I did it all for the Han Dynasty!

Chapter 34 Long White Legs

Liu Miao wished he could run to Lujiang and smash him to death with a chessboard!
"Grandma's."

He cursed again, and then Liu Miao realized something was wrong.

He pointed to the large ship behind him: "What's in there?"

"It was also sent from Shouchun; it was all grain and fodder."

Liu Miao's eyes widened, then he shifted his gaze to the small boat full of women.

The cramped cabin forced the women to huddle together, making even moving around extremely difficult.

Liu Miao glared at the boatman: "You actually use a large boat to haul grain and fodder, but a small boat to haul people? Are people cheaper than grain?"

"..."

The boatman was speechless for a moment, or rather, he clearly wanted to agree to the matter, but was afraid of Liu Miao's status and dared not speak.

"never mind."

Liu Miao knew it wasn't the boatman's fault, and after complaining a bit, he was also troubled by the current situation.

"Send them all to the Lu residence first!"

"all?"

"All of them! By the way, tell my wife to vacate a few rooms... and also, tell Boyan to stay with his uncle Lu Ji for a few days!"

However, just in case, Liu Miao still asked the people inside the cabin—

"If you have parents or relatives still alive, tell them now, and I will give you some money and food so that you can go home and reunite with your family!"

Unexpectedly, these seemingly comforting words were like a raging flood, instantly overwhelming the women who had been in the cabin for several days. Sobs and cries rose and fell, eventually surging together into a deafening wail.

The boatman was also helpless.

Although he was the one who put these women on the small boat, he then spoke up for them.

"Lord Liu, please have mercy and take them all in."

“Nowadays, each person has only one mouth, and each mouth needs two meals a day, which is a yarrow stalk of grain… But where in the world can we get so much grain to feed them?”

“Now there is war everywhere in Yuzhou and Yanzhou. Many of them were sold by their parents to Huainan. How can they go back and continue to starve?”

Liu Miao looked closely at the boatman: "Are there many refugees these days?"

"Lots! Abundantly!"

The boatman vividly recounted his experiences on the Huai River—

"These days, boatmen at the Huai River ferry are making a lot of money! People from the north are flocking to Huainan! The boats are packed with people, carrying as many as twenty at a time! And those people are willing to pay; they casually pull out gold, silver, and bronze items that you would never have seen before, tsk tsk!"

"There were also a few men who had never been able to find a wife, who didn't want gold or silver, they just wanted women! The wealthy families didn't hesitate, they just pushed their precious daughters out! I saw it with my own eyes, a rich girl cried and begged to go with her parents, but her parents and brothers broke her legs and threw her overboard! And you know what, that rich girl had really fair skin! At that time, half of her thigh was exposed, it looked really rare!"

"..."

The boatman was about to share more of what he had seen and heard, but then he suddenly realized that he wasn't just chatting with his fellow villagers, so he immediately shut his mouth in fear.

Liu Miao was indeed furious.

However, seeing the boatman suddenly shut up, Liu Miao's anger gradually subsided.

Whether he heard or saw these things or not, they have already happened and cannot be changed. It's impossible to say that just because Liu Miao didn't want to hear them, those fleeing people would cease to exist.

It's impossible to say that if Liu Miao scolded the boatman who only wanted to make money and find a wife, the world would be at peace.

Liu Miao was not one to deceive himself or others, so he patted the boatman on the shoulder and said, "Yes, it is indeed a good business!"

"Thank you all for your hard work delivering this goods! Each of you will receive one string of cash later, consider it my treat from Liu Miao to drinks!"

When the boatman saw that Liu Miao not only didn't complain but even gave him more money, he couldn't stop smiling!

"Lord Liu is truly generous! Much more generous than those in Shouchun!"

"Lord Liu! If you ever need to deliver any goods, just come to us! Don't underestimate us just because we have a small fleet; we're very reliable! We can even navigate the biggest waves on the Yangtze River!"

The boatman finally realized that Liu Miao was an easy person to get along with, unlike the prefectural magistrate of Jiujiang and the clerk of the Household Department, who were difficult and mean and only thought about deducting wages. So he was willing to chat with Liu Miao for a few more minutes.

"Lord Liu, let us help you unload the cargo first! There are still a few more ships coming later! No rush to drink!"

Then the boatman suddenly whispered, "To be honest, sir, when I was loading the cargo in Shouchun, I discovered that someone had embezzled your goods!"

"Thirty boats were loaded at the time, but five of them didn't come towards Shuxian!"

However, as soon as he finished speaking, the boatman regretted it, feeling that he had spoken too much.

Liu Miao raised an eyebrow: "Such a thing is true?"

Immediately, Liu Miao seemed to remember something and couldn't help but chuckle a few times: "That wasn't something they embezzled, so don't worry about it!"

Just then, a boatman carried down a bolt of silk. Liu Miao took it and placed it directly in the boatman's hand: "But you mustn't mention this to anyone else! Lest people misunderstand! Understand?"

The boatman, having survived the ordeal, was so grateful to Liu Miao that he refused to accept anything from him and quickly bowed to decline.

"Keep it!"

Liu Miao pointed to his luxurious clothes and said, "Do you think my clothes are less beautiful than these silks?"

The boatman cried out in alarm, "I dare not!"

"But this fabric is too luxurious for me to wear."

"You're not a criminal or prisoner, so why aren't you qualified to wear this?"

Liu Miao forcefully stuffed the silk handkerchief into the boatman's arms, while also pointing at the singing girls on the boats and the busybodies around them—

“One day, not only you will be able to wear these clothes, but they will too! So please accept them and do not refuse!”

The boatman stroked the soft silk with his rough fingers, and only then did he believe that Liu Miao was not pretending to refuse. He immediately sighed again.

"When I was loading goods in Shouchun, I often heard those officials and yamen runners speak ill of Magistrate Liu, thinking that he was a greedy and lustful man. But what I saw today makes me realize that the words of those officials should not be trusted!"

"Lord Liu, I will remember your kindness today. If you ever need my help in the future, just put a Green Wood Viper in the Longshu River. My boatmen will see it when they sail down the river and will surely inform me so I can come to your aid!"

After saying that, the boatman muttered to himself, "Yeah, how could we believe those officials? They're so stupid! I'm so stupid! I'm probably the biggest fool in the world! Sigh!"

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Note 1:

The *yuè* was a unit of volume in the Han Dynasty, roughly equivalent to 1200 grains of millet or black sorghum. —Data from *Shuoyuan*.

(End of this chapter)