Nanzhou
On the way to Nanju for disaster relief, Choi Shin-ji was in great distress.
With such a massive earthquake in Nanzhou, it's likely that less than one-tenth of the houses there are still standing. It's only February, and the weather is still quite cold. I wonder if the people in the disaster area will suffer from hunger and cold, and whether the injured will receive timely medical treatment.
Although the imperial court has reduced taxes and corvée labor in the disaster-stricken areas, this is an earthquake! Houses have collapsed, and the stored grain is probably buried underneath. Whether it can be dug out, and how much can be dug out, is unknown.
Besides, where did the relief funds issued by the imperial court go? Did they reach the people? Given the current prices in the disaster area, is that money enough to support them until their lives return to normal? Or is there any food available to buy in the disaster area? These are all uncertainties.
After thinking it over, Cui Shenzhi decided that it wouldn't be right for him to just sit in the carriage like this; he should conceal his identity and go see for himself.
Although he was Cui Sugong's only prince, it was too risky for Bai Longyu to disguise himself as a fish, but how could he know the true situation of the disaster-stricken people if he didn't do it?
So when he saw scattered collapsed houses along the roadside and the number of disaster victims covered in dust increased, Cui Shenzhi decisively took action. He instructed Qi Kang to go to a clothing store that was not affected much to buy a few sets of clothes, and to go to a fabric shop to buy some fabric to make patches.
As a result, Qi Kang bought back the best clothes in the clothing store, and the fabric was also the store's prized possession. Although it couldn't compare to the ones in the palace, it was clear at a glance that ordinary people couldn't afford them.
Cui Shenzhi laughed in anger.
He's pretending to be a disaster victim! A disaster victim! Who would dress like such a nice disaster victim, even the patches are made of such good fabric!
He poked Qi Kang's head hard and said, "I told you to buy some ordinary clothes and common fabric, and this is what you bought me?!"
"Your Highness," Qi Kang said, rubbing his forehead, somewhat aggrieved, "This servant understands what you mean, but you are, after all, the Crown Prince. Even this servant feels it's beneath you to wear such clothes and use such fabric, let alone anything else..."
"Qi Kang! What are you saying!" Cui Shenzhi straightened his expression: "So what if I am the Crown Prince? Apart from having the surname Cui, how am I any different from other commoners? If they can wear those clothes, why can't I? If it's considered unfair for me to wear them, then aren't the common people suffering unfairly every day?"
Upon hearing this, Qi Kang couldn't help but think of Cui Sugong and Shen Meiwu, who were obsessed with pleasure in the palace and would only use tribute brocade. He couldn't help but sigh that it was truly a case of a bad bamboo producing a good shoot.
That's not right either. It's said that the late Empress was a virtuous and kind person, and Cui Shenzhi probably resembled her.
Qi Kang sighed, stood up, and respectfully bowed to Cui Shenzhi.
"Your Highness is right. This servant did not understand Your Highness's meaning. Please punish me."
"No need for that. Just go and buy me a few more outfits and some fabric. Remember, they must be the most basic clothes from a ready-made clothing store, and the fabric must be from a fabric shop..."
Cui Shenzhi paused. If he bought the cheapest fabric in the cloth shop, or the damaged or dirty fabric, then the disaster victims would have fewer cheap fabrics to buy later.
"Forget it, just go to the clothing store and buy some cheap clothes, and then go to the fabric store and buy all the durable, thick, and more expensive fabrics."
Qi Kang responded and left, returning shortly afterward with a small cart piled high with goods.
Cui Shenzhi took a few garments from the top of the pile of fabric, tore them open, and handed them to Siwei.
"Siwei, sew up these holes, making them as obvious and rough as possible. As for the rest..."
“You can leave the rest to me,” Siwei continued. “I’m anxious because I’m always by Your Highness’s side and do nothing. I’ll feel better if I can use this fabric to make some clothes for the disaster victims.”
Choi Shin-ji nodded.
Soon after, Siwei finished sewing the clothes according to Cui Shenzhi's instructions, and then took the remaining fabric to make more clothes.
After passing through several towns, seeing that there were hardly any intact buildings left along the roadside, and that the people on the roadside were not only covered in dust and dirt, Cui Shenzhi led Qi Kang to change into the clothes he had prepared. He then picked a guard from the secret guards who was similar in build to him to take his place. After instructing Siwei to cover for him, he secretly slipped out of the group.
Once on the street, Cui Shenzhi looked around and saw a woman sitting in the ruins, digging with her bare hands. Her fingers were bleeding, but she was still digging intently.
He quickly stepped forward.
"Auntie, let me help you."
The woman ignored Cui Shenzhi and continued digging in the rubble with her bleeding hands, her expression blank.
Cui Shenzhi didn't say anything, but Qi Kang felt that Cui Shenzhi's good intentions were being ignored and he couldn't stand it.
"You..."
Cui Shenzhi glared at Qi Kang, who could only shut his mouth in resentment.
“Auntie,” Cui Shenzhi cupped his hands in greeting and said, “Your hand is bleeding. Why don’t you rest for a while, bandage the wound, and I’ll help you dig it out?”
The woman remained deaf to his pleas and continued digging with all her might, as if she were not the one with wounds all over her hands.
Cui Shenzhi had a bad feeling and, without the woman's consent, rolled up his sleeves and started digging. Qi Kang saw this and joined in.
About fifteen minutes later, Cui Shenzhi stopped because he seemed to have touched something under the rubble. He was about to tell the woman when the joyful expression on his face froze.
