The next morning during court, Zhou Chengwang’s father reported the matter of refugees being lured into the city to Emperor Changde. Emperor Changde, without a second thought, instinctively suspected Wei Yunzhao of plotting rebellion.
However, before Emperor Changde could voice his suspicions, Zhou Chengwang’s father presented a booklet on locust plague solutions to the Emperor, stating that it was written by Jiang Lin, Wei Yunzhao’s husband. This forced Emperor Changde to abandon his intention of linking the refugees to the Wei family in court.
After all, if the Wei family were planning a rebellion, Jiang Lin wouldn’t have written a booklet on locust plague solutions.
Emperor Changde read through the booklet and then passed it around for the court officials to review. Whether the methods were feasible would have to be tested, but since no one could come up with better solutions, no one opposed them.
Jiang Lin was now in the same category as Wei Yunzhao in Emperor Changde’s mind. Just hearing his name made the Emperor uncomfortable. Emperor Changde merely said in a flat tone that rewards would be given if the methods proved effective.
Then, Du Yuling’s father proposed using the title of royal merchant to recruit merchants to assist the court in disaster relief. The merchant who contributed the most resources and played the biggest role in the relief efforts would be designated as the royal merchant. Since this would reduce the court’s financial burden, Emperor Changde readily agreed and entrusted the matter to Du Yuling’s father.
With the disaster relief plans settled, additional guards were stationed at Shengjing’s gates, and more patrols were deployed within the city. The refugees already in the city were gathered and provided with daily porridge. Once the disaster passed, the court would send them back to their hometowns.
However, as more and more refugees arrived in Shengjing, the situation became increasingly dire.
First, there were reports of refugees stealing, which escalated to outright robbery and assaults. Just as the citizens of Shengjing were growing increasingly frustrated with the refugees’ behavior, a home invasion and murder occurred.
This incident was like a drop of water in a boiling pot, causing an uproar.
Suddenly, the citizens of Shengjing were in a state of panic, demanding that all refugees be expelled from the city.
The refugees, of course, refused. They claimed to be citizens of Dayue, subjects of the Emperor. Expelling them from the city would be tantamount to abandoning them to their deaths, making the Emperor an uncaring tyrant.
Ordinary refugees, who relied on handouts for food, wouldn’t dare to provoke Shengjing’s residents, let alone come up with such a strategy to force their stay in the city.
The plan wasn’t particularly sophisticated, but it accurately exploited Emperor Changde’s weakness, his desire for a virtuous reputation. The refugees knew that by causing such a stir, the Emperor wouldn’t easily order their expulsion.
But this minor conflict wasn’t enough. Using the dissatisfaction of Shengjing’s citizens as an excuse, several more families were robbed the next day. Not only were their valuables and grain stolen, but all the residents were killed, leaving no survivors.
The most troubling part was that the government officials couldn’t identify the culprits. The robbers had killed all the witnesses, so no one could describe their appearance. It was only known that the perpetrators were refugees. But with so many refugees, it was nearly impossible to identify the guilty parties among the crowd.
Moreover, with so many refugees, it was impractical to arrest and imprison them all, as the prisons couldn’t hold such numbers.
As a result, the refugees seemed even more emboldened. They could kill without facing imprisonment or execution, and they could plunder food and wealth. More and more people were tempted to join in, and Shengjing descended into chaos.
Emperor Changde ordered heavy security to ensure no refugee could leave the designated area. Fearing that the refugees would gain strength from full stomachs and commit more robberies and murders, the relief porridge was reduced from two servings a day to one, and it was made even thinner, just enough to keep them from starving to death.
This drastic change in treatment naturally incited further dissatisfaction among the refugees.
Watching the angry refugees, someone said, “The time is ripe. Let’s use the blood of the Wei family to mark the beginning of our campaign.”
____
After some effort, Chu Ba finally uncovered who was behind the manipulation of the refugees.
“The Fourth Prince and Jiang Rou?”
Jiang Lin and Wei Yunzhao were both stunned when they heard Chu Ba’s report.
These two had been absent from Jiang Lin’s memory for some time, and he hadn’t expected them to be involved, especially, “How did Jiang Rou get involved with the Fourth Prince?”
Chu Ba explained, “After the Fourth Prince and Consort Su escaped from the palace, they hid in the Lotus Nunnery. Jiang Rou was also there for reflection, and the two of them got involved.”
“Oh, and the Zhao family’s…”
Before Chu Ba could finish, Xun Qi descended from the sky and interrupted him. “Young Master, Madam, a large group of refugees carrying torches is heading toward the Wei mansion.”
The housekeeper also rushed into the courtyard, panting heavily. “Young Master, Madam, a young lady has arrived at the gate, saying that the refugees are coming to rob the Wei mansion. She said the refugees were close behind her and are almost at the gate.”
Almost as soon as the housekeeper finished speaking, the sound of knocking, or rather, pounding on the door echoed continuously. It seemed the gate would be broken open at any moment.
The housekeeper stomped his foot. “Oh no, the refugees are about to break in. There are so many of them. What should we do?”
Jiang Lin glanced at the recently repaired wall in the backyard and was grateful that the refugees had arrived after the repairs. Otherwise, they could have stormed directly into the courtyard, which would have been disastrous.
“Young Master, what should we do now?” Xun Qi asked, bowing.
Wei Yunzhao spoke, his tone cool. “Set up ladders, take bows and arrows, and go up to the roof.”
Jiang Lin also called the housekeeper aside and instructed him to gather the servants, light torches, and wait for the gate to open.
The Wei family’s servants sprang into action. As Jiang Lin pushed Wei Yunzhao to the front courtyard, they saw a woman standing there.
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