Chapter 6 Temptation is a discipline

Cheng Chumo wore an expression that reflected all his thoughts

He suddenly pounded his chest fiercely and shouted, "Master, I am committed to you. I have two small farms outside the city, which were given to me as a birthday gift by my mother's family. I will use all the profits from the farms to support these refugees in Chang'an..."

Although he is somewhat foolish, he is not lacking in thought. Supporting the entire population of refugees in Chang'an is a significant challenge that even the emperor finds troublesome

Cheng Chumo solemnly placed the bowl down, then arrogantly struck his own chest and declared loudly: "I am not boasting; in this city of Chang'an, there is nothing that Cheng Chumo dares not to do."

Cheng Chumo's gaze was clearly wavering, and after a long pause, he awkwardly spoke up, saying somewhat sheepishly: "It sounds strange and uncomfortable, but I didn't understand."

Li Yun silently waited for him to finish drinking, and only then did she gently pat his shoulder and whisper, "Don't you want to accomplish some great things? Don't you want others to see you in a new light? Now is the perfect opportunity; let's first do something remarkable.

Two Zhuangzis are not enough

Cheng Chumo was completely bewildered

Get it done

Hiss

He scratched his forehead and after a long while finally realized: "Without the profits from Zhuangzi, how are we supposed to get money to buy food?"

Li Yun sighed and suddenly said: "You and the princess have not yet married, have you?"

After reciting the four lines of poetry, I turned to gaze into Cheng Chumo's eyes, as if with anticipation, and asked: "Cheng Xiaoguogong, do you understand?"

That is not the case ... ...

Let the refugees earn their own money to buy it

Li Yun chuckled and patted him on the shoulder, saying: "It doesn't matter if you don't understand; I will teach you to understand slowly. Actually, what I meant just now is very simple: it is about supporting the people, sustaining the displaced. The first major task we need to undertake is to support all the displaced people in Chang'an. What do you think, are you up for it?"

Cheng Chumo said again, seemingly very worried that Li Yun would act foolishly

Even if she agrees, you cannot accept it. Li Yun firmly rejected and first helped Cheng Chumo dispel this thought

Cheng Chumo gasped in surprise

Li Yun smiled faintly and said softly, "A single estate can roughly provide for the clothing and food of five hundred people. Your estate already has farmers who need to eat and drink. Even if you force everyone to economize and reduce their supplies, at most you can only allocate enough grain for about a hundred or so people. One estate can support a hundred refugees, and two estates combined can only support two hundred. But what about the refugees in Chang'an?"

The more one hears, the more one naturally knows; therefore, Cheng Chumo is not illiterate. He understands that certain matters are not easy to accomplish

What should be done then

Hero

In other words, Princess Qinghe is not yet your wife

... ...

Involving the food and drink of tens of thousands of people, even Li Shimin would not dare to claim he could resolve it

Am I daring to do it

However, this individual is not one of those clever and astute people; after thinking for a long time, he could not come up with any reasoning. In his anxiety, he could not help but scratch his ears and cheeks, his face turning red as he bared his teeth in frustration

At this point, he paused for a moment and then continued: "The approach we need to take is precisely to address this issue at its root. We should mobilize these displaced persons and encourage them to find ways to earn a living for themselves. People inherently possess ambition; no one wishes to wait around all day for charity. As long as we teach them how to make money, these displaced individuals will surely be full of motivation."

This person looked utterly astonished, and after a long while, they finally mustered the courage to speak softly, reminding, "Master, shouldn't we think this over a bit more? You may not be aware, but there are tens of thousands of displaced people in the entire Chang'an."

Li Yun seemed like a captivating devil, softly speaking from the side: "Among all the great matters in the world, nothing surpasses eating and drinking; among the most stable and solid matters in the court, nothing is greater than the prosperity of the people. This year, there have been great disasters, compounded by military calamities, with tens of thousands of disaster victims displaced, fleeing thousands of miles to Chang'an. This is the greatest matter for the court; whoever can resolve it is a hero..."

