Chapter 98, Brother Qi, do you think the Prince is a great philanthropist...?
Forming a militia... It sounds simple, but how to do it is actually quite complicated, since it involves military power.
Qi Chengming knew nothing about this, so he could only put the idea aside for now and ask Mr. Qin for clarification when he had some free time.
"Should we continue catching snails, or...?" Bai Xuan seemed quite eager to try.
Qi Chengming glanced ahead; the two women from those families hadn't gone far—or rather, the Ma family of three were weak and tired, and couldn't walk fast. Qi Chengming was somewhat tempted, but after glancing at the empty basket at his waist, he hesitated again.
He was interested in both of them, but Bai Xuan, who had extended the invitation, had already shifted his attention, so he didn't need to think about it too much. If he wanted to touch them, he could come back next time.
But in that moment of hesitation, the situation changed—that's why they say opportunity favors the prepared mind.
The two guards who were weaving bamboo strips had quietly made a small fortune. Some of them didn't have money, so they simply bartered with small fish, shrimp, or snails they had caught from the river, which they then put into their bamboo baskets. One of the guards glanced at Qi Chengming, and in that instant, a brilliant idea struck him. He brought over two baskets of fish, shrimp, and snails, offering his help:
"Your Highness, these are freshly acquired. They probably won't last long without water. Shall we send them back now?"
Such freshwater seafood could certainly be sent back by the guards, and there wouldn't be this problem. However, he regretfully asked Qi Chengming for help. Qi Chengming gave him an appreciative look and subconsciously opened the infrastructure system to check the name.
This bodyguard's name is Zhao Emao.
Although it doesn't sound like a normal name, it would probably be considered a nice-sounding name among illiterate ordinary people.
He's quick-witted; Qi Chengming remembered him.
If Qi Chengming wanted to hear gossip, these words would have given him an easy way out, allowing him to leave with his fish basket.
If Qi Chengming wanted to stay and collect snails, it would be normal for Zhao Emao, as one of the people in charge of guarding the area, to request to go back and deal with the fish and shrimp he had collected, since they wouldn't keep for long.
"Leave it to me." Qi Chengming untied the basket from his waist, tied the heavy one to it, and gave the other one to Bai Xuan. He then shamelessly walked along the main road, as if he was preparing to go back.
The traveler was walking not far ahead. He had rough hands and feet, wore simple clothes, and was thin and dark-skinned. He looked like an honest and unremarkable commoner, and was listening attentively to the conversation in front of him.
"Let's go too." Qi Chengming and Bai Xuan followed behind at a distance.
Bai Xuan, the eldest son and new head of a merchant family, was now dressed in muddy old clothes, sneaking around eavesdropping, his head bowed, carrying a wet, dripping basket—utterly shameless. His face showed no humiliation, only excitement and thrill; he was getting playful.
—Following the prince is great! Whether it's sneaking into the prison at night or committing illegal acts in broad daylight, I've never experienced this feeling of doing evil so many times!
All that could be heard was Madam Ma sighing and praising all the way: "Liuzhou is so good... We can't even see the city gate yet, and there are so many people by the pavilion, and there are even these stalls. I've never seen anything like it in Yulin Prefecture! It's so prosperous."
Qi Chengming almost couldn't help but laugh. He turned back and glanced at the group of men following them in the distance—goodness, look how big this misunderstanding is. Even the remote villages of Liuzhou aren't usually this lively. This is all a charade put on by his people from the Prince's Mansion!
Qi Chengming thus missed the second time Youzi turned around and glared at the guards with a look of disappointment and frustration.
Bai Xuan saw everything. He lowered his head and chuckled, trying hard to suppress his laughter for a long time.
“Little sister, don’t say you haven’t seen it, I haven’t either. There have been so many changes lately.” The old woman from the Hu family chuckled in agreement, but showed no surprise. “Last year, the Emperor granted this place to a prince to govern. Everyone was afraid. If you offended the prince, you might lose your life.”
Hu Hong nodded silently, and as if he couldn't bear to hear anything bad about the prince, he quickly added: "But the prince is a very good person. He doesn't bully men or women, nor does he levy any kind of money on us. He even found an old house for his palace... He's extremely frugal!"
Hu Hong lowered his voice when he said the second half of the sentence, and Qi Chengming almost didn't hear it. He subconsciously lowered his head and took a few steps closer to listen carefully.
Madam Ma nodded repeatedly as she listened: "Yes, yes, I've heard that Liuzhou is doing exceptionally well now, all because this prince is a good person! And the officials here are good too!"
“The officials in the past were not good.” Hu Hong still remembered the hard life they used to live. “When my eldest brother was farming at home… the government would levy taxes all the time. One minute they would say that carrying water across the main road would obstruct travel and cost them a lot of money, and the next minute they would say that the hot and humid weather and the presence of poisonous insects were because the people had angered the dragon god and demanded money and grain for sacrifices.”
As he said this, Old Lady Hu remembered something and her face fell.
"...If it were a real ritual, that would be fine, but they took the money and then did nothing!"
There are countless similar stories. At that time, Hu Hong did not have the money to start his schooling and was honestly helping with farming at home.
