AEOGA CH51

The process of making Beggar’s Chicken was complex, and since it was their first time preparing it, it consumed a great deal of time. By the time the chicken was fully roasted, night had fallen, and Xie Chongjin was already quite famished.

“It’s ready.” Seeing that the heat was just right, Lu Xuechao said, “Let’s take it out.”

The two moved over to the dining table. With a gentle tap from a small hammer, the outer layer of yellow mud cracked and flaked away. Unfolding the lotus leaf, it revealed the jujube-red chicken inside, instantly filling the entire room with a rich fragrance.

Xie Chongjin carved up the whole chicken, giving the tender drumsticks and wing portions to Lu Xuechao. The meat was baked to complete tenderness; a soft pull was all it took for it to fall entirely off the bone. Taking a bite, the golden-red skin was crispy and sweet, while the white, tender meat was smooth, juicy, and rich, infused with a subtle lotus leaf aroma that lingered on the palate.

Used to the ordinary taste of stir-fried chicken, this unique flavor gave Xie Chongjin a completely refreshing experience, delighting his taste buds like never before.

Xie Chongjin lost count of how many times he had praised it, yet he still couldn’t offer enough compliments: “To have Qingshu by my side, I am truly blessed with good food.”

Lu Xuechao was also quite satisfied with how the Beggar’s Chicken turned out. Attempting a new dish for the first time usually required a few failed tries, so achieving success on the very first attempt was genuinely rare.

Not content to stop there, Lu Xuechao soon began researching new recipes centered around cured meat. Studying the secret sesame flatbread recipe provided by Zhou Ziyan, he pondered how to create dry rations that could be preserved for a long time while remaining delicious. He even ventured among the common folk to learn the art of winemaking from veteran master brewers—never resting for a single moment.

Xie Chongjin grew busy as well. The Imperial Commissioner had finished gathering most of the evidence, waiting only for Xie Chongjin’s command to arrest and punish the culprits. While he didn’t need to personally handle the tedious details of investigation and evidence gathering, these major decisions still required his approval before any action could be taken. With the Emperor and Empress residing right in Jiangnan, the Imperial Commissioner couldn’t possibly overstep his bounds.

Thus, following Yujing, Jiangnan was ushered into a massive upheaval as well.

The local officials had assumed that since the Emperor and Empress had been in Yunzhou for so long without taking action, they might escape scot-free. Little did they expect that it wasn’t a lack of action, but rather a quiet preparation for a massive storm.

First, the Prefects of both Yunzhou and Quancheng were stripped of their posts and ordered to be executed by beheading. The local officials who had colluded with them were all thrown into prison to be investigated one by one—their estates confiscated, or their persons exiled—and replaced with capable officials dispatched directly by the imperial court. All funds obtained from the asset seizures were dedicated to disaster relief; having originally been extorted from the common people, everything was ultimately returned to their hands.

The officialdom of Jiangnan, once dark and corrupt, instantly became much clearer and brighter after this thorough overhaul.

Beyond purging corrupt officials, His Majesty also cracked down severely on local unscrupulous, profit-driven merchants. Anyone who had colluded with officials, evaded taxes, profited off national disasters, palmed off inferior goods, or oppressed workers was completely dragged into the light. Minor offenders were forced to pay back taxes and fines, while severe cases met with asset confiscation and beheading—a truly gratifying turn of events for the populace.

In addition, His Majesty issued several consecutive imperial decrees, explicitly banning the “shouma” (skinny horse) trade. Anyone coming from a shouma background had their commoner status restored and could freely seek employment. Those who had bought or sold shouma in the past were pardoned for prior acts, but from that point forward, any offense would result in immediate execution.

That which was not forbidden by law was deemed permissible; the shouma industry had originally exploited loopholes in imperfect laws, meaning it was not illegal in the past, and retroactive punishment would not hold up legally. Now that the law was perfected, any future violation would be an absolute crime.

