C88

From what this old commoner had said, the dozen or so counties near Qing Qiao County were all heavily affected by the flood this time. In other places, although it was not as tragic as Qing Qiao County, it was still not easy.

This time, they really had no way to continue on the path of the river. It was said that the path down the river had already become completely unrecognizable … There were countless rocks hanging from the cliff. The possibility of putting his life on the line was simply too great. Furthermore, they might not even be able to arrive in ten days even if they traveled for two days …

Although the inland road was a bit far, fortunately they still had horses, so it did not even take a day to reach the Lijiang County.

Looking at the town from afar, one could smell the heavy smell of damp. From afar, the entire city could still be considered intact. It was only when they got closer that they could see that the mud on the ground had yet to be cleaned up.

I heard that the flood was the fiercest day, but it drowned half of the city. However, most of the citizens of Lijiang County had grown tobacco, leaves, and other types of food mainly to purchase from the nearby towns. But this time, almost all the nearby counties had been affected, and they could no longer supply their own towns with food. Even if they wanted to buy food, they would not be able to do so …

He had originally wanted to walk along the road and pluck some wild fruits or something like that. However, he did not expect that all the places along the way would be plundered by the floodwaters, and would probably be searched by the hungry victims of disasters who were like combs that searched through everything that they could eat. How could they find anything to eat?

Zhuang Li sighed, she was already starving.

He placed all his hopes on the city in front of him.

When they arrived at the county town, they found out that the difficulties there were not any better than the roads and bridges that had been destroyed.

The ground was covered in mud, and a few thin and weak soldiers were standing near the city gate. Most of the time, they were just below the city walls, and had nothing to do with those beggars.

Yun Duan got off his horse first and took out the order from his chest pocket.

Yun Duan's official order was actually an imperial messenger system, which made the guards excited. They guessed that Zhuang Li and the rest were the most respectable people who had entered the city since the start of the flood.

On the way to the city, they saw the listless victims of the disaster sitting on the ground. All of them were extremely hungry. They were lying beside puddles on the street, and they were already emaciated …

Zhuang Li looked at the men on the ground who were about to collapse from exhaustion, thinking that she could easily subdue them. That feeling was something they couldn't move anymore …

Many people watched them ride past on their horses and extended their hands towards them.

"Elder Shangguan, Eldest Miss, give me some food …"

"Please do. "Just give me something to eat …"

Zhuang Li and the others didn't even have food, they had already been stripped clean. She looked at Wang Su, who had a previous expression on his face, although he looked a little tired.

In the empty space in front of them, there was a huge ancient gingko. The three of them could finally rest for a while under the gingko.

Beneath the tree were a few other victims squatting there as well. Zhuang Li approached one of them and exchanged a few words with him.

He only found out after asking that he wasn't even a local …

"I fled here from the neighboring town. My house is too close to the river. The moment the flood came, it was washed away …" He had really washed himself clean and left nothing behind …

Fortunately, there was only one little girl at home. That little girl wasn't home that day, so I went out early in the morning to take care of her at her aunt's place on the mountain. This was good, at least he survived …

Even though her uncle's house is still here, there is no food left. Since they can't live on, I naturally feel too embarrassed to leave my child behind, so I brought her out. Her house, let alone food, didn't even leave behind a brick for me …

I can only bring her with me and beg along the way. At least, it's more important for her to live on first. "

After hearing him finish his words, the person beside him weakly chuckled twice …

"You are also wrong, although this Lijiang County is the biggest in the nearby cities. He could be considered to be quite wealthy. But look at how it is now? Do you think you can survive here again? "

"What about the Prefect of Lijiang County?" Yun Duan asked.

"Have so many victims been reported to the imperial government? "If the flood had reported to the imperial government from the very beginning, the food and foodstuffs that the imperial government had sent to provide assistance would probably already be on the way …"

The disaster victim unintentionally laughed twice.

"How could he be that fast?" After the flood, the roads around the county were all broken, and the road you guys took was rearranged by the county. It took you two full days to restore such a broken transport.

Master county magistrate? I heard that he went out to borrow grain … But where can I borrow it? "

Zhuang Li could only sigh. Standing up, she could not help but feel a little dizzy …

"It's a good thing that the house didn't collapse too much. At least at night, how many people would have a place to shelter themselves from the rain? "But during the day, everyone is willing to lie outside …"

"Everyone knows that lying in a room is just waiting to die … There were also some counties that had already had an outbreak. More people fled...

Who knows when Lijiang County will erupt again? "

"After all, so many people have died … "At first, the county magistrate said a few more things, but then he disappeared. I think it was because there were too many of them …"

"Where are the dead people now?"

