Qing Yao

Chapter 274 Lord Zhao, you've been frightened.
Jiangning, the Jiang'an Grain Transport Office.

Although Zhao An, who was imprisoned in the yamen, was ordered to stop all work, he still fulfilled his duties as the head of the grain department. With the disaster area in mind, he wrote a report on the disaster situation in Anhui and requested that all localities directly distribute grain to the disaster victims who had not fled the famine, and instead provide porridge to the disaster victims who had fled the famine, instead of directly distributing grain.

This approach can prevent looting and control relief costs. In addition, it can be used as a form of work relief, organizing disaster victims to repair water conservancy projects and transport food supplies, exchanging labor for food, and avoiding fostering laziness and wasting money.

The report made no mention of his own grievances, while recommending that the court strengthen official "control" over the displaced people.

This "control" did not involve sending officers and soldiers to restrain or suppress the refugees, or implementing measures such as sealing off, blocking, or locking them up. Instead, it involved establishing a semi-official leadership organization among the refugees, organizing them into small teams and large groups, and selecting elders from among them to lead the groups based on kinship and hometown ties.

If local officials could absorb the disaster victims, they would do so; otherwise, they would send people to guide the groups of disaster victims to areas where they could be absorbed.

This would not only prevent the disaster victims from being misled and exploited by anti-Qing organizations such as the White Lotus Sect during their migration, thus turning them into reactionary forces that could overthrow the Qing Dynasty, but also provide them with a certain amount of food to ensure they would not starve to death during their escape.

Zhao An suggested that neighboring provinces such as Jiangsu, Henan, Hubei, and Jiangxi should also begin to organize efforts to "digest" the disaster victims, providing either short-term relief or job placement assistance, so that the victims can survive through manual labor rather than becoming a burden on local security.

In addition, Zhao An pointed out that non-governmental relief organizations are also very important for disaster relief, and ordered local officials to mobilize wealthy households and gentry to donate money and grain to help disaster victims overcome their current difficulties.

This means that those with money contributed money, those with strength contributed strength, and everyone worked together to overcome difficulties and compose a hymn to the Qing Dynasty.

As I was writing, the office door was pushed open, and two elderly people with gray hair stood outside, carrying a fish basket, looking somewhat uneasy.

Since the day he was invited to a banquet by Jiangning Provincial Governor Fuchang, Han Ruipeng, the commander in charge of guarding Zhao An, indeed opened the door to conveniences for him. As long as Zhao An did not leave the yamen, Commander Han instructed his subordinates to turn a blind eye to other matters.

The two elderly people probably hadn't seen Zhao An before, so they cautiously asked, "Are you Lord Zhao, the upright official?"

Tofu Justice?

Zhao An smiled wryly, unaware of when she had been bestowed with this honorary title.

But it's very good, excellent.

Tofu, well, it's pure and simple.

Paired with a clear blue sky, it couldn't be more fitting; it was exactly the flavor he wanted.

One upright official is better than ten thousand excellent officials.

The Green Standard Army soldiers guarding the area nearby were used to this scene, because in recent days, not only had many people come outside the yamen to plead for Zhao Daotai, but many people had also come specifically to bring him gifts.

A few days ago, a teahouse owner came to deliver pre-rain tea to Magistrate Zhao, but Magistrate Zhao refused to accept it. Finally, the owner was so anxious that he stamped his feet and said, "Magistrate Zhao, every time you go down to inspect the granaries, you only drink plain water, saying that your official salary is enough and you should not take any more from the people. I know that you are an honest official, but today I am forcing you to sell this tea!"

After saying that, the shopkeeper put the tea leaves directly on the table and ran away. Zhao Daotai couldn't stop him no matter how much he called. Helpless, he had no choice but to accept the tea leaves, but then he immediately sent his family outside to ask how much the half catty of tea leaves was worth.

The family said it was worth more than four qian of silver, so Zhao Daotai instructed his family to secretly place the four qian of silver under the door of the teahouse at night.

I heard that when the shopkeeper discovered the four coins of silver at dawn, he cried his eyes out.

When nearby residents heard about this, they all praised it. The story spread like wildfire, and the reputation of "Tofu Qingtian" was praised throughout the entire city of Jiangning.

Even the magistrate of Shangyuan County, Kong, who had previously criticized Zhao An for interfering in local affairs and managing the river for the people, couldn't help but sigh to his men after hearing about this matter: "Although this Lord Zhao comes from a humble background, judging from his deeds, there are very few in this dynasty who can surpass him. It is an honor for me, Kong, to be able to serve as an official in the same city as Lord Zhao."

He then wrote a letter to his uncle Kong Xianpei, who was the Duke of Yansheng in Qufu, asking his uncle to petition the court to seek justice for Zhao Youlu.

