After being demoted, my 300,000-strong army trampled the imperial city!

“Brother, Widow Yan came to see you last night,” Chen Yuling said seriously.

"Yan Qing?"

Chen Futu slapped his forehead. No wonder he always felt like he had forgotten something.

So he stood her up. He had promised to taste her "tea" that evening, but the attack ruined the time.

However, after drinking Li Xiuning's "tea" last night and being thoroughly exhausted by her, Chen Futu is no longer very interested in women's bodies.

"By the way, brother, there have been some unpleasant rumors about you these past few days. Mother said it might be those people from the capital spreading the news behind the scenes," Chen Yuling said indignantly.

Chen Futu became interested. "What rumor?"

"They say you're a blood-stained executioner, completely ignorant, and if it weren't for your good looks, you'd be nothing but a spoiled brat. There are even rumors that a group of great scholars will come to punish you."

"To condemn me?" Chen Futu was taken aback for a moment, then asked, "Do you think I'm a spoiled brat?"

"Who has a spoiled brat who leads troops into battle every day? Those people are just deliberately smearing you. If you ask me, we should just arrest them and behead them all!"

"This is not a time of war. The people who came from the capital represent the royal family. If we kill them without cause, it will surely lead to another war. The most urgent task for Longcheng now is to appease the people and gather the disaster victims."

"But what if those great scholars come? Can you handle them? I've heard they're very good with words and love to find all sorts of ways to insult people."

"They dare to insult me? We'll see when they arrive."

Chen Futu glanced at her, and Chen Yuling immediately followed, wanting to see the disaster victims as well.

She has a carefree personality and loves to join in the fun.

Chen Futu had no choice but to let her come along, since she was his only precious little sister.

The group arrived at the resettlement area for the people. At this time, many people had not yet been resettled. This group arrived late, and some of the people even had land that had not been flooded.

This was because Chen Futu's propaganda of Liu Wendong and his son's infamy had an effect. Of course, some of them were intercepted in Chuzhou by Sun Chengzong of Kaiping. The King of Kaiping issued a strict order that any people who secretly moved to the northern frontier would be killed without mercy once discovered.

Chen Futu asked Yu Qian beside him, "Sun Chengzong hasn't dealt with Liu Wendong, has he?"

"No, the main reason is that you killed Liu Wendong's son and injured him. Sun Chengzong should at least give him some face."

"That's good."

Chen Futu's purpose in killing Liu Wei in Chuzhou was twofold: first, to avenge the people; and second, to give Liu Wendong a way out so that he wouldn't be dismissed. If such a corrupt official were punished and Chuzhou were governed by a virtuous minister, it would be extremely detrimental to the northern frontier.

As they were talking, Chen Futu saw a familiar figure busy at work; it was Yan Qing.

She actually used her own money to provide relief to the people, and even opened a porridge shop to personally distribute porridge.

Chen Futu stepped forward with a smile and took a bowl.

Yan Qing scooped up a spoonful of rice porridge and realized it was Chen Futu. Her face lit up with joy, but the smile vanished in an instant as she continued her work.

Knowing that she was a little upset about being stood up, Chen Futu tasted the porridge first.

"A person of noble birth should not sit under a dangerous roof. I heard that you were attacked yesterday, and now you've come to the outskirts of the city. Aren't you afraid that something else might happen?"

Yan Qing couldn't help but speak up, which indirectly revealed his identity.

Chen Futu grinned and said, "There aren't that many assassins. Besides, your porridge is pretty good."

"The young master has no worries about food and drink, so it's inappropriate for him to come and compete with the refugees for food, isn't it?"

Yan Qing's words were full of emotion, but Chen Futu didn't care. After finishing one bowl, he asked her to have another.

A smile finally appeared on Yan Qing's lips.

Which other noble young master would personally inspect the living conditions of ordinary people? And which one would eat the food of refugees?

The news of Chen Futu's appearance was spread by someone, and the people watched him from afar as he sat there eating steamed buns and rice porridge, and immediately began to discuss it.

"As expected of the Crown Prince, he truly understands the plight of the people."

"Yes, if it were any other young master from a prominent family, they probably wouldn't even glance at our food."

Whether it was genuine or just a show, Chen Futu certainly won over the hearts of the people in this one performance.

Yu Qian watched with a nod of approval. The Crown Prince had a knack for manipulating people's hearts. The biggest problem in the Northern Frontier was the people's hearts. The Crown Prince personally went to Chuzhou to receive the refugees and killed the wicked young master, leaving behind a good reputation. As long as he continued to maintain this style, the Northern Frontier would become stronger and stronger.

Next, Yu Qian began his work, while Chen Futu merely went through the motions.

As the surrounding people gathered, Yan Qing no longer cared about personally distributing porridge. She told Chen Futu to go elsewhere, fearing that some unruly individuals might be mixed in with the crowd.

Chen Futu was invited into the carriage by her, while Chen Yuling was so angry that she stomped her feet. There is always trouble around a widow's door, and she did not want her brother to be labeled with any bad reputation again.

"Brother! Are you leaving already?" Chen Yuling shouted angrily from outside the car.

Chen Futu replied, "Old Yu is here, so there won't be any problems. You can go back by yourself. I'll talk to Madam Yan."

Having said that, the coachman drove the horse away in another direction.

Chen Yuling couldn't help but complain to Yu Qian, "Lord Yu, is there any way to get that widow Yan away from my brother?"

Yu Qian smiled and said, "Don't worry, Your Highness has your own reasons for doing this. The Yan family has considerable capital. If Yan Qing can invest money, Your Highness will naturally be happy to see it happen."

"So he was after the money all along. He's really losing all sense of decency..."

Chen Yuling had no choice but to watch helplessly as the carriage left.

In fact, Yu Qian was right. Chen Futu was indeed after Yan Qing's family fortune. Of course, he couldn't just say "a rich woman is looking for a sugar daddy," so he needed a suitable pretext for cooperation.

"Your Highness is currently enjoying great influence, so you should still be careful about your safety," Yan Qing earnestly advised.

"Where are we going?"

"Is Your Highness perhaps worried that I might be a threat to you?"

"If you really want to harm me, you'll have plenty of opportunities."

These words made Yan Qing purse her lips in amusement.

She found the prince quite interesting and unpretentious, unlike those arrogant sons of noble families who always had a retinue around them or looked down on others.

Next, Yan Qing took Chen Futu to several porridge shops, all of which she had arranged to open. In her words, the young master intended to cooperate with her, and she was helping out as a way of repaying him.

Chen Futu liked businesswomen like her who got things done. In fact, Yu Qian had secretly recorded all the businessmen who had contributed during this period.

In future strategies, we should distinguish between merchants who care about the people and those who only know how to make a fortune. If there are any conveniences, we should give priority to supplying them.

This is the difference in treatment between the rich who are heartless and those who, when successful, help others.

The two got off the bus at a less crowded congee shop.

Chen Futu discovered that there were not only porridge stalls here, but also some temporary tents, and the air was filled with the smell of medicine.