Chapter 807: The Less Harmful of Two Bad Outcomes
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Patriarch Wan shook his head. “It’s already too late. If the Imperial Court hadn’t issued a national policy, Princess Shaoyi might have accepted it if we had gone to show our loyalty to her. But now…” He shook his head again, his expression not looking too good. “With the national policy, the lives of the scholars are in Princess Shaoyi’s hands. If Princess Shaoyi is dissatisfied with the crime of complying on the surface but disobeying on the inside, do you think the Imperial Court will believe in the scholars or Princess Shaoyi? Do the commoners believe in the scholars or Princess Shaoyi?”
The atmosphere darkened again, and the family heads regretted it greatly.
If they had known this would happen, they wouldn’t have done it back then.
Patriarch Wan continued, “Go home and prepare money and food for Lord Li. You know very well how much you should prepare. Lord Li also knows in his heart and is more straightforward. All these years, Lord Li has benefited a lot from us. Lord Li is sensible and has some dignity in front of Princess Shaoyi. Let him step in and put in a good word for him in front of King Yue Fei.”
Their ancestors had said it well. Every family had 10,000 kilograms of food, so there was no need to panic when there was food. Which large family’s granary did not exchange old food for new food every year?
Lord Li knew very well how much food each family had.
If they wanted Lord Li to intercede, the four families had to at least let Lord Li have the confidence to speak in front of King Yue Fei. They could not fool him.
Lord Li was not stupid. If they paid him too much money and food for him to intercede with King Yue Fei, they would be credited.
If they paid too little, they would be in trouble.
“The women and children in the family will go and set up a porridge shed outside the city to help the refugees. Don’t pretend like before. At the very least, make it big enough. Don’t give Princess Shaoyi an excuse to attack.”
“I heard that Princess Shaoyi likes incense and strange stones. You have to show filial piety to her. You’re too kind to her. Even if you can’t please Princess Shaoyi, you have to be humble and show your respect.”
None of them looked happy.
Patriarch Wan’s meaning was very clear. They had to be willing to spend money, food, and effort. Their lives were more important.
… .
The Imperial Court had used Emperor Gaozu as an example and issued a national policy. The n.o.bles of the North had different reactions, but they were probably the same as the four families of Liancheng.
All of this was within Yu Youyao’s expectations.
It was impossible for the court officials not to know that letting Yin Huaixi interfere in the resettlement of the refugees was equivalent to letting go of the shackles restraining Yin Huaixi and letting him be free.
At that time, Yin Huaixi would have a chance to gather his troops in the North.
Yin Huaixi was extremely famous among the commoners, and it was suspected that he would have shocking contributions.
However, compared to Yin Huaixi gathering his troops in the North and having shocking contributions.
What was even more terrifying was the large-scale riots and uprisings initiated by a large number of refugees. It was the country that would be shaken. Such examples were common in history.
Of the two bad outcomes, they chose the less harmful one.
Now, tens of millions of refugees had a way out.
Yin Huaixi was no longer controlled by the n.o.bles.
Yu Youyao finally heaved a sigh of relief. Ever since she came to the North, she had been planning non-stop.
At first, she was thinking about the situation in Liancheng and even the North.
Later on, when she saw Lord Li, she had to consider every word carefully. She had to control Lord Li from the beginning. As long as there was a sentence that Lord Li took advantage of, it was obvious who Lord Li would choose between a mere woman and the four families of Liancheng.
Not only could the memorial presented to the Empress Dowager not express the suspicion of interfering with the court, but it also had to guide the Empress Dowager and even the court officials to target the North for dealing with the refugees.
Not only could the letter to the Yu Clan not reveal Yin Huaixi’s ambition, but it also had to guide Elder Yu to issue a national policy to Emperor Gaozu.
Be it the Empress Dowager, the court officials, or Elder Yu, they were all powerful people. They were also extremely scheming and not easy to fool.
As a woman, it was very difficult for Yu Youyao to control the entire situation of the court. However, she succeeded.
The next day, Yin Huaixi came to look for Yu Youyao.
Xie Jingliu came along.
After all, staying at the courier station was not like staying at home. Every time Yin Huaixi looked for Yu Youyao, he had to send someone to report it to Old Madam Xie first.
Old Madam Xie also knew that Yin Huaixi and Little Yao’er had the relationship of “cousins” when they were in the Yu Residence. Now that they had the “token” alliance, it was not appropriate to stop them.
However, Xie Jingliu was guarding against Yin Huaixi as if he was guarding against a thief.
Whenever Yin Huaixi looked for Yu Youyao, Xie Jingliu had to come over and keep an eye on her.
To put it nicely, it was like saying, “Not to mention that your marriage with Little Yao’er hasn’t been officially decided yet. Even if it has been decided, you have to abide by the rules. It’s fine if you meet or invite her, or even give her a private gift. However, it’s impossible for a man and woman to be alone in the same room.”
What could Yin Huaixi say? Yin Huaixi could only pinch his nose and accept it.
At this moment, Yu Youyao was standing under an old elm tree in the small courtyard. When she saw Yin Huaixi and her Third Cousin coming over, she pointed at the tree and said, “The elm tree is blooming. That’s great.”
Almost every family in the North had elm trees planted in front and behind their doors.
Yin Huaixi looked up at the trees. The elm trees produced flowers before leaves. “Before long, the elm leaves, elm, and elm bark will all be edible. The famine in the North will be alleviated soon, and no more refugees will starve to death.”
Elm trees were resistant to drought and could survive in desert areas. Since ancient times, there had been a saying in the north that an elm could relieve three droughts. If one planted an elm tree in their home, they would not be afraid of three years of drought.
There were many edible wild vegetables in the mountains.
However, the elm tree could fill one’s stomach, but not the other wild vegetables.
Xie Jingliu smiled. “By the way, I asked around outside today. Someone imitated Duke Zhang Wenzhong of the previous dynasty and brought more than 200,000 refugees gathered outside the capital to the North. On the way, they collected refugees when they encountered them, buried the dead when they encountered them, and entered the city alone when they encountered the city. They knocked on the doors of the wealthy families in the city one by one and begged them to provide food relief. No matter how unwilling the wealthy families were, they had to provide some food relief because of his status, family background, and official position. He asked as he traveled along the way. More than 500,000 refugees were willing to follow him.”
“Who is this person?” Yu Youyao’s eyes widened. Duke Zhang Wenzhong had experienced seven emperors in his life. After resigning and retiring, the Imperial Court could not hire him.
After a drought in the central Shaanxi plain, Duke Zhang Wenzhong, who was over 60 years old, came out of seclusion and became the deputy minister of the station in Shaanxi.
He had spent all his wealth to provide relief when the people were in trouble, and he would bury the dead when they were dead. Moreover, he had convinced the rich local families to provide food relief.
Later, he fell ill from overwork and pa.s.sed away.
After his death, he was posthumously named Duke Wen Zhong, and the people mourned as if they had lost their parents.
They wrote a poem, “Sheep on Mountain Slope: Meditation on the Past at Tong Pa.s.s”, and left behind a famous sentence, “When dynasties rise, the people suffer. When dynasties fall, the people suffer.”
Xie Jingliu opened his fan. “You know this person too. He’s your brother, Yu Shande.”
Yu Youyao was stunned for a long time.
Her grandmother had a grudge against the Yu Clan, and she had always been strong. Her relationship with the clan was only average, and she did not interact much with the clan. She only had a good relationship with the Clan Chief’s wife and the Second Old Madam.