Chapter 9 World One

Most of the renovated houses are located on the edge of Fuling City. There are large tracts of wasteland here, which are not suitable for growing crops and are perfect for building houses.

The abandoned temples were also renovated and paved with stones to make small rooms separated from each other.

The refugees who fled here registered their names, household registration and family members.

Mu Nanxing arranged his subordinates to provide housing for them according to the population size.

The larger the number of people in the family, the larger the house they will be allocated, and vice versa.

When Baoshan followed Mu Nanxing to a house, he saw a house built with green stones.

Because the house was needed urgently, Mu Nanxing added more money and the craftsmen worked day and night to build it.

When I walked into the house, it was spacious and bright, but it seemed too empty because there were no tables, chairs or benches.

Refugees who had fled here had already moved in. Perhaps because they had some money, several families had already bought beds, tables and chairs, making the whole house look presentable and finally having some popularity.

Baoshan raised her foot to move forward, but it felt as if something heavy was pulling on it. She lowered her head and looked down, only to see a young child hugging her leg tightly.

The child was about five or six years old, with a few specks of dust on his face. When he saw Baoshan looking at him, he grinned.

Baoshan remained silent, staring at him quietly. The child spoke in a baby voice, "Sister, are you here to pick a house too? Do you want to live next door to mine?"

"Where is your home?"

"It's right there. I'll take you there."

The little boy pointed to a place not far away with one hand, and tried to pull the treasure fan with the other hand.

But the treasure fan dodged it easily and the boy didn't touch it. He curled his lips and looked a little unhappy, but he still urged him.

"Follow me now!"

The two stopped in front of a small house. The little boy shouted at the top of his voice, and four or five children older than him ran out from inside.

Baoshan looked at the house. It was a small square room, but at least seven people lived there.

The little boy was still happily introducing their names to Baoshan when he saw a woman coming out of the house, rubbing her clothes tightly with her hands, looking extremely uneasy.

When the woman saw the little boy gathered around the precious fan, she quickly pulled him into her arms, scolding him.

"You're making trouble again. What will happen if you offend an important person?"

The child stuck out his tongue at the woman.

"I'm not kidding, my sister can testify to that!"

The woman looked at the precious fan uncomfortably.

"Children are ignorant, please don't blame me."

Anyone who comes to this refugee camp looking for a house must be a refugee struggling to find food and clothing.

Although Baoshan's clothes were not luxurious, there was no sadness in his eyes. He was probably a nobleman in the city.

The little boy tugged at the woman's sleeve, shouting, "I'm so hungry."

"I made braised sweet potatoes today, and we'll be eating them soon."

"Sweet potatoes again. Sweet potatoes don't taste good. I get hungry after eating them for a while."

The woman looked up at the precious fan and coaxed the child.

Mu Nanxing arrived here at some point, and the woman immediately pulled the child back. However, the child ran to Mu Nanxing with a "thump thump" sound.

"I recognize you. You are the one who assigned us a house."

“Come back soon!”

The little boy ignored the woman's cries, his eyes sparkling.

"Big brother, can you move us to a bigger room? It's too crowded here. I can't even turn over at night."

The woman stopped talking, but Baoshan could see clearly that she was also looking forward to changing houses.

There are several children in the family, but they can only squeeze into a small room.

The rest of the houses have only four or five people, and their homes are more spacious than this one.

Moreover, their lives were really hard, and their children could only survive by eating sweet potatoes, which were not good for nourishing the body and could not even fill their stomachs.

Just changing the house, with just one word from Mu Nanxing, can change their current situation.

But Mu Nanxing remained unmoved. The lovely child in front of him could not soften him in the slightest.

"Can't."

The boy's eyes suddenly dimmed, and he wanted to ask the treasure fan for help.

But although Baoshan's eyes were gentle, he did not speak.

Baoshan followed Mu Nanxing to several more houses, and Mu Nanxing noticed that Baoshan was absent-minded.

"You want to help them?"

They were, of course, the little boy and the woman.

Baoshan frowned slightly and shook her head gently.

"They are indeed very pitiful, seven or eight of them living in such a small room. It's just that—"

Baoshan paused and continued.

"But since you rejected them, young marquis, you must have your reasons.

I trust the young marquis, so even though I feel sorry for them, I won't help them."

This was the first time Mu Nanxing heard such a statement.

"Do you think what I did was right? Don't you think I'm cold-blooded and heartless?"

Baoshan's tone was firm.

"Of course it's right. Although I don't know what the hidden truth is, I believe in the young marquis.

As for being hard-hearted, that's completely illogical. Young Marquis saved me twice, how could he be considered a cold-blooded person?

Mu Nanxing did not continue speaking. He couldn't explain how he felt about being trusted like this, but it was much better than being questioned by others.

Even Li Qingyu, the person he trusted the most and cared about the most, once blamed him for something related to an outsider.

He trusted Li Qingyu, even if everyone in the world said she was wrong. As long as Li Qingyu said she was not wrong, Mu Nanxing would definitely seek justice for her.

