Ru Yue shook her head. "I wasn't around when they were apprehending people. I only heard from Jia Ping and Shuang Yue that someone might be targeting ministers in court. The specifics are still unclear."
Lu Qing Wan pondered for a moment, feeling that the court affairs were becoming increasingly numerous, and it was unrealistic for her to handle everything personally.
She immediately made a decision. "I won't go. Have Duan Yue bring me the interrogation results after she's done. Also, help me contact Tie Shou and ask him to see me after lunch tomorrow."
As she finished speaking, Li Su appeared from behind her. "Tie Shou is currently helping the Ministry of Works with canal excavation and water diversion. He's not in Xin Du. If the Princess Consort wishes to see him, it might take five or six days."
It was a testament to Li Su's dedication that she always followed Lu Qing Wan like an invisible stenographer.
Lu Qing Wan was startled by her voice. "Isn't digging canals and diverting water the job of the Ministry of Works? It's one thing for Tie Shou to provide blueprints, but why is he personally involved?"
Li Su, who was always by Lu Qing Wan's side, hadn't missed any intelligence. She immediately explained, "Xin Du has abundant rainfall and low terrain, so the roads get waterlogged every summer and autumn. Previously, there weren't many merchants traveling through the city, and the waterproofing facilities weren't adequate. But now, the new dynasty has been established here for only half a year, and the population of Xin Du has already doubled. Tie Shou, along with some elders from the Ministry of Works and the Directorate of the Crafts, reviewed the situation and said that the rainy season would affect normal life. However, the court has already moved here, and a complete overhaul isn't feasible. Minister Nian of the Ministry of Works has invited Tie Shou out of seclusion to get everything done before the enthronement ceremony."
Lu Qing Wan understood, but she was still puzzled. "Since it's a flood control and drainage issue for Xin Du, why would it take five or six days to return? Where did he go?"
Although Tie Shou was skilled in various ingenious crafts, his ambition was not in officialdom. Lu Qing Wan and Si Feng Wu had personally invited him, but he had refused to enter official service, only agreeing to assist the Directorate of the Crafts and the Ministry of Works. Fortunately, Tie Shou was willing to help Si Feng Wu and Lu Qing Wan, and he had assisted them greatly over the years. Now, when she needed him, he was nowhere to be found. This frustrated Lu Qing Wan; how could he falter at such a crucial moment?
Li Su, unaware of Lu Qing Wan's urgent need to see Tie Shou, dutifully relayed all the intelligence she had gathered. "Xin Du has a large drainage volume. Tie Shou said that if they used the old methods of Shang Jing to construct drainage canals, they would have to be rebuilt in three to five years. Coincidentally, the brothers from Shen Tang Zhou's side have discovered a new building material in the northwest, which is reportedly good for building canals and paving roads. So, Tie Shou and some officials from the Ministry of Works personally went to inspect it on-site."
Lu Qing Wan suddenly realized. "Since they are busy with important matters, let's not disturb them for now. Come with me to the Armament Bureau. I'm very curious about what reserves we have left after the war!"
Weaponry reserves were the foundation of the new dynasty's strength. Li Su readily agreed. "General Shen lives in the Ministry of War year-round. The Princess Consort can visit anytime. However, I heard long ago that Minister Chen of the Ministry of Revenue has been complaining that the Ministry of Revenue's warehouses are not secure enough. Does the Princess Consort also want to take a look? The Ministry of Revenue is also a very important department. If there are problems with the warehouses, it could cause significant trouble for the court, right?"
The new dynasty had just been established, and everything was in flux. The various government departments were not yet fully functional, and problems were understandable. However, the insecurity of the Ministry of Revenue's warehouses greatly surprised Lu Qing Wan. "Aren't all the government departments newly built? The Ministry of Revenue's warehouses should have been personally supervised by Chen Jian Zhang during construction. How could there still be security issues?"
Six months was likely not enough time to completely perfect all the mechanisms of a dynasty, but it should have been sufficient to establish a complete Ministry of Revenue. The issue Li Su brought up was truly unexpected for Lu Qing Wan. However, no matter how well-informed Li Su was, she was not privy to the specific internal affairs of government departments and could not provide Lu Qing Wan with a clear explanation. She could only say vaguely, "I don't know the specifics. I only know that before we returned, Minister Chen repeatedly raised the issue of security problems in the Ministry of Revenue's warehouses to Prime Minister Nan and the strategist, but the matter was never properly resolved and has been dragging on until now."
The security of the Ministry of Revenue's warehouses was directly related to the accumulation of power for the new dynasty. Logically, neither Prime Minister Nan nor Lian Yu would overlook such an issue. Yet, the reality was that the security of the Ministry of Revenue's warehouses had been neglected. Furthermore, Lian Yu and Prime Minister Nan had not mentioned this matter to her and Si Feng Wu during the day. Lu Qing Wan's interest was immediately piqued. She directly ordered, "Let's go to the Ministry of Revenue first to see what's going on with the warehouses, and then to the Armament Bureau."
Li Su did not dare to delay and immediately notified Ying Yi, who was driving, to head straight to the Ministry of Revenue's warehouses. To her surprise, the Minister of Revenue, Chen Jian Zhang, was actually at the Ministry of Revenue's yamen. This greatly astonished Lu Qing Wan. "It's already past dinnertime. Why is Minister Chen still at the yamen?"
The on-duty officer respectfully replied, "Since the new yamen was completed, Minister Chen has always said that the security level of the warehouses is not high enough and requires fifteen principal officials from the Ministry of Revenue to take turns on duty every night. Today happens to be the Minister's turn."
Were the security issues of the Ministry of Revenue's warehouses so serious that principal officials had to take turns on night duty? Lu Qing Wan became even more curious about what was going on. She directly told the officer, "Since Minister Chen is in the yamen, it saves me the trouble of finding someone for the key. Take me to see Minister Chen."
The officer dared not delay and respectfully said, "Please wait, Your Highness. Allow me to inform him."
Lu Qing Wan's current status was equivalent to that of the Empress. According to protocol, even if she had arrived at the Ministry of Revenue, Chen Jian Zhang should have come out with all the officials and staff of the Ministry of Revenue to greet her. However, Lu Qing Wan raised her hand to stop the officer. "No need to inform him. Take me directly." She wanted to see what exactly Chen Jian Zhang was up to.
The officer was so nervous that cold sweat trickled down his back. With such an important person arriving, if he didn't inform them and Lu Qing Wan saw something she shouldn't have, he would be the one to suffer after she left. However, Li Su and Ying Yi were still behind Lu Qing Wan. Anyone who knew Si Feng Wu and Lu Qing Wan would also recognize Li Su. Ying Yi had been following Lu Qing Wan for years and had gradually moved from behind the scenes to the forefront. Only a fool would not realize how sharp the people personally brought by Si Feng Wu were. Even with ten times the courage, he wouldn't dare to play any tricks under the watchful eyes of these individuals. He could only reluctantly lead Lu Qing Wan to Chen Jian Zhang. However, this time, he didn't face any misfortune. As he led Lu Qing Wan and her entourage, Chen Jian Zhang, the Minister of Revenue, was neither drinking and making merry under the guise of being on duty nor perfunctorily fulfilling his duties.