He had been feeling suffocated for half a day, and suddenly gritted his teeth and said: "I will go find Princess Qinghe and ask her to lend a hand. She has ten royal estates under her name, which can at least support and sustain one thousand displaced people."

Cheng Chumo's breathing became more labored, and his eyes were bloodshot.

Cheng Chumo, however, did not suspect anything else and quickly said: "We have often met since childhood and are quite familiar with each other. Qinghe has a very kind personality; she should be willing to help."

Cheng Chumo fell silent

What should we do? Master, what do you say we should do?

This is indeed an honest person; if they understand, they understand, and if they do not understand, they do not understand, and they will never pretend to understand when they do not.

However, Li Yun smiled faintly, his gaze fixed intently on Cheng Chumo, his tone clearly laced with a certain temptation as he gently said: "If it is not so, how can it be considered a remarkable event that draws people's attention? Duke Cheng, do you dare to do it?"

... ...

Cheng Chumo's heart raced, her eyes gradually began to shine, and her breathing started to grow heavy

The court has long been in a state of chaos and confusion

It turns out that there exists a thin porridge made from husked grains in this world, a mouthful of which goes down harshly in the throat

This person suddenly shouted loudly, their emotions resembling that of someone who has been injected with adrenaline

Why is that? Cheng Chumo called out, and then somewhat uncertainly said: "Is Master afraid that I will be labeled as someone who relies on others for a living?"

Li Yun spoke in a deep voice, his expression solemn: "To give a man a fish is not as good as teaching him to fish. The reason the court is troubled by disaster relief is that these refugees are like rootless duckweed; they have no source of income, and every morsel of food relies on the court's assistance. There has always been a saying that one should provide emergency aid rather than support the poor indefinitely. If we continue to support tens of thousands of people who lack income, even the treasury of the Tang Dynasty would not be able to sustain it. This is why those in the court are in a state of panic, and why throughout history, every dynasty has been alarmed upon hearing of a disaster."

Li Yun chuckled and said, "Why does your father always scold you? It's because he thinks you are not capable. Why do the elders say you are a wastrel? It's because you spend all day idly wandering without doing anything serious. However, if you suddenly accomplish something significant that they cannot achieve, what do you think their reaction will be?"

Li Yun shook his head again and smiled, saying: "I just do not wish for you to sacrifice personal interests for public duties"

There are tens of thousands of refugees in Chang'an City... Cheng Chumo suddenly interjected, his tone faintly tinged with despair, murmuring to himself: "So many people, I cannot support them!"

Although he has a rough temperament, he comes from a prestigious family of scholars. Even though his father assigned him to work as a minor official in the county office, he is constantly exposed to the significant topics of the court in his daily life

He paused here for a moment, pointing at the beggars in the city, and said: "Supporting the beggars is a matter of national and public interest; how can one expect to personally contribute funds? The saying goes, 'If one does not act for oneself, heaven and earth will punish them.' While we must provide relief to the poor, we cannot sacrifice our own assets in the process. To be frank with you, I do not even intend to touch the profits from your estate, let alone involve the property of Princess Qinghe."

Master, the matter of providing for the displaced is not something we can accomplish...

However, he still replied: "It was only at the beginning of the year that Your Majesty granted the marriage, but the granting of the marriage is just the start; to truly hold the grand wedding, I must wait until I have reached adulthood."

... ...

Cheng Chumo suddenly lowered his head and gulped down the porridge. His throat was clearly in pain from the stabbing sensation, yet this young man, who had been accustomed to a life of luxury since childhood, showed no concern whatsoever

Li Yun pulled him to the mouth of the alley, then raised his hand to point at the nearby disaster victims, and softly said: "Who cares for the suffering lives of the displaced? Flesh and blood are the same for all. If I had thousands upon thousands of riches, I would dare to make everyone eat meat porridge"

For example, to support the numerous vagrants in this city

"Not married, what is it, Master?" Cheng Chumo was taken aback, clearly not understanding the meaning of Li Yun's words