Reborn as the Crippled King's Beloved
Chapter 438: Their Ultimate Goal is - 438

Chapter 438: Their Ultimate Goal is Chapter 438

The Emperor and the civil and military officials all thought that by giving Consort Jing a death sentence, they could appease the anger of the citizens of Great Yan.

Who would have known, after announcing it to the world, there were still plenty of voices criticizing the Imperial Family.

Killing the chicken to warn the monkey only fueled the citizens’ anger even more, and in the south, some refugees even started to rebel, and many bandits rose up in an insurgency.

For a while, the Imperial Court was in constant turmoil.

No one had expected that the situation would escalate to what it was today.

This was a challenge to the imperial power, as well as discontent with the Emperor and the current state of affairs.

There were too many people in the world who couldn’t get enough food or clothing.

Although Murong Jiu’s merchant convoy had spread throughout every part of Great Yan, building roads wherever they went to bring convenience to the local citizens,

various crops were also being promoted everywhere, but, time was still too short. Without three to five years, it was impossible to keep too many seeds, and to plant them extensively across the country, there was still a long way to go.

Take, for example, the White Fleeceflower Root planted in the suburbs this year, also known as cotton. Initially, not many people planted it. It was Manager Chai and Lou Zixi who bought a lot of land on behalf of Murong Jiu, planting a large part themselves, and others tried planting with a tentative attitude. Some tenant farmers preferred to choose crops like potatoes that had higher yields.

But this year, the farmers who planted White Fleeceflower Root had a substantial harvest. Since it was the first year of cultivation, Murong Jiu had sent people to provide guidance, so the White Fleeceflower Roots grew very well and produced large, white cotton.

Following that, Murong Jiu asked Manager Chai to purchase the cotton at a not low price, process it into cotton fabric, clothing, quilts, and so on, and then sell them to the officials and nobles in the Capital City.

Early in the cultivation of White Fleeceflower Root, Murong Jiu had Manager Chai purchase clothing shops, textile workshops, and others, covering various industries.

And the farmers, having earned silver by growing cotton, which brought in more money than the usual crops, would naturally attract more common citizens and tenant farmers to plant it in the coming year.

Similarly, crops like potatoes and sweet potatoes also brought sweet rewards to the cultivators.

Especially the potato; its yield was astonishing and had even caused quite a stir in the Capital City at the time.

However, planting was still too limited compared to the population of the Capital City, so the yields were not enough. Thus, these exotic foreign crops usually only appeared on the dining tables of the wealthy, and their prices were high.

Only when more people plant them and the total yield completely increases will the prices drop, and they will reach the dining tables of ordinary people.

But as mentioned above, it still required a long time, and three to five years were actually a short period. The focus had to start with the Capital City, promoting aggressively outward.

Fortunately, Murong Jiu’s merchant convoy was growing larger and could carry these crop seeds to farther places in Great Yan; otherwise, it would take even longer.

Returning to the topic of the livelihood of the citizens,

the Emperor was a person who tightly held onto power and was conservative. Besides, he was selfish, not open to criticism. He had been on the throne for many years, and the ministers who dared to speak the truth in the Imperial Court were diminishing.

As the saying goes, civil officials die a martyr’s death, which is a matter of bringing honor to ancestors. True officials who speak up are not afraid to die, but their families are, and the Emperor had many under his command, many who resolved his difficulties, many who resorted to underhanded tactics.

For the sake of their families, these officials dared not speak up.

With shifts in official positions, who remained in the Imperial Court to dare reprimand the Emperor? Most of them were sly and corrupt.

Naturally, most of these officials thought only of how to be corrupt and to flatter, how could they care about the ordinary citizens?

Those at the bottom doing practical work were also discouraged by those at the top.

Before Murong Jiu was reborn, eight out of ten citizens in Great Yan didn’t have enough food.

If it weren’t for her stocking up on food early, countless people would have starved last year. Those corrupt merchants, when disasters struck, raised the prices even higher, preferring to see the food rot and sprout in their hands rather than sell it cheap.

In just over a year, Murong Jiu brought numerous changes, but for an extensive nation like Great Yan, it was still just a drop in the ocean; what she needed was time.

Especially in the south, last year’s flood disaster was severe, causing widespread homelessness. Murong Jiu donated food for disaster relief, saving those who would have starved to death, but it was still difficult to fill their stomachs.

For their livelihood, they dragged their families and either sold themselves into slavery or became long-term laborers for landlords.

As house servants, where was their dignity and human rights?

They were oppressed and exploited, their daughters seized by landlords and bullies, yet they still harbored hope, believing there would be a Lord of Heaven to defend them, although the Lord of Heaven they saw was actually only muddling through.

But that’s what the plays say, justice will overcome evil.

Although they also knew that hope was slim, what if? They had no support and could only place their hopes on the Official Master.

However, once the affair between the Emperor and Consort Jing came to light, it completely shattered people’s hopes.

Even the Emperor, to be with Consort Jing, colluded with her to poison the Mei Yuzong family; such a wicked woman, Consort Jing, became the foremost person in the imperial harem, giving birth to The Third Prince who would become the Crown Prince, enjoying all the riches and honor.

That was the Emperor, the ruler of a nation!

He was the sovereign of all citizens of Great Yan!

Thus, the citizens of Great Yan began to despair, no longer seeing any hope, only a sky perennially obscured by dark clouds.

Then, they began to give up on themselves.

Following that, some started to incite the people.

After all, there is never a shortage of people wanting to revolt and take charge.

After the Emperor declared to the world, ordering the execution of Consort Jing, under the incitement, the people would not be satisfied with this outcome.

They certainly hadn’t considered replacing the Emperor, as most feared such grave treason; they merely hoped that this incident would prompt change in the Imperial Court.

At least to no longer be bullied by tyrants, to see such tyrants punished, for their young daughters to have a brighter future.

But how could the Emperor possibly know the hearts of his people?

Those high-ranking officials, even if aware, considered the citizens to be indulging in naive fantasies.

Thus, the situation escalated, and before long, a rebellion truly erupted in the Southern Ridge Mountains, amassing tens of thousands of people.

The Emperor, unable to contain his rage, ordered a military dispatch to eradicate these troublemakers.

Unknown to him, the dense forests and malarial airs of the Southern Ridge Mountains, meant for encirclement, brought significant losses to the Imperial Court, further boosting the rebels’ morale.

Consequently, conflicts between officials and citizens broke out in other areas as well.

Rumors even spread that the current Emperor was bringing calamity upon Great Yan and that continuous disasters were a sign that the Great Yan Imperial Family’s dragon lineage had been severed, shaking the people’s trust.

The Emperor was once again overtaken by rage-induced illness.

Consort Yun, while attending to his illness, secretly wished he would die from it.

At Prince Ling’s Mansion, Murong Jiu was personally packing Jun Yuyan’s belongings for his journey.

Although the Emperor had not assigned Jun Yuyan to quell the disturbances, only he could manage it, and he was planning to formally request to head south after a few more days of ferment.

Actually, this was all within their expectations.

Under the incompetent rule of the Emperor, Great Yan was riddled with festering problems: the citizens were suffering, officials protected each other, and even if Jun Yuyan were to ascend the throne later, governing would still be a tremendous challenge.

Only by exposing these conflicts could future troubles be truly eradicated.

Governing the country was their ultimate goal in dealing with Consort Jing’s incident.