The roads within the Imperial City and the Inner City were smooth and well kept. Upon reaching the Outer City, however, the roads became yellow dirt tracks with gentle rises and dips. Their only advantage was that they were exceptionally wide.
There were noticeably fewer refugees in the Outer City than before.
Gu Yun lifted the carriage curtain and noticed it at a glance.
He knew the reason. Chao Yan’s preventative measures had been effective.
Before large numbers of refugees had begun to appear, he had spent his spare time repeatedly hounding the Chancellors until they were practically afraid of him, eventually forcing through several policies beneficial to poor families.
Afterwards, he “persuaded” the wealthy households, telling them that if they donated money, the court would erect monuments commemorating their good deeds, allowing their names to become famous and ensuring blessings for them even in the afterlife. In this way, he managed to extract a considerable amount of silver from them to fund winter relief efforts.
From the very beginning, Chao Yan had never intended to rely solely on confiscating other people’s property to solve the canal and winter relief problems, because it was obviously impossible.
As for why he did not use the same method to raise funds for the canal project, it was because a trick only worked once. The wealthy households would not be fooled a second time, while he himself would earn everlasting infamy.
When preventative measures were handled properly, refugees would not continue to appear in endless waves.
As for the refugees who already existed, he gathered them in several locations and, with the assistance of the Three Provinces and Six Ministries, relocated some to the warmer southern regions, while others were moved to places such as Heyue Prefecture, southwest of the capital.
Most of the heated shelters overseen by Chao Yan were built in these areas. The locations themselves were naturally suited to such structures, which were similar to sunken cave dwellings.
They were far cheaper to build than houses constructed entirely above ground. Once the refugees were taught the necessary skills, they could build them themselves, not to mention that scholars recruited from the Meng family had been assigned to supervise the work.
…
At present, among the refugees he saw in the Outer City, some had only recently arrived, while others refused to leave because they believed the authorities had no intention of resettling them and merely wanted to drive them out of the capital and leave them to fend for themselves.
There were refugees like this in other regions as well.
Chao Yan had no way of dealing with them. He could hardly force them out, so the only option was to house them in temples and similar places. Previously, the officials of the Eastern Palace had wanted to make use of these refugees to solve the problem of the frozen canal.
…
The carriage continued forward for a while before coming to a stop.
Gu Yun stepped down and saw a crudely constructed shelter where yamen runners were distributing porridge. It was not particularly thick porridge, and sand and small stones had been mixed into it. A crowd of ragged people stood in line waiting.
Gu Yun swept his gaze around and spotted Xu Jingzhou in front of a medical clinic not far away.
The man was wearing an ugly, thick cloth hat that concealed his bald head and was currently helping the clinic assistants carry a stove used for brewing medicinal decoctions.
Some medical clinics distributed medicine during winter, namely inexpensive prepared remedies for reducing fevers and dispelling cold.
Chao Yan had said that if his plan succeeded, it would save a substantial amount of silver. He intended to establish several medicine stations in every prefecture in the Emperor’s name, distributing inexpensive fever-reducing and cold-dispelling remedies. If they could save a few lives, then a few lives would be saved.
Snow was still falling from the sky, while the ground below was wet and muddy.
Gu Yun waited until Xu Jingzhou had carried the stove inside before walking over.
He held an umbrella, and melting snow slid from it onto Xu Jingzhou’s shoulder. The man noticed almost immediately and turned around.
With the help of a distant relative of Zhang Zhangshe, Gu Yun had altered his appearance slightly.
Yan Zhao had previously suggested finding someone with talent for cosmetics and disguise to learn the skill. After returning to the Eastern Palace, Gu Yun looked around and discovered that, apart from Zhang Zhangshe, there was no one who was both loyal and gifted enough. Faced with this difficulty, Zhang Zhangshe recommended one of her distant relatives.
Her distant relative was a woman from outside the palace named Ziteng.
After obtaining her consent and waiting until she had learned enough from Yan Zhao, Gu Yun claimed that she was someone he had known in the past and brought her into the Eastern Palace as a second-rank palace maid, keeping her by his side.
Xu Jingzhou knew him far too well. Even though his appearance had changed somewhat, he recognised him instantly.
Before Gu Yun could finish speaking, Xu Jingzhou suddenly burst out laughing so hard that he could barely catch his breath.
Gu Yun was wondering whether Ziteng had somehow ruined his disguise.
The other man reached out and patted him on the head. “Bear spotted.”
Bear spotted? There was a bear nearby?
One of the clinic assistants dropped what he was holding. The physician braced himself against the counter and squinted over.
Gu Yun: “…”
Then he remembered.
