The Starving

"Commoners?"

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin was momentarily taken aback. After a moment of silence, he said, "Have them send a representative in. I have matters to ask."

"Yes, Your Majesty." The soldier acknowledged and withdrew.

Cheng Yaojin and the other ministers had already retired to the sleeper cars. Here, only Qin Ning, Li Shimin, Zhu Yuanzhang, and Qin Shi Huang remained.

All three emperors were dressed in plain clothes, not imperial robes.

Before long, the Jinwu Guard who had just left returned, leading a frail old man in his sixties into the car. He appeared very thin and weak.

The old man gazed around at the luxurious decor of the car, astonished that it was so brightly lit even at night.

"Sir, are you a villager from nearby?" Li Shimin spoke, snapping the old man, who had been looking around, out of his amazement.

Hearing this, the old man quickly clasped his hands and said, "Reporting to you, sir, I am Su Ming, the village head. I came tonight not to disturb you intentionally, but because a dragon suddenly appeared on the ground outside the village. The villagers were uneasy, so we gathered to investigate. May I ask who you are, sir?"

"I am... ahem, we are just merchants passing through, looking to see if there are any investment opportunities along this coast. It was already dark when we arrived, so we didn't enter the village to disturb anyone. We planned to spend the night here and go in the morning."

Merchants?

The old man naturally didn't believe it.

As the village head, he had some experience and insight.

The soldiers outside the car, clad in armor and bearing weapons, were clearly the elite of the elite.

What merchant could have such bodyguards by their side?

Qin Shi Huang withdrew his gaze from the window and said, "Old sir, I see that you and the villagers outside are all very thin. Shouldn't a coastal fishing village like this have enough food? How come..."

"Sir, you may not know. The seaside is mostly saline-alkali and barren land. Grain depends on inland shipments, and fish catches are hard to store for long. Lately, there have been frequent tsunamis, and the government has imposed a maritime ban for three months. We truly have no grain to stave off hunger."

As he spoke, the old man couldn't hold back his tears. He knelt before them and pleaded, "Sirs, please take pity on the children outside and give them some food."

"Old sir, please rise quickly."

Li Shimin hurried forward to help him up, his face filled with mixed emotions.

Chang'an was the heart of the Great Tang, but it was far too distant from this place. So-called prosperous times were merely an illusion. Within the Tang Empire, there were countless villages like this.

"Old Li, have some food prepared for them. Our train has five full cars of grain in the rear. Have some brought out and cooked to share with them. I'll go back and bring more later," Qin Ning said.

"Very well, Master."

Li Shimin nodded and immediately gave the order. He then said to the old man, "Old sir, I've already ordered them to prepare porridge. It will be ready soon."

"Thank you! Thank you, sir!"

The old man was emotional and tried to kneel again, but Li Shimin stopped him. "Have the villagers come aboard. There's room in that car. When the porridge is ready, they can eat inside."

"No need! Sir, no need to trouble. We came on muddy paths. How could we dare to dirty your noble carriage? We'll eat outside."

Hearing this, Li Shimin didn't insist. Then they followed the old man outside the car.

Not far away, behind an iron fence, many villagers had gathered. Rows of Jinwu Guards stood inside the fence, preventing them from coming too close.

On one side of the fence, there was a gate that could be opened, through which the old man had been brought in.

When the railway was first built, fences were erected on both sides and were guarded by local officials to prevent ordinary people from crossing freely.

"Everyone, quiet down and listen to me."

The village head stood before the crowd and shouted, "This gentleman has agreed to provide us with porridge. After you've eaten, please disperse and don't disturb their rest any further."

Upon hearing this, the villagers cheered with joy.

During this time, due to the grain shortage and the maritime ban, they hadn't had a full meal in days. Hearing they would get hot, steaming porridge, everyone couldn't help but swallow their saliva.

Looking at these villagers, Qin Ning couldn't help but sigh.

Who would have thought that such a fertile land in later ages could be so destitute in this era?

He glanced at Li Shimin. "I'll step away for a moment."

"Very well, Master." Li Shimin nodded, knowing Qin Ning was going back to Chang'an, or perhaps the later era, to bring more grain for these villagers—at least enough to see them through this period.

Soon after Qin Ning left, a group of Jinwu Guards arrived carrying large cauldrons filled with cooked millet porridge.

Fang Xuanling, Wei Zheng, and the others had already been awakened and came outside to help distribute the porridge to the people.

"Sir, some yamen runners are approaching up ahead, led by someone claiming to be the magistrate of Kunshan County," a Jinwu Guard reported to Fang Xuanling.

During the Zhenguan era, this area was under Suzhou Prefecture, with Kunshan County as one of its jurisdictions, dozens of li away.

Earlier, when the train roared past on the railway, the county soldiers guarding the fence immediately reported the matter.

The magistrate then came personally.

As a county magistrate, he naturally understood what the railway and the train signified.

The railway had just been built; aside from imperial ministers and nobles, it was used only for grain transport. Since this coastal area was short of grain, he guessed it might be relief grain from the court.

"Let him come over," Fang Xuanling said.

Soon, Zhang Lin, the magistrate, was brought to them by two Jinwu Guards.

When he saw Fang Xuanling among the crowd, Zhang Lin was greatly shocked.

Though he didn't recognize Li Shimin or the others, he had seen Fang Xuanling in Chang'an and knew this man was the current Chancellor. He hurried forward, knelt, and prostrated himself. "Your subordinate, Zhang Lin, Magistrate of Kunshan County, pays respects to Chancellor Fang!"

"Rise," Fang Xuanling said, startled that the magistrate recognized him.

"Chancellor Fang? Could it be the Fang Xuanling, Chancellor, who serves His Majesty?" The villagers who were drinking porridge were all astonished when they saw the magistrate kneeling and heard the title "Chancellor."

Fang Xuanling nodded, no longer hiding his identity. "Indeed, I am Fang Xuanling."

He then introduced Wei Zheng, Cheng Yaojin, and the others.

When the villagers learned who these people were, everyone gasped in awe.

The village head was so frightened he fell to his knees on the spot, his voice trembling. "Then... then that gentleman from earlier, he..."

"It was His Majesty."

Fang Xuanling took a deep breath and spoke slowly.