Disaster victims poured in
Zhao Junhui was waiting for Qin Zhao, the Vice Minister of Rites, on his way home from court. When he saw Qin Zhao come out, he immediately stepped forward and bowed.
"Lord Zhao, what brings you here without needing to stand on ceremony?"
Zhao Jun returned the bow and said, "My lord, I request to accompany you south to provide disaster relief!"
"Why?" Qin Zhao asked in return. Although the emperor had sent him as an imperial envoy to provide disaster relief, he had also sent a general to supervise the journey. The disaster relief trip would not only bring little benefit but would also be very arduous, so no one else was willing to go.
Qin Zhao knew that there was a reason why the Emperor had assigned him and Minister Min, two vice ministers whose official positions were not too high, to carry out disaster relief. Several highly respected dukes were getting old and were not suitable for traveling. The ministers also had many important matters to attend to, and their departure from the capital would have a certain impact on national affairs.
At the same time, His Majesty was also somewhat worried that the two vice ministers were not qualified enough to keep things under control, so he assigned General Xie Zhuo to supervise them along the way.
The emperor did not appoint General Luo Zhenhai, who had more military experience and a higher rank, but instead sent General Xie Zhuo, who was a cavalry general. There was another deeper meaning behind this.
Xie Zhuo's mission was to act as the emperor's eyes and ears. He was not only to escort disaster relief supplies and money, but also to supervise the actions of various officials once he arrived in the disaster-stricken areas.
Xie Zhuo was both a general sent to provide disaster relief and the heir of Prince Duan. He had both official rank and status. With him around, no official dared to openly obstruct the two imperial envoys.
Qin Zhao looked at Zhao Junhui thoughtfully. Zhao Junhui was a third-ranked scholar in the imperial examinations, which was a very high starting point for him. It was unlikely that he would take the initiative to ask for disaster relief for money. Could it be that he wanted to establish a good reputation among the people and pave the way for his future career?
Zhao Jun replied, "My hometown is Yuzhou. This year's floods are unprecedented in Yuzhou in decades. At such a critical moment, I hope to do my part for the people of my hometown."
Qin Zhao kindly reminded him: "His Majesty has appointed me as the Imperial Envoy of Qingzhou."
The implication was that if you wanted to go to Yuzhou for disaster relief, you should go to see Min Kunzheng, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue.
When Zhao Jun met Qin Zhao's teasing gaze, he stiffened. He had just come over after the Emperor finished announcing the decree, but he had come to the wrong person. The atmosphere became quite awkward.
Qin Zhao looked at Zhao Junhui's embarrassed expression and suppressed a laugh, "Do you want me to help you contact Lord Min?"
Zhao Jun bowed again and said, "Qingzhou is adjacent to Yuzhou. Even if I were not going to Yuzhou, my determination to go and provide disaster relief would not waver."
Qin Zhao thought that he had no one else to use. Although this editor was young and impulsive, he was knowledgeable and full of enthusiasm, so he could be considered a useful person.
"I have been ordered to depart for disaster relief the day after tomorrow. If you are determined to go with me, you should hand over your current affairs to your colleagues tomorrow and come with me south for disaster relief the day after tomorrow."
Zhao Jun was stunned for a moment, then overjoyed: "Thank you for your kindness, sir!"
*
The floodwaters have receded, but the damage they caused has not.
Roads were covered with rocks and mud, houses were washed away, bridges were cut down, and trees were uprooted... The flood left devastation in its wake.
More and more disaster victims gathered outside the city, and people from the surrounding disaster-stricken areas poured into the city. All the inns in the city were full, and there were no spare places to accommodate the disaster victims.
The government sent people to set up sheds on the open ground of the imperial road, and laid out some straw and soft materials as a temporary place to stay. People who came later did not even have straw sheds to sleep in, and could only sleep on both sides of the street.
As the number of disaster victims increased, the government's manpower and capabilities were limited, and despite continuous rescue efforts, the results were not ideal.
Moreover, the influx of 20,000 to 30,000 disaster victims into the city posed a serious threat to the security of Qingzhou.
There were refugees everywhere, and incidents of robbery and theft of food in the middle of the night were rampant. The people in the city were full of complaints and dared not go out. Li Wenkang simply ordered the city gates to be closed to prevent the refugees from entering.
