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After a moment of silence in the hall, Wang Huiwen frowned slightly and said after thinking for a while, "Although the Prime Minister told us not to do anything, we should still prepare some things. I have already sent people out to inquire. If there is any public donation, we will donate it in our own name. That way, we won't be criticized in the future."
No one objected, and no one spoke again.
After leaving Ninghui Garden, Xie Wu approached Qin Sang and asked about the situation of the refugees outside the city yesterday. He sensed from her that he also wanted to go out and help.
It's rare to see a rich young lady like her with such a kind heart, and not afraid of going through trouble.
Since they were going out anyway, Qin Sang didn't mind taking her along, so she asked Ling Ding to prepare men's clothing for the two of them.
They said they wanted to invite Xie Sui'an along, but Xie Sui'an hadn't slept all night and his eyes were bloodshot, so they suggested he rest for half a day instead.
The two men and their two servants went out and saw that there were 20% more patrol officers and soldiers on the streets of Kyoto. Everywhere they could see patrol officers carrying guns and knives. Although the people were opening their shops and doing business as usual, and the streets were still bustling, everyone was inevitably curious and bewildered, craning their necks to look around.
I didn't see a single disaster victim; they probably weren't allowed into the city.
Qin Sang and Xie Wu walked towards the city gate together. When they passed a tea stall, they heard people inside discussing disaster relief grain. They exchanged a glance and tacitly stepped inside.
"This time, many high-ranking officials will surely be forced to resign. I heard that these people at the city gate are all survivors; there are so many skeletons on the road!"
"Who specifically organized last year's disaster relief efforts? How could so many people have starved to death?"
"Disaster relief is naturally handled by the Ministry of Revenue!"
"Pah, that's not necessarily true. The power of the Department of Finance now surpasses that of the Ministry of Revenue."
"Hey, do you know who the Minister of Revenue is? That's the Crown Princess's maternal family!"
"The Crown Prince's father-in-law? Huang Zhong? Tsk tsk tsk... That's troublesome. Let's see how this case is judged..."
"How should it be judged? It's just a case of raising the issue high and then letting it fall lightly, what kind of judgment can be made?"
Xie Wu curled his lip upon hearing this and whispered in Qin Sang's ear, "Huang Zhong is a corrupt official who has married nine concubines. His youngest daughter, Huang Ying, is the Crown Princess's sister. She is always adorned with jewels and flaunts her wealth. She is also on good terms with Tan Wuyan. You met her at Princess Yuanzhao's birthday banquet last time, and she even spilled tea all over you."
Qin Sang remembered: "Her? She's quite good-looking. I suppose her older sister, the Crown Princess, must be stunningly beautiful too?"
Xie Wu shook his head: "She's not quite a beauty, just average-looking. Huang Zhong controls the finances, and the Crown Prince wanted to befriend him, so they formed an alliance. Besides, the Crown Princess is just a figurehead; whether she's good-looking or not doesn't matter. There are plenty of beautiful concubines in the Crown Prince's palace."
Qin Sang chuckled: "The capital city is indeed full of complicated in-law relationships."
Xie Wu hummed in response, then suddenly fell silent, seemingly lost in thought.
Qin Sang also thought of her upcoming marriage to Tan Bi, and the look of disgust Tan Bi had given her. She felt unhappy and refused to continue the conversation.
The two listened to the idle chatter in silence for a while, realizing that such gossip meant nothing. The complex balance and confrontation of power could not be judged by a few words of truth from the common people.
He then left the teahouse and hailed a carriage to go to the city gate again.
Because there were refugees outside the city, entry and exit through the city gates were much stricter than usual; those without identification tags could not enter or leave the city.
Xie Wu was actually a little hesitant when she got here. Although she had a carefree personality, she had never been in contact with so many poor people at the bottom of society. The thought of them being dirty, sick, and crazy was frightening.
Qin Sang glanced at her and said, "If you're afraid, I can go out by myself."
Xie Wu sighed, "What can we do for them if we go out? We are just two weak women..."
Qin Sang stared at the soldiers at the city gate: "It's not that I want to do anything, I just want to see what the people who are supposed to be doing these things are doing."
Xie Wu thought it made sense. Someone had to take care of this matter. If no one did, he could use his position to find the right person to handle it. If the person in charge didn't handle it properly, he could still be of some use.
The two walked towards the city gate. There was a long queue to enter the city, but very few people were on the way out. They easily got out of the city gate, but did not see the refugees who had gathered the day before. After asking around, they found that there were many tents lined up in the training ground about a mile away.
The military tents allocated by the army were neatly arranged in rows and columns on the vast ground.
Although armored soldiers with long swords patrolled back and forth, management was not strict. The refugees moved about, helping each other to sort out their only remaining belongings. Some had already set up earthen stoves and hanging pots for boiling water at the entrance of their tents.
Of course, there weren't many refugees with food. Qin Sang saw more people gazing longingly in another direction—a soup kitchen that was open on all four sides and supported by wooden stakes.
Next to the porridge stall were four large round pots, steaming and filling the air with the aroma of rice.
Several thin, dirty children stood not far from the porridge stall, holding bowls and swallowing hard, their eyes filled with longing.
Suddenly, a loud crack of a whip rang out, and the children instinctively crouched down and covered their heads.
Xie Wu choked up: "They...are so thin..." thinner than the beggars in the city.
Qin Sang: "At least we're still alive, we can still survive." Many more have already starved to death on the road.
