Chapter 1496 People
Zhulan returned to the carriage. Li sat down by the window and said in the smallest voice, "Mother, the emperor has to go too!"
"Didn't you hear me? The Emperor is going to attend my lecture."
Li really didn't hear it. She was stunned when she saw her mother bowing. Then she bowed in a daze and went back to her own carriage. Now when she heard her mother's words, her eyes widened, "Listen to your lecture?"
Zhulan, "......"
She was already upset enough and didn't want to listen to Li's words, so she closed her eyes and didn't look at Li.
Lee, "......"
Mother was unhappy, so she shut her mouth obediently and even her breathing became lighter.
The carriage swayed slowly to the orphanage. Because it was winter, the progress of building the house was slow. Only two-thirds of the original house had been completed. The current progress was possible thanks to the recent rise in temperature.
The retired emperor went in first with his hands behind his back. Zhulan cursed him in her heart, then went in with the empress dowager with a smile on her face.
The Queen Mother looked around curiously, "There are quite a few people here."
"The strong men from the nearby villages came to build houses for the sake of food. They were all suffering from food shortages."
The Queen Mother was silent for a few seconds and then said, "Can the orphans from East City adapt to moving here?"
"Adapt. These children who stutter are very obedient."
To put it bluntly, the children are very numb. As long as they are assured that they are not abandoned, the orphans from East City who move to the village are very obedient. They don't cry or make a fuss, and they do whatever they are told to do, just like puppets on strings without souls.
The Queen Mother smiled and said, "Then I must take a good look."
Zhulan thought to herself, you will definitely be disappointed after seeing it. It's lively. Everyone likes a lively life, not a puppet.
The village took in 130 orphans, and sent some of them back after investigation. Together with the orphans from Dongcheng, there were more than 300 orphans in the village, one-third of whom were girls and two-thirds were boys.
The big difference between ancient times and today is that in ancient times, there were no sick or disabled children, and the survival of the fittest was even more cruel. In addition, during the years of food shortage, sick and disabled children did not live to grow up and died in childhood.
The living environment in ancient times was poor, and due to natural disasters and man-made disasters, it was most unfriendly to children and the elderly.
Therefore, apart from severe malnutrition, the children in the orphanage had no major illnesses, and after a few days of care, they were all able to work.
The retired emperor looked at the more than 300 children kneeling outside. Zhulan took a deep breath and pretended not to see anything. This is the ancient imperial power.
Zhulan looked at the clever and expressive ones, and kowtowed with great effort. Even though the snow outside showed signs of melting, the ground was still hard. She kowtowed sincerely, and some of them even had bruises on their foreheads.
The retired emperor and the empress dowager did not think anything was wrong; as they were the representatives of imperial power, they were very happy.
Zhulan curled the corner of her mouth and said, "Oh, I have to be careful when speaking in this class. Imperial power, imperial power."
The Queen Mother asked, "Is there a house in the village that can accommodate more than 300 people?"
Zhu Lan shook her head, "Not yet. The house I'm going to build later can accommodate up to 100 people."
The Queen Mother pointed at the 300-plus children and asked, "Do you want to give separate lectures?"
"No, I informed the steward yesterday that we will give a lecture outside today. The children should wear old cotton clothes and have a fire in the yard. They won't freeze in half an hour."
The newly built house is very damp and needs to be warmed up by fire. It cannot be used yet. Besides, she doesn't want to separate it, as it will make her tired.
The retired emperor and the empress dowager naturally would not freeze, as they were wearing plenty of clothes and sat in a temporary shed with a brazier set up and tea and snacks provided. Zhulan went up to the table and prepared to give her lecture.
In order to let all the children hear her, she made a simple loudspeaker. Even with the simple loudspeaker, she still had to shout. Fortunately, there was no wind today and the sun was still bright. God was kind to her.
Zhulan looked at the children in the audience, orphans under the strict system, and they were very obedient. There were more than 300 children, the youngest was five years old, there were no children under five, and there were not many children under five years old. They were able to survive because they had brothers or sisters to support them. The five-year-old children were very obedient and dared not make any noise at all.
Zhulan was not happy that no one was disturbing her. Instead, she felt very depressed. She took a deep breath and said, "Children, you all know me, so I don't need to introduce myself. Today I want to give you a lesson on the topic of people."
The emperor looked at the table and then at the children below the stage. The children had confusion in their eyes. The emperor didn't even drink his tea and listened attentively to Yang's class.
Zhulan smiled, "Today we are going to talk about what it means to be a human being. Before we start, I want to tell you a few true stories that my eldest son told me..."
Zhulan didn't interact either because it was unrealistic and no one would respond. These children were very numb.
She knew that it would be several days after her eldest son came back when she bought food for the children. Telling them now would stimulate the children's nerves and they would continue to listen if they reacted.
Cannibalism was a common occurrence in ancient times.
After hearing a few stories, the children's eyes began to waver. Some of the children knew that they, the orphans, had been hiding from people during the disaster, and in their eyes, people were scarier than beasts.
The story of Zhulan ends, "People have moral bottom lines. People know what they should do and what they shouldn't do. The court promulgates laws..."
This talk lasted for more than half an hour, and Zhulan's throat was a little sore from shouting. What she said was not profound, and she tried her best to explain the principles in plain language. She ended with a few short stories.
These children need brainwashing, and they need to be made to re-recognize themselves. Only when they live can they think about the future. Of course, this is mainly for brainwashing. What is practical for these children is to eat well and dress warmly.
The Emperor waited until the children left before he looked at Yang deeply. His plain words revealed the truth, which was Yang's strength. Several of her stories were very good. Yang was interesting.
The Queen Mother whispered, "Ms. Yang's lecture today was great. Before the lecture, the children's eyes were blank, but after the lecture, some of them straightened their backs a little."
The Emperor said, "I'll tell you what I'm talking about. It's not a wasted trip, is it?"
The Queen Mother felt a little uncomfortable. She had not agreed to attend Yang's lecture. She had seen female teachers since she was a child, and all female teachers' lectures were the same. She had not expected that Yang's lectures would be so interesting. Even the topics made her heart tremble. It is not easy for a person to become like a human being.
Zhulan's voice was so hoarse that it was almost smoking. Alas, for the sake of her own voice, she would have to speak separately in the future. The only regret was that he did not invite the female teacher.
The Emperor gestured for Yang to come over, "You spoke well and deserve a reward."
Zhulan's heart twitched. Imperial power, oh imperial power. Then she breathed a sigh of relief. When she spoke, she did not dare to offend the imperial power in the slightest. She avoided all the minefields. It was really difficult for her. "I just said what I thought in my heart. The exchange of children for cannibalism made me feel too much. I was in charge of the orphanage and did what I should do. I do not deserve the reward."
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