Chapter 297

"The cloth is actually embroidered by a young girl who lost her parents to an epidemic. On one hand, I want to help her, and on the other, I see that she is very skilled. Her embroidery is becoming quite popular now, but not many people in the capital know about it. I see this as a great opportunity to make money."

"Is that so?" Yueqian smiled slightly at the corner of her mouth. She seemed to have sensed the background of this story and was very familiar with it.

"Yes, but the problem is that importing the goods involves a long journey, which could be dangerous due to bandits. So, I had put the idea aside until I heard from my father that you have acquired land by water, which could be turned into a dock. That’s when I thought about it again."

"Furen Mu, before my business succeeds, could you please not charge me the docking fees? Of course, you can keep a record of my expenses, and once my business is successful, I will pay you back generously."

Chang Mei said earnestly, her eyes full of hope. Although this venture wasn’t typical for the daughter of a noble skilled in porcelain, she thought differently from her parents. The family business would eventually belong to her brother, so why not find her own way to earn a living?

Women weren’t expected to work, but her husband was a deputy general. How much income could he possibly have? Moreover, she felt it was inappropriate to rely on him financially. It would be better if she could support herself.

Most importantly... becoming the principal wife was challenging. Even though there was love now, things could change in the future. If a principal wife had no power and couldn’t support her family, wouldn’t it be meaningless to keep her position? She didn’t want to become such a meaningless principal wife.

"Sure, I’d like to see if this embroidery you’re talking about is truly beautiful and worth buying."

"Even though you might find this proposal amusing, I honestly don’t want to take advantage of you, Furen Mu. If you give me this chance... Eh? Wait, did you just agree?" Chang Mei was startled when she realized that Furen Mu had agreed to her request. She hadn’t expected this request to succeed at all.

Earlier, she knew that the dock would become property of the Wei family, so the idea of asking for their help had been abandoned. If it weren’t for the rumors of the Wei family’s punishment and the Mu family benefiting from it that she heard this morning, she wouldn’t have dared to speak up.

After all, Chang Mei wasn’t foolish. A businessperson should never agree to such a request. She had mentioned it just to try pursuing what she wanted. Who would have thought Furen Mu would actually accept her foolish request?

"Y-You really agree?" Chang Mei asked in a trembling voice. She had given up many times before. Who would have thought it would succeed now?

" Although I agree, you must pay for the dock once you make a profit," Yueqian confirmed. Tears slowly streamed down Chang Mei’s face. They were tears of joy, which made her look very endearing.

"Yes, I promise. We can draft a contract or anything you want."

"No need, consider it as me helping a friend," Yueqian covered her mouth and laughed softly. Chang Mei covered her mouth as well, tears flowing even more.

Previously, she had been betrayed by a friend like Consort Gui, and the pain still lingered in her heart. However, when Yueqian said she wanted to help a friend, Chang Mei felt deeply healed.

"F-Furen Mu," Chang Mei’s gratitude eventually made her mother realize her daughter had been bothering Yueqian again. Yueqian didn’t mind and conversed amicably. Of course, Yueqian wasn’t too old to be friends with Chang Mei. It was just that Yueqian’s current status was too high. Neither Chang Mei nor Furen Chang expected Yueqian to initiate friendship with the Chang family.

What they didn’t know was that the words about "helping a friend" were not only meant for the Chang family but also for the talented young girl behind the popular embroidery.

Qu Yi... perhaps you will soon find success in the capital...

After over shichen, and finally, the Emperor arrived at the refugee grounds. By then, the officials had completed all preparations. They had even set up tents to accommodate the refugees. Several families had set up live cooking areas, so there were storerooms for dried goods on display for the Emperor as well.

Currently, there were only 356 refugees under Yueqian’s care. The Emperor inspected the areas managed by different families before arriving at the large single tent that Yueqian had ordered the soldiers to set up.

On the surface, it looked like an ordinary open space with a sunshade, but in practice, at night, the tarps would be pulled down to cover it. There were window-like openings for ventilation on dry days, with small mosquito nets to prevent insects from entering and harming the people inside.

Seeing the demonstration by Yueqian and the Mu family’s soldiers, the Emperor was very pleased. He praised her for not using incense to repel mosquitoes like in the palace, as the scent would linger inside and could be dangerous due to the use of fire.

Especially since there had been a fire this morning caused by excessive incense burning—a piece had fallen and sparked a blaze—the Emperor had ordered stricter inspections regarding this.

"Your care is commendable. How is the treatment of the people progressing?" The high-ranked individual inquired.

Yueqian passed the question to the team of royal physicians who had been ordered to care for the seven sick individuals. They hurried to respond, fearing the Emperor’s wrath over this issue. If that were the case, they might lose their heads.