The letter also alludes to rumors circulating in Jiangnan that Zhao Youlu is very likely the emperor's illegitimate son who was lost among the common people.

How did Magistrate Kong find out about this?

His advisor learned about it from his "circle of friends".

The source of the information is very reliable; it comes from the provincial governor's office.

If the Duke of Yansheng were to step forward to plead for the "Five Blessed Ones," the imperial court would certainly take it very seriously. If the "Five Blessed Ones" could be exonerated, Magistrate Kong would also be able to get on the good side of Prince Zhao, which would greatly benefit his career.

Otherwise, why would anyone act without a reason?

Yesterday, a butcher brought half a piece of pork to the yamen. He said he had heard that Magistrate Zhao only ate tofu and green soup for every meal for the sake of the people. He admired him greatly and couldn't bear to see Magistrate Zhao lose weight for the sake of the people, so he brought half a piece of pork for Magistrate Zhao to have a taste of meat.

Of course, Magistrate Zhao didn't want it, but the butcher just piled the pork on the table and ran away, making Magistrate Zhao stomp his feet in frustration.

After the news spread, the people of Jiangning City started sending eggs and snacks to the government office, turning the grain transport office into a bustling market with chickens, ducks, and all sorts of other things.

Zhao An was so anxious that tears welled up in his eyes. He went to the yamen gate several times to persuade the people not to send any more things, but they wouldn't listen. Helpless, Zhao An had to have a table set up at the gate, and people who wanted to send things had to register themselves, otherwise he would not accept any of their things.

Anyone with eyes to see knows that Magistrate Zhao intends to keep a record of this and return it to the people later.

Sigh, this official is so honest, he couldn't be more honest!

The soldiers sent by the Anhui Provincial Surveillance Commissioner's Office were not cold-blooded people, nor were they people who could not distinguish right from wrong. Seeing how much the people supported and loved Lord Zhao, who did not know that Lord Zhao was truly wronged?

But this is a matter for those above, and they are just doing what they are told. No matter how much they sympathize with Lord Zhao, there is nothing they can do. They can only hope that the court can find out Lord Zhao's injustice as soon as possible and give him justice.

I must say, Lord Zhao was not only an honest official, but also a very good person. He had the food that the people sent taken to the canteen for all the staff to eat, including these soldiers.

Every morning, Lord Zhao would run inside the yamen, saying that only by staying healthy could he better serve the court and repay the people. As a result, now every morning the guards would consciously follow Lord Zhao and run, with Captain Han Ruipeng even leading the way.

Lord Zhao had a good memory; within two or three days, he could accurately call out the names of every soldier in the battalion. He had no airs of authority whatsoever, so those who were in charge and those who were in charge became close friends.

This is why the two elderly people were able to find Zhao An directly without being stopped.

Seeing that the two elderly people were quite old, Zhao An quickly put down his pen, got up, and went to the door. He said kindly, "Grandpas, I am Zhao Youlu, but I'm not some kind of upright official. What brings you here?"

One of the older men hurriedly placed the fish basket in front of Zhao An, saying somewhat awkwardly, "Lord Zhao, these fish are ones we caught from the Huimin River. If it weren't for your oversight of the river repairs, the Huimin River would be full of sewage and silt; where would we find clean water and fresh fish? We heard that you were framed by treacherous officials, so we specially caught a few live fish for you to enjoy."

"Yes, yes, let your master have a taste."

Another elderly man nodded repeatedly, looking at Zhao An, whose face looked rather haggard, with great concern.

Zhao An looked haggard because he went to Wanqing's room first last night, and the maid asked him twice before letting him go to Chunlan's room. Chunlan didn't ask for anything that night, but she still squeezed his juice again this morning.

Zhao An didn't sleep well all night, but he had no choice but to tough it out. He glanced at the fish basket and saw that it was full of palm-sized crucian carp. Zhao An was very touched, but said, "Grandpa, I appreciate your kindness, but you should take these fish back for your children."

Seeing that Zhao An refused to accept the fish, the old man quickly said, "Sir, we caught these fish in the river ourselves, we didn't buy them, please accept them!"

Another old man exclaimed excitedly, "Yes, Lord Zhao, please accept it! I've never seen such a good official as you in all my years of life. What's a few fish to you?"

"I appreciate the kind gesture of the two elders, but I really cannot accept this fish."

Since his father-in-law hadn't set up his stall at the yamen gate yet, Zhao An couldn't very well ask the two elderly people to register, so he could only say that he wouldn't accept their orders.

Unexpectedly, when Zhao An refused to accept their fish, one of the two old men couldn't help but say angrily, "Sir, do you find this fish too fishy? It's cleaner than the rats in the granary!"

"Your Excellency is a good official, that's why we're bringing you fish. If you were a corrupt official, we'd feel cheated even if we brought you a fishbone, let alone fish!"

"Grandpas, I...I..."

