Chapter 530 - 530 527 Evacuating the Civilians_1

Chapter 530: Chapter 527: Evacuating the Civilians_1 Chapter 530: Chapter 527: Evacuating the Civilians_1 Bai Qingyan had not yet had a proper conversation with her uncle. She did not know if her uncle was in the study, and she couldn’t just rudely go to find him. Just as she was about to send a maid to inquire if her uncle was available, she saw Mrs. Cui waiting at the courtyard gate, smiling and greeting her.

Bai Qingyan, holding Chun Tao’s hand, stepped out of the courtyard. She looked at the refreshed Mrs. Cui and smiled as she called her, “Sister Rong…”

“It was Changlan who asked me to wait here for you, Cousin. Father and Changlan are waiting for you in the study. They were afraid you might get lost, so they sent me to bring you over,” Mrs. Cui said as she took hold of Bai Qingyan’s arm.

Chun Tao quickly folded her hands in front of her lower abdomen, took two steps back, and followed behind Bai Qingyan.

Nanny Wang’s niece, Qiu Huan, saw Chun Tao stepping back and quickly took the opportunity to step forward and support Bai Qingyan’s arm.

Bai Qingyan, noticing the new presence beside her out of the corner of her eye, turned to look and said, “I am not so old that I need support.”

Qiu Huan’s face turned red. She softly acknowledged and stepped back, but did not return to her original position. Instead, she walked beside Chun Tao, as if this would elevate her status to that of Bai Qingyan’s personal maid.

Mrs. Cui chatted with Bai Qingyan as they walked leisurely along the winding corridor veiled with bamboo curtains, making the journey seem much shorter.

It seemed Dong Changlan had given instructions since neither Mrs. Cui nor Bai Qingyan were stopped by the guards at the study courtyard entrance. Mrs. Cui instructed her personal nanny to wait outside without entering the courtyard.

Bai Qingyan also told Chun Tao to wait outside.

Hearing noises from outside the courtyard, Dong Changlan came out of the study, smiling and bowing deeply, “Cousin…”

Bai Qingyan returned the greeting.

“Since you have serious matters to discuss with Father and Changlan, I’ll go make some of my special snacks that I promised you back in Shuoyang. I couldn’t make them then due to a shortage of ingredients, but now you can finally try them,” Mrs. Cui said with a smile, using this as an excuse to not stand around and interfere with their discussion.

Although women usually did not partake in men’s official matters, Mrs. Cui had observed in Shuoyang that her cousin was not an ordinary woman content with staying behind the scenes.

After making her excuses, Mrs. Cui left with a smile. She instructed the servants to guard the courtyard and went to the kitchen to prepare the snacks.

Dong Changlan personally lifted the bamboo curtain to lead Bai Qingyan into the study. “The message you had me bring to Father, I have delivered… But the soldiers are worried that hastily evacuating the people might cause panic in Dengzhou City.”

As Bai Qingyan entered, Dong Qingyue was sitting at the desk, holding a memorial that had been reviewed and returned by the Crown Prince. His expression was slightly weary. Sunlight streamed in through the window, making the dust visible in the air and faintly highlighting the silver strands in his hair.

Seeing Bai Qingyan enter, Dong Qingyue looked up and smiled. He did not interrupt his advisor’s words and gestured for Bai Qingyan to sit.

The counselor paused and, seeing that Dong Qingyue did not intend to interrupt, continued. “The silver taels sent by the Duke are just a drop in the bucket. They can only first support the soldiers who were injured defending Shuoyang and can’t work. But now, with the Emperor’s palace construction, the Dengzhou Army’s grain supplies are already short, causing dissatisfaction within the army.”

Dong Qingyue frowned and nodded. “I understand. You may go now.”

The counselor bowed to Dong Qingyue, then to Dong Changlan and Bai Qingyan, guessing part of Bai Qingyan’s identity.

Although he had never seen the women of the Dong family, it was clear that only Madam Dong and Dong Qingyue’s wife could enter the study beside his niece, Princess of Zhen, Bai Qingyan.

Dong Changlan personally poured tea for Bai Qingyan and sat beside her. Bai Qingyan straightforwardly asked, “Uncle, about what I asked Changlan to convey last time. What is it that makes you hesitant? Are you still holding out hope for the Imperial Court?”

Dong Qingyue sighed softly and nodded, handing the memorial to Bai Qingyan. “Look at this. It’s the Crown Prince’s recent response.”

Since Dong Changlan left for Dengzhou, Dong Qingyue had submitted dozens of memorials with no reply. Who could have known that this noon he would receive a response from the Crown Prince.

Bai Qingyan opened it and read. The Crown Prince’s response was simple, accusing Dong Qingyue of making a fuss. He stated that since the Rong were in civil war, with Nanrong and Beirong at each other’s throats, Great Jin already showed clear support for Beirong. Nanrong, eager to ally with Jin Kingdom, would not dare provoke Jin for fear of joint retaliation from Yan and Jin against such a small state. However, the response said nothing about the grain provisions.

This outcome did not surprise Bai Qingyan. It was typical of the Crown Prince.

She set the response aside and looked at Dong Qingyue. “The Imperial Court is filled with sycophants trying to guess the Emperor and the Crown Prince’s thoughts. Otherwise, they wouldn’t divert army provisions to build the emperor’s palace or let your memorials fall into oblivion!”

“As long as officials see the Emperor’s displeasure with your memorial, they will make excuses on his behalf. Whether citing internal strife among Nanrong and Beirong or fear of retaliation from Jin and Yan, these are all just excuses they create to placate the Emperor. They might not even present your memorials to him.”

As Bai Qingyan said, Dong Qingyue’s first memorial was ignored by the Emperor, glanced at briefly by Gao Demao, with no instructions given. Subsequent memorials didn’t reach the Emperor’s desk.

Eventually, when the Emperor let the Crown Prince handle memorials, Prime Minister Lu discreetly slipped one to the Crown Prince, hoping he could persuade the Emperor.

But in the end, the Crown Prince consulted with officials and gave such a response to Dong Qingyue.

Dong Changlan frowned in agreement. “Father has sent scouts to monitor Nanrong. If there is any movement, we will be informed immediately.”

“Uncle should prepare early, if not for other reasons, for the people of Dengzhou City. After the autumn harvest, the people should be evacuated to prevent innocent casualties if the Rong invade.”