Gu Yuzhi slowly withdrew his arm, propped his chin up, and looked at Prefect Qi, chuckling to himself.
So this is what it feels like to pat someone on the shoulder. No wonder Guard Qi likes to pat other people on the shoulder so much.
When Prefect Qi heard from Gu Yuzhi that Vice Minister Su would be coming to Changzhou upon his return, he breathed a sigh of relief, mounted his horse, and followed the carriage back to Changzhou.
Because of His Highness's trip to Changzhou, the manor became busy again, especially Granny Xu, who worked non-stop for several days and finally managed to produce a lot of dry food.
When the group arrived in Xinliang, it was already early September. The poplar leaves on both sides of the official road were turning slightly yellow. They were not growing as well as those outside Changzhou, but they were still much thicker.
Even when she tried again, Gu Yuzhi was still filled with a sense of novelty. She rested her chin on her hands and stared intently at the scenery outside.
"I wonder where Xueye is in Xinliang, and how she's been these past few months."
Gu Yuzhi pouted and sighed.
Last time they came to Xinliang, Xueye ran around outside having fun and didn't come back when they left. Gu Yuzhi was very worried for a long time. It was Chen Dianyi who brought a message saying that Xueye was with its mother and had been to the Wenwang Mansion.
Gu Yuzhi breathed a sigh of relief upon learning that Xueye was alright. Although he was very busy with his studies, he still felt very uncomfortable.
His friends went outside to have fun by themselves, leaving him all alone, pitiful and lonely...
Gu Yuzhi was still wondering what he should do when he saw Xueye when he heard Xie Changshi say, "Your Highness, look, those people ahead are refugees from Jiangnan."
The refugees had come all the way here, arriving only two days earlier than Gu Yuzhi and his group. Due to their large numbers, Chen Dianyi had to lead his men to set up a checkpoint at the end of the official road to register their information and reissue travel permits.
After receiving the travel permit from Xinliang, the people went to the side to collect their grain, and there were people specifically assigned to lead them to their lodgings.
There were too many people coming, and the houses they built in the summer were simply not enough. They had to find a way to put some people together to live in.
Xin Liang's guards, their faces covered and holding long spears, stood behind Chen Dianyi and the others, their eyes sharp and ready to seize anyone who dared to make any move.
Gu Yuzhi craned his neck to look ahead, but did not see Minister Su's figure, so he could only wave to Chen Dianyi.
Unfortunately, Chen Dianyi was too busy to notice him at the moment.
When Xinliang was short of people, Chen Dianyi had a headache. Now that so many people have come, Chen Dianyi has an even bigger headache.
To quickly organize the household registrations and get these people involved in the harvest, while also ensuring that the registration was error-free, Chen Dianyi worked tirelessly until his eyes were red.
Who can understand the troubles of being so busy!
"Chen Dianyi," a guard whispered as he approached, "His Highness has arrived."
Chen Dianyi, feeling dizzy and disoriented, gave an "oh" and almost instinctively looked up at the person in front of him. Only as he put down his pen did he look up and ask, "Who did you say came?"
The guard whispered, repeating, "His Highness has arrived."
Chen Dianyi quickly put down his pen and stood up, taking the help of the guard.
Your Highness has arrived. Is that old geezer Xie Changshi here too?
No, no, I absolutely cannot let myself feel this kind of busy trouble; that old geezer Xie must feel it too!
Thinking about it this way, Chen Dianyi suddenly felt his head was no longer dizzy and his brain was no longer throbbing, and his previously unsteady steps became much more agile.
Chen Dianyi walked to the carriage, tears streaming down his face before he could even speak. After a long pause, he bowed, his voice trembling, "Your Highness!"
Gu Yuzhi jumped off the carriage and looked up at Chen Dianyi. Just then, Chen Dianyi looked up, and Gu Yuzhi exclaimed, "Chen Dianyi, how did you turn into a little rabbit!"
When it snowed in winter, he would take Xueye to play in the outskirts of Changzhou during his days off. Xueye killed a mother rabbit, and when he ran to see what was happening, he saw a group of baby rabbits lying in a snowdrift. Their fur hadn't grown much yet, and they were pink and tender. He thought it was a bit funny, so he brought them back to the manor.
The little rabbits are growing so fast! By May, they were already quite plump, and there were even a few more baby rabbits in their nest.
Granny Xu complained that the rabbits were multiplying too quickly, so she turned all the adult rabbits into jerky. Some of the jerky they brought back for Chen Dianyi from Xinliang was made from rabbits.
After catching the rabbit, Gu Yuzhi was curious for a long time. Every day after finishing his studies, he would feed the little rabbit and naturally knew that the rabbit's eyes were red.
However, he had never seen anyone's eyes turn so red before.
Gu Yuzhi covered his mouth in horror and said, "Chen Dianyi, is it because you ate too much rabbit meat that you turned into a little rabbit?"
If he also eats rabbit meat, will he turn into a rabbit too?
Gu Yuzhi was terrified, her lips trembling, and she was on the verge of tears.
Chen Dianyi's eyes were filled with sorrow: "Your Highness, there are too many refugees from Jiangnan. I have been working for two days without rest."
Confirming household registration is no small matter, and Chen Dianyi was really worried. Even when he was asleep, he would wake up in a fright, so he simply stopped sleeping altogether.
Just then, Xie Changshi came out. Without thinking, Chen Dianyi grabbed his hand and whispered, "Old Xie, it's good that you're here. Go and hold the fort for a while, let me get some rest."
Chief Secretary Xie?
No, he just came to check on Xin Liang's situation, how did he end up being conscripted by Chen Dianyi?
He glanced quietly at Chen Dianyi's red eyes and sighed silently, "Alright, alright, I'll be right there."
Chief Secretary Xie shook his head, realizing he had been too kind; otherwise, he should have made Consort Chen endure two more days…
After Xie Changshi left, Chen Dianyi breathed a sigh of relief. Instead of resting, he reported the situation of the past two days to Gu Yuzhi: "I heard from Vice Minister Su that the Emperor has already publicized the settlement policy of Xinliang to Jiangnan, and there may be more people coming to Xinliang in the future."
Gu Yuzhi's big eyes widened even more. He shifted his gaze to the people still queuing up to register their household registration. After a while, he blinked and asked, "Chen Dianyi, how many people have registered their household registration in the past two days?"
"There are already over two thousand people." Chen Dianyi smiled as he said this, "I estimate there are over four thousand..."
More than four thousand people!
When they were outside Changzhou, Gu Yuzhi felt that there were a lot of people. When he stood on the carriage and looked into the distance, he could only see a sea of heads, and he couldn't see the end of the crowd.
He was thinking back then that there might be more than two thousand people, but now that he thinks about it, he was a little timid.
Chen Dianyi smiled and said, "There should only be a little over three thousand people in Xinliang now. I said that we could eventually reach four thousand, which was because I was thinking about the people who would follow. However, it is possible that these people will not come. After all, the flood in Jiangnan has been resolved, and they still want to go back to their hometowns."
If one were to die, who would want to leave their homeland?
Gu Yuzhi nodded his little head and beckoned Chen Dianyi to get into the carriage: "Chen Dianyi, where is Minister Su? I haven't seen him."
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