"Outside the city, there is a mountain of people. There are many who don't know their place, and half of the people in the city are still crying. Those were people who could not find their loved ones.

"But how are we going to dig around in that pile of dead people?"

As the man spoke, he began to cry.

"My wife died on the day the flood came. Luckily, I found her and got stuck in the house, burying her …"

Zhuang Li could not bear to listen any longer, so she stood up.

"To the Prefect."

Wang Su only said a short sentence, asked for directions, and then left. Zhuang Li followed with a small jog, and the three of them no longer spoke, each of them thinking about their own matters.

In less than a quarter of an hour, they were standing in front of the prefecture lord's magistrate court.

Yun Duan could be considered as the messenger of the army, hence Zhuang Li and Wang Su followed him in the name of the messenger. The Palace Token said that Yun Duan, the messenger, had been ordered to come down to understand the situation.

And the person who hurriedly came out to greet them was none other than the Prefecture Lord himself …

Although the streets were muddy from the sun high up in the sky, the yamen runners still hurried over. The county governor looked to be around forty years old and was a little chubby, causing Zhuang Li to feel especially disgusted when she saw him in this county where the streets were filled with scrawny people who couldn't even stand a single blow.

"Lord Messenger, you are the first person the imperial government sent here after the disaster in our county. But what arrangements and preparations are there? "

"Didn't you go to borrow food?" Why are you sitting at the top of the mansion again? " Yun Duan asked, his tone full of anger.

The fat Zhixian was surnamed Zhang, but he didn't have much to say. He never bullied people even though he didn't seem to like doing things. The residents all called him Fatty Zhang in private.

The county seemed to have been suddenly asked of its difficulties. He led Zhuang Li and the other two to the main hall, where they were waiting for guests. He had his wife quickly bring up cups of tea, and also instructed them to prepare lunch. That face turned into that of a requesting person …

"He went to borrow some money …" But how could he possibly borrow it … Where is the grain to borrow in the nearby county? Even after breaking his leg, he really didn't manage to gather even half a bag of rice. But those were the victims of the entire city. How am I supposed to tell them? "They were told that they could not borrow the grain and that they had to wait for death at home?"

"Being unable to borrow money between counties is not an accident, but what about the Imperial Court? "Has this been reported to the imperial government?"

That fat county official chuckled and said, "Of course I'm reporting it. This is a small county that I'm reporting to the Prefecture Lord. However, every time I go to blow it, he says to wait."

When are we going to wait? Even he himself didn't know …

This Lijiang County and the surrounding few small towns were all famous for growing tobacco, and food, they would always be bought from other places, so naturally, they would encounter some kind of disaster, so the county built their own granary, but since the day the floods broke out, countless people outside rushed into the city.

I can't not let them enter the city, they are all raised by my parents … At most, we'll all starve together...

Honorable Messenger, to tell you the truth, this granary for my Lijiang County has long since been emptied …

"I was forced to go out to borrow food. If it weren't for all of you, I, this damn fatty, would really not have dared to go out at all …"

When the food was served, Zhuang Li was extremely hungry. The dishes were just a few wild herbs, but luckily there were still some oil and salt … That meal was a porridge, it was already so thin that it could not be more sparse. But it was better than being hungry. She drank three big bowls in one go.

Wang Su and Yun Duan followed the man who had opened the gates to his study, and together, they discussed about temporary measures to deal with disasters.

Yun Duan was the official messenger master, and Wang Su was the attendant of the official messenger master, so he naturally followed along.

After all, Zhuang Li's identity as a servant was not suitable, so she stayed outside to wander around to pass the time.

This Prefect's residence wasn't too big, and the items weren't luxurious either. However, there were fake mountains and ponds …

Zhuang Li squatted by the side of a small pond. The water in the pond was considered clean and there were a lot of aquatic plants in it. It seemed that the pond was specially used to raise fish. But after Zhuang Li searched for a long time, she couldn't find a single fish.

She sat down beside the pond and leaned against a fake mountain. The scorching sun had made her absent-minded.

He didn't know what better way to deal with the disaster this time around. Besides, there were so many dead bodies outside the city. If he didn't deal with it soon and the plague broke out, it would be just around the corner …

However, how could the situation in this county have the conditions to be handled properly? Lack of food and medicine. The people of the Great Phoenix didn't want to burn the corpse. They felt that if they did that, they wouldn't be able to ascend to the heavens.

But bury it? Are there so many coffins? Moreover, corpses were carriers that produced bacteria the most easily. Moreover, it was a large area, and under the shine of such a scorching sun, it was even more tragic.

Wang Su had mentioned before that the corpse must be burned, it just needed a reasonable explanation to appease the people …