However, the lack of retroactive punishment applied strictly to the buying and selling of shouma itself; human trafficking had always been illegal, and would still be investigated and punished accordingly.

Having dealt with the corrupt officials and rogue merchants, the most crucial task remained: the resettlement of displaced refugees.

Although the imperial court provided disaster relief, giving out grain and money could only resolve the immediate crisis. For the people to truly achieve long-term peace and stability, they needed roofs over their heads to shield them from the wind and rain, as well as jobs to support their families. The great flood had destroyed homes and fields, leaving many homeless and at their wit’s end. The court had already recruited a large number of civilian laborers to repair water conservancy works—a two-birds-with-one-stone strategy that both provided jobs and prevented future flood disasters—and had allocated funds to help repair homes and set up emergency shelters. Yet in the end, demand far outstripped supply. Land in the heavily hit disaster zones remained submerged, while other areas were designated as flood discharge and drainage zones under the water conservancy planning, making them unsuitable for rebuilds. A vast number of refugees were still left without a fixed place to stay.

Xie Chongjin and Lu Xuechao conferred together regarding where to settle these refugees. Recalling the vast stretches of uncultivated wasteland he had seen along their journey south, Lu Xuechao suggested: “Why not let the refugees reclaim the wasteland? Whoever reclaims a plot of land shall be granted ownership of that land as a reward. This will mobilize the people’s enthusiasm for land reclamation. Reclaiming land requires a vast number of construction workers, which in turn will solve many livelihoods.”

All land under the heavens belonged to the Sovereign. When commoners built houses, they required land deeds to purchase the usage rights, while the entire national territory actually belonged to the Imperial Family. Right now, the refugees lacked land, while Changli still had so much land sitting waste—wasn’t letting the refugees reclaim it the perfect solution?

Developing Changli, putting wasted land to good use, giving refugees a place to settle and make a living, and generating a wealth of job opportunities—no matter how one looked at it, it was a winning proposition.

Xie Chongjin pondered briefly: “Let’s proceed with this.”

As these various policies were rolled out and implemented among the populace, they were met mostly with resounding praise.

While some elderly citizens were reluctant to leave their ancestral homes, the vast majority—despite their heavy hearts—raised no objections and dutifully followed the imperial court’s arrangements. Migrations caused by natural disasters were hardly unheard of; all the common people truly wanted was a place to call home.

Perhaps many years later, they would return to this land where generations of their ancestors had lived to fall like leaves back to their roots; or perhaps, they would become the ancestors of future generations in a new land altogether.

Yun Manor.

Hearing the various policies promulgated by the imperial court, Yun Yao’s eyes stirred when he heard the clause explicitly “banning the shouma industry.”

“His Majesty is a wise and enlightened monarch.”

To be able to purge corrupt officials, punish rogue merchants, and settle tens of thousands of commoners—His Majesty was undoubtedly a good emperor who cared deeply for his people’s livelihoods. Yet to even notice the persecution suffered by low-class existences like the “shouma,” and to go so far as to add a specific law for their sake—this was truly extending grace to all living beings, taking pity on the world.

Those categorized under the degraded class were not considered respectable commoners; they could be bought, sold, or beaten to death at will, and rarely did any ruler ever spare a glance for their existence. But His Majesty had seen them.

Yun Yao was himself born a shouma. Because of his family’s poverty, he had been sold by his father to a human trafficker at a young age, though not everyone shared his exact backstory. Among the trafficker’s flock were many other children his age, many of whose origins were entirely unknown. Perhaps yesterday they were cherished darlings in their fathers’ arms, only to be abducted today and turned into worthless grass.

