"What exactly happened?" The Emperor's sharp gaze swept over the ministers below.
"I have failed in my duty." The Prefect of Jingzhao stepped forward, knelt down, and banged his head hard on the ground, not daring to get up.
The refugees had been arriving in the capital for several days. Dealing with refugees was a waste of time and money, and thankless work, so he had his men drive them to Ma Xing Street. He never expected that this old bastard Yunxiao would expose it today.
"Can this be explained away with just the word 'dereliction of duty'? Not only did you fail to report the influx of refugees into the capital, but you deliberately concealed it. It seems you've become too complacent with your official hat." The Emperor's voice was filled with intense anger.
"I deserve to die, I deserve to die!" The Prefect of Jingzhao kept kowtowing.
"Fix his salary for a year. If he offends again, he can go back to his hometown and farm," the Emperor said.
"Thank you, Your Majesty. I will certainly not repeat this mistake." The Prefect of Jingzhao wiped the sweat from his forehead and bowed as he returned to his seat.
"Li Heyang," the Emperor called out.
Li Heyang was the Left Chancellor, a man of integrity and uprightness who did not form cliques or engage in personal gain, and was also quite talented.
"Your subject is here." Li Heyang stepped forward, holding the jade token, and bowed slightly, awaiting the emperor's command.
"Take men to Zhang County immediately to investigate. If the snow disaster is truly severe, do not request permission; open the granaries and distribute grain and cotton clothing directly. If there is none, go and purchase more." The Emperor made a decisive decision without any hesitation.
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Li Heyang replied.
"We can't ignore the refugees in the capital either." The Emperor looked at his men and wondered who to entrust with this task.
“Brother, you understand the refugees better than we do, and you don’t usually have any important or urgent matters on your hands. Why don’t you take charge of settling these refugees?” Yun Song suggested with a smile.
Resettling displaced people is a hot potato; whoever takes it on is doomed.
Yunxiao knew that Yunsong was trying to trick him, but after glancing at Yunsong, he stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I request permission to resettle the refugees."
"Very well, then the matter of resettling the refugees in the capital will be entrusted to Marquis Zhen'an. The expenses for resettling the refugees will be allocated by the Ministry of Revenue." The Emperor smiled and nodded in agreement, then glanced at Yun Song indifferently.
"If you have something to say, speak now; otherwise, the court may adjourn!" The Emperor waved his hand.
"Respectfully seeing off His Majesty," all the civil and military officials said in unison.
"Congratulations, elder brother, you finally have a proper job." After the court session ended, Yun Song cupped his hands to Yun Xiao and said sarcastically.
Although Yunxiao held an official position, he had little real power, and the task he received today—resettling displaced people—wasn't a pleasant one. Yunsong was overjoyed.
"Any job that serves the country and its people is a good job," Yunxiao said solemnly, then turned and left.
"Hmph, anyone can say high-sounding words. I'd like to see what you'll do this time," Yun Song sneered.
The Vice Minister of Revenue was his friend, and they were both from the Liang family faction. He could only dream of getting money from the Ministry of Revenue to settle the displaced people.
Yun Qingran went to Gaga Xiang first thing in the morning. Gaga Xiang was very popular. At this rate of making money, she would soon become a rich woman, supporting eight male prostitutes and reaching the pinnacle of life.
But after what happened last night, she realized that this amount of money was nothing at all. She needed much more money to help the weak and pitiful.
"Miss, why do you look so sentimental?" After Zhang San finished cooking three large pots of hot pot broth, he could finally take a break. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and walked over to sit down next to Yun Qingran.
"Am I obviously sentimental?" Yun Qingran touched her face.
Zhang San pointed to her left cheek and said, "This side of your face screams 'melancholy.'" Then he pointed to her right cheek and said, "This side screams 'sentimentality.' Tell me, isn't it obvious how melancholy and sentimentality you have?"
"Hmph." Yun Qingran smiled and rolled her eyes at him, then sighed, "I have a dream, but it's hard to achieve."
"What is your dream?" Zhang San asked her.
"I hope that all people in the world can live in peace and prosperity, and no longer suffer from hunger and cold," Yun Qingran said, looking at Zhang San.
After saying that, seeing Zhang San's dumbfounded look, Yun Qingran pushed Zhang San's face to the side, "I know it's impossible for me, don't look at me like I'm an idiot."
Enabling the people of the world to live in peace and prosperity, free from the suffering of hunger and cold, is an extremely difficult task, practically impossible to accomplish in a feudal dynasty with such low productivity.
However, the image of the child who almost froze to death last night kept lingering in her mind, making her feel very distressed.
"Miss, you've misunderstood. I don't think you're an idiot or a delusional fool," Zhang San said, somewhat excitedly. "On the contrary, I believe you can definitely do it!"
He didn't know why he was so convinced; perhaps it was because Yun Qingran had transformed from a stupid, ugly, and wicked girl into a clever and quick-witted beauty. This experience was nothing short of fantastical; if something so fantastical could happen to her, what couldn't happen to her?
"Even if you praise me, I won't give you a raise!" Yun Qingran pushed back and shook her finger.
Zhang San: In the end, it was all a misplaced trust.
“Young Miss, the dream of many people is to enable the people of the world to live in peace and prosperity and no longer suffer from hunger and cold, including me.” Zhang San said slowly, “The reason I became a bandit before was because of natural disasters and man-made calamities. My whole family died, and I became a bandit in order to survive.”
Yun Qingran had always thought Zhang San was a sunny and humorous person, but she never expected him to have such a tragic past.
“Young Miss, people like us are of humble status and have no great talents. For us, this ideal is just a fantasy. But you are different. You are the legitimate daughter of the Marquis of Zhen’an’s family, the apple of the Marquis’s eye. You also have a clever mind and a stunning beauty. You might really have a chance.” Zhang San said earnestly to Yun Qingran.
"Zhang San, do you really think so?" Yun Qingran didn't expect that Zhang San was serious and would actually support her unrealistic dream.
"Of course it's true. As long as Miss needs it, Zhang San is willing to go through fire and water for Miss's dream." Zhang San looked at Yun Qingran with bright eyes.
"Okay, Zhang San." Yun Qingran patted Zhang San's shoulder and nodded heavily.
So what if this dream is unrealistic? Just do it and leave the rest to fate.
“Zhang San, I have a new plan for Gaga Fragrance,” Yun Qingran said to Zhang San.
The economic base determines the superstructure. She wanted to work hard to make money, a lot of money, and then rely on her strong financial resources to change the economic model under the feudal system.
A self-sufficient small-scale peasant economy is far too weak. It can easily go bankrupt if it encounters a natural disaster or man-made calamity. Such an economy cannot enable people to live in peace and prosperity and no longer suffer from hunger and cold.
“What do you say, Miss?” Zhang San said.
"I want to open a chain of stores."
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