Chapter 96 You should be wary of him when he takes medicine.

"Alright, you should go now. Don't keep her waiting."

Yin Yi cleared his mind of distractions and replied, "Yes."

He went out and returned to his room. Yue Yining sat on a wooden chair in the inner room, listened to him repeat what he had said, and then asked, "Has a physician been summoned to examine you?"

Yin Yi bowed and said, "I have already examined him. The young master said he had no external injuries. The doctor prescribed some warming and cold-dispelling medicine and then left."

Yue Yining calmed down and belatedly realized that she had been too hasty. Xie Qingyu was a grown man, so soaking in the water for a while wouldn't hurt him. Besides, he wasn't injured, so he was probably fine.

Why would I panic as soon as I heard news about him?

She coughed lightly and nodded: "In that case, I'll head back now. If he wants to come looking for me, he can just send someone to let me know in advance."

Yin Yi: "Yes."

Yue Yining left the courtyard, intending to go back to her room, but then changed her mind: "Let's not go back, let's go to the south of the city."

The mud-covered wooden wheels began to turn, and the carriage headed towards the south of the city, where refugees were concentrated.

From afar, Yue Yining could see the four apricot-yellow relief tent flags, which looked like shimmering golden waves in the rosy light.

Temporary stoves made of bluestone were arranged along the slope, with officials wearing their robes tied up, and the steaming aroma of rice wafting from the iron pots.

Soldiers and officers stood guard on both sides of the aisle and the line of people. Surprisingly, the disaster victims who received the relief food and porridge were all orderly, with no one shouting or fighting.

The throng of people led to the hope of survival. Everyone stared longingly at the iron ladle at the end, scooping rice porridge. Mud-covered arms trembled as they took the bowl of porridge. The moment their lips and tongues touched the hot porridge, tears streamed down their dark faces.

The smoke from the ten soup kitchens twisted together in the evening breeze, strangling the floodwaters and bringing warmth back to this land.

The procession was very long, and the government's carriages could barely move after reaching the outer perimeter. Just as the driver was about to order the crowd to disperse, Yue Yining, who was behind the curtain, stopped him: "Let's stop here. We can walk the rest of the way."

The accompanying official quickly said, "This won't do. The road is full of mud and puddles; it will only soil your shoes and socks. Let me call the guards to clear away these displaced people queuing up—"

"It's alright." Yue Yining smiled. "Let it get dirty."

The scene before her eyes felt like yesterday. She had once been in these same queues, orphaned at a young age, no different from the displaced disaster victims. Thinking back now, even she was amazed at how a frail orphan girl could have survived the natural and man-made disasters of the early Jiahe era until she was eight years old. She had experienced many misfortunes, but upon reflection, being alive was the greatest fortune.

She has walked through the mud and puddles of the mortal world to get to where she is today, and she will continue to walk the path ahead, whether it is clean or dirty.

She has already made up her mind.

As Yue Yining approached the porridge stall, she finally saw Qiu Yuebai and Shen Liude distributing porridge. The two had been busy for who knows how long, their faces covered in sweat from the heat, yet they showed no sign of taking a break.

Of all the people sent by the Princess to provide disaster relief in Qinghuai, aside from Yue Yining, these two held the highest official positions. They could have stood aside and observed, but instead, they rolled up their sleeves and stood before the iron pot.

Yue Yining also stepped forward. She did not disturb the two of them, but instead found a porridge stall with the fewest staff.

There were only three female officials outside the shed, waving porridge ladles as thick as their arms, their faces flushed and sweating profusely; when she went into the shed, she saw four or five men dressed in official robes sitting comfortably inside, chatting and laughing, with servants fanning them, they were really quite comfortable.

She suddenly pushed the door open, and the laughter stopped.

One after another, gazes swept over, and upon seeing that it was Yue Yining, the group of men immediately fell silent, their faces filled with panic. They all stood up, bowed, and greeted, "Greetings, Lord Yue."

Yue Yining remained silent for a while. She walked to the center of the room and suddenly spoke up: "Everyone seems to be very busy."

The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. The few people who had been caught slacking off didn't dare to breathe and silently bent their backs even lower.

These people were all local officials from Qinghuai, sent by Che Zilong to assist them in their work. Like father, like son; Yue Yining had long been prepared for this, but now, witnessing this scene, besides anger, she felt mostly amusement at the "just as I thought" attitude.

Passing through the thatched gate, she glanced at the three unfamiliar female officials standing in front of the iron pot, and casually pointed to the one closest to her, asking, "How long have they been distributing porridge there?"

"...It's been almost two hours, from noon until now, and we haven't changed personnel," the official who spoke could only lower his head awkwardly in the face of Yue Yining's gaze, and said guiltily, "We're short-handed... We're still counting today's grain losses, and the number of disaster victims receiving relief grain. These are important record-keeping tasks, and we really can't get away..."

"Is that so?" Yue Yining said lightly, but it made the official's neck stiffen, and he couldn't lift his head at all.

"The disaster relief task is arduous. If adults can cooperate more actively with our work, the disaster relief will surely go more smoothly."

