Chapter 264: Xia Yuan

Chapter 264: Xia Yuan

On New Year's Eve, Song Tingzhou hurried back to kowtow to his father's memorial tablet, and early the next morning he rushed back to Deqing County.

Although his busyness was the norm, and unlike other prefects who stayed put in the prefectural city, Chang Jinhua had grown accustomed to his constant traveling. However, the New Year was different after all, and she still felt a bit disappointed.

"Grandma, Father stole my braised chicken feet!" A Yan came to Chang Jinhua with tears in his eyes.

Chang Jinhua instantly forgot all her emotions. She rolled up her sleeves and said through gritted teeth, "I think your father is regressing as he gets older, even snatching snacks from a child!"

The grandmother and grandson went to find Meng Wan, and saw him patiently deboning a plate of chicken feet, extremely meticulous.

"Mother, you came just in time. Recently, A Yan hasn't been eating properly, just eating chicken feet and wings. If I don't let him eat more, he cries!"

Chang Jinhua thought about it, and indeed, A Yan seemed to have only eaten half a bowl of rice last night.

A Yan widened his eyes in disbelief. "You weren't like this just now!"

And yesterday there was such a big table of delicious food; he ate less rice because he ate too many dishes!!!

Meng Wan was being overly attentive in front of Chang Jinhua. "Mother, don't you dislike gnawing on bones? I've deboned all these for you." He pushed the entire plate of chicken feet towards Chang Jinhua.

Chang Jinhua waved her hand. "You eat them. I don't like these things. Don't always bully A Yan at home. I'm going to visit the neighbors."

A Yan stared at his grandmother's retreating back, full of grievances but unable to say a word.

After Chang Jinhua left, Meng Wan picked up the plate and began to enjoy the food. "Huang Ye, bring me another serving of orange juice." Meng Wan gnawed on a chicken foot and said, "To cut the grease."

A Yan stared fixedly at the chicken feet in his plate and said fiercely, "A Yan wants orange juice too!"

Huang Ye chuckled. "Alright, I'll get it right away."

After Meng Wan finished gnawing on the two chicken feet he had pretentiously deboned, he started gnawing on the ones with bones.

A Yan was extremely tempted and accused Meng Wan, "How can you be so mean? You clearly stole my chicken feet and scared me into crying, and you lied to grandmother!"

Meng Wan said with a straight face, "How did I lie to your grandmother? I took your chicken feet to give to grandmother; since she didn't eat them, I had to eat them myself! And you crying is because you're a crybaby, what does that have to do with me?"

"You... you're talking nonsense!" A Yan was about to cry again. Clearly everything Meng Wan said was wrong, but he just couldn't argue with him.

"Young master, come drink your orange juice." Huang Ye quickly came to the rescue.

A Yan hugged the orange juice, wanted to glare at Meng Wan but didn't dare, so he could only run off to find Tong'er in frustration.

Days at home were bliss. Meng Wan leisurely gnawed on chicken feet and drank juice. Huang Ye sat beside him shelling raw peanuts to be used for cooking at noon.

Gui Cheng ran over from the front yard. "Master, someone from the prefectural office came, saying that official documents from the capital have arrived, and asking if the lord is at home."

Meng Wan abruptly sat up straight and wiped his hands clean with a wet cloth. "Arrived so quickly? Leave it to me. I'll go to Deqing County tomorrow morning."

Early on the third day of the new year, Meng Wan went to Deqing County again to act as a messenger. After the cement roads became common in Xiwu Prefecture, travel efficiency improved greatly. Meng Wan traveled unimpeded and delivered the letters to Song Tingzhou's desk at the Deqing County government office, where he was temporarily working.

The memorials from Shengjing were very thick. Song Tingzhou opened them one by one, his expression unreadable.

"Good or bad?" Meng Wan sat on the chair opposite him, eating preserved fruit. He had lost a lot of weight when he came home before the new year, which made Chang Jinhua very distressed. She had laid out a pile of snacks at home, and this time when he came to Deqing County, she had packed a lot for him.

Song Tingzhou handed him the top two memorials. "It's good, but also not good."

Meng Wan stuffed the remaining preserved fruit he was eating into Song Tingzhou's mouth, wiped his hands, and then unfolded the memorials.

"You didn't attend the court audience, yet you got a promotion?" Meng Wan said in surprise.

Then he quickly saw the problem. "No, the position of Grand Coordinator has no official rank. You're still the prefect of Xiwu Prefecture. This isn't really a promotion, is it? Did they assign you another task?"

According to Song Tingzhou's achievements, this year's court audience would have at least promoted him one rank, to a position of the third rank. But the Ministry of Personnel only assigned him a nominal position as Grand Coordinator of Lingnan, which was quite intriguing.

Could it be because Song Tingzhou turned back to Xiwu during his journey to the court audience, thus displeasing His Majesty?

