Chapter 259: The Blessed Girl is a True Blessed Girl
Chapter 259: Chapter 259: The Blessed Girl is a True Blessed Girl
The eighth day of the sixth month.
It should have been a day of sweltering heat under a fiery sun.
Yet, as the Emperor stood upon the Heavenly Temple, his gaze fell upon nothing but a vast, white expanse of snow.
The heavy snow, which had been falling for two months, had only just stopped the day before yesterday.
The entire Cangyun Country had become a frigid world of snow.
Countless bodies had been pulled from beneath the snow in just two days.
The city echoed with incessant cries of mourning.
As the cold wind howled, the Emperor’s somber face grew haggard and grim.
All the officials, dressed in thick fur cloaks, stood with the Emperor. They watched as the State Preceptor on the Heavenly Temple performed a divination, chanting incantations to ask for heaven’s will.
A moment after the State Preceptor shook a silver bell, the tortoise shell he had thrown into the fire cracked open.
He pulled it out a short while later. When the State Preceptor saw the cracks upon it, his eyes widened in shock.
His knees buckled, and he dropped down before the Emperor, presenting the tortoise shell with trembling hands.
"Your Majesty, the celestial phenomena indicate a heavenly calamity. This disaster will be far more severe than the years of drought."
’So it’s going to be even more miserable and harder to endure than the years of the drought?’
Upon hearing this, the Emperor fell to his knees on the prayer mat. He raised his arms to the heavens and wept bitterly. "Oh, great heavens above! What have my subjects done wrong? What has my son done wrong?"
"If there must be a calamity, then punish me alone! Do not bring harm to Cangyun Country! With lives devastated and the land barren, where is the mercy of the gods?"
Ever since the snow disaster began, the episodes of Mo Lingwei’s cold affliction had grown more and more frequent.
In a mere two months, he had fallen unconscious four times.
The Aconite medicine was no longer effective either.
And yet, whenever Shen Ningning came to the Imperial Palace and personally prepared a broth for him, Mo Lingwei would recover within two days of drinking it.
Just then, Chen Shaobei galloped up on a fast horse, rushing to report, "Your Majesty, the Crown Prince’s cold affliction has flared up!"
The Emperor’s expression filled with grief. "Summon the blessed girl to the Imperial Palace."
Standing at the head of the civil servants, Xie Suzhi’s cold, jade-like face finally showed a flicker of emotion.
Chen Shaobei hastily turned back with his men to retrieve Shen Ningning from Wolf Mountain.
The Emperor was helped to his feet by the Chief Eunuch.
His eyes were rimmed with red, but within moments, he had already composed himself.
"Post an imperial notice. Inform the people to hoard rice and grain in preparation for the heavenly calamity." With things as they were, it was time to inform the realm and have everyone work together.
When columns of imperial guards carrying Imperial Order Flags rushed out from the palace gates, the commoners, as if seeing a ray of hope in their despair, scrambled to run after the horses.
The imperial guards posted the notices at every street corner. The State Preceptor had performed another divination: a heavenly calamity was coming, and the Emperor ordered everyone to prepare for it.
Furthermore, the court would regulate local grain businesses and open the national granaries for disaster relief.
The Emperor also called upon all capable individuals to donate supplies and aid the victims.
Countless commoners collapsed before the imperial notices, sobbing their hearts out.
"That damn State Preceptor! I listened to him when he said there would be no disaster this winter, so I sold off all the extra clothes and grain I’d bought!"
"Well, the State Preceptor wasn’t wrong. There wasn’t a disaster in winter. Who could’ve guessed a heavenly calamity would strike just as summer was about to begin!"
"So the blessed girl was the one who was right all along. She told us ahead of time to give us a chance to prepare. Damn my stupid head, why didn’t I believe her?"
Everyone was overcome with regret.
Someone in the crowd said, "The blessed girl must have hoarded a lot of supplies, right? Let’s go get some from her!"
It was as if everyone had been jolted awake, and they all chimed in.
"That’s right, let’s get help from the blessed girl!"
"She’s the blessed girl! She can’t just leave us to die, can she?"
Lord Lu, the head of the Imperial Guards, who hadn’t gone far, shot the crowd a cold glance.
