Chapter 290

"Furen do you mean to say..."

"Yes. Do you think, with Noble Consort Wei’s nature, she would be content to be second to someone else forever? Besides, the Wei family’s status isn’t low. So why wouldn’t she want the Empress position herself?"

When Fan Yu heard her mistress say this, her expression shifted rapidly, looking slightly amusing. Yueqian didn’t interrupt her thoughts, allowing Fan Yu to ponder on her own. This was because Yueqian had a small hope in Fan Yu’s intelligence, and it turned out exactly as she anticipated.

"So, Furen Mu, you mean that in the future, Noble Consort Wei will definitely be our enemy, correct?"

"Yes, but we’ll have to see if she can survive in the inner palace long enough. Even though many clever people have entered the inner palace, they often stumble as well. In the end, they meet their downfall before they can even show their claws," Yueqian thought of the inner palace where mud-slinging was rampant. Just thinking about it gave her an inexplicable headache.

The situation of power struggles and fighting over men was something she truly didn’t want to face. Even if she had to fight against thousands of enemies, coming home to warmth and sincere people waiting for her was enough. She just wanted a place to retreat to, without having to change faces like a thousand-faced opera mask all day.

The mistress and servant returned to the manor in no time. The kitchen area of the manor was now bustling with people. Many soldiers had to come in to help with the work because there were so many steps involved. Additionally, they had purchased a large quantity of sweet potatoes. The villagers and farmers sold all their stored sweet potatoes because Official Mu was buying them at a better price than usual. They could now save money and didn’t have to grind the sweet potatoes into coarse flour every day anymore.

Yueqian carried her little son and walked around. The soldiers’ work was very efficient, whether it was peeling, slicing, washing, drying, or grinding. They did it all very well. Now the flour produced by the work of hundreds of soldiers was starting to increase significantly.

Not only was there a large quantity of sweet potato flour, but there were also stocks of corn, beans, eggs, milk, and other items that Yueqian had people gather. Essential vegetables and herbs were not forgotten either. She even had people grow a large amount of bean sprouts. Even if there was nothing else to eat, bean sprout soup was still a very nutritious meal.

Time passed quickly, and finally, the first group of refugees arrived, numbering over 400 people. As soon as they arrived, the soldiers immediately brought the refugees to Official Mu, as if they had planned it beforehand.

"Official Mu, this first group of refugees has been ordered to be under your care for food and shelter. I will take them to the refugee area," a soldier reported to Mu Heng at the entrance of the manor.

This morning, the young man was preparing to attend to official duties, but he did not expect the first group of refugees to arrive already, and that he would be responsible for them. Mu Heng looked at his wife, who also had not been informed of this beforehand, and sensed that there was some trickery involved.

"I will handle this matter myself. You should go to work, my dear," Yueqian smiled. This was just a minor task and posed no obstacle to her. Therefore, she did not want to delay Mu Heng’s work because of herself.

Her husband looked at his wife, who had to take care of their child and now had to deal with this heavy work, and felt genuinely sorry for her. If he held a higher position, at least there would be soldiers to inform them in advance, rather than acting without notice like this. But at this moment, there was nothing he could do about it, and he couldn’t afford to be late for work; otherwise, Yueqian would be seen as a furen who couldn’t manage her responsibilities well.

"Please take care of things, and if there’s any work you can’t handle, send someone to inform me," Mu Heng said seriously. He could only apologize to his wife for making her go through this hardship, but Yueqian didn’t mind at all. She just smiled and nodded at him.

"Ah, ah, ah," while the couple was expressing their concern for each other, the little child, who had been listening all along, made a noise, as if to tell his father not to worry and that he would help his mother. This made the atmosphere between them much better.

After Mu Heng left, Yueqian asked the soldier to wait a moment. To do the job well and avoid falling into others’ traps, she needed to ask more questions.

"I would like to know more details about the refugees." Hearing Yueqian asked this, the soldier’s eyes narrowed slightly.

In truth, he was very afraid of Furen Mu. He had heard that she was the honored furen with a status just slightly lower than the Empress, but it was clear that someone was trying to bully her. He was just a lowly soldier who didn’t know much, so when he received orders, he had to follow them.

In truth, this group of villagers should have been welcomed by someone else, but for some reason, there was a sudden change. It seemed the Mu manor wasn’t prepared to receive the refugees either. Doing this was like intentionally creating problems for them, as there was no prior notice.

"W-Well... there are about 350 villagers, but because this is the first round of evacuations, those who needed help the most were sent first. There are over 100 people aged between 50 and 70, about 150 children under 7 years old, and the rest are either mothers of the children or injured and disabled individuals."

At this point, the soldier bowed his head to his chest. It turned out that the first group brought here were those with significant issues and in urgent need of help. The corners of Yueqian’s mouth twitched slightly; it seemed she was handed another rough task!

