Chapter 25 Grain

The capital city, the residence of the eldest princess.

An angry shout came from the study: "Who are these people? The flood in Jingzhou has lasted for a full half month now, and they still want to stop the disaster relief grain?"

Qi Nian is younger than Gongsun Ming, but he still has the sense of justice that comes with youth. Gongsun Ming comforted him, saying, "Let alone half a month, they won't budge until we come up with a solution that pleases all parties."

Thinking of this, Qi Nian said dejectedly, "Fortunately, we had a letter from that Miss Shang, which gave us time to make arrangements for disaster relief."

To be honest, he was indeed dissatisfied when the eldest princess summoned them for a talk about this matter.

This letter is clearly fake news. I don't know why the Princess would believe it and prepare for the impending flood in Jingzhou.

When Gongsun Ming heard about the letter from Miss Shang, his eyes flickered slightly. He had also suspected the girl's actions, but the princess insisted, so he had no choice but to follow her advice.

Looking back now, the actions of the Eldest Princess and Cui Shu in providing support seem prescient.

Could that Miss Shang really be someone with great supernatural powers? It's one thing for the Princess to know, but why could that brat Cui Shu sense it too?

Even with years of experience as a staff officer, he couldn't help but sigh, "It was Your Highness's wisdom that allowed you to discover the clues, make the right decision, and save Jingzhou City from peril."

With Cui Shu going to Jingzhou for disaster relief, through his efforts, Jingzhou will most likely become the backing force supporting the Princess.

Zhou Chaoyun listened to their conversation from the hall, smiling but saying nothing.

Actually, she didn't intend to trust Shang Yuji's words at first, but with the mindset of "better safe than sorry," she still made preparations.

She met with Cui Shu in private and instructed him that if a flood occurred in Jingzhou, disaster relief should proceed as planned; if the flood was unfounded, Cui Shu should send the grain originally intended for disaster relief north to Yangcheng.

Recently, some trouble has been brewing in Yangcheng, with undercurrents stirring and something ominous seemingly brewing.

Until today, when the court received the urgent report from Jingzhou, not only Zhou Chaoyun, but everyone who knew the truth about Shang Yuji's letter was dissatisfied. Even Qi Nian, who had the most objections, gave up his discontent.

Those who knew that Miss Shang was behind the witchcraft incident initially didn't take it seriously. They were just ordinary people who had stumbled upon the place where witchcraft was hidden, perhaps by sheer chance.

Gradually, as Shang Yuji handed over various items, the Princess's Mansion secretly increased its profits several times over. They then assumed that she was an expert in ingenuity and their attitude towards her was more of an acknowledgment of a craftsman.

The flood had caused several disputes within the household in the early stages, but thanks to the insistence of the eldest princess, a solution was finally settled.

Looking back now, the group not only felt greater respect for the princess, but also couldn't help but admire the elusive girl from the bottom of their hearts.

.

The Second Prince's residence, in the Lotus Garden.

Zhou Ao bowed respectfully to the man before him, asking, "Uncle, the court is discussing the flood in Jingzhou today. Should we get involved?"

The man sat in the pavilion in the middle of the pond, leisurely picked up the tea on the stone table, and said casually, "Jing'er, don't rush. Let those hyenas that smell the bone bite first. When they make a mistake, we will intervene. Don't forget that you are currently under confinement by your father. Don't be impatient and give others a handle to use against you."

"yes."

As if remembering something, the man asked again, "Did the people from the southern border find out where she came from?"

Recalling the information the secret guards had gathered, Zhou Ao shook his head: "No, but a few days ago, two people claiming to be her relatives came and took her away, seemingly to Zhou Chaoyun's residence."

"Heh, bringing the perpetrators to the victims, given Chao Yun's temperament, she probably won't let them off. These Southern Border people are all stupid." The man laughed, his magnificent robes embroidered with gold thread shimmering and flowing with golden light in the sunlight as his body trembled with laughter.

"There's no need to investigate them anymore. Just remember to keep your hands and feet clean, so you don't get caught like last time."

Not everyone in southern Xinjiang comes from Wuming Village.

The man took a sip of tea. A gentle breeze blew by the pond, causing the lotus flowers in the pond to sway in the wind and carrying their fragrance.

His words reminded Zhou Ao of Zhang Cheng, who had grabbed his braid and made him stumble badly.

If it weren't for that damned woman Zhou Chaoyun protecting him, he would have died countless times!

Zhou Ao suppressed his anger, and the man did not say anything, but only raised his head to look into the depths of the palace and chuckled softly.

My dear brother, you pride yourself on being the most noble person in the world, knowing everything under heaven. But how could you not know that right under your nose lies the greatest lie?

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Jingzhou, streets and alleys.

The people were busy rebuilding Jingzhou City. They could only rest for a short while during mealtimes. They gathered together and sat on the road in the open air, finding an empty spot to sit down anywhere.

