After ten years of accompanying me in my studies, the entire court begged me to shut up.

Around noon, the group arrived at the outer city.

The Hongzhi Emperor changed into a silk robe and looked like a wealthy merchant.

Xiao Jing disguised himself as a servant, Mu Bin as a bodyguard, and some sentries followed them at a distance.

The Hongzhi Emperor found it very novel and looked around.

This was the first time since he ascended the throne that he had left the palace as a commoner and walked among the people.

The streets were much narrower than those in the inner city, the road surface was full of potholes, and there were mostly low adobe houses on both sides.

The pedestrians were dressed simply, and many were even in tattered clothes.

Several emaciated children squatted in the corner, staring longingly at passersby.

The Hongzhi Emperor frowned: "How could this be the scene right under the emperor's nose?"

Mu Bin said in a low voice, "Your Majesty, the outer city is mostly inhabited by ordinary people, and some are refugees who have fled here."

Just then, a commotion arose from ahead.

There was a simple thatched shed on the street corner, with a long line in front of it. Most of the people in the line were poorly dressed, young and old, men and women, all of them thin and pale.

Two large iron pots were set up under the shed, with thin porridge simmering inside.

Several constables were maintaining order at the scene, shouting, "Line up! Line up! One bowl per person, no grabbing!"

The Hongzhi Emperor stopped and looked into the distance.

After receiving the porridge, a man carried it with both hands and quickly walked to the roadside.

There stood a little boy, about five or six years old, dressed in rags, staring longingly at the bowl of porridge, licking his chapped lips.

"Son, drink up."

The man handed the bowl over.

The little boy took the bowl and drank it in big gulps.

The man watched his son drink the porridge, a smile on his face, but he couldn't help but swallow.

The child drank half a bowl and handed the rest to his father, saying, "Dad, you drink the porridge!"

The man pushed the bag back, saying, "I'm not hungry!"

"Dad, have some porridge!"

It's obvious that a five-year-old child is already quite sensible.

The man had no choice but to take it and drink the remaining half bowl.

What was supposed to be a heartwarming scene left the Hongzhi Emperor with mixed feelings.

He stepped forward, squatted down, and asked, "Why don't you get another bowl?"

The man instinctively protected the child, and only when he saw that the newcomer was wearing brocade did he lower his guard.

"Sir, what did you say?"

The Hongzhi Emperor then asked, "Why not give the child a bowl?"

The man didn't answer, but turned to look at the soup kitchen.

The Hongzhi Emperor also looked over, only to see that the soup kitchen was beginning to close up shop.

The iron pot was empty, and the yamen runners were driving away the disaster victims who had not yet received their porridge.

"That's all for now! Let's get up early tomorrow!"

Several elderly and infirm people were pushed and shoved away, their eyes vacant.

A young man couldn't help but shout, "Sir! I've been queuing for half an hour and haven't gotten a single bite!"

The constable said impatiently, "Who told you to be late? Come earlier tomorrow!"

"My mother is sick and can't walk, so I carried her here on my back..."

"What does that have to do with me? Let's go, let's go!"

The young man tried to argue, but was shoved by a constable and staggered back a few steps.

The Hongzhi Emperor frowned as he watched, wanting to step forward to stop him, but was stopped by Mu Bin.

Mu Bin said in a low voice, "Master, it's getting late, we should go back!"

The Hongzhi Emperor's face was ashen; he remained silent and did not step forward.

At this moment, the man in front of them said, "See? Forget two bowls, if I had been any later, I wouldn't have had a single bowl!"

The Hongzhi Emperor asked, "Is this all the porridge the government provides each day? I... it's truly not enough!"

The man laughed and said, "These days, people are grateful to have enough to eat. When the flood came, more than fifty people from our village escaped, but now only a dozen or so are left."

"What about the others?"

"They're all starving!"

The Hongzhi Emperor suddenly fell silent.

He suddenly realized that the numbers in the memorial were all real human lives.

In the officials' reports, it was simply a matter of how many people died in a certain place, and that was it.

Thinking of this, he asked again, "Brother, where are you from?"

"Dawang Town".

"Which county does Dawang Town belong to?"

"From Wuqing County."

Thinking of Liu Jian's memorial, the Hongzhi Emperor asked again, "Didn't your county magistrate provide disaster relief?"

The man replied, "Our county magistrate runs a soup kitchen."

"Only one soup kitchen was set up in the entire Wuqing County?"

"Yes! Two pots of porridge every day, but even if you queue up, you can't get any."

"Wuqing County was severely affected by the disaster. What role can a soup kitchen play?"

"It's for the imperial court's benefit!"

The Hongzhi Emperor's expression changed, but he was still unwilling to give up and asked again, "Besides opening soup kitchens, was there no other disaster relief? For example, was there any work to repair river embankments or help people build houses?"

The man seemed to have heard something amusing and said, "The county magistrate said we have to wait for the imperial court to allocate funds!"

"But the imperial court's disaster relief funds have already been allocated!"

"We don't know about that, but even if they're repairing houses, it'll be for the wealthy. Why would they repair houses for us ordinary folks?"

The Hongzhi Emperor fell completely silent, his face turning extremely grim.

Mu Bin and Xiao Jing were so frightened they dared not breathe. It was clear that the magistrate was in trouble!

It wasn't just this county magistrate; the imperial court's disaster relief efforts involved multiple departments, including the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of Revenue. If there were any shady dealings involved, the investigation would surely uncover a whole series of problems.

At this moment, the little boy said, "Dad, you go to work too. Don't worry about me, I won't starve."

The Hongzhi Emperor asked, "Where will you work?"

The man said, "Recently, a very kind-hearted person came to Wuqing County and started recruiting displaced people to work. He recruited several hundred people a couple of days ago, and he even said he would provide them with meals."

Why didn't you go?

"If I go, what will happen to my child?"

The Hongzhi Emperor fell silent again.

This father and son don't even have a place to live. It's really hard to say whether the child can survive without his father.

Just then, someone at the intersection ahead shouted, "The job recruiters are here again!"

Upon hearing this, the homeless people on the street all rushed over.

Seeing the displaced people rushing about, the Hongzhi Emperor became even more suspicious and decided to follow them. Mu Bin quickly followed, staying close by his side.

Poor Eunuch Xiao's legs weren't nimble enough, and he was pushed and shoved by the refugees, falling to the ground.

The Hongzhi Emperor, however, paid no attention to him and stood on tiptoe to look ahead.

On the stone pier at the city gate, a middle-aged man in a crew-neck shirt was shouting at the top of his lungs: "Listen up! Looking for strong laborers, able to carry and move things, twenty coins a day, two meals included! If you're willing, come here and leave your fingerprints!"

The refugees swarmed forward, crowding together in a dense mass.

The Hongzhi Emperor glanced at the man with the child, watched him take two steps forward, then look back at his son huddled in the corner, and hesitated.

At this moment, the man in the round-necked shirt called out again, "There's one more thing! If you're homeless, you can bring your family! Women will help with washing clothes, cooking, and other chores for ten coins a day! The landlord has also set up a temporary school and hired a teacher. If you have children, you can send them to learn to read and write. Don't worry, it's free!"

Upon hearing this, the crowd fell silent for a moment, then erupted into an even greater uproar.

"Really? The child can still go to school?"

"They provide meals and lodging? My wife can earn money too?"

"I'm going! My whole family is going!"

Without further hesitation, the man scooped up his son, pushed his way through the crowd, and shouted hoarsely, "I'm in! We'll both go!"