Chapter 53

Actually......

Peasants who face the loess earth and back to the sky may not know what the world is.

Maybe they think the world is just a place a bit wider than their own fields, or maybe they think someone who possesses the world can eat six wheat buns in a meal, using a golden hoe to till the soil.

However, this does not prevent them from feeling a sudden shock in their hearts when they encounter the Son of Heaven's aura.

This autumn, which should have been uneventful, saw two major incidents occur in a remote border town——

First, the newly appointed county magistrate from a neighboring county was killed again; two officials were killed in succession, shaking the Zhoufu, which sent people to investigate, but as soon as the Zhoufu's clerk arrived at the Xian Xie, he too was poisoned to death.

After three deaths, the Zhoufu finally realized that troublemakers were arising from these poor mountains and wicked waters; the locals likely harbored deep resentment toward the government, so instead of pursuing the murder case, they began to look into tax collection.

It wouldn't matter if they didn't look, but once they did, they discovered that the previously slain county magistrate, relying on his kinship with a court official, had privately levied extra taxes; while the Imperial Court's requirement was twenty catties of grain per adult, after passing through the corrupt official's hands it became a forced levy of one dan per adult!

Anyone with discernment could see the problem at a glance; if only one person were involved, they surely couldn't swallow such a discrepancy, yet the matter was raised high and then gently set aside.

The Zhoufu reluctantly sent someone to post a revised notice of the grain tax, then left, clearly unwilling to get further involved, leaving the county magistrate's post in Cang Cheng vacant once again.

As for the second......

It is a rumor that has been circulating among the folk for an unknown time.

The former dynasty's Deposed Crown Prince Huan has died.

And by the river east of the city, beside the willow tree, there appeared a young woman distributing rations.

Now is the time to levy taxes; although the tax has been reduced, every grain is still precious.

However, that young woman is indeed special.

She seemed utterly unconcerned about the grain, distributing it for several days straight from village to town; each time she plunged her palm‑sized sea bowl into the sack and scooped out, she inevitably produced a big bowl overflowing with grain.

Ordinary families, upon receiving the lord's rations, usually utter a few auspicious words to console themselves; those who gain a benefit without understanding why often feel moved to pray for the lord's blessings.

But that young woman merely shakes her head, telling people to bow three times toward the sun or the moonlight.

Sun, moon.

Anyone who can read, upon associating this sun and moon with the Deposed Crown Prince Huan, will inevitably have some speculation.

And those who are illiterate, merely by mingling in a crowded place, can roughly grasp the idea.

Thus the rumor spreads without legs, faster than if it had grown legs, running wild through the surrounding several prefectures and counties.

Those coming to collect the rations began to look at Du Shanü with ever‑stranger eyes.

However, Du Shanü pays no attention to those looks and gives no response whatsoever.

She merely, while trying to recall painful memories, rubs the ginger hidden in her sleeve onto her eyes, and with the other hand plunges the sea bowl into the grain sack behind her, scoops out another full bowl, and pours it into the cloth bag of the sniffling child before her.

The child shakes off the snot and steps back, but does not leave; instead, he goes to the end of the line again.

Immediately another child steps forward, opening his own large cloth bag.

Most of the locals here are devout; first, because the lord's family has suffered a bereavement, giving out rations is a way to accumulate blessings; second, they are all neighbors who see each other daily, and out of shame they dare not take more.

Thus, after several days of distribution, the adults coming to collect rations have become scarce, leaving only a few children.

Had it been anyone else, they would surely be annoyed that these children are taking advantage, but Du Shanü clearly knows just how much influence these children wield.

Thus she scoops another bowl of millet, pours it into the child's cloth bag before her, and, taking the opportunity, gently pats the child's little cheek.

This is a girl about seven or eight years old; she has been coming frequently these past days to collect rice, already shy, and this touch makes her face redder, almost causing her to lose her grip on the bag.

Du Shanü steadies her and speaks softly:

"Little sister, be careful."

As the saying goes, to look lovely one must wear mourning.

Du Shanü wears coarse mourning hemp, the rough cloth hanging straight, its edges all frayed.

Her hair is bound with raw hemp into a small mourning knot, setting off her face to be ever purer, like white jade soaked in moonlight.

Her brows and eyes are lowered, showing no grief, only a stillness like a deep pool.

The little girl carefully lifts her eyes to look at her, and only then notices that the gaze is warm yet deep, like a mountain spring flowing gently over bedrock that does not shift.

So beautiful, like...... like a celestial maiden from heaven!

At a single glance, the girl feels she might faint from this surging fragrance; for a moment she knows not what to say, and can only stammer:

"Older sister, older sister......"

Du Shanü almost couldn't help laughing, but she managed to hold it in.

She then lightly pats the girl's head, scoops several bowls of grain and dumps them all into the other's bag, and finally speaks softly:

"Today the wind is strong; don't queue, hurry home."

The girl's clothing is the common hemp shirt most ordinary folk wear, already patched with many holes; her trousers, worn long, are therefore shorter by a section, leaving her ankles raw and red from the wind.

The girl never expected anyone to notice these details; for a moment her face and eyes both turned red.

She lingered in place, reluctant to move, until a companion behind gave her a push, whereupon she timidly asked:

"Big sister, you're really beautiful......"

"Everyone says you're a princess who fell among the common folk; is that true?"

"Princess, crown prince, lord—those are things only storytellers in teahouses talk about!"

Although she has hardly ever seen the county magistrate, just beholding such a beautiful sister makes her heart unknowingly sway.

Surely it is!

Otherwise, who in the world could be this beautiful?!

The girl couldn't help sniffing, wanting to smell more of the princess's fragrance, but then the companions behind pushed her again.

Behind her, a gang of kids about her age laughed and jeered, chuckling:

"Er Ni! Are you crazy? How could you possibly be a princess?"

"Exactly! If she were a princess, how could the Imperial Court not reclaim her?"

"Exactly, exactly! What princess is like that? Hahaha!"

「Oh dear, hurry up and get lost, your father is seriously ill lying in bed, this year we don't even know if we can scrape together the grain tax! You still care about whose princess or lord! 」

The kids are at that noisy, tough age, so of course what they say isn't pleasant to hear.

The little girl called 【Er Ni'er】 clenched her fists in anger, but the fragrant wind behind her held her back.

Du Shanü's eyes seemed a bit redder, and she spoke softly:

「It's fine, I'm not really a princess either, just a poor soul...... 」

「What the big guy said is all right, come, today it's windy, let's distribute the rations all at once so everyone can go rest earlier。」

She handed out bowl after bowl of rice to the kids, each pour steady, pouring solidly into their pockets.

The rustling sound of the rice drowned out the children's mocking laughter; as Du Shanü placed a bowl of grain into each person's pocket, the children's faces grew more solemn.

Until Du Shanü had handed out all the rice she brought today, she faded away in the afterglow of the setting sun.

Er Ni'er finally couldn't hold back, glaring angrily and said:

「If she's not a princess, who else could she be? Older sister is such a good person, like a celestial fairy—don't even say princess, even an emperor would do! 」

「You're spouting nonsense and driving her away; if older sister doesn't come tomorrow, I don't know how you'll face going home! Don't think I don't know—your parents have no face to come, they only sent you to collect the rice。」

?? Older sister smells nice(ˉ﹃ˉ)