"We have attended to all the villagers, Your Majesty. We have instructed the herbal shops to deliver herbs daily. Since the refugee area is not very large, we avoid preparing medicines on-site," the head physician reported.

"That’s good. Do not allow any further lapses. Next time, I will not ask who is responsible. You must divide your duties well to prevent people from criticizing us for neglect," the Emperor admonished lightly, and the physicians quickly accepted his words.

"We accept your command, Your Majesty."

"And what about the food? Where are you cooking it?" After pressing the physicians, the Emperor turned to Yueqian for the next important matter. The beautiful woman glanced at her husband, who signaled for her to answer.

"As the royal physician mentioned, this place must accommodate many refugees. Therefore, I have the food prepared at my residence and then brought here. Additionally, cooking at my manor not only prevents taking up the space needed by these refugees but also ensures that the ingredients are handled with better care and safety."

"For example, when it rains, the rice and other ingredients are not at risk of becoming moldy. I don’t know how long we will need to support these refugees, so I don’t want the ingredients to spoil beforehand," Yueqian responded confidently.

The superior nodded in acknowledgment, but he noticed the displeased expressions on some faces. This was because these individuals had brought their supplies to the camp to show their readiness. Moreover, if the supplies were stored at their manors and the old rice was spoiled, wouldn’t they be the ones to blame?

The rice they had was old and at risk of insects or even becoming rotten. If it were brought here and damaged, it would be seen as a deliberate act. Therefore, they devised a plan to bring the supplies here, so even if there was damage, others could not easily blame them.

"Furen Mu, your decision to keep the ingredients at your manor—isn’t it because you lack sufficient ingredients to cook here? I heard you tried to buy rice everywhere but couldn’t get it in large quantities," one official from the Crown Prince’s faction accused.

The issue of Yueqian struggling to buy rice was well-known. Initially, they didn’t plan to mention it, even though they were rivals. They knew Yueqian should have some rice in hand, waiting for the day she had to make hard biscuits for people to eat before exposing her.

However, Yueqian was currently too boastful and even praised the merits of not bringing the rice here while promoting herself. As a result, those who knew the truth could not help but expose her facade.

"Hmm? You seem to know a lot," Yueqian smiled brightly before continuing.

"It’s true that I had difficulty purchasing a large quantity of rice for stocking. However, I haven’t struggled to prepare food for the refugees. Moreover, the food has been enhanced in quality. Seeing that the refugees I care for are weaker than others, I must be even more cautious in my work. So, there’s no need for anyone to worry."

Upon hearing Yueqian’s justification, everyone let out derisive chuckles, showing clear disdain.

"If you don’t have rice, Furen Mu, could you explain how you plan to feed the refugees? Or are you intentionally planning to make those cheap flour pancakes for them?"

"Exactly. While others are struggling to buy rice for cooking, you bought a lot of cassava, didn’t you? Now you want to hide the truth and make yourself look good. You truly have skills."

An official from the opposing faction made scornful remarks. The friendly faction couldn’t tolerate this either. Even though they knew Yueqian was at fault, letting her be bullied meant allowing their own side to be bullied as well.

"Don’t jump to conclusions. Even with only cassava flour, if you make a good broth, it can be quite nutritious."

"Exactly. Besides, Furen Mu has tried her best. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have heard rumors about her trying to buy rice to help the villagers."

"If she really didn’t intend to pay, why would she send people to buy rice? Furen Mu has made an effort, but rice is in short supply. It’s not entirely her fault, nor can it be seen as a mistake."

As the two sides argued, the Emperor, who had been listening all along, started to feel irritated.

"Why are you passing the blame back and forth? This is about working together to help the villagers, not about finding fault. Besides, Furen Mu, you mentioned providing quality meals for the refugees without using rice, correct? In that case, let’s have our dinner here tonight. I want to see how you care for the people of the Bai Region."

As soon as the Emperor said this, everyone was immediately alarmed, especially the faction supporting Yueqian. It was nearing evening, and no matter what, the prepared food was likely already finished.

Even if they had prepared food with rice, it wouldn’t necessarily be suitable for the Emperor to eat!

Who was the Emperor? How could he eat the same food prepared for commoners? Besides, would ordinary people prepare luxurious meals for refugees? That, too, seemed unlikely, didn’t it? After all, no one would expect the Emperor to stay and eat refugee food to prove a point.Unlike the opposing faction, who were overjoyed upon hearing this news. They were so happy that they wanted to celebrate. It seemed that they wouldn’t have to make any effort at all; in the end, the overly prominent Mu family would end up collapsing by their own hands!