novelraw Chapter 591 - 522
Chapter 591 - 522
Yu Xiaolian was pondering whether to return to Yangzhou when Cao Gen handed her the letter fetched from the courier station.
Yu Xiaolian read Su Jingchen’s letter and sighed deeply.
In the Northern Land, the duties of a civil official are relentless, and even in Yangzhou as the Salt Transport Envoy, they remain unrelenting.
The Huainan flood disaster, which logically should be the affair of the Prefect of Yangzhou, has unexpectedly been tasked to Su Jingchen by the Emperor to assist with. Merely assisting the Magistrate would have been enough, yet the Emperor also dispatched the thirteen-year-old Crown Prince to oversee matters.
While busy with emergency relief, ensuring the Crown Prince’s safety is still a priority; beyond safety, the Crown Prince must also be exposed to the frontline of disaster relief to effectively learn some useful relief strategies.
Though the Emperor has reigned for many years, the position of Crown Prince remains vacant. It’s evident to those with insight that the Crown Prince’s involvement in Huainan’s disaster relief is a test from the Emperor.
It’s said to be a test, but with floods causing disasters, refugees gathering in masses, and ensuing riots, it began with mobs looting waterlogged grain, and later, for unknown reasons, a force organized the mobs into a peasant uprising.
Precisely because this rebel army has grown stronger, the court finally realized that this disaster was unlike any before.
By the time the court sent people to aid in disaster relief, the County Magistrate of Huainan had already been killed by the rebel army, with his body hung upon the city gate.
The rebel army kills officials on sight and robs the wealthy, turning Huainan County into a stronghold.
The Crown Prince was dispatched by the Emperor to the disaster relief; it was hard to tell whether it was a blessing or a curse.
In any case, the Lianghuai area is fraught with peril, and Su Jingchen advised Yu Xiaolian to stay put in Yu State and not wander around.
Yu Xiaolian burned the letter.
It seems that in the near future, the Lianghuai area is unlikely to be peaceful.
The Crown Prince went to Yangzhou, and the Princely Heir of Prince Cheng is also in Yangzhou.
Yangzhou was quite a lively place!
Since Su Jingchen took office, he began fundraising from various salt merchants to construct a port.
Huainan City thrived relying on its water transport; whoever had a port held the power to speak.
The original ports of Huainan City were overcrowded; during peak seasons for transporting grain and salt, all merchant and private ships had to yield to canal boats, causing many traders to lose business over time. Therefore, just half a year into his office, Su Jingchen started orchestrating the construction of the port.
The port construction could be described as a win-win for both officials and merchants.
Su Jingchen collaborated with the President of the Yangzhou Chamber of Commerce and other wealthy gentry to build the new port. Collecting fees from berthing ships was just a small income; besides, they could also build shops at the new port. As long as ships docked at the port, it meant money continually flowed into their pockets.
Merchants from other places wanting to pass through the Huainan River Section had to adhere to the rules set by the President of the Chamber of Commerce and his counterparts.
This control is extremely important, not some intangible prestige but tangible benefits.
Currently, facing the influx of refugees into Yangzhou, Su Jingchen advised the Crown Prince to prioritize hiring refugees for the construction of the port, paying wages half above the market rate.
The Crown Prince didn’t understand at first, but after Su Jingchen analyzed the pros and cons, the Crown Prince immediately adopted Su Jingchen’s suggestion.
Of course, the suggestion was made by Su Jingchen in private, but the credit was naturally attributed to the Crown Prince.
The Crown Prince traversed all the way from the Capital, dispatching over a hundred thousand dan of grain from major granaries to conduct disaster relief. However, after overcoming numerous obstacles to arrive in Yangzhou, he was only left with lingering fear, with no intent to venture into Huainan.
The young Crown Prince, upon encountering such matters, found his mind blank, so Su Jingchen had to offer him advice!