Chapter 226 Kindness
The seat of Mianzhou County was in Baxi, where a large number of officials and local gentry gathered at that time. When Mr. Bai arrived, it was already evening.
Instead of staying in an inn, he went to find a friend and stayed at his friend's house.
There is a high probability that the landlord's friend is also a landlord. As a local landlord, he is much more informed than Mr. Bai who came from Qili Village.
He was very happy and cheerfully asked his servants to prepare wine and delicious food. He said to Master Bai, "I don't know if this is luck from heaven or someone's deliberate act, but we are all beneficiaries. It's worth celebrating. Come, let's not stop until we're drunk tonight."
Mr. Bai clinked glasses with him and asked, "Why did Lord Wei think of coming to Mianzhou?"
Mianzhou is not a major disaster area. He is so busy with disaster relief that he shouldn't come to them.
My friend took a sip of wine and laughed, "It's said that when Lord Wei was out providing disaster relief, he ran into two disaster victims squatting on the side of the road who were talking about Mianzhou. They were from Mianzhou, and Lord Wei heard that many people were affected here too, so he decided to come here on the spur of the moment."
He lowered his voice and laughed, "But I always feel that this is too coincidental. Maybe someone did it on purpose."
Mr. Bai first thought of Magistrate Fu, but he didn't dare to say, "Who is it?"
"Who knows? Perhaps he's someone dedicated to serving the people, but he's definitely not our governor." His friend leaned back in his chair, preferring to sit cross-legged. Bai Li wasn't an outsider either, so he simply sat up and said, "It's only his second year in office. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, he'll probably have to stay here for another four. You wouldn't know, but as soon as the flood hit, he met with us. Several families in Brazil have come to us to donate several times, and each time he's asked for more."
At this point he was filled with resentment and said, "I have donated five times to date."
Mr. Bai was shocked. "So many?"
"Our governor still thinks it's too little. We previously jointly suggested that he submit a petition to reduce some taxes. I wouldn't say completely, but at least reduce them. Guess what happened?"
Mr. Bai shook his head.
"He lied with his eyes open, saying that the situation in Mianzhou is good and we shouldn't compete with the people in other counties for profits. After all, these taxes and grains are nothing to us, but they are life-saving for the disaster victims outside. Humph, he pretends to be kind, but he makes us look like unforgivable criminals." The friend said, "Yes, these taxes and grains won't hurt us, but our clan has been here for generations, and who doesn't have poor relatives?"
"The disaster in Mianzhou this time wasn't as severe as elsewhere. Aside from some casualties, most people's homes were saved, but the crops in the fields were ruined." He said, "If they'd reduced taxes, everyone would have tightened their belts and endured this year, and it would have been over. But they haven't reduced taxes, and the autumn taxes alone are enough to crush people. Those who survived the floods were killed by man-made disasters. They're trying to force Mianzhou into a desperate situation."
"Hey, it's not as serious as you say. The imperial court is keeping an eye on Jiannan Dao right now. If he dares to force the people to death like this, the imperial court will not forgive him before we even make a move."
"snort!"
"So is this matter settled?"
"Not yet. Lord Wei just arrived in Brazil yesterday. He went out on patrol today with others. He may have to go to other counties to check on the situation tomorrow. Will you come with him?"
Mr. Bai always felt that Lord Wei came too easily, and he also wanted to follow and see the situation, so he nodded.
My friend smiled and said, "Then we'll go together. By the way, how is the situation in Luojiang County?"
"Hearing what you said, judging from the disaster alone, our area is more severely affected than yours. However, County Magistrate Fu is willing to work hard. Not only have the refugees who entered the city been appeased, but those whose houses collapsed have also received subsidies. The people are more united and optimistic than you are here."
My friend was curious and asked, "How much money and food did you donate?"
"Not much, just twice. The first time, I gave all of it to the disaster victims. I only donated three dan. The second time, I donated 12 dan, and basically distributed it to the villagers in Qili Village and Dali Village who were the hardest hit by the disaster."
Zuo Yanming was even more surprised. "No way, your county magistrate didn't intercept anything?"
Mr. Bai smiled and shook his head.
Zuo Yanming was surprised. "That's not right. I remember that your County Magistrate Fu was also quite greedy for money. Ahem, although he wouldn't go so far as to exploit the people, it's unreasonable for him not to leave anything like this behind."
Mr. Bai said meaningfully, "Our County Magistrate Fu has lofty ambitions and wants to make further progress."
Zuo Yanming understood immediately. His eyes lit up and he leaned over and asked in a low voice, "Tell me, is it him?"
Mr. Bai said, "Don't talk nonsense if you don't have any evidence."
"Okay, then don't tell me."
The two of them drank for half the night and rushed to the city gate to meet early the next morning.
There were quite a few people accompanying him, after all, tax exemption was a big deal, especially for gentry with large families or many slaves.
Mr. Bai is not very famous in Mianzhou, mainly because he chose to live in the deep mountains and forests and is not well-known. So when he joined in halfway, not many people paid attention to him.
But strangely, Lord Wei spotted him immediately and called him over to speak, "Are you Bai Li?"
Bai Li was startled and bowed nervously, "It's me, Bai. I wonder what your Excellency wants me to do."
Lord Wei laughed and said, "It's not that I need an order. I heard County Magistrate Fu mention you. He said you are a well-known kind person in Luojiang County, so I wanted to meet you."
Lord Wei asked with a smile, "I heard that during this disaster, you not only waived all rent for your tenants, but also donated a lot of money and food to the people affected?"
Bai Li breathed a sigh of relief and replied, "This is what I, Bai, should do. I live in Luojiang, and everyone I come and go from is my neighbor. I can't just watch them suffer and do nothing, can I? I'm only trying to do my bit, a drop in the bucket. If I want to help them, I'm afraid I'll need the likes of County Magistrate Fu, the Governor, and you to step in."
Lord Wei smiled and said, "Don't worry. If the situation in Luojiang County is really as you say, the court will definitely not ignore it. This time I came to Jiannan Road to lead the disaster relief work. I will not return to the court until the victims are well settled."
Upon hearing this, everyone saluted and said, "Your Excellency is a fair and just person, and your saint is kind and benevolent."
"The saint is very kind..." Wei Zhi said this meaningfully.
Wei Zhi didn't let Bai Li go, but asked him to follow him. It had been nearly a month since the disaster, and the house had been basically cleaned up, so there was nothing left to see.
Wei Zhi mainly looked at the conditions in the fields, and unless someone deliberately took him to see fields in good condition, he would not be able to fake it.
(End of this chapter)
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