PFC Chapter 52: The Difference Between Superior and Inferior Is Immediately Clear
Chapter 52: The Difference Between Superior and Inferior Is Immediately Clear
His good brothers probably didn't sleep well all night.
Xia Chengzong maintained a calm expression, but couldn't help but smile knowingly to himself.
After the meal, Emperor Yonglong changed into casual clothes and left the palace with a few children.
Emperor Yonglong was by nature a restless man, and he went to Jiangnan six or seven times, with the Zhen family receiving him four times.
As for his daily life, he often went on unannounced visits.
It's only now that I'm older that I don't go out much anymore.
Therefore, nowadays, traveling incognito is something they are very adept at.
After leaving the palace, he transformed from the supreme ruler into a kind and amiable wealthy man.
Before long, they drove to the shed area that Xia Chengxu was in charge of.
They stopped at a distance and did not approach.
Their carriage wasn't the only one parked outside the city; quite a few carriages were parked haphazardly.
Some human traffickers and wealthy merchants love to take advantage of this opportunity to buy and sell people at low prices.
Pretty girls and young girls are the most valuable, followed by boys with delicate features.
Because of the disaster, they drove the price down to an extremely low level, buying it almost at cabbage prices.
They can make a fortune with just one transaction.
Therefore, Emperor Yonglong and his entourage's carriage was parked here inconspicuously.
They got out of the car and stood at a distance to watch.
At this moment, a dozen or so eunuchs have already started cooking rice.
The disaster victims formed a long queue.
Xia Chengzong glanced at the group and said, "This team has no fewer than 1,500 people."
This shantytown only has a total of 1,000 disaster victims, but now the queue has stretched to 1,500 people.
The extra 500-plus people were all people who had fraudulently claimed the money.
Xia Chengxu's face immediately darkened. He said, "How many do you say you want? How could you possibly count so many people?"
Xia Chengzong laughed and said, "In ancient times, Su Qin could quickly tell the total number of sheep, as well as the number of black sheep and white sheep, just by watching a flock of sheep walk past him."
"Although I do not have the ability of Su Qin, counting people is easier than counting sheep, and I am confident that I will not make a mistake."
"If Brother Xu doesn't believe me, how about we make a bet and send someone to count them?"
Xia Chengxu snorted and then fell silent.
He had witnessed Xia Chengzong's talent firsthand. Since Xia Chengzong dared to say such a thing, he must be confident. He wouldn't want to humiliate himself.
By now, the porridge was ready, and a dozen eunuchs opened the pot and distributed the porridge, while the rest of the people maintained order.
Those who received the porridge quickly found an open space to squat down and began to eat heartily.
The porridge was indeed cooked to a very thick consistency, as could be seen from the way they ate it.
Some people took the porridge but didn't eat it; instead, they poured it into an earthenware pot, tucked it into their clothes, and walked into the city.
Even worse, some people secretly slipped back into the queue and started queuing again.
The line for porridge is gradually getting shorter.
But by the time they got to the third of the line, the porridge was already all gone.
The disaster victims behind were stunned.
Those at the back of the line were the elderly, the weak, women, and children, who pleaded repeatedly, even kneeling down and kowtowing.
"Please, sir, have mercy and cook another pot of porridge. We've been starving all day yesterday!"
"Grandpa, please at least give me a bowl of porridge! Adults can endure it, but the child is about to starve! Waaah!"
"Grandpa, please have mercy and cook another pot of porridge! We're starving if we don't have anything to eat!"
The cries of these disaster victims filled the air; their grief was truly heartbreaking.
However, it was all in vain; these young eunuchs had already begun packing their things and leaving.
They even started punching and kicking the disaster victims who blocked their way.
This scene immediately filled Xia Chengxu with shame and anger, and he flew into a rage.
He's a man of noble birth; he only stood here briefly yesterday to make his presence known before leaving quickly.
He didn't stay until the end, and therefore didn't know that some disaster victims hadn't had enough to eat yesterday.
A disaster victim's comment, "I was starving all day yesterday," severely damaged his image in front of the Emperor!
These lowly people truly deserve to die!
These eunuchs deserve to die!
Those lowly people who fraudulently claimed the money deserve to die the most! If it weren't for them, how could so much trouble have arisen?
Xia Chengxu flew into a rage and strode over, shouting, "Stop! What are you doing?"
"Can't you see there are still people who haven't had any porridge? Since there are still people who haven't eaten, you should cook another pot of porridge so that everyone can have some!"
"Not only do you disregard the people's basic needs, but you also beat and kick them! Is this how you do things?"
"You lot are really something else. Just wait and see how I deal with you later!"
The eunuchs were all terrified and trembled with fear upon seeing Xia Chengxu's sudden appearance.
They immediately knelt down and begged for mercy, pleading for their lives.
Suppressing his anger, Xia Chengxu ordered them to fetch more rice and cook porridge to distribute to the people who hadn't had any porridge.
After giving his instructions, Xia Chengxu returned, dejected, and said, "Grandfather, I have disappointed you."
Emperor Yonglong smiled and said, "Your grandfather told you before that this time, no matter how well or poorly you do, it will be an opportunity for you to gain practical experience."
"How can you not make mistakes when this is your first time doing something? Making mistakes is inevitable."
"Past experience is a guide for the future. If we make a mistake this time, we will never make the same mistake again!"
"Therefore, the mistake you made today is actually a good thing for you!"
These words were meant for Xia Chengxu, but also for the other three.
If it's like this in Xia Chengxu's area, it's probably not much better there.
The four of them felt only bitterness upon hearing Emperor Yonglong's words.
If it were just the four of them, and everyone made a mistake, then it wouldn't really matter.
However, they all made mistakes, but one person who didn't make any mistakes immediately outshone them!
This filled the four of them with a deep sense of resentment.
Emperor Yonglong then said, "Let's go and see if their quilts have indeed been stolen."
Next, they went into the shed area and conducted a search.
It was discovered that more than half of the disaster victims' new cotton quilts had indeed been forcibly taken away.
Some received a few copper coins, but most were forcibly taken away.
The charcoal that was distributed was in a similar condition to the cotton quilts.
This made Xia Chengxu's expression even more unpleasant.
After leaving this place, Emperor Yonglong led them to inspect the other four shantytowns.
The situation in the shed area managed by Xia Chengyan and the other two was very similar to that in Xia Chengxu's area.
Only at Xia Chengzong's place, although the porridge was poor, everyone had food to eat and no one went hungry.
Everyone had two old cotton quilts, and no one stole them.
As for the charcoal, it wasn't very valuable, and Xia Chengzong had specifically assigned someone to guard it, so nothing was missing.
This comparison clearly shows the superiority of the latter.
After dinner that evening, Emperor Yonglong said:
"You must have many feelings about today's disaster relief efforts. Please share your thoughts."