Novel Full Chapter 1771 - 1770: Purpose
Chapter 1771: Chapter 1770: Purpose
Thinking about creating a legacy, Qiao Xiaomai immediately asked Tong Sanlang to start painting as well. Tong Sanlang’s painting skills were far superior to Bei Yun’s. If even Bei Yun’s works could be passed down through generations, then Tong Sanlang’s might become national treasures displayed in museums someday.
Tong Sanlang truly picked up the paintbrush and started creating. He wasn’t trying to compete with Bei Yun in artistic skill; he wanted to preserve this rare, stunning scenery, ensuring that even if they returned to the Capital City, they could view it by simply pulling out his paintings.
There were no cameras here, so they could only rely on this ancient method.
At night, the convoy set up camp on the Gobi Desert. The stars twinkled across the vast sky above, seemingly so close they could be touched with a stretch of the hand. Qiao Xiaomai couldn’t help but marvel at the unpolluted beauty of pure nature—it was truly breathtaking.
Once she’d finished marveling, her mind turned to serious matters. Truth be told, during this westward journey, she wanted to find a suitable location to bury the treasure.
She was no longer short of money––wealth from across the world was flowing steadily into her hands. The Yang Family also wasn’t in dire need of silver anymore. The construction of the bluestone road and the canal had been completed, leaving no major expenses. As for Yang Wenxiao’s proposed policies, those could easily be supported by the National Treasury.
Sitting on a surplus of money, Qiao Xiaomai wanted to take out the treasure from her spatial storage.
This treasure had been amassed by exploitation from the previous dynasty’s Emperor. It was all the essence and lifeblood of the common people. She had joked many times about wanting to take it for herself, but in truth, it was just talk. Such ill-gotten gains had to be used for the people; otherwise, she truly feared divine retribution.
Originally, she had planned to handle this matter together with Tong Sanlang. But who would have expected Bei Yun to intrude on the plan? Trying to keep this matter secret from Bei Yun was as difficult as reaching the heavens.
Thus, she wasn’t fixated anymore on burying the treasure during this trip. For now, she just wanted to scout for a suitable spot, and if an opportunity arose in the future, she would return to bury it.
Finding a suitable location, however, was no easy task. The Gobi Desert lacked natural pits, meaning she would have to dig one herself. The treasure was massive in size, and manually digging out a deep pit was no simple feat.
With this worry lingering in her mind, the convoy crossed the Gobi Desert and eventually arrived at several small nations to the west.
These nations suffered from water shortages, scorching climates, and people with skin tones different from those of Daqi citizens. Few of the locals could speak Daqi’s language, but it didn’t matter. Daqi was a powerful nation, and their group was strong. By trading Spiritual Spring water with the locals, they easily earned considerable silver.
Silver was secondary; Qiao Xiaomai and Tong Sanlang’s main goal for this westward journey was to find cotton. However, Qiao Xiaomai only knew that cotton had originated from the west. She was unclear on its exact location or what it even looked like.
Clueless, their group searched from one small nation to the next. Along the way, they encountered several bandit groups attempting to rob them. As the saying goes, “Desolate mountains and treacherous waters yield unruly people.” These small inland nations suffered from scarce rainfall and were universally impoverished. For the bandits, Qiao Xiaomai’s well-dressed convoy was nothing less than a walking herd of fat sheep waiting to be slaughtered.
But with Bei Yun and Tong Sanlang—two skilled masters—in their group, these bandits were no more than minor annoyances, not worth mentioning.
The convoy continued to advance slowly, searching from one nation to the next. Meanwhile, Tong Sanlang took the opportunity to draw maps of their routes and record observations of local customs. He planned to compile these into a book upon his return, which would serve as a treasure trove of Geographical Materials, invaluable for future generations.
One day, the convoy pitched camp on a sparse section of the Grassland. Feeling restless, Bei Yun wandered off and hunted down a wild bull, then personally prepared and roasted beef.
Although this westward journey had yet to yield cotton, they had discovered a critically important spice: cumin.