boyutpedia Chapter 100 Even Burnt Rock Ash Has Its Uses
Chapter 100 Even Burnt Rock Ash Has Its Uses
Wen Yunhong declined Xia Yichen's invitation and stayed in Nanzhou Prefecture to continue attending the academic exchange meeting. Xia Yichen did not insist, leaving two bodyguards to protect Wen Yunhong in secret, and then left with the others.
Three days ago, the letter was sent to Yunyilou in Beijing. Three days later, Wen Yuxia hosted Xia Yichen and his wife, along with Li Jiating, at her home in Mengzhong County.
Wen Yuxia was a little confused. When she sent the letter, she chose "immediate delivery" instead of "express". Could it be that the post station made a mistake and sent "express" instead?
Even if it's an "urgent" letter, Xia Yichen couldn't possibly appear at this time! Wen Yuxia asked softly, "Brother Chen, did you receive the letter?"
"How did you know that Mu Bai wrote a letter to me?" Xia Yichen looked bewildered. How did Wen Yuxia know that Lu Mu Bai had written to him?
Even though she said she sent the letter herself, Xia Yichen told her that Lu Mubai had sent a letter instead. Wen Yuxia couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Brother Chen, I found a kind of flammable stone on the mountain and sent it to Yunyi Tower three days ago..."
Seeing the burning stones, Xia Yichen was somewhat excited. The palace used burning stones imported at high prices from a neighboring country, and Wen Yuxia had actually discovered them on the mountain.
"Sister Yuxia, quickly take me to see it!" At this moment, Xia Yichen couldn't care less about making medicine; only after seeing the Burning Stone with his own eyes could he have the mood to discuss anything else.
Wen Yuxia stood up with a faint smile and led Xia Yichen and the others slowly up the mountain.
"Brother Chen, look, this black soil is weathered flammable rock,"
Xia Yichen said with some regret, "It's all turned to ash, it's unusable."
Wen Yuxia laughed and said, "The surface layer of flammable rock has been weathered, but the underground flammable rock is still there. Besides, the flammable rock residue can also be used."
"Can the ash residue be used?" Xia Yichen asked in surprise. Breaking large chunks of combustible rock into smaller, more easily combustible pieces always resulted in a pile of ash residue. Wen Yuxia said the ash residue was usable—was that true?
Wen Yuxia smiled faintly and remained silent. She turned and instructed Bei Yi to collect the burning stone ash and Bei Er to dig up the yellow mud. Afterward, she took the burning stone ash and yellow mud back to the foot of the mountain.
Instruct Li Yafeng and Ma Qiang to mix the yellow clay and burning stone slag according to her instructions, using a ratio of two parts yellow clay to one part burning stone slag. Then add water and shape the mixture into balls the size of eggs.
"Brother Chen, once the mud balls are completely dry, you can put them in the stove to burn," Wen Yuxia said, pointing to the neatly arranged coal balls on the ground.
Xia Yichen took great care of these mud balls, sending guards to check on them every hour to see if they had dried completely.
After dinner, Xie Qianlian took Wen Yuxia out for a walk. The two walked until they reached the middle of the mountain. Xie Qianlian stopped and gently asked, "Yuxia, do you like Brother Yichen?"
"I like it!" Wen Yuxia's perfunctory reply turned Xie Qianlian's face pale.
Xie Qianlian spoke with difficulty: "Sister Yuxia, I can't give you the position of the principal wife, but I can assure you that in the manor, apart from Brother Yichen and me, you are the most powerful person, and no one will dare to give you a hard time..."
Xia Yichen had more than just her as a woman; the women in his harem couldn't shake her position. But Wen Yuxia was different from the other women in the harem; she was someone Xia Yichen talked about every day.
Xie Qianlian was truly terrified. She feared that Xia Yichen would sacrifice her life to make room for Wen Yuxia. Her purpose in coming to Nanzhou Prefecture was twofold: first, to meet Wen Yuxia in person, and second, to cultivate a good relationship with her beforehand.
Wen Yuxia, who was happily munching on an apple and a pear, was stunned by Xie Qianlian's words and choked on her own saliva.
"Cough cough cough, cough cough cough..." Wen Yuxia coughed until tears streamed down her face.
When Wen Yuxia shed tears, Xie Qianlian panicked even more, instinctively assuming that Wen Yuxia was unhappy about being subordinate to her. She said in a flustered voice, "Sister Yuxia, don't cry. Brother Yichen will be heartbroken to see you like this."
Coughing, Wen Yuxia raised her hand to cover Xie Qianlian's mouth, panting as she said, "No, don't talk nonsense,"
"Oh my god, what is Xie Qianlian saying? It scared me to death! She's just a little girl!" Wen Yuxia, having caught her breath, said seriously:
"Brother Chen is my sworn brother. My feelings for him are those of a younger sister for her older brother, a brotherly and sisterly affection. As for the suggestion that I become his concubine, just pretend I never heard it, and don't mention it again."
Xie Qianlian asked in surprise, "Sister Yuxia, you never thought about marrying Brother Yichen. You only have brotherly feelings for him?"
"Mmm," Wen Yuxia nodded vigorously.
Xie Qianlian hugged Wen Yuxia tightly and said happily, "Yuxia, from now on you are my own sister."
After saying that, he rolled up his sleeves and took off the crystal-clear jade bracelet from his hand, putting it on Wen Yuxia's wrist. "This is a bracelet my mother gave me. We'll each have one."
Wen Yuxia said with a wry smile, "Sister-in-law, how can you just give away the bracelet your mother gave you?"
The jade bracelet was of excellent quality; even Wen Yuxia, who didn't know much about jade, could tell it was quite valuable. However, she wasn't familiar with Xie Qianlian, and didn't want to accept such an expensive gift.
Xie Qianlian said happily, "This wasn't a random gift; it was a gift after careful consideration. You're my sister-in-law and also my adopted sister, so I have to share good things with you."
As dusk fell, Wen Yuxia and Xie Qianlian still hadn't returned. Xia Yichen was getting worried and ordered the guards to go out and search for them. He also stood at the courtyard gate, looking around.
Seeing Xia Yichen peering out from the courtyard gate, Xie Qianlian's face lit up with a bright smile, and she ran towards him without a care for her image.
She said happily, "Brother Yichen, are you hungry? I'll go make you a midnight snack."
Xia Yichen hadn't seen Xie Qianlian smile so brightly in a long time. He gently stroked Xie Qianlian's hair and said softly, "Lian'er hasn't cooked for me in a long time. I want to eat the egg noodles you cook."
Xie Qianlian's smile remained unchanged as she softly said, "I'll make it right away. Brother Yichen, may I make one for Sister Yuxia as well?"
The food prepared by the Crown Prince's principal wife is not something just anyone can eat. Even if Xie Qianlian wanted to cook for Wen Yuxia, she had to obtain Xia Yichen's permission.
For example, Li Jiating, no matter how good his relationship with Xia Yichen was, he never got a share of the noodles Xie Qianlian cooked herself; he could only eat the noodles cooked by Xie Qianlian's maid.
Xia Yichen gave a handsome smile and said gently, "Yuxia is our little sister, so of course she gets a share of the midnight snack you cooked."
Xia Yichen's gaze fell on the still-dry mud balls in the yard. He silently moved his lips; anyone who could read lips would understand what he was saying.
It's a good thing that Xie Qianlian can get along well with Wen Yuxia. He'd agree to do anything for her, from cooking her egg noodles to preparing a full Manchu-Han Imperial Feast.
Wen Yuxia was his and his grandfather's precious treasure, and the treasure of the Great Xia Dynasty.