Chapter 672: Fate Given to You

The village chief had six of his three hun and seven po fly away; he had never even seen the county magistrate, yet today he actually saw the emperor!

He seemed to have spoken dozens of sentences to the emperor!

The ancestral grave is emitting green smoke!

As soon as the main force arrived, the Great King's identity was exposed. The Owl Cavalry began helping to dig out collapsed houses, rescuing people and property.

The whole mountain valley is dazed; when did the imperial court start caring so much about them, even the emperor came in person!

The Great King personally handed a bolt of cotton cloth and a roll of cotton to the little girl whose face was frozen pale: 'Even if the house collapses, it can be rebuilt; your injuries will gradually heal; after the cold snap passes, spring will come and everything will be fine. I am here, don't be afraid.'

The little girl said nothing more, not yet understanding, but the others did! Those burly men nearby were moved to tears. Truly, as Youzhou's own Great King, even upon ascending the throne he hasn't forgotten Youzhou!

Wei Shen clicked his tongue, elbowing Ling Yin. 'Look how capable Wei Taiping is; the people of Tang Family Ridge will be able to entrust their lives to him.... Of course, wiping clean the ash from eating potatoes on your hands would be even better...'

Ling Yin: ……

The Great King felt his mission was accomplished and wanted to leave; he wanted to look around the vicinity. Lord Zhetian's great killer weapon is really handy for clearing snow. He left behind Divine Doctor Zhang and part of the Owl Cavalry, taking the other half with him as he continued to circle the area, vigorously boosting his reputation.

That night they set up camp in Lin'yu Town and spent the night; the Great King was busy outside, feeling at ease, and all of Youzhou was in an uproar.

Xie Yuan learned that the fellow had gone to Pingkang, feeling a sense of relief at finally arriving. After all… it's been a long time since they last caused trouble.

But the officials from Chang'an couldn't adapt to the Great King's intensity of meddling; this cold snap is unlike anything they've ever seen. With such scale and such danger, why would the emperor personally go to the disaster zone? If the situation worsens suddenly and something happens, what would they do if the emperor met with an accident out there?!

Now everyone is like grasshoppers on the same rope; changing anything… those who follow them to Youzhou will only meet that same fate.

The court is filled with worry, but Xie Yuan only has one question: 'Your Majesty, how did he know that some villages in Pingkang were buried?' Don't tell him that fellow also knows divination!

Zhao Bao shook his head, thinking it's likely Bai Ze leaked the secret to the Great King, but without evidence he can't say. 'Your Majesty ordered the aristocracy and court officials to set up porridge shelters, to help the people endure this cold snap, and still needs Minister Xie to supervise.'

Xie Yuan nodded, 'Just let them follow behind the soldiers clearing snow.'

The order quickly spread throughout Youzhou; whether you like it or not, everyone must show compliance now. Minister Xie, to prevent them from fishing in troubled waters, even arranged specific locations for each household to set up porridge shelters, so they wouldn't all crowd into Youzhou City.

The fierce wind eased a little; the troops went out in the low temperature to clear the snow, and the whole city came back to life.

Baili Hu, wearing a bulky outfit, leaned by the window watching the soldiers push snow outside, 'You say where did Lao San get the silver? Look at how these soldiers dress; they seem quite capable of keeping out the cold. I've heard Youzhou has a garrison of 100,000; equipping a single set of winter gear for that scale is hardly cheap.' Not to mention the armor of the Xuanjia Cavalry.

'Youzhou is the most prosperous city in the north, richer than we imagined.'

'Is it just relying on those little trinkets from overseas? Or did the Wei clan amass a huge foundation in the southwest?'

'This is hard to say… Your Highness has been to Spring River Flower Moon Night, saying it brings in a fortune daily is no exaggeration. Everyone in the city says the performance at the palace banquet is the same song and dance as Spring River Flower Moon Night; thus this shop must certainly be Baili Jing's private property.'

Baili Hu looked out the window for a while without speaking; the cold snap had trapped them in Youzhou, so they probably couldn't leave for a short time. He felt a bit bored……

'……Is Spring River Flower Moon Night open today?' That shop is indeed wonderful, giving him a new understanding of food, drink, and entertainment.

'……This, I still don't know. But we can't leave for a short time, our silver… is a bit tight.' Saying this is embarrassing; Your Highness can't afford to go nowadays.

Baili Hu heard this and was quite surprised: 'We have no silver?' Surely not? When we set out we brought a lot with us.

'After passing Luoshui Pass, the silver notes we brought can't be redeemed; Spring River Flower Moon Night doesn't accept them either. Now the Northern Border only recognizes silver notes issued by their own offices. We exchanged gold once outside the pass, and we were still quite affluent, but after Your Highness went to Spring River Flower Moon Night once…… now there's another cold snap, we can't leave for a few days, so we still need to spend frugally.'

Baili Hu: ……

Losing face.

Fortunately Lao San doesn't know.

The cold snap trapped Baili Hu in the inn for a whole day without going out; on the third day of the cold snap, the outside was still just as cold, fortunately that terrifying wind had subsided a bit. Born in Chang'an, with his fief in Jingchu, Prince Jing was still facing the north's fierce wind for the first time, its momentum enough to make one's heart race.

At noon he went down for a meal, finding the tavern just as it was yesterday. The lobby was still bustling, out-of-town merchants gathered together eagerly discussing how after a few days of warming they could go home, soldiers had already cleared the imperial way, etc.

Baili Hu observed that the food and drink were still at the original prices. Logically, with such a scale of cold snap, food prices should have risen, yet most of the diners were outsiders stranded in Youzhou, and they showed no worry or fear, chatting enthusiastically; one can only say these merchants also trust Lao San completely.

Baili Hu didn't feel resentful; he thought those merchants had been fooled by San Pangzi's petty court.

'……The shed at the south gate is set up by the Yan family of Wufu Ward; at the west gate it's the Tao family of Lower East Ward. Not only do villagers outside the city line up, many poor families inside the city are queuing too~'

'Inside the city it's just minor squabbles; the great aristocracy have been assigned to set up porridge shelters outside, especially places taking in refugees. I've heard every household gets a share, all arrangements made.'

'……At the emperor's command, everyone followed the soldiers of the Clear Imperial Way; who would dare not go?'

'That one won't tolerate superficial compliance; the porridge is said to be thick…'

Baili Hu listened closely for a moment; could it be that San Pangzi is still a tyrant?

At this time of year Jingzhou has already begun spring planting; the Northern Border encountering such a scale of cold snap may affect spring planting and autumn harvest…… whether San Pangzi still has surplus grain to suppress rebellions this year? Thinking of this, Baili Hu began to feel pleased again.

It is known that the court can no longer obtain grain from Jingchu and Shu; what the court can plan on now is only the Central Plains. However, it's not that easy either.

Although the court has taken Ru'nan and Luoyang, it seems the Central Plains are all in its grasp, but inside there is still a Youyang occupied by rebel forces, ambitious Chen State. Uncle used to say the Chen King cannot be kept, he's ungrateful. Now that the Chen King has seen the fate of the Prince of Ru'nan, he must be on guard against the court even more; staying at home and sharpening weapons isn't necessarily the case. The Great Jin is lively. San Pangzi's days aren't as good as imagined.