A genius girl with her own space

Chapter 10: Border Construction

On his way back to the barracks, Zhao Liancheng was told by a soldier that it was Qiqi and her two brothers who had come to the border, and that it was Qiqi who had healed the Major General. "Qiqi, Qiqi, my little grandson, your uncle is here." Qiqi, who had just returned from the mountains, saw a sturdy, middle-aged man leap from his horse at the barracks gate. "Is that your uncle?" Qiqi ran over, and several of her brothers also ran over. Zhao Liancheng saw a beautiful, adorable little girl running over, and he reached out and picked her up. "Qiqi, you missed your uncle, and you came to see him." "Yes, Qiqi missed her uncle and her brothers, and she came here in a carriage with her fifth and sixth brothers," he said. "Our Qiqi is awesome."

Yun Lei and Yun Feng also came to pay their respects to their uncle. Zhao Liancheng asked them why they had come to the border, given the freezing weather just after Chinese New Year, and why they had brought Qi Qi along. Yun Lei briefly explained the reason. "Ah, it was Qi Qi who saved Yun Tian. The guards told me so, too. I didn't quite believe it. It was Qi Qi who saved our Yun Tian. Qi Qi is our only treasure, our lucky star."

Zhao Liancheng then asked if his sister and brother-in-law were having a good New Year's holiday. He wondered if he hadn't told his sister about coming to the border. If he had, she wouldn't have let Qiqi come. Arriving at Yuntian's tent, he saw him resting on the bed. Tears of joy streamed down his face. He pulled Yuntian up, looking him around. "How wonderful! God has mercy on us. It's wonderful to have Qiqi around."

"Uncle has worried you these days. Come and sit down and have a glass of water." Yuntian said.

Seeing the depressing atmosphere, Qiqi quickly changed the subject. Didn't Sister Yuyan come? How could I not see her? Yuntian blushed and picked up Qiqi. "You are such a clever girl, you are the one who talks too much." Zhao Liancheng ordered his men to quickly go to the kitchen to add a few more dishes. Yuntian was happy to wake up.

"Uncle, we also brought a few trucks with supplies, all in the trucks." Yun Lei said

In fact, when they were about to reach the border, Yun Lei and his two siblings drove the car themselves, symbolically bought some supplies and food, put them in the car, transferred a lot of food from the space, and slaughtered a few cattle and sheep in the space and put them in the car, intending to let the soldiers at the border celebrate the Lantern Festival.

My uncle had been at the border for many years and hadn't been home. Qiqi took out some fruit wine from the space and gave it to my uncle. Qiqi put some spiritual spring water in the fruit wine to increase my uncle's resistance.

After obtaining his uncle's approval, Yun Lei beckoned Xie Lei and his brothers to drive the carriage to the main kitchen. Because the kitchen was a strategic location, outsiders were not allowed to approach without Zhao Yuanshuai's permission. Anything delivered could not enter the kitchen without inspection.

A few years ago, due to a conflict with a neighboring country, poison was applied to the kitchen. If it were not for timely rescue, more than a dozen soldiers would have been in danger of their lives.

Yunlei and his men unloaded a large amount of food and supplies, including several slaughtered cows and mutton. Yunlei gave his uncle the Panax notoginseng powder and ground thistle that Qiqi had brought for him, and explained how to use them. His uncle hurriedly sent for the guards to fetch the old military doctor, who gave him the powder and ground thistle.

"Great medicine, great medicine!" the old military doctor exclaimed repeatedly. He was knowledgeable and knew that these herbs were in short supply at the border. "Thank you, thank you, it's a timely help." Soldiers were ill-clad in the snow, suffering from frostbite on their hands and feet. Some even had festering wounds. Panax notoginseng can stimulate blood circulation, and thistle can be applied to the festering wounds, reducing inflammation and healing wounds. The old military doctor quickly thanked the Yunlei siblings and rushed back to the medical station with the medicine.

There are many traditional Chinese medicines in Qiqi Space, which cannot be taken out for the time being. The amount of Panax notoginseng and Cirsium japonicum that can be taken out is also limited.

It is better to teach people how to fish than to teach people how to fish

Qiqi and her brother visited her uncle's tent and asked him if he often fought at the border and if he was often injured. They suggested planting Panax notoginseng and thistle in the spring. Qiqi asked her brother to give her uncle some seeds. Her uncle, aware of the importance of Panax notoginseng to the soldiers at the border, personally summoned the grain plantation manager from the Sino-Agricultural Department and discussed setting aside some land for Panax notoginseng and thistle. Yunfeng instructed the Sino-Agricultural Department on how to plant these crops. He also told them to prepare the land in the spring and plant them once the weather warmed up.

Qiqi's space was filled with sweet potatoes and soybeans. Qiqi asked her uncle about the land at the border, but he said it was mostly sandy, and the sorghum yield was very low.

When Yun Lei was unloading the goods, Qi Qi told him to leave one truck of supplies untouched because she would need them. Qi Qi called Yun Lei "Brother" and walked to the front of the truck and got in.

