Chapter 14, Lucky General Store? Never heard of it.
He picked up another breakfast biscuit, the one whose packaging had already been torn open by Jiang Yi and had a pattern printed on it, and put it in his mouth.
With a single bite, the crisp biscuit immediately fell into my mouth. After a couple of chews,
Sweet! Salty! Milky! The whole mouth is filled with the aroma of wheat!
This is so delicious! The layers of flavor are unlike anything he's ever experienced before!
The sweet and rich flavor of milk blends perfectly with the crisp and savory taste of the biscuits in your mouth – it's an absolute match!
"You, a dignified young marquis, have never tasted anything like this before?" Jiang Yi mocked Cheng Fang, who was completely overwhelmed by the delicious food, forgetting that he himself had just been in the same state.
"Look at how possessive you are of your food! Don't just eat it all yourself! Hey, give me some more! You can't possibly finish all of this!"
Jiang Yi tried to snatch it from his arms. There were still a few pastries he hadn't tried yet!
"Get out of my way!" Cheng Fang snapped back to reality, nimbly dodging away with the bag in hand, while simultaneously kicking Jiang Yi's outstretched hand. "I haven't settled accounts with you yet!"
"You heartless bastard! If I hadn't risked my life throwing ropes downstream this morning, you would have been fed to the Dragon King by now! Snacks, my foot! Your wet clothes are still hanging outside, don't you want to go check them out? I saved your life, and you're stingy with a few biscuits?" Jiang Yi said indignantly.
This morning, after two days and two nights of torrential rain, the upstream dam finally gave way and was breached.
The floodwaters raged and surged forth!
Just then, Cheng Fang was rescuing a child who had fallen into the water downstream. He handed the child to the shore, but he himself was swept away by the surging river.
It was Jiang Yi who threw a rope downstream in time, which saved him.
Upon hearing this, Cheng Fang's anger dissipated by more than half.
I do owe him my life.
Only then did he reluctantly hand over a package of opened breakfast biscuits.
"Take this! Use it to shut you up! Finish eating and get out of here!"
Jiang Yi didn't mind at all, and happily ate it.
"Where did you get all these wonderful things? They're even better than the pastries from the capital!"
"I bought it from a shop called Jixiang General Store."
Lucky Grocery Store? Never heard of it.
Jiang Yi ate very quickly.
Cheng Fang was no less impressive. He took the opened mung bean cakes and small bread rolls and tasted them one by one, barely having time to speak.
My eyes widened instantly when I bit into a sandwich cookie!
There's jam in this!
It's so delicious, sweet and sour!
Jiang Lingguang filled six bottles with milk. Cheng Fang took two sips and then handed the bottle that Jiang Yi had drunk from back to him.
I picked out another bottle for myself; it was labeled as strawberry flavor.
Of course, strawberries didn't exist in his time.
So he didn't know what it was.
I just think the red color looks nice.
I unscrewed the cap and took a sip!
It's sweet and sour, a completely different flavor from the previous bottle!
The two devoured the food in a flash, while the guards beside them watched, their mouths watering!
Cheng Fang naturally didn't forget to leave some for them; most of the opened packages on the table were only half-eaten. The other half was almost deliberately left for them.
Cheng Fang instructed his personal guards, "Take all of these out and distribute them to everyone. Let them have something to eat before the formal meal."
The army had food, but it was all cooked in a large pot, with staple food, vegetables, and meat all cooked together.
It's definitely not delicious; it'll just keep you from starving.
The guards were overjoyed and thanked them repeatedly. They carefully carried a large pile of biscuits and bread out of the tent.
Although the quantity is small, it's enough for each person to try one piece.
Cheng Fang looked down and saw some unopened pastries and four bottles of milk in the plastic bag.
These should be left to His Highness the Crown Prince and Zhao Jingxing.
Pastries are fine, but milk...
One bottle is for His Highness the Crown Prince, and one is for Zhao Jingxing. As for the remaining two bottles...