He was genuinely afraid of the cold. During modern winters, his clothing prioritised warmth over appearance entirely, making him completely different from the other male students. Especially in the depths of winter, he would wear a goose-down coat that covered him from head to toe, a thick fine-wool scarf, matching fluffy gloves, earmuffs, a hat, and snow boots.
From a distance, he looked like a huge lump moving about, which was why Xu Jingzhou had given him the unfortunate nickname: Gu Bearbear.
The annual Gu Bearbear experience card.
This year’s Gu Bearbear experience card had arrived particularly early. In Great Xuan, there was no thermal clothing, so even before deep winter arrived, he was already bundled up into an enormous shape. Layer upon layer of clothing covered him, topped with a purple silk cloak lined with sable fur and reaching all the way to his ankles.
Expressionless, Gu Yun slapped away Xu Jingzhou’s mischievous hand.
Xu Jingzhou was not offended. He was already used to it.
He snatched the umbrella from Gu Yun’s hand, waved at the physician and assistant, who had finally recovered from their surprise, then slung an arm around Gu Yun’s shoulders and dragged him away from the clinic.
“I’ll treat you to a meal,” Xu Jingzhou said.
“I’ve already eaten,” Gu Yun replied. “I came specifically to see you off.”
“Trying to hurry me away, are you?”
“If that’s how you want to interpret it, there’s nothing I can do.”
Xu Jingzhou clicked his tongue and steered Gu Yun forward. When they reached a shopfront, he stopped and beckoned inside.
A tall figure and a short figure emerged.
Gu Yun recognised the taller one as Guo Yangquan, the leader of the rebel army from the book, while the shorter one was the pickpocket girl.
Guo Yangquan was carrying a large bundle, while the girl carried nothing and trailed several steps behind him.
Gu Yun recognised both of them immediately, but neither recognised him. Only after Xu Jingzhou told them he was an old acquaintance did they study him carefully and finally realise who he was.
Guo Yangquan’s expression was strange. He probably still did not understand why he had been asked to meet him. The girl, meanwhile, looked somewhat embarrassed, likely remembering how she had taken the money and run away.
Xu Jingzhou took the bundle from Guo Yangquan, swung it onto his back, and said, “I’m leaving. Don’t miss me.”
Guo Yangquan scoffed. “You’re really not coming with me?”
“As if I’d go with you. I’m going home.”
Gu Yun thought to himself: It seemed Xu Jingzhou had not succeeded in recruiting Guo Yangquan. That made sense. Someone as ambitious as Guo Yangquan was never the type to submit easily. The fact that he had remained in the capital for this long was already surprising.
He wondered whether Xu Jingzhou had warned Guo Yangquan about the disaster that would strike his hometown. Then again, it did not really matter. When the time came, he could simply ask Chao Yan’s people to keep an eye on things. After all, they were still his subjects.
But that girl…
This was the second time Gu Yun had seen her.
After so many days without any news, he had assumed she did not intend to accept his suggestion of going to the workshop and becoming Craftsman Wang’s assistant.
Now, however, Gu Yun turned to look at Xu Jingzhou.
“She’s going,” Xu Jingzhou said. “She was dealing with some personal matters before, but she’s finished with them now.”
He lightly bumped Gu Yun’s arm and lowered his voice. “Don’t tell me you’re not taking her anymore.”
“How could that be?”
Gu Yun crouched down and looked at the girl with a bright smile. “Surely you can tell me your name now?”
Only then did the girl step forward. “Zhang Zhaodi.”
Gu Yun instructed Zhou Er to take Zhang Zhaodi where she needed to go when he had the time, then asked Xu Jingzhou when he planned to leave.
Xu Jingzhou glanced at the sky.
“The people coming to collect me should have reached the city gates by now. It really is time for me to go. Don’t see me off any further. Let’s stop here. I’ve already explained everything I needed to.”
“Let me walk with you a little longer.”
At first, he had not felt much. They had even met only a handful of times.
Yet when the moment of parting finally arrived, he found himself reluctant in countless ways.
Gu Yun felt somewhat downcast and remained silent throughout the journey. Before he realised it, he had accompanied Xu Jingzhou almost all the way to the city gates.
Xu Jingzhou joked, “Hey, why don’t you come with me?”
“I’m not suited to that sort of thing. I’ll wait for you here in the capital.”
Xu Jingzhou became serious. He patted Gu Yun on the shoulder and turned to leave.
Gu Yun watched his figure grow smaller and smaller. Soon he passed through the city gates, met up with his companions, and mounted his horse.
Gu Yun lowered his eyes. At that very moment, Xu Jingzhou suddenly dismounted and hurried back.
