manynovel Chapter 429 Fu Guang and Wang Shu
Chapter 429 Fu Guang and Wang Shu
In the twenty-third year of Yongxi, a flood occurred in Jiangnan Circuit. The Crown Prince and Xihe participated in flood control and rescue efforts, organized the evacuation of people, and participated in post-disaster reconstruction. During this process, he also urged local officials to do a good job in disaster relief.
At first, no one knew his identity, so the disaster relief official sent by the court was none other than Lin Xiangchuan.
After all the matters were settled and post-disaster reconstruction began, Lin Xiangchuan bowed to the Crown Prince and conveyed the Emperor's decree: "Your Highness, the Emperor has ordered me to convey a message to Your Highness and the Princess, saying that Her Majesty the Empress misses you both!"
A whole bunch of them immediately knelt down.
When the common people heard that the boy and girl who worked alongside them without ever complaining were actually the prince and princess, they were moved to tears and knelt down outside to pay their respects and express their gratitude!
The crown prince was shocked. He had not thought about how the people would be grateful to him for doing these things. He only felt that as the crown prince, it was his incompetence to see the people suffer, and it was his duty to relieve the people's worries and difficulties.
But the people's gratitude moved him deeply, and he realized what responsibility and commitment meant. He also understood the meaning of his mother's words: "The people are the water, and the ruler is the boat. Water can carry the boat, but it can also capsize it."
The Crown Prince and Xihe were not in a hurry to return. When Lin Xiangchuan returned to the capital, the two bought a lot of things and asked him to help them take them back.
The Crown Prince said, "My mother said that every place has resources. Only by making good use of resources can the people earn money and live a good life. The main responsibility of those in power is to identify and integrate resources."
"Although the post-disaster reconstruction work here has been done quite well, I feel that there is still room for some resource integration. My elder sister and I happen to have some ideas and would like to give it a try."
When Lin Xiangchuan returned, he praised the Crown Prince in court and relayed the Crown Prince's words. He said, "I heard that the Crown Prince plans to use the mountainous land there to plant fruit trees, set up a cannery, and organize the reclamation of vegetable fields to make dried vegetables, salted vegetables, or canned vegetables, which will be sold to the passing ships through the Mingzhou dock."
Previously, people couldn't afford pickled vegetables, but after the Empress improved the salt-making process, the price of salt dropped to a level that even salt merchants were unwilling to deal with. People could afford salt, and pickling vegetables became a daily routine for every household.
The courtiers were puzzled. Lin Xiangpu explained, "Sailors who sail at sea often do not eat vegetables and fruits and will contract some kind of disease. I heard this from the Crown Prince. Anyway, this method is feasible."
The court officials naturally showered the crown prince with praise, and Li Yuanke felt honored.
It is naturally a heartening thing that the crown prince is considerate and loves the people. After the court session, the officials were still discussing this matter as they walked out.
When Li Yuanke returned to Qianyuan Palace, he saw Shen Shixi and two children staring at a stove boiling water. Steam was rising up and making a popping sound as it pushed the kettle lid up.
With one son in her arms, Shen Shixi asked her third son, Fuguang, "What did you see?"
Fu Guang shook his head. "Mother, I just saw the lid being washed up."
Shen Shixi was pleasantly surprised, "Very good, the lid has been washed up. But, take another look, what washed the lid up?"
Li Yuanke also watched.
Fu Guang thought for a moment, "We only filled the pot halfway with water. Even if the water boils, it won't rise that high. The lid was pushed up by the steam."
Shen Shixi praised, "Great! This is the meaning of 'investigating things' (格物). Now do you understand what 'investigating things' means?"
Fu Guang tilted his little head and thought for a moment, "What Mother means is that I can also use steam to lift heavy objects. That's using steam, which is produced by burning coal."
Coal provides heat energy; lifting heavy objects is doing work. Mom, I understand now. "Investigating things" means utilizing natural energy sources to help humanity do work.
