Gu Yuzhi's mouth was agape as if an egg could fit inside, and he blinked frantically but still couldn't come to his senses.
Even though Teacher Shu considered herself well-informed, she never imagined that the emperor of the Sang Dynasty would do such a thing!
She took a deep breath: "Young Prince, your elder brother is truly unexpected!"
"In modern times, some people travel thousands of miles to offer their heads; in the Sang Kingdom, the emperor sends refugees thousands of miles away!"
Gu Yuzhi hadn't recovered from Qi Chenglang's words when he suddenly heard Teacher Shu say that someone had traveled a thousand miles to deliver their head to someone else.
In Teacher Shu's words, this person probably has something wrong with their head.
Seeing Gu Yuzhi's surprised expression, Qi Chenglang felt it was all worth it!
Without needing Gu Yuzhi to ask, Qi Chenglang quickly recounted the origins of these refugees, then chuckled and said, "My second brother said that His Majesty is very angry, believing that His Highness Prince Chu concealed the truth about the floods in Jiangnan, which is truly malicious and shows that he regards the lives of the people of Jiangnan as worthless."
"His Majesty said that His Highness's policy of reclaiming wasteland in Xinliang is very good. Since His Highness Prince Chu does not cherish the lives of the people, these people should be sent to His Highness Prince Wen, who loves the people like his own children."
Gu Yuzhi didn't quite understand why her third brother wanted to conceal the flood, and she didn't understand what it had to do with having ulterior motives. But when she heard Qi Chenglang say that her brother felt that he loved the people like his own children, Gu Yuzhi straightened her back.
He raised his eyebrows at Wen and Shu: "Look, look, my brother praised me!"
Qi Chenglang continued, "His Majesty is well aware of Your Highness's hardships, so in addition to sending these refugees, he also sent 10,000 taels of gold and 50,000 shi of grain!"
Even Xie Changshi, who was usually calm and collected, couldn't help but gape.
The Emperor's actions this time are truly unexpected!
He turned to look at Gu Yuzhi, secretly speculating that the Emperor was using the refugee issue as a pretext to send money and food to the young prince!
With a smile on his lips, he quickly stood up and bowed to Gu Yuzhi: "Congratulations, Your Highness! Now Your Highness has both money and manpower; the reconstruction of Xinliang is just around the corner!"
Gu Yuzhi then came to his senses, clenched his small fists, and his eyes shone: "Guard Qi, let's go!"
The guard scratched his head, looking bewildered, and asked, "Your Highness, where are we going?"
Gu Yuzhi scoffed, "Of course I'll go to the outskirts of Changzhou! These people have traveled thousands of miles to the northern desert to seek refuge with me, so of course I have to show my face and let them know that my royal brother didn't lie, and that I, Prince Wen, would never lie!"
As he spoke, he patted his chest, looking proud of himself as an adult.
Looking at Gu Yuzhi like this, Shu Xiaohan for some reason thought of the first time the three of them met. At that time, the young prince's eyes were full of fear, but he pretended to be strong because he had been exiled.
But the young prince has really grown a lot now, not only in terms of knowledge and physical development, but also in terms of mental development.
Shu Xiaohan looked on with satisfaction and gently patted Gu Yuzhi's head: "Our little prince is so brave, daring to face those refugees."
Gu Yuzhi straightened his back even more: "Let's go!"
Upon learning that he was to travel as a prince, the manor specially changed the carriage, and Gu Yuzhi also changed into a ceremonial robe and wore a crown. The little boy instantly became noble and exuded an aristocratic air.
This was the first time Shu Xiaohan had seen Gu Yuzhi dressed so formally. She circled him several times, sighing repeatedly.
It was at this moment that Shu Xiaohan truly realized that the little child in front of her, who always sweetly called her Teacher Shu, was a member of the imperial family.
Wen Xiuzhu, who had been silent all day, finally spoke up: "Your Highness's imperial robes are very fitting. It just so happens that many refugees from Jiangnan have come this time. Your Highness could have Cailian select some of the more meticulous ones to learn how to make clothes."
Wen Xiuzhu glanced at Shu Xiaohan: "Speaking of which, we have to thank Teacher Shu. If you hadn't suggested planting more mulberry trees in Xinliang, I would never have imagined that we could open a fabric shop and sell ready-made clothes."
Hopefully, some of the refugees who have come this time will know how to weave.
When Professor Shu went to Xinliang for research last year, he discovered that Xinliang has a large amount of wild flax, which is a key material for weaving!
Wen Xiuzhu immediately told Gu Yuzhi about this. Last year, when Xie Changshi had people reclaim land, he collected a lot of flax stalks and seeds. This spring, he had people plant a large amount of flax on that land.
However, none of the people who went to Xinliang knew how to weave, so they had to sell the flax stalks cheaply to the weaving merchants.
In terms of food, clothing, shelter, and transportation, Your Highness currently has no shortage of food or shelter, but there is still a shortage of clothing!
Wen Xiuzhu is full of business acumen, especially when Xinliang's crops are facing a bumper harvest.
Gu Yuzhi, however, was not listening to Wen Shu's conversation and was talking to Chief Secretary Xie about how to appease the people later.
He clenched his fists and puffed out his cheeks repeatedly to make himself look less nervous.
The carriage swayed and rattled for half an hour before finally arriving at the refugees' temporary resting place. Upon seeing the carriage's scale, the imperial envoy quickly jogged forward to greet him: "Your subject, Su Quanping, pays his respects to Your Highness Prince Wen."
For a moment, Gu Yuzhi was bewildered. Who was Su Quanping?
Chief Secretary Xie quickly explained in a low voice, "Your Highness, Vice Minister Su is Consort Liang's father and is in charge of agricultural affairs. The seeds that Consort Liang sent over before were selected by Vice Minister Su."
Gu Yuzhi's eyes lit up. Consort Liang's father had even chosen seeds for him?
He instantly understood that Minister Su was a great person, just like Consort Liang!
Gu Yuzhi jumped off the carriage, helped Minister Su up, and said with a big smile, "Minister Su, you must be tired from your journey."
Su Quanping raised his head slightly to look at Gu Yuzhi, and suddenly found it hard to recognize that the man in front of him, who looked so dignified, was actually the unremarkable sixth prince from before.
He thought to himself, but he couldn't remember what the Sixth Prince was like at the palace banquet before.
Su Quanping suppressed his shock and quickly shook his head, saying, "I am not tired; it is all for the sake of the people."
Gu Yuzhi smiled and took his wrist, her tone affectionate: "We were supposed to hold a welcome banquet for you, but Xinliang is busy with the harvest and the people haven't been settled yet, so you'll have to work hard for the next few days to deliver these relief grains to Xinliang. We'll get together at the manor when you come back from Xinliang."
He tried to pat Su Quanping's shoulder, just like the guard Qi, but he couldn't reach it. So he patted Su Quanping's wrist instead. Then he looked up at the refugees in front of him, and the smile on his face disappeared.
The refugees, exhausted from their long journey, were like numb, lifeless zombies. Some had even begun to regret whether traveling thousands of miles to the northern desert was the right thing to do.
Upon hearing Su Quanping announce his greeting to His Highness Prince Wen, the group seemed to come alive, becoming incredibly excited...
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