A month after Jiang Shuyue became the crown prince, Song Ning finally came to visit.
The Eastern Palace had been a place of trouble for the past month, and Jiang Shuyue had even written a letter to her, informing her not to come during this time.
Song Ning didn't cause any trouble, and Xie Linzhou would tell her about Jiang Shuyue's situation every day when he came back.
Knowing that she was alright, Song Ning was relieved.
When Song Ning arrived, Jiang Shuyue was waiting at the palace gate, dressed in a crown prince's robe. Although it was a woman's style and Jiang Shuyue had her hair styled like a woman, she still exuded an air of majesty.
After welcoming Song Ning into the Eastern Palace, Jiang Shuyue finally changed her demeanor.
"Did nothing happen on your way here?"
"Don't worry, I brought a lot of people with me, nothing happened."
"That's good." Jiang Shuyue sat down on the low couch and pulled Song Ning to sit down as well.
"Actually, I've wanted you to come for a while now. There are some things that can't be explained in a letter, and I need to ask you for advice."
The people of the Jin Dynasty are too poor. To improve their lives, we need to increase grain production and provide them with more ways to make money, which means developing commerce.
The reason for summoning Song Ning is to discuss this matter.
Song Ning did offer some suggestions, which Jiang Shuyue found feasible.
However, farming is a bit difficult, as it's all determined by nature. If the harvest is good, the crop will be plentiful, but if there are natural disasters like droughts or floods, then you can only accept your bad luck.
Song Ning offered an idea: "Sister Jiang, why don't we open a few granaries in each prefecture and county?"
The granaries of the Jin Dynasty were all located near the capital, but if a disaster struck, even if the granaries in the capital were opened to distribute grain, it would take a while for the grain to reach the disaster-stricken areas.
Although there were granaries in various places, in order to prevent local people from abusing their power for personal gain and appropriating the granaries for themselves, it was not allowed to set up many, and the granaries were not large and could not hold much grain.
"I know what you mean, but if we do it this way, what if there are corrupt officials involved?"
"Sister Jiang, do you know a word called supervision?"
"Supervision?"
"The imperial court can establish a special agency, which can be managed by you or someone you trust. The people in this agency must be chosen to be resolute and trustworthy, and they will be specifically responsible for supervising all officials."
"Of course, these people cannot hold too high an official position, in case things change later. Their task is to inspect the local areas and submit a report every now and then, so that it is easy to keep track of the statistics."
Jiang Shuyue thought for a moment and asked, "What if these officials are colluding with the locals? How would we know?"
"Sister Jiang, there are local officials, and these two have a mutual supervisory relationship. When the time comes, just tell the local official that if the supervisory personnel commit a crime, the local official will receive a corresponding promotion or benefit if he reports it. Wouldn't that reduce such incidents? Besides, although those supervisory officials are sent by you, their positions are low. Even if you win them over, what's better than getting promoted and making money?"
Jiang Shuyue was silent for a moment, then nodded, agreeing that it made sense.
Those inspectors are not high-ranking and have no real power other than supervision. If we add a clause that they have no authority to kill, what will those officials gain even if they want to collude?
If they really colluded, and were willing to betray their master for a few granaries of grain, then such a person truly has no future.
"But that's all in the future. As long as we find some reliable people, we can try to avoid this situation. However... just in case, it's best to leave those people's families in the capital."
Jiang Shuyue became excited. It made perfect sense. As long as she offered them a higher salary and kept their families in the capital, they would naturally look down on the petty gains outside. Even if they were to be rebelled against, they would think of their relatives in the capital.
That's definitely a good idea.
"Ah Ning, you've really helped me a lot. In good years, we can store up grain, and when the harvest is bad, we can open the granaries and distribute the grain. Even if it doesn't solve the big problems, it can last for quite a while, at least until the disaster relief from the capital arrives."
“Ah Ning, I will tell His Majesty about your method.”
"If Sister Jiang thinks it's feasible, that's good. I'm just stating what I've thought of; it still needs Sister Jiang to refine it."
"Don't worry, I will definitely be able to handle this."
There is also a lot of land in the suburbs of the capital. If the harvest from those lands could be increased, it would still be useful.
The next day, Song Ning brought Jiang Shuyue a lot of water and asked her to use it to water the fields outside the city.
"I put some herbs in here, which are good for the crops. Water them more. I have more here."
Jiang Shuyue looked at it for a long time but couldn't see any difference between it and clear water.
However, since it was something sent by Song Ning, Jiang Shuyue had no doubts and immediately told someone to take the things to water the fields.
After giving the order, Jiang Shuyue turned to Song Ning and said, "By the way, I have someone I'd like to introduce you to."
As she was speaking, a girl walked in from outside.
Song Ning looked him up and down, feeling like he'd seen him somewhere before.
After looking at it for a while, I suddenly remembered.
Isn't this the pretentious girl they met on their journey to escape famine?
I happened to run into bandits at the time, and I haven't seen them since.
So it turns out they were Jiang Shuyue's people?
Song Ning looked completely different from when she fled the famine, and the girl didn't recognize her.
"This is Song Ning, whom I often tell you about. She is my cousin's wife, the lady of the Rongguo Duke's Mansion, the one who earned her title as a first-rank noblewoman through her own abilities."
The young woman was also looking her over, then stepped forward and grabbed her hand: "Madam Xie, I've finally met you."
Song Ning looked at Jiang Shuyue with a puzzled expression.
Jiang Shuyue smiled and said, "She is my younger sister, Jiang Shuyin."
She was also a princess?
“She is my aunt’s cousin. She had been living in another place, but because there was no one left in her family, she returned to the capital. Her father also died for the country, so His Majesty bestowed upon her the surname Jiang.”
"When she found out I had an accident up north, she even came to see me."
No wonder such a pampered young lady would appear in a place like that.
Jiang Shuyue went north to find Xie Linzhou, but she couldn't find him and instead found him locked in a cellar.
Fortunately, Song Ning saved her, and later she found Xie Linzhou and was able to meet Jiang Shuyin again.
"She's heard about you a long time ago and admires you immensely. She just wanted to meet you, so I brought her here today since you're here."
"Madam Xie, may I learn how to do business from you?"
"Doing business?"
"Yes, yes, you are really amazing as a woman. You brought your parents out of the small mountain village, did business along the way, and when you fled during the famine, you led the whole village to the refuge area, and not a single person was lost. Such courage is something that even men cannot match."
Song Ning was a little confused. Had her deeds already spread?
“I heard what you and my sister were saying just now, Madam Xie, you truly are a heroine of your generation.”
Isn't that a bit of an exaggeration?
Jiang Shuyue laughed: "You're about to have another apprentice."
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