By the time Gu Yun noticed, the man had already covered half the distance. Thinking he must have forgotten something, Gu Yun quickly walked forward to meet him.
Just as he was about to speak, Xu Jingzhou pulled him into a huge embrace. “Happy Birthday!”
Gu Yun froze for a moment.
It took him some effort to pull himself back to reality. Once his thoughts started moving again, he replied with a mixture of amusement and exasperation.
“My birthday isn’t today. You came all the way back just for that?”
“I know. But I definitely won’t be around on your actual birthday, so I’m wishing you a happy birthday in advance.”
He pulled out a string of smooth black Buddhist prayer beads from his sleeve.
“For you. If you’re in a bad mood, roll them in your hand. If you’re in a good mood, roll them in your hand.”
Gu Yun said, “So what exactly is this supposed to be?”
Xu Jingzhou replied, “The Invincible Thunderbolt All-Purpose Buddhist Prayer Beads.”
Gu Yun: “…”
Gu Yun was speechless. Tucking away the utterly ordinary string of prayer beads, he shooed Xu Jingzhou off as though chasing away a fly.
He was preparing to return to the Eastern Palace when, upon reaching a nearby porridge station, he saw a group of refugees causing a disturbance, claiming that the distribution had been unfair and that they had not been given enough to eat.
The soldiers stationed there immediately moved to suppress the unrest by force, but the more they tried to suppress it, the more agitated the refugees became. By the end, weapons had been drawn on both sides.
Just as he was about to send Zhou Er and Zhou Wei to assist the soldiers, several men dressed as attendants suddenly rushed out from nearby.
They were clearly trained in martial arts and highly disciplined. Within moments, they had subdued the troublemakers.
After the disturbance had been brought under control, the leader bowed to a young man dressed in brocade who was standing nearby and asked, “How should these people be dealt with?”
The first thing Gu Yun noticed was that the young man had a cleft lip. His lips were asymmetrical, with a split in the upper lip that did not extend to the base of the nose, though his nose itself was slightly deformed.
It was a classic unilateral second-degree cleft lip. In modern times it could be treated, but in Great Xuan…
His gaze shifted elsewhere.
The man possessed a pair of phoenix eyes. Ignoring the lower half of his face, he actually bore some resemblance to Chao Yan.
Gu Yun was somewhat surprised.
Before he could think further, the Censor Patrol Officer responsible for overseeing the city arrived with his men. He was in charge of ensuring the smooth operation of the relief efforts and coordinating resources.
The moment he saw the young man, he immediately bowed. “Your Highness, the Eighth Prince.”
No wonder he resembled Chao Yan. He was Chao Yan’s brother.
Chao Yao gestured for the censor not to stand on ceremony and said to his attendants, “Hand these foolish commoners over to him.”
The censor replied, “That is already my responsibility.”
Chao Yao said, “Fortunately, I happened to be out searching for Princess Roujia today and passed by this place. Otherwise, blood would certainly have been spilled. Then things would have become difficult to resolve, and perhaps even the Crown Prince would have been reprimanded.”
The censor repeatedly voiced his agreement.
Chao Yao sighed. “The Crown Prince already has far too much on his shoulders.”
The censor glanced at Chao Yao. He understood exactly what the prince was implying. Internally he sneered, but outwardly he still echoed his agreement. Chao Yao said nothing more and departed with his entourage.
Gu Yun had already blended into the crowd, and Chao Yao never noticed him at all. He stood where he was, watching the man leave before making his own way back to the Eastern Palace.
When he returned, it was still early. He did not see Chao Yan.
He could not tell whether he felt relieved or disappointed. He felt unlike himself. This sense of being unable to control his own emotions left him deeply unsettled.
Gu Yun sat beside the window, holding a warm cup of floral tea as he quietly watched the snow fall.
“Your Highness!”
At that moment, a voice rang out from outside. Gu Yun immediately sprang to his feet.
The floral tea sloshed over the rim of the cup and spilled all over his legs. It was not hot, but the warmth of the liquid striking him jolted him awake as though from a dream.
Gu Yun pressed his lips into a straight line.
Setting down the tea, he changed into clean clothes and deliberately remained seated for a while before finally going out.
“Your Highness…”
Gu Yun looked over.
It was not Chao Yan. It was Chao Yao.
Gu Yun: “…”
He stood motionless at the entrance to the hall.
Not far away, Chao Yao was openly appraising him, his gaze brazen and deeply uncomfortable.
Zhang Zhangshe stepped in front of Chao Yao and said,
“Your Highness, our Crown Prince truly has not returned. Please wait for him in the main hall of Chunhe Palace. This is the rear courtyard of the Eastern Palace, the women’s quarters. Someone of your exalted status should not be here.”
