Chapter 32: Are You Happy, My Lord?
Lu Yun sat on the cargo carriage, his expression very serene. Although the word ‘serene’ didn’t quite fit a sixteen-year-old boy, that was the reality.
Huang Ling walked beside the carriage, his face full of fear. Now he finally understood that their group had long been targeted. Those disaster victims were simply misled by those thugs. If their side gave them any excuse, those thugs could incite the disaster victims to attack the convoy!
Fortunately, this bookish young master was benevolent and treated the disaster victims well from the start, establishing good karma. Then he stopped them from roughing up the disaster victims, comforted them with kind words, and then painted a grand picture, appeasing the disaster victims whose eyes were red with hunger…
Thinking of this, Huang Ling flattered Lu Yun, saying, “Young Master, this is a delaying tactic, right? When we reach Yongqiu County, we can ask the county magistrate to send soldiers for protection, and we can escape.” He paused, then sighed, “I’m just afraid that if it’s handled improperly, it will cause bigger trouble.”
“I didn’t intend to deceive them,” Lu Yun said lightly. “When we reach Yongqiu County, I will naturally get grain for them.”
“Alas, my young master, you are truly…” Huang Ling was dumbfounded. He thought to himself, has this foolish young master read himself into a stupor, to the point of actually wanting to give away his fortune to help the disaster victims!
In the carriage in the middle of the convoy, Cui Ninger also shook her head repeatedly and said to Lu Ying, “Sister, aren’t you going to manage him? Don’t you know that grain is more valuable than gold during a famine?” Along the way, she had already seen that Madam Lu managed nothing, and all decisions were made by this brother and sister.
Lu Yun’s response earlier had left her unsure. Was this boy acting by mistake, or was he wise to appear foolish?
Now it seemed that before, it was indeed a case of a blind cat catching a dead mouse…
“My little Yun always acts with discretion,” Lu Ying said, seemingly not worried, and smiled. “Besides, money is just an external possession. I am happier than anything that he has this kind heart.”
“I’m afraid even selling him wouldn’t be enough!” Cui Ninger looked at the continuously growing group and calculated, “When we get to Yongqiu, there will be at least forty to fifty thousand disaster victims…”
“So many?!” Lu Ying was also startled. She finally began to worry. Even if all the gifts were sold, they wouldn’t be enough to buy food for so many people. After all, although the gifts were very valuable, they wouldn’t fetch much in the small Yongqiu County. Moreover, judging by the situation, the grain prices in the city must have skyrocketed…
“Yes.” Cui Ninger nodded, her expression serious. “Seven or eight provinces have been flooded this time, and everyone is fleeing towards the capital city. There are no less than a million disaster victims! This is a necessary path to the capital…” She paused, “And those thugs will definitely try their best to incite the disaster victims to follow them. The more people they gather, the greater their confidence…”
“Is that so.” Lu Ying quickly calmed down, because if Cui Ninger could think of the problem, there was no reason Lu Yun wouldn’t have foreseen it.
“Sister…” Cui Ninger was suddenly amused and exasperated. It seemed she was more anxious than a eunuch worrying about the emperor.
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As Cui Ninger had predicted, after traveling dozens of miles, under the incitement of those thugs, the number of disaster victims following the convoy truly reached forty to fifty thousand…
Seeing the serpent-like convoy stretching endlessly, Huang Ling’s face became increasingly worried. He kept muttering next to Lu Yun, “This is big trouble now. I’m afraid even the county magistrate won’t dare to get involved…”
Lu Yun ignored him. Annoyed by him, he simply closed his eyes to rest.
Lu Yun wasn’t pretending to be a big shot. It was just that he couldn’t do anything right now… From the beginning, he saw that the disaster victims were incited to come, which was the fundamental reason he maintained his charitable facade. Of course, he wanted to catch the thugs, but those people were dispersed among the disaster victims, so Lu Yun dared not act rashly, lest he give them an excuse.
To put it bluntly, this was a battle for people’s hearts. The thugs used the disaster victims as weapons, and Lu Yun used the disaster victims as shields. It all depended on whose side the disaster victims leaned towards! As long as the disaster victims were on Lu Yun’s side, those demons and monsters wouldn’t dare to cause trouble. But once Lu Yun lost their support, the thugs would succeed!
Since there was no way to win people’s hearts at the moment, it was better to conserve energy and mentally rehearse the plan for reaching Yongqiu.
Those thugs naturally wouldn’t miss this opportunity to cause trouble. They incited everywhere, saying, “That kid is definitely bragging, we’ve been fooled by him!” Even the common people who had previously believed Lu Yun began to have doubts, not believing Lu Yun could buy food for so many people…
Only Lu Yun himself, still sitting calmly on the carriage, his body swaying rhythmically with the carriage, actually dozed off.
‘He’s really taking it easy…’ Huang Ling thought vexedly, wanting to wake Lu Yun with a knife.
‘Keep pretending. You’ll see what happens when you reach the county town!’ The thugs, who had long coveted the convoy’s wealth, were no longer worried about the officials. They were certain that Yongqiu County would close its gates!
Their guess was indeed correct. On the walls of Yongqiu City, the soldiers saw so many disaster victims rolling in and immediately panicked. They beat the alarm and quickly closed the city gates!
When the disaster victims followed Lu Yun to the city, Yongqiu City had long since shut its gates. The city walls were crowded with soldiers with drawn bows and arrows, as if facing a great enemy.
“Open the gates! Let us in!” The disaster victims protested loudly outside the city. Some tried to rush the city gates, but were deterred by arrows shot from the city walls, not daring to take another step forward.
