting water by cutting through mountains.”
The Emperor knew the Third Prince had no reason to feign humility, and thus he was forced to reevaluate the person before him.
The reason the Emperor had always disliked Mu Xueshi was not because he failed to know his place, but because his very existence felt like an eternal joke left behind by Grand Tutor Mu. Grand Tutor Mu’s elegance, beauty, and talent—Mu Xueshi had inherited none of them. Instead, all he seemed capable of was causing trouble.
But now it seemed Mu Xueshi was not completely without merit after all. Or perhaps he truly possessed extraordinary qualities the Emperor had simply never seen before. Otherwise, how could the Third Prince cherish him to such an extent?
“Your idea is indeed good. But are you certain this mountain-cutting water diversion plan is truly feasible? Such an enormous mountain—digging a tunnel of that length would hardly be an easy task, would it?”
The moment the Emperor addressed him again, Mu Xueshi immediately snapped out of his earlier excitement and began seriously thinking about the question.
“Ah! I remembered something!” Mu Xueshi exclaimed excitedly, nearly smacking the Emperor in the face with his hand.
The Emperor subtly stepped back, and the brows that had only just relaxed furrowed once again.
Mu Xueshi immediately looked mortified and hurriedly apologized.
“What did you remember?” the Third Prince asked deliberately.
In truth, the moment the Emperor had asked the question, the Third Prince had already thought of the answer himself. He merely wanted to see whether Mu Xueshi had arrived at the same conclusion.
“Wasn’t that tunnel already dug by Lubei?”
The Emperor froze for a moment before suddenly recalling the tunnel they had discussed earlier. He had not expected that their enemy’s actions might accidentally prove useful instead. An indescribable emotion stirred in the Emperor’s heart. For the first time, he truly began to believe Mu Xueshi’s idea might actually solve the massive problem that had troubled him for so many days. If the project were truly completed, perhaps the long-standing conflict between Lubei and Yunxi could finally be resolved.
“Your Majesty, I actually have another idea too, though it might be a bit troublesome,” Mu Xueshi added.
“Speak freely,” the Emperor said, now in remarkably good spirits.
Seeing that the Emperor’s attitude toward him had suddenly improved, Mu Xueshi became excited again and spoke with far more confidence than before.
“We could simply move the mountain away entirely,” Mu Xueshi declared brightly.
The smile on the Emperor’s face slowly froze into cold sweat. The previous suggestion at least sounded reasonable, but this one was simply absurd. If the mountain were removed, wouldn’t that practically invite the enemy nation straight in?
Mu Xueshi also looked embarrassed and scratched his head. “Yeah… this one is pretty hard to accept. Let’s just forget it and continue discussing the earlier idea instead.”
But unexpectedly, the Third Prince became interested.
He vaguely felt that inside Mu Xueshi’s little head were many things he himself did not yet know.
Thus he asked from the side, “Why move the mountain away?”
Hearing the Third Prince ask, Mu Xueshi tried to explain, though he felt verbal explanations alone were too abstract. Besides, he was not especially articulate. His eyes swept around the room until they landed on a triangular jade disc displayed nearby. It was an ancient weapon preserved by the imperial family, left untouched there for years.
“Your Majesty, may I borrow that plate for a moment?” Mu Xueshi asked respectfully.
The Emperor looked confused and failed to understand what he meant. But the Third Prince understood Mu Xueshi well enough and directly walked over to retrieve the jade disc from the wooden stand.
Mu Xueshi propped the jade disc upright and looked up at the Emperor and the Third Prince.
“Let’s say this is a mountain.”
The Third Prince’s expression became extremely serious.
It was the first time Mu Xueshi had ever seen the Third Prince look at him like this. Usually it was Mu Xueshi asking endless questions while the Third Prince wore an impatient expression. He had never dreamed that one day the Third Prince would actually seek explanations from him instead.
At once, Mu Xueshi felt his blood surge with excitement, his vanity greatly satisfied.
When the Third Prince noticed that Mu Xueshi had stopped talking midway through and was instead staring blankly at him, he immediately realized Mu Xueshi had become distracted again. Under the table, his hand reached over and pinched the inside of Mu Xueshi’s thigh.
“Ah—!” Mu Xueshi hissed in pain and immediately clamped his legs together. He shot the Third Prince an aggrieved glare, but upon seeing the warning in the Third Prince’s eyes, quickly looked away again.
