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nWas Glory City rich?

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nThe answer was no, but it could not be completely denied.

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nThere was a time when Glory City was glorious, but now it had declined.

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nSo much so that for ordinary people, wanting to eat a full meal became extravagant hope, and wearing cotton-padded jackets became a fantasy.

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nTherefore, while the people were shocked, they also had some doubts.

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nCould it be that a wise City Lord had come to Glory City this time?

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nWas he thinking of them wholeheartedly?

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nTo be honest, they did not dare to believe it.

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nThat was because before this, the imperial court had sent officials and soldiers to escort a large number of supplies to aid Glory City every year.

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nHowever, because the journey was too far, the beasts were rampant along the way, and there was the risk of being plundered by the mountain bandits. As a result, less than ten percent of them would fall into the hands of the commoners of Glory City.

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nSince the imperial court could not provide them with relief, they could only rely on themselves.

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nHowever, the strange beasts were all around Glory City. Other than the experienced hunters who dared to go out to hunt some small wild beasts, it would be very difficult for ordinary people to return if they went out alone.

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nTherefore, the lives of most people depended on the merchants who frequently came and went to sell goods.

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nWorking under them would earn them a meager salary.

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nThen they bought living resources from these merchants.

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nOriginally, He Chuan sending all the merchants away had already cut off the livelihood of the people.

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nAlthough they didn’t say anything and didn’t come to the City Lord’s Mansion to cause trouble, they were only afraid that He Chuan would use this as an excuse to make a fuss.

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nWhat if the city defense army arrested them?

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nThen they would all be executed for plotting a rebellion.

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nWith one wave of operations, they would be able to reduce the loss of a large amount of food!

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nMoreover, they could make an example of them and quickly build up their prestige.

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nThe civilians were not stupid. They had already fought with several City Lords many times before. This level of scheming was not something trivial in their eyes.

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nHowever, the development of things had exceeded their expectations.

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nWhat did He Chuan mean by this decree?

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nWas it for real?

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nDoes he know how many common people there are in the city?

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nGiving it away like this?

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nNot preserving the city guards anymore?

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nNo one was sure what He Chuan was thinking.

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nAfter a discussion, they all decided to hide in the dark and wait and see what would happen.

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nLast night’s small favor did not win the trust of the common people.

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nEveryone was afraid that after taking the supplies, the new City Lord would come up with some tricks to mess with them.

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nThis was a normal move, but in this special city, it was very sudden.

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nNo one dared to be the first to receive the supplies.

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nThis thought caused He Chuan to not see anyone outside the City Lord’s Mansion for several hours after he gave the order.

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nEveryone was still living at home, struggling for their lives.

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nHe Chuan did not know the reason, but he was not in a hurry.

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nIn any case, the food was there.

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nEvery day, he would cook a big pot of fragrant porridge and bring a rich side dish. If no one came, he would let the city guards eat, and it would not be a waste.

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nSoon, a few days passed.

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nMany people in the city had eaten most of the food stored in their homes.

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nDuring the night when they could not eat their fill, the cold wind was even more piercing.

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nThus, on the morning of the sixth day, a little girl wearing a single garment finally stumbled from the end of the alley and knelt in front of the City Lord’s Mansion to kowtow.

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n“City Lord, I beg you to save my mother…”

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nHe Chuan was not at the door. It was the guards who received her.

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nThe little girl’s face was purple, her lips were white, and she looked like she had been frozen.

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nThe guards quickly followed the order that He Chuan had passed down earlier and brought her to a shed that had been specially built for distributing resources. They brought her charcoal and food.

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n“Eat something first, Brother Guard has already gone to call the City Lord for you.”

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nThe little fellow nodded heavily. Seeing the porridge in front of her as if seeing the timely rain in the middle of the drought, she immediately wolfed it down.

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nNot long after, her body temperature gradually warmed under the orange-red glow of the charcoal, and her complexion became much better.

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nAt this moment, He Chuan, who had received the news, also rushed over.

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nThe guard timely introduced, “Little girl, this is the City Lord.”

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nWhen the little girl saw He Chuan, she hurriedly put down the bowl and chopsticks in her hands, knelt on the ground, and shouted.

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n“City Lord, I beg you to save my mother…”

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nHe Chuan squatted down and personally helped her up. He patted the dust on his trouser legs and asked kindly, “What happened to your mother?”

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n“Mother… She ate a few wild mushrooms and then fell to the ground, motionless… sob… sob…”

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nThe little girl wiped her tears as she spoke. When she said ‘motionless’, she finally could not hold it in anymore and burst into tears.

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nHe Chuan frowned slightly and glared, “Send a few people to her house and bring the child’s mother over.”

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n“Yes, Your Highness!”

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nThe guards were even more respectful of He Chuan’s identity as a prince.

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nNot long after, they brought her over.

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nHe Chuan knew medical skills. After a careful examination, he found that there was not much of a problem. It was just that she had accidentally eaten a poisonous mushroom. However, the poison was not very strong and it did not harm her life.

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nAfter getting someone to feed half a bowl of porridge, the little girl’s mother immediately woke up.

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n“I… Where am I…” She said in a daze.

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nThe little girl threw herself into her arms and sobbed.

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n“Mother… Cai’Er thought… thought that she would never see her mother again…”

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nThe woman comforted her child and looked away at the same time.

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nSuddenly, she saw He Chuan.

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nThe woman was shocked and hurriedly knelt on the ground with her daughter in her arms, “Greetings, City Lord!”

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n“There’s no need to be so polite.”

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nHe Chuan had a faint smile on his face the entire time. It was like a spring breeze, “Don’t eat anything recklessly next time.”

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n“Sigh…” The woman sighed softly, “If I wasn’t so hungry that I fainted, who would be willing to take such a risk?”

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nHe Chuan was a little curious, “Didn’t I issue a decree? All citizens of Glory City can come to the City lord’s Mansion to receive all living supplies. Could it be that the news didn’t reach you?”

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nThe woman hesitated for a moment but didn’t say anything.

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nThe City Lord had just saved her, so it wasn’t easy for her to voice out her doubts.

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nHe Chuan didn’t force her and directly ordered his subordinates to move the supplies.

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nAmong them were four bags of wood, two bags of rice, a bag of flour, a quilt, and four sets of thick clothes.

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nApart from that, there were many other miscellaneous items that were necessary to survive this winter.

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n“If you don’t have enough, you can come to me to get more.”

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nHe Chuan sent someone to send the mother and daughter back. They had to make sure that they were safe and sound, he instructed, “Remember to hide the food, don’t tell anyone. If anyone asks, just tell them that you only have firewood and a quilt. Be careful of others, nowadays, people who are extremely hungry are no different from wild beasts.”

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nThe woman was stunned.

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nBefore they left, she hesitated for a long time and finally only said one sentence.

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n“Your Highness, you are a good person.”

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nHe Chuan smiled.

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