Egawa Keiichiro then heard a proposal so startling that he doubted his own ears.
Her Highness the Princess seemed to have long known about the shortage of grain reserves among the populace here and the persistently high grain prices. She planned to temporarily establish a supervisory agency to control grain distribution and sell it at fair prices. The price had been set extremely low, at a level most residents could afford. Even those unable to pay would be covered by a relief grain program, allowing the poor to exchange labor for rations.
There was no doubt this plan had not been dreamed up on a whim. At least in terms of feasibility, he could find no fault with it—for example, the main personnel would be supplied by Jinxia, while some locals would be recruited to assist with grain distribution. It even accounted for possible embezzlement and private sales.
But the biggest question was, what did the other side stand to gain from this? Not only would they be unable to squeeze out much money, they might even suffer losses from hiring workers. It was the very definition of exhausting oneself for no reward.
After all, they could not possibly remain in Tsushima Prefecture forever.
In other words, the goodwill of the people here meant nothing to Her Highness the Princess.
Once a new ruler took the throne, everything would return to how it had been.
Of course... perhaps he did not need to think so deeply into it at all. Egawa Keiichiro moved his lips, but in the end could only reveal a bitter smile. No matter how good the plan was, it still required grain to support it. Whatever the other side intended, Tsushima Prefecture could not possibly produce so much grain.
"Her Highness the Princess is merciful..." He