Chapter 61: Disaster Relief?! Don't Interfere with My Wealth Generation!

That very day.

Huayin, Zhaoyi, Tongzhou, Weinan...

All counties near Tonguan Pass witnessed a procession of black-clad imperial guards carrying dragon banners, with strings of severed human heads dangling behind them, arriving to proclaim the imperial edict.

This spectacle naturally left the chief administrative officials of these localities trembling so violently that they could barely stand.

Setting aside for the moment how these imposing black-clad guards and dragon banners had managed to reach Shaanxi, the officials of Tonguan County recognized those heads all too well.

Given the close proximity of the surrounding counties, they frequently interacted, maintained friendly ties, and had shared many cups of flower-wine together in the past.

Seeing their former companions and peers now decapitated and separated from their bodies, the officials of the various counties felt a succession of icy shivers continually assail the napes of their necks.

Without a moment's hesitation.

The officials of the various counties immediately dropped all matters at hand and set about rounding up the refugees as demanded by the imperial edict.

No one dared to play any tricks or resort to any schemes at a time like this; the heads of familiar acquaintances served as the most effective deterrent.

Concurrently, among the refugees, the imperial guards tasked with conveying the decree also proclaimed to them the Emperor's oral mandate ordering the prefectural and county governments to provide disaster relief.

Among these refugees.

A portion had fled from the worst-affected Yan'an Prefecture, and they had long since abandoned any hope of survival.

Some had even begun plotting in secret, discussing how they would band together in a few days to raid the wealthy gentry within the city.

They knew this was rebellion, and they knew it meant death.

Yet, since death awaited them either way, they would rather partake in one final, satisfying meal before starving to death.

But at this moment.

Upon hearing that the Emperor had arrived in Shaanxi and had commanded the local governments to open their granaries and distribute grain for their relief, every single thought of rebellion among these people vanished in an instant.

The true reason for their rebellion was, after all, simply to avoid starvation.

Now that the hope of survival was placed right before their eyes, who would still commit such a treasonous act?

Between life and death lies immense terror.

Yet between life and death also lies immense joy.

Watching the refugees, who realized they would no longer starve to death, their hearts surged with wild elation and uncontrollable agitation.

Yet, gazing upon the heads of those refugees who had been executed on the spot for defying the imperial will, everyone dared do no more than drop to their knees to shout long live the Emperor, cautiously forming long, silent lines as they slowly moved toward the city, not daring to utter the slightest sound of clamor.

Under the threat of death.

The chief administrative officials of the counties surrounding Tonguan likewise did not dare pause for even a moment as they thoroughly rounded up all the refugees around their walled cities.

Although this state of frantic busyness temporarily made them forget the terror of death, once the refugees had been successfully settled, the officials were once again engulfed by panic.

They had finally discerned the truth.

The Emperor's purpose in coming to Shaanxi was precisely to address the severe drought plaguing the province.

The problem, however, was this.

Within each of these walled county seats at present, nearly a thousand refugees had gathered.

Yet, with Shaanxi suffering from consecutive years of drought, the government held virtually no grain reserves whatsoever.

This year, the grain harvest across the entire province of Shaanxi had generally plummeted by more than fifty percent, and some of the hardest-hit counties had suffered a total crop failure.

Consequently, even if they exhausted every method and forced the wealthy gentry to surrender all the hoarded grain they intended to speculate with, the total grain supply in any given city under the present circumstances would only suffice to sustain the entire urban population and the refugees combined for a mere three to four months.

And that was based on a conservative estimate.

If estimated less conservatively, all the stored grain would likely be depleted in a mere two months' time.

When that day arrived, what would they do?

Winter was fast approaching, and by then, not only would the refugees starve to death, but even the existing urban residents would perish from hunger.

The entire province of Shaanxi would plunge into an even greater catastrophe.

Yet the Emperor seemed entirely oblivious to this reality.

The Emperor appeared to believe that merely killing a few chickens as a warning to the monkeys could somehow resolve the famine in Shaanxi!

Naturally.

