Chapter 9: The Snowstorm in Luoyang

On the first day of snow in Luoyang, the commoners were jubilant. Farmers shouted happily that "a timely snow promises a good harvest," while the nobility vied to host snow-viewing banquets.

On the second day of snow in Luoyang, the commoners, dressed in worn-out, thick hemp garments, swept the streets against the biting wind.

On the third day of snow in Luoyang, the commoners looked at the three inches of snow piled on their roofs, fearing it would collapse their homes, and climbed up one after another to clear it away.

On the fourth day of snow in Luoyang, the commoners huddled indoors, shivering uncontrollably, piously praying to the heavens to stop the snowfall.

On the fifth day of snow in Luoyang, the thatched cottages of the poor in the countryside were crushed by the weight of the snow. It was only through the collective efforts of the villagers digging through the debris that they were barely able to rescue those trapped inside.

On the sixth day of snow in Luoyang, the village chiefs and neighborhood heads went to the county magistrate’s office in unison to plead for relief.

On the seventh day of snow in Luoyang, the Governor of Luoyang read through the stack of pleas for help—which looked like a pile of snowflakes—with a grim expression, sitting alone in the silence until late into the night.

On the eighth day of snow in Luoyang, the Governor of Luoyang reported the disaster during the morning court session: "In the villages surrounding Luoyang, seven or eight out of every ten houses have been crushed by the heavy snow. The casualties number as many as eighty or ninety, and the displaced victims are flooding into neighboring counties in large numbers."

"However, the county towns lack the supplies to support so many refugees, and the local residents themselves have suffered severely. In order to survive, the refugees have already begun heading toward Luoyang."

Emperor Kangzhi’s face flushed, and he coughed for a long while before he could stop. "Do you know how many refugees there are?"

The Governor of Luoyang replied immediately, "I fear there are as many as several hundred thousand."

"Minister Yuan, how much silver can the Ministry of Revenue provide for disaster relief?"

The Vice Minister of Revenue stepped forward and gave a bitter smile. "Reporting to Your Majesty, years of continuous warfare have already consumed seventy to eighty percent of the national treasury's tax revenue. A few days ago, the northern provinces petitioned for disaster relief, and the Ministry of Revenue scraped together 800,000 taels of funds and grain. Your humble servant is truly powerless now."

Emperor Kangzhi rubbed his temples hard. "How much can you scrape together at most?"

The Minister of Revenue pondered for a moment. "Two hundred thousand taels."

The entire court was shocked.

"Minister Yuan, two hundred thousand taels to relieve hundreds of thousands of refugees? Even if they only had one bowl of thin porridge a day, it wouldn't last a month!" the Governor of Luoyang said, suppressing his anger. "And that doesn't even include the costs for charcoal, winter clothing, physicians, medicinal herbs, and rebuilding the collapsed houses!"

"Most importantly, winter has only just begun; there are still two months until spring!"

This was forcing the refugees to their deaths!

"Minister Zhang, do you think I am unwilling to provide more silver for the refugees? If I could, I would love to provide a million piculs of grain and ten million catties of charcoal to help them survive the winter, but alas, I do not possess such supernatural powers."

"As the Minister of Revenue, you are in charge of the world's wealth and grain; you must come up with a strategy!"

The Minister of Revenue was waiting for exactly this. "Reporting to Your Majesty, I have a plan, though I do not know if it is feasible."

Gu Liu, the Heir of Prince Xuan, who was standing at the front, felt his eyelids twitch.

"Your humble servant believes that in times of emergency, one must act with flexibility. We could temporarily delay the distribution of the Northwest Army's pay and use those funds for disaster relief instead."

Officials from the Crown Prince's faction chimed in one after another.

"Your Majesty, I believe this plan is ill-advised," Gu Liu stepped forward to argue. "The Northwest has also suffered severely from this disaster, and the soldiers are already living in hardship. If they do not receive their pay, how will they protect the country and defend against the Xiongnu?"

"The border military funds must not be touched unless absolutely necessary," Emperor Kangzhi interrupted the ministers' bickering. "Let us first spend what money we have to get through the immediate crisis."

After the morning court session ended, Gu Liu rode at full speed back to the Prince's mansion. "Ask the Fifth Young Master to come to the study for a discussion."

