After they had all finished their rice porridge, Grandpa Meng instructed them to rest in the courtyard first.
"Old Song, you all rest for now. I'll have Yu'er bring you food tonight."
"Thank you, Meng… Mayor."
Having drifted for months, witnessing the fickleness of human nature and the disdain of others, upon hearing Mayor Meng's heartwarming words, Song Bantou’s eyes welled up again.
"Alas, I'm old, I can't bear to see this," Grandpa Meng said and walked out. However, after only a few steps, he stopped and turned back to Song Bantou, instructing them, "You all rest first. We can talk about anything else in a couple of days."
"Alright."
Everyone watched Mayor Meng leave, feeling a sense of peace for the first time in months.
Song Bantou glanced at everyone and spoke his mind, "Let's all listen to Mayor Meng and rest for two days. Once everyone has recovered their energy and spirits, we'll find Mayor Meng and ask him to assign us some work."
"Mm," everyone replied in unison.
After leaving the schoolhouse courtyard, Grandpa Meng ordered people to collect some old clothes from the town for the refugees from Qingzhou.
The weather here had turned cold. It was bearable during the day, but the nights were truly difficult for them.
He personally went to the Zhou family compound and ordered some coarse cotton cloth, preparing to have the people from Qingzhou make their own cotton clothes.
Of course, the cotton was provided by his granddaughter.
Before dinner, Fu Xinci and Qi He sat outside the kitchen, chatting. "My grandfather is truly a worrier. For years, the things he worries about have come one after another, as if they never stop."
Thinking about the refugees from today, it was truly an unexpected surprise.
Fu Xinci couldn't help but sigh, "Alas!"
"I know that. Even when my father and I get into trouble, the first person we want to consult is Grandpa Meng."
"Exactly, my father and I are the same."
After speaking, Fu Xinci rested her right cheek on her hand, worrying for her grandfather.
Qi He, not wanting Fu妹妹 to be so distressed, thought of tomorrow being a holiday and made a decision to slack off with Fu妹妹.
"Fu妹妹, let's go to Longcheng tomorrow together to play with Captain and the others."
"It's unlikely. It should be quite busy in Longcheng this season too."
"Yes, it's autumn harvest everywhere. I was thinking about playing, and if my father found out, he'd definitely slap me twice."
"It's okay, Uncle Qi won't find out."
"Heh heh."
After dinner, Grandpa Meng and his son discussed the autumn harvest and then the refugees from Qingzhou.
"Father, how should we arrange for Uncle Song and the hundred-plus people?"
"The weather will be cold soon, we can only help them as much as possible. Otherwise, if they don't starve to death, they'll freeze to death."
"Yes."
While father and son were worrying about the Qingzhou refugees, at the schoolhouse, Song Bantou and the others were also sitting in the courtyard discussing.
"These hundred-plus mouths are a huge burden. It wouldn't be right to put it all on Mayor Meng. Not to mention, Mayor Meng is no longer the magistrate of Qingzhou, so he has no responsibility to look after us."
"Brother Song is right, but where else can we go now?"
"Yes, the weather is getting cold, and with our current attire, where else can we go?"
"I saw Lord Meng and I don't want to leave again. We still have strength, and we can earn a living for ourselves. The only hope is that Lord Meng will provide us with a haven."
"Zhang Dadan, don't speak rashly. You'll bring trouble to Mayor Meng."
"Mm, I won't speak rashly. I just want to stay in the same place as Mayor Meng. With Mayor Meng here, we feel at ease."
"Yes, with Mayor Meng here, we can live a good life."
"Indeed, during the twenty-plus years Lord Meng was here, Qingzhou was so good."
"Hush, you should call him Mayor Meng. Why do you still not remember?"
"Remembered, remembered, it's Mayor Meng."
Two days later, a letter delivered by carrier pigeon appeared on the imperial study desk.
After reading the letter submitted by Yan Yi, the Emperor flew into a rage. "Outrageous! The journey from Qingzhou to Liaodong is over a thousand li. Those refugees passed through so many prefectures and counties, yet not a single one offered them shelter?"
Yan Yi desperately wanted to say that if any prefecture had offered shelter, the refugees wouldn't have ended up in Liaodong.
The Emperor: ...
If one local official is like this, and two are like this, what if all local officials are like this?
Does it mean that his reign as Emperor has been somewhat a failure?
Yan Yi saw the Emperor scolding halfway, then suddenly fall silent in thought, knowing that the Emperor had zoned out again.
Well, if the Emperor zoned out, he dared not zone out. He could only stare at the ground, pretending to know nothing.
In the censer on the high table, incense smoke curled upwards, slowly dissipating without a sound.
The imperial study was so quiet that a pin drop could be heard. The Emperor's brow furrowed and then relaxed...
Thus, after countless back and forth cycles, the Emperor suddenly spoke, "Yan Aiqing, what do you think if I issue an edict to have Meng Qingping return to Qingzhou as magistrate?"
When the Emperor's words reached Yan Yi's ears, his first reaction was that this move was a bit too much.
Thinking back, when Meng Qingping was the magistrate of Qingzhou, he had governed Qingzhou in an orderly fashion, and the people lived and worked in peace.
Then, you heard those old fools, insisting that he and the Meng clan go to Liaodong.
Now, Qingzhou has been devastated by floods, leaving only its name. And now you remember Meng Qingping to clean up your mess.
This is not something a decent person would do.
It's truly shameless.
Yan Yi’s mind was filled with wild complaints, but he dared not speak them aloud.
"...?" The Emperor, seeing Yan Yi not respond, showed obvious impatience.
"Replying to Your Majesty, when I last went to Liaodong, I saw that Meng Qingping was old and frail. I'm not sure if he can endure the arduous journey now."
"Indeed, it was my oversight."
The Emperor was about to sigh. According to Yan Yi, Meng Qingping was already decrepit and likely needed support just to walk. He couldn't force him to do so.
But now, knowing that the refugees from Qingzhou had reached Liaodong, he couldn't pretend not to know.
What should he do now?
Seeing the Emperor pick up his folding fan, about to tap the young eunuch on the head, Yan Yi boldly stepped forward and suggested.
"Your Majesty, perhaps you could issue an order to distribute some relief supplies to those Qingzhou refugees."
When the Emperor heard Yan Yi mention relief supplies, he thought of the money needed for disaster relief. But at present, the national treasury was most lacking in silver.
Seeing the Emperor's expression turn grim, Yan Yi quickly continued, "It doesn't need to be a large amount of money. In my humble opinion, distributing two taels of silver per person, along with some grain, cotton clothes, and bedding, would be enough to appease these refugees."
The Emperor was overjoyed upon hearing Yan Yi's words. "Two taels of silver per person is enough?"
"Yes. Your Majesty is benevolent; you can give them a few more jin of grain, and they will surely be eternally grateful to Your Majesty."