Poverty Alleviation in Qin: A Sky-High Review of "I Am the Female Prime Minister of All Time&qu

The city gates of Xianyang were lined with carriages and horses, and banners fluttered lightly.

Today marks the start of Empress Lü's journey south to Baiyue, where she will escort a large quantity of supplies.

According to the original plan, she was supposed to go south with Song Ye, but the Baiyue region was desolate due to the lack of industry.

Therefore, she was specially arranged to stay in Xianyang and postpone her southward journey.

The Xianyang workshops need to produce enough new agricultural tools, improved tillage equipment, and cement building materials to gather the materials needed to repair the irrigation canals before transporting them south to Baiyue to assist in the implementation of the new policies.

For the past two weeks, workshops of all sizes in Xianyang have been operating day and night without a moment's rest.

The craftsmen worked in shifts, day and night, forging iron, casting tools, making clay, burning ash, polishing farm implements, and arranging building materials. Everyone was busy without rest.

Everyone, from the government to the people, knew that this was the source of Baiyue's confidence in reclaiming wasteland, developing agriculture, building roads, and constructing cities.

At the foot of the city gate, the entire Lü family came to see them off.

Liu Bang also joined in the fun, mingling in the crowd to watch the spectacle.

Looking at his younger sister, who was all packed and ready to go, Lu Shizhi, the second brother, solemnly instructed her: "The journey is long, and the southern border is hot, humid, and dangerous. Be careful in everything you do and take good care of yourself."

Lü Zhi nodded: "Brother, rest assured."

No sooner had he finished speaking than a figure pounced on him from behind.

Lü Xu rushed forward, grabbed her arm, and immediately launched into an exaggerated sobbing session. There were hardly any tears, but her voice was incredibly loud: "Ahhh! Sister! I can't bear to part with you!!"

"Who knows when you'll be back! Waaaaah, my dear sister!!"

The little girl cried, shaking her head and speaking in an exaggerated and affected tone; her fake emotions were obvious.

"..." Lü Zhi's lips twitched.

It wasn't that her younger sister was reluctant to part with her; she was clearly "reluctant" to part with the carefree days of being unsupervised.

But she was too lazy to expose her at this point, and simply let her finish this farewell drama.

After acting her fill, Lü Xu reluctantly let go, not forgetting to wipe away a non-existent tear.

"Sister, I'll definitely be waiting for you to come back in Xianyang!"

"..."

Afterwards, Lü Zhi bid farewell to her parents one by one.

As the two elders finished speaking, the usually calm and composed Mr. Lü shed two tears, a rare occurrence for him.

This was the first time my daughter had traveled far away by herself.

Knowing that his daughter was going to Baiyue and that her future was uncertain, he could only tremble as he took a brocade box from the shop assistant behind him, his voice hoarse: "Daughter, your father has no other skills, and all I have left is money."

What does it mean to be so poor that all you have left is money?

Waiter: "..."

"The journey is long and the Baiyue region is remote and difficult to traverse; the new policies require money at every turn..."

"Take this and spend it as you please, don't deprive yourself."

When Lü Zhi opened the brocade box, she was greeted by a dazzling display of gold.

The next second, she quickly covered it up again.

"..."

Just then, Liu Bang, who was watching the drama unfold, chimed in: "My dear sister, you mustn't be too capable over there, or the court will be reluctant to let you come back!"

These words instantly shattered the tense atmosphere.

Lü Xu couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Hahahaha!

Lu Shizhi, standing beside him, glared at him, speechless.

"..."

Empress Lü Zhi simply chose to ignore him.

After the farewell was over, with a loud command, the procession drove away from the gates of Xianyang.

-

At the same time.

A tribal chief led a dozen or so of his people to the city gate, where they stopped and shouted loudly towards the city tower.

The interpreter, listening to the Yue dialect, couldn't help but tremble as he relayed the message truthfully: "Sir, he said... Why do the Qin people ban our tribe's old customs? Tattooing is a rule passed down from generation to generation. The Baiyue marshes are teeming with dragons and crocodiles; tattoos can ward off insects and protect against dragons and snakes when submerged in water!"

