At dawn, the sky turned clear, and about an inch of snow had accumulated on the ground, and the temperature dropped significantly.

Xu Qilin didn't know this, and lie on his own bed and slept soundly and sweetly. Half a kang and half a couch, rolled on the couch when it was hot, and when it was cold, he slept on the kang, and rolled to bed and fell asleep very generously.

Scarlett came in and saw him twice, but was reluctant to wake him up.

After Xiao Zhao woke up, he played with the new utensils in his room, went to the kitchen to find the newly hired chef Xu Qilin and ordered a few fresh foods.

After sleeping until he woke up naturally, Xu Qilin yawned and stretched to get up. Scarlett from the outer room hurried in to serve him dress and wash.

Sitting at the dining table, Xu Qilin couldn't help laughing at the food served and said, "I wanted you to taste something fresh, but I didn't expect you to order it yourself."

"It was the little lady who went to the kitchen in the morning and asked the new chef and ordered breakfast." Scarlett explained with a smile: "I have eaten it and it tastes very good."

Xu Qilin took the long pot and bit it down, tasted it, nodded and said, "It's okay, Xiao Zhao was so anxious that the chef didn't have time to select the materials."

Scarlett said: "The little lady asked the chef to do more, saying that she wanted to bring her into the palace."

Xu Qilin smiled and focused on eating. Although he tried not to send food to the palace, it would be fine if his younger sister brought it in in person.

After breakfast, or it was almost lunch, Xu Qilin cleaned up and greeted his younger sister, and a few servants guarded him and rushed to the palace by car.

………………………….

The morning court has dispersed, and His Majesty Li Er is handling government affairs in Qianqiu Palace.

The end of the year is approaching and there is not much government affairs. The fat son and youngest son Li Zhi have also returned to the capital, which makes His Majesty Li Er feel very happy recently.

Mr. Ma was also there, and he saw that His Majesty was in a good mood. While assisting in handling the report, he also joked a few times from time to time, which was a harmonious atmosphere of the monarch and his subjects.

At this moment, the palace servant came inside to report that Xu Cheng of Dayingku was looking for a meeting outside.

"It's time to come back." His Majesty Li Er smiled and said, "It's too late to go on the snowy road and the river water is frozen, so it's very difficult to walk on the road."

Ma Dami smiled and said, "The reform of the canal transportation has been basically completed, and Xu Cheng has returned it because of his achievements."

His Majesty Li Er nodded and ordered the palace servants to invite Xu Qilin in.

A moment later, Xu Qilin stepped into the hall and politely said, "I pay homage to Your Majesty."

"No gifts, give you a seat." His Majesty Li Er waved his hand with a smile and looked at the young boy attentively.

After a few months of sight, Xu Qilin grew taller and his body became stronger, but the more significant change was the calmness of temperament.

It makes sense that reading thousands of books is not as good as traveling thousands of miles. After learning outside, Qi Lin seems to have become much more mature!

His Majesty Li Er sighed in his heart, and was extremely grateful for Xu Qilin's success in reforming the canal transportation. He asked with a kind look: "When will I come back? Could it be that I have been idle at home for a few days before I came to pay the job?"

At the teasing of His Majesty Li Er, Xu Qilin smiled and said, "I came back last night. The city gate was closed, so I rested in the house outside the city for a night."

As he said that, he got up and submitted the report, which was all the documents of the canal reform. It was arranged well, but some of the work would take some time to complete.

His Majesty Li Er signaled the palace servants to put the documents on the desk, and did not rush to read them.

Xu Qilin made arrangements along the way and kept submitting reports. His Majesty Li Er already knew the entire process clearly. This document is a summary of the report, which is more comprehensive and detailed.

"There are 500,000 stones of grain in Guanzhong, and Qi Lin made an indelible contribution." His Majesty Li Er patted the document lightly and said, "I have always been strict in rewards and punishments. I will have an order to reward you and related people soon."

Xu Qilin stood up and bowed and said, "I thank Your Majesty for your kindness."

After a pause, he continued: "The iron plant, the iron plant has built a foundation, and the production scale will steadily expand. I dare to ask the court to issue an order and formally appoint officials for management."

His Majesty Li Er pondered for a moment and said, "I will deal with it by presenting the list."

