Hope?
Everyone exchanged glances, unsure of the meaning behind Yu Jin’s words.
Vice Minister Zhao coughed twice and asked, “How does Your Highness plan to give these common people hope?”
“First, let me ask Vice Minister Zhao, how many people are currently gathered in the West District?”
Zhao, well-versed in this data, immediately replied, “As of yesterday, there were approximately 28,000 people.”
“And what about the East District?”
Vice Minister Zhao’s face showed signs of difficulty: “It’s hard to keep track of the numbers in the East District. People are dying from the epidemic every day…”
Several local officials quietly wiped the corners of their eyes.
Qianhe County was considered a large county with a population of over 50,000. Now, with the earthquake and the epidemic, nearly half the population had been lost.
These were all living, breathing people.
“I’ve consulted with the Imperial Physician. The incubation period for the epidemic is about half a month. It’s been about ten days since the first case was discovered. For those who arrived in the East District earliest, there are only a few days left until this period ends. Why not select a few hundred people to set up camp outside the city temporarily? This would reassure the people. After safely passing through the incubation period, we can then allow the people from the West District to leave the city.”
The officials had also planned to let people leave after the incubation period if they showed no symptoms. However, to err on the side of caution, they hadn’t planned to release anyone early, which had led to increasing tensions between the refugees and the government.
Although Vice Minister Zhao found it admirable that a prince would show such concern for the common people, he thought Yu Jin’s proposal was somewhat naive. Shaking his head, he said, “There are nearly 30,000 people in the West District now. Has Your Highness considered how to select just a few hundred? Choosing one in a hundred – who to choose, who not to choose? People worry not about scarcity but unfair distribution. If those not chosen harbor resentment, the situation might become even more chaotic than it is now.”
“The principle of worrying not about scarcity but unfair distribution is correct. That’s why any artificial selection won’t be convincing,” Yu Jin calmly replied.
“Then what does Your Highness suggest—”
Yu Jin smiled at everyone and uttered two words: “Draw lots.”
Draw lots?
Everyone exchanged glances, their expressions turning strange.
Drawing lots for such a serious matter?
Yu Jin coldly observed their reactions, inwardly sneering.
What was wrong with drawing lots? He had been chosen by drawing lots!
If any of them dared to criticize, he would reveal what the Emperor had done and see if they’d dare say another word.
Fortunately, although these officials felt that drawing lots wasn’t serious enough, upon careful consideration, they found it more feasible than other methods.
Deciding fate by drawing lots meant leaving it to heaven’s will. Those not chosen couldn’t complain.
Although they found the method workable, there were still many details that needed to be discussed.
One local official couldn’t help but say, “If we draw lots, how should we do it? Having tens of thousands of people queue up to draw lots would create unfairness in the order. Moreover, although these tens of thousands of people are gathered in the West District, they’re divided into areas and strictly forbidden from moving between them to prevent further spread of the disease among potential carriers. If we bring all these people together, the chance of infection would greatly increase…”
Yu Jin nodded, strongly agreeing with the latter part of the official’s statement.
Of course, he agreed with the second half.
There was something magical about drawing lots – regardless of the order, the probability of being chosen was the same. But ordinary people tended to believe that those who drew first had a better chance. He didn’t want to waste time explaining this to them.
As for the official’s point about increasing the chance of infection if tens of thousands of people gathered together, that was indeed true.
“Gathering everyone together to draw lots is indeed inappropriate. Vice Minister Zhao, into how many areas are the people in the West District divided?”
“Five areas, with five to six thousand people in each. These five to six thousand people are further divided into teams, and the teams into groups, for easier management.”
“How many people are in each group?”
Vice Minister Zhao looked towards the Magistrate of Qianhe County.
The Magistrate, in turn, looked towards his subordinate.
The subordinate quickly replied, “Each area is divided into six teams, each team into ten groups, with about a hundred people in each group.”
Yu Jin listened attentively, his opinion of these officials improving.
Officials who truly did practical work had more experience than an outsider like himself.
What was originally a chaotic mass of tens of thousands of refugees had been organized in a way that was almost like managing a garrison.
However, emotional refugees gathered together were much harder to manage than soldiers, and with the disaster relief officials and soldiers having many other tasks, there weren’t enough people to manage the refugees, leading to so many riots.
Yu Jin pondered for a moment, then smiled and said, “The thoroughness of you gentlemen is admirable.”
Surprised by the praise, everyone said, “Your Highness is too kind.”
They felt a surge of goodwill towards Yu Jin.
It was gratifying that a prince could recognize their efforts.
“Since the groups have already been carefully divided, this makes things easier. We can select one person from each group by drawing lots. It’s fair and just, leaving no room for complaint.”
Vice Minister Zhao calculated quickly: “Selecting one person from each group means sixty people from each area. Five areas would give us exactly three hundred people…”
The officials exchanged glances.
Selecting three hundred people to leave the city seemed feasible.
“After these three hundred people leave the city, they’ll gather outside. Can the government temporarily take care of their food and management?”
Knowing these officials weren’t all incompetent, Yu Jin’s tone became more courteous.
Sensing his politeness, the officials’ goodwill towards him increased further.
Prince Yan was indeed much better than the Crown Prince…
Vice Minister Zhao pondered, “Managing three hundred people shouldn’t be a problem.”
Yu Jin smiled, “These three hundred people will give hope to the people in the city. With this hope, they can continue to wait, rather than starting one conflict after another.”
Everyone nodded, agreeing with Yu Jin’s proposal.
“There’s one more thing I’d like to remind everyone of.”
“Please speak, Your Highness,” everyone said in unison.
“The separation between the East and West Districts needs to be more strictly enforced. The woman and her family we saw today must have come from the East District. They mixed with the people in the West District without being examined by a doctor. If there are any infected individuals, the consequences would be unthinkable.”
Vice Minister Zhao smiled bitterly, “We’re short-handed, so there are bound to be some who slip through…”
Yu Jin fell silent.
Some things couldn’t be achieved by wishful thinking. He could only do his best to remind them.
“Let’s follow His Highness’s suggestion and first pacify the people in the city.”
In the afternoon, at the hour of Shen, Yu Jin and Vice Minister Zhao appeared on the city wall as scheduled.
More people had gathered at the city gate, their hopeful eyes fixed on the young man standing on the wall.
As Yu Jin raised his hand, the chaotic scene fell silent.
After Yu Jin explained the plan to select those who would leave the city by drawing lots within each group, the scene became chaotic again for a moment.
Yu Jin raised his hand once more, and when silence fell, he said, “This foolish prince’s limited wisdom has come up with the best solution possible. If you’re not satisfied, please be patient and wait for the officials to discuss and come up with a better plan.”
The people grew anxious upon hearing this.
Waiting for those old officials to come up with a good plan? They might as well wait for pigs to fly!
“We agree!” people began to shout.