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Home/ There’s A Beauty / Chapter 73 (Part 2)

Upon learning that Magistrate Xiao Zhao was in charge of the government affairs in Lishui, the people in all counties were delighted and celebrated. In addition, the imperial court sent a new imperial envoy to investigate the case of the embezzled silver. However, after interrogating two criminals, they already knew where the money and grain was hidden. They immediately sent troops to find it and distribute it.

You Shu timely put forward the suggestion of “using work as a means of relief”, asking each county to gather the disaster victims and repair the damaged embankments, official roads, bridges, post stations, and temples. He provided daily food and accommodation, as well as monthly income, to stabilise the people’s hearts as much as possible. In just one month, the battered and dilapidated Lishui Prefecture was built even more prosperous than usual.

Walking on the road, you can see that the fields that were originally filled with mud and sand have been cleaned up, and the rice planted has sprouted green buds; The collapsed house has been built up, and the host is inviting the neighbours to come for a banquet; Children who have lost their parents are taken into temples, nurseries, and other places, so as not to wander around with no fixed place to live. The people, who were originally withered and numb, now have hope and vitality in their eyes.

You Shu made an unannounced visit along the river, walking here and there, chatting and joking with many people. This kind of thing would never happen in the past. His wariness against strangers still hasn’t diminished, but his heart is no longer closed. Instead, he lets the rain and dew pour in, let the breeze blow through, and let the sunlight shine in.

His understanding of the world is no longer limited to the gloom of the apocalypse, but rather colourful and fragrant. Even better, all these changes stemmed from his persistence and hard work. He pursed his lips and raised the corners of his lips as he slowly walked back to the county office. After sitting down, he realised that his legs were extremely sore.

The servant boy immediately brought a basin of hot water and wanted to help him wash his feet.

“I’ll do it myself, you go out.” You Shu took off his dirty shoes, causing a lot of sand to fall down.

The servant boy lowered his head and smiled secretly. He knew that the County Magistrate was very close to the people and would never ask for others’ hands in anything he could do on his own, so he obediently went out.

You Shu poured all the sand out of his shoes, took off the black socks, and then immersed his feet in the hot water. 

Letting out a comfortable breath, he stepped on his left foot with his right foot, and then stepped on his right foot with his left foot. After playing like this for a while, he unconsciously fell asleep.

After a while, a tall man appeared out of thin air in the room, he gently walked over to him, and bent down to take a closer look.

You Shu hadn’t had a good night’s sleep for more than half a month and was completely exhausted. The disaster victims in the whole province have been settled properly, and he personally conducted a secret investigation to confirm that there were no loopholes, so he relaxed and fell into a deep sleep in less than half a breath. Now, even if the earth dragon turns over, he won’t wake up.

The man sat down next to him, tilted his head, supported his cheeks, and watched silently. Suddenly, he laughed in a low voice. County Magistrate Xiao Zhao fell asleep and even drooled, smacking his mouth and making a sound of chewing food. He didn’t know what delicacies the other party was eating in his dream. This appearance looked quite silly, but it’s also very interesting.

These days, like the disaster victims, You Shu only ate porridge and pickles, and the man watched him quickly lose weight. He still remembered the last time he saw the other person, looking white and tender, tall and handsome like a green pine and bamboo. But now he has become a yellowed bean sprout, huddled in a chair, which is really heartbreaking.

The man furrowed his brows and reached out to caress the pale cheeks of Magistrate Xiao Zhao. He then wiped away the saliva from the corners of his mouth, not feeling dirty at all. 

He stared at his wet fingertips, not knowing what he was thinking, and it took him a long time to take out his handkerchief and wipe it. Then, he held the other party’s right hand in his palm and measured the thickness of his wrist.

“You’ve lost weight again.” His deep voice echoed in the room, showing a hint of helplessness and a bit of heartache.

He fondly played with the other party’s slender five fingers, clasped them between his own fingers, placed them on his chest, and then gently rubbed them on his lips, as if smelling but also kissing them. 

After a moment, he realised that the Magistrate Xiao Zhao’s feet were still in the water, and he quickly bent over to test the temperature. Upon sensing that the water had become cool, he immediately heated it with Samadhi fire.

The water temperature gradually increased, and a white mist rose up, making Magistrate Xiao Zhao’s pale skin turn pink. The man lowered his head and looked for a while, then stood up and walked around twice before he rolled up his sleeves as if he had made up his mind to rub the other party’s feet.  

He seemed to rarely do this kind of thing, and he was worried about waking people up, feeling quite flustered and helpless. However, the joy of holding Magistrate Xiao Zhao’s beautiful feet in the palm of his hand to play with outweighed the nervousness of being a thief. As he washed, he became even more leisurely and calm.

After scrubbing each round little toe clean, he used a silver needle to gently prick a few blisters on the soles of the feet, and applied medicine. Then he carried the person to the bed, gently took off his outer robe, and covered him with the quilt. Looking at someone sleeping soundly and drooling profusely, he shook his head and smiled, his heart tingling with both pain and joy.

Taking a book from the bookshelf, he leaned next to County Magistrate Xiao Zhao and began to read it. 