She told her brother about her plan and took out a lot of sweet potatoes from the space. She could have her uncle plant sweet potatoes at the border, and the yield per mu could reach 4,000 to 5,000 kilograms. This way, the soldiers at the border wouldn't go hungry. Later, they could promote sweet potato cultivation nationwide.

"Qiqi, what should I do if my uncle asks me where these came from?" "Brother, just say that you bought them from a traveling merchant and planned to take them home to plant. You know that the land at the border is sandy, which is just right for the planting environment the traveling merchant mentioned." Qiqi replied.

"Okay, Qiqi, let's tell uncle right away." Qiqi then told her brother how to cultivate sweet potato seedlings and how to plant them in ridges.

The brother and sister found their uncle and showed him the sweet potatoes they had brought out. They explained in detail that sweet potatoes were high-yielding and could provide a solid solution for the soldiers on the border. They cooked a few more sweet potatoes for him to try. They were soft and just the right amount of sweet. They were delicious. Zhao Liancheng ate two pieces in a row, still wanting more. "Delicious, delicious!" he kept saying. "Let's plant them quickly!" He happily picked up Qiqi and spun around.

He quickly called the head of the Sinong Division and asked him to learn how to grow sweet potato seedlings from Yun Lei. Once the sweet potato seedlings were grown, they could be planted in ridges.

Qiqi also taught the masons how to make lime, what lime is used for, and how to make stone powder from limestone. Lime and stone powder can be mixed together to build houses.

Under Xie Lei's guidance, lime was quickly burned and limestone was ground into powder and sieved for use.

Lime and stone powder were mixed with water and placed in a mold, resulting in several white stones. After drying, Zhao Yuanshuai personally pounded the white stones with a sledgehammer. They were as hard as iron, causing Zhao Liancheng's hands to ache, yet none of them broke. Qiqi then told her uncle that these stones were perfect for building border walls, resistant to artillery fire. Lime allowed houses to be built quickly and sturdily. Zhao Liancheng exclaimed repeatedly, "Great! Great! You've solved the problem of the border wall." "My uncle thanks you on behalf of the people and soldiers of the border city, and especially Qiqi."

Qiqi then told her uncle that the lime-making method could be promoted throughout the Great Zhou Kingdom, starting with the border towns. Zhao Liancheng repeatedly praised Qiqi for her intelligence, kindness, cuteness, and concern for the country and the people.

Zhao Liancheng quickly submitted a memorial to the emperor, informing him of the lime burning and reconstruction of the city wall. He also explained that local materials could be used, costing the state nothing. He also explained the potential for growing Panax notoginseng at the border, its benefits, and the potential for growing sweet potatoes. He presented the emperor with ten kilograms of sweet potatoes, detailing how to grow them, and how one acre of land could yield four to five thousand kilograms. He then urgently sent the memorial to the capital. The emperor was overjoyed when he read Zhao Liancheng's report. He quickly summoned the Ministry of Agriculture to the palace and shared the report with them, who were pleasantly surprised. They discussed studying the method at the border before promoting it nationwide.

A few days later, twenty or so people from the Agricultural Department were sent to the border to learn. Some learned how to burn lime and make stone powder. Others learned how to use lime to build city walls and houses. Those from the Agricultural Department learned how to grow Panax notoginseng, thistles, and sweet potatoes.

In March, the entire Zhou Kingdom took action, and some smart people learned to burn lime and build houses. People all over the country were grateful to Xiao Qiqi.

Qiqi also received a reward from the emperor, including five thousand taels of gold and one hundred rolls of silk. He also granted her the entire Leiming Mountain and the surrounding five hundred acres of land. He was allowed to cultivate Panax notoginseng and sweet potatoes. After inoculating the Panax notoginseng, the emperor purchased the crops at three times the market price to fund their nationwide promotion.

Qiqi secretly gave the diamond arrowhead to her brother and uncle. Diamonds were too hard to find and too rare to mass produce, so she couldn't let anyone else know about it. She hoped her brother and uncle would use it among themselves.

Zhao Liancheng didn't know what to say. He took the diamond arrow with trembling hands. Although he had never used it, he had heard about it from his master.

The uncle and grandson arrived at the shooting range, loaded their arrows, and Zhao Liancheng fired several arrows. Each one hit the bull's eye, punching a large hole in it. The arrows he deliberately shot at the rocks knocked down several large stones.

"Hahaha, it's a blessing for the country, the people, and the soldiers." Zhao Liancheng laughed.

Zhao Liancheng asked Qiqi, "Uncle's treasure, can you produce more arrowheads? I can form a special operations team of 30 people, equip them with diamond arrows, and roam around to defend the border town.

"Uncle, we are still digging in the mine to see if we can dig out diamonds. I will also take some time to visit the mountains to see if there are any jade mountains. When big brother is better, you can also let big brother take us to the nearby mountains to have a look. Uncle, please give my four brothers more leave to visit their families." Qiqi said.

"Qiqi, uncle will give your eldest brother a six-month leave to recuperate, and your other three brothers a three-month leave to return to the capital to visit your parents. Is that okay with you?"