He only had a little over a thousand catties of grain, which wasn't enough to feed so many people.
The disaster victims who had gathered from all directions shouted and pounded on the city gate, hoping that the prefect would open it. However, the city gate remained tightly closed from morning till night, showing no sign of opening.
At this time, the city was too busy to take care of the disaster victims from outside, and the government remained indifferent to their cries and shouts outside the city gates.
Once the city gates were closed, communication between Qingzhou City and the outside world was completely cut off.
Two days later, the sky cleared up, and after more than half a month of continuous rain, a sunny day finally arrived.
Granny Cui, along with a group of maids and servants, moved away the sandbags blocking the doorway, took out all the furniture that had been soaked by the rain to air it out, and washed and dried the clothes that were covered in dampness.
Qingzhou City is gradually regaining its vitality.
The floodwaters along the streets have been mostly cleared, and the situation in the city is gradually stabilizing.
The city gates, which had been closed for a long time, were finally opened again.
However, the city gates were opened not to help the disaster victims outside the city, but to clear the mud from inside the city.
As the floodwaters recede, a large amount of silt has blocked the ditches. If it is not cleared in time, it will cause flooding problems again if there is heavy rain.
When the disaster victims outside the city saw the city gates open and the yamen runners pushing carts out, they all swarmed around them as if they had seen a lifeline.
Upon seeing that the car was filled with mud instead of porridge, the light in his eyes instantly went out.
They had been starving for so many days, but the government still showed no sign of helping them. In this situation, they could no longer hold back and started cursing.
The situation inside the city is much better than outside the city.
Those who entered the city earlier were at least given a bowl of rice porridge.
With Li Wenkang's order, the soup kitchen was quickly set up in front of the government office.
When the disaster victims arrived at the soup kitchen, they were dumbfounded. What they found was hardly soup; there were only a handful of grains of rice in the pot, barely qualifying as rice water.
The disaster victims were greatly disappointed, but they had no right to complain. At this point, they were already grateful to have a bowl of rice porridge.
Even with this method of cooking rice porridge, more than a thousand catties of grain were consumed in just two or three days. As the number of people increased, the amount of grain decreased, and the disaster victims were forced to stop eating after drinking rice porridge for two days.
The city is slowly recovering, and the government's relief efforts are underway. Fu Zhi Qiao feels that the situation should stabilize soon. She wonders what the scene is like outside the city. She tells her servant to hitch up the carriage and plans to go to the winery herself to take a look, otherwise she won't feel at ease.
To everyone's surprise, the carriage was blocked before it even left the city gate.
The noise ahead was deafening, and the servant knew they couldn't go any further. He said, "Miss, there are refugees causing trouble!"
"What's wrong?" Fu Zhi Qiao was startled by the scene in front of her as soon as she lifted the car curtain.
The main city gate was closed; only the side gate was open to allow the dredging carts to enter and exit.
But now the side gate is blocked by disaster victims.
There were about twenty or thirty guards, armed with knives and guns, facing the disaster victims with murderous intent, preventing them from entering the city.
The disaster victims were wary of the soldiers' mobile phones and weapons, and dared not rush over directly, so the two sides remained deadlocked.
Fu Zhiqiao looked up and saw a dark mass of disaster victims outside the city gate. They were all emaciated and their faces were covered in grime.
Starving victims could be seen everywhere, trees near the city gate had no bark, and people were even fighting over a few blades of grass.
Through the fence, some of the disaster victims saw her wagon. Their eyes were filled with longing for food, as if they were about to pounce on it at any moment.
"I haven't eaten for three days, please have mercy!"
"Sir, please have mercy and save us!"
Several disaster victims were driven away by the officials as soon as they tried to approach.
A grandfather and grandson standing closest to the side door caught her attention. The elderly man, with tears in his eyes, broke off a piece of dark, mushy bread and fed it to his grandson, who clumsily wiped away his tears with his little hand.
This scene suddenly struck a chord with Fu Zhiqiao.
The city guards approached and asked, "Who are you? What are you doing outside the city?"
The driver replied, "Sir, my young lady wishes to visit relatives outside the city."
