Chapter 274 Escape 2
On the second day, after packing everything, Qin Xiaoning went to Mrs. Wei's place.

She wanted to find out about Shu Wang's situation. After all, the mansion she had worked hard to buy was there, and there were several loyal servants there.

Now that Qin Xiaoning is a person with some wealth, it is impossible for her to be free of worries.

Mrs. Wei is more worried than Qin Xiaoning. After all, her family in Shuwang is large and wealthy, with many properties.

"Don't worry, madam." Madam Wei said, "Before I came here, I had already instructed the housekeeper to find a way to inform me as soon as possible if there is any movement over there."

As she spoke, she could not help but sigh, "Rou'er will be getting married next year, and I have saved up the dowry for many years. There are several pieces of golden nanmu furniture alone. Oh my, if there is a flood, they will be worthless if they are soaked."

It is pitiful to see the love of a mother in the world. At this time, what Mrs. Wei is most concerned about is her daughter's marriage.

Qin Xiaoning comforted Mrs. Wei: "The government office has been guarding the embankment all the time. If it doesn't rain heavily in the next two days, I think there will be no major problems over there."

Madam Wei sighed, "Let's just hope that God will open his eyes. If there really is a flood, it will be a mess for a while."

After the two talked for a while, Qin Xiaoning said goodbye to Mrs. Wei and planned to go out for a look.

Jixian Pavilion has gone bankrupt. She had originally planned to sell her calligraphy to other small towns. Now, by chance, she has come to Pucheng. Qin Xiaoning plans to take this opportunity to go out and check out the market.

Qin Xiaoning took Songzhi out of the villa and did not take a carriage, but just strolled along the long street.

Pucheng is not as prosperous as Shuwang, but it also has several calligraphy and painting buildings. Qin Xiaoning went in one by one to take a look.

These calligraphy and painting buildings are not as big as Jixian Pavilion, and the things inside are just mediocre. According to their prices, if her calligraphy is sold here, it can only be sold for 60% to 70% of the price at Shuwang.

Collecting calligraphy, paintings and antiques is a money-burning business. Shu Wang lives in a wealthy city, so her calligraphy can be sold at a good price.

After visiting several calligraphy and painting shops in succession, Songzhi couldn't help but complain: "The prices are so different. Why don't we agree to the boss Li of Lantingxuan? We can make a lot more money by cooperating with him."

Qin Xiaoning also knew this, but she still insisted, "Boss Li is a bad person. Even if I cooperate with him, there will be unpleasantness in the future. Besides, he has caused Boss Cai to such a state. If I switch to him, how can I be fair to my old friend?"

Then he thought: "If we can't sell it for a good price here, let's go look somewhere else. There are many good cities in Qianzhou. As long as the calligraphy is good, I won't worry about it."

After hearing what Qin Xiaoning said, Song Zhi also regained his confidence: "I still have dividends from my snack shop, and our lives will only get better and better."

There is hope for the future. Now they just hope that this flood can be averted and Shu Wang can be safe so that they can go home as soon as possible.

But no one can stop natural disasters. On the third day after Qin Xiaoning arrived in Pucheng, news came from Shu Wang.

"It has been raining non-stop over there these past two days, and it's getting heavier. The dam can no longer hold back the rain, and the government is evacuating the people." The servant from the Wei family who came to report the news sighed, "When I came out, Shuwang City was already in chaos."

It's time to come.

Although they were prepared, everyone was still stunned when they heard the news, especially Mrs. Wei, who almost fainted on the spot.

"Did everyone in the family run away?" She looked worried. "My Rou'er's dowry is all in the mansion. What if some bad guys take advantage of the situation and rob it? What should we do?"

Seeing his wife panic, the old man of the Wei family said in a deep voice: "Money is something outside of one's body. As long as the family is safe, we can buy it later." Mrs. Wei sniffed: "It's not that easy."

She rolled her eyes at her husband and said, "I have carefully saved up these dowries for many years. If they are destroyed, it will be difficult to save them up again."

As she spoke, she was so anxious that her eyes almost turned red. Seeing this, the servant below hurried forward and replied, "Before I came out, I heard that Madam Wang said that the housekeeper would not leave."

don't go?

When a flood comes, everyone would rush to escape.

When Madam Wei heard this, she stopped crying and asked the servant: "What do you mean?"

The servant replied, "I only heard from Madam Wang that the housekeeper is going to bring a few guards to look after our old house."

As soon as the servant finished speaking, Master Wei beside him frowned and said, "This is nonsense. The flood is like a ferocious beast. At this time, why bother looking at the mansion?"

“Human lives matter.”

This place is closest to Su Wang. The next day, refugees evacuated by the government poured into Pucheng one after another.

When Qin Xiaoning left, Sister Wang and her husband and two maids were still in Shuwang. Qin Xiaoning was worried about their safety. When she heard that Pucheng had set up a refugee resettlement site, she took Songzhi and went there.

Shuwang is a big city, and there are many refugees who have escaped. The Pucheng government has set up a number of sheds in several wide places in the city for the refugees to temporarily live in. Although it is summer, it is not cold to live outside, but the refugees are crowded together and are disturbed by mosquitoes, so the living environment is naturally very uncomfortable.

Qin Xiaoning and Song Zhi visited several refugee sites in succession, but did not see any sign of Sister Li and others, so they had to return in disappointment.

When we returned to the Wei family villa, it was already getting dark. The master and servants of the Wei family were gathered in the courtyard. There were several large pots and dozens of loads of rice under the corridor.

Madam Wei stood in the middle of the courtyard, shouting to the eldest master of the Wei family: "Shu Wang's family's food is all flooded. We only have this villa here, and there is not much rice left. Why do we need to give out porridge?"

The eldest uncle of the Wei family refuted his wife with a sullen face: "We have more than one villa in Qianzhou, and we also have fields and shops. Now that we are in great trouble, we can give some rice and grain to the people and win a good reputation. Isn't this a good deal?"

Madam Wei was not convinced: "Shuwang has suffered a disaster, and this year's harvest is gone. In a few days, the price of rice will go up like crazy. It takes three to five dan of rice to distribute porridge once. Have you calculated how much rice we will spend if we distribute porridge for ten days or half a month? Humph, the reputation we have accumulated is not as good as saving the rice for money."

Uncle Wei retorted, "How can reputation be bought with money? What we want to accumulate is long-term business."

Mrs. Wei rolled her eyes at her husband and said, "What do you mean by long-term business? Who knows what will happen to Shu Wang? If our family property is destroyed, we will have to tighten our belts and think of ways to start over in Pucheng."

Seeing that the couple was arguing, the maids and servants in the yard did not dare to make a decision on their own. They all hung their heads and could only wait for their master's final order.

At this time, Master Wei spoke.

He said, "Sister-in-law, let's not talk about business for now. We are giving away porridge, not to others, but to the people of Shuwang."

"Our family has been able to accumulate such wealth, but it is inseparable from the support and kindness of the Shuwang people. Now that the villagers are in trouble, we have food and drink in the other garden. Can we just watch the villagers starve?"