Shen Shixi was overjoyed, hugging Fu Guang and giving him a kiss. "Oh my, my son is so amazing! My son is truly a remarkable naturalist!"
Fu Guang, both proud and shy, wiped his face and said coquettishly, "Mother, your son is already ten years old!"
"So what if he's ten? He's not my son anymore, even when he's a hundred! I can still kiss him!"
Wang Shu chimed in, "Mother, I solved such a complicated geometry problem today, and you didn't even kiss me."
Shen Shixi kissed her youngest son on the cheek. "Wangshu is great too. My brain isn't as good as Wangshu's. She's too good at calculating."
Shen Shixi trained her children in mental arithmetic from a very young age, and among the four children, Wang Shu had the strongest mental arithmetic ability.
Shen Shixi also nurtures children according to their interests. A person will be happy if they can pursue what they love in their life. Finding one's hobby and pursuing it throughout one's life is undoubtedly much happier than being blindly swept along by the trends of the times.
If Wang Shu didn't like pondering numbers, Shen Shixi wouldn't have nurtured him in mathematics; if Fu Guang didn't like asking countless "whys," Shen Shixi wouldn't have led him into the field of physics.
Li Yuanke disliked the sight of Shen Shixi biting her son's little face with her white teeth, and yanked both sons out of their mother's arms. "How old are you? Still in your mother's arms? Tired? Go out and play!"
"I'm not tired, Mom. I'm going to do my experiment now."
Fu Guang decided to make good use of this heat energy to see if it could be converted into other forms of exercise, and he gained a great deal of inspiration from it.
Shen Shixi instructed, "Be careful, don't get hurt."
"Okay, Mother."
Wang Shu hugged her father's leg, scrambled up, and lay on his back. "Dad, are you jealous? You're still Mom's favorite person. Even if Mom doesn't like you anymore, your son will always love you."
Fu Guang and Wang Shu are both over ten years old. Fu Guang no longer climbs on his father's back, but Wang Shu still wishes he could grow on his father's back every day.
Li Yuanke, as always, doted on this youngest son the most, and would ask about him if he didn't see him for half a day.
Shen Shixi rolled her eyes at her youngest son, "You're always trying to sweet-talk your dad, saying all sorts of sweet nothings to him. Look how spoiled you've made him complain that what I say isn't nice. If you want to say something, go tell it to the girls outside."
Li Yuanke, supporting his youngest son's bottom, said irritably, "What nonsense are you talking about? Teach your son something good. How old is he? What kind of little girl is he trying to fool!"
Wang Shu chuckled as she nestled on her father's back. "Mom, don't worry, when I grow up, I'll definitely find you the most filial daughter-in-law in the world. She'll massage your back and legs every day and take care of you until you're completely comfortable!"
Shen Shixi was at her wits' end with her youngest son, who was full of empty talk. "I don't have anyone to massage my legs and back. Do you expect me to marry a daughter-in-law just to serve me? Get lost! I don't want to hear what you're saying!"
Her youngest son was indeed popular with young girls. Nie Yunshen's daughter, who was three years younger than him, was so charmed by him that she stayed in the palace and didn't want to go home anymore.
Wang Shu was thick-skinned and didn't care about being disliked by her mother. She slid off her father's back and went back to her own palace.
The Qian Yuan Palace also has many attached palaces, and it is separated from the Zhao Yang Palace by only a small garden. The Zhao Yang Palace also has many attached buildings, all of which are empty. The four children have been living with their father and mother so far and have not moved away.
Li Yuanke then told Shen Shixi about the Crown Prince and Xihe's situation outside, "I told them to come back as soon as possible, but they still haven't returned. I wonder how much suffering they've endured and how tall they've grown."
The Crown Prince and Xihe would still return once a year. After the New Year, they would leave before Shen Shixi's birthday. Shen Shixi mainly wanted them to travel, because when they got older, the Crown Prince would have to participate in court affairs and wouldn't have time to travel around.
Shen Shixi leaned against him, feeling a little tired. "If they want to come back, they will naturally come back. Li Yuanke, carry me to sleep for a while."