The Overlord of the Red Mansion

August 18, Year 7 of the Holy Reign
"Greetings to His Majesty! Long live the Holy Emperor!"

"Flat body."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Jia Rong sat on the supreme throne somewhat bored, as it seemed that there was nothing particularly important today.

The left prime minister was the first to step forward and report the matter.

"Your Majesty, an earthquake occurred in Xincheng County, Tianshui on the 16th, killing more than half of the people and animals. The Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of War have already started disaster relief."

"Ah."

Jia Rong didn't care about such things and didn't love his people as his own children.

But considering that his son died in a similar casual manner, he can be said to love his people like his own sons.

Jia Rong has many children, and as the children have grown up, their ability to commit suicide has increased day by day.

Death is death, it won’t affect Jia Rong’s continued enjoyment in Baicao Palace.

Jia Rong, who loves his people like his own children, has never paid much attention to disaster relief. Such matters are handled by his subordinates themselves and there is no need to report to Jia Rong specifically.

After the report was given, Jia Rong just listened.

The necessary disaster relief procedures are in place, and the power is given to those below. The cabinet has the power to mobilize money and food during wartime and major disasters.

Therefore, disaster relief is the responsibility of Zuo Xiang and others. If disaster relief is not effective, the heads of the lower-level officials will be chopped off, and it has nothing to do with the Holy Emperor.

On the contrary, private organizations of civilians have always been prohibited for disaster relief, and it is only fair to do so under the name of the Holy Emperor.

The Left Prime Minister had already arranged for disaster relief. For a feudal dynasty, especially the current Holy Dynasty, this was a small matter.

The national treasury had endless money and endless food, and various places had stockpiled large amounts of disaster relief food. Tax exemptions alone had been granted several times.

If we can’t produce food during disaster relief efforts, it must be because someone is corrupt.

The left prime minister's report on disaster relief was a completely formulaic response. After all, matters such as the use of military power and the allocation of money and grain must be reported afterwards.

The Holy Emperor doesn't care about this kind of thing, but the rest of the people don't want to get involved in such sensitive matters that may involve treason.

The Minister of Personnel stood up and said, "Your Majesty, I have received a report from the Governor-General of Sichuan and Chongqing. When Sichuan suffered a severe drought this year, many officials built water conservancy projects and diverted water from the mountains. Although there were many cases of abuse of power, fortunately, under the leadership of a group of capable officials, the drought was successfully overcome."

The Ministry of Personnel is responsible for the assessment of officials and selects officials based on their political performance.

Jia Rong had already determined several sources of political achievements: the collection of money and grain, population increase, recommendation of talents, and stability in times of disaster.

For example, when the two princes rebelled, local officials suppressed them, a national top scholar appeared in the territory, local civil and military officials were conferred titles, and so on, which brought blessings to many people.

It is a good thing for the superiors if there are honest and capable officials in the territory of a province, especially those who can turn the tide and suppress the situation at a critical moment.

On the contrary, if there are too many parasites in the country, it will also affect the evaluation of the chief officer.

Court officials came from all over the place, some were from the same hometown and some were from the same party.

In order to prevent the emergence of local factions in one place, people usually avoid suspicion by not appointing too many officials from the same place.

These are not what Jia Rong meant. In fact, Jia Rong doesn't care about these at all.

Soon the director of the Imperial Observatory came out and knelt down.

"Your Majesty, I am now sixty-eight years old and my health is not as good as before. I have been the chief of the Imperial Observatory for two years since the Holy Dynasty, and I have worked diligently every day. Now I want to step down and hand over the position to the younger generation."

Jia Rong had a good impression of this old official, who was an encyclopedic talent.

Astronomy and calendar, agricultural policy and water conservancy, geography and mathematics, military manufacturing, etc. have all achieved good results, and each industry has seven or eight or more than ten books that are readable.

He provided Jia Rong with great help in military, industrial, agricultural and other scientific fields, saving him a lot of trouble.

"You should recommend the next chief official. He will stay in the capital for the time being to retire and help the new official to stabilize things. His salary will remain the same, but he will not have to go to the government office. He can be busy at home."

"It only takes six hours from the capital to your hometown now. If you want to go home, just take the train. You are allowed to continue living in your original residence. I will arrange a new residence for you as the new chief officer."

The old minister quickly kowtowed and thanked Jia Rong, and accepted Jia Rong's request to stay.

The others saw it and kept it in mind.

In recent years, because the high-ranking officials of the Holy Dynasty are generally young, few of them retire and return to their hometowns, which would not alarm Jia Rong.

But seven years have passed, and some officials who were promoted in their fifties or sixties are almost ready to enjoy their retirement.

The King of Donghai is living his retirement in the capital and has not returned to his original fiefdom yet.

The current King of East China Sea is his son, and he is already an old prince.

The old prince was well aware of the huge gap between the medical resources in the capital and those in his hometown.