A servant ran off quickly to fetch him.

Gu Liu roasted himself by the fire in the study for a long time and drank a bowl of hot soup before a hint of color returned to his pale, frozen face.

"Big Brother, you were looking for me?" Gu Ci arrived as soon as he received the message.

Gu Liu quickly recounted what had happened at the morning court and sneered, "The Crown Prince's faction is truly unscrupulous."

They were using the disaster in Luoyang as an excuse to withhold the Northwest Army's pay.

"The Emperor likely has the same intention," Gu Ci said, suppressing his anger. "No matter how important the Northwest is, it is thousands of miles away from Luoyang. Furthermore, with Father supporting it, it is stable. But if a riot breaks out in Luoyang, it will be a catastrophe in an instant."

"The only solution now is to raise money for disaster relief," Gu Liu said, his head aching. The Prince's mansion not only had to supply the Northwest Army's grain but also had to provide relief for Luoyang.

The Prince of Xuan's mansion was doing all the work—what was the Crown Prince for?

"At tomorrow's court session, I will suggest that the imperial court take the lead in soliciting donations for disaster relief. The Emperor will surely accept."

For every coin raised through donations, the Prince's mansion would have to pay one less.

"Since I am the one proposing it, our mansion will inevitably be the first to contribute. You should talk to your wife and ask for her understanding."

"Don't worry, Big Brother."

Gu Ci walked back, mentally drafting his words.

In the Bidan Courtyard, the main residence.

Qiu Yu used iron tongs to stir the fire, making the charcoal burn brighter, and said with relief, "It's fortunate that the Young Mistress had the foresight to prepare charcoal early."

"I heard that the price of charcoal has reached two hundred wen per catty, more than five times the price of previous years. Even at that price, if you don't have the right connections, you can't even buy it."

"That's too outrageous," Chun Feng stopped her embroidery. "There's still a long time until spring."

She murmured, "I wonder how many families will be broken and forced to sell their children."

The other maids thought of their own situations and all became sorrowful.

This melancholy was only broken when Gu Ci arrived.

"You're here!" Tang Zhao said, both enthusiastic and puzzled. "Husband, how do you have time to come to my place?"

On the second day of their marriage, Gu Ci had moved to the study under the pretext of recovering from an illness. They had been married for over a month, and apart from occasionally eating at the same table, he never visited without a reason.

Gu Ci felt guilty about this, so his tone was inevitably gentler. "What are you doing?"

"Reading the Great Yu Code," Tang Zhao held up the book.

"Where have you read to?"

"The Marriage Law, the chapter on divorce," Tang Zhao praised the ancestors of the Gu family who had formulated the Great Yu Code. "If there's no affection, you divorce. After divorcing, you remarry, and if that doesn't work, you divorce again. The dowry and betrothal gifts can all be kept by the woman. The Founding Emperor was truly a wise ruler!"

The key was that there was no "cooling-off period" for divorce; the verdict was delivered on the same day, with extremely high efficiency.

Nanny Song listened in terror, constantly winking at her.

"Nanny, is your eye twitching?" Qiu Yu asked with concern, her voice loud.

Nanny Song glared fiercely at this oblivious girl.

Qiu Yu felt wronged, shut her mouth tight, and stood at the very back.

The veins on Gu Ci's forehead throbbed. The desire for small talk vanished completely. "I came to discuss something with Tang... Madam."

Tang Zhao: "Please speak, Husband."

Gu Ci: "Are you aware of the disaster in Luoyang?"

Tang Zhao nodded.

"It's not just Luoyang; all the prefectures to the north have been hit. Thousands of refugees are displaced," Gu Ci briefly summarized the situation. "The imperial court is currently trying to find ways to provide relief."

Disaster relief? That was a must!

What is needed most for disaster relief? Without a doubt, it's grain, clothing, medical supplies, and so on.

All of the above could be summed up in one word: Money!

And what if the country has no money?

Donations! What is taken from the people should naturally be used for the people!

Tang Zhao's dark eyes rolled a few times, and she guessed Gu Ci's intentions almost entirely.

Sure enough, she heard the man say bluntly, "I would like to ask you to take the lead in donating silver, to serve as a catalyst for others."

"No problem," Tang Zhao smiled happily.

The opportunity she had been waiting for had finally arrived.