Seeing the serious expression on Gu Yuzhi's face, Shen Yu'an stepped down from the carriage. The coachman, holding an umbrella, escorted him all the way to the porridge distribution point at the yamen.
Cailian looked up and saw his attire. She bowed slightly to him and said, "Young Master."
Her voice wasn't loud, but it was loud enough for everyone around to hear. Caiyue looked up and bowed as well, saying, "Young Master."
Shen Yu'an nodded slightly and looked at the large pot of porridge being cooked in the yamen: "Thank you for your hard work. Where are Steward Xie and Qi San?"
Cailian whispered, "Guard Qi and the others went to carry the pillars, and Steward Xie is helping out at the Qin family doctor's office. There were quite a few injured people today, and the Qin family doctor's office almost got into trouble."
Shen Yu'an frowned slightly. When Judge Qin came out to provide disaster relief, he was accompanied by guards and yamen runners to maintain order. What trouble could possibly happen?
Cailian approached and said, "Li Ji Trading Company originally only planned to set up a soup kitchen, but we didn't expect that our Wen family would send out a physician. Not wanting to be left behind, they also set up a clinic here with their doctors."
They're all trying to save lives, so it should be a good thing. How could something go wrong?
Shen Yu'an said anxiously, "Just tell me the key point."
Cailian said in a low voice, "I have to explain it to you clearly." Seeing Shen Yu'an's displeasure, she continued, "The typhoid medicine we brought was free, but Qin Yuanpan didn't have much of the external medicine, and it ran out in no time. Just then, the doctor from Li Ji Trading Company's clinic came and kept making sarcastic remarks to us. I don't know where he found out that His Highness bought Chen Yuanwai's house a few days ago, saying that our Wen family has money to buy a security escort agency and a big house, but no money to treat the people."
She sighed as she spoke, "You know how bad Judge Qin's temper is. He gets angry very easily. If it weren't for Chief Secretary Xie keeping him in check, the doctor from Li's Trading Company would have been verbally abused to death by him."
Upon hearing this, Shen Yu'an was no longer in such a hurry. Seeing people coming forward, he raised his chin and said, "Alright, go back and distribute porridge to the people. Remember to make it thick. It's freezing cold, and thin soup won't keep you warm."
He turned and pointed to the carriage: "I brought a few bags of rice from the manor. You can arrange for them to be distributed to everyone."
Cailian was deeply moved: "On behalf of the people of Changzhou, I thank you, young master."
Just then, Prefect Qi, who happened to be passing by, frowned and looked at Shen Yu'an. Wait, who is this person?
He heard from a servant that the young master of the Wen family had arrived, so Prefect Qi hurriedly led the constables over, fearing that the young prince might encounter some danger. But as soon as they arrived, they heard Cailian say thank you, young master.
He was filled with suspicion. Whose young master was this?
How could he not know which young master in Changzhou looked like this?
Hearing the commotion, Xie Changshi followed and immediately spotted Shen Yu'an. Before Prefect Qi could speak, he said, "Young Master, you didn't need to come in person. The disaster relief is proceeding smoothly. With Prefect Qi here, you can rest assured."
Shen Yu'an nodded and said, "I had someone bring some food and herbs over."
Prefect Qi glanced at Chief Secretary Xie, who then leaned closer and whispered, "This is Young Master Wen from our Wen family."
Prefect Qi's eyes widened.
Are you trying to bully him? He's not blind yet!
Chief Secretary Xie winked and said, "We can discuss any questions after the disaster relief is over. Just remember, this is our Young Master Wen when we're out here."
At this moment, many people passing by the Wen residence stopped and bowed when they saw Shen Yu'an, saying in unison, "Young Master."
Prefect Qi composed himself and bowed to Shen Yu'an: "On behalf of the people of Changzhou, I thank Young Master Wen for his righteousness!"
The group of people standing together became the center of attention, and with the shouts of the servants of the Wen family, the surrounding people all knew that the young master of the Wen family, who had never shown his face before, had finally appeared today, and he even brought food with him.
Compared to the porridge at Li Ji Trading Company, which was so clear you could almost see the bottom, the porridge cooked by the yamen and the Wen family was like heaven and earth.
More and more refugees lined up at the porridge distribution point, and as they passed by Shen Yu'an, they would sincerely say, "Young Master Wen, thank you."
Shen Yu'an didn't put on airs. He nodded slightly to these people, then exchanged a glance with Chief Secretary Xie. The two of them walked towards Judge Qin, with the Wen family's carriage carefully following behind.
Gu Yuzhi was in the carriage, but his gaze was drawn to the refugees.
Through the gaps in the carriage, he could clearly see that the refugees were barely clothed, huddled together in makeshift refugee shacks, trying to keep warm with each other. Even when they were holding porridge, their faces remained expressionless.
There were a few children in the shed who, after eating porridge, had some energy and chased and played with each other, their laughter echoing from time to time.
A little further past the refugee shack was an even more rudimentary shack. Gu Yuzhi looked at the things piled up inside and asked the guards before he learned that they were the corpses of people who had already died.
At this moment, Gu Yuzhi felt as if she were sick, feeling extremely uncomfortable, and her usually smiling face became unusually serious.
The carriage gradually came to a stop when it reached the location of Judge Qin. Xie Changshi made an excuse to rest and turned to get into the carriage. Qi Zhifu, who was kept in the dark, followed without thinking and got in as well. Only when he had one foot in the carriage did he see that Gu Yuzhi was also there.
He was caught in a dilemma, unsure whether to go up or down, and stood there dumbfounded.
Chief Secretary Xie said softly, "Prefect Qi, come in quickly, don't let His Highness catch a cold."
Prefect Qi quickly closed the door: "Your Highness, I was unaware of your presence. I have been presumptuous. Please punish me."
Gu Yuzhi then looked away, noticing the snow on Prefect Qi's shoulders, his clothes and boots soaked through, and said in a low voice, "Prefect Qi, you've worked hard. Please sit down and have a cup of hot water."
A small teapot sat on a red clay stove, the water boiling and steaming. Upon hearing this, Chief Secretary Xie poured a cup for Prefect Qi: "Your Highness is still young and cannot drink tea. Please have some to warm yourself up, as you will have a lot to do later."
Prefect Qi's hands and feet were almost frozen. He took the teacup, twirled it in his palm, and after a moment, said, "Please accept this. Thank you, Chief Secretary. What's the matter with this Young Master Wen?"
Upon hearing this, Gu Yuzhi and Xie Changshi both looked over. Prefect Qi was puzzled by their stares, but then a thought flashed through his mind and he suddenly understood. He regretted his loose tongue and said, "Your Highness, I shouldn't have asked these questions."
Gu Yuzhi didn't speak, turning his head to continue looking outside. Xie Changshi spoke up, "It's nothing. Young Master Wen will have many more opportunities to appear in public in the future, and he will inevitably need Prefect Qi's help to cover for him. Prefect Qi will find out sooner or later."
After Prefect Qi left with a thoughtful expression, Gu Yuzhi asked, "Chief Secretary Xie, is it really alright for Prefect Qi to know all this?"
"Your Highness, please rest assured. Prefect Qi is a reliable man. Besides, the people from Li's Trading Company are probably watching his every move. Even if he doesn't want to, in other people's eyes he is already one of our people."
Gu Yuzhi's face showed shock, and she had a feeling that Chief Secretary Xie had taught her something very important...
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