What worried the officials was not what would happen to the common people of Shaanxi once the grain ran out.

That had nothing to do with them.

Commoners were, after all, just commoners; if they died, they died, nothing momentous about it.

What truly terrified them was that when the grain stores were exhausted and the famine remained unresolved, the Emperor, in a fit of furious wrath, would blindly and summarily have them all beheaded.

Despite harboring overwhelming fear and anxiety, not a single person dared to halt their disaster-relief efforts.

Regardless of what the future held, their immediate priority was simply to preserve their own petty lives.

...

That night.

Xi'an Prefecture.

The then-Governor of Shaanxi, Qiao Yingjia (affiliated with the Donglin Party), was drinking and gambling in a brothel within the prefectural city alongside a retinue of subordinate officials.

It was not until Qiao Yingjia had thoroughly enjoyed himself that one of his subordinates finally mustered the courage to approach him with a flattering smile and said:

"Your Excellency, a secret report just arrived from below. Yan'an Prefecture has begun to see widespread instances of people cannibalizing one another; a popular uprising is likely imminent."

Hearing the subordinate's report of an imminent popular uprising, Qiao Yingjia showed no reaction, merely nodding with an indifferent expression.

He was already well aware of Shaanxi's plight, and he understood the situation in Yan'an Prefecture better than anyone.

Yet regarding this, Qiao Yingjia did nothing more than seek pleasure day in and day out, drinking and gambling.

He was already over sixty years of age and had long since seen through everything.

Shaanxi could not be saved, nor did he have any inclination to save it.

Thus, in the two years since he assumed office as the Governor of Shaanxi, he spent every day pursuing amusement and had not even glanced at the disaster victims once.

Relief?

That was out of the question; how could gleaming silver be distributed so easily to the poor?

Far from permitting any locality in Shaanxi to open granaries and distribute grain, he had instead substantially increased local taxes across the board.

Qiao Yingjia had calculated very clearly.

Since Shaanxi was bound to fall into chaos sooner or later, he had better take advantage of this period to amass some silver.

Since ancient times, encountering a major disaster was always an opportune moment to make a fortune.

As for whether he would face reckoning afterward, Qiao Yingjia was unconcerned.

Daring to act thusly, he had naturally long since secured his connections.

One must remember that standing behind him was none other than the powerful Donglin Party.

When the time came.

It would amount to nothing more than a few censors in the imperial court impeaching him for "failing to effectively govern Shaanxi."

And by then, others would inevitably step forward to speak on his behalf.

Ultimately, the heaviest punishment he would face was merely being dismissed from office and sent home to retire.

This was precisely what Qiao Yingjia desired.

He was already old; it was fitting for him to return home, enjoy a life of ease, and play with his grandchildren.

Attended by a retinue of servants, Qiao Yingjia returned to his official residence.

Just as he was preparing to retire for sleep, the urgent sound of knocking suddenly echoed from outside.

Immediately afterward.

The spy he had stationed within the various counties of Xi'an Prefecture hurried inside, dropped to his knees, and blurted out: "Your Excellency the Governor! A catastrophe has occurred!"

"For reasons unknown, the Emperor has suddenly arrived in Shaanxi and has already established a temporary encampment at Tonguan today!"

Hearing the declaration that the Emperor himself had come to Shaanxi, Qiao Yingjia's deeply furrowed face froze rigidly, and he instantly lost his composure:

"What did you say?! Is this true?! Did you lay eyes on the Emperor yourself?!"

It was no wonder Qiao Yingjia lost his composure; even in his wildest dreams, he could never have anticipated the Emperor coming to Shaanxi.

Had the new Emperor not just ascended the throne a short time ago? How could he possibly have left the palace?!

Moreover, why had he not received the slightest inkling of news from the capital beforehand?

"It is absolute truth, Your Excellency!!"

"Not only that, but Tonguan... the officials and gentry inside Tonguan City have all been executed by the Emperor!"

"This humble servant ran two horses to death along the way just to deliver this news to the prefectural city in time."