"Now that tattoos are banned, if a member of our tribe drowns, who will pay for it?"

Before he could finish speaking, a young man pushed forward: "Why do you ban sacrifices! Who will pray for rain during droughts? Who will divine the fishing seasons?"

"If a severe drought strikes and the fields fail, will the Qin people be able to support our people?!"

Then, a woman struggled to push her way out of the crowd, looked up at the city wall, and hissed, "My son has not yet undergone the coming-of-age ceremony of chiseling his teeth! You even forbid the chiseling of teeth, and today you are cutting off my son's coming-of-age ceremony. What kind of person will he be in the tribe in the future?"

The crowd was bustling with noise, and the more they gathered, the larger the crowd became.

From the terraced settlements upstream and the bustling markets at Xikou, to the villages and hamlets along the Yushui tributary, people from all over Yue flocked to the area.

Within half an hour, over a hundred people had gathered at the city gate.

Public sentiment was high, and chaos was brewing.

Upon witnessing this scene, Ying Yinman clenched her sleeves, her face deathly pale: "Are they... going to rebel?"

Song Ye remained calm and said indifferently, "We can't rebel." After speaking, she lowered her eyes and looked down at the restless crowd below the city.

The leading Xiou chieftain looked up at the crowd, his missing front tooth opening and closing repeatedly, his roars hoarse and unpleasant.

The translator relayed: "The chieftain said... the Qin people do not educate people to be good, but rather establish their authority through killing."

"With such relentless pressure, what exactly are these Xiou people? Are they even still considered Xiou?"

On the city tower, no one responded for a moment.

"If bad habits are not corrected, then punishment shall be imposed according to the law." Song Ye's tone was cold and uncompromising.

She paused briefly, her gaze falling on the dark mass of Yue people below the city walls, and slowly said, "Furthermore, they are now Qin citizens."

The interpreter immediately relayed the original words truthfully.

This seemingly casual remark was like a bucket of ice water suddenly poured over the city, instantly extinguishing all the restless clamor below.

Yes... they have long since surrendered to the Qin Dynasty and are no longer the barbarians who ruled over the wilderness.

After a long silence, the elder clan leader spoke in a hoarse voice.

The interpreter relayed his question:

"Your Excellency has banned witchcraft, divination, and sacrifices, but we, the people of Baiyue, have always relied on heaven, earth, and spirits for our livelihood."

Farming depends on the seasons, fishing on the water. Heaven is silent, water is still, and we cannot predict wind, rain, drought, or flood. If we do not seek help from spirits or gods, then who should we ask?

"Guanzhong relies on laws to maintain peace, while the Baiyue rely on spirits and gods to survive."

"My lord... are you not afraid of a desolate world, with no one to protect you and your people left to fend for themselves?"

"Fear? What do I have to fear?" Song Ye sneered, his gaze sweeping over the tribal people below the city. "Now that I, Song Ye, am here, I will make sure you have a good meal!"

After saying that, she waved her sleeve and turned to leave.

......

In the days that followed, Song led his men to implement the government's orders with a tough stance.

The first priority was to build irrigation canals.

The first step was to recruit local Yue people and use local bamboo, wood, soil, and stones to begin construction. Qin soldiers and officers supervised the work on-site, and the basic framework of the main waterway and ponds was first built.

The new iron farm tools and cement building materials are still on their way. It will take another half month for the supplies to arrive, so they can only rely on local materials to speed up the construction.

After the irrigation canal framework was initially completed, the next step was to measure the fields, register households, and demarcate field boundaries, re-establishing ownership of the land previously jointly managed by the tribes. Local officials went from village to village to explain Qin laws, reiterating prohibitions and strictly forbidding private fights, witchcraft sacrifices, and the old custom of human sacrifice.

Those who repeatedly fail to correct their behavior will be dealt with according to the law.

