Since the soup kitchens were opened in Cangcheng, more and more refugees have come to visit. Fortunately, the border war has been relatively stable, and after a number of people gathered, the number of visitors has gradually decreased.
When Wei Hong arrived, everyone had already returned from the greenhouse or other places where they worked, and they were lining up in an orderly fashion to receive porridge. He watched from afar and nodded with satisfaction.
"I've heard that your soup kitchen is well-run, but seeing it with my own eyes today shows me what it's like."
Da Liang had set up soup kitchens quite a few times, and he had seen them with his own eyes; they all had some problems, more or less.
When he first heard that Yao Youqing was going to open a soup kitchen, he was worried for a while, fearing that she would run into trouble, so he asked the managers to help her as much as possible.
Later, the steward here told him that the princess handled it very well and that there was no need for them to interfere too much.
Seeing you today is indeed wonderful...
His Ning'er always manages to do things that surprise him.
Among the queuing refugees, someone first heard that the prince had arrived, and someone shouted it out. Immediately afterward, everyone's eyes turned to him, and they all knelt down and kowtowed.
The soup kitchen was bustling with noise for a moment, and everyone forgot about getting their share of the soup.
Wei Hong reached out and said, "Everyone, get up. I just happened to be back and came to check on you. Just do what you always do today, and don't delay the mealtime."
He then personally helped an elderly man up, and the others followed suit.
The queue returned to order, and while waiting in line, everyone kept saying how grateful they were for the prince and princess's kindness, otherwise they might have starved to death on the streets.
Hearing their words of gratitude, Wei Hong turned and smiled at Yao Youqing standing beside him, saying gently, "It's all because of the Princess's good work that I was able to fight on the battlefield without any worries."
Those people realized that he was praising Yao Youqing, so they also chimed in, saying how hard the princess had worked these days and how she personally oversaw the distribution of porridge every day.
Yao Youqing blushed slightly at the praise, pursed her lips, smiled gently, and tugged at Wei Hong's sleeve.
"Your Highness, shall I take you to see the greenhouse?"
Although it's nice to be praised, she still felt a little uncomfortable being surrounded by so many people praising her.
Wei Hong wanted to save face for her, so he naturally wouldn't argue with her at this time. He nodded and went to the greenhouse with her.
Liancheng, who had already sat down at his desk to organize today's accounts, had been listening to the commotion over here, and secretly lowered his head and pursed his lips.
These two have been married for over two years now, why are they still so lovey-dovey? Aren't they tired of each other?
While he was inwardly complaining, Wei Hong and Yao Youqing had already gone to the greenhouse not far from here.
These warm sheds were built by the refugees themselves. They looked simple but were warm and sturdy. He only glanced around and knew that they had not cut corners and had been built with care.
"You've found them jobs and helped them settle down, without causing too much resistance from the city's residents. Ning'er, you've done a good job with this method."
While refugees are indeed pitiful, simply giving them handouts will not only encourage their habit of taking things for free, but also make the original residents of the city feel resentful, as they will feel that their land has been taken away by the refugees.
This is why, when Huizhou was flooded, many places were unwilling to open their city gates to accept the displaced people.
Yao Youqing smiled and said, "It's all thanks to the stewards you left me, Your Highness, that I was able to handle things on my own."
Wei Hong chuckled: "You even know how to help them get credit. No wonder they all follow you so devotedly and always write to me praising you."
Managing subordinates is an art, and Yao Youqing may not have mastered it perfectly, but her strength lay in treating people with sincerity. Wei Hong's subordinates were all loyal, and because she treated them with genuine sincerity, they naturally respected her in return.
The two strolled around the greenhouse and exchanged a few words with several refugees who had already finished their porridge and returned. During this time, Liancheng sat outside organizing the accounts. While casually flipping through them, he inadvertently noticed a mistake and frowned as he carefully recalculated it.
Just as he was concentrating, a gust of wind suddenly blew, sending several sheets of paper off his desk that weren't being held down by paperweights.
He quickly squatted down to pick it up, but the stupid dog that he didn't get along with just happened to run over at that moment and stepped on one of the cards.
Liancheng almost couldn't resist grabbing the inkstone on the table and smashing it over his dirty feet, which had left several plum blossom marks on the inkstone.
He painstakingly copied something, and this stupid dog trampled it to pieces with just a few kicks!
