Lord, don't be afraid, the princess is not angry

Chapter 78 Disaster Victims
Just when the life of Cheng's mansion can be regarded as a good time, the life of Kang Chao is not so easy.

Since the founding of the Kang Dynasty, the first year was considered to be smooth, and there were some natural and man-made disasters every year in the next few years.Snowstorms, droughts, floods and epidemics come one after another, and some victims of the disasters occupy the mountains as kings.Even though there is only one family that makes trouble every year, the emperor is very troubled by this every year, and even begins to wonder if he, the emperor, is not favored by heaven.

The people who were hit by the disaster in the year Changzi was born came to Chang'an after winter, and the wealthy households in the city even organized porridge donations.Uncle Zhang Guo donated food in public in the court hall, and the officials below agreed one after another. Even Cheng's mansion donated, and some people were sent to set up a porridge shed outside the city to give porridge. This matter was still handled by Jinhua and Yinhua. Hua is young and very easy to get sick, and Mrs. Sun is worried about her going out in winter.

When Jinhua and Yinhua came back after serving the porridge in the evening, they were very sympathetic when they talked about the appearance of the victims.Both of them have experienced the days of not having enough to eat. Looking at them, they can't help but think of their childhood, but even when they were young, they didn't have such a miserable life. At least they didn't have to leave their hometown to make a living elsewhere.After hearing what they said, Zhuhua thought of something else.

"Why don't they trade their labor for food?"

"Where does Chang'an City need so much labor?" Cheng Dashan just came in from the outside and replied after hearing Zhuhua's words.

"Why not? In the past few years, Daxing Street has been the busiest in the city, but besides Daxing Street, there are also many interesting shops on the other side streets. It's a pity that other streets are not as smooth as Daxing Street. If labor is cheap now, and the streets of Chang'an are refurbished, I think Chang'an will be more lively in a few years."

"It's winter, do you think it's that easy to build roads?" Mrs. Sun scolded with a smile, worrying that her daughter would start thinking about trivial things again.

"How difficult is it to build a road? Is it more difficult than digging a river in winter? By the way, they can also dig a river, dig a river that runs through the north and south, and it will be convenient for the goods from the south to go to the north. Those silk teas It doesn't need to be so expensive."

"You really don't feel pain in your back when you stand and talk. Who would go down the river in winter? Don't get sick from the cold."

"You can give them their wages, food or real money first, and then make an appointment to work in the spring of next year."

"You are not afraid of them running away. Besides, they are all foreigners. Where do you let them live in winter?"

"It would be great if I could live in the barracks. It's easy to manage." Zhuhua said, looking at Cheng Dashan.

Cheng Dashan waved his hands repeatedly and said, "How can ordinary people live in military camps? Isn't this nonsense!"

It wouldn't be so hard to carve out a piece, though, he thought.Cheng Dashan didn't agree with Zhuhua's statement of building roads and digging rivers, but it was his idea to allow the military camp to accommodate the victims. His family also fled famine to Lijia Village. Seeing the hardships of the victims, he would inevitably feel compassion. It's hard to speak without a name.

He is a person who can't hide his words. Since he thinks this matter can be tried, he naturally wants to raise it.But how to bring it up is also a problem, he is not a fool, and he feels that Master Shushen of the Ministry of War does not want to see him, although he does not know why.I don’t know if it’s because of this, but his boss—now he’s at the same level, the General Si who respects him and still regards him as his boss is also very indifferent to him, except for some acid words, he is the only one not invited to some drinks go.Cheng Dashan didn't think much of it, some people no longer invited him to drink, and some new friends invited him to drink. Life is in a hurry, and he can still tell which friends are dead friends and which are just friends.Even if he commits a crime, and Mrs. Sun is watching over him, it's always right to listen to Mrs. Sun.

Left and right couldn't think of a way to pass the message upwards, so Cheng Dashan went to the north of the city for a stroll, where there were still people giving out porridge, maybe he could meet someone.It has been more than a month since the disaster victims entered the city, and almost all the ministers have provided food for porridge, but now only some wealthy households are still giving in the north of the city.Among these wealthy households, there is a porridge shed that stands out.The boys serving porridge inside were neatly dressed and looked upright, looking like they came from a high official's house, but the porridge they served was brown rice porridge.This made Cheng Dashan even more fond of him.