The guards warned her: "The floodwaters outside the city have receded most of the way, but the low-lying areas are still a vast expanse of water. If you insist on leaving the city, you will have to bear all the consequences yourself."
Given the current situation, if she were to leave through the side gate, she would likely be robbed clean by the disaster victims; leaving the city at this point is impossible.
"Girl?" Ginkgo asked with a worried expression.
"Let's go back!" Fu Zhiqiao lowered the carriage curtain.
The servant could drive, but to say he could escort her safely to the winery was wishful thinking. For safety's sake, she could only wait for Wenjiang to come looking for her.
On the way back, Fu Zhiqiao kept replaying the scene she had just witnessed in her mind.
How could this be? Weren't the government officials cooking porridge to provide disaster relief? Why do those disaster victims look like they haven't eaten for days?
Fu Zhiqiao did not go straight home, but instead instructed her servant to drive the carriage to the yamen.
She got off the carriage and before she even reached the entrance of the yamen was stopped by the officials. "Who dares to trespass on the yamen?"
Yinxing stepped forward and blocked Fu Zhiqiao's way: "Sir, my young lady has important matters to discuss with Lord Li. Please inform him." As she spoke, she took out a piece of silver from her sleeve and tried to give it to the official.
"Let's go, let's go. Do you think we adults are just people who can see us whenever they want?"
Li Wenkang had already given the order that no unauthorized personnel should be seen. The official, seeing that Fu Zhiqiao was a woman, didn't even give her a second glance.
Unable to see the prefect, Fu Zhi Qiao had no choice but to return home. However, instead of going directly back to Lingshui Lane, she wandered around the Imperial Road area. The streets were filled with disaster victims, and many people lay unattended by the roadside, some unconscious from hunger and others dead.
The disaster was more severe than she had imagined, and Fu Zhi Qiao couldn't bear to watch any longer.
The flood destroyed people's homes, and now they can't get proper resettlement. Many people can only watch helplessly as their loved ones starve to death one after another.
They had barely survived the flood, but now they were starving to death because they had no food.
On the way back, Fu Zhiqiao sighed in the carriage. If Zhou Miaosi were here, she could have directly met the governor through Zhou Miaosi's connections. Unfortunately, Zhou Miaosi was probably in the capital preparing for her wedding.
With a "whoosh," the carriage stopped in front of the Fu residence.
Fu Zhi Qiao snapped out of her reverie and gave a self-deprecating laugh. Perhaps she had been living in a peaceful and prosperous era for too long, and had unconsciously brought her old ideas into the picture.
In her world, no matter what disaster strikes, the country's rescue personnel can arrive at the scene immediately, and relief supplies and access routes can all be cleared in a short time. But here...
Never mind, it's better not to say anything.
After Fu Zhi Qiao got off the carriage, the servant drove it back to the backyard. The gatekeeper, seeing that his young lady had said she was going out of the city but had returned so quickly, did not dare to ask any questions.
Yu Roulan saw her and asked, "What? Aren't you going to the winery?"
Fu Zhiqiao sighed, her tone quite heavy, "The area near the city gate is full of disaster victims, and the carriage can hardly move an inch."
"Huh? Didn't the government office distribute porridge yesterday? Hasn't the situation outside the city improved yet?"
Fu Zhi Qiao nodded, and Yu Rou Lan sighed and said nothing more.
The residents of Lingshui Lane weren't exactly wealthy, but their standard of living was at least above the poverty line. Her neighbors had long since returned to a normal standard of living, but Yu Roulan had never left the lane, so she didn't know what the outside world was like.
"Ah Qiao, can we help them?"
"I'm trying to figure something out!" Fu Zhiqiao replied. Her capable assistants Defu and Wenjiang and Wenshan were not around, and Cheng Yexuan had been assigned to protect the winery. At present, she had no one she could rely on.
Food shortages and a lack of medical care left many starving refugees in the city without anyone to care for them. Fu Zhi Qiao knew that if this situation continued, it would inevitably lead to chaos.
When Li Wenkang donated money to the merchants to suppress the bandits, Defu represented Taibai Wine Shop. Although Fu Zhiqiao had never directly contacted Li Wenkang, she could guess what kind of person this Lord Li was.
The next day, Fu Zhiqiao went to the yamen again, this time prepared.
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