Of course I'll keep it for myself, after all, it was something he worked hard to get back.
————
"This humble general, Zhao Jingxing, pays his respects to Your Highness the Crown Prince!"
Zhao Jingxing had just finished inspecting the situation of the disaster victims when he entered the Crown Prince's tent.
The flood came suddenly and was fortunate to be rescued by the army that was returning to Beijing for duty; otherwise, the casualties would have been many times greater.
His Highness the Crown Prince, who was ordered to welcome the army to the capital, was also trapped in Ping'an County due to this disaster.
Inside the tent, the lamplight flickered, and Crown Prince Qin Zhao was bent over his desk, writing an urgent report on the disaster.
The young face was etched with weariness and worry.
"No need for formalities. What are the casualty statistics? Report them truthfully."
"Your Highness, the floodwaters came suddenly, but fortunately, the rescue efforts were timely, preventing a greater disaster. This flood affected two villages, Baiyang and Xianshui, where eleven people drowned, and their remains have been recovered; twenty-three people were seriously injured, and the medical officers are doing their best to treat them, their fate unknown; over one hundred people sustained minor injuries and have been treated and placed in care. More than four hundred houses were destroyed. County officials are working with military clerks to compile a register of the losses overnight."
Crown Prince Qin Zhao sighed helplessly: "Have all the disaster victims been properly appeased? Are they suffering from hunger or cold?"
"This humble general has temporarily allocated 500 reserve tents from the Right Valiant Guard to prioritize the accommodation of women, children, the elderly, the infirm, and the homeless. Some of the military rations have been allocated to set up three soup kitchens, providing two meals a day to temporarily alleviate the immediate crisis."
"There is a risk of disease outbreaks after the disaster, so we must remember to take precautions! The military medical officers are to cooperate fully, prepare sufficient medicines, and conduct inspections and examinations at each resettlement site. We must not be careless. As for the necessary funds and medicines, I will immediately issue a personal order to Ping'an County to advance the funds, and the imperial court will reimburse the rest later!"
"yes!"
Crown Prince Qin Zhao glanced at the map on the table and asked, "What are your plans for post-disaster reconstruction?"
Zhao Jingxing straightened up and pointed to a high ground upstream on the map: "Your Highness, this flood has exposed the flaws in the selection of old village sites. Baiyang Village downstream is located in a low-lying area and has been almost completely leveled. Although the houses in Xianshui Village upstream still exist, the continuous heavy rain has loosened the mountain and there is a risk of landslides. The villagers are in a state of panic and dare not go home."
“If we rebuild on the original site now, there is no guarantee that we will be safe in the future. I suggest that we avoid the dangerous waterways and build a new village on this high ground. This place is solid and open, and can avoid floods and landslides.”
He continued, “Reconstruction is extremely costly. However, if the disaster victims rely solely on relief for sustenance, it is not a long-term solution and will easily lead to laziness. I suggest that the Ping'an County government take the lead in implementing a work-for-relief program! Use the imperial disaster relief funds to hire strong disaster victims to participate in the reconstruction. Firstly, they can support their families and continue their livelihoods through labor; secondly, the disaster victims will be more dedicated to rebuilding their homes; and thirdly, it can quickly gather labor and speed up the progress. It is currently summer, and if the work is well-coordinated and construction is accelerated, we may be able to build warm houses before the cold winter, sparing the people from the suffering of hunger and cold.”
The Crown Prince's brows relaxed slightly, and his eyes revealed approval: "Zhao Jingxing, the Commandant of the Vanguard!"
"Your subordinate is here!"
"I hereby order you to immediately draft a detailed report outlining the advantages and disadvantages of the site selection, the regulations for the work-for-relief program, and the estimated costs of funds, supplies, and materials, and submit it to the emperor!"
"This subordinate obeys!" Zhao Jingxing bowed deeply.
After Zhao Jingxing left the tent, Crown Prince Qin Zhao got up and paced around, looking at the gloomy sky outside the tent.
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