She noted down their faces, said nothing more, and smiled slightly, "Since you are all so busy, let's continue."

"I have nothing to do, I'll go ahead and help them out."

After saying this, Yue Yining left, leaving behind a group of restless men looking at each other in bewilderment.

One of them muttered to himself, "Didn't they say that this female official surnamed Yue wasn't coming today?"

"Who knows? She doesn't come here often herself, what's with the pretense..."

Yue Yining naturally couldn't hear the whispers behind her back. She rolled up her sleeves and went to the unfamiliar female official's side: "I'll help you."

The lady-in-waiting turned her head and saw that it was Yue Yining. Her rosy face was full of surprise: "Lord Yue? What brings you here?"

"I finished my business at the manor and had nothing else to do, so I came." Yue Yining took the iron spoon from her hand, smiled at her, and said, "Leave it to me, you two take a rest."

The disaster victims who came to this line to receive porridge witnessed this scene.

The female official, dressed in a blue robe and white gown, was gentle as she ladled porridge for the disaster victims. She had an extremely beautiful face, which appeared even more graceful and gentle amidst the wisps of white mist. The beads of sweat on her brow looked like crystal-clear forehead ornaments, making her seem like a fairy descended to earth.

"I heard it was a high-ranking official from the capital, and he actually served us porridge himself..."

"It seems we don't see this official very often?"

“I’ve seen it before. A few days ago, she stood there for an entire afternoon. This lady doesn’t come to the soup kitchen often, but when she does, she stands there for a long time.”

“I remember it too! She would always ask ‘Is it too hot?’ before scooping the porridge. If I said it was, she would add half a spoonful of cold water before handing it to me.”

"This gentleman is a good person." Amid the murmurs, a girl suddenly spoke up. She held a bowl of porridge, and her large, bright eyes shone through her dark face. "The day before yesterday, Granny Liu cut her hand and it was still bleeding when she went to get her porridge. This gentleman ladled the porridge for her. I saw him tear off his own handkerchief and wrap it around Granny Liu's hand."

“Yingying is telling the truth. I saw what happened that day too,” someone chimed in. “Grandma Liu almost cried.”

“In previous years, during famines, there was always moldy rice in the relief porridge, but this time it’s all new rice,” an old man said, his voice choked with emotion. “It’s even better than the rice I usually eat…”

"So there are also benevolent and virtuous officials in the imperial court..."

A crack appeared in the dark clouds, and the sun shone brightly after a long rain, illuminating the earth.

Yue Yining stood in front of the iron pot until the disaster relief ended that day. It was only when they were packing up the pot and moving the table that Qiu Yuebai and Shen Liude realized she was there. When they saw Yue Yining, they were both pleasantly surprised, "Yue Yining, what brings you here?"

Yue Yining greeted them with a smile, flanked by Qiu Yuebai and Shen Liude. Her eyes crinkled as she said, "I couldn't wait any longer and wanted to come and tell you this good news as soon as possible."

Upon hearing this, Qiu Yuebai could not hide her excitement: "You mean...?!"

"Eight thousand shi of grain," Yue Yining said with a smile. "It will be delivered tonight."

Che Zilong finally gritted his teeth and quoted this number, nearly three times the three thousand shi he had originally planned to offer. He had no choice; he had to win against Dong Qi, and eight thousand shi was the safest price.

"That's great!" Qiu Yuebai couldn't help but jump up. She rushed over and hugged Yue Yining tightly, her joy overflowing. "I knew you could do it! Yue Yining is the best!!"

Shen Liude smiled, his eyes crinkling: "With this grain, we won't have to worry about disaster relief this month."

Yue Yining, who was being held tightly, could hardly move. She could only helplessly put her arm around Qiu Yuebai's shoulder and look past her at Shen Liude: "It's a pity that I wanted to raise the price again, but I was afraid that he would do something desperate, so I decided to stop while I was ahead."

Shen Liude nodded: "Eight thousand shi is already a lot. But whether it counts as a huge loss, I can only say that these local officials have far more surplus grain piled up in their own warehouses than that."

Yue Yining: "They definitely still have grain stored up. But it's not so easy to get money out of these corrupt officials' pockets." This time, she also took advantage of the long-standing conflict between Dong Qi and Che Zilong to trick Che Zilong into handing over the grain.

Shen Liude raised an eyebrow: "If this method works, then wouldn't it be similar for Dong Qi's side...?"

Yue Yining shook her head. She understood what Shen Liude meant. “It’s different. I tried sending people to both sides at first, but Che Zilong’s side was able to infiltrate, while Dong Qi’s side couldn’t.”

The key to her scam was that she had to plant a certain number of people who could be trusted by those in charge, so that the false information could become "true".

Shen Liude wanted to repeat his old trick and make Dong Qi misunderstand as well, so that he would willingly send them grain. They could deceive both sides and profit from both. But she couldn't do this crucial step. How could Yue Yining not have thought of using this scheme to swindle double the grain? Or were practical problems preventing her?

