Three Famine Relief Policies

Seeing Duke Wei and the General Who Guards the State glaring at each other like a pair of fighting cocks in court, Emperor Chu Ming could only clear his throat softly and remind him, "Duke Wei?"

Duke Wei came back to his senses, only then remembering that he had just been opposing the Holy Maiden's attendance at court before His Majesty.

The strange looks his colleagues were giving him made it clear that everyone had heard the gossip about his son.

Duke Wei's heart tightened, and suddenly he no longer dared to speak ill of the Holy Maiden.

If the Holy Maiden's inner voice spilled something even more explosive, his son's reputation would be finished! And his own old face would have nowhere left to hide!

At that thought, Duke Wei had no choice but to change his tune. "Your Majesty, my views largely agree with those of the Left Censor-in-Chief. The Holy Maiden holds a unique position in our Great Chu and cannot be constrained by ordinary rules. Thus, this humble subject also supports her attendance at court to hear state affairs!"

He only hoped the Holy Maiden would stop airing his son's embarrassing deeds!

Chu Siqing was utterly astonished.

[Honestly, why is this Duke Wei contradicting himself too? Come on, a few more of you, oppose my attendance at court! I really don't want to get up early anymore!]

Tu Qingchen glanced at her and thought, With a gossip fiend like you here, who would dare stick their neck out?

The corners of Emperor Chu Ming's mouth lifted. "Does anyone else oppose the Holy Maiden's attendance at court?"

The entire court immediately fell silent.

Many opposed it in their hearts, but no longer dared show it on their faces.

Anyone who stuck their neck out now would surely come to a bad end.

With the Left Censor-in-Chief and Duke Wei as examples, even ministers who had no shameful secrets of their own feared that the Holy Maiden's inner voice might spill gossip about their relatives!

For a time, no one else dared voice opposition before Emperor Chu Ming.

Chu Siqing was terribly disappointed.

Seeing this, Emperor Chu Ming declared, "Since no one objects, the matter of the Holy Maiden attending court to hear state affairs is settled. It shall not be raised again."

One minister even offered a flattering, "Your Majesty is wise."

Next, the court began discussing other matters.

Chu Siqing was just about to close her eyes when she suddenly heard someone say, "This subject wishes to impeach Xiao Wenying, Prefect of Lin'an."

The name sounded somewhat familiar, so Chu Siqing hurriedly asked the system in her mind who he was.

The system replied, [Xiao Wenying is Xiao Wenshu's elder brother.]

Chu Siqing remembered asking the system about Xiao Wenshu. She was gentle and gracious, yet capable, making her a good match for the Crown Prince.

After Xiao Wenshu had been chosen as the Crown Princess, Ning Qingyan had still gone to pester the Crown Prince. Presumably, her family was unwilling to accept the outcome.

She stroked her plump chin and thought, [This is probably aimed at the future Crown Princess. Could Duke Cheng'en have ordered it?]

Hearing the Holy Maiden's inner voice, everyone's thoughts went in different directions.

Duke Cheng'en secretly gritted his teeth.

So what if I ordered it? Everything Xiao Wenying did was real!

The censor bringing the impeachment also trembled, but continued, "Lin'an is suffering a year of severe drought, and its people already have nothing to eat. Yet Xiao Wenying has allowed grain merchants to drive up prices, undertaken massive construction projects, and organized recreational festivities. His crimes are utterly unforgivable!"

At these words, all the ministers began weighing the implications.

If Xiao Wenying had truly committed such acts that exhausted the people and squandered resources, Duke An's position as the future imperial father-in-law would be in jeopardy.

Emperor Chu Ming was also somewhat troubled. He had personally chosen Duke An's daughter for the Crown Prince. If Xiao Wenying had committed a serious crime, it would reflect badly on both him and the Crown Prince!

Of course, punishment would still have to be meted out. Compared with such empty reputations, the common people mattered most.

Emperor Chu Ming was about to speak when he heard his niece's inner voice.

[Aren't these the famous Three Famine Relief Policies? This Xiao Wenying really is a rare talent!]

Hearing the Holy Maiden's inner voice, everyone was shocked and could not help pricking up their ears in curiosity.

Xiao Wenying had done such outrageously absurd things during a famine, yet the Holy Maiden actually considered him talented?

Could there be some hidden truth behind all this?

Before transmigrating, Chu Siqing had been a corporate drudge who liked scrolling through short videos when she had nothing to do after work.

Had she not come across an educational video on this subject, she might also have thought that dogs had eaten Xiao Wenying's conscience.

Hearing about Xiao Wenying's measures now reminded Chu Siqing of a short video's explanation of similar cases.

[Raise grain prices first, and plenty of grain merchants will see a profit to be made and ship large quantities of grain there. Once enough grain accumulates for supply to exceed demand, prices will naturally fall.]

[Large-scale construction provides work instead of handouts, allowing disaster victims to support themselves rather than being forced to wander elsewhere. It also helps develop local towns.]

[Holding competitions and events is basically developing tourism, isn't it? Plenty of people will surely visit, and their food, clothing, lodging, and transportation will provide another source of income for the disaster victims.]

Every minister at court was intelligent and well learned. Although they did not understand some terms in the Holy Maiden's inner voice, they grasped the general meaning.

Xiao Wenying was neither brazenly greedy nor out of his mind. Quite the opposite-he was cleverer than all of them.

These seemingly inconceivable policies were precisely what could reassure the people and help the disaster victims survive the famine.

Without the Holy Maiden's inner voice, they would have wronged such an exceptionally capable official, whose heart was with the people and whose talents surpassed others!

Some ministers who had only kept silent to save face, while still inwardly opposing the Holy Maiden's attendance at court, could not help setting aside their prejudices now.

Having the Holy Maiden attend court was not so unacceptable after all!

Emperor Chu Ming's expression also relaxed as he listened. "What do you all think of Xiao Wenying's actions?"

A minister who had discerned the emperor's wishes immediately stepped forward. "Your Majesty, this humble subject believes Xiao Wenying has his reasons for taking these measures."

He then restated the points from the Holy Maiden's inner voice in much the same words.

The other ministers were left speechless.

You're merely picking up someone else's scraps of wisdom, yet you managed to get in first!

There was, however, someone who disagreed: Duke Cheng'en.

Duke Cheng'en had originally intended to use Xiao Wenying's actions to drag the Xiao family's reputation through the mud. Then it would no longer be appropriate to give the previously promised position of Crown Princess to the Xiao family.

He had never expected that, the moment the censor he instructed laid out the matter, the Holy Maiden's inner voice would resolve it. How could he possibly accept that?!

Duke Cheng'en immediately said, "Your Majesty, the policies Xiao Wenying has implemented may sound reasonable, but they may not actually produce results."

Chu Siqing had not known whether she was merely waging war on paper either, so she had just asked the system.

The system told her that Xiao Wenying's policies were indeed effective. Lin'an was the area least affected by this famine.

Thus, the ministers once again heard the Holy Maiden's inner voice.

[Of course they work. If you don't believe it, just send someone from the court to investigate. Better yet, have the officials in neighboring regions learn from Xiao Wenying's policies too.]

Having been beaten to the punch earlier, someone quickly spoke up this time. "Your Majesty, as the saying goes, hearing is unreliable, but seeing is believing. Why not send an Imperial Commissioner to Lin'an? If Xiao Wenying's measures truly work, the other disaster-stricken regions should be ordered to learn from these policies."

Chu Hongle listened, his face darkening with exasperation.

You people parroting my daughter really are too much! Don't you have a single thought of your own?!