Huang Yixuan: "..."
An Youwei was covered in sweat: "..."
As An Xin stepped into the pavilion, she overheard this passage and couldn't help but twitch her lips, recalling the saying, "Why did Heaven create both Zhou Yu and Zhuge Liang?"
“I can answer this question for both of you,” An Xin said, breaking the awkward silence as she stepped into the pavilion. “The Left Prime Minister is as clear-headed as a mirror, so naturally he’s not tired, while the Right Prime Minister is burning with desire, hence the fan he’s using to cool down…”
Little Gongzi on the side couldn't help but let out a soft "pfft" and then fell silent.
Huang Yixuan burst into laughter: "Well done, hahaha!"
An Youwei wiped away a cold sweat and secretly tugged at An Xin's sleeve.
Yan Zhen paused with his fan, then laughed, "The fire that Xin'er started should naturally be put out by Xin'er. This fan only treats the symptoms, not the root cause."
An Xin's smile faltered, and she said calmly, "Then, sir, please first propose a fundamental solution. Once the seawater arrives, the area within fifty miles of Duanfeng Mountain will become a dead zone. If the 100,000 people of the capital have nowhere to go and are left to roam freely in the capital, the result will be corpses strewn everywhere. By the height of summer, once the corpses pile up like mountains, it will inevitably trigger a plague. At that time, the old disaster will have just passed, and another great calamity will come. Once the plague spreads, let alone fifty miles, even five hundred miles will be difficult to avoid this disaster. As the Right Chancellor of the court, sir, you must have some good plan."
Yan Zhen waved her folding fan and said with a smile, "If you want to keep your desires from burning, you can only suppress them and make them grow stronger. If you can make love with your beloved, your desires will naturally dissipate and all your ailments will disappear."
The maids attending him all blushed with embarrassment, and even An Youwei felt a little embarrassed. It was truly shameful that the Right Prime Minister had spoken such intimate words so openly!
But upon closer examination, the Right Chancellor's words were absolutely right. If all 100,000 people in the capital were trapped inside the city, it would likely cause even greater chaos in the future. If the people of the capital could be evacuated, not only would we gain a good reputation, but we would also avoid future troubles, and naturally all problems would be solved in the future!
An Xin felt a pang of sympathy; her understanding of the Right Prime Minister's shamelessness had reached a new level!
Huang Yixuan was about the same age as An Xin. For various reasons, the harem was still empty, so he naturally had little opportunity to have sex with anyone. Even if he did have sex with someone, he would just use them and then discard them. They would not be accepted into the harem. Hearing Yan Zhen's words, he suddenly felt a little uncomfortable.
Jing Lan remained calm, her unchanging smile like a gentle mask that could conceal everything. Upon hearing this, she spoke up, "How to settle 100,000 people? Where to settle them? If this were to be implemented, it would be extremely difficult."
An Xin paused and said, "Instead of the court trying to find a way to settle them, it would be better to let the people settle themselves."
Jing Lan raised her eyelashes to look at An Xin, and smiled faintly, "What Miss An means is..."
An Xin thought the Left Prime Minister was more reasonable, so she smiled and asked, "How much silver would it cost the court to resettle 100,000 people?"
Jing Lan laughed and said, "It is estimated that even one million taels of silver would not be enough."
An Xin said, "Settling 100,000 people would require a large amount of military, manpower, and material resources. These expenses alone would amount to a million taels of silver. Once the people are settled, their food, clothing, and daily necessities will certainly be provided. It will take about half a month for the poisonous gas around Duanfeng Mountain to dissipate. The expenses for 100,000 people in half a month would probably be an extremely large sum of money. If someone embezzles from this, the people will suffer. Once the people become resentful, the court will definitely lose the support of the people. If this resentment intensifies, it may even trigger a rebellion, with unimaginable consequences! The court's resettlement of the people is certainly not a good solution."
Huang Yixuan was startled and said, "That's exactly what I considered when I brought up that idea before, but it seems that it won't work either."
