Chapter 2 Distributing Porridge [Revised]
Although Mei Niang found it strange, she still told her everything in detail.
Originally, she didn't want her daughter to worry and planned to just say a few words, but now the pressure from the government is all on her shoulders, so she inevitably ends up saying more and more.
"Only Zhu Niangzi, the widow of Liu Zhubu, and her daughter remained in the yamen, and they helped out in the kitchen."
"And Officer Wu and his wife."
"The county school instructors are from the same family, but they live and eat at the county school and don't have much contact with each other."
There are only a few people left in the government office, but there are more than just these people who need to eat.
Many officials died, and their families needed the government's help to take care of them.
Putting everything else aside, some food must be provided.
Upon hearing this, Su Qing instinctively asked, "Give us food?"
"How much grain do you still have left from the exchange of your jewelry?"
Mei Niang sighed.
One hundred catties of millet were exchanged on the seventh day of the sixth lunar month.
Today is June 12th, and I still have less than 40 jin left.
Upon hearing this, Su Qing almost choked on her breath.
Mei Niang is good in every way, except that she is soft-hearted.
She spares no effort to help others who are having a slightly difficult time in business.
Su Qing thought to herself, if she had known this would happen, she shouldn't have stayed in bed to recuperate.
"Mother, don't give us any more food for now."
“We can’t afford to exchange much grain. Those who work in the government office should be given food, but those who don’t work in the government office should not be given any for the time being.”
Mei Niang hesitated for a moment, then shook her head: "The men in their family have either run away or died; we can't just ignore them."
"If your father were here, he would definitely take care of it."
If Magistrate Su were alive, he probably wouldn't be distributing grain so recklessly.
And they would try to get food.
In the following days, more and more people came to borrow grain.
Most people thought Mei Niang was kind-hearted and easy to talk to, and wanted to get some food from her.
That is indeed the case.
As long as you say a few nice words and play the victim a few times, you can have food for a day.
At this time of year, people naturally flock to the door.
Mei Niang had only ten catties of grain left after exchanging her jewelry for it.
These ten jin (5 kg) are barely enough to be kept for Su Qing and Su Cheng.
That being said, Mei Niang was rummaging through her stored fabrics and handkerchiefs.
After being stationed in a remote area for many years, she and Magistrate Su worked diligently and thriftily, accumulating some wealth.
Seeing another batch of fabric being taken out, Su Qing couldn't hold back any longer.
She was still very weak, but she pressed down on the cloth directly.
"No," Su Qing said firmly, "We can't change it like this."
The errand runner, Officer Wu, withdrew his hand and looked at Magistrate Su's daughter.
Su Qing, the daughter of Magistrate Su, was always shy and rarely appeared in front of others, but her tone this time was unquestionable.
"Sister, we have no choice but to exchange it. Grain prices are still rising. There's nothing we can do," Officer Wu sighed.
His family was also destitute; otherwise, he wouldn't have been willing to exchange the magistrate's wife's belongings for food.
But grain prices are rising rapidly, so you should switch as soon as possible.
Many families had to pawn their houses and land to get through this period.
Regardless, let's get through this current crisis first.
Mei Niang also tried to persuade her, but she mostly refused to lend grain to other families.
Su Qing had no choice but to correct him: "It's not that we don't want to change it, but we can't change it like this."
Everything eventually runs out of power.
What will we do then?
We need a long-term solution.
Su Qing's gaze was firm, her tone became increasingly calm, but her words became increasingly bold.
“We wrote an IOU to Mr. Wang to borrow grain.”
"No way!" Officer Wu exclaimed immediately. "Do you know how high their interest rates are?!"
Borrow ten catties of millet.
We'll have to pay back 15 jin after the autumn harvest two months from now!
It's roughly equivalent to borrowing 10,000 yuan now and paying back 15,000 yuan two months later.
Such interest rates are truly alarming.
Therefore, exchanging goods for grain is the most cost-effective method.
Su Qing thought to herself, "Of course I know how high their interest rates are."
But I borrowed it and have no intention of paying it back.
However, in order to appease everyone and to make this happen.
Su Qing said, "My mother's savings are not enough to repay much of the grain debt."
"But there are just too many people who need help, and compared to that, it's a drop in the ocean."
"The only way to save more people is to write IOUs."
Too many people need to be rescued?
Didn't you disagree with lending grain to others? You've been stopping me from doing so lately.
Not to mention Constable Wu, even Mei Niang found it strange.
Su Qing replied solemnly, "Mother, you are the magistrate's wife, and I am the magistrate's daughter. Our county has encountered such a calamity, and we should provide disaster relief and distribute porridge."
"When I say I'm borrowing grain, I mean I'm borrowing grain for disaster relief."
"This way, more people can be saved."