It seems this is the temporary resettlement area that Xie Suian mentioned, which they worked on all night to build.
There were no barriers in the resettlement area. Some passersby couldn't bear to see her like this and came to bring her some food and drink. Qin Sang was dressed plainly and didn't stand out.
As Xie Wu casually passed by the soup kitchen, he craned his neck to take a look from afar, but before he could speak, he was chased away by the soldiers stirring the soup: "What are you doing! Don't watch the show here! Get out of here!"
Xie Wu couldn't help but ask, "Is there any rice in your pot? There's only water. How can anyone get full from drinking this?"
The soldier, half-closing his eyes and raising his chin, was about to unleash a torrent of abuse when he noticed the two men before him. Though their clothes were ordinary, their faces were fair. Having seen many nobles in the capital, he immediately softened his tone: "Hey, look at all these people! How can we possibly feed everyone? It's good enough if everyone gets something to eat. Two meals a day? Who knows how many days we'll have to endure this!"
Xie Wu paused for a moment, then said, "Can we donate rice and grain?"
Upon hearing this, the soldier replied, "Alright, you'll have to ask our officer about donating grain."
He pointed to several tall horses not far away, and the people sitting on them were all burly and strong, dressed in uniform general's uniforms.
Looking over, the clatter of hooves could be heard as horses carried people towards them.
The leader, dressed in a black, tight-fitting outfit, accentuated his broad shoulders, narrow waist, and well-proportioned, strong physique. His youthful face, with its wheat-colored skin, was stern and aloof.
That was the renowned, ambitious young commander of the Imperial Guards, Tan Bi.
He rode up on horseback, not even glancing at Qin Sang and the other person. His deep, slightly hoarse voice came from above: "What time is it? Why aren't you serving dinner yet?"
The soldiers tending the fire stood ramrod straight, their expressions respectful: "Reporting to the commander, the porridge is ready and can be served at any time!"
"Then give the order."
After giving his order in a cold voice, Tan Bi glanced at Qin Sang, then rode away without lingering.
No sooner had the person left than Qin Sang's ears were hurt by the sudden clanging of a gong next to her.
The disaster victims flocked out, and for a long time afterward, everyone's face was filled with tension and worry, fearing that if they arrived late they would not be able to get the porridge.
"Don't push, don't push, there's enough for everyone!" the soldier shouted.
But no one listened. Qin Sang dragged Xie Wu aside to make way, and the disaster victims pushed and shoved each other, creating chaos.
Some elderly people with mobility issues were nearly pushed to the ground, but fortunately Qin Sang reacted quickly and rushed over.
Just as they managed to catch her, they heard a whooshing sound from behind, and with a crack, Qin Sang was inexplicably whipped on the back.
After a brief period of numbness, a burning, stinging pain came from my back.
Qin Sang turned around and saw a bearded general on horseback, wielding a long whip. He lashed the whip left and right, the sound deafening, and treated the crowded disaster victims indiscriminately, shouting, "Line up! Line up! No food for those who don't line up!"
Upon seeing Qin Sang injured, Xie Wu immediately ran over and angrily shouted at the soldier wielding the whip, "Why are you hitting people for no reason? Get down here!"
Seeing that the disaster victims were not obeying orders and were on fire, the soldier wielding the whip glanced at Xie Wu impatiently and shouted, "This is not a place for you, get out!"
Xie Wu was always treated with deference and respect when he went out, and he had never been scolded like this before. He saw that Qin Sang's clothes on the back were almost torn open by the whip, and a glaring red line of blood was exposed on her torn back. Qin Sang was in so much pain that cold sweat broke out on her forehead, and she was so angry that her throat was parched.
She held back her sobs and shouted even louder, "Get out! Is this how you treat refugees?! What's your name?! Fine, you just wait!" She was so angry that she was incoherent. She turned back and said, "Qin Sang, let's go. Let's go back and apply the medicine first. Let's go back and tell Grandpa to deal with these arrogant people."
The old man Qin Sang was helping was also whipped. His tattered clothes were covered with two more pieces of fluttering cloth, and his shoulders were even more shocking than Qin Sang's back, almost exposing the white bones.
Despite the pain, he staggered to the queue to get the porridge, muttering to himself, "I'm hungry, I'm hungry, if I'm late I won't get any..."
The fire in Qin Sang's throat burned even brighter than the fire on her back, making her eyes blurry with tears and her chest feel parched.
Seeing the whip raised high and then fall with a whoosh, striking a weak child who stumbled and fell to the ground... Qin Sang could no longer bear it, so she bent down, picked up a few pebbles, and flicked them at the most arrogant group of people.
She was always good at using hidden weapons; her stones were both powerful and accurate, hitting the soldiers in the face and making them cry out and cover their faces.
"Who!" The officers and soldiers covered their faces and looked around angrily.
Qin Sang patted the dust off her hands, took a deep breath, and then made a gesture to the arrogant soldier from a distance.
It means, "Come here."
The man's gaze locked onto Qin Sang, his eyes immediately flashing with ferocity. He spurred his horse and charged towards Qin Sang, his whip already raised high...
Qin Sang took a half step back with her right foot, turned slightly to the side, and stared intently at the galloping horse.
She had already calculated the angle; once the whip fell, all she had to do was pull and tug, and the person would be ripped off and fall face-first into the dirt...
Just then, another horse appeared out of nowhere in front of Qin Sang, blocking her view.
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