Qingyan stood there for two whole hours, but the people at the gate did not back down at all; they all wanted to support their families.
The disaster relief grain transported by the imperial court was also old grain, but the people in this mansion gradually purchased a lot of grain from the Yuelai Inn, which was all new grain.
"Si Si, why don't you retreat?" Qing Yan couldn't understand why those people wouldn't leave.
People from neighboring villages flocked to the area to make way for them, and the dilapidated, uninhabited houses became their lodgings. Many even started fighting in their desperate search for a safe place to call home, making the local security situation the most troubling problem for the county magistrate.
Yin coldly looked out the window. These people were probably worried about their own food reserves, and it would be great if they could get more food.
“Our manor’s grain is new grain, while the grain that was transported here should be old grain!” Yin knew the Ministry of Revenue’s ways. Apart from the grain used as rations for the Eight Banners, the rest of the new grain was sent to the Northwest Camp.
"The people work hard all year, but they don't even have enough food for themselves. After the disaster, they have to use old grain!" Qingyan smiled bitterly.
Reality is often the most devastating. Qingyan noticed something was wrong, but was powerless to change it.
"The wealthy have already arranged for a whole year's worth of grain reserves, so they have nothing to worry about." The county's grain shops only sell to the common people, and the grain they sell is mostly from the county government and consists of grain from previous years.
Qingyan pursed her lips, pondering how to handle the situation, as this imbalance would severely impact the mental well-being of the disaster victims.
When disaster strikes, many people will stir up trouble behind the scenes, destroying the wealthy mansions, but the most unfortunate ones will be the women living in the backyard.
"However, we must severely punish those troublemakers!" Qingyan suggested indignantly.
The two sat down, and as she looked at the exquisite afternoon tea on the table, she couldn't help but feel that it was a waste.
She pushed the pastries aside, pouting, her mind filled with the eyes of the disaster victims—people who probably thought they were the ones who truly helped them.
Unexpectedly, instead of opening the door, they cruelly deprived them of their will to live.
"Fourth Brother, Jiangnan is still a land of fish and rice. To me, it's no different from the capital!" Qingyan was too reserved in the capital, where he had to pay his respects frequently and had become accustomed to the extravagance of the palace.
When she sees disaster victims who are barely clothed, her compassion overflows.
Whenever a disaster strikes, the Yuelai Inn provides food relief, and this is all recorded in detail in the capital's account books.
"Um?!"
“Every year, Yuelai Inn sends over disaster relief ledgers. Besides food supplies, they mostly use disaster victims as laborers, which not only saves costs but also ensures that food supplies are distributed in the correct quantities,” Qingyan complained.
Yin picked up the ivory hairpin, picked up some snacks and began to feed them. His thoughts were different from Qingyan's. One's birth was determined by God. One could have a better life when young, but would have to bear greater responsibilities in the future.
"You prepare the provisions from the Yuelai Inn, and I'll transfer the silver to you from the Ministry of Revenue!" Yin sighed, the memorial that had just been delivered in his hand weighing a thousand pounds.
The report recorded the disaster situation within a few miles, and that mudslides had occurred not far away, and that they happened in the middle of the night.
In the past few days, the disaster victims who have been arriving one after another are mostly those affected by mudslides. Their planned routes forward have also been blocked, so Yin had to consider staying.
Yin's situation is similar to his; he hasn't gone far and has been blocked by natural disasters. In addition, with Songkelierha by his side, things will be even more difficult there.
"Huh?!" Qingyan was stunned. How did we get back to this topic?
Now, apart from the disaster victims at the gate of the mansion, everything is normal. Why is it necessary to allocate food?
When Yin realized that Qingyan didn't believe him, he simply handed her the memorial.
Erlu returned with an imperial edict from Kangxi, and under duress, Yinke was allowed to provide disaster relief first.
"Another attempt to get something for nothing!" Qingyan muttered a few words, genuinely dissatisfied.
The main reason Emperor Kangxi specifically summoned Qingyan was because of this matter.
"What?!"
Yin glared at Qingyan, and Qingyan immediately wilted.
"No, I said it's perfectly fine. I'll have Sulan go to the Yuelai Inn and tell the manager later." Qingyan quickly smiled ingratiatingly.
snort!
Yin got up and poured Qingyan a cup of hot tea, placing it on the table. The report recorded the population of the nearby villages, which gave him a headache. It was nearly 90,000 taels of silver. The Ministry of Revenue could come up with that amount of money, but the Minister of Revenue would not give it up easily.
"I will prepare first, but there may be some delays." Yin pursed his lips awkwardly, not daring to say much about the time.
She could somewhat understand what Yin meant: the money needed for the last disaster relief would take almost half a year to make up for.
If it weren't for Linglong Pavilion's continued support, Yuelai Inn would probably be in real trouble.
"You need to hurry, last time you almost caused my inn to go out of business!" Qingyan was annoyed.
Yin took out a jade earring from his purse. It was made of old mine jadeite and was carved by him personally.
She caught a glimpse of the earrings out of the corner of her eye, and her eyes lit up.
He smiled to himself, thinking, "Indeed, my husband is not as good as Jade."
"Fourth Brother, is this for me?" Qingyan quickly changed her expression, looking at him obsequiously.
She has absolutely no resistance to jade; whenever she sees jade, she can't help but want to pounce on it.
"Um!"
Yin nodded, placed the earring in her hand, and looked down at it. The design on the earring wasn't as exquisite as the ones made by the Imperial Guard. She looked at him suspiciously.
"Did you make this yourself?!" Qingyan tilted her head and thought for a moment. There was only one possibility; otherwise, Yin would not have allowed such rough workmanship to come into her view.
Sometimes, she felt that Sisi was a detail-oriented person, with an extremely strong possessiveness towards every person or thing that caught her eye.
"Yes, you are not allowed to wear any other jade earrings." Yin didn't care. When he had time, he would try to do more designs. "I will personally design your headdress. Apart from the jewelry from Linglong Pavilion, you don't need to use any more made in the palace."
Yin disapproved of the craftsmanship of the imperial workshops. She felt uncomfortable seeing that many of the palace concubines and Xiao Guai used the same jewelry.
"What?!" Qingyan looked at him in surprise.
Not made in-house?
The concubines were already envious and often made sarcastic remarks about her, hoping that she would gain more favor with the emperor.
“Yes, distribute the imperial jewelry as rewards,” Yin said earnestly.
Qingyan pouted and nodded. Those jewelry pieces weren't her style either; they were bulky and not delicate. Otherwise, the concubines wouldn't have had their families buy them from Linglong Pavilion.
"How did we get onto the topic of jewelry?" Qingyan looked at Yin helplessly; the conversation had gone off-topic quite a bit.
Qingyan put down the memorial, mentally calculated the amount of grain he needed, and quickly went out the door.
"Sulan, go and have the manager of Yuelai Inn procure grain and fodder from various parts of Jiangnan, and stockpile as much as possible," Qingyan instructed Sulan, telling her to get the manager to prepare as soon as possible. (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote for it on Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please go to m.qidian.com to read.)
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