Su Wan'er said helplessly, "You'd better come down first. It's tiring to talk while looking up."
Only then did Lan Tian realize that he was still on the beam. He quickly hugged the pillar and slid down.
"Your subject Lan Tian pays respects to Your Majesty," he said, bowing respectfully.
Su Wan'er had someone help him up. "Are you well-rested?"
Lan Tian nodded. "I'm well-rested. As long as Your Majesty gives an order, Lan Tian will spare no effort and be willing to go through fire and water..." He rambled on and on, all words expressing his loyalty.
Su Wan'er sighed helplessly and raised her hand to stop him. "Stop. I don't need to hear those flattering words. You just need to do practical things for me."
After saying that, she led Lan Tian back to the imperial study.
As soon as they entered the imperial study, he disappeared.
Su Wan'er scanned the surroundings and found him standing in front of the bookshelf.
"Ahem," Su Wan'er had no choice but to remind him again.
Only then did Lan Tian come back. "Your Majesty, the design of this room is really good. It's worthy of a master's work," he said cryptically. Only those who knew would understand.
Su Wan'er only knew there was a passage behind the bookshelf because she had been there with Si Junlin.
But it was obvious that Lan Tian had never been in the palace before, yet he still knew the secret behind the bookshelf.
Su Wan'er turned and gave Si Junlin a look. The man in front of them seemed clumsy, but in fact, he was very reliable. They could completely entrust the water conservancy map to him.
Si Junlin also knew that this matter must be handled by someone. At first, seeing this guy's nonchalant look, he didn't quite trust him. But after seeing him lying on the beam to study the house structure and being able to see through the mechanism in the imperial study at a glance, Si Junlin now wanted to see what this guy was really capable of.
"Come and take a look at this map first," Su Wan'er said, putting the drawing in front of him.
Lan Tian stepped forward in surprise, raised his hand to open the drawing, and examined it carefully.
The imperial study fell into an unprecedented silence.
After a long time, Lan Tian finally spoke. "Your Majesty, this tributary won't work. If there's a flood, this river channel is almost useless."
Su Wan'er followed his finger and looked at the place he had marked.
Lan Tian continued. "The arc at this position should be a bit larger, probably here, to withstand the scouring of the water flow."
"Then how much silver do you think all these things will cost?" Su Wan'er asked.
Lan Tian thought for a while. Then he said to Su Wan'er, "I may need to know the price of materials in the capital or the local materials."
Su Wan'er looked at Si Junlin. Si Junlin nodded and then said to Fang Xi, "Eunuch Fang Xi, what are you standing there for? Aren't the accounts of the past few years still in the study?"
Fang Xi didn't suspect anything. After all, the queen basically ate, lived, and slept with the emperor now. It wasn't strange for her to know such small things, right?
Soon, Fang Xi brought up the accounts. Lan Tian didn't say a word and opened the accounts to start checking.
At this time, he completely lost his nonchalant look. All that was left was a serious face, looking very reliable.
No one said a word at this time. They were all waiting for his answer.
Finally, Lan Tian put down the account book in his hand.
"How is it?" Su Wan'er asked.
Lan Tian shook his head. "This is only the price of materials in the capital. I may have to go near the South River to get the most accurate result."
"Okay. You prepare first and rest for a day. I'll send someone to escort you to the vicinity of the South River in two days," Su Wan'er said.
Lan Tian waved his hand. "There's no need to be so troublesome. I can go there by myself."
Su Wan'er interrupted his words. "You may be able to handle it alone in the early stage, but what about the later stage? When it comes to the later stage, if you want to start construction, you must have contact with the local government. If there's no official to introduce you, the local government won't recognize you."
Lan Tian was stunned for a moment and finally said, "Oh. Then I'll trouble Your Majesty."
After the matter was decided, Su Wan'er asked him to go back to the palace to rest first, and she also wrote an imperial edict and sent it out that day.
On the evening of the next day, Lan Tian was about to go to bed when there was a knock on the door.
He paused in the middle of making the bed, then straightened up and asked the person outside the door, "Who is it?"
The person outside the door said, "Hello, Young Master Lan. I'm the personal maid of Concubine Mei. Her Ladyship heard that the young master is from the Heavenly Artisan Sect. Her family also has quite a relationship with the Heavenly Artisan Sect. She was afraid that the young master would be uncomfortable in the palace, so she specially sent me to bring you some daily necessities."
Lan Tian frowned and said to the person outside the door, "No need. I'm not a pampered person. Concubine Mei is a member of the harem. She'd better pay attention to her reputation."
Although he was very curious about everything in the royal family, he knew what he should touch and what he shouldn't.
For this harem concubine who came to show kindness for no reason, he thought it was better to keep his distance.
Moreover, before he left, Su Wan'er had also told him that since the work he was taking over had always been handled by the Rong family, after the news that he had taken over this work was announced, someone would come to find him, whether it was with good intentions or malicious ones...
So, in order to return to his sect safely, he thought it was better not to pay attention to the person outside the door.
The person outside the door was Cui Si. Someone had sent a message to Concubine Mei by carrier pigeon today, telling her that someone from the Heavenly Artisan Sect had come to take over the matter of the flood in the South River, and asking Concubine Mei to find a way to contact that person from the Heavenly Artisan Sect.
Concubine Mei knew something about the Heavenly Artisan Sect. She had heard from her grandfather when she was very young that her great-grandfather had come from the Heavenly Artisan Sect, and this was the source of their family's skills.
Now that she heard that someone from the Heavenly Artisan Sect had come to take over the affairs that should have belonged to her family, she immediately felt a strong sense of crisis.
This matter was the bargaining chip for her to end her confinement early.
After receiving the news from her family, she asked Cui Si to inquire. Finally, she found out where Lan Tian lived. She found some gold and silver items, gave them to Cui Si, and told her to invite that person from the Heavenly Artisan Sect over.
Cui Si had received this order. If she didn't invite Lan Tian back today, she would be in trouble when she went back.
Hearing Lan Tian's refusal, Cui Si was a bit anxious.
Maybe it was because of her anxiety, or maybe it was to make Lan Tian feel sympathetic, her voice took on a crying tone.
"Master Lan, please go and meet my lady. If you don't, I won't be able to explain it to her."