After following suit in the court to donate grain, Mrs. Sun snorted coldly when she heard about it. She didn't feel sorry for the grain, but bought grain for porridge at the same price. Maybe each person could only get a mouthful of thin rice, but brown rice every day. People can get a bite of dry food. For the common people, they don't want to eat more delicate food at this time, but only want to eat enough.Cheng Dashan regretted what she said, but since he said that the donated rice might be punished if he replaced it with brown rice, he had no choice but to give up.Now seeing someone serving thick brown rice porridge for many days, he knows that this family really understands people's livelihood. He was about to go up to find out who it was, but he saw a man riding by and stopped at the In front of the porridge shed.

"Master Hou." The boy in the porridge shed saluted.

Cheng Dashan turned his head to look, and saw this person with white short beard, thick eyebrows and phoenix eyes, and an extraordinary demeanor, which was somewhat familiar. After thinking about it again, he remembered that this person was An Guohou Yu Xiande.

"Marquis Yu." Cheng Dashan clasped his fists, thought for a while, got off his horse and cupped his hands again.After all, he is Lord Hou, and his rank is much higher than him. It is not in accordance with the rules for him to salute on horseback.

Yu Xiande also got off his horse quickly, and after returning the gift, he smiled and said, "This isn't General Cheng, is it? Why come to the north of the city when you have time?"

"Take a rest today, and ride out for a walk."

"I heard that General Cheng recently had the joy of Nong Zhang, but he hasn't congratulated him yet." The one-year mourning period for the folk empress dowager has passed, so it's okay to say some congratulations.

"You are welcome, Lord Hou. This porridge shed belongs to the Hou family?"

"good."

Yu Xiande was about to explain a few words, when he heard Cheng Dashan say: "That's right, the common people can eat a few more bowls of brown rice."

Yu Xiande smiled, feeling that the general who was born in a peasant family was much better than those officials who didn't know how expensive money was.

"It's a pity that a certain power is meager, and it can only be used for a few more days."

When Cheng Dashan heard this, he glanced at Yu Xiande.To say that Yu Xiande's current status is quite embarrassing, he is a survivor of the former court and was once the son of the Hou family. He was the one who took the lead in opening the gate of Chang'an City to offer the city to King Kang. It is said that he even angered his father Hou died.After the founding of the People's Republic of China, he was appointed as a Marquis, and he held an idle position in Qin Tianjian.He is also the only one among the four lords who has never led troops, and has made little achievements in state affairs.The old ministers of the former court secretly alienated him, and the new ministers of the current court didn't like him very much. Fortunately, he was born with a sparse personality, and these years he lived in seclusion and stayed in peace.

Cheng Dashan also met him face to face in the hall, and this was the first time he had spoken to him in private.Even so, Cheng Dashan has a good impression of him, because he is the only one among several Hou Ye who does not have a side wife.

After thinking about it, he sighed: "The winter is long, and these common people don't have enough food and clothing, and they don't know how to get through it. It's a pity that I'm just a small military officer, and I can't wait to give up a place in the military camp for them to live in. There are not many wars at the moment, and the soldiers usually have to dig rivers and build roads. I think it’s better to give these jobs to the victims and give them stuttering as wages. They are willing to think about it. They can earn stuttering Yes, who is willing to ask for it, don't you think so, Lord Hou?"

Seeing that Lord Yu seemed pensive, Cheng Dashan added with a guilty conscience: "If there are really many victims, let them do more things, such as digging a big river connecting the north and the south, or repairing the streets of Chang'an, so that Chang'an It will be more lively in the future.”

"General Cheng is concerned about the country and the people, and Yu admires it." Lord Yu said calmly, but looked at Cheng Dashan several times.

I heard that the general's unintentional words a few years ago promoted the imperial examination. At that time, he still felt that the general's thinking was flexible and better than those literati who were stuck in the old customs. Now that he said such a thing again, Yu Hou couldn't help but doubt Cheng Dashan. Really just a simple-minded military officer?

Seen by Yu Xiande with a guilty conscience, Cheng Dashan found an excuse and left, but he didn't know that doing so made Yu Xiande even more suspicious.No matter what his purpose is, Marquis Yu thinks that the current him has nothing for others to plot, and it's okay to help others.

(End of this chapter)