Most people decided to stay for the one or two taels of silver, but a few stubbornly insisted on returning home.
One tall, muscular man, who usually relied on his strength for various tasks at home and could earn extra money moving goods during the winter agricultural off-season, naturally lived better than ordinary families. He was unwilling to stay in the exposed wilderness and get soaked for just one or two taels of silver.
“What good is one or two taels? If a child falls ill, no amount of silver can make up for it. At home, we can shelter from the wind and rain. My wife can brew a pot of ginger tea with brown sugar. It’ll be so much more comfortable.”
Influenced by the muscular man’s words, three to five more people stood by his side.
Yu Jin glanced around, noting about a hundred people with the muscular man.
He didn’t plan to persuade these adamant individuals any further.
He could offer more silver, and if he offered enough, these people would surely stay. But that wasn’t right. If he increased the payment for these people, shouldn’t he do the same for those who had already agreed to stay? For over a thousand people, that would be a substantial sum for Prince Yan’s mansion to cover. If he didn’t increase it for everyone, those who had initially agreed to stay would feel it was unfair, and more people would clamor to go home.
Moreover, in Yu Jin’s view, while one could offer help to those in dire straits, ultimately, fate rests in one’s own hands. He had already done what he could, even at the cost of his reputation. The rest was up to these people’s choices.
Thinking this way, Yu Jin’s gaze fell once again on the group insisting on returning to town. They were mostly families—men, women, old and young, including over a dozen children.
Perhaps because he was soon to become a father himself, Yu Jin’s heart easily softened towards these young ones. If adults could choose their fate, these children had no such choice; they could only follow their parents’ decisions.
He spoke again, “It takes at least half an hour to return to town from here. These children will fall ill from being in the rain for so long, even if they aren’t sick already. Rather than risking their health, why not stay in the tents? At least the tents can shelter from wind and rain. What do you all think?”
Some of the mothers who were planning to leave looked at the children in their arms or holding their hands, hesitating. “Father, maybe we should wait until the rain stops. The Prince is right; taking the children back in this rain might make them sick even if they’re not already…”
Hearing their wives’ words and looking at their pitiful children, the husbands nodded, “Alright, let’s wait until the rain stops then.”
These families, with their elderly and children, retreated to the tents.
Only a few dozen adults and four or five children remained.
People tend to follow the crowd, and some men say, “Why don’t you go back to the tents and take shelter? I’ll go home first to pack some things. After all, staying here means sleeping outside without any cover.”
The women then led their children into the tents.
This left only two young children among those insisting on leaving.
Seeing Yu Jin look over, the muscular man said, “Prince, please don’t try to persuade us anymore. I must go back. My child is sick, and there’s nothing here to help. We can’t bear it.”
Another parent with a child agreed, “Yes, my child is ill too. We should go back.”
“This Prince recalls there’s no physician in town. If you take your children back, at most you can give them a hot bath and some warm water to drink. How about this: I’ll take the two children to see a doctor. Once they’re better, I’ll send them back to you.”
Jinli Town was a large town that originally had physicians, but when the earthquake struck Qianhe County, local officials had already gathered doctors from all around to treat the disaster victims. Now, these doctors were being coordinated by medical officials from the capital and had not yet returned home.
The other family with a child quietly discussed among themselves, and the woman came forward with her young child, bowing to Yu Jin, “Then we’ll trouble the Prince to find a doctor for our child. We are grateful for the Prince’s kindness.”
“Sister, there’s no need for such formality.” Yu Jin took the child and handed him to Long Dan.
Long Dan, holding the crying child, thought to himself: This is the second one, isn’t it? The Prince seems to be getting addicted to taking in children…
Seeing this family entrust their child to Yu Jin, the muscular man’s wife urged, “Husband, let’s also give Nini to the Prince to see a doctor.”
The muscular man glared at his wife and scolded in a low voice, “What doctor? Nini will miss us if she’s away. Besides, this Prince is so young, what if he loses our child?”
Yu Jin, with his keen hearing, caught the muscular man’s quiet scolding and raised an eyebrow.
What necessary connection was there between being young and losing a child?
Through the rain curtain, the muscular man cupped his hands towards Yu Jin, “Thank you, Prince, but we still want to go back.”
Yu Jin gave the muscular man a long look but said no more.
He had done his best; the rest was up to fate. Perhaps the earthquake Ah Si had dreamed about wouldn’t happen at all.
“Let’s go, let’s go,” the several dozen people walked further and further away in the rain, mostly men who didn’t want to endure a night outside without a tent shelter.
As for the women and children, staying wasn’t so bad—they had tents to keep out the rain and silver to earn.
Watching these people disappear into the distance, Yu Jin turned to ask the village head, “Besides these people, how many have returned to town earlier?”
The village head wiped away some rainwater and replied, “Over the past two or three days, some villagers have been sneaking back to town after working in the fields. There are probably over a hundred people in town now.”
Compared to the bug-infested wilderness, the home was certainly much more comfortable.
Yu Jin looked up at the sky. Perhaps due to the rain, though it wasn’t yet evening, the sky was already dark and heavy.
Ah Si had said in her dream that the earthquake happened after people had gone to sleep, so it should still be safe now.
“Long Dan, have someone make another trip to Jinli Town. Beat the gong and announce that anyone willing to return can get one tael of silver.” Yu Jin’s tone became indifferent, “There’s no need to persuade each household individually, just beat the gong three times. Don’t wait either; those who want to come back will do so on their own.”
Long Dan immediately gave the orders.
Yu Jin nodded slightly to the village head, “Village Head, I’ll leave things here to you. This Prince will take the children to see a doctor now.”
“Safe journey, Prince.” The village head watched Yu Jin leave, then looked up at the endless rain curtain and sighed.
He was increasingly suspicious that the Prince’s talk of an earthquake in Jinli Town was just nonsense. He had heard that nobles in the capital often had strange hobbies; perhaps Prince Yan just enjoyed toying with people.
Fortunately, the five days were almost up, and there was silver to be earned. Even if the townspeople had suffered a bit, it could be considered as selling a few days of labor. Earning so much silver, it wasn’t a bad deal when you thought about it.
Lured by the silver, several dozen people gradually returned.
“Er Dan, why are you back?”
“Why wouldn’t I come back when there’s silver to be made? Earlier, my family didn’t have pigs or sheep to get compensation for, so of course, I went back to sleep comfortably at home.” The man shook out his rain cover, “With this cover, I’m more comfortable here than you lot.”
“Should we go back and get some things too?”
The village head shouted, “Stop this nonsense, everyone go to sleep now! Whoever goes back loses their silver, I’m keeping track!”
People grumbled for a while before quieting down.
They were all used to hard work, and despite the harsh conditions, they fell asleep quickly when it was time.
After an unknown period, a sudden tremor struck.