Lin Wanwan sat there, her face a kaleidoscope of expressions.
Perhaps from the moment she could travel through time, history had already begun to change. Normally, the flap of her little butterfly wings in the past would cause significant impacts on the future. But in fact, modern society had not changed at all because of her many actions in the Tang Dynasty.
Could it be that the two time-spaces are parallel? Do they not interfere with each other?
She saved Xiao Chong, directly leading to the construction of the Ta Mountain Dam more than two hundred years earlier. Of course, this was undoubtedly a great thing for the people of Mao County. However, Lin Wanwan was momentarily unable to accept that such a significant change had occurred in history.
She decided to go to the site and take a look; perhaps it was just the same name, and not the Ta Mountain Dam from two hundred years later?
With this thought, Lin Wanwan called Kun Lun to go check the Ta Mountain where the Ta Mountain Dam was located.
The carriage rolled along for more than a quarter of an hour and arrived at the bank of the Lan River, at the mouth of Zhangxi.
The place was bustling with people, with piled stone slabs and gigantic timber towering like mountains. Though it was the cold winter, the crowd appeared steamy from the heavy labor.
Lin Wanwan’s carriage seemed out of place here because those who came were either horseback soldiers or pedestrians, and a carriage, the mode of transportation for noblewomen, was rarely seen here.
Lin Wanwan pulled back the curtain of the carriage and looked at the construction site outside, comparing it with her impression of the Ta Mountain Dam in the future. Everything here had just begun, and it was not yet recognizable, so it was hard to tell.
As she was looking, her eyes suddenly caught sight of Xiao Chong’s favorite Crimson Horse.
Xiao Chong was here? She hadn’t expected him to inspect the site personally. Lin Wanwan immediately jumped down from the carriage and walked toward the direction of the Crimson Horse.
As she got closer, she was stopped by an armed attendant: "Who are you? What are you doing here?"
If it weren’t for Lin Wanwan wearing a veiled hat and clad in silks, he would have acted immediately.
"I am Lin of the Hou Tao family, requesting to see Xiao Mingfu. Is he here?"
The commotion here caught the attention of the people in front; Xiao Chong’s personal attendant, Shuqi, was the first to notice Lin Wanwan and quickly informed Xiao Chong, who was discussing with the craftsmen and staff.
Xiao Chong, wearing a jade crown and a collared foreign attire, looked back at Lin Wanwan. Despite being dusty all over, he still appeared elegant and graceful, hard to ignore.
He gestured for a pause with his companions and walked directly toward Lin Wanwan: "What brings my cousin here in such a rush?"
Lin Wanwan looked up at Xiao Chong and said, "Cousin, I heard you want to build the Ta Mountain Dam, so I came to have a look."
Xiao Chong asked indifferently, "Oh, is cousin also interested in this matter?"
Lin Wanwan turned her head, gazing at the calm river surface, but inside, she was tumultuous. This site, this setup, was clearly the Ta Mountain Dam from history, and Xiao Chong indeed intended to do it.
She murmured while looking at the river, "Why would cousin choose to build the dam here, a large project that is quite resource-draining? Cousin has been in Mao County for less than a year, and you have started such massive construction; is that wise?"
Xiao Chong’s eyes lit with confidence as he gazed at the river surface, calmly saying, "Mao County has countless fertile fields but suffers from seawater backflow, preventing them from being planted and utilized. Since I’ve come here, I naturally want to make some changes. As for it being a drain on resources, that’s not necessarily the case—thanks to the Salt Drying Method you provided, it has solved many subsequent issues for me. I must thank my cousin."
In Xiao Chong’s words, Lin Wanwan could hear a grandeur and vision for the country and the people, giving her an indescribable stirring feeling, blurting out, "Cousin wholeheartedly for the people, please forgive my previous indiscreet words. May I ask why this location was chosen?"
Xiao Chong, full of vigor, explained, "Over the past few months, while investigating public sentiment, I have also been conducting field surveys. This location is advantageous, with Ta Mountain creating a confluence between two rivers, locking the banks with a mountain in the south flowing along, and a plain in the north. There are rocky supports between the banks, making it possible to save countless construction work.
Building a dam here will intercept the inner river from the outer river, thereby blocking the East Sea from backflowing, solving the issues of Mao County’s fertile fields becoming saline, fresh water shortages, and persistent flooding all in one go. Isn’t that a great thing?" Updates are released by novel⁂fire.net
Lin Wanwan recalled a phrase inscribed on the Ta Mountain Dam and couldn’t help but say, "In floods, seven parts return to the river, three parts enter the stream; in droughts, seven parts enter the stream, three parts return to the river. With such a Ta Mountain Dam, complemented by sluice gates, a complete irrigation system is formed."
Xiao Chong’s eyes shone like stars at her words, praising, "Cousin is absolutely right; I didn’t expect cousin to be so knowledgeable about water conservancy. Has your master taught you? Then, where does cousin think the sluice gates should be built?"
Lin Wanwan snapped back to her senses, hastily responding modestly, "I only know a little. My master, of course, knows everything, but I’m not adept at learning, just scratching the surface.
However, since cousin has decided to construct the Ta Mountain Dam, I will also do my part. If cousin doesn’t mind my clumsy attempts, I’ll return and ponder more deeply to strive to offer cousin some preliminary suggestions, how about that?"
Xiao Chong smiled and saluted, saying, "In that case, I must thank cousin in advance."
Xiao Chong had no doubt about Lin Wanwan’s insight and talents; she always brought him many surprises.
After several interactions, he had already realized that Lin Wanwan’s open-mindedness was far beyond his own. Her master could not be just a pedantic, frugal scholar restrained by tradition; he must be a person of free and unrestrained thoughts, someone who is particularly to his liking.
Unfortunately, he had no chance to meet him.
Throughout his life, although he had been taught by famous teachers since childhood, there were very few people who truly inspired him to admiration deep in his bones. Yet, the reclusive master described by Lin Wanwan, shrouded in mystery, was undoubtedly the most shocking person he had encountered so far.
After casually chatting with Xiao Chong about the Ta Mountain Dam, Lin Wanwan took her leave.
She had already confirmed that what Xiao Chong intended to build was indeed no different from the Ta Mountain Dam in the future. This guy was an absolutely talented all-rounder, capable of understanding everything and even handling water conservancy effortlessly.
Even standing on the shoulders of giants in history, Lin Wanwan dared not meddle in such matters, as she knew nothing about water conservancy.
However, once she returned and researched thoroughly, she could still provide Xiao Chong with some correct ideas without any problem.
After all, the Ta Mountain Dam in history was a representative of high technology and high level, a miracle in the history of hydraulic engineering, which modern experts are amazed when studying its design principles.
But after all, Xiao Chong is not Wang Yuanwei from history, what if the Ta Mountain Dam he presides over deviates from the historical one? With the information she provides from the future, Xiao Chong would surely be able to avoid all the detours and achieve perfection.
This excitement of participating in a major historical event persisted until Lin Wanwan’s carriage drove into the Lin Family Manor, gradually calming her down.