The Marquise: I Earn My Own Worship

As soon as the Emperor of Chu spoke, everyone who was still arguing stopped and turned to look at Duan Jing'an.

Not only were the others startled by the Chu Emperor's shout, but even Duan Jing'an was startled.

If it was just a normal roll call, it would have been fine, but the Emperor of Chu just called Duan Dushi "Duan Si" and his tone was quite intimate. Now everyone was filled with all kinds of speculations.

Upon hearing this, Duan Jing'an stepped forward and knelt respectfully to ask for permission.

"I, a humble servant, have a suggestion for porridge. I've overheard my mother and sister-in-law discussing domestic matters at home, using their own small family to understand the larger family. The victims of Nanyang are in dire straits, and the people are united in their support. As for porridge, it only needs to fill their stomachs. There are three main reasons for this."

Those who held opposing views were about to give it a try, but were glared back by the Left Prime Minister and Ding Haimo. The Emperor of Chu at the top was a little curious.

"Oh? Tell me."

"First, funding. Great Chu is currently plagued by internal troubles in Nanyang, and the treasury is empty. Just now, the adults only mentioned the refugees outside the capital, but now there's a steady stream of Nanyang residents migrating to the capital, demonstrating the severity of the situation in Nanyang. The cost of resettling these refugees is enormous. Our top priority is ensuring they have enough to eat, and then we can worry about other things."

"Secondly, I heard my mother casually mention that the porridge stalls outside the city are different. Some serve meat buns, while others offer millet soup and mixed grains. And judging by their behavior, the ones serving meat buns are often highly contested, and most of them are people with clean bodies and healthy looks. On the other hand, the ones serving millet soup and mixed grains are often people with no clothes to wear."

What?! There was actually such a thing! For a moment, everyone in the court was whispering. The Emperor of Chu looked unhappy. Seeing this, Eunuch Xiao sang loudly:

"Silence~!"

Duan Jing'an continued:

"So, if it's excessive, genuine refugees will have difficulty finding life-saving food. Therefore, these three points serve as a benchmark. The court sets the expenditure, and the people of the capital act accordingly. This not only reduces unnecessary expenses, but also buys refugees more time to survive."

"Therefore, I propose that the imperial court set a standard for food relief, using mixed grain soup mixed with rice porridge. This would be low-cost and would satisfy the hunger of the victims."

As soon as these words were spoken, there was a moment of silence in the court.

Suddenly someone asked weakly, "Will this cause dissatisfaction among the victims?"

Duan Jing'an's mind was working so fast that he realized that words once spoken were like water spilled on the ground and could not be taken back.

The body that had just stood up suddenly fell to the ground again, and his head hit the ground heavily.

"Thunder and rain are all grace from the Emperor. The victims of Nanyang are only grateful for His Majesty's grace. Your Majesty is benevolent and virtuous. Great Chu is blessed to have such a wise ruler."

Listen, listen, it’s time to let that official come and listen, this is called flattering the dragon.

The Emperor of Chu was often complimented, and today he was inexplicably praised by Duan Jing'an, but it sounded more pleasant than what those people said in the past.

Duan Jing'an was kneeling on the ground at this time, feeling very uneasy. Whether he would be successful or not depended entirely on the decision of the Emperor of Chu.

The Emperor of Chu remained silent. The Left Prime Minister and Ding Haimo were both a little anxious. The Duan family only had this one child, so they hoped nothing would happen to him.

This kid looks gentle on weekdays, but he uses a powerful move at critical moments.

At this time, the Minister of Revenue Jin Shourong stepped forward and spoke in support of Duan Jing'an.

"Your Majesty, I think what Duan Dushi said is reasonable. This will not only reduce the expenditure of the national treasury, but also effectively utilize the old millet. Not only will we be able to fill our stomachs, but we will also have some surplus."

Jin Shourong, while making his impassioned report, cursed inwardly. "They really don't know how expensive rice, oil, and salt are, even minced meat porridge. I've never seen them so kind before. Ugh! They have bad intentions!"

This whole thing seems quite pleasing to the eye. People say that children from "poor" families grow up early, and it really makes sense. They are much smarter than those idiots who say "Why don't you eat meat porridge?"