Xu Qilin handed the memorial to the palace servant and presented it to His Majesty Li Er, and said, "Xin'an Iron Factory specially cast a treasure knife and offer it to His Majesty."

"Bao Sword?" His Majesty Li Er laughed. As the emperor of the horse, he naturally had some well-built swords. He did not think that the weapons offered by the newly built iron factory would be better than the ones in his hands.

Xu Qilin said: "The treasure sword is outside, and there are some local local products offered by the Wei minister. Please visit His Majesty Longmu."

His Majesty Li Er stood up and laughed, "I will go out and see what kind of treasure knife it is?"

Xu Qilin and Ma Dami smiled at each other and said hello, and followed His Majesty Li Er out of the hall.

There was a box cage under the steps outside the hall. Xu Qilin rushed forward and pointed and said, "Your Majesty, please see, that is the treasure knife offered by the Iron Factory."

His Majesty Li Er nodded, stepped forward, reached out to take it, showing a slight look of surprise. Although it was not unsheathed, it was different from the Tang Dao.

After glanced at Xu Qilin, His Majesty Li Er guessed that it was created by this guy again. He withdrew his gaze, pressed the sheath with his left hand, and drew the knife with his right hand, and a flash of light passed through the air. The first goose-feathered sword in history appeared in front of everyone.

Turning his wrist, His Majesty Li Er swung the knife a few times in the air, and it felt that the length and weight were still very suitable for his hands. Moreover, the knife had a small curve, the tip of the knife was narrow and slightly upturned, which was light and could stab and chop, and looked very lethal.

"Well, this knife is novel in shape, I don't know how practical it is?" His Majesty Li Er praised the beautiful knife shape and lowered his head to look at the workmanship of the knife.

Xu Qilin explained: "This knife is forged with special steel, extremely hard and sharp."

Oh, His Majesty Li Er seemed a little suspicious of Xu Qilin's boasting. He looked at the knife in his hand again, turned to the guard next to him and ordered: "Pull out your knife, I want to see how sharp and hard this knife is."

The guard took the order, pulled out the horizontal knife, and stretched out the flat with caution.

His Majesty Li Er took a breath, exhaled and made an arc in the air, slashing the guard's horizontal knife.

With a crack, His Majesty Li Er used a heavy knife to cut off the horizontal knife, and the head of the knife fell on the snow, making a slight sound.

Huh?! His Majesty Li Er was also unexpected, with a look of surprise on his face, but then a light flashed in his eyes. He raised the knife and looked carefully. There was no gap on the knife, which was worthy of being made of high-carbon steel.

"What a good knife, a precious knife!" His Majesty Li Er waved the knife in the air a few times, and inserted it back into the sheath with unfulfilled intentions.

Turning to Xu Qilin, His Majesty Li Er asked with a smile: "What is this knife called?"

Xu Qilin scratched his head and said, "The shape is like a feather of a wild goose. I call this kind of knife a goose feather. As for the specific name of the knife, there is no one."

Wouldn't it be nice to give His Majesty Li Er a chance to name the sword he carried with him? As for the Heavenly Heaven and Dragon Slaying, you can call it whatever you want.

His Majesty Li Er nodded and asked, "How is the production of Yanling Knife? Can it be equipped with my Tang army?"

Xu Qilin hurriedly replied: "The production of special steel is very small, so it is not feasible to use this to build a large number of sabers. However, the quality of other steel produced by the iron plant is more than enough to make today's horizontal knives."

His Majesty Li Er pondered for a moment, and walked back into the hall with a slight head.

The Tang Dynasty's current forging level is already the best in the world, and its quality of military hustle and stern ranks first. The so-called strong armor and powerful soldiers are exactly the method of victory advocated by His Majesty Li Er.

Therefore, even if the saber cannot be replaced with extremely sharp special steel, it will not have much impact on the combat power of the Tang army, as well as the victory or defeat of the war.

When he returned to the hall and sat down again, His Majesty Li Er felt even more comfortable. If there were no one else, he would still want to play with his sword. If he felt the sword in his hand, who would be the opponent?

Because of the treasure sword, His Majesty Li Er thought of something and couldn't help but ask: "Qi Lin, when you were digging mountains and carving stones in Sanmenxia, ​​you used black objects, and the sound was like thunder and it was very powerful."

