In November, Beijing and several nearby cities experienced a once-in-a-century blizzard.
The snow was knee-deep, and large numbers of refugees crowded at the gates of the capital, begging the emperor inside to give them a way to survive.
In less than seven days, the capital and several nearby cities began to run out of food and charcoal. Food and charcoal were extremely scarce, and even the high-ranking officials in the capital were in dire need of supplies. Stacks of memorials were carried into the Hall of Supreme Harmony.
"What can I do?"
Perhaps he was so angry that a rare blush appeared on Gu Heng's face.
“Every day, we’ve been giving some help to families who have a surplus of food and charcoal, but what’s the result? Apart from those few families, the gates of the other mansions have never been opened.”
"Father, please don't be angry. You must take good care of your health."
Gu Qingling was also encountering such a situation for the first time. "The snow is too thick, and everyone is having difficulty moving. I have taken the liberty of suspending the morning court sessions for the next few days."
Gu Heng was panting with anger, but he closed his eyes helplessly. "I wonder how many people will die from this snow."
"Ling'er, we must find a way to get these high-ranking officials to offer assistance."
Gu Heng's intuition as an emperor told him that too many people could not die at this time.
However, when Gu Qingling sent her handwritten letters to various households, she was met with all sorts of complaints, and some even asked the court for grain. Gu Qingling was quite angry.
"What a bunch of good-for-nothings!"
Outside the residence of the Marquis of Dingyuan.
Jiang Yu had Ling Hai remove the doors from the empty courtyard and shovel away the snow outside the mansion gate.
"Madam, shall we continue to provide porridge?"
Because the Marquis of Dingyuan's residence distributes porridge every winter, it stores up a lot of grain every winter.
“Yes, we need to make a thick porridge.” At this moment, Jiang Yu didn’t care about any family feuds. Ling Hai would bring news of refugees every day, and Jiang Yu was extremely anxious after hearing it. “Many people are relying on this bowl of porridge to save their lives.”
At first, porridge was only distributed outside the gate of the Marquis of Dingyuan's residence.
"Wanji, gather everyone you can in the manor and clear a road from the Marquis of Dingyuan's residence to the city gate of the capital." Jiang Yu's hands were red from the cold. "There are too many refugees at the city gate. Distributing porridge outside the gate is not enough."
There were too few people in the Dingyuan Marquis's mansion, so Jiang He and Gu Lin both went to the kitchen to help cook porridge.
Outside the city gates of the capital.
Jiang Yu served each bowl to a refugee, handing them out personally.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Countless words of thanks rang out. Even though Jiang Yu was wearing no makeup, everyone thought the Empress was incredibly beautiful.
"Don't rush, everyone has one."
Jiang Yu's hands were a little sore, but after looking up at the still-falling snowflakes, she swung the spoon in her hand again.
"It's all the Emperor's fault for being immoral!"
Suddenly, a voice rang out from the crowd, "The current emperor is immoral, and the Hall of Longevity has caught fire twice in a row. This is the late emperor's dissatisfaction!"
"And this heavy snow is a warning from heaven!"
Jiang Yu's hand paused, and the iron spoon fell to the snow. "Insolence!"
The next second, the man who was speaking was slit in the throat by the Imperial Guards at the city gate.
The atmosphere froze. Jiang Yu glanced around and saw the fluctuations in everyone's eyes. Her heart trembled slightly. Who... could have made that man say those words?
She even specifically chose this place, the one where she distributed porridge and therefore had the most refugees.
The heavy snow continued to fall, and the food reserves of the Marquis of Dingyuan's mansion and a few other families were no longer enough to cope with the growing number of refugees, while no useful news came from the palace.
Finally, the refugees began to shout that the emperor was immoral.
Outside the city gates of Beijing, blood stained the snow, the red and white mingling together, easily stinging the eyes of all the people of Daqing.
The heavy snowfall didn't stop until early December.
But the matter escalated far beyond that, and the literati in the countryside began to use poems to subtly satirize Gu Heng's lack of virtue.
The simple and easy-to-understand verses were widely circulated among the people, and by the time they reached the imperial court, they had already spread like wildfire.
"Kill them all!"
Gu Heng roared in fury, "From now on, anyone who touches Ni Shi will be killed without exception."
Even though more than half of the officials in the court spoke out against it, nothing could change Gu Heng's decision.
"Ling'er, if you handle this matter well, I will appoint you as the Crown Prince."
Gu Heng put his hand on Gu Qingling's shoulder. Gu Qingling looked at Gu Heng's ashen face and curled the corners of her lips. "Father, rest assured, I will definitely do my best."
Those who harbor rebellious intentions against the royal family deserve to die.
Watching Gu Qingling's departing figure, Gu Heng coughed violently, but his pupils dilated when he saw the blood coughing up from his hand. How could he...?
It should have been a time of joyous celebration for the Lunar New Year's Eve, but every household in the capital kept their doors tightly shut, fearing that the Imperial Guards might come knocking at any moment.
The prison is already overcrowded, and the knife in Deng Yu's hand has been stained with the blood of countless people.
The Marquis of Dingyuan's residence.
"Gu Lin, have you found out who was the one who said Gu Heng was immoral that day?"
Gu Lin's expression was far from pleasant. He shook his head and said, "That person is a gambler. He's penniless and never comes home. We can't find anything about him."
Jiang Yu's breath hitched. "No matter what, we can't let Gu Heng keep killing like this."
So many intellectuals and ordinary people are losing their lives every day; the situation has escalated to the point of literary inquisition.
“We can’t wait for Consort Yi’s pregnancy. I will return to the palace tomorrow.” Jiang Yu clenched the handkerchief in her hand. “When will Mei Chu be allowed to enter the palace next?”
"Three days later."
Jiang Yu and Gu Lin exchanged a glance. Gu Lin said softly, "I will have Mei Chu inform Gu Heng about his poisoning in three days. I think Gu Heng will immediately think of Gu Qingling."
"Then what about your safety...?"
"With the guards of the Marquis of Dingyuan protecting me, Gu Lin, I entrust the Marquis of Dingyuan's mansion, my elder brother, and the Bai family to you."
Jiang Yu held out her hand, "Please."
Gu Lin reached out and shook hands with him back. "Don't worry, I'll let Ling Hai follow you. Ayu, if anything happens to you, I'll go crazy."
Gu Lin separated their clasped hands and took out a pill. "This pill is Consort Rong's antidote. After taking it, Consort Rong's voice will return to normal."
Thank you.
When Jiang Yu saw Jiang He walking up behind Gu Lin, a sense of resoluteness emerged among the three of them, and a look of relief slowly appeared on Jiang Yu's face.
“Brother, when the truth comes out, let’s go and offer incense to our parents.”
"good."
The next day, Jiang Yu returned to the palace in a sedan chair.
As soon as Jiang Yu arrived at Zhaoning Palace, before she could even catch her breath, she saw Consort An rushing over with red eyes. "Your Highness, the princess has a high fever. Please go and see her quickly."
Jiang Yu stared at Consort An for a moment, then followed her to Jing'an Palace without touching the ground.
"Mother."
Inside the inner chamber of Jing'an Palace, Gu Qingyao was unharmed.
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