At this moment in the Hall of Mental Cultivation, after the grand morning court session, Emperor Mingxi, as usual, kept several trusted ministers behind to discuss state affairs.
Emperor Mingxi had Eunuch Qian pass a confidential letter to the ministers for their perusal. When it reached Yu Chongshan, his eyes crinkled with delight upon seeing his granddaughter riding a flying horse and scattering sweet dew.
His eldest son, Yu Zhongchun, noticed the old man's beaming face and couldn't help but lean over to read along.
The elder shot a glance at his increasingly unsteady eldest son and couldn't suppress a snort. The first son was lucky to have picked up such a wonderful daughter.
Yu Shuchun, too, felt his elder brother was fortunate. If only he had been in the capital back then and had the chance to adopt Fuguang as a daughter, he would definitely have fought for it.
After everyone had finished reading, Emperor Mingxi asked, "What do my esteemed ministers think?" His eyes were filled with barely concealed joy.
"Your Majesty, this is a blessing for Dayan and a blessing for you!" Ling Yinghua was the first to speak.
Wang Shouchen nodded repeatedly upon hearing this. "Ling Jijiu is right. The Grand Preceptor's actions have also brought blessings to the people."
He stroked his beard with a delighted expression. "I thought that even with the Grand Preceptor's ceaseless efforts to bring rain day and night, after this great drought, the best-case scenario for the people's harvest would be seventy to eighty percent of a normal year. But now, with the sweet dew the Grand Preceptor has bestowed, why worry about this year's harvest not being abundant?"
Wang Shouchen grew more and more excited as he spoke, but Wei Ping, closest to him, couldn't help but shift slightly to the side. Old Sir Wang's spittle was almost flying into his face.
Cai Xian thought: You dodged, so it's all about to land on my face!
"Hahaha! Minister Wang speaks truly. With Fuguang, why should Dayan worry about poor harvests or weak national strength?"
He turned his gaze to Xie Zhiyan. "Crown Prince, you must ensure that all the people in the capital and surrounding prefectures know the great blessings the Grand Preceptor has bestowed on Dayan and its citizens."
"Yes, Your Majesty. I will see that this matter is handled properly, ensuring the Grand Preceptor's good name spreads across the lands of the six kingdoms!"
Aren't the people of other nations fleeing famine? Let them all come to Dayan, where there's high-yield grain and a divine maiden who can scatter sweet dew.
Emperor Mingxi looked up again, his gaze burning as it swept over the ministers, and spoke solemnly, "My esteemed ministers, it's not just the people who should remember this grace—even I and all the officials in this court should not forget what the Grand Preceptor has done for us."
Emperor Mingxi recalled the secret letters from spies in other nations, received late last night, describing the pitiful plight of their people due to drought—words could not do it justice!
Driven by hunger and thirst, citizens had begun to flee, while their governments, emperors, and officials were racked with headaches. The courts were plagued by internal strife as everyone tried to shift blame. It was clear that chaos had emerged among Dayan's neighbors.
If they were not fortunate enough to have Fuguang, Dayan might now be no better off, and the calamity that nearly destroyed the nation in the 14th year of the Yuan Kang era would have had a precedent.
Everyone nodded in agreement. With the Grand Preceptor, their burdens were also lighter. Otherwise, they would be just as troubled as the others.
"Your Majesty speaks truly. With our Grand Preceptor, why worry about unifying the world under one rule?" The ministers' secret ambitions were no less than those of Emperor Mingxi, who aspired to be a sage ruler throughout the ages.
If he could unify the five kingdoms in his lifetime, even if his prior record had been lackluster, the history books would still record a glorious chapter for him.
"Huo Ying, have Generals Xu and Wei sent their latest battle reports?"
Huo Ying immediately stepped forward and respectfully presented a sealed letter. "Your Majesty, this is the frontline report I just received. I haven't had a chance to read it yet."
The wax seal bearing General Xu's soaring roc was still intact. Huo Ying had barely had time to warm it in his hands before Emperor Mingxi summoned him.
Emperor Mingxi took the letter from Eunuch Qian, scanned it quickly in three lines, and his face was soon wreathed in joy. Finally, he slapped the table and exclaimed, "Excellent!"
Seeing the emperor's delight, Ji Hongming couldn't help but ask, "Your Majesty, have Generals Xu and Wei won another victory?"
"Hahaha, it's a great victory! A great victory for Dayan!" He handed the letter to Eunuch Qian. "Eunuch Qian, pass it around for my ministers to see. Dayan has not only won the battle but also the hearts of the people!"
With that, he raised his tea and drank it in one gulp, as if toasting. This showed just how overjoyed the emperor was.
"These people are all drawn here by Fuguang. We must not tarnish the Divine Maiden Fuguang's reputation."
He turned to the Minister of Revenue, Dong Qianli, and the Left Vice Minister, Yu Shuchun. "Ensure the Ministry of Revenue has sufficient funds and grain to settle the refugees seeking refuge."
"Your humble servants obey!" Both had read the letter and would carry out the emperor's orders without compromise. The Ministry of Revenue was now flush with resources. Once Dongyi was taken, they might even need to expand their warehouses.
"Minister Zheng, the Secret Intelligence Directorate must conduct thorough vetting to ensure no spies are mixed in with the refugees."
Zheng Zicheng and Xie Zhiyan both nodded solemnly. The rats within the country had yet to be fully exterminated, and they dared not let new ones slip in.
Wang Shouchen couldn't help but ask, "Your Majesty, what policy should we adopt for the refugees from Nanyue?"
The most pressing issue was land. Without land to farm, everything else was meaningless.
After his initial joy, Emperor Mingxi had also pondered this question. People live by food, and food comes from the land. Without land, more arrivals would only invite greater trouble—what could easily turn into a blessing might become a curse.
"My esteemed ministers, do any of you have a good strategy?" Emperor Mingxi scanned the room. Unfortunately, Feng Tang, who always had brilliant ideas, was absent. Otherwise, he would surely devise an excellent plan!
Everyone fell silent, deep in thought. After a moment, the Crown Prince spoke up. "Your Majesty, with Dayan having already captured Nanyue's Walled City and Fengcheng, why not distribute the land within these two prefectures to the people?"
The Crown Prince recalled what Yue Fuguang had said about land distribution policies. She had suggested that if Dayan seized Nanyue, the land policies should be different.
As to how different, he had glimpsed her ideas through their daily interactions and words. What he needed now was the Emperor and the ministers' approval. With a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity presented by Heaven and the Grand Preceptor, Xie Zhiyan believed that while the interests within Dayan proper remained unchanged, the newly conquered lands could be open to a new land policy. He had to seize this rare chance!
Emperor Mingxi raised his eyes and glanced at his eldest son, pausing to consider the matter. "Crown Prince, do you have a specific implementation plan?"
Xie Zhiyan bowed. "Your Majesty!" After a quick exchange of glances with his father, he elaborated on his views. "I believe..."
While Dayan's monarch and ministers were strategizing over how to allocate the newly acquired lands in Nanyue, at the Hongwen Hall's guest quarters, Gan Tang from Beiye and his party, who had been lingering in Dayan for nearly a year, had gathered again.
In the same tea room, the same seats and same group of people, but this time their topic had shifted from Dongyi's flood disaster to the life-and-death struggle between Nanyue and Dayan.
Yes, a life-and-death struggle!
Watching as detached observers, they could see that this war, waged by Dayan's monarch and ministers united in purpose, had, from the very beginning, not been aimed at simply capturing a city or a piece of land.
The signs were wrong—very wrong.