Xu Qilin bowed and replied, "Your Majesty, this item was obtained by the master when he was refining alchemy in his early years. It was called gunpowder. It exploded stones and mined, which was very sharp. Because of its danger, the master was seriously injured and he will not refine alchemy again since then."

His Majesty Li Er stroked his beard, thought for a while, and said, "You can create some more, I want to see it."

What is reasonable is that His Majesty Li Er contacted the gunpowder in military terms. Xu Qilin was not surprised by this and respectfully accepted the order.

"Qingque has implemented road management in Luozhou. How effective can Qi Lin see along the way?" His Majesty Li Er asked.

Xu Qilin thought for a while and said, "I have only been lingering in Luoyang and Xin'an for a few days, and the roads there are still good maintenance. I heard from the villagers that people will send people to patrol the road every three days. If there are any bumps, they will have to be filled and consolidated. If they are lazy, they will not count the exempted renters."

After pausing, Xu Qilin added: "I think the effect is pretty good. The people are not burdened with heavy burdens, and there are rent-free exemptions, so naturally there is no complaints about this."

His Majesty Li Er had a slight head and felt that it could be promoted nationwide. After all, he had heard other people's comments, and it was confirmed again from Xu Qilin.

Ma Dami smiled and said to Xu Qilin: "Next year, the court may implement a new immigration policy from Sa Township to Kuan Township. The food and accommodation along the way will probably be burdened by the residence set up by Dayingku. What do Xu Cheng thinks about this?"

This is what I taught Li Sipang, so I naturally support it with all my support. I won’t spend my money anyway.

Xu Qilin thought about it deliberately and said, "Although the construction of the residence in Dayingku is not perfect, if the court's policies are promulgated, they will definitely do their best to complete them."

This is the truth, His Majesty Li Er and Ma Dami also know. Relying on the inn, there are less than a hundred residences, so it is definitely impossible to support immigration to various places.

"Then you see, what else can I do?" Ma Da Secret received the gesture from His Majesty Li Er and continued to ask.

Xu Qilin pondered for a while and said, "In addition to didians, villages and towns along the way can also set up places for immigrants to rest, food and accommodation, and the money and food will be paid by the court."

"It's a convenient way." His Majesty Li Er thought it was feasible, it was just a matter of a few houses and a few meals, and there was no need for villages, towns or people to pay for food.

"There are also problems with immigrants walking." Ma Dami said: "If immigrants walk on foot, the speed is too slow and they will not know when they can get there; if they arrange cars and horses, it will cost a lot, and the court will be overwhelmed."

Xu Qilin scratched his head and said, "It may be imitated as a sectional transportation of canal transportation, but the villages and towns along the way will be responsible. The court will give you more carriage fees."

His Majesty Li Er laughed and said, "I will discuss this matter again. You can go to Bingxia Palace to meet Sister Ru. You are working in a foreign office, but she is always worried about it!"

"Yes, I'll go now." Xu Qilin bowed and said goodbye to Ma Da Secret before he retreated.

After leaving Qianqiu Palace, Xu Qilin's expression relaxed and his steps became lighter. After all, he was facing the emperor and there was still pressure.

…………………

Bingxia Palace.

The box brought by Xiao Zhao was placed in the hall. The Aizi looked like Xincheng, and the giggling chuckled from time to time.

Xu Hui naturally had a share, but she had fewer toys. Lacquerware, jade, carving, embroidery, velvet flowers, jewelry, etc. also dazzled her and admired her.

"Brother said, this porcelain baby is called Afu." Xiao Zhao put the two porcelain baby in front of Ajie and explained with a smile: "This is a boy, this is a girl. She holds a green lion in her arms and can suppress evil and bring blessings."

Xu Hui looked at the two porcelain kids sitting cross-legged, with a full face, a full smile, a fat man, a handsome eyebrows, and a bright dress. She smiled and nodded, and liked them very much.

"Are the boys and girls called Ah Fu?" Xincheng asked in confusion with his porcelain baby in his hand.

"Yes!" Xiao Zhao said: "If you want to change their names, you will be allowed to do so!"

Xincheng laughed and said, "I haven't thought about it yet, I'll make a statement later."

The rhizi is relatively mature. She put down the porcelain baby Afu, looked at a few jewelry, and played with it with it.
To be continued...