After all, they were far from the center of the court and found it difficult to fathom the imperial will. At this moment, they could not imagine the intentions of those above.

Song Tingzhou said without changing expression, "Since it is His Majesty's personal decree, I must accept the appointment regardless. I will do this job well to live up to the imperial grace."

Meng Wan sighed. It was impossible not to accept; the task had been assigned. How could one defy the imperial order?

"Are you going to Qinzhou afterwards?" No news had come out of Qinzhou yet. Song Tingzhou was busy with Xiwu Prefecture affairs and had no time to go and check for now.

Song Tingzhou said in a steady voice, "Let's first settle all matters in Deqing County. The court has already sent someone from the Ministry of Works to survey Qinzhou. They should arrive soon."

Although he held the nominal post of Grand Coordinator, he was still the prefect of Xiwu Prefecture and should prioritize his own jurisdiction. When the person from the Ministry of Works arrives, the two of them should go to Qinzhou together.

The post-disaster reconstruction in Xiwu Prefecture was proceeding in an orderly manner. Chu Ci and several other physicians sprinkled medicinal powder into the river every day. Even so, the river water would not be drinkable for two years; at most, it could be used for washing clothes.

The floodwaters had receded by about half, and many village sites had turned into lakes of various sizes. Song Tingzhou ordered people to retreat two li from the shore on the original village sites, starting from Maolin Town and extending northeastward, building rows of uniformly styled houses stretching dozens of li from south to north.

The project seemed massive, but it couldn't withstand the large workforce. Led by the government, the villagers built the houses themselves. Who wouldn't want to live in a new house?

Moreover, the officials said that the houses would be redistributed after being mixed up, so no one knew which house they would be assigned to. Everyone worked with the same vigor as if building their own homes.

The government provided funds for building houses. Although they had no wages, meals were provided to their fill, and the houses were all gray brick and tile. This was a blessing they couldn't even dream of.

The men went to build houses and rebuild their homes, while Meng Wan hired the remaining women and young lads to plant trees for him.

Xiwu Prefecture was such a good place; lychee trees should be planted in abundance.

Because of Song Tingzhou, Meng Wan was not allowed to buy mountains or land in the jurisdiction. He also didn't want to exploit loopholes and become a future target, so he simply spent his own money to support several poor villages and towns in planting lychee trees.

He spent money to plant trees. In the future, when the trees bore fruit, as long as the lychees were supplied to his Zhen Guan Workshop, the local farmers would give him a 30% discount on the profit until the debt was cleared after three years.

This way, it could both alleviate poverty and ensure that the disaster-affected villagers had a source of income. Meng Wan wasn't losing out either; it was a win-win situation.

The couple were both busy, wishing they could split a day into two. Especially Song Tingzhou, who only rested on New Year's Day. After quickly arranging the follow-up work in Deqing County, he finally managed to go home and rest for two days.

"My lord, the lord from Shengjing is about to enter the city." Chi Yu came to report.

"They arrived so quickly?" Meng Wan was quite surprised. It had only been a little over ten days since the New Year.

Song Tingzhou had already quickly changed into his official robe. "I'll go take a look with some people. Do you want to come with me?"

Meng Wan was pulled up from his seat by him. "Then I'll go join the fun. You don't need to worry about me; I'll stand at the back with Chi Yu."

They dawdled for a while and just managed to receive the person at the city gate.

"Lord Song, it's been a while!" A dark-skinned, about fifty-year-old official jumped down from the carriage. He didn't use a servant's help, appearing lean and capable.

Song Tingzhou dismounted and bowed. "Lord Xia, you must have had a tiring journey."

This person was none other than Xia Yuan, the Vice Minister of Works of the second rank in the court. Back when Song Tingzhou participated in the spring imperial examination, he was one of the associate examiners, and the two had a mentor-student relationship, although this title carried little weight.

Xia Yuan politely returned the bow. "This official merely traveled a long distance; how can it be called tiring? Lord Song tirelessly works for the people of Xiwu Prefecture; that is truly wholehearted devotion to the public."

Meng Wan listened from behind, utterly impressed. No wonder he was a capital official—despite being several ranks above Song Tingzhou, he was so humble and polite. He seemed like an honest man who got things done, but his speech carried the polished tone of an old hand from the capital.

As a true scholar who had earned his place through merit, ranking among the top in the imperial examination, Song Tingzhou knew how to make polite conversation, but he couldn't be bothered.

"This is no place for talk. Please, Lord Xia, follow me into the city. Lodgings have already been prepared for you."

Xia Yuan was taken aback by his directness, then laughed. "Then I thank Lord Song for his hospitality."

He had imagined Song Tingzhou would arrange some grand mansion, a sprawling compound. But when he arrived, he found himself staying in the rear quarters of the government office.

Originally reserved for the prefect and his family, Lord Song had moved out and let him stay here—was he planning to spend not a single coin?