He recalled with relief, "We common folk were lucky; the high-ranking officials paid more attention to the wealthy families, going to visit them every few days. Once, I even heard that an old shop had closed down because the prefect had taken a fancy to a large family heirloom bead. I don't know if the shopkeeper was beaten to death or if the whole family moved away..."
Two young children sat in Hu Hong's lap, looking up at him intently as he spoke.
Ma sighed, "It's all the same... This section is exactly the same as where we are."
"Everything changed after the prince arrived." Old Mrs. Hu pointed to the smooth and clean road on the ground, extremely proud. "See? This land was also built with the prince's money, and he also helped us rebuild our house after the disaster. He also drove away the corrupt officials and dug many wells for us to drink water. My family no longer has to walk an hour every day to fetch water!"
“My family used to be farmers, but now that we sell tofu, I can even learn to read! The academy has a ‘scholarship’ that the prince organized with wealthy families, specifically for students from poor families like us. The tofu-making skills were also taught by the prince's people… Yes, he actually sends people around to teach us how to make money and how to learn new skills…”
Hu Hong choked up a little as he spoke. He saw that Aunt Ma's face had turned into an expression of disbelief. If it were the first time he had heard it, he wouldn't have believed it either.
Who doesn't keep their skills secret? Even a master and apprentice need to hone their skills for years before you're allowed to secretly learn and be taught a little. But their prince is different. From last year to this year, he's been giving away so much stuff like it's free. The schools and estates on the mountain are probably familiar to most of the people in Liuzhou.
The people in the Prince's mansion will teach you a new skill, and then you can each open your own shop without anyone being jealous of anyone else. Just learning a skill is enough to keep everyone busy.
If it weren't for these changes, the Hu family would never have the good life they have today.
Keep in mind, it's only been less than a year.
"This..." Madam Ma was no longer believing it, but she had no choice but to believe it. Her expression was very conflicted and strange. She asked hesitantly, "According to you... isn't the Prince even more of a bodhisattva than a bodhisattva? Isn't he the greatest philanthropist in the world? What is he after?"
She had never heard of any important person treating ordinary people like this in her entire life! This... this... could it really be true?
Upon hearing this, Bai Xuan looked at Qi Chengming with a mocking expression.
The young prince's ears were bright red. It was usually hard to hear such praise, but now he was overwhelmed by the undisguised compliments and flattery. He could only try to keep a straight face and glare at Bai Xuan.
Bai Xuan might have previously been alarmed and suppressed his laughter, no longer daring to be so smug and offensive. But after yesterday's events, he had learned his lesson and now laughed even more wildly, whispering, "Why is Your Highness looking at me like that? Are they wrong?"
Qi Chengming rolled his eyes and punched Bai Xuan on the shoulder in an annoyed tone, "You've been learning bad habits from Wen Er!"
As expected, he wasn't angry.
Bai Xuan scratched the back of his head, a hint of naivety in his smile. He seemed to understand what the prince valued so much... and why he was so insistent on it.
Hu Hong and his mother blurted out, "His Highness doesn't want anything; he's like a star deity descended from heaven to save us. The things we sent him actually insisted on being bought at a price...sigh." "Indeed! Our family, and many others, have set up shrines for His Highness; that's true worship!"
"Didn't you just say that there are many new jobs in Liuzhou now, and new factories and shops are opening everywhere? Those are all related to the Prince..." Old Mrs. Hu had a good memory, and she cleverly circled back to the beginning of the topic as she spoke, "There are many new changes in the city and the countryside every day, and we are slowly getting used to them, so there's no need to be surprised to see stalls starting to set up here in Liting..."
Qi Chengming listened to the first half of the story, his lips moved, but he tried very hard to suppress the urge to step forward and argue.
He's not the kind of selfless philanthropist he's supposed to be!
It's as if he sacrificed everything for the people.
"To get rich, build roads first." "Work relief after a major disaster." What's wrong with these policies?
Moreover, the original prefects and governors were too much, constantly hindering him. Qi Chengming wanted to get rid of them and replace them with his own people, both for convenience and to increase his power. And those various technologies provided by the system—why wouldn't he use them to generate real income for the people, instead of letting them gather dust?
With the diverse shops and various rare items available to the locals, wouldn't the merchants initially attracted be able to convert their wealth and send money to Liuzhou?
Didn't that money end up in Qi Chengming's pocket?! Huh?!
Upon hearing the second part of what the Hu family mother and son said, Qi Chengming began to panic.
Wasn't he always acting under the guise of the government? How come he's still being blamed for everything? No shrines for him! No sacrifices allowed!!!
Qi Chengming tried hard to recall his initial bad reputation, but now it had all disappeared.
"..." Bai Xuan dared to swear that he saw a bit of childish grievance on the boy's face, although it disappeared in an instant. He turned his head away, trying hard to suppress his laughter.
"Isn't that right, sir?" Hu Hong suddenly turned around and spoke to Qi Chengming, startling him.
When Hu Hong noticed that a young pedestrian not far away seemed to be holding back his excitement as they talked about the prince, Hu Hong simply turned around and struck up a conversation, eagerly waiting to hear him sing praises of the prince.
Qi Chengming: "..."
Bai Xuanchao whispered, "...Pfft."
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Author's Note: First Update
LOL, I really love the cliché trope of traveling incognito (maybe I'm just not tired of it yet).
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