A simple bamboo-house village school was also built at the same time, initially enrolling tribal children to teach them the Qin language and the principles of farming.

Deeply ingrained beliefs among adults are difficult to change overnight, so we should start with the new generation of children.

Locals witnessed firsthand how the irrigation ditches brought in fresh water, irrigating the parched fields.

The gods and spirits did not send down rain, but the waterways created by human hands truly nourished the land.

However, many tasks are still hampered by a lack of supplies, and everyone is waiting for the batch of farm tools and building materials that Lü Zhi is escorting to arrive as soon as possible...

*

Finally, on this day, Lü Zhi's convoy arrived at Tucheng in southern Xinjiang.

The procession stretched for miles, with carts loaded with high-quality millet seeds and a group of craftsmen drawn from the Imperial Household Department.

As soon as the craftsmen arrived, they could start their furnaces on the spot to forge curved plows. The furnaces were piled high with all kinds of farm tools such as hoes, shovels, and sickles.

Song also personally went out of the city to greet them.

Once the supplies were inventoried, they were immediately distributed.

Some of the improved varieties were distributed to the Yue people in various tribes for trial planting. Craftsmen chose locations to build simple workshops and smelted iron and cast tools on the spot, so that they would no longer have to travel thousands of miles to transport ironware from Xianyang.

Meanwhile, the farm tools brought by the other side were first used by the tribes around the county seat. With the handy iron farm tools, the speed of canal construction and land reclamation increased dramatically. The project, which had previously relied solely on bamboo, wood, and earth, was now greatly enhanced.

Officials continued to go to the countryside, distributing seeds and farming tools while teaching the people new farming methods.

Many Vietnamese people looked at the brand-new iron plow, their fingertips lightly touching the cold iron blade, their hearts filled with mixed feelings.

In the past, they only knew to pray to the gods for a good harvest, but now they have seen with their own eyes that what can increase the yield of the land is tools and people's hands.

However, many shamans in the tribe were still secretly observing and waiting for an opportunity to act.

On the edge of the pond, Master Deng was using a file to repair the plowshare of the last curved plow, with iron filings falling down in a flurry.

Several young and strong Yue people squatted down and watched intently.

Tomorrow this plow will be put into the field, and everyone wants to be the first to get one.

In the distant terraced fields, the rice seedlings had just sprouted two inches of green, their edges shimmering with a thin layer of silver under the moonlight.

The 500-mu trial field used seeds brought by Lü Zhi from Xianyang, and the germination rate was much higher than that of the local old varieties.

Ying Rui squatted on the edge of the field and counted for a long time. Then she turned around and shouted to Ying Yinman, "Sister, this patch of land is taller than yesterday!"

Ying Yinman hummed in agreement and began drawing characters on the muddy ground with a bamboo stick, teaching several Yue children nearby to recognize Qin seal script.

The children repeated after them, their Xi'ou accent mixed with Qin dialect, making them sound strange and peculiar. She couldn't help but laugh first.

On the surface, everything seems to be moving in a positive direction.

But Song also knew that not everyone was willing to see things get better.

...

the other side.

"Sir, someone is slacking off again," Li You said, frowning.

"How many times has this happened?"

"This has happened several times already! It's always the same old faces, slacking off at work, but more eager than anyone else at mealtimes. After work, they gossip to their clansmen, saying that we disturbed the earth's veins while building the canal, and that the gods will bring disaster..."

Song sat at the desk, flipping through the household register in his hand, without looking up: "Which tribe are you from?"

"It's still that tribe by the stream. The chief is alright, but it's a few of his elders who are leading the trouble. I checked, and those elders are close to the old shaman."

"A shaman?"

"Yes." Li You sat down at the desk. "Just the night before last, someone smashed a section of the concrete embankment of that pond, and yesterday they found rotten fish and broken bones in the water in the upstream section of the canal. It's infuriating!"

"Filthy water source?"

"Yes, the Vietnamese people saw it and dared not drink it. Some people said it was because the ghosts and gods were angry, and it made a fuss all morning."