Qiu Yuebai did the math, “Eight thousand shi is not a small amount, but it can only last until mid-September at most. There is still more than a month's worth of disaster relief grain to be found… The corrupt officials have already plundered it once, where are we going to find the remaining grain?”

Seeing that Qiu Yuebai was a little discouraged again, Yue Yining patted her on the shoulder: "It's okay, there's always a way. Let's think about it again, we'll find a way."

As dusk approached, the three boarded a carriage and returned to the official residence in the north of the city. They had barely entered the courtyard when a young maidservant hurried over. Fu Yao, who was standing beside Yue Yining, stopped immediately upon seeing her. After a brief exchange, the maidservant handed her a wooden box and then withdrew.

Upon entering the inner courtyard, Fu Yao looked out from under the corridor. The courtyard was dark and gloomy, with only the warm yellow glow of the lamps lit in the central hall, like a luminous pearl fallen into a damp garden. Yue Yining and the other two sat around a table, seemingly discussing matters, yet also seemingly just chatting.

Fu Yao stood by the door and peeked inside, just as Yue Yining saw her.

After her gaze briefly met Fu Yao's, Yue Yining said something to the other two, got up, and went out to the corridor: "What's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that? Is something urgent?"

Fu Yao hesitated, then said, "...The maids guarding the courtyard said that Xie Qingyu came by just now."

"She said that when Lord Xie heard that Miss had gone out, he originally wanted to stay and wait, but his subordinate came to find him, so he left, leaving this behind."

Fu Yao raised her hand and handed her the wooden box, saying, "He said he had the physician prepare some Chinese medicine to dispel cold and dampness."

When the maid took out the wooden box, Fu Yao thought that Xie Qingyu wanted to give her something to please her young lady again. She just pursed her lips when she heard the maid say that it was medicine.

Yue Yining also stopped in her tracks.

She did indeed suffer from a chronic cold constitution, a condition stemming from her childhood wanderings. She was always more prone to illness and catching a chill during rainy seasons. However, she probably hadn't told Xie Qingyu about this.

How did he know?

Fu Yao was extremely reluctant to admit it, but she still pouted and said, "...He really meant it."

Yue Yining took the wooden box, a slight smile playing on her lips. "Mm."

Once she returned to the house, Qiu Yuebai, with her sharp eyes, immediately noticed the wooden box that Yue Yining had brought into her hand.

She immediately became curious: "What good things has the Yue people brought back?"

Yue Yining sat down in her original seat. She didn't know how to explain the matter in detail, so she only said, "It was a gift from Lord Xie."

Qiu Yuebai and Shen Liude were both surprised to hear this. They looked at each other, and Shen Liude spoke first: "Is it that Xie Qingyu?"

“Yes,” Yue Yining said. “He just sent over some medicine to help him maintain his health.”

Qiu Yuebai asked worriedly, "Why would he suddenly send medicine over? Is Lord Yue feeling unwell?"

“No, not at all,” Yue Yining said.

Traditional Chinese medicine isn't something you have to take only when you're already sick. She happened to be on her period recently, and Xie Qingyu probably remembered that, so she sent her medicine to help her recover and prevent her from catching a cold during this time.

Thinking of this, Yue Yining was startled again.

...No, it must just be a coincidence. It's been almost a year since he left Jiulian Town, how could he possibly still remember her daily life?

Yue Yining remained silent, lost in thought, but neither of the two female officials spoke, and the hall suddenly fell silent.

They glanced at the wooden box and fell silent.

Yue Yining finally snapped out of her thoughts and noticed their hesitation. "What's wrong?"

Qiu Yuebai glanced at her cautiously: "Lord Yue, what I'm about to say may be offensive, or perhaps not very pleasant... but Xie Qingyu is, after all, the Seventh Prince's person. We're competing with them, and I'm worried about the contents of those medicines..."

Yue Yining was taken aback upon hearing this, and Qiu Yuebai quickly added, "I don't mean to suspect that he has any malicious intentions! I just think that we should also be vigilant. Not long ago, it was discovered that poisonous incense had been placed in His Highness the Third Prince's bedchamber, and the culprit was one of his close attendants who had served him for a long time. The human heart is unpredictable, and such things are really hard to say."

Shen Liude: "Yes, I agree with what Yuebai said. Even if Xie Qingyu meant well, the Yue family doesn't necessarily have to accept it."

Yue Yining knew that Xie Qingyu wouldn't do that, but she couldn't explain the reason to Qiu Yuebai and the other person.

She was also reminded by the two of them.

Even if Xie Qingyu treats her very well, who knows what the others in the Seventh Prince's camp are thinking?

Even though the two sides had long since reached a point of irreconcilable conflict, she still let her guard down around him, accepting anything sent in Xie Qingyu's name without question. If someone else in the process took advantage of her trust in Xie Qingyu and tampered with the items, she would be wronged even if she were killed.

Once again, Yue Yining belatedly realized the inexplicable trust she had placed in Xie Qingyu.

With a clear mind, she made up her mind.

Facing the gazes of Qiu Yuebai and Shen Liude, Yue Yining smiled and said, "What you said makes sense."

"I won't take this medicine for now, don't worry."