He glared at the little cutie, snatched the paper from its feet, and wiped it with his sleeve, but it only got dirtier. He could only suppress his temper and pick up another piece, thinking he would copy it again later.
But before he could pick up the other few pieces of paper, he heard his little cutie go around behind him and pee again. He could only "focus" on picking up the papers in front of him so that no one would realize he wasn't deaf.
When Wei Hong and Yao Youqing came out of the greenhouse, they saw a figure in the distance with his back to them, squatting on the ground picking something up. At first glance, the figure seemed somewhat familiar, and they subconsciously took a few steps toward it.
Seeing this, Yao Youqing followed and said, "He is Ashu, the one I told the prince about. He is a refugee who has a similar experience to Lady Chu. He is deaf and mute but can write and calculate."
Wei Hong had indeed heard about this matter, but because he knew Yao Youqing was kind-hearted, he hadn't taken it to heart. However, upon seeing this person, he inexplicably... suddenly thought of Liancheng.
However, this person's shoulders and waist seemed to be wider than Liancheng's, so they didn't look exactly the same.
Moreover... no matter how bold Liancheng is, it's impossible for him to hide in his mansion.
Wei Hong wanted to get closer to take a better look, but before he could get close, he saw that the hem of the man's clothes was completely wet and there was a water stain under him.
He clicked his tongue and paused in his steps.
"Wasn't it said that he was only disfigured and deaf and mute? How come... he's also wetting his pants?"
Liancheng: "..."
Chapter 96 Not Afraid
Yao Youqing immediately knew that it was probably Xiao Ke'ai's doing again. She helplessly explained to Wei Hong and then had someone take Liancheng to the car to change his clothes.
Taking advantage of the moment, Liancheng quickly followed the others towards the carriage. Although Wei Hong knew that he hadn't wet his pants himself, he didn't really want to get close to him since he thought he had been peed on by a dog. He just asked someone to bring him the accounts that he had just sorted out.
The servant agreed and brought over all the accounts from his desk. Wei Hong examined them carefully for a long time without saying a word.
Yao Youqing knew that he was also a master of accounting. When he first arrived in the fiefdom, he personally handled many things. Shangchuan's current state was also due to his careful management over the years.
Later, as life gradually stabilized and he received a fixed income every year, he gradually distanced himself from these matters, only occasionally checking the final accounts with Cui Hao.
She assumed he was worried about her side and feared there might be problems with the accounts, so she smiled and asked, "Did Your Highness notice anything amiss?"
Wei Hong flipped through the several ledgers repeatedly, especially the one that the mute man named Ashu had personally compiled. After carefully examining it for a long time, he shook his head.
"There were no major flaws. He did a very good job organizing it, and he even promptly identified and corrected some accounting errors."
The handwriting on this account is different from Liancheng's. It seems he was overthinking it. That mute Ashu should just be an ordinary refugee.
Yao Youqing laughed even more heartily upon hearing this: "I had Steward Zhou and the others review the accounts compiled by Ashu, and they all said they were good. It's clear that Ashu really has talent in this area, just like Madam Chu."
Wei Hong didn't want to discuss his former concubine with her, so he casually changed the subject and moved on from the matter.
After looking around and sitting behind the screen for a while, drinking two bowls of porridge, they finally got into the carriage and returned to the mansion.
…………
With the border war situation critical, Wei Hong stayed for two days before setting off again.
He was going to secretly travel to the Tiger Head Village area to personally persuade several generals stationed at the border between Daliang and Nanyan to fight the enemy together. He didn't know how long it would take to return, so he thought of visiting Yao Youqing before setting off.
Now that the people have been seen, there's no time to delay any longer. Early in the morning, people were ordered to pack their belongings and prepare to depart.
"Your Highness, please be careful on your journey. If you succeed, all the better. If not... please do not force yourself. You must take good care of yourself."
Yao Youqing said with concern.
Once outside of Shuozhou, it was no longer a place that Wei Hong could completely control. Even if those generals were wary of his status and military power and dared not do anything to him easily, there was no guarantee that they wouldn't collude with the imperial court to frame him.
Wei Hong was going to meet someone he trusted and had a certain level of confidence in. However, situations can change easily. Who knows if those people will still maintain their original intentions and treat him with the same sincerity as before when their interests conflict?
Yao Youqing felt uneasy, but she knew that he was going there for the safety of Daliang, so she did not try to dissuade or stop him. She just repeatedly told him to be careful.