The others also knew it.

The director of the Health Bureau came out at this time.

"Your Majesty, today the female officials of the six courtyards in the city reported to me that the number of pregnancies in the first half of this year was less than one-tenth of that of last year. I am afraid that the population will not be prosperous next year."

After the Director of the Health Bureau said this, everyone else felt strange.

The left prime minister frowned and said, "Aren't there many people having babies this year? The document submitted by the Ministry of Revenue said that the population of the capital this year will be 200,000 more than last year."

The Minister of Revenue quickly said, "What I have reported is all true. There are many more newborns this year than last year. I dare not lie!"

It is possible to fabricate data in other places, but this is the capital, and the Minister of Revenue dare not deceive here.

But if his subordinates lied, the Minister of Revenue would have no choice but to pray that their subordinates provided real data.

The director of the Health Bureau replied, "This year's newborns were born from last year's pregnancies. After ten months of pregnancy, it is now August. This month's babies were born from pregnant women who were registered in October last year."

"There are very few pregnant women registered this year. Yesterday, I personally went around the various hospitals and asked the medical staff in the women's hospital. They all said that the number of pregnant women in the capital this year is one-tenth of last year, or even one percent."

Why don’t you have children?
Jia Rong frowned and was about to wonder if someone had developed a contraceptive pill when he suddenly remembered what he had done.

During the New Year holidays, Jia Rong had nothing to do, so he went to the water plant on impulse...

"Strange, how could this be possible..." Jia Rong frowned and became serious for the first time. "I haven't been to the women's quarters for a long time, and I didn't even know about this kind of thing."

Maybe it’s because I knew that I didn’t go.

The director of the Health Bureau said respectfully, "I would like to ask the female hospital doctors to conduct physical examinations on the married women of marriageable age in the city. Since they are all women, I would like to ask Your Majesty to dispatch a female official from the Imperial Hospital to be in charge of this matter!"

The director of the Health Bureau is a man, and he is a civil servant who knows some medical skills.

Things like pregnancy are women's business. Jia Rong can put his hand under a woman to deliver a baby because he is the Holy Emperor and a famous doctor.

Let alone the rest of the people, they even have to avoid suspicion when investigating why women are infertile, for fear of being talked about and slandered.

It's okay to have many wives and concubines in private, but now we are investigating why the wives and concubines of the ministers are infertile, so this kind of thing must be avoided.

Jia Rong's palace has a group of beautiful doctors and nurses, and also has many experienced female gynecologists. This kind of thing can only be dispatched by Jia Rong.

Jia Rong didn't want to make any arrangements or investigate the matter.

"I will check it myself. I will do the same this year."

Everyone then remembered that no woman in the Holy Palace was pregnant this year either.

After thinking about this, I was suddenly shocked!
Infertility is a minor issue for others, but if something goes wrong in the Holy Palace, it will be a major issue that will affect the national economy and people's livelihood!!

The left prime minister said quickly: "Your Majesty! This matter is of great importance! We must investigate it as soon as possible!"

Jia Rong nodded and said quickly, "I am not a person who gets bored easily. I have been with my wife all these years. I am not sure what happened now, but I feel that there is nothing wrong with my body."

"Are you feeling unwell, my dear ministers? Are any of your wives or concubines pregnant?"

The ministers looked at each other.

"No." Soon everyone gave a positive answer.

The old King of Donghai replied, "Your Majesty, I have not heard of anyone being unwell this year. It is strange that I heard that a servant was pregnant this year, but none of my friends, young or old, have been pregnant at home."

The left prime minister followed suit and said, "My servants are pregnant, and some of my students are pregnant, but my sons, nephews, and some of my acquaintances who got married this year have no children."

The chief of the imperial clan stood up and said, "Your Majesty, all the people born this year were conceived and born last year. I have not conducted a thorough investigation of the eight highest-ranking members of the imperial clan, but as far as I can remember, there seems to be no pregnancy this year, especially among the first-rank royal family and the second-rank princes and grandchildren, the third-rank princes, the fourth-rank dukes, and the fifth-rank princes and dukes."

Jia Rong frowned and said thoughtfully, "Strange, is it that only the nobles have no children, and the common people are not affected? This reminds me of the past. I remember that it was like this for several years. There were always a few years when I had no children, and my children were all conceived in a few years."

Jia Rong's guidance made everyone recall the past.

Zong Zheng suddenly broke out in a cold sweat, and the others also suddenly thought of something.

Zong Zheng quickly said loudly: "Your Majesty! Every year when the disaster star appears, it is a time of national mourning and family mourning. Every family is in mourning, and the descendants of the nobles and ministers in the capital are cut off. This year happens to be a year of great disaster!"

Superstitious Jia Rong clenched his fists, then loosened them and grabbed the armrests of the dragon throne. "So that's it... So that's it."

