Chapter 496 - Chapter 496: Chapter 492: Roasted Sweet Potatoes_1 (1/2)

Chapter 496: Chapter 492: Roasted Sweet Potatoes_1

In the second year of March, the Emperor abdicated the throne to the Crown Prince, and then went to Dongchen Village with two of his imperial consorts, moving into the yard constructed for him by Yingbao.

The hundreds of guards who accompanied him barely squeezed into the yard temporarily, but it became unbearable over time.

Among those guards, many were the scions of distinguished families. They had never endured such hardship before, and they all flocked to the attending ministers to complain.

“This isn’t a military expedition. We are always crowded in these tents, and even using the latrine requires queuing. Minister Lv, why not request the village chief of this village find us brothers an alternative place to stay, as long as it doesn’t affect our duties?”

Minister Lv, who was the Empress Lv’s biological brother and one of the ministers who moved into Dongchen Village with the retired Emperor. He thought for a moment and felt the guards’ request was reasonable.

The homes in this village were quite spacious, and by requisitioning two or three courtyards they could accommodate all the guards.

He rushed to report to the Emperor, only to receive Zhou Wuchang’s response: “If that’s the case, let them return to Beijing. I am safe here, even safer than in the Imperial Palace. There’s no need for so many people to disrupt the peace here.”

Resignedly, Minister Lv instructed the guards to whittle over five hundred bamboo sticks, painting one end of a hundred of them black with ink. Once dry, the sticks were mixed together and placed black end internally into a large pen holder.

Then, he gathered all the men and asked them to draw sticks. Those who drew a stick with a black end were to stay, while those who did not were to immediately return to Beijing.

The guards were left speechless when they heard this.

However, some willingly chose to return as, after all, there was no possible advancement for them in the countryside.

The clever guards quickly traded their white sticks for the black ones held by those willing to leave, and those who were slow were left without the opportunity to switch.

While many were still debating whether to stay or go, those holding black sticks were already registering with Minister Lv.

Next, the guards with white sticks packed their bags, preparing to return to Beijing the next day.

Many of them felt regret.

As martial artists, they could easily gauge the condition of their bodies and since moving in, they all felt a profound sense of wellbeing. Even after exercising with stone locks, just a brief rest would completely alleviate any muscular pain.

Now that the Emperor was asking them to leave, it was likely they wouldn’t be allowed to return.

The guards had lived in the village for a couple of months and could see people lingering outside every day. They had started since the first of the month, families taking turns to wait in line, hoping they could enter the village on the fifteenth and worship the Divine Tree within.

Some guards had seen villagers accepting bribes from outsiders, letting a few of them stroll through the village, picking a handful of fresh vegetables for them, and the outsiders would leave happily, without any complaints.

The scene echoed in the minds of the guards, filling them with apprehension.

“I don’t want to leave!” One guard shouted, running up to Minister Lv with a grimace. “Minister, I wish to stay here to serve the retired Emperor.”

Minister Lv responded helplessly: “The Emperor intends to retreat here. He doesn’t need so many people. You all go first, and we’ll talk about your duty rotation later.” If these guards were intended to stay here permanently, there would have to be a time limit. The long-term stay could be two or three years, and the short-term stay could be a year or half a year. Afterwards, who could or couldn’t come back was uncertain.

The guard knelt on one knee, “I don’t wish to return, I just want to stay here and guard the Emperor.”

Minister Lv stroked his beard, pondering for a moment, and said: “The draw has already been done, and I cannot show favoritism. If you really want to stay, you might try to find someone outside to swap with.”

This young man was the grandson of a Song family in Beijing, whose grandfather was the Secretary of the Ministry of Personnel. Minister Lv knew the family, so he treated the boy politely.

Song Yu saw Minister Lv was not willing to relent, so he had to try and swap with someone again.

In the end, he spent ten coins to swap his white stick for a black one from a poor guard.