The Empress's Will to Live: System Help Me!-Chapter 23: An old man who is worth more than gold.

From farmers to the rich, from merchants to adventurers, from the homeless to the soldiers, everybody was doing what Daisy had ordered them to do. No one stood aside, no one refused.

The unity that was shown was something she had never seen before, not even back on Earth. As the herald came back and told her exactly what was happening across the capital, she finally understood the scale of it all.

The soldiers went to the forests and shot the animals they found, working together with the hunters who knew the forests and fields far better than anyone else. At the same time, herbalists and even doctors joined them, checking the plants, choosing the right herbs that could be used to help the people..

Everyone had a role, and everyone played their part, not for reward or praise, but because they believed it had to be done.

But the biggest surprise to her was that the bakeries actually did what she had ordered them to do. She had been pessimistic about it, because the world, and the Imperium itself, worked on money. In a time like this, when the Imperium was standing on the brink of an economic crisis, she truly believed that nobody would be willing to waste their manpower on something they would not get paid for, at least not right now.

Yet Fern and Orsen did more than just order them to bake bread or make whatever was easiest and fastest. They promised the bakers that they would be personally recognized by Daisy herself... and that alone was enough.

The guild members went to work without complaint, doing their absolute best, pushing themselves past their limits. They worked longer hours, used every bit of skill they had, and gave more than they ever thought they could, all for the chance to be seen, to be acknowledged, and to know that their efforts mattered.

And then another surprise came... straight into the Palace.

"Your Majesty." One of the guards spoke as he found Daisy standing to the side, looking down at the ground, lost in thoughts.

"Yes?"

"There is a farmer who has come to seek your attention."

"A farmer?" Daisy asked, surprised. She could not even think of a single reason why a farmer would need to see her directly. "Where is he?"

"He is waiting in the throne room." The guard answered.

Daisy looked at Albert, who was standing beside her and together they walked to the throne room.

A farmer...That was what she expected to see, but it was different.

A man was kneeling in front of the throne, his head lowered deeply, but his clothes were expensive and colorful, more fitting for a noble than a simple farmer. Green, purple, and golden decorations covered his garments. He looked like someone with money, influence, and status.

A farmer... he looks like a noble. Daisy thought.

"I heard you are seeking my attention." Daisy said as she stepped closer to him. "Stand up."

The command alone felt heavy. The Empress of the Imperium standing so close to him was already unthinkable, almost sinful though he stood up slowly, his head still lowered, not daring to raise his eyes.

"Yes, Your Majesty," he said. "I would like to help as much as I can."

"Help?" Daisy repeated, taking a step back to look at him properly. "Then tell me how you wish to help... and look at me."

He hesitated, then slowly raised his head and the moment his eyes met hers, he froze.

What he saw was exactly what he had hoped for. The confidence in her eyes, her calm expression, the way she stood, the way her clothes fit her, not as decoration, but as authority. She looked like someone who truly was an Empress. A ruler of the people, standing with the people.

For a moment, he knew he needed to say what was inside of him.

"I am Shi Horken." He began."And I wish to support the cause of Your Majesty with two hundred cows and one hundred goats." He still avoided holding her gaze for too long, looking slightly to the side. "I seek no reward, and no recognition," he continued. "What Your Majesty has done... that is what I want to live for."

He then looked directly into her eyes and continued after a short silence.

"I do not know how much time I have left in this world." Shi Horken said. "But I know this much. If I can use what I have to ease the suffering of others, if I can help even a little, then that is enough for me." His hands clenched at his sides. "My land, my animals, my labor, all of it exists because the people around me exist. Farmers do not live alone. We live because others eat what we grow, because soldiers protect our fields, because merchants carry our goods, and because rulers decide whether we are crushed or allowed to stand." He lifted his head again, just enough to look at Daisy. "For the first time, I see a ruler who understands this. A ruler who does not look down on us, but walks among us. That is why I give this freely, without asking for anything in return. If the Imperium stands with the people," he said, "then the people will stand with the Imperium. And I will stand with it as well, for as long as I still draw breath."

Silence as Daisy was kinda mind blown by the whole statement Shi just said. Like out of nowhere somebody coming in who is around sixty years old and just doing this.

Daisy knew that something was behind all of this. Something deeper. And the name he had given was far too familiar to her. It was a name that was not just unique, but rare, and as she looked at Shi Horken more closely, she noticed something else.

As she looked down at him something small caught her eye. A pin... a lapel pin fixed to his coat.

And in that moment, Daisy almost blew the fuck up, because the man standing in front of her, Shi Horken, was worth more than all the gold in the Imperium combined.