Chapter 534: 534 King Rui Residence's Generous Donation_1

Madam Wei sighed, then turned to her two sons, “Don’t go blaming others. You chose this path, and you can’t complain about the consequences.”

“Mother…”

Wei Minghong and Wei Mingyong were indignant, but didn’t dare to argue with their mother.

“What you need to consider now is what you’re going to do next, not who to blame,” Madam Wei said. “Pointing fingers doesn’t help the situation.”

The brothers remained silent.

After a while, Wei Mingyong reluctantly spoke, “I came to father and mother for advice because I don’t know what to do. Being such a minor player, the Emperor’s investigation shouldn’t reach me, right?”

Wei Minghong added, “Yes, I’ve already been dismissed. Other than being the Heir Apparent to the Duke, I have no other official position.”

Madam Wei said, “How can I possibly know? If trouble comes, you can’t escape it. All you can do now is wait. If you survive unscathed, good; if not, there’s nothing you can do.”

Upon hearing this, everyone’s faces turned pale.

Even Old Master Wei felt a knot in his stomach.

But it seemed that, apart from Madam Wei’s words, they really couldn’t do anything else.

###

Time quickly passed and November arrived.

The weather was extraordinarily cold, and everyone huddled indoors after a snowfall, not daring to step out.

The wind outside was like a knife on the face.

The matter involving the Qi family and Duke Xu was still unresolved, and another more impactful event once again hit the Empire.

Widespread natural disasters occurred this winter.

Prior to this, reports had been sent to the Emperor, but the news hadn’t reached the general public.

Now that the news had spread, the Capital was in fear and confusion.

As for the noble families, they were not greatly affected. They all had their own land and property. Even if the harvest was poor, they had enough to eat.

The common people, however, were deeply affected and worried.

Recently, the city’s grain shops were forced to close because they had no stock left. The last of their goods were bought forcibly.

This was the Capital, and the evacuation had already reached the outskirts, making the severity of the disaster evident.

Under these circumstances, most of the nobles in the Capital looked out for their own interests. After all, they didn’t know how long the disaster would last.

But at this time, King Rui’s Residence did something unexpected.

As word of the disaster just started to spread around the Capital, the Residence sent people to put up big tents outside the East City Gate. They set up places to distribute porridge to provide relief to the victims.

Soon, news spread and victims from the surrounding areas congregated outside the city gates to queue for porridge.

King Rui’s residence was extremely generous. Every person who came to receive aid got a bowl of thick porridge and a cooked sweet potato. If they were children, they could even get a boiled egg.

The only requirement was that the food had to be eaten nearby and could not be taken away.

If there were injured or elderly people who needed help, the people from King Rui’s Residence would not only provide food but also medical treatment for free.

At first, everyone thought that King Rui’s Residence would only distribute porridge for a few days. But to everyone’s surprise, the porridge distribution continued day and night for a full week.

Everyone realized that all the grains that King Rui’s Residence had previously imported were being used for this purpose.

This made them wonder if King Rui’s Residence had received advance news of the disaster, or if it was just a stroke of luck.

No matter the reason, the action exerted a lot of pressure on other noble families.

Some wanted to earn a good reputation, but were limited by their grain reserves.

While others had reserves, they could not transport them into the Capital at this time.

So they could only watch King Rui’s Residence win the love of the people. The matter even reached the court and the Emperor praised them repeatedly.

Outside the East City Gate.

Wei Ruo was working alongside the people from the Residence at the porridge station.

Being able to participate in charity work was one of the few opportunities for Wei Ruo to step out from behind the curtain. Naturally, she seized the moment to get some fresh air.

Alongside Wei Ruo were Wei Jinyi, Xiumei, and siblings Xie Jue and Xie Ying.

Xie Ying, like Wei Ruo, had changed into comfortable attire – an apron and headscarf and was diligently carrying out chores at the porridge station.

At this moment, she was sitting on a small stool with Wei Ruo, cleaning the dirt off sweet potatoes by the stove.

“Who would have thought? We gave out porridge together in Xingshan County in Taizhou Prefecture, and now we’re doing it again in the Capital!” Xie Ying couldn’t help but comment.

“Yes, many things have changed over the past two years. But some things, like you, haven’t.” said Wei Ruo.

“What do you mean, ‘nothing has changed’? I’m now the owner of the biggest pharmacy in the Capital!” Xie Ying said proudly.

“Yes, yes, my big boss!” Wei Ruo laughed, genuinely admiring Xie Ying.

Indeed, Xie Ying’s mother, Madam Xie, and her brother Xie Jue helped a lot in setting up the pharmacy. But to grow it to its current scale in just two short years also spoke volumes about Xie Ying’s talent.

Wei Ruo had never thought that her casual suggestion would enable Xie Ying to build such a successful business.

“Don’t make fun of me. I know that you own several shops in the Capital, too. Your business is even bigger than mine.” Xie Ying said.

“I envy you,” sighed Xie Ying. “Even after getting married, you can still do whatever you want.”

“What happened to you? Are you getting married?” Wei Ruo asked.