The next day, early in the morning.
Early in the morning.
All the officials and officials gathered at the east gate of Chang 'an City.
Each of them formed a small circle and discussed with each other. At the front were Pei Ji, Chen Shuda, Xiao Yu, and the others. These were the core officials of Li Yuan's era. As for Li Shimin, Li Jiancheng, Li Yuanji, and the others, they were on the other side. The rest, like Li Shentong, Li Xiaogong, and many other officials formed their own circles.
Everyone was discussing animatedly.
They talked about today's events.
When Li Yuan asked Xiao Li to send the message, he also said that today's purpose was to go to the scene to see the results of Du Qi's road construction. Regarding the road construction, the discussion was in full swing. However, the road was blocked, and the officials in the imperial court did not care, so no one knew the final result of the road construction. After all, they did not go to see it personally.
In the discussion, some people thought that Du Qi was playing to the gallery and deliberately attracting people's attention.
Some people, however, thought that Du Qi had the real deal.
Du Qi was the real deal.
At this time, Du Qi's carriage arrived at the city gate. He got off the carriage and walked over in large strides. Du Qi did not go to the area where Li Shimin was. He just nodded to Li Shimin from afar and walked to the side to stand by himself.
No one came over.
No one paid attention to Du Qi.
After all, the officials in the imperial court were mainly divided into two factions.
The first was the people of the Eastern Palace.
The second was the people of the King of Qin.
A few were neutral.
The problem was that although Du Qi was famous and praised by many people, from the beginning to the end, Du Qi did not enter the imperial court as an official. He had no influence in the imperial court and did not participate in any government affairs.
So he did not know anyone.
Du Qi was also happy to be quiet. He closed his eyes slightly to rest.
Li Shimin saw that Du Qi was alone and wanted to walk over, but he was stopped by Zhangsun Wuji. After a glance from Zhangsun Wuji, Li Shimin also understood. His relationship with Du Qi should not be publicized, so Li Shimin did not go over.
Time passed little by little.
It was getting closer and closer to Si Shi.
At this time, the sun was already high up in the sky. After all, the weather in May was not very hot. The weather was also quite refreshing. The weather was neither hot nor cold. It was very good.
"Gulu! Rumble! "
At this moment, the sound of wheels turning could be heard again.
It was Li Yuan's carriage that had arrived. The carriage stopped, and the door curtain was lifted. Li Yuan walked down from the carriage.
After Li Yuan stood still, he swept a glance around.
His gaze fell on Du Qi.
Li Yuan saw that Du Qi was standing alone, and the people around him were in groups of three to five. They gathered together and chatted. Only Du Qi was alone. Li Yuan sighed in his heart for no reason.
He felt that Du Qi was rather pitiful.
The moment this thought appeared, it was suppressed in the next moment.
Li Yuan regained his composure.
Li Yuan walked straight to Du Qi's side. After standing still, he looked around at the people around him and asked, "Is everyone here?"
"Reporting to Imperial Father, everyone has arrived."
Li Jiancheng stood up and answered.
His gaze swept and landed on Du Qi. A cold look flashed across his eyes. In the depths of his eyes, there was even more intense hatred. It was just that Li Jiancheng hid this emotion very well.
Li Yuan instructed, "Since everyone is here, let's go. Let's go take a look at the section of road that Du Qi repaired. You all come take a look and comment while you're at it. "
"Yes!"
Everyone answered in unison.
"Let's go!"
Li Yuan instructed and brought Du Qi to walk at the front.
Because it was not far, also less than half a quarter of an hour's journey, the group advanced on foot. Li Yuan talked with Du Qi as he walked. Time passed unknowingly. In the blink of an eye, they had already reached the starting point of the first section of the journey.
There were specialized people guarding the side of the road to prevent people from coming to cause trouble.
Du Qi and Li Yuan walked straight ahead together. As soon as they exited the mud road, they entered this concrete cement road. This cement road was no less than twenty feet wide. From the side, one could see the thickness. It was about four inches thick. This kind of road was poured piece by piece and then pieced together. It lay steadily across the ground.
One by one, the courtiers had already stepped on the concrete road that was poured with cement.
When they stepped on it, the road was not affected at all.
Li Yuan used the soles of his feet to rub it a few times. He even had Xiao Li get a sword and used the tip of the sword to stab it a few times on the ground. There was no wear and tear on the road.
Li Yuan was immediately shocked.
The road was so hard.
While Li Yuan was shocked, Li Jiancheng, Li Shimin, Xiao Yu, Pei Ji, Chen Shuda, and the other civil and military officials in the court all tried the road. One by one, they cried out in surprise and were even more amazed.
This was a path that had never existed since ancient times.
The road's surface was incomparably hard and was not affected by wind, sand, rain, and snow. Especially the road's surface, there were neat scratches. When the soles of one's feet stepped on it, it did not slip at all.
"Your Majesty, this thing is really amazing."
Pei Ji came to Li Yuan's side. He stroked the beard under his chin and praised, "When this road is built, according to this old official's estimation, the speed of travel from Chang 'an Road to Lantian County can be reduced by at least half."
"Of course, for ordinary people, if they are not in a hurry, it will not affect them much. However, it will be more comfortable to walk."
"For marching and fighting, especially for transporting supplies, this kind of road is simply cheap to the extreme. When horses are running while carrying supplies, because the road is flat, it is not strenuous. "
"According to the roads in the past, even if it is a built road, many places will inevitably be bumpy. It will always be somewhat inappropriate."
Pei Ji was not stingy with his praise.
When he looked at Du Qi, his eyes were full of praise.
Chen Shuda stroked the beard under his chin and also echoed, "Your Majesty, I don't know how much this road costs. This old official can be sure that if this kind of road is the main road that runs through all the counties under the heavens, Your Majesty's control over the various regions will also be strengthened. Once something happens, through this kind of road, you can reach it in the shortest time. "
The others all opened their mouths to praise.
Everyone can see that this kind of road is extremely good.
While everyone was praising, Li Jiancheng stood at the side, the expression on his face was somewhat indifferent. In the depths of his eyes, there was even more anger. Because he and Du Qi were enemies, the more Du Qi was in the limelight, the more unhappy Li Jiancheng would be. He could not bear to see Du Qi doing well.
However, Li Jiancheng did not speak.
He only watched quietly.
Amidst everyone's flattery, Li Yuan looked at Du Qi and asked, "Erlang, this road is extremely well built. In such a short time, it has reached this stage, very good. What I want to ask is, is this road the same in every section from Chang 'an to Lantian County? "
Du Qi said, "Your Majesty, this official dares to guarantee with my personality that there is absolutely no problem. The roads in every section are no different from the roads in this area. "
"Good, good, good!"
Li Yuan nodded repeatedly, his face full of joy.
This is a good thing.
Li Yuan said sternly, "Erlang, how much is the cost of this road? If I want to build this kind of road in all the main roads in the country, do you think it can be widely promoted? "
Du Qi said, "Your Majesty, it is possible to promote it, but to promote it on a large scale, I'm afraid it will be very difficult. Moreover, if it is to conscript corvee labor, I'm afraid it will create a huge burden for the people. "
"The best way is for the imperial court to fork out the money and outsource this project, handing it over to professionals to take care of. This way, it will only be a waste of money. "
"At the same time, it can also give the people something to do, it will not increase the burden of the people."
Du Qi said sternly, "Building roads is originally a good thing, but a good thing must be done well, otherwise it can easily become a disaster."
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