Mei Niang's eyes lit up, and she subconsciously said, "Your father said the same thing when he was guarding the granary: that the grain would be used for disaster relief after the war."
Officer Wu was getting anxious.
This won't do!
They don't even have enough food for themselves, yet they're offering disaster relief.
This mother and daughter are too soft-hearted.
Officer Wu scratched his head in frustration.
Mei Niang, however, made Su Qing write an IOU. She couldn't write, but she insisted on putting her fingerprint on it herself.
Su Qing remained calm and picked up her pen to write.
It doesn't matter if the handwriting is good or bad, it's just an IOU anyway.
She wanted to borrow 50,000 catties of grain for the government's disaster relief and porridge distribution.
The interest rate hasn't been written yet; it's just waiting for Mr. Wang to add it.
Finally, Mei Niang pressed her handprint again.
Based on the current situation, by August, we will have to return approximately 70,000 to 80,000 jin of grain.
Mei Niang hesitated at this point.
The interest rate is too high.
How can I possibly repay it?
Su Qing whispered with a hint of devilishness, "But now we can save more people."
"As long as we can hold out until the autumn harvest, the government can still collect taxes. If the people survive, we will be able to pay off our debts."
Officer Wu was no longer willing to speak.
The wife and daughters of Magistrate Su are oversimplifying things!
If there were other officials present, people could try to persuade them.
But only someone as tongue-tied as him could not explain it clearly.
Mei Niang, thinking that she could save more people, has already started to take action.
By the time the other officials in the yamen heard about this, it was too late.
In particular, Gu Congsi, the son of Gu, the instructor of the county school.
Gu Congsi rushed over, and when he saw the 50,000 jin of grain at the entrance of the yamen, his vision went black.
Su Qing was still ill and had lost a lot of weight; she could barely walk.
Just as she was resting by supporting the grain, she noticed a gaze on her. Su Qing looked up and saw a handsome scholar with clear features staring at her.
This scholar is quite handsome.
Su Qing's eyes lit up, while Gu Congsi frowned and looked away.
When Su Qing came to her senses, she subconsciously touched her nose and recognized who was in front of her.
Gu Congsi passed the county-level imperial examination at the age of sixteen and was considered a promising candidate for the provincial-level examination.
Most importantly.
They were so close to getting engaged.
However, Gu Congsi was clearly not happy about it.
Then war broke out, and Magistrate Su died suddenly. Gu Congsi then agreed to the marriage.
It wasn't for Su Qing himself, but to comfort Magistrate Su.
Of course, it was only a verbal agreement, and they were not actually engaged.
In this situation, the meeting between the two parties was rather awkward.
Gu Congsi showed great respect to Mei Niang, bowed, and said, "Madam Su, this grain cannot be lent; please return it."
“I still have some stored food at home, which can be delivered over and will last for a while.”
Mei Niang naturally knew how high the interest rates were on the grain from the Wang family, the local gentry.
But she was determined to help the people, and shook her head, saying, "Let's do disaster relief, otherwise even more people will have to sell their children."
Su Qing subconsciously looked at Mei Niang.
This woman wasn't ignorant; she knew the interest rates were high, and she also knew the government couldn't repay the debt.
For the sake of the people, I am still willing to do it.
She will take the burden upon herself, regardless of the consequences.
Some people might say she's stupid.
But the people of Nanjiang County cannot say this.
Su Qing stepped forward, supported Mei Niang, and said firmly, "Mother, let's provide disaster relief today."
“If we don’t have enough grain, we’ll continue to borrow. I’ll write the IOU and sign it, and you can put your fingerprint on it and stamp it with my father’s official seal.”
"They've gone mad."
"You and your daughter are both insane."
Officer Wu looked at Gu Congsi in despair, hoping that the usually clever scholar Gu would say a few words.
Only then did Gu Xiucai realize that the mother and daughter had borrowed grain for disaster relief, not for their own consumption.
This was even more inappropriate, but he couldn't persuade him otherwise.
This is a practice of robbing Peter to pay Paul.
The Nanjiang County government is truly doomed.
Su Qing saw through the other party's thoughts and simply joined Mei Niang in organizing disaster relief and porridge distribution.
When the people of Nanjiang County heard that the government was going to provide disaster relief, they could hardly believe their ears.
Even if we don't mention it, there's no food available in the government offices.
Are all the granaries empty?
How can they be providing disaster relief?!
Upon learning that the money had been borrowed from the local gentry Wang by the government, the people were speechless for a moment, and then their eyes filled with tears.
When Wang, the local gentry, heard about it, he ridiculed it extensively.
A woman's perspective.
Such womanly compassion!
That's fine too, until the government can't repay the debt.
Isn't it up to him to decide?
A note from the author:
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