Two carriages drove through the streets of the capital.
Su Wen and Zhao Wanrou were in the carriage in front while Zhao Jin and Chu He followed behind.
“Recently, Ning An Palace’s Ning Cai raised a civet cat. It’s very cute…”
“Yesterday, some fresh river carp was sent to the palace. The fish soup made by it is extremely fresh. Tomorrow, I’ll bring you two…”
“The weather is getting warmer, but my lady mother said that we still have to wear more clothes, otherwise we’ll catch a cold easily.”
Zhao Wanrou shared her life with Su Wen. Su Wen smiled and listened.
A sense of satisfaction rose in the girl. To her, just this was good.
“I heard that you made a song and sang it at the palace’s banquet. Can I listen to it?” Zhao Wanrou’s eyes were filled with anticipation.
Su Wen smiled. “Some other day.”
“Alright!”
…
There were many restaurants in the capital, and the Bright Moon Lodge’s reputation wasn’t too high amongst them.
However, Ji Yuchen liked the fish served at the Bright Moon Lodge.
Back when he was in the capital, he often came here to eat.
Now that he had stayed in Jiang Prefecture for a long time before returning to the capital, all the more he would not forget to visit this place.
Although he did indeed help the commoners like the rumors said, he was not as miserable as they described him to be. What about him living in a straw hut? It was just a rumor among the commoners.
It was exaggerated to fit more in line with their image of a clean official.
On the second floor of Bright Moon Residence, Ji Yuchen stroked his beard lightly as he picked up a mouthful of fish meat. He placed it into his mouth. It was extremely tender as it melted in his mouth.
There was a smile on his face as he looked at the old man opposite him and said, “Brother Mo, we haven’t seen each other for many years. You better drink well today.”
The Brother Mo he spoke of was the famous scholar of the capital, Liu Mo.
The two of them had a deep friendship.
The two of them exchanged toasts and finished a cup each.
Ji Yuchen then asked, “Brother Mo, I heard that Guo Bin was beaten up?”
He didn’t have much of a relationship with Guo Bin, and there was even a hint of schadenfreude in his tone.
Liu Mo sighed and said, “There was indeed such a thing. He was beaten up by the capital’s evil Young Master Su Wen, but His Majesty favors this person. Old Guo practically suffered this beating for nothing. He’s already so old, yet he got beaten up so badly his mouth was twitching non stop. Adding to his bellyful of anger, he has practically vanished from the scene for quite a while. I’m not sure how he’s doing now.”
Ji Yuchen shook his head and said, “But His Majesty shouldn’t have done that after all. No matter what, Guo Bin is an old official from the previous dynasty. He’s a great scholar in the literary world. How can he let a profligate beat him up and not care about him? When it’s time for the Sacred Debate Banquet, I will definitely find Your Majesty to discuss this matter. The capital cannot be so lawless.”
Liu Mo hurriedly advised, “Brother Yuchen, if you ask me, don’t get involved in this matter. That Su Wen is Su Changqing’s son. Although he is ignorant and incompetent, it was Guo Bin and the others who spoke rudely about Su Changqing the other day. This matter has already been decided by the court. Even if you tell His Majesty, he will not pursue the matter. Instead, it will make things difficult for him.”
Ji Yuchen said in a deep voice, “We scholars have to have some backbone! It’s definitely not a good thing for His Majesty to indulge the rich and powerful! We have to persuade him! Even if he loses his head, I have to persuade him. Although I don’t like Guo Bin either, Su Wen has gone overboard in this matter!”
As the two of them spoke, they heard a commotion outside. Someone was coming upstairs.
“Guys, what do you think of the scenery of mountains and rivers? We also have a view of the streets, which allows you to see both the sights and the natural scenery together.”
“Alright! We’ll take a seat here. Pick a few signature dishes!” Su Wen said without even looking at the menu.
Zhao Wanrou laughed.
This fellow Su Wen got hungry only after shopping for a while and insisted on bringing her along.
The two of them sat down. Zhao Wanrou smiled and said, “Royal Father might not be in a good mood these last two days. Don’t provoke him!”
As soon as he said that, the two old men next door instantly turned solemn. Someone who could say that would definitely be a princess!
Liu Mo gestured for them to keep quiet as they listened attentively.
Su Wen wasn’t too curious however. He casually asked, “What happened?”
Zhao Wanrou said, “There was a great drought last year in Li Province, and the harvest was not good. A few days ago, the officials who went to the Li Province to send disaster relief were killed, and the rioters rose to power. Many martial sects also followed suit, and now the entire Li Province is in turmoil. It seems that my father smashed a tea bowl yesterday in anger. He rarely gets so worked up.”
Su Wen raised his brows. Something like this actually happened?
The two people next door also frowned and exchanged glances. This was not a small matter.
Zhao Wanrou sighed, “The citizens of our Great Zhou are still too poor in the end.”
“Hehe!” Su Wen sneered and said, “Do you think this rebellion is because the citizens are too poor?”
Zhao Wanrou asked curiously, “Isn’t that so? If the commoners can’t eat, they will naturally cause trouble. If everyone can eat, how could this happen?”
Su Wen shook his head and sighed. “The biggest problem of the Great Zhou is not that the commoners are too poor, but that some people are too rich!”
Seeing the confusion on Zhao Wanrou’s face, Su Wen explained, “Right now, most of the powerful and influential people in Great Zhou are doing business. With the combination of power and wealth, coupled with the corruption of some people, it can be said that they are guaranteed to reap a bountiful harvest.
However, there is only so much money in Great Zhou. 90% of the wealth is concentrated in the hands of less than 10% of the population. The commoners don’t have any money or food in their hands, so they don’t have any saved up for when a disaster strikes. Once there’s a problem, there are only two ways for the commoners to live. The first is to wait for the Royal Court’s help. The second is to create chaos and save themselves!”
“But this waiting for the Court’s relief involves all sorts of aspects. Like you said just now, the disaster relief official was killed! Why was he killed? Was it by the rioters? Definitely not! Because the Court had already given him money and food to send disaster relief to the commoners!
With His Majesty’s character, if the official failed in sending disaster relief, he would be the first to die, so he would definitely do his best. Then logically speaking, the disaster in Li Province should have been quelled! But now, the relief official is dead! Then who did it? What kind of conflict of interest did this cause?”
Zhao Wanrou was, after all, from the royal court. She frowned and said, “You mean someone deliberately manipulated this rebellion! Why?”
Su Wen smiled and said, “Of course it’s for greater power and benefits! Just like you said, there are already several martial sects involved in the rebellion in the Li Province. If the province can become independent in the end, then wouldn’t their benefits be obvious? Even if they don’t become independent in the end, with countless citizens dying in battle and being displaced, what will happen to the land and people they leave behind in the end?
I’m afraid there will be countless people selling themselves as slaves, while the manipulators behind the scenes will wantonly take over the land. The long-term benefits are simply too great!”
“Now that these rioters are still alive and organized into a rebellion, where did the money and food come from? Therefore, the reason for this rebellion is not because the citizens are too poor, but because some people are too rich!”
Admiration flashed across Zhao Wanrou’s eyes. She did not expect Su Wen to have such an opinion.
She leaned over and smiled. “Then what do you think we should do? How can we make the rich and powerful not be so rich? How can we make the commoners richer?”
Sensing the girl’s worshipful gaze, Su Wen pondered for a moment before saying, “If you don’t tell His Majesty what I said today, I will tell you.”
“Okay!” Zhao Wanrou agreed immediately.
