Chapter 420: Instigating Civil Unrest
"Your Highness, the common people should be appeased, but the rioters should be punished. Your Highness must know how to do it."
Su Qianqian pointed at the people who were separated and whispering to each other and reminded King Xiang.
"Madam Wuning, are you going to convict those people based on this alone?" Duke Xu said with a frown.
"Duke, I am just a woman. Last night my mother came to me in a dream and asked me to make a wish and do good deeds to accumulate merit. So today I followed the Marquis to the city gate to make a donation.
However, the people who receive my alms must not have ulterior motives, as that would be a sin. I naturally cannot convict them, but I hope they do not waste the food I donate. ”
Su Qianqian said with a smile, bowed and went down the city wall.
King Xiang glanced at Duke Xu, strode down the city wall, and followed Qin Hanzhang out of the city.
"Madam Wuning Marquis, what more could a husband ask for if the Qin family has a wife like you? Han Zhang has accomplished great things, and with your help in the inner house, there is no need to worry that the Wuning Marquis Mansion will prosper again in the future."
Duke Xu followed Su Qianqian and spoke with a gentle smile.
"You are joking, Duke. The Qin family's great achievements were gained through loyalty and dedication. Even without my help, no one can erase them. As for their rise and fall, survival and destruction, it all depends on luck. If you encounter a villain with ulterior motives, as long as you use the hoe well, there is no corner that you can't dig down!"
Su Qianqian also said with a smile.
Duke Xu turned his head to look at Su Qianqian with a scrutinizing expression: "The wife of Marquis Wuning is very different from ordinary ladies. Her words and deeds are unique. Master Su has taught his children well, and his daughter is so outstanding."
"Duke Xu, you are too kind. My father was too busy sharing the worries of His Majesty and neglected to discipline the children. It was my mother who was more busy. I am afraid that Duke Xu is the same."
Su Qianqian smiled, hinting at something.
"Haha, what the wife of Marquis Wuning said is absolutely right." Duke Xu walked with his hands behind his back and laughed it off.
At this time, Qin Hanzhang had already commanded the Imperial City Guards to head straight for the group of separated civilians. These people were a little panicked at first. Someone said something, and several of them shouted and ran away:
"The government is going to kill the people... run away..."
Then a group of people and those doubtful people followed and ran.
The people who were waiting to get food also panicked and hurriedly tried to catch up with their families.
"If you are disaster victims, do not leave and get food here. If not, you can leave." King Xiang reminded the people loudly.
Many people hesitated and stopped to look at the opened bamboo baskets. Under the felts were hot pancakes. The children were already crying for food, and the women were trying to persuade their husbands not to run after them, as having food was better than anything else.
In the end, this group of people went to get food, and Qin Hanzhang led the imperial guards to surround the fleeing group.
"What do you want to do by inciting the victims to cause chaos? Capture them..." Qin Hanzhang pointed accurately at a few people, who were the leaders who led the crowd to run away.
"Why are you arresting us? We are all poor people affected by the disaster. Can the soldiers arrest people without reason?" The men were still shouting and struggling desperately after being caught, which attracted the discussion of the other people.
"Who are you from? What are your names? Tell me one by one. There are people affected by the disaster in various places. If you don't recognize them, you are pretending to be disaster victims and looking for trouble."
Qin Hanzhang did not respond to those people's questions, but gave orders coldly.
The people who received the food watched from afar, munching on the particularly chewy cakes and drinking the hot noodle soup that was distributed.
The men hesitated and looked at each other. King Xiang waved his hand, and a guard drew his sword and pressed it against the neck of one of them.
"You choose one: either you tell us who ordered you to tell us immediately, or you never speak a word at all." King Xiang's eyes were grim.
"Speak, I will speak! We have received money and are here to instigate the people to cause trouble. We are here to support our families, not to be enemies of the government. We will never cause trouble again. Please spare us!"
The man's face turned pale and he fell to his knees in fear on the ground which was still covered with thick snow.
"It is indeed a riot by the mob! Take these people away and interrogate them strictly to see who dares to incite the people to cause trouble!" King Xiang waved his hand and ordered people to take those people away.
There was another group of people running behind these people. At this time, they were so scared that their faces turned pale, and they exchanged glances with each other and trembled all over.
"Who are you?" King Xiang turned around and asked.
"Your Highness, Prince Xiang, we were instigated by others and paid for our journey to Xijing. We did not dare to cause any trouble and will leave immediately and go home."
These people had already seen King Xiang from the city gate, and now they immediately knelt down and kowtowed.
"So you recognize me. Now that you are here, you don't have to leave. The city still needs many civilians. Take them all with you and release them after clearing the snow."
King Xiang was not so easy to talk to. He coldly ordered the guards to take these people into the city. They were all in good health and would be perfect as laborers.
These people were lucky enough not to be imprisoned, and the order was given by the prince. They dared not refute a word and just accepted their bad luck. They were taken to Qingxue to do volunteer work.
At this time, some of the real victims who saw the situation clearly secretly wiped their sweat. If they all ran away, it would be hard to say what the outcome would be.
"It takes some effort to eat this pancake, but after eating it and drinking the noodle soup, my stomach is immediately full and I feel full of energy. It's really amazing!"
A ragged citizen said cautiously.
"What special ingredients were added to the cakes sent by the wife of Marquis Wuning?" King Xiang turned to ask Qin Hanzhang.
"I don't know what Madam did, but Madam said that this cake is very filling and suitable for distribution to the people. It can also be regarded as fulfilling a vow and accumulating merit."
Qin Hanzhang explained according to Su Qianqian's words.
"So that's how it is. Although the wife of Marquis Wuning and the late Doctor of the Ministry of Personnel Su Qian are distant cousins, they have quite similar personalities. It's just a pity that if Su Qian..."
King Xiang sighed softly when he said this.
Qin Hanzhang didn't say anything. He went back to the city with Prince Xiang and Duke Xu. He walked towards the carriage inside the city gate. Su Qianqian had already boarded the carriage.
Suddenly, the sound of hurried horse hooves was heard outside the city gate. Everyone turned around and saw two horses entering the city one after the other. They were about to pass the crowd and ride away, but the horse in front suddenly reined in its horse and stopped.
Prince Xiang saw clearly that the man was Prince Ping. He did not recognize the man behind him. His face was so beautiful that it was difficult to tell whether he was a male or a female. There was a cinnabar teardrop mole at the corner of his eye that was so red that it was radiant.
However, the two men looked obviously haggard, with stubble on their faces, looking a little sloppy, and their clothes were dirty, with blood stains if you looked closely.
"Your Highness Prince Xiang." Prince Ping dismounted and saluted Prince Xiang, but did not apologize for violating the rules and leaving the city.
"Marquis Wuning, we just came back from Mount Qixia. We killed most of the wolves in the valley, but we didn't find any trace of Lord Su. How can we prove that Lord Su has passed away?"
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