Interesting.

Even if he didn't flatter, he couldn't afford to offend either. The necessary formalities had to be observed.

That afternoon, Song Tingzhou hosted a banquet at the largest restaurant in the prefectural city. It was a pleasant affair for host and guest alike. Song Tingzhou neither flattered his superior nor gave offense, eating two-thirds of the feast himself, leaving the rest as a gesture of decency.

Xia Yuan had not risen to high office by being incompetent. In his early years, he had served as a local official. Since they were here on official business, and Song Tingzhou was no sycophant, the two decided the next day to set off immediately for Qinzhou.

That morning, they ate rice noodles and fried chicken at Chang Jinhua's shop. The fare suited the Vice Minister of Works' palate. People from the capital always had the habit of trying to poach chefs, and Xia Yuan was no exception.

"Forgive me, Lord Xia. This is my mother's shop, so it would be inconvenient to lend out the chef. But you're welcome to take the recipe," Song Tingzhou explained.

Xia Yuan was genuinely astonished that a court official's mother would personally run a shop selling food. After the shock came admiration. "A gentleman does not take what another treasures. I'll pass on the recipe. When the Qinzhou business is done, I'll come back here for another meal before I leave, and I'll trouble the old lady then."

Meng Wan boarded his own carriage first; he was also going to Qinzhou with Song Tingzhou. "Lord Xia, rest assured. You're welcome to eat as much as you like at my family's shop."

Xia Yuan's eyes flickered. "Then I thank Meng Fulang."

Once in his carriage, a lean young man sidled up to him. "My lord, the Zhen Guan Workshop on the outskirts of Xiwu Prefecture is indeed the work of this Meng Fulang. The workshop's people are very tight-lipped. I traced the lead from an out-of-town peddler."

So what they'd learned might not be true.

But Xia Yuan had a hunch that this unassuming Fulang was no ordinary household lad.

"Capital officials are hard to fool. Lord Xia hadn't even reached Xiwu Prefecture when his people were already snooping around Zhen Guan Workshop," Meng Wan remarked in the carriage.

Song Tingzhou frowned deeply. "He had you investigated?"

"Probably as part of checking up on you and the workshop. It's fine." Since Luo Jining visited Xiwu Prefecture, Meng Wan had come to terms with it. He hadn't done anything shady, and Song Tingzhou had made a name for himself at court. His workshop wasn't afraid of scrutiny.

But Song Tingzhou's face remained dark. "If my rank were higher than Xia Yuan's, he wouldn't dare investigate you so openly."

Meng Wan smiled helplessly. He realized Song Tingzhou was prone to overthinking. Fortunately, A Yan hadn't inherited that trait.

"My lord! Come out and see!" Chi Yu called from outside the carriage.

They had been traveling for over ten days. Thanks to the cement roads within Xiwu Prefecture, they had quickly left its borders, and only slowed down after entering Qinzhou territory.

Their current location should be near Pubei County, the closest county to Xiwu Prefecture in Qinzhou.

Because they suspected a plague might have broken out in Qinzhou, Chu Ci, A Xun, and Doctor Miao had come along. Qing Xing had some personal matters to finish and would join later.

Meng Wan had originally not planned to bring the two children. Impetigo was too terrifying, and he didn't dare take risks. But after the New Year, the rebellious A Yan had sneaked onto Chu Ci's carriage with Tong'er. How he had convinced his brother, Meng Wan didn't know, but now both children were in his carriage.

When Song Tingzhou got out, Meng Wan and A Yan lifted the curtain to look. The city gate before them was tightly shut, with not even a guard in sight.

It was broad daylight. If a county gate was closed without reason, the official in charge would be reprimanded.

The city walls were empty, but below them, the area was packed with refugees. In the winter cold, most wore tattered, thin clothes, huddled together in semicircular clusters, motionless.

Meng Wan couldn't even tell if they were alive or dead.

A Yan looked puzzled. "Father, what are they doing? Why don't they go home?"

"They… might not have a home anymore." This was the second time Meng Wan had seen such a scene, and his heart still felt heavy and stifled, like a quilt that won't dry on a cloudy day—oppressive and suffocating.

"No home?" A Yan tilted his head. "Then aren't they cold outside? Why don't they wear more clothes?"

Meng Wan pulled him and Tong'er close, a hint of pity in his eyes. "When people are sick or hungry, with no food to eat and no money for a doctor or medicine, the first thing they sell for money is their winter padded coat."

Next, they abandon the weak elderly and sell their young children.

《The rains fell ceaselessly, the earth dark. The dikes burst, and towering waves surged.

Once a village of smoke and tiled roofs, now a vast expanse of flood.

Old trees snapped, fields turned into ponds. Clothes tattered as threads, frail lives hanging by a thread.

Man's weakness cannot withstand heaven's might, but wisdom can avert danger.》—End of Xiwu Prefecture Arc.