A shouma’s life was destined for tragedy. Some possessed stunning beauty, some possessed considerable talent, and some were shrewd and capable. Yet no matter how exceptional, they were merely commodities waiting to be priced and sold—existences deprived of human dignity, viewed strictly as playthings. Even ordinary household servants possessed the dignity of working with their own hands to earn a living, whereas shouma—born for the sole purpose of being toyed with—never received genuine respect in their entire lives, as if they were born merely to please people in bed. Fortunate individuals like Yun Yao were an absolute minority; the vast majority of shouma had no right to be legally married as principal spouses, spending their bitter lives as concubines or courtesans.

Yun Yao’s outstanding talents had allowed him to alter his own fate. After becoming the Young Master’s spouse of the Jiang family, he had thought about rescuing other shouma from their fates, only to find it as difficult as reaching the heavens.

The Jiang family could rescue Yun Yao alone, but they could not rescue all shouma.

Tied behind this industry chain were the interests of countless individuals—human traffickers, wealthy merchants, officials… Commoners could not fight against officials; even if the Jiang family possessed immense wealth, they could not shake it.

But the Emperor could shake it.

Yun Yao did not like power. All he had seen was the darkness, corruption, and decay born from the abuse of power by Jiangnan officials. The pinnacle of power was imperial authority; if imperial power fell into the hands of a foolish ruler, it would bring catastrophe upon the entire nation.

Yet if imperial power belonged to a wise monarch, the whole nation would rejoice.

Jiang Yue sighed with emotion: “Indeed.”

The officials and merchants of Jiangnan were essentially birds of a feather; because the Jiang family refused to join in their corruption, the local officials had long disliked them. However, the Jiang family possessed vast wealth and influence; relying solely on their “Pregnancy Pill,” they had forged connections with many high-ranking nobles in Yujing, not to mention wealthy dignitaries from the other three nations who sought to buy it at exorbitant prices, making local officials hesitant to openly oppress them.

Other wealthy merchants were green with envy, secretly and openly accusing the Jiang family of acting pretentiously high and mighty, trying every possible means to slander and suppress them.

When the whole world was murky and a single person remained pure, the pure one was bound to be maliciously maligned.

Fortunately, the current Emperor was a discerning man.

With His Majesty’s recent strict investigations, problem-ridden Jiangnan officials were falling from grace one after another, and thorough inspections had been launched across all trades and industries, leaving wealthy merchants in a state of panic for a time.

While everyone was in state of anxiety, only the Jiang family leisurely watched the drama unfold. Having committed no guilty deeds, they had no fear of ghosts knocking at their door; no matter how deep the investigation went, it would never touch them.

Compared to this, what Jiang Yue was far more anxious about was another matter entirely.

“That Divine Physician Lu—just when will he arrive?”

Yun Yao gave a bitter smile: “This… I am not certain either.”

The moment he returned that day, he had informed Jiang Yue of his encounter with the divine physician, and specifically instructed the doorkeeper that if anyone arrived holding his visiting card, they must respectfully invite them inside.

When Jiang Yue first heard that someone had created a painkiller, he was initially incredulous. Yet so many people had witnessed the injured youth undergoing surgery with a completely calm expression that day, and sending someone to make minor inquiries confirmed it immediately.

Being proficient in medicine himself, he naturally could not wait to meet a divine physician capable of inventing such a miraculous medicine.

Yet seven days had passed since then, and there was still no word.

Having been busy taking care of the unscrupulous officials and merchants recently, the two simply hadn’t found the time to pay a visit.

Recalling how he had said back then that Divine Physician Lu could visit once he had thought it over, Yun Yao felt somewhat uncertain.

If Divine Physician Lu finished considering and simply decided he didn’t want to cooperate with the Jiang family, choosing not to come at all was by no means impossible.

That would truly be a grand regret.

Just as he was feeling dejected, the doorkeeper entered the room and reported: “Master, Young Master’s spouse, two guests holding Young Master’s spouse’s visiting card have arrived! Following your instructions, I have already ushered the guests into the front hall.”

The expressions of both men shifted, and they quickly strode outside.

Front Hall.

