Yu Jinshu stared at the guard seriously and said, "I bet you were on duty on the day of the Queen Mother's birthday banquet!"
The guard nodded: "So what?"
"Since you are on duty, did you hear what the Queen Mother told you?"
Guard: “…”
"The Empress Dowager specifically assigned me to be in charge of the Emperor's meals, requiring him to avoid eating after mealtimes. The Emperor is already busy with state affairs, and eating after mealtimes for a long time would inevitably harm his health. The Empress Dowager also ordered me to ensure that the Emperor eats on time, otherwise she will hold me accountable. If the Empress Dowager blames me, should I tell her that you are blocking me from advising the Emperor?"
Yu Jinshu's words are righteous and stern.
The guard stepped aside and said, "Please come in!"
Yu Jinshu bowed to the guard: "Thank you!"
She walked towards the meeting room.
meeting room.
The emperor was discussing the locust plague with several ministers.
One minister said, "Year after year, locusts have plagued the people, leaving them with nothing to harvest and starving to death. The imperial court has sent millions of silver in relief funds, but money without food is of no use."
Pu Kun frowned, "From now on, the Imperial City will take the lead in saving food, and all government offices will follow suit. All city gates will be opened, and granaries will be opened to release grain."
Another minister said, "We've been opening the granaries to distribute grain year after year, but there have been locust plagues year after year, and the grain in the granaries is simply not enough to feed so many people."
Pu Kun said: "We still have to eliminate those locusts at the root."
The minister said, "Locusts are a natural disaster, how can we eliminate them?"
"emperor……"
A clear female voice broke the suffocating atmosphere in the meeting room.
Pu Kun looked at the palace maid coming over and felt that she looked familiar.
Yu Jinshu stepped forward and saluted: "Your Majesty, the people are suffering right now, and they need Your Majesty to devote all your energy to planning for them. But if Your Majesty does not eat properly and starves himself, what will the people do?"
She did not directly persuade the emperor to have his meals, but instead persuaded him to have his meals on time from the perspective of the common people.
The emperor didn't expect that a little palace maid could say such words.
After listening to what Yu Jinshu said, several ministers also tried to persuade the emperor.
"Your Majesty, the emperor's health is paramount. Your Majesty should eat on time."
"Yes! Those people who have been affected by the disaster are still waiting for the emperor to find a solution for them."
Pu Kun originally thought that the palace maid was disturbing his discussion of state affairs with the ministers, but after listening to the maid's words and the ministers' persuasion, he also felt that this was the case.
Lately he has been eating too late and his stomach has started to hurt.
If he was ill and had no children, and the people were suffering from the disaster, someone might take advantage of the situation and rebel.
"Okay, then you will do as I just said. Also, seek out ways to control the locusts from the people. If anyone can come up with a way to control the locusts, I will reward them handsomely."
"I obey the decree!"
After several ministers left, Pu Kun looked at Yu Jinshu.
When he looked closely at the face of the palace maid, he remembered that she was the palace maid who had made novel dishes in the imperial kitchen on the day of the Empress Dowager's birthday banquet.
"Let's eat!"
Pu Kun put one hand behind his back and walked out of the conference room.
Yu Jinshu followed quickly behind.
When they arrived at the study, the eunuchs hurriedly arranged the meal on the table.
Pu Kun looked at the dishes on the table and remembered what the ministers had just said about the famine. He said, "From now on, only two dishes are allowed to be prepared. The diet of the masters of each palace will be the same. Just eat your fill and don't waste anything."
The eunuchs looked at each other in bewilderment, but Yu Jinshu responded, "As you wish!"
Pu Kun reached out and took two small dishes and a noodle dish and placed them in front of him. He then pointed to the remaining ten or so dishes and said, "I heard that there are often people in the palace who don't have enough to eat. Take these down and give them to them."
The eunuch in charge stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, as the Ninth Prince, how can you only eat these two vegetarian dishes?"
Pu Kun's eyes glared: "When did I ever need you to teach me?"
The eunuch in charge was so frightened that he fell to his knees with a thud.
A eunuch came forward to test the poison. He picked up the golden and jade chopsticks and tasted the two dishes and the noodles one by one before letting the emperor eat.
Pu Kun was very hungry, so he picked up the golden jade chopsticks and started eating.
The eunuchs took away the extra dishes and left Zhenghe Hall.
Only Yu Jinshu was left here to serve.
Yu Jinshu said nothing, watching Pu Kun eat happily. It seemed that the two dishes she made were very much to his liking.
After Pu Kun finished eating, he looked at Yu Jinshu and said, "I plan to leave the palace in disguise for a private visit. You will come with me."
He always felt that this palace maid was clever, and spoke and acted appropriately. Moreover, her cooking skills were so superb that she must be kept by his side.
Yu Jinshu was delighted, but remained calm. "As you wish! I'll pack my luggage right away."
Pu Kun said, "You don't need to bring anything from the palace. Just buy some clothes for ordinary people outside."
He stood up and said, "Let's go!"
Yu Jinshu thought to himself: Let’s go now! The sun has already set.
She hurriedly followed Pu Kun.
Pu Kun only brought two imperial guards and Yu Jinshu.
Yu Jinshu changed into a men's robe made of ordinary cotton cloth. She walked behind Pu Kun, pretending to be Pu Kun's servant.
By the time we left the imperial city, it was already completely dark.
Yu Jinshu could see that Pu Kun was extremely worried about the locust plague.
The carriage headed straight for the city gate, and it was visible that the city gate was full of disaster victims.
There were soldiers distributing porridge at the city gate. Pu Kun felt a little upset when he saw the porridge that was so thin that no rice could be seen.
He immediately entered the city and asked the imperial guards to find the official in charge of the matter and cook the porridge again. He must not let the victims at the city gate starve to death.
It was not suitable to travel at night, so Pu Kun found an inn to stay in temporarily. He arranged a separate room for Yu Jinshu.
The next day, before dawn, Yu Jinshu woke up and walked out of the house, only to find Pu Kun already dressed.
After a simple breakfast at the inn, Yu Jinshu followed Pu Kun out of the city to the farm to inspect the disaster.
As the minister said, there are starving people everywhere.
Yu Jinshu's heart broke when he saw this.
When we arrived at the village, we saw that many houses were empty, and most people had gone out to avoid the disaster.
Those who didn't go out hadn't eaten for several days and were almost starving to death.
Yu Jinshu followed Pu Kun to the farm, where he saw swarms of locusts flying around.
Yu Jinshu looked at them and had an idea in his mind.
Pu Kun looked around, but Yu Jinshu did not follow her. She went to the front of the villager's house, found a bamboo basket with a lid, and caught a full basket of locusts.
It was noon, and Pu Kun couldn't find Yu Jinshu. He thought she was tired and was resting in the village.
When I returned to the village entrance, I smelled a strong aroma of meat.
"Everyone in the village is almost starving to death, where does the smell of meat come from?" Pu Kun was very curious.
Guard Zhang Li said, "They're not eating human flesh, are they?"
Another guard, Du Jiangong, looked nervous: "Yu Jinshu is left alone in the village. I'm afraid something bad has happened to him."
Pu Kun's eyes darkened and he quickened his pace.
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