“…” A moment later, everyone outside the city turned their attention to Lu Yun. Lu Yun finally opened his eyes, stretched, and said, “Why did they close the gates so early?”
“Young Master, they won’t let us into the city!” The disaster victims said indignantly, “They’re even shooting arrows at us!”
“This must have been your scheme all along, knowing they would definitely act like this, so you pretended to be generous!” The ruffians incited loudly, “It must be like this! You’re just trying to be stingy!”
Hearing this, let alone Lu Ying in the carriage, even Lu Yun’s guards were grinding their teeth with hatred. Shameless scoundrels! Twisting right and wrong!
What made them even more fearful was that this time, almost no one stepped forward to scold those fellows. Everyone’s face was filled with disappointment. They were disappointed in the government, and even more disappointed in Lu Yun…
“There might be some misunderstanding here. Let me go in and explain clearly.” Lu Yun said unhurriedly. After speaking, he got out of the carriage, walked through the crowd, and leisurely walked towards the foot of the city wall.
On the city wall, the soldiers saw Lu Yun in his brocade robe, composed and calm, and knew he was no ordinary person. They did not dare to shoot arrows casually, but only shouted, “Who goes there? What is your business?”
“I am Lu Yun, a scion of the Lu Clan, seeking an audience with the County Magistrate!” Lu Yun raised his voice slightly, and it was heard clearly from the city wall.
Li Dayin, the County Magistrate of Yongqiu County, had already rushed to the city tower upon hearing the news. When he saw the densely packed disaster victims below the city, his vision went black, and he almost fainted. Fortunately, an assistant next to him held him up, preventing the County Magistrate from tumbling down the city wall.
“My official life is so bitter…” Li Dayin wailed as he regained consciousness. Unlike the aristocrats destined for success from birth, Li Dayin came from a humble family. He started as a minor official and struggled for twenty years before finally becoming the magistrate of this county. He thought he could finally act freely, amass a fortune, and lord over everyone. Who knew it would turn out to be nothing like that…
This Yongqiu was already considered part of the capital region, with estates of great aristocratic families everywhere. Most of the people under his jurisdiction were also affiliated with powerful families and paid no heed to him, a mere county magistrate… Within less than a year of taking office, he was repeatedly reprimanded by his superiors for failing to collect imperial grain and recruit labor. Now, facing a popular uprising, his official career was surely over…
Li Dayin was so engrossed in self-pity that he hadn’t heard Lu Yun speak. It was the County Assistant next to him who reminded him, “Your Excellency, someone outside the city claims to be a scion of the Lu Clan. You cannot pretend not to hear.”
“What? A scion of the Lu Clan?!” Li Dayin jumped up and leaned over the parapet to look, and saw Lu Yun standing there like a jade tree in the wind. Without thinking, Li Dayin quickly ordered, “Quickly bring him into the city!” If another scion of a noble clan were to have an accident outside the city, being dismissed from office would be the least of it; he might even end up in prison.
A basket was lowered from the city wall. Lu Yun frowned but got in, and was slowly lifted up.
“He’s not coming back, is he…” Outside the city, the ruffians muttered.
“It’s even better if he doesn’t come!” the leader of the ruffians said, rubbing his hands together, “We’ll have a legitimate reason to rob them!”
The convoy, tightly surrounded by the crowd, was like a small boat on a vast sea, so insignificant…
The guards outside the carriage were all extremely tense, yet the four women inside were still as calm as ever. Madam Lu was unconcerned about everything, Lu Ying had confidence in Lu Yun, but one wondered why Madam Cui and her daughter were not afraid at all?
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Lu Yun ascended the city wall, still spotless, standing there like a crane among chickens.
“Young Master, what business do you have with this official?” Li Dayin was short and fat, with a dark complexion and a mole the size of a soybean. Seeing Lu Yun, he couldn’t help but feel inferior and actually bowed first.
“You are too kind, County Magistrate.” Lu Yun was not overly flattered. It was natural for commoners to bow to aristocrats, and their status was not determined by official position. But he politely returned the bow and said, “I have come to help you resolve your difficulties.”
“Uh…” Li Dayin was taken aback. He had been in official circles for half his life, and this sounded like he was being fooled. With this thought, he couldn’t help but suppress his smile and say, “Why do you say that, Young Master?”
“The prefecture should have sent a document long ago, ordering Your Excellency to gather laborers and rush to the Yellow River levee, right?” Lu Yun smiled slightly, his tone very confident.
“This…” Li Dayin’s mouth twitched. He thought to himself, how did you know?
“You must not have completed the task yet.” Lu Yun sighed, with a worried expression, “With the deadline approaching, Your Excellency is likely to be held accountable by your superiors.”
Li Dayin’s mouth twitched again. He thought to himself, how did you know?
Lu Yun looked at Li Dayin again and said, “Your Excellency has no powerful backing, so your chances are slim!”
“Oh dear!” Li Dayin’s mouth twitched once more. Having been proven right three times in a row, he no longer doubted Lu Yun. He cupped his hands and said repeatedly, “Since Young Master knows everything, I have no need to hide anything. That’s right, I am already at my wits’ end. I implore Young Master for guidance!”
“Guidance is too much to ask, but I have already prepared laborers for Your Excellency, which can help you turn misfortune into good fortune.” Lu Yun smiled slightly.
“Ah! Where are the laborers?” Li Dayin’s eyes widened. Following Lu Yun’s gaze, he looked towards the densely packed crowd outside the city. He couldn’t help but gape in astonishment and say, “Young Master, are you referring to these people?”
“Not bad,” Lu Yun said with a faint smile. “They are all strong and honest farmers. Are you happy, Lord?”
