Return to Beijing
Upon hearing about what Cui Shenzhi had done, the local officials in Nanzhou were a mixed bag of joy and sorrow.
Those who are wholeheartedly devoted to serving the people are naturally the ones who are happy.
With Choi Shin-ji's statement, those who tried to profit from the natural disaster will surely restrain themselves. After all, Choi Suk-gong only has one prince, and Choi Shin-ji is the undisputed next emperor. Anyone who goes against him is going against the future emperor. How can they expect to gain anything?
Needless to say, those who are worried are those who want to make a fortune off natural disasters.
They assumed that Cui Shenzhi was Cui Sugong's son and that his style of doing things would be similar to Cui Sugong's. In addition, Cui Shenzhi, disguised as a secret guard, was either in a carriage or at a post station and did not even glance at the disaster-stricken areas and the disaster victims. Therefore, they naturally relaxed their 'management' of the disaster victims.
Who knew that Cui Shenzhi would be a completely different person from Cui Sugong? Not only did he sneak out early to conduct an incognito visit, but he also revealed the amount of the compensation money. What should we do now?
Their superiors, and their superiors' superiors, have already pocketed everything they wanted. Now everyone knows the compensation is thirty taels of silver, so won't they have to pay the difference themselves? In other words, this natural disaster not only won't make them rich, but they'll also have to pay out a huge sum of money?!
Thinking about this, those who are insatiable feel their hearts bleed, but there is no other good way. After all, their promotions are in the hands of their superiors, and once they offend them, their future careers will be ruined.
As for dealing with Cui Shenzhi, there's no need to even think about it. Everyone knows that Cui Sugong only has one son who can inherit the throne. If something happens to him, all the officials, big and small, in the vicinity of Nanzhou will probably lose their heads!
No, losing your head would be the least of your worries; they might wipe out your entire family, or even your entire clan!
What these people didn't expect was that before they even had a chance to pay the compensation, their superiors sent over the compensation they had embezzled, and even gave them a lot more than they had asked, repeatedly telling Cui Shenzhi that it was their donation to build the temple.
Why would a higher-ranking official do this? Of course, it's because he didn't want to displease Choi Shin-ji.
After all, they had countless officials under their command, and each official had their own staff and people working for them. If even one or two of them were straightforward or confused, and Cui Shenzhi discovered that the amount of the compensation money was incorrect, Cui Shenzhi would definitely investigate, given his personality.
What if this leads back to them?
They knew they hadn't gotten to their current positions easily, and they didn't want to offend the future emperor by embezzling disaster relief funds once, thus losing everything they had.
Besides, it's just a disaster relief fund. If they miss it, they miss it. As long as they remain firmly in their positions, there will be plenty of opportunities to make money. Why care about this or that one or two?
*****
After the situation in Nanju stabilized and the promised temple was completed, Choi Shin-ji went to see the old man and the woman who had lost all her family members.
"Grandpa, I wonder if Shenzhi has done a good job? Has he lived up to your expectations?"
“Good,” the old man patted Cui Shenzhi’s hand happily. “You are very good, you have done very well, and you have not let me down. However, you should not have made such a promise rashly. You are the Crown Prince, and your words are law. It would be bad if someone used this promise to do something.”
"Don't worry, sir. I know what I'm doing. Besides, I've already made a three-point agreement: if someone who has made a promise to me makes excessive demands, I can refuse."
"but…"
“Uncle He,” the woman who had lost her family came up to him, “he is the Crown Prince, and many people are concerned about him. You don’t need to worry so much.”
The woman then bowed deeply to Cui Shenzhi.
“Your Highness, Gu Xi owes you a life. If you need me to do anything in the future, please feel free to ask.”
“Then please live well,” Cui Shenzhi said solemnly, looking into Gu Xi’s eyes. “Live for your husband and daughter, and live out your life well.”
"Should I just live out my life properly...?" Gu Xi's face was full of bitterness.
Seeing the expression on Gu Xi's face, Cui Shenzhi couldn't help but feel a little worried again.
He pondered for a moment, then carefully said, "If you think this request is too difficult, perhaps you can help me with something else."
Gu Xi raised her head: "Your Highness, please speak freely."
“I am now the Crown Prince, but I have not yet ascended the throne. Of course, I can maintain my original intentions. However, I have always been worried that once I sit on that throne, I will be blinded by worldly affairs and become someone who is greedy for enjoyment but cannot see the suffering of the people. Therefore, I would like to ask you to keep an eye on me.”
"Watching you?" Gu Xi's face was full of doubt: "I'm just a commoner, how am I supposed to watch you?"
"I would like to invite you to the capital to witness my actions up close, right under the emperor's nose. If I have truly become that despicable, I urge you to take the jade pendant in your hand and strike the Dengwen Drum to seek justice for the people of the world, for the people of Nanzhou who believe in me, and for me at this very moment."