But Li Qingyu was a few years older than him and treated him as his younger brother. He wanted to teach him everything, fearing that he would make mistakes.

At that time, Mu Nanxing felt that he was being pointed at by thousands of people, but it was nothing compared to the accusations against him by Li Qingyu. Every word he said was like a sharp blade, piercing into his heart.

He was young and hot-headed, and refused to speak in defense even when he was accused. He just straightened his back and said that he was not wrong and would not admit his mistake.

Mu Nanxing could no longer remember what the accusation was about.

Anyway, the truth came out in the end and he got the apology he deserved.

He thought he had forgotten about it, but now he remembered it again. It turns out that this kind of thing can't be forgotten.

Afterwards, Baoshan learned the truth from Feng Hui.

The woman's family consisted of six children, a couple, and her parents-in-law. Although the house they were given was not as big as the one they lived in before, it was big enough for them to live in.

However, when this family saw the difference in size of the houses, they had other ideas. They found a family with a smaller house and exchanged houses with them. Naturally, the other party had to compensate them with a lot of silver.

They had lost their homes and were squeezed into a small house. They felt unhappy. They heard from somewhere that people from the capital were providing disaster relief, so they came to inspect the refugee camp.

So they came up with the idea of asking for another house. Their plan was clever. They let their most lovable child coax the person back, and then show their own poverty. The nobleman would surely feel sympathy when seeing this. Then they would get a big house and have money to spend.

However, his subordinates reported everything that happened to the refugees to Mu Nanxing, so he naturally would not agree.

After Feng Hui finished speaking, he also reminded Bao Shan not to be misled by appearances.

After all, everything in this world can be pretended.

"They must have seen that you are a woman, with a soft temper and easy to trick.

If I am pestered by children and talk to them for a while, I will speak for them.

They took the houses that were allotted to them and started trading, and they should have thought about this now. You must harden your heart in the future."

Baoshan naturally nodded.

She actually felt that the little boy and the woman were very strange, and their every move was too coincidental.

During his escape, Baoshan had met many such kind-looking and sweet-talking people, but they were ruthless when it came to robbing people's bags.

But men don't like women who are too heartless, so she can't look cold and heartless.

Within half a day, Bao Shan heard that Mu Nanxing had set a time limit for the refugees. They could live there for five years. Five years was enough time for them to find work and buy wood to build houses.

As for the remaining residences after the refugees move out, they will be used to shelter abandoned babies.

For a moment, several houses in the refugee camp were in chaos.

They originally thought that the house was theirs, but they never expected that they would have to return it. In this way, the money they paid in exchange for the house was not worth it.

Baoshan had changed clothes for Mu Nanxing these days, and then she saw Feng Hui pacing back and forth in the corridor, sighing.

"Brother Feng Hui, what are you worried about?"

When Feng Hui saw the precious fan, he sighed deeply.

This matter was related to the treasure fan. In order to keep the treasure fan, Feng Hui promised Mu Nanxing that he would find a way to preserve the fragrance.

He was busy renovating the refugee camp a few days ago and forgot about it for a while.

When Feng Hui suddenly thought of this matter these days, he was so worried that his head hurt and even the food didn't taste good.

It is impossible to preserve the aroma by using a clay pot.

"I'm just worried about how to preserve the aroma. Why doesn't the young marquis like to eat snacks? If he does, I'll find a few chefs and ask them for advice on how to preserve them."

Baoshan chuckled and spoke slowly.

“The methods of preserving aroma and snacks are probably not much different.

In order to keep the dim sum longer, they are placed in a cool place, or a few ingredients are added when making the dim sum so that it can be kept longer.

To preserve the aroma, you must make it last longer. You can add some herbs to make the aroma."

After she simply said this, Feng Hui suddenly felt as if the fog had been cleared, and his original headache was almost gone in an instant.

Seeing that he was no longer complaining, Baoshan continued.

"Why don't I find it for Brother Feng Hui?"

Feng Hui looked hesitant.

"Will this—will this work?"

Baoshan's heart skipped a beat, as the clothes that Mu Nanxing put on and took off every day all passed through her hands.

She had never smelled any fragrance from the brocade robes, and Mu Nanxing had never lit incense in his house. It seemed that he was not a person who liked fragrance.

In this case, preserving the fragrance must be for the sake of others.

Bao Shan felt that this matter must be related to the woman in the capital, so she must be involved.

"Of course I can. It's easier for you and me to find it than for one person."

Besides, disaster relief has already consumed too much of your energy. When you have some free time, look for a way to preserve the fragrance. I'll ask a few more people, and I'm sure you'll find it."

Feng Hui agreed.

Bao Shan took this opportunity to inquire in detail about the scent, whether it was a spice or a fruit. Knowing what it was would make it easier to find. Feng Hui, unsuspecting, answered all his questions.

The aroma that remains is incense, which is made from dried spices placed in sachets.

But as time goes by, the fragrance will fade, and in the end there may not even be a trace of fragrance left.