Two people sat in the guest seats, dressed in the exact same attire as before, looking as though their masks and veiled hats were welded onto their faces. Having met three times, Yun Yao still did not know their true features.

Yet no one cared about that. For a master capable of inventing a miraculous medicine, having a bit of mystery was only natural.

Yun Yao stepped forward with a warm, welcoming smile, like a gentle spring breeze: “Young Master Lu, Young Master Xie.”

Jiang Yue reached out his hand: “Please, take a seat, both of you.”

His temples were streaked with gray, his expression weathered, yet one could still discern the handsome looks of his youth from his features. Despite being older than the two young men combined, his demeanor was exceedingly respectful and polite.

The sole fact that he had invented a painkiller was enough to earn him respect regardless of age.

“Thank you,” Xie Chongjin said.

Jiang Yue didn’t waste time on pleasantries, cutting straight to the chase: “I heard from Yun Yao that the Mafei Powder invented by Divine Physician Lu possesses miraculous pain-relieving effects?”

Lu Xuechao nodded, handing over a bowl of medicinal decoction: “It is indeed this substance.”

To discuss a partnership, one had to present the product for the other party to inspect first. Lu Xuechao had come prepared.

Jiang Yue stared at the bowl of medicine, downed it in a single gulp, and then instructed a servant to fetch a blade.

Holding the blade, he swung it without the slightest hesitation, slashing right into his own arm!

The page boy was scared out of his wits: “Master!”

Yun Yao’s expression changed drastically as well, immediately springing to his feet: “Father!” He decisively ordered the page boy: “Summon a physician to bandage the wound!”

Xie Chongjin reflexively turned his head away, avoiding the sight of blood.

“…” Lu Xuechao thought for a moment before offering a gentle reminder: “Mafei Powder merely relieves pain; it does not make one invulnerable to blades. An injury will still remain an injury. Please do not joke with your own body, Mr. Jiang.”

Though injured, Jiang Yue suddenly burst into loud laughter; yet as he laughed, tears welled up in his eyes.

“It really doesn’t hurt… a single slash, and it truly doesn’t hurt at all…” His voice was laced with a sob amidst his laughter, “If only his slash hadn’t hurt back then as well…”

If only such a medicine had existed earlier, how could his wife have passed away due to unbearable pain and massive hemorrhaging during childbirth? If his wife were still alive… forget about wanting thirty percent of the Jiang Yan Pharmacy’s profits, what would it matter even if he gave up his entire family fortune?

“Father, please calm down, the guests are present,” Yun Yao held him and whispered, before turning to offer an apology to the two: “My apologies, my father-in-law must have… been reminded of my late mother-in-law.”

Both Xie Chongjin and Lu Xuechao expressed their understanding.

Having investigated the Jiang family, how could they not know of the deep love between Jiang Yue and his wife?

Childhood sweethearts, supporting and accompanying each other—looking remarkably like Xie Chongjin and Lu Xuechao themselves.

Yet such an enviable romance had still ended in tragedy due to Mrs. Jiang’s death during a difficult childbirth.

Xie Chongjin had sighed at the time: “That’s why I never intended to let you give birth.”

He would absolutely never allow Qingshu to endure such a blade.

Lu Xuechao had asked: “With Mafei Powder, childbirth won’t be painful anymore. Do you still not want children?”

Xie Chongjin asked back: “Do you want them?”

Lu Xuechao: “I am asking you.”

Lu Xuechao did not want children. Initially, it was out of fear of pain; later, it was simply because he wanted to possess Xie Chongjin entirely, refusing to allow anyone else to come between them.

He did not crave the fruit of love; he coveted the entirety of Xie Chongjin’s affection.

Xie Chongjin said: “I am not the one giving birth, so I have no right to answer such a question.”

“However, if Qingshu wants to hear my answer—no, I don’t.”

“I do not wish for a single mark or scar to be left on your body because of me. Even if you don’t feel the pain, I will.”