Gu Jingchun did not like the villagers.

They used to bully Mei Xueli and her mother quite a bit.

They were obviously here to kick him while he was down, so Gu Jingchun looked at them with a cold gaze and no friendly expression.

Unexpectedly, the women standing in front nervously rubbed their fingers together and said:

"Young lady, I never expected you to change so much in just a few years."

Gu Jingchun looked at her coldly without saying a word.

She understood Gu Jingchun's thoughts and, without saying anything more, placed the basket in her hands directly into the driver's hands.

"These are eggs from my own farm."

“I know you don’t need these things, but I just learned about your mother’s situation and I’m really saddened, so I came to bring you something to eat.”

The woman's voice choked with emotion as she spoke.

“Before, I often went to talk to your mother. Now that she’s gone, we feel a little sad.”

"Yes, yes, yes."

The women nearby nodded in agreement.

"Perhaps we had arguments before, but now that we're older, we've come to terms with it."

"Those are just trivial matters, no matter how you look at them."

"Moreover, your mother has helped us a lot over the years."

"These are just a small token of our appreciation; we hope you won't find them offensive."

As they spoke, they put the basket in Lanxin's hands and ran away.

The others also placed their belongings directly on the carriage and left.

Looking at these things, Gu Jingchun noticed that besides a few eggs, there were also some fresh vegetables or homemade food.

There weren't many items, but when every family was struggling to get enough to eat, these things could be worth a fortune.

Gu Jingchun certainly didn't care about these things, but she also knew that these were the only good things these villagers had.

Gu Jingchun also remembered these people's faces.

It wasn't the people who bullied them back then. Moreover, she vaguely remembered that when she was hungry, someone would bring her some food from time to time.

However, those memories were too distant, and she could hardly recall them.

Looking at these simple, honest faces, Gu Jingchun's hazy memories gradually became clearer.

She ordered her men to load all the items into the carriage, and then drove off.

The next day, a bag of grain lay quietly at the door of every household that had delivered things to Gu Jingchun.

They were all surprised when they saw it, but after asking, they found that those who had food were the ones who had delivered things to Gu Jingchun the day before.

Only then did they realize that these things were all sent by Gu Jingchun.

After Gu Jingchun returned to the prefectural governor's mansion, he and Shen Hechuan got busy with their work.

Shen Hechuan truly deserves the praise of the people as a good crown prince.

After arriving at the prefectural governor's office, he immediately conducted a large-scale investigation of Qi County.

Afterwards, he even personally visited wealthy households to persuade them to donate money and grain.

After that, he organized the people to repair the city walls and river embankments by providing work relief, using grain and low wages. Soon, the refugees and ordinary people were mobilized.

For the women, Shen Hechuan encouraged them to grow the potatoes Gu Jingchun had given him and promised to reduce their taxes for the next three years.

As for the villagers who unfortunately died, Shen Hechuan ordered their bodies to be buried to prevent the spread of plague.

These measures have been remarkably effective.

However, because it was the initial stage, Shen Hechuan did not have enough manpower.

Therefore, Shen Hechuan was very busy, but he didn't put on any airs and mingled among the people.

This gave the people a real understanding of this virtuous and talented crown prince.

However, on this day, when they saw Gu Jingchun appear with His Highness the Crown Prince, everyone was shocked.

They all forgot about their work and rushed to Gu Jingchun, kneeling down without saying a word.

While kneeling, she kept saying things like, "Living Bodhisattva, Goddess descended to earth."

Gu Jingchun: ...

She couldn't help but glance at Shen Hechuan, and upon seeing his surprised look, she coughed.

"Um... well... I can explain."

Shen Hechuan chuckled softly, took a step back, and knelt down.

"Goddess, please bless me and grant me a Crown Princess."

Gu Jingchun: ...

She couldn't care less about the common people at this moment and immediately went forward to help Shen Hechuan up.

But Shen Hechuan's words naturally reached the ears of the people.

They suddenly realized what was happening and immediately exclaimed in surprise.

"Oh, so our goddess is actually the future crown princess!"

Gu Jingchun: ...

What goddess, what crown princess, who can save her?

Gu Jingchun has seen many situations over the years, but none have been as embarrassing as this.

The people had already joined in the shouting.

"His Highness the Crown Prince and the Goddess are a match made in heaven."

"Yes, they're a match made in heaven."

"A match made in heaven".

Countless voices converged, creating a loud and clear sound.

Unable to stop him, Gu Jingchun simply made an excuse and turned to leave.

However, her flustered eyes and flushed face betrayed her true thoughts.

Seeing her shy appearance, Shen Hechuan didn't care about anything else. He immediately stood up, gently shushed everyone, and then went after Gu Jingchun.

Gu Jingchun returned to the prefectural governor's mansion, his face still flushed.

If she had known the people would be so enthusiastic, she wouldn't have gone out.

As Gu Jingchun was thinking, he suddenly heard a childish voice.

She couldn't help but turn her head to look, and saw Gu Jinxi talking to a petite man.

Gu Jinxi saw Gu Jingchun coming over and immediately exclaimed happily.

"Mother, you're back?"

Gu Jingchun nodded and hugged Gu Jinxi, but his gaze fell on the man.

"This is……"

"He is the big friend I saved."

Gu Jingchun nodded and listened to Gu Jinxi's explanation.

In short, on the way back, Shen Hechuan saw him lying on the roadside, nearly starving to death.

Gu Jinxi felt sorry for the person and begged Shen Hechuan to save him.

After returning, Gu Jinxi discovered that this person knew quite a lot and could also make some gadgets. He quickly gained Gu Jinxi's trust and they started playing together.

After Gu Jinxi finished speaking, fearing that Gu Jingchun would be unhappy, she couldn't help but add an explanation.

"Mother, I've already asked him. He's an orphan with no other relatives or friends. I like him very much and want to keep him here. Is that alright?"

Gu Jingchun didn't answer, but instead looked the man up and down before asking in a low voice:

"May I have your name?"

The man had his head down and his body hunched over, looking both naive and frightened.

“I…I am called Mao Zixiao.”