“The reason the two regions receive different rainfall mainly has to do with wind direction. This is the southern side of the mountain. It lies on the windward slope. As warm, moist air moves forward, it encounters the mountain and is forced upward. As a result, the moisture condenses in the air and eventually forms rainfall. But once the wind passes over the mountain ridge, the airflow descends. Therefore, the northern side receives far less rain. Only in years with especially strong winds does it benefit a little.”
Watching Mu Xueshi speak with such seriousness, completely unlike someone making things up, the Emperor asked despite only half understanding, “You understand meteorology?”
“Only a little…” Mu Xueshi replied modestly on purpose.
“And what about terrain and geography?” the Emperor asked again.
Mu Xueshi thought, Isn’t that all just geography anyway? So he answered confidently, “I know a bit about all of it.”
The moment Mu Xueshi said that, not only the Emperor but even the Third Prince looked surprised. During all the time Mu Xueshi had spent by his side, he had never spoken of such things. Most of the time, Mu Xueshi’s thoughts revolved around food and entertainment, rarely touching serious matters at all.
Just how many things about him remained unknown?
“That’s excellent. I originally thought the greatest problem would be figuring out how to begin construction, but it seems Young Master Xue had already prepared for this long ago. It appears I truly underestimated you earlier.” The Emperor laughed heartily.
Mu Xueshi instantly went stiff with horror.
How to begin construction?
He had only learned theoretical knowledge from books! As for the actual practical operations, how could he possibly know anything? Such a massive project would require surveying terrain, designing routes, anticipating obstacles, and solving countless engineering difficulties…
Just imagining it made Mu Xueshi’s head ache. He was a complete amateur. How could he possibly handle something so specialized?
Seeing the distress on Mu Xueshi’s face, the Third Prince quickly rescued him by saying, “Father Emperor, perhaps we should discuss that matter another day. For now, we should focus on how to negotiate this proposal with Emperor Hao Lin. After all, Lubei stands to benefit greatly from it. It is not only our side that must prepare; their side must contribute even more effort.”
Mu Xueshi immediately let out a huge sigh of relief. As expected, the Third Prince understood him best.
At this moment, the Emperor’s face glowed with excitement. The gloomy mood that had plagued him for days had vanished completely, making him seem ten years younger.
“As for negotiating with Emperor Hao Lin, I can send someone to handle it. That should not be too difficult. The main issue now is you, Xueshi. Jue, over the next few days you must accompany Xueshi to inspect the border terrain personally. Bring along several skilled craftsmen as well. It would be best to develop a concrete strategy as soon as possible, otherwise Lubei may think we are merely deceiving them.”
Accompany Mu Xueshi?
The Emperor’s meaning was clear—this matter had now been entrusted entirely to him.
At that moment, Mu Xueshi completely petrified.
Had he known things would spiral so far out of control, he never would have shown off like that earlier.
“Father Emperor, what conditions do you believe we should propose to Lubei?”
“Once the external threat is removed, the next step will naturally be dealing with the traitors within.”
…
After that, Mu Xueshi barely heard anything else the Third Prince and the Emperor discussed. His mind remained stuck on the Emperor’s earlier words, unable to think at all.
Only after mounting the horse did Mu Xueshi finally realize they had already left the palace.
“We’re returning to the small courtyard,” the Third Prince said softly beside Mu Xueshi’s ear.
Mu Xueshi seemed not to hear him. After pondering for a long while, he finally said to the Third Prince, “I might… need to go back with the silver coin once more.”
“Impossible.” The Third Prince’s expression changed instantly.
There was absolutely no room for negotiation in this matter. Mu Xueshi’s last disappearance had already become a nightmare for the Third Prince. No matter how much Mu Xueshi promised he would return, the Third Prince was unwilling to take that risk again.
“I want to go back to look up information. I’ve forgotten almost everything useful for this project already,” Mu Xueshi explained carefully, not daring to admit he was completely clueless, afraid of extinguishing the hope the Third Prince had only just regained.
“You may go…” the Third Prince replied calmly.
Mu Xueshi’s eyes lit up. “Really?”
He had not seen Aunt Chen in a very long time. This trip back would also give him a chance to visit her.
“But I must go with you,” the Third Prince added.
Mu Xueshi’s entire body shook violently, nearly falling off the horse.
“Th-that’s impossible… That silver coin… only works for me…”
“I can ask Blazing Fire and Frozen Ice to perform another ritual and attempt it. Besides, I’d quite like to learn how many things you’ve been hiding from me over there.”
Suddenly, Mu Xueshi felt that even the summer wind had become piercingly cold…
Futile Devices Scans 
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