An Xin pursed her lips and said calmly, "How much silver would an ordinary person need for half a month?"
Jing Lan looked at An Xin with a strange light in her eyes and smiled, "Five taels is enough."
An Xin glanced at Yan Zhen—someone who spends thousands of taels of silver on a single cup should be drowned in a pig cage—and said calmly, “If the court were to allocate silver to the people and let them leave the capital for half a month, even for 100,000 people, it would only cost 500,000 taels. The court's decision to let the people of the capital take refuge is for their own good. Once the people hear the news, they will surely take refuge on their own. If the court were to provide subsidies at this time, it would actually win over the hearts of the people. The people would definitely be grateful. As the saying goes, ‘He who wins the hearts of the people wins the world.’ When the hearts of the people are won, the world is at peace. Why would we need to abandon 100,000 people and cause unimaginable consequences?”
Huang Yixuan's eyes suddenly lit up, and he stood up abruptly, saying, "Excellent idea! An Xin, you are truly clever!"
An Xin said calmly, "How could I not have thought of the Left and Right Chancellors? You gentlemen are just being modest!"
She could guess Yan Zhen and Jing Lan's thoughts with a little effort. These people were shrewd and would not say many things even if they knew them, mostly for the sake of their own power.
But this was undoubtedly an excellent way for Jinglan to win over the people, so why didn't he say anything about it?
Huang Yixuan laughed heartily, "Yes! With this, a huge weight has finally been lifted from my heart! Guards, reward them!"
Yan Zhen smiled and said, "This method is truly ingenious; I never even thought of it."
An Xin rolled her eyes at him. Although his words were a dirty joke, they were also very insightful. How could he not have thought of that?
An Youwei hurriedly knelt down to express his gratitude.
Huang Yixuan stood up and said, "Draft an imperial decree: the entire city must be relocated in three days, without delay!"
××× ×××
An Wan ran all the way and finally stopped in front of a rockery. She felt her cheeks burning and was filled with anger. She kicked a pebble away and then heard a cry of "Ouch!"
An Wan was startled and hurriedly dodged, but then heard a sharp shout: "Who's blind?!" Then several footsteps approached. An Wan's expression changed, and she turned to run away, but was blocked by someone the next moment!
"Trying to escape?!" The one blocking her way was a maid. "If you hurt Miss, how many lives do you have to pay for it?!"
An Wan was both shocked and frightened, and kept backing away.
"Grab her!" Then several more people ran over and grabbed An Wan's arm. An Wan was terrified and struggled, screaming, "Don't hit me! Don't hit me!"
"Slap!" The next moment, a deep five-finger mark appeared on her face. An Wan was instantly stunned by the slap and stared wide-eyed at the woman in front of her.
Mingjiao narrowed her eyes. She was walking along when she was suddenly hit by a stone. She was already annoyed, so she walked up and slapped An Wan. After hitting her, she realized that the girl's eyebrows and eyes looked somewhat like that bitch. Her anger flared up even more, and she slapped her again.
An Wan suddenly had a bright idea and shouted, "My brother-in-law is the current Right Chancellor! If you dare to hit me, he will definitely avenge me!"
Mingjiao's hand suddenly stopped, and she said sharply, "What did you say?!"
An Wan boldly retorted, "My brother-in-law is the Right Prime Minister. He's the one who brought me into the palace. If you dare to hit me, he'll definitely make you pay!"
Mingjiao gritted her teeth and said, "Your brother-in-law!? Who is your sister?"
An Wan frowned as she thought of An Xin and snorted, "It's An Xin, so what!?"
Mingjiao raised her hand and slapped An Wan hard, but stopped abruptly an inch from An Wan's cheek. An Wan felt cold sweat all over her body and froze in fright.
Mingjiao suddenly withdrew her hand and laughed, "You mean the Right Chancellor is your brother-in-law?"
An Wan looked Ming Jiao up and down and said, "So what if it is?"
Mingjiao winked at the people beside An Wan before helping An Wan up and smiling, "I was a little too rough just now, are you alright, little sister?"