’Before the calamity, they cursed the blessed girl and said she was worthless.’
’Now that the calamity is really here, they’re suddenly willing to admit Shen Ningning is the blessed girl.’
’Of all things in this world, human nature is the most difficult to save.’
Commander Lu cracked his whip. The sharp CRACK in the air made the commoners flinch and cover their heads.
He said coldly, "The Emperor has ordered the blessed girl to the Imperial Palace. If any of you try to bother her at a time like this, don’t blame me for being merciless."
The commoners immediately cowered, trembling in fear.
The idea of going to find Shen Ningning was largely dismissed.
Just then, Chen Shaobei and his entourage came galloping down the road.
In their midst was a decorated carriage, enclosed by thick felt curtains.
"Make way! Make way!" Chen Shaobei yelled.
Commander Lu and the imperial guards helped herd the commoners to the sides of the road.
The curtain fluttered in the wind, revealing a fleeting glimpse of a small, fair face.
A shocked commoner immediately yelled, "It’s the blessed girl’s carriage!"
They swarmed forward like madmen, startling Chen Shaobei and his horse.
The carriage immediately began to sway violently.
Inside, Shen Ningning steadied herself with a small hand against the carriage wall. Her body was tossed about by the violent jolting, making her look like a wobbling little dumpling.
Jiang Zhi, sitting beside her, said angrily, "These vicious peasants! I’ll go out there and teach them a lesson!"
Shen Ningning put a small hand on her arm. "It’s alright, I expected this. Sister Jiang Zhi, throw those barrels out."
Jiang Zhi glanced at the corner. Just before they left, Shen Ningning had asked her to help pack three wooden barrels full of large steamed buns.
’She must have known they would be surrounded by the commoners.’
The wooden barrels were tossed from the carriage. The commoners swarmed them, descending into a crazed scramble for the food!
Commander Lu was about to use his whip on them, but seeing this, he instead urged Chen Shaobei, "Get the carriage to the Imperial Palace, quickly!"
Chen Shaobei nodded. With a sharp command, the procession successfully broke through the surrounding crowd.
Jiang Zhi lifted the curtain and watched Commander Lu trying to maintain order.
That crowd of people was actually fighting over a few bites of food.
She frowned. "If they had known it would come to this, they should have just prepared earlier when you warned them."
"Now they’re all in a panic. What were they doing before?"
Shen Ningning sighed and propped her chin on her small hand, her round, jade-like face full of resignation.
"They’re all just ordinary people. When they heard the State Preceptor say there would be no disaster this winter, it was only natural for them to doubt my words."
"But thankfully, all my friends and family listened to me. As long as you’re all safe, I can rest easy."
After a moment’s thought, Jiang Zhi couldn’t help but say, "This time you’re going to the palace... I’m afraid the Emperor is going to ask something of you."
Shen Ningning didn’t answer. She gazed out the window at the gloomy sky as the north wind howled, lost in thought.
Her godfather, Xie Suzhi, had warned her about this two days ago.
’The Emperor is under immense pressure, and he knows I hoarded so many supplies. He will definitely ask me for them.’
Shen Ningning pouted and said, "More than that, I’m worried about Brother’s health."
「Meanwhile.」
Outside Xiangyun Village, the old village chief and a few others were driving away Wang Qiao’er and Deng Fugui, who were clad in only thin clothes.
Wang Qiao’er knelt on the ground, crying, "Old Sir, Fugui is your own grandson! You can’t abandon him!"
"That bastard Ba Deshun said we were a burden and that he didn’t have enough supplies, so he threw us out."
"If even you won’t take us in, Old Sir, then my son and I will freeze to death on the side of the road!"
As she spoke, she roughly tugged at the silent Deng Fugui beside her.
"Fugui, hurry! Kneel down and beg your grandfather!"
Then, Wang Qiao’er raised her voice, craning her neck to look toward the village. "Ningning! Oh, Ningning! You’re so kind-hearted, please give us a chance to survive!"
"Stop shouting. Ningning has been summoned to the Imperial Palace," the old village chief snapped. "As long as I’m here, I will never allow you to set foot in this village."
He glanced at Deng Fugui and closed his eyes, his voice heavy. "And besides, I have no grandson."