If he's not mistaken, it feels like...
people.
*****
Seeing Cui Shenzhi's stunned expression, the woman scrambled over and shoved him aside. She then frantically dug at the spot where he had been standing, completely ignoring the blood streaming down her hands. She dug as if she felt no pain, until she unearthed the body of a four- or five-year-old girl.
She wiped the blood off her hands on her clothes, gently picked up the little girl's body, held it close to her face, and softly said, "My little girl, I've found you. Wait a little longer, until I find your sister and your father, then we'll go home together."
She staggered to the side, carrying the child's body, and carefully wiped the child's face before returning to the spot to continue digging.
Seeing this scene, Cui Shenzhi felt as if his heart was being squeezed. He pushed away Qi Kang, who was supporting him, and staggered to the woman's side to continue helping to remove the rubble. Qi Kang could not dissuade him and could only follow along to help.
After a short while, with the help of Cui Shenzhi and Qi Kang, the woman's two remaining relatives were dug out intact.
The woman didn't even glance at Cui Shenzhi. She was only focused on tidying up her deceased relative's face. She bent down and put her ear next to her husband's bloodless face, and then smiled as if she had heard something.
"Okay, my husband, I'll do as you say. I'll take you home right now."
Choi Shin-ji had a bad feeling. The woman's husband and children were here. This was clearly the woman's home, but the woman said she was going home... home to which home?
He looked up sharply and saw the woman holding a knife she had pulled out from somewhere, as if she was about to slit her throat.
Cui Shenzhi was too late to stop her, but with a single glance, a bodyguard jumped out and stopped the woman from committing suicide.
The woman, after being stopped, showed no gratitude whatsoever. Instead, she spat viciously at Choi Shin-ji, her bloodshot eyes filled with despair and indignation.
She angrily yelled at Cui Shenzhi, "Let me go! I told you to let me go, didn't you hear me! What right do you, an insignificant outsider, have to interfere in our family affairs!"
"Just because I helped you just now, and because your daughter chose me to find her instead of you!" Cui Shenzhi pursed his lips: "Do you know why your daughter wouldn't let you find her even after you've been digging for so long? Because she's hiding from you."
"You're lying to me! My little girl loves me the most. Every day when I finish working in the fields and come home, she runs over and hugs my leg, acting all cute. When I pick her up, she kisses my face and tells me what she did and how much trouble she got into that day. She would never hide from me!"
"She will! It's because she likes you that she's avoiding you. She knows that once you find their bodies, you'll commit suicide. She doesn't want you to die, do you understand?"
"I don't understand! All I know is that my husband and my children are gone, they're all gone, my home is gone, I have nothing left, what's the point of me living!"
“You do.” Cui Shenzhi straightened up. “I received news that His Highness the Crown Prince wants to build a temple in Nanzhou to commemorate those who perished in this natural disaster. It will be both a prayer for the departed, so that they may enjoy incense offerings for generations to come, and a blessing for those who are still alive. If you go there, who will go to the temple to leave your husband’s and daughter’s names? Who will remember your husband and daughter?”
Upon hearing this, the woman stopped struggling and looked up urgently, asking, "Are you telling the truth?! Will His Highness really build a temple for the victims? I'm telling you, if you're lying to me, I won't let you get away with it! I swear!"
“Of course it’s true.” Cui Shenzhi gestured to the guards to release the woman, then took out a jade pendant from his pocket and placed it in her hand: “This is my token. If I’m lying to you, and His Highness the Crown Prince hasn’t built a temple in Nanzhou to commemorate the victims, you can come to the capital to find me.”
"That's wonderful...wonderful..." The woman, her eyes filled with hope, returned the jade pendant to Cui Shenzhi's hand: "My husband's name is..."
“I won’t listen, and I won’t remember,” Cui Shenzhi said firmly. “Don’t forget what you just said. I’m just an insignificant person. Why should I care about your family’s affairs? So you have to have your husband’s and daughter’s names engraved yourself, because no one in this world cares about them except you.”
"you…!"
Upon hearing this, the woman stood up and glared angrily at Cui Shenzhi. The guards tried to rush over and restrain her, but Cui Shenzhi stopped them.
Cui Shenzhi stared directly into the woman's eyes without fear. After a long silence, the woman angrily stuffed the jade pendant into her bosom and said fiercely, "Remember this! If His Highness the Crown Prince hadn't built a temple in Nanzhou, I would chase you to the ends of the earth and make you pay for deceiving me!"
"Come on, I'll be waiting for you in the capital."
Only then did the woman carry away the bodies of her husband and daughter. Her face was no longer as lifeless as before, but instead showed some signs of life.
Cui Shenzhi was still uneasy. He only breathed a sigh of relief after instructing the hidden guard who had appeared to follow him. Then he heard an old man's voice trembling as he asked from behind, "Young man, is what you're saying true? His Highness the Crown Prince wants to build a temple for the victims?"
Choi Shin-ji turned around and unexpectedly bumped into countless expectant eyes.
He straightened his expression and said solemnly, "Old man, I assure you in the name of Cui Shenzhi that His Highness the Crown Prince keeps his word and will definitely build temples and pray for the disaster victims. Moreover, His Majesty has issued an edict to exempt the Southern Prefecture from five... no, ten years of taxes and corvée labor, and each disaster victim will also receive thirty taels of silver as a relief payment."
Upon hearing this, many people present wept with joy.
They didn't know what the name Cui Shenzhi meant, but they were willing to believe in the sincere young man before them.
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