The superstitious Jia Rong certainly would not believe such a bizarre thing as someone putting contraceptives into the water plant.

This kind of thing is too wild to be mentioned in unofficial history and cannot be brought up at all.

"It turns out to be a year of great disaster. Then we should just follow the will of heaven and wait for it to pass."

Jia Rong reluctantly succumbed to his fate, sighing as he refused to disobey God's will.

After Jia Rong defined the nature of this bizarre incident, both those who were concerned with science and those who were concerned with politics knelt down and praised his wisdom.

"Your Majesty is wise! Long live the Holy Emperor!"

Jia Rong asked, "What else?"

The ministers stood up and waited for each other. Finally, the chief minister, the Prime Minister of the Left, replied, "We are all fine."

Jia Rong nodded, "This matter is beyond human control. I am the Son of Heaven, so I must communicate with the will of heaven. If there are newborns in the Holy Palace, it means that the natural disaster has passed. You should not embarrass the women in your family, and you should not rush for success. You need to take care of your body, not have sex, and bathe diligently every day and restrain yourself from women."

Everyone bowed and said, "We obey your order!"

Jia Rong added, "All the royal family members, or newly married wives and concubines of officials above the third rank, can enter the palace for a physical examination. I want to see if they have contracted any diseases. The rest of you can just live your life normally. There is always a way out. This has happened more than once or twice. Just treat it with a normal mind."

It's definitely not once or twice...

With Jia Rong's comfort, although everyone felt that this natural disaster was hateful, they still accepted Jia Rong's arrangement and let it pass on its own as before.

There is no point in resisting this kind of natural disaster. Since it can pass by itself, the natural thing is to pray to the gods to send it away.

Zuo Luo has already gone to England, and this natural disaster will probably last about a year.

After court session, everyone went back to work.

The old prince sighed and said, "Fortunately, His Majesty can communicate with the will of heaven. As long as someone in the Holy Palace is pregnant, this disaster will be over."

The others walked outside and nodded in acknowledgement.

Jia Rong is the backbone of the group. If his family gets pregnant, other families are about to get pregnant as well.

For any good thing, Jia Rong would be the first to do it, even if he had just married a wife, he would let Jia Rong try first.

***
Jia Rong took a carriage back to the palace and began to arrange things on the way.

"I have arranged for the maids to serve me today. I have something to do."

The female driver didn't say anything. The female officer sitting in the passenger seat was responsible for recording such matters.

"Yes!" The female official was Wan'er, the daughter of the left prime minister. Now she was renamed Shangguan Wan'er, and was responsible for recording Jia Rong's various arrangements.

When Jia Rong went to court, Shangguan Wan'er would stand behind a screen where the ministers could not see her and record Jia Rong's arrangements.

When Jia Rong was at home, Shangguan Wan'er would also sort out various instructions with another female official who was responsible for recording the palace's sexual affairs.

Jia Rong quickly asked in front of him, "Wan'er, many women in the court seem to be afraid of me, as if I can make them pregnant just by looking at them. Do you think it is a bit too much for me to force them into the palace?"

Shangguan Wan'er said quickly: "No! Everyone will be happy to accept it! They are all looking forward to this wonderful thing just like me!"

Serving Jia Rong is also Shangguan Wan'er's job, which is the obligation of all women in the Holy Palace.

Whether you are married or not, you have no choice once you enter the Holy Palace.

Shangguan Wan'er came from a clean family, so naturally she sat in the co-pilot's seat as soon as she entered the palace and became a seventh-rank imperial lady-in-waiting.

In Shangguan Wan'er's view, Jia Rong should start communicating with God's will today and pray for the millions of people in the capital.

It's not about playing with women, nor is it about pleasure, but something grand and upright.

All women should devote themselves to the country and the people of the world, obey the arrangements of the Holy Emperor, and seek purification with the Holy Emperor.

This should be the case whether it is your sister-in-law, sisters or relatives you used to know, or the wives and sisters of officials you get to know.

Jia Rong asked, "What if they don't want to serve me?"

Shangguan Wan'er said solemnly: "If you are unwilling, then you are disloyal, unfilial, unkind and unjust!!"

"Disloyalty, disloyalty to the Holy Emperor!"

"You are unfilial, unfilial to your parents, refusing to take on the mission of bearing an heir, refusing to receive treatment, how stupid!"

"It's unkind. He has ignored the inheritance of millions of people in the capital."

"It's unjust. Seeing that the women of your sisters and relatives are unable to get pregnant, you only care about your own innocence and refuse to help."

"If one considers so-called innocence more important than the emperor, then the official family that taught such a selfish person is not worthy of enjoying high office and generous salary!"

Jia Rong smiled and said, "Okay! You can handle this kind of thing. They are all people you know anyway. Let's start with your family first!"

"As you wish!" Shangguan Wan'er excitedly accepted Jia Rong's personal assignment. (End of this chapter)