Song closed the booklet and tapped the table with his knuckles: "How many men were sent to guard it?"

"Each fortification operates on a two-shift system, day and night. But as you know, sir, the Baiyue region is full of ravines and dense forests; it's not easy to spot even if you hide a few people there." Li Youyue grew increasingly angry as he spoke, "And they specifically target the shift changes to strike; they're incredibly slippery!"

Song remained silent for a while, then got up and walked to the window.

Outside the window, the night was pitch black, and in the distance, torches from the construction site flickered on and off.

"Two sentries, one visible and one concealed, will be on duty, with shifts staggered by half an hour. Double the manpower at each of the canal embankments, ponds, work sheds, and granaries. Anyone who gets close to the fortifications will be taken down first."

"yes!"

"Also, investigate who still associates with shamans; pay close attention."

...

That night, past midnight.

On the newly built canal embankment, two squads of Qin soldiers patrolled the embankment, one in the open and one in the shadows. The open squads carried torches and patrolled the embankment, while the hidden squads were concealed in the reeds along the canal.

Over here, several dark figures crept over from the direction of the upstream terraced fields, walking along the canal bank with extremely light footsteps.

The leader was a gaunt old man with faded snake tattoos on his face, and he held a sharpened bamboo pole in his hand.

That's what they did the last few times.

First, they used bamboo poles to loosen the rammed earth, then blocked a section of the waterway. The next day, when the water seeped out, they spread the word that the gods and spirits were angry, and they were shirking their duties and avoiding the project...

And so it worked every time.

The old man squatted down, the tip of his bamboo pole touching the bottom of the canal bank, just as he was about to thrust it in with all his might—

"Don't move."

A low, cold shout came from behind.

The old man froze, the bamboo pole still stuck in the ground, not yet pulled out.

From the reeds, on the canal embankment, and all around, six or seven Qin soldiers rushed out from the shadows, their swords drawn, their cold light reflecting the firelight, gleaming brightly against the necks of the dark figures.

Upon hearing this, the old man's lips trembled, and he couldn't utter a single word.

How did they know?!

Could it have been from the very beginning...?

"Take him away." The sergeant waved his hand.

...

Before dawn, in front of the prefectural government office.

Several shamans and their henchmen were bound and forced to kneel on the muddy ground, their knees sinking into the wet mud.

The gaunt old man at the head of the group had his forehead pressed against the ground, his shoulders twitching, whether from fear or hatred, it was hard to tell.

"What exactly do you want?" Song asked, looking down at the group of people in front of him.

The old man finally raised his head, his toothless mouth opened and closed, his voice hoarse: "You...you Qin people stole our sky, and you won't even let us take it back?"

"Heaven? Which 'heaven' are you talking about?"

After he finished speaking, the faces of the shamans all turned grim.

Let me guess.

"You must have been the undisputed rulers in your tribe before, right? You were in charge of sacrifices, predicting good and bad fortune, and controlling blessings and misfortunes. A single word from you could be worshipped by everyone."

Song also squatted down, looking him straight in the eye, "You used to be so high and mighty, but now you're reduced to working the land like an ordinary person. Doesn't that hurt you terribly?"

"That's our Baiyue business! It's none of your Qin people's business!"

"It's our turn now."

Song also stood up, saying, "Once you've registered your citizenship, you're citizens of the Great Qin, and the imperial court will naturally take care of you to the end."

As she spoke, she turned to the Qin soldier beside her and gestured with her chin: "Act according to the law. The ringleader shall be beheaded, and the accomplices shall be punished with hard labor, assigned to the canal construction team, and forced to work in shackles."

Even as the old man was being dragged up after those words, he was still shouting, "You'll get your comeuppance! The gods and ghosts won't let you get away with this!"

"You have disturbed the earth's veins, and the water god will be angry..."

"What is retribution? What are ghosts and gods? If you're so capable, then kill me." Song Ye chuckled.

"..."