The day's work began in the morning, just as the year's work began in spring.
Before dawn had even broken, smoke rose from every household's cooking fires. After eating their porridge, people stepped out of their homes and headed to their fields, carrying beautiful hopes for the new year as they diligently sowed seeds into the ancient earth.
It was at this time that Chenggong Ying arrived in Wang Yan's territory, on a diplomatic mission to Zhending.
He had come once before, though at the time he had gone to Ji County in You Province, where he had already witnessed Wang Yan's strength. Yet now, upon entering Wang Yan's territory once again, he saw far more.
Whenever mealtime came around, the aromas drifting through the air grew richer. Fried hairtail fish in particular—he had smelled that scent back in Bing Province. Along the way, the fragrance of meat had only become more intense. What the common people ate naturally reflected the overall state of Wang Yan's rule. After all, if they were not truly prosperous, no one would be willing to feed the people such good food.
It had to be said that Wang Yan's method of making ice with saltpeter had indeed made life much more convenient. Ordinary people elsewhere certainly could not enjoy it, but powerful clans and wealthy households had mastered the ice-making method themselves. This made summers far less unbearable for them, and it also allowed summer food to be preserved longer. As a result, they could eat fresh fruit from much farther away without it spoiling during transport.
Under Wang Yan's rule, ice was produced on a large scale. The costs were saltpeter and labor, both of which could be reduced through the advantages of scale. Although transportation costs were not low, people could still