Jin Shourong's eyes flashed as he quickly spoke again, "Duan Du is indeed a talent for governing a country. He can come up with such a good plan. I congratulate Your Majesty and congratulate Your Majesty on having such a talented person!"

Jin Shourong learned and applied what he learned immediately and output it immediately.

Emperor of Chu: Normally, asking this stingy guy for money is like asking for his life, but today he is so generous.

Ever since the Nanyang flood took a lot of silver from the national treasury, this miser has been wearing a gloomy face every day when he attends court. He gets angry with anyone who asks for money, and today is the first time he has voluntarily vomited anything.

"Good good!"

The Emperor of Chu spoke at this time, and the three "OK"s immediately made Duan Jing'an breathe a sigh of relief, and also made everyone breathe a sigh of relief. It was over.

The Chu Emperor laughed.

"Duan Dushi, please get up quickly. Why are you still kneeling? You have performed a great service today. In that case, the porridge distribution will be handed over to you. You will formulate the detailed strategy and mobilize the troops from the Military Affairs Department."

The Emperor of Chu made the decision with just one word, and before Duan Jing'an could recover from his shock, he heard the Emperor of Chu give another order.

"As for the resettlement and relocation of the disaster victims, that will be handed over to Minister Yao of the Ministry of Revenue. This matter has been finalized. Please draft a memorial and submit the specific details."

After the King of Chu finished speaking, he looked at Duan Jing'an and said meaningfully:

"If you do this well, I will reward you handsomely. With that, let's adjourn the court."

The Emperor of Chu tossed his sleeves and left, leaving the court officials looking at each other in bewilderment. Duan Jing'an wiped the sweat from his forehead. He naturally noticed the look the Emperor of Chu gave him at the end. His Majesty, what is this...

At this time, Master Fu, who had just been humiliated, waited until the Emperor of Chu disappeared and immediately spoke:

"Duan Dushi has become quite the sensation today, but it's easy to get noticed, but it's hard to get things done."

Duan Jing'an looked over and saw that the man was a doctor from the Ministry of Rites. He was thin and had a goatee.

Duan Jing'an flicked off the inconspicuous dust that had just touched his sleeve, and said with a slow smile:

"Don't worry about that, Master Fu. I believe the Nanyang disaster is a matter of great importance to the government. The masters will do their utmost and will not slack off."

"Duan Dushi is quite eloquent, but he doesn't know..."

"Fu Langzhong"

At this moment, a voice suddenly sounded, and it was the left prime minister who spoke.

Doctor Fu paused for a moment, somewhat confused as to why the Left Prime Minister suddenly interrupted him. It was just a small matter.

No, that's not right.

The Left Prime Minister's surname is Huang, and the Huang family and the Duan family are married, which means that the Left Prime Minister is behind this kid Duan Jingan.

Damn, why didn't he think of that!

"Doctor Fu, why don't you continue? What do you mean by 'I don't know'? What advice do you have for Duan Si?"

The Left Prime Minister narrowed his eyes, and his face, which was always smiling, became serious.

Doctor Fu was so frightened that he dared not say a word. He stammered for a long time before saying, "I dare not."

The Left Prime Minister glanced at Doctor Fu twice before looking away. He glanced around and said leisurely, "That's good. Duan Si is young and his words are not careful. If I accidentally say something wrong someday, I hope everyone will take care of me."

The meaning of this statement is that he is treated as a junior, and it is also telling everyone clearly that Duan Dushi has the support of Zuo Xiang behind him, so he should make it easier for others to do things for him.

Everyone remained expressionless, smiling and replying, "No, no, the court needs these young people to come and explore the world. We old guys are old, and we don't have the thoughtfulness of these young people."

"That's right, Duan Dushi is really smart. He actually thought of making porridge with millet. I remember when I was exiled to Xiyang, those poor people in the area all relied on millet for food. Tell me why I didn't think of this."

"Oh, I'm not. Just now, after Duan Dushi said that, I suddenly realized that when I was a child, my family was poor and sometimes we only ate quinoa rice. It wasn't as good as it is now. We couldn't bear to throw away the quinoa shells and cooked them together to eat. It would soothe our throats."

Just like that, everyone started talking one after another.

"So, people should never forget their roots. I am very pleased to see such a talented person in the Great Chu."

Duan Jing'an was familiar with this person. The person who was speaking was none other than his teacher, the Minister of Justice Guo Youqi.