At the New Year's Eve palace banquet, ministers and their families attended in their finest attire, but they found that the concubines in the harem, led by the Empress Dowager, all dressed simply, and even the princes and wives of the imperial family were very low-key.
The crowd began to whisper amongst themselves, asking each other what had happened in the harem.
The scene only quieted down after His Highness the Crown Prince, along with his wife and son.
Everyone noticed that the usually gentle and smiling Crown Prince now had a serious expression, and his delicate eyes and brows were filled with a faint sadness.
After exchanging a glance with Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang, Yinreng turned to the crowd and said, “I’m sure you’ve all noticed that this year’s New Year’s Eve banquet is somewhat unusual. It’s mainly because Suzhou was hit by a sudden heavy snowfall two days ago. Due to the local officials’ lack of experience in dealing with snow disasters, the local people panicked. Fortunately, Ninth Prince Yintang contacted the local officials in time and used his own personal resources to fill the gaps in local supplies such as charcoal, grain, and cotton, which prevented a riot from breaking out.”
Everyone listened in silence, not daring to breathe.
"Yesterday I sent Lord Zhang Tingyu to Suzhou to discuss disaster relief and post-disaster reconstruction with the Ninth Prince, and to ensure that the local people can get through this winter safely."
Shi Wenbing, who was sitting at the lower end, had already received the Crown Prince's permission. He knelt on the ground and said, "Your subject Shi Wenbing requests to go to Suzhou to assist Zhang Tingyu and the Ninth Prince in maintaining public order to prevent a riot."
Yinreng nodded in satisfaction. "Good. Shi Wenbing and the Fifth Prince will go to Suzhou to deal with the disaster. The allocation of supplies will be handled by the Ninth Prince, and the reconstruction will be handled by Lord Zhang Tingyu. You must remember that the safety of the people is of paramount importance. The court will spare no effort to ensure the basic livelihood of the people."
Fifth Prince Yinqi stepped forward and knelt on one knee, saying, "Your subject obeys the decree."
Seeing that Yinreng had finished speaking, Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang coughed lightly and looked at everyone calmly, saying, "This disaster happened just in time for the New Year. When I think of the suffering of the people of Suzhou, I can't feel happy at all."
The silence below was eerily quiet.
Guarjia said first, "Ukuma-ma, you must take care of yourself. Now that Father is far away in Mongolia, even if he knows what is happening here, he probably can't take care of us. We need Ukuma-ma's help."
Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang smiled as she looked at Guarjia's well-behaved and sensible appearance. "You are such a filial child. No wonder you are the Crown Princess. You are dignified, quiet, and know your place."
Guarjia turned her body slightly toward Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang. “Since Granny Wukuma says that I am well-behaved and sensible, then I will donate 100,000 taels of silver from my private treasury to Suzhou for disaster relief today.”
Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang looked at Guarjia with admiration, "Tinglan is indeed worthy of being the Crown Princess of the current dynasty. Her demeanor is truly exceptional."
Seeing this, Consort Wenxi, the highest-ranking concubine in the harem, also said, "The Empress Dowager and the Crown Princess are both compassionate, and we concubines in the harem are also willing to do our part. I am willing to donate 100,000 taels of silver from my private treasury for disaster relief in Suzhou."
Consort Yi immediately followed suit, saying, "I feel the same way."
Just kidding, one of her two sons has already started disaster relief work in Suzhou, and the other is about to go and help. How could she, as his mother, hold him back?
Yinreng looked up at Consort Yi and said in a softer voice, "Suzhou has suffered a disaster this time, and the local reserves of supplies are insufficient to meet the demand. If it weren't for the Ninth Prince's rapid mobilization of supplies from merchants all over the country for disaster relief, the local people would probably not have been able to survive even this New Year's Eve. On behalf of the people of Suzhou, I thank the Ninth Prince for his efforts. When Father Emperor returns to the palace in the future, I will also report the truth to him."
Consort Yi originally didn't want to hold her son back, but upon hearing the Crown Prince's words, she immediately burst into tears.
“Yin Tang has no interest in politics, but he cares deeply about the safety of the people. How could he dare to accept a word of thanks from His Highness the Crown Prince?”
Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang watched this scene with satisfaction. Upon seeing this, Prince Suo'etu immediately knelt down and said, "The masters in the palace care about the people, and we servants should naturally do our part. This servant is willing to donate 50,000 taels of silver for disaster relief. If the court needs it, I am also willing to go to Suzhou to participate in the disaster relief work."
With him taking the lead, the other officials also knelt down one after another, either clamoring to donate money or to go to the disaster relief site to contribute manpower and effort.
Yinreng had anticipated this situation, but he hadn't expected it to go so smoothly.
He glanced gratefully at Empress Dowager Xiaozhuang, then secretly grasped Lady Guarjia's hand.
We thank her for taking the lead in donating money today, and we also thank her for protecting Yuqing Palace while she was busy with her own affairs of state and even overwhelmed with stress.
Hongxi looked at the large crowd kneeling before His Highness and felt a deep sense of emotion.
[In this life, thanks to Uncle Nine's timely provision of disaster relief supplies in Suzhou, and Father's prompt devising of corresponding countermeasures, we have today's harmonious donation scene. In the previous life, New Year's Eve saw considerable turmoil in both Suzhou and among officials in the court; had it not been for Grandfather's timely suppression, a truly major disaster would have occurred.]
Upon hearing his son's assessment, Yinreng began to doubt whether his ability to handle problems in his previous life was truly so inadequate.
However, this cannot be blamed on Father. The main reason is that in his previous life, Grandfather did not trust Father so unconditionally. His eldest uncle and eighth uncle were both constantly looking for trouble, and they were also creating trouble out of nothing. Naturally, Father was overwhelmed with dealing with them.
Yinreng found it somewhat amusing when he thought about the changes in Yinti and then about Yinsi in the Imperial Clan Court.
While external influences are important, the cultivation of personal abilities is equally crucial.
The Emperor has weathered many storms since ascending the throne, relying entirely on himself and his ancestors.
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