HomeAfter I Bloom Hundred Flowers DieChapter 630: As One Wave Settles, Another Rises

Chapter 630: As One Wave Settles, Another Rises

As autumn deepened, Shen Xihe calculated that the summer retreat at the temporary palace should be ending soon, and Xiao Huayong should return shortly. However, she hadn’t expected the rain in Dengzhou to continue unabated – since that night, it had poured continuously for five days, not only refusing to stop but not even lessening in intensity.

The people of Dengzhou, initially overjoyed, gradually grew pale-faced. Even the Dengzhou officials began showing signs of worry. Prince Jing Xiao Changyan and Prince Yan Xiao Changgeng remained in Dengzhou due to the heavy rain.

Before Emperor Youning could breathe a sigh of relief, Dengzhou once again became his concern. To prevent disaster, he ordered Dengzhou officials to keep a close watch on residents near the mountains. Prince Jing and Prince Yan had already begun taking action before receiving the imperial decree, but they were still a step too late.

Seven days of continuous heavy rain caused numerous landslides, resulting in heavy casualties among nearby villagers. Only the well-managed small mountain villages with experienced leadership suffered minimal losses.

Most of Dengzhou had just endured drought during the hottest days, and before they could catch their breath, they were plunged into torrential rains and mudslides. During the drought, they only felt anxiety without hope; now many were homeless, their families torn apart.

Dengzhou bordered the sea, and if the heavy rain continued, it wouldn’t only affect the mountain and coastal villages. If the seawalls broke, half of Dengzhou would be flooded, potentially affecting neighboring prefectures and counties.

Before the landslide situation could be resolved, water level reports from various flood monitoring stations across Dengzhou arrived at Emperor Youning’s desk.

Compared to the drought, the impending flood made Emperor Youning’s expression even graver. The entire court was scrambling to find ways to overcome this crisis.

At least during the drought, support could come from various regions. Now with flooding in Dengzhou and landslides everywhere, delivering disaster relief supplies was nearly impossible.

“Your Highness, Master Tao has gone to Dengzhou,” Zhenzhu urgently reported to Shen Xihe.

Shen Xihe stood up abruptly, accepting the message from Xiao Huayong stating that Minister Tao had volunteered to inspect the disaster situation alongside the Minister of Works.

The Ministry of Works managed water conservancy. The Minister of Works, even older than Minister Tao, usually played deaf and dumb to court disputes but never hesitated in times of crisis. Though he would retire soon, his water management experience was extensive – throughout the entire court, only Minister Tao could compare.

Ten years ago, when Minister Tao was a local official, he single-handedly saved tens of thousands of lives during the Ganzhou flood.

After reading Xiao Huayong’s message, though worried, Shen Xihe was helpless. This was her grandfather’s wish. Though she had ways to bring Minister Tao back, neither she nor Xiao Huayong did so, knowing this was Minister Tao’s conviction.

Knowledge should be put to use, and officials should speak for the people and work for the weak.

“To the temporary palace,” Shen Xihe decided immediately.

She had nearly finished matters in the palace, and now with Dengzhou facing floods, Emperor Youning wouldn’t have the mindset to lead everyone back to the palace – how many urgent messages would be delayed by a day’s journey?

Though her grandfather had gone to Dengzhou, even political enemies wouldn’t dare harm him at such a crucial time, unless they were rebels. Anyone harming disaster relief efforts would face clan extermination. Regardless of their differences, all hoped the disaster could be contained – only when people were safe would they have time and energy to compete for power.

If Dengzhou’s people were left unattended, even those who gained the most advantage would ultimately just be cleaning up the mess from the highest position. Moreover, with Emperor Youning’s long-established authority, they dared not act selfishly now.

While human malice was unlikely, natural disasters could strike at any time. Shen Xihe is worried about Minister Tao, and Xiao Huayong would certainly be distracted trying to relay messages and comfort her. Better for her to go to the temporary palace to be with Xiao Huayong, where they can discuss matters and know things immediately without such complications.

“Any news from Qi Pei?” Shen Xihe suddenly asked while sitting in the carriage.

When the drought first appeared, Shen Xihe had already instructed Qi Pei to set aside all other matters and secretly collect grain from An’nan, An’bei, and other regions. To prevent grain prices from being driven up, they had to source from multiple locations.

Most of the national treasury’s grain had already been sent to Dengzhou; this time, even the Emperor might not have grain to spare.

“Qi Pei and Hua Taoyi have gathered 300,000 shi of grain. This news came five days ago,” Biyu reported.

Three hundred thousand shi was an enormous amount, but if flooding occurred and the disaster continued, even this grain would be a drop in the bucket.

“Recently grain prices in Jiangnan and other regions have risen. His Majesty has decreed that any region with sudden grain price increases will be treated as treason and punished accordingly,” Biyu added.

There were always those who profited from national disasters. Even rulers couldn’t prevent people from making profits during natural disasters – it was impossible to completely prohibit it. But they couldn’t cross certain boundaries, or feeding the merchants would harm the nation’s foundation.

Shen Xihe fell silent for a moment: “Send word to Qi Pei to stop collecting grain.”

It wasn’t obvious before, but now that the Emperor had issued his decree, large-scale grain collection would draw attention. Moreover, 300,000 shi was no small amount – even if Hua Fuhai was wealthy, continuing to collect would strain their finances.

“You told Hua Fuhai to stop collecting grain?” As soon as Shen Xihe arrived at the temporary palace, Xiao Huayong received the news. After escorting her to their quarters, he served her tea made with lotus leaves.

“Yes,” Shen Xihe moistened her lips and nodded. “One should act according to one’s position. You’re not the Emperor – we shouldn’t take the spotlight in this matter. If Hua Fuhai alone provides all the grain, His Majesty likely won’t tolerate it. Besides, we can’t personally pay for such a large amount of grain.”

It wasn’t that they couldn’t afford it, but they shouldn’t act this way.

“Is Youyou planning to…” Xiao Huayong’s lips curved in a slight smile.

“Though His Majesty has ordered regions not to drive up grain prices, completely controlling it won’t be easy,” Shen Xihe explained her plan. “Let’s wait and see if Dengzhou truly suffers flooding. If disaster strikes, have Hua Fuhai coordinate with the Ministry of Revenue to sell the grain to the court at a low price for disaster relief. With him taking the lead with such a large amount – 300,000 shi – would others dare to hoard grain or sell to the court at high prices?”

This was the best solution – collecting grain wasn’t for profit but for disaster relief. The effort by Hua Fuhai and his partner would count as accumulating merit.

“An excellent plan,” Xiao Huayong stroked his chin, noting it would also prevent others from causing trouble through merchants. “Having Hua Fuhai take the lead, accepting some money and government bonds – even with insufficient treasury funds, this can help address the disaster.”

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