When You Shu kicked off the quilt, the man covered him again, patted him if he had a nightmare, pinched the nose if he snored, and rubbed the lips if he muttered something in his sleep. Doing all this, the man had a lot of fun.  

The longer he stayed, the harder it became for him to leave. He even ignored his token that flashed several times, and if a communication charm hadn’t broken through the window, he would have stayed here for a long time.

After the man disappeared, You Shu, who had no one to cover himself with a blanket, immediately woke up and groped around before sitting up in a daze.

“Wasn’t I washing my feet?” After a quarter of an hour, he finally remembered and found that the basin was still in the room. The water had already become cold but hadn’t been poured out yet. It was evident that it was not a servant who came to wash his feet and then put him on the bed. The servants are very thorough in their work and won’t leave halfway.

“Who picked me up? Could it be that I was sleepwalking?” A vague guess came to his mind, and his heart suddenly felt warm, and he fell asleep more peacefully.

After the disaster eased, not only Lishui, but also the disaster-stricken areas across the country suffered unprecedented shocks. This shock came from the imperial court and the new emperor, and the cause was all related to the disaster. 

The late emperor was so extravagant that the treasury was almost empty. The relief funds this time were all private silver brought by the fifth prince from his vassal territory. Using the silver from his own fief to support the disaster-stricken areas across the country was just a drop in the bucket, but unexpectedly, nine out of ten of the silver coins didn’t go to the victims, but were pocketed by the officials in various places.

If the disaster victims couldn’t survive, they would naturally rise up and resist. In the past, five or six prefectures experienced large-scale civil unrest. If it weren’t for the well-trained and powerful military of the Fifth Prince, the Dayong Kingdom would have already fallen apart. 

As soon as he ascended the throne, such a calamity occurred, so his anger was understandable. He immediately dispatched his confidants to various states to investigate the whereabouts of the disaster relief silver.

Lishui Prefecture was also under review, and the situation was extremely serious. From the Prefect to the petty officials, they all embezzled silver and food for disaster relief. Even the imperial envoys were corrupted and collaborated with them to frame upright officials. 

After the investigation, Wang Xiangcai was sentenced to death by a thousand cuts, and the imperial envoy was sentenced to death by beheading. The remaining accomplices were either exiled, demoted, or dismissed from their posts for investigation. Other prefectures also have rivers of blood and scattered heads.

After this incident, most of the county and government offices, which were still overcrowded, were emptied. The new emperor immediately wrote an edict of guilt and sincerely condemned himself to heaven and earth; 

Then he added three consecutive years of grace to select knowledgeable people, and exempted the people for another five years of tax; 

He rehabilitated many loyal, righteous, and capable ministers who were persecuted during the late emperor’s reign, and ordered them to return to serve in the court.

Under repeated actions, the country that was about to fall apart was saved, and the restless hearts of the people also stabilised. Except for the corrupt officials, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

You Shu has now moved to the government office. He originally thought that after Wang Xiangcai’s death, he might be promoted as the Prefect. Unexpectedly, before leaving, Ou Tai brought him an imperial edict, saying that he needs to return to the capital to report on his duties.  

Logically speaking, local officials need to report on their duties at least once every three years, while “Zhao Youshu” had only been in Suichang for a year and a half. At the same time, the government offices are also short of people, so how could he get transferred to the capital?

Could it be that the emperor values my ability and wants to transfer me to the capital? The new emperor loves the people selflessly, with clear rewards and punishment. He has the demeanour of a benevolent person, and also has the power of an overlord, and the way he handles the affairs resembles more and more like his master.  

Thinking like this, You Shu immediately accepted the imperial edict and prepared to go to the capital. Then he thought about the people of Lishui and hesitated again.

Ou Tai understood his concerns and quickly comforted him, “Don’t worry, Lord Zhao. The successor of Lishui Prefecture is a former scholar from Hedong, who was framed, dismissed, and exiled by the superiors due to his unwavering determination to serve the people. He has now been rehabilitated and is also a rare and upright official. He will definitely not let your efforts go to waste, let alone make your people suffer injustice. If you are still not at ease, you can come back to see. “

After a moment of contemplation, You Shu finally decided to go to the capital. He can’t tell the new officials what to do, so he can only write a booklet of his governance experience and give it as a gift. After the handover of government affairs was completed, he slowly walked towards the backyard, ready to pack his luggage and set off.

All the gold and silver that had been hoarded by “Zhao Youshu” before had been sold by him, leaving only a few clothes, a few pairs of shoes and socks, and two boxes of books. He repeatedly dug through the box before he found a few taels of silver, which was not even enough to pay for the trip to the capital. Only then did he slowly realise the importance of money.

“A penny stumps a hero. How can I get on the road without money?” He sat on a chair, his eyes looking a little dull.

{A penny stumps a hero= a small difficulty causes a big thing impossible to proceed}

Just at this moment, Lord Yama suddenly appeared, he first walked around the messy room a few times, and then sat next to him. While looking at his many patched clothes, he asked softly, “What’s wrong, don’t you have money to go to the capital?”

You Shu subconsciously wanted to nod, but luckily stopped at the last moment, only to realize that the other party was testing him again. So cunning, I almost fell for it!

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