Wei Hong smiled and gently kissed her forehead: "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."
Yao Youqing nodded, but unlike last time, she didn't see him off at the city gate to avoid attracting too many onlookers and revealing his whereabouts.
When Liancheng heard that Wei Hong had left, he wished he could set off some firecrackers to celebrate. He was happy that he would no longer have to live in fear, and he was also happy that Wei Hong hadn't recognized him in the past two days!
He didn't recognize him even when he was right under his nose, which turned Liancheng's previous worries into smugness. When he looked at his face covered with "scars" in the mirror, he actually found it particularly pleasing to the eye.
What was once a cage-like house had become an ordinary residence for him. He thought to himself, "Isn't it good to live here? I'm not hungry or cold. With Yao Youqing's care, everyone is especially accommodating to me. Life couldn't be more comfortable."
If I had known, I would have just hidden here from the start. Why did he have to spend so much time sleeping on the streets?
Liancheng was secretly delighted. In the days that followed, he focused even more on his current identity, as if he had really become a deaf and blind bookkeeper in the Qin Prince's mansion, rather than the third prince of Nan Yan.
The days passed uneventfully for more than half a month, until the Jin Dynasty vaguely discovered that the "King of Qin" sitting in the army did not seem to be Wei Hong himself, and began to launch a large-scale attack to test the waters, which caused turmoil again.
Before leaving, Wei Hong told Yao Youqing what might happen, but with Cui Hao here, she could rest assured that nothing major would happen; at most, the Jin's offensive would be a bit fiercer than before.
Yao Youqing thought she was already prepared and had some understanding of the war, but when Cui Hao from the border sent back a group of wounded soldiers who were temporarily unable to go to the battlefield, she truly experienced what war was for the first time.
There are many wounded soldiers at the border. Those whose injuries are not serious can recover and continue fighting in the next battle, but some of those who are seriously injured may never be able to go to the battlefield again in their lifetime.
As the war intensified and dragged on, the number of wounded soldiers naturally increased. However, the border region had limited space, and with daily battles to attend to, there was not enough time to care for so many seriously wounded.
But these people were wounded while fighting for their country, so they should naturally be properly compensated.
When Cui Hao heard that Yao Youqing had set up a warm shed in Cangcheng and arranged everything in an orderly manner, he sent a group of seriously wounded soldiers back and asked Yao Youqing to help settle them.
Yao Youqing naturally did not refuse. Before these wounded soldiers arrived, he had someone set aside another place to settle them, and selected some people from the refugees to take care of them. After they recovered, he arranged for them to be escorted back to their respective homes.
The selected migrants received more wages than others each day, and knowing that these wounded soldiers had fought on the front lines and were injured while protecting ordinary people like them, they were even more dedicated.
Yao Youqing used to visit the soup kitchen every day, and now that these wounded soldiers have arrived, she, as the princess, naturally has to go and visit them as well.
Wounded soldiers need care, especially good doctors. Li Tai and Song Shi arrived on the first day, along with other doctors who were skilled in treating external injuries. They moved among the soldiers, examining their wounds.
Those who are sent here are mostly disabled, as their wounds have been roughly treated and confirmed to be non-fatal.
Yao Youqing looked at those people who were missing arms or legs, and her face turned pale.
Especially when the rags wrapped around their bodies were removed, revealing the horrific wounds beneath.
She witnessed a boy, about her age, lying on the bed groaning in pain. One of his legs was missing, with only half of it remaining. The boy kept touching his leg and crying out that his foot hurt.
But he no longer had feet...
Yao Youqing's eyes reddened, and she suddenly turned and ran out, covering her mouth and holding onto the door frame, her shoulders trembling slightly.
She thought that after being kidnapped and witnessing the bloody scenes, she could face these things calmly.
But she was wrong. Even after experiencing it, she still couldn't remain indifferent.
That young man was only sixteen or seventeen years old. If he had been born in a peaceful era, he would have been a young man of high birth, riding a white horse with a silver saddle in the spring breeze. [Note 1] But now…
Tears welled up in Yao Youqing's eyes, and Zhou's mother patted her shoulder from behind, gently comforting her.
"If Your Highness is afraid, you shouldn't go in. There are so many doctors and people helping out inside; they can manage."
Yao Youqing shook her head, forcing back tears as she wiped the corners of her eyes.
"It's okay, I'm not afraid, I can do it."