Meng Lanqing continued, "In Jing Tian County, the water has reached waist height. Of the 7,000 jin of rice and 10,000 jin of grains stored in the rice shops, nearly half are soaked in the water. Once the water recedes, the parts near the ground are estimated to have rotted and will need to be rebuilt... A preliminary estimate is that the loss will be at least two thousand taels."
An Jing wasn’t particularly concerned about how much property she had lost, as wealth could be earned and bought again. She was only concerned about the people, "How is everyone in the shop? Are they alright?"
Meng Lanqing replied, "Jing Tian County is quite far from Shi River, so everyone had already run to the rooftops for refuge when the water came. There were no casualties in the rice shop."
"That’s good." An Jing nodded and let out a deep sigh before adding, "With such a severe disaster, the Imperial Court should send officials to provide relief, right?"
Meng Lanqing replied, "This matter has already been reported with utmost urgency over eight hundred li. It’s estimated that it will take two more days before the Emperor finds out."
An Jing: "..." Ancient communication and transportation methods are really too slow!
"So, if we wait for the Emperor to allocate funds and grains for relief, when should we expect them to arrive?" An Jing asked.
"If the Emperor allocates the grains and funds immediately upon seeing the urgent report, it will still take time to open the national treasury and dispatch the grains. At the earliest, it should take about a month and a half," Meng Lanqing answered truthfully.
"Can the people of Jing Tian County wait a month and a half? By that time, they will most likely have all starved to death!" An Jing couldn’t believe it.
Meng Lanqing continued, "If the Emperor orders the nearby government granaries to distribute grain immediately upon seeing the urgent report, then it will only take about seven days."
Currently, the Emperor was still unaware of the situation, and it would take two days before he could find out. If someone was then dispatched with utmost urgency over eight hundred li to Jing Tian County, it would indeed take about three to four days, totaling around seven days.
"Seven days... With water everywhere in Jing Tian County, and the people both cold and starving, can they survive seven days?" An Jing didn’t know what to say, lives were at stake, so many lives!
Meng Lanqing added, "Without the Emperor’s command, nobody dares to open the nearby government granaries to distribute grain."
At this point, Xiao Changyi took out his token and tossed it to Meng Lanqing, saying, "Order the nearby counties to open their granaries and distribute grain for relief immediately. If the old man blames anyone, I will take full responsibility."
The next day, Meng Lanqing came again to report that the grain in the government granaries of the counties near Jing Tian County was far from enough for relief efforts, at best it would only last five or six days.
An Jing frowned, "Why is there so little grain?"
Meng Lanqing explained, "Last month, a large portion of the grain in the government granaries was turned over to the national treasury, awaiting this year’s autumn taxes to replenish it."
An Jing sighed, "Then we can only wait for my adoptive father to allocate grain from the national treasury." She paused for a moment before asking, "How much rice and grain do we have in our rice shop?"
Meng Lanqing replied, "Including those in Jing Tian County that were soaked, the two rice shops have a total of 70,000 jin of grains and 30,000 jin of rice."
Without saying anything immediately, An Jing looked at Xiao Changyi, "My husband..."
Xiao Changyi said, "Do as you see fit."
Only then did An Jing speak to Meng Lanqing, "The rice and grain from Jing Tian County that were soaked should not have gone moldy yet. As for those that weren’t soaked, they must be damp by now. Before they spoil, hurry and have someone cook them into porridge to distribute to the people, allowing them one more day to survive."
"Also," An Jing continued, "as for that rice shop we have in Hecheng County, leave a thousand jin of rice and a thousand jin of grains. Take the rest for disaster relief. Hopefully, it will help the people of Jing Tian County last until the relief grain from the national treasury arrives."