"But Furen Mu, you need not worry. The care of the villagers is the responsibility of the royal physicians. I’ve heard there’s an order for the royal physicians to come and ensure the villagers’ safety. We only need to trouble Official Mu with food and clothing," the soldier quickly clarified.

Since the officials had no knowledge of medical matters, the palace never asked them to help treat the villagers. Providing some resources was sufficient.

"Umm, let’s hope it stays that way." Unsure if her premonition would be accurate, Yueqian could only hope that a royal physician would actually come to help.

After the soldier left, Yueqian had to think about the food for the first day. Because the refugees included elderly and young children whose digestion wasn’t strong, using sweet potato flour for the first meal after days of not having a proper meal would be too heavy.

So, Yueqian ordered rice porridge and congee to be made to welcome them. However, it needed to be nutritious, so she made bean congee with ginger and some herbs to warm their bodies and help cure minor colds.

The rice porridge and congee were prepared quickly. The villagers had rested a bit, but when they heard food was being served, they all got up. Despite their weakness, their bodies needed food more than rest.

People crowded in, but fortunately, Yueqian had soldiers from the Wang to help, so the organization was quite good. While the refugees were eating, the soldiers helped prepare their accommodations. They set up large tents that could protect against wind, rain, and sun. However, these tents were communal, and separating men and women wasn’t possible since some women had sons. Therefore, men and women had to stay together.

Having just come through terrible situations, no one thought much about this arrangement. Moreover, the tents weren’t clearly divided, so many families settled in different corners, eventually claiming their own spaces.

"May I have ten soldiers to help?" After distributing the porridge and seeing the tents were ready, Yueqian requested soldiers to assist in the next steps.

She wasn’t sure if anyone was plotting against her, so to be safest, her management had to be top-notch. Yueqian asked the soldiers to list and draw the faces of everyone in the first group of refugees and keep this information confidential.

Since she was responsible for these 356 people, she promised to take good care of them. However, this didn’t mean anyone could cause trouble for her in the future!

Even within the tents, the soldiers drew boundary lines. Once spaces were claimed, they allocated areas for privacy. Afterward, no one was allowed to take over another’s spot. The soldiers noted even the smallest corners, creating a small map of the tent.

This organization made the villagers feel quite intimidated, as if they were being watched at every step. Nevertheless, many felt relieved. They were weak, accustomed to being bullied and having things taken from them countless times. Seeing that they now had the same rights as others made them happy. This sentiment was common among the first group of refugees, so the atmosphere was quite positive.

"Cough, cough."

"Soldier, help me. I feel like vomiting."

"My wound hurts a lot from the long journey, much more than before. Someone, please help me."

While one group of soldiers was tasked with organizing and dividing living spaces, another group had to assist injured villagers. Some had high fevers, while others had pre-existing conditions. Therefore, they needed urgent help.

The corners of Yueqian’s mouth twitched slightly, feeling as if she knew what was about to happen next. She ordered her soldiers to inquire with those in charge of the evacuation. Since the authorities had stated they would handle medical care, she would not interfere; otherwise, this responsibility would fall on her, causing her unnecessary trouble without any benefit.

It’s true that lives are important, but if these lives were to become a burden to her, Yueqian wouldn’t see their value! She had always been a ruthless and cold-hearted woman, not the kind-hearted person people might expect.

Perhaps those who planned this thought that seeing no one was available to treat the refugees, she would eventually take it upon herself to do so. After all, she had considerable knowledge of medicine, it would likely be easy for her to do it. Once she treated the first person, the responsibility for the rest would naturally fall on her as well.

This would mean additional duties she couldn’t later refuse. After the royal physicians arrived and saw someone else had started the treatment, they would likely leave the task to her. It’s important to remember that the refugees wouldn’t be limited to these 400 people; more groups would arrive, and there would be a continuous flow of sick and injured individuals. Therefore, the limited number of royal physicians would need to attend to others.

To avoid this, Yueqian decided she would not start the treatments herself!

"Send someone to fetch the royal physicians. Tell them there are hundreds of elderly and children in urgent need of care. If they delay, it will have severe consequences," Yueqian commanded firmly. Her voice was loud enough that many villagers began to express their expectations.

"Please, let the royal physicians take care of me."

"Me too. My leg is severely injured. When I tried to escape the flood, a log struck me. At first, it wasn’t too bad, but now it’s infected and festering."

"Cough, cough. Please help me. I have a chronic illness, difficulty breathing, and a severe cough. Without proper care, my condition has worsened."

"Will the royal physicians help? Please, let them treat my child too. He has had a fever for two days and refuses to eat. I’m afraid he might... sob."

"I need a royal physician! Let the royal physician help me!!"

Everyone believed that the royal physicians were highly skilled. When Yueqian mentioned the royal physicians, it seemed to spark hope in them immediately. In a situation where everyone was desperate to survive, as soon as they knew who could offer them hope, it was natural for them to call out. Yueqian wanted them to call for the royal physicians just like this!If her voice wasn’t loud enough, then let the voices of over 400 people rise together.