Gu Xi could tell that Cui Shenzhi was worried about her, and she smiled smugly through her tears.
"Yes, Your Highness has entrusted me with such an important matter, of course I will go. It just so happens that my husband and daughter have never been to the capital. If I see the prosperity of the capital, I can tell them about it when I get to the afterlife."
*****
There was nothing left in Nanzhou that required Cui Shenzhi's presence, so the Crown Prince left with Gu Xi.
However, despite saying he was leaving, Cui Shenzhi did not head towards the capital. Instead, he circled around the vicinity of Nanzhou several times, leaving no small town unvisited. Only after confirming that reconstruction had begun in every town and that the lives of the people were gradually returning to normal did he finally embark on his journey to the capital.
After all, no matter how hard he tries, he is still just a mortal. He can only see what is within his sight. He will never feel at ease unless he personally checks to see if there are any oversights.
With this relief, Cui Shenzhi couldn't help but think of the people in the capital.
I wonder how the people in the slums are doing. Although Feng Ping is in the capital, things are not what they used to be. Now that Feng Ping has become an official and a royal physician, he has to be on duty every day and can't go to the slums to oversee things as often as before. I wonder if the people there are being bullied.
As for Ling Xian, she has the meticulous care of the Imperial Concubine and her father, and they often visit her under the pretext of checking her pulse. Logically, there shouldn't be any problems. However, the Imperial Concubine has always been a bit too protective of Ling Xian. I'm afraid Ling Xian has been bored to death these days because she hasn't stepped out of the palace even once.
And then there's Ping An. Although he asked Ju An to take good care of Ping An, Ping An can only stay in the East Palace when he's not around. He can't go anywhere else. Ling Xian can't go to the East Palace to bother him too often, and Feng Ping, being a royal physician, can't always run to the 'empty' East Palace. Ping An is probably bored to death. Maybe when he goes back, he'll grab his sleeve and cry about how hard this period has been, or he might whine about how much he missed him and worried about him.
Thinking of Ping An's pitiful little face, Cui Shenzhi couldn't help but shake his head with a smile.
*****
After returning to the palace, Cui Shenzhi first went to Cui Sugong to report on the situation in Nanzhou, and unsurprisingly received a scolding. Then he went to Chengqian Palace to chat with Cui Lingxian and Lu Fengping, who had come to take his pulse, before finally returning to the East Palace.
Choi Shin-ji thought that when he returned to the East Palace, he would see Ping An rushing over happily, but that didn't happen.
He didn't think much of it. After all, if anything happened to Ping An, Ju An would definitely report it to him. Right now, he was probably playing with the palace maids in some corner of the East Palace and didn't care about him.
Thinking of this, a hint of helplessness appeared on Cui Shenzhi's face.
What a heartless little thing, thinking about it the whole way back.
But after washing up and putting away his things, Cui Shenzhi still didn't see Ping An, and he felt something was wrong.
“Ju’an,” Cui Shenzhi said, frowning, “Where is Ping’an?”
Upon hearing this, Ju An felt a tremor in his heart.
After a moment of silence, she bit her lip and knelt down, her head hitting the ground heavily.
"Your Highness, I have failed your trust and have not taken good care of Ping An."
"You mean Ping An is in trouble? What happened? Did she accidentally offend Father Emperor, or has her true identity been revealed?"
"No, it's not Ping An... she's missing."
"Missing?!" Cui Shenzhi's voice was full of doubt and surprise: "Didn't I tell Yuesheng to go with her? Where is Yuesheng? What happened to her?"
"Your Highness, Yuesheng has been following Ping'an's instructions, but Ping'an complained that she was too controlling, so she had the maids help her get rid of Yuesheng, saying she would be back in half a day. Who knew she would disappear without a trace? As soon as I heard the news, I immediately sent people to look for her, but it's been more than ten days and we still haven't found a trace of Ping'an..."
Choi Shin-ji panicked.
Only two people in this palace can make a person disappear without a trace: Shen Meiwu and Cui Sugong.
He didn't think the gentle and kind Shen Meiwu would do such a thing, so the only possibility was Cui Sugong.
Cui Shenzhi couldn't help but think of the young and beautiful concubines that Cui Sugong had brought into the harem over the years. Although Ping An hadn't had a good life, her appearance was no less than those concubines, and her personality was so simple and obedient that it was heartbreaking. Could it be...?
Thinking of this, Cui Shenzhi felt his breath catch in his throat. He quickly shook his head, trying to shake this terrible guess out of his mind, but it only made the guess clearer in his mind.
In the following days, Cui Shenzhi sent more people to search the palace discreetly, even the Cold Palace, but still found no trace of Ping An.
Just as he was considering whether to risk a trip to the Qianqing Palace, Ping An appeared at the gate of the East Palace, covered in injuries.
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