Ministers Begging Me to Ascend the Throne

Chapter 838: Chapter 10: The Population Problem (Part 3)

Everyone thought Lao Li’s words made a lot of sense and nodded in agreement.

"You’ve all seen it. As soon as Prince Han arrived here, without a word, he beheaded all those corrupt officials who bullied us."

When this topic came up, everyone present felt very satisfied. When those corrupt officials were executed, the people of Swamp Prefecture all went to watch. After their heads were chopped off, the people applauded and cheered, saying they deserved it.

"Think about it, if he weren’t the emperor’s son, who would dare, or have the ability, to deal with those scoundrel officials?"

"That’s right, only Prince Han dared and had the ability to execute those corrupt officials."

"The people at the government said Prince Han is very capable; he’s made a lot of good things to benefit us common folks."

"What good things?"

"Seeing how tiring it was for us common folks to plow the fields, Prince Han created a tool for us called the curved plow," Lao Li said, seeing the puzzled expressions on everyone’s faces, taking delight again, "This curved plow is very handy for plowing, and it can also cultivate the fields very well, leading to bumper harvests. The court already ordered us to use it, but outside people had been using it a long time ago. We hadn’t used it here because those scoundrel officials hid it away. It was meant for us, but those corrupt officials sold it abroad."

The people present had heard of this before, and now hearing Lao Li explain it in such detail, they felt even more resentful toward the previous officials.

"Prince Han also made a new weaving machine, which is very easy to use and can produce a lot of cloth," Lao Li said, with a heavy sigh, "That new weaving machine was also embezzled by those executed officials."

"Lao Li, will Prince Han let us use that plow and new weaving machine?"

Lao Li suddenly slapped his thigh with a loud bang, startling everyone. Just as they were about to speak up, they heard him continue, "Of course, he will. The government office said that as long as we register, all those good things that were embezzled will be given to us to use."

"Is that true?"

"Of course, it’s true."

"That’s great."

"Prince Han is really a good person!"

"Prince Han is Lord Qingtian!"

The onlooking people beamed with joy.

Seeing everyone getting rowdy, Lao Li raised his voice to quiet them, "I’m not finished yet."

The crowd immediately quieted down, all ready to listen intently.

"All the good things Prince Han made before will be given to us, without missing anything. But in the future, if Prince Han makes anything beneficial for us ordinary people, we’ll get to use it before anyone else."

"That’s wonderful!"

"Prince Han is a living Bodhisattva!"

The onlookers cheered happily again.

"Prince Han came to this broken place in Lingnan to save us common people. In the future, we must obey Prince Han; whatever he asks us to do, we do it," Lao Li said earnestly. "If we drive away such a good prince like Prince Han, the court will surely send someone else to govern us, and then, just like those corrupt officials, we’ll be oppressed and mistreated again. So, you better go register quickly."

"Lao Li, has your family registered?"

"My son went to register. I’m getting ready to go. Are you guys going?"

"Go, go, of course, we will."

"Lao Li is right; we can’t drive away such a good prince as Prince Han."

"Hurry and register, or else there won’t be any salt left."

"Yes, yes, hurry and register, or we won’t be able to study in the future."

A throng of people rushed toward the government office, afraid that if they were late, they wouldn’t get the new salt. When they reached the office, they found a long queue at the entrance.

They saw that some people had indeed received the new salt, and everyone who tasted it said the new salt was delicious.

In the past few days, the people of Swamp Prefecture have obediently queued up to register, continuously praising Prince Han as a living Bodhisattva who came down to Lingnan to save them.

After receiving the new salt, they immediately took it home to cook and found that the dishes made with new salt were delicious. Many people were moved to tears after eating the food made with new salt. Only after tasting the new salt did they realize they had been eating salt that was like stones; the new salt was the real deal.

The people of Lingnan often fell ill, partly because of the miasma and many poisonous insects, and partly because the salt they consumed was poor, leading to insufficient daily intake, which weakened their bodies, making them susceptible to strange diseases.