Seeing the genuine affection the two elderly people showed him, Zhao An couldn't bear it any longer and sighed softly, "Alright, I'll accept the fish for now."

The two elderly people were overjoyed again. Zhao An then escorted them to the door. Before he could return to his office, the old woman he had helped earlier arrived, walking unsteadily.

Upon seeing Zhao An, the old woman immediately removed the copper ring from her ear and pierced her earlobe with a straw. Then, she said to the stunned Zhao An, "This humble woman has no silver hairpins or earrings to offer you, only this broken ear as proof! If you are greedy, sir, this humble woman is willing to have both ears completely ripped off!"

"Old man!"

Moved, Zhao An stepped forward and held the old woman's hands tightly. He had a thousand words to say, but he felt that the power of language was too small to express the turbulent emotions he was feeling at that moment.

This scene stunned the soldiers. An old woman was willing to gouge out both of her ears to prove that Magistrate Zhao was not a corrupt official. If Magistrate Zhao was a corrupt official, then where in the world could there be any honest officials?
One of the soldiers couldn't hold back any longer and shouted, "Lord Zhao is innocent! He's innocent!"

"Yes, Lord Zhao is innocent; he is a good official!"

"."

The guards who had spent every day with Zhao An expressed their support for Zhao Qingtian and their hatred for the treacherous Zhu who had framed him.

"."

Commander Han Ruipeng frowned, worried that his subordinates' shouting would bring him trouble, since the one who framed Lord Zhao was the governor, someone he could not afford to offend.

Just as he was hesitating whether to reprimand his men, a children's rhyme suddenly drifted from the end of the street: "Zhao Qingtian, white rice, tofu soup, no money or grain needed, only virtue."

At lunchtime, in addition to the essential tofu, there was an extra dish of braised fish on the table.

Zhao An ate this meal with mixed feelings, because he never expected that he could receive such sincere support and love from the people for doing such a trivial thing for them.

Feedback from all sides indicated that he, the upright official, was already the number one figure in Jiangning City, while Zhu Gui, the governor of Anhui who impeached him, was just a villainous figure on a stage.

I heard that the literary and artistic circles in Jiangning have also started to write a script about Doufu Qingtian, and soon opera workers in the Liangjiang area will all be involved.

This is what I heard from a close confidant.

Because Zhao An wrote the script himself.

Under Zhao An's meticulous organization, public opinion was completely on his side. Now, all he had to wait for was for the public opinion to continue to ferment and for the capital to react.

Cao Zhenyong and Moergenge did not leave Jiangning, but stayed at the Longmen Inn near the Imperial Examination Hall, presumably waiting for news and further instructions from the capital.

The two men's secret report should have reached the capital by now, and judging from their behavior, it was a positive evaluation of Zhao Anchi.

In short, Zhao An has done everything he could, performed everything he could, and mobilized everyone he could. Now it's up to the old man to decide what to do.

Whether or not we can bring down Jiaqing's homeroom teacher depends entirely on this.

Being vengeful is not a good thing, but Zhao An also has the personality of not holding grudges overnight.

He didn't provoke Jiaqing, but Jiaqing kept provoking him. If he didn't retaliate, Jiaqing would really think that Zhao Youlu was made of clay.

As the saying goes, one good punch is enough to prevent a hundred blows from coming.

Although this counterattack completely severed his ties with Emperor Jiaqing, Zhao An did not regret it, since Jiaqing would not truly wield significant power for another eight years.

Even if someone becomes emperor, there is still a four-year transitional puppet period.

As long as the old man doesn't die, it's not up to Jiaqing to rule the Qing Dynasty.

Besides, he wouldn't feel at ease whether he was sleeping or working, unless he brought down his boss, Zhu Gui, who was always plotting against him.

Even if the old master protects the head teacher of the successor, this time he will let Zhu Gui know that Zhao An is not to be trifled with!

Just as I was pondering how to proceed with my work with Jia, the tightly closed door was silently pushed open, and a familiar face came into view.

"Master Fu?"

Zhao An stood up in surprise, not expecting Fu Chang to come see him.

As a provincial-level official, Fu Chang knew the rules of the court and should not have come to see him, a "disgraced official" who had been impeached, at this critical juncture.

Even if one supports Zhao An in their heart, one should still avoid suspicion; otherwise, it's not worth it to give someone a ginseng.

Just as he was about to ask Fu Chang the purpose of his visit, Fu Chang stepped forward and approached Zhao An with concern, saying, "Lord Zhao, you've been frightened! Oh, you've lost a lot of weight, sir."

"."

Fu Chang's attitude aroused Zhao An's suspicion, but the other party immediately said with righteous indignation, "The court sent me to investigate your case, sir. If you have any grievances, please tell me. I, Fu Chang, will risk losing this official position to seek justice for you!"

(End of this chapter)