The grain was distributed by the government, and apart from the elderly and weak who were unable to move around, the rest of the people contributed their strength and ideas. Even half-grown children who could pick up tree branches were able to do something during the reconstruction.

The government recruited a group of women and children to cook and deliver meals on time, so that laborers could have a warm, thick porridge or rice after their hard work.

During a rare moment of leisure, acquaintances sit together and chat. Apart from the chores they did that day, the conversation mostly revolves around the bowl of sweet porridge in their hands.

The porridge and rice were not a lavish meal, but it was better than what many people used to eat!

This thick porridge, so thick you could see the rice grains, was unlike the rice porridge they used to save money on; it was more like watery porridge.

"Tell me, how many more days can we eat this porridge?"

Someone spoke first, and for a moment everyone exchanged glances, looked around but didn't see any government officials, before someone else continued to speak.

"Eat first, why think so much? Only what you eat is real!"

Some people said, "Didn't Lord Li say that he would do his best to ensure that everyone has enough to eat? At least for the next few days, we can still have food!"

"Besides, Lord Li, surely we can believe you!"

Many people nodded in agreement upon hearing this.

"I have some news, would you like to hear it?"

"Hey, it's you again, Huang Laoliu. You always have inside information to share, but I've never seen it actually go anywhere!"

"What? I'm serious this time! I saw it with my own eyes—the conversation between Lord Li and that caravan leader!"

"Then tell me, what did they say?"

"Hey, I'm not kidding you. I heard Lord Li say something like, 'Thank you, Princess, for sending the disaster relief grain in time. I would gladly die for you.' Princess! What a high-ranking official that is!"

"What can a woman do?" someone muttered quietly.

Immediately, the older woman next to him became displeased and scolded, "What? You're eating the food given to you by the eldest princess, and you still say she's useless? Then why don't you refuse to eat it!"

The girl next to her chimed in, "What you're eating now is a meal cooked by a group of us women. Since you don't want to eat it, I'll have to tell Lord Li and have him remove you from the list!"

A sarcastic voice suddenly came from somewhere: "That's right, that's right. If you eat less, we might be able to eat one more bite."

Those who were uncomfortable with the man's rude remarks but didn't want to get involved, upon hearing this, realized they might be able to gain an advantage and immediately turned to look.

Under the pressure from everyone, the man blushed, fell silent, and quickly finished his meal, no longer speaking.

Finding the conversation boring, the group pressed Huang Laoliu for more details about the Princess's caravan.

Such scenes repeated themselves in many places, and gradually, the people of Jingzhou subconsciously came to believe that the caravan was arranged by the Princess herself, rather than by the court.

One morning, the people repeatedly encountered Lord Li at the gates of Jingzhou, where he looked distressed and kept looking into the distance.

Knowing that Lord Li had been staying at the city gates of Jingzhou recently, the people of Jingzhou spontaneously went to the city gates at dawn, just to catch a glimpse of this official who had devoted himself to Jingzhou.

After much hesitation and exchanging glances, the group finally sent out a simple, honest old farmer to speak: "Lord Li, is something troubling you?"

Li Wanjing seemed to be startled by his sudden voice. He glanced at him, breathed a sigh of relief, but soon sighed again, "The Princess's convoy has been here for several days. I think the other relief supplies should have been delivered by now. I wonder if they encountered an accident on the way..."

After saying that, Li Wanjing realized what was going on and reassured everyone, "Don't worry, the government has enough grain. It's just my personal concern."

Later, Li Wanjing had some business to attend to and left the city gate, causing an uproar among the remaining people.

Lord Li personally confirmed that the grain was sent by the Princess, while the grain for the officials in the court is still nowhere to be found!

Nothing compares to what they've seen with their own eyes and the truths they've come to believe!

Some people were indignant on the spot and wanted to say a few words, but they were pulled away by quick-witted acquaintances to a dark place where there were no government officials. There, all kinds of opinions poured out uncontrollably.

Those who knew the temperament of the imperial court were even more resentful, saying, "What kind of accident could there be? They just don't want to spend money to save us, don't they? They just want to reap the benefits without sowing!"

"Yes, we're both in the capital, so why did the Princess's entourage arrive while those of the high-ranking officials didn't?"

"..."

The frustration of days of refuge and reconstruction finally found an outlet, and the people of Jingzhou were able to vent their frustrations.

Lee Man-kyung's performance outside the city further reinforced everyone's awareness that the disaster relief worker was the eldest princess.

Inside the governor's residence, the lady saw Li Wanjing sitting calmly in the house, listening to news from his subordinates, and asked worriedly, "Is everything really alright?"

Li Wanjing sighed, "Let them talk. Instead of keeping your anger bottled up, it's better to find a chance to vent."

"Besides, there's no such thing as a free lunch; this is a deal between them and me."

At least, the princess's grain actually appeared in Jingzhou. It's just a matter of putting on a few shows for so much grain; they don't need to squeeze out their meager silver to buy it.

What a bargain! If he could exchange a few words for dozens of cartloads of grain, he'd love to keep acting!