Those who had never seen him before thought he was joking and continued to speak in official language, blaming each other regardless of the suffering outside.
Ji Yujin’s face turned cold, and he glanced at the guards next to him. Several guards immediately stepped forward.
That man was pinned down with his face pressed against the ground, and only then did he begin to get scared.
“Governor, spare my life!”
Ji Yujin didn’t even look in that direction but waved gently.
As an extremely shrill scream was heard, everyone became obedient.
Ji Yujin curled his lips as usual, “It would have been better if it had been like this earlier. Who’s next?”
……
Ji Yujin’s methods were harsh, and within just one day, the rescue operation was on track.
But the biggest problem now is the flood. He hasn’t seen a sunny day since he arrived here, and the continuous heavy rain has made the already difficult rescue even more difficult.
The water level in the river continued to rise and soon reached an unprecedented height. Ji Yujin and others ran to the riverside in the rain to monitor it.
“Governor.”
“How is it going?”
“The situation is not optimistic. If there is another heavy rain the next day, the dam will not be able to hold back the water. If the dam collapses, the river water will flow directly into the city. Then…”
The dam almost collapsed before. Half of the water rushed into the city, causing damage to half of the city’s houses. If the entire dam collapsed, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Ji Yujin frowned. Raindrops were dripping down his hair, making such a loud noise that he had to shout to speak. “Based on your experience, how long can the dam last?”
The few people monitoring the dam are all talented and ambitious people found by Ji Yujin to assist in this operation.
“It’s hard to say. Water and fire are merciless. No one can predict for sure. If it rains this much, it might collapse at night.”
Ji Yujin pursed his lips. The heavy rain was falling, and the hats and raincoats of several people were of no use at all. “Zhao Li, evacuate the people and build temporary shelters on the high ground.”
Zhao Li cupped his hands: “Yes.”
“Yun Mu, tell all the young men with intact limbs to come and bring me sandbags.”
“Yes.”
After giving the order, Ji Yujin looked at the people he had invited and asked, “Mister, is there anything else we can do now?”
A middle-aged man stroked his goatee and said, “In the humble’s opinion, floods are better to be drained than blocked…”
……
On the other hand, after his mother and Chu Yinyin came, Chu Fengqing felt much more relaxed. Apart from taking his father’s pulse and prescribing medicine every day, he had “nothing to do.”
Mother Chu stayed with Father Chu all day long. Not sure if it was because of Mother Chu’s arrival, but Father Chu’s condition was getting better every day. Father Chu, who was usually serious, was like a child after this illness. He stuck to Mother Chu’s every day and refused to leave. The family members were both amused and distressed when they saw it.
When Chu Fengqing had some free time, he would always think of Ji Yujin and was a little worried about the situation over there. Although Ji Yujin said that he would send a letter every three days, but the place was too far away. Even if he sent a letter every three days, he would not be able to receive it in three days.
Sometimes when he looked at his father and mother, he felt a little worried. He hadn’t told them about their relationship yet. How do he tell them without upsetting them?
Chu Fengqing was writing something at his desk. Chu Yinyin ran to him out of boredom. “Second Brother, what are you writing?”
She craned her neck to look. “What is this? A storybook?”
Chu Fengqing shook his head, “It’s just a boring thing.”
He closed the book and changed the subject: “Didn’t mother tell you to stay in the room and embroider the handkerchief today? Why are you here again?”
Chu Yinyin couldn’t help but say, “Forgive me, my eyes are blurry. If I keep embroidering, I might go blind. I don’t know why she asked me to embroider so many handkerchiefs. I really want to go out for a walk.”
Chu Fengqing chuckled, “Mother just wants you to stay quietly in the house. It’s a bit chaotic outside now. When the chaos calms down, second brother will take you out for a walk.”
Chu Yinyin pouted her lips, “Alright.”
She didn’t really want to go out either. Besides, her second brother had married off for her before, and there might be people outside who might have seen what he looked like. She didn’t want to cause trouble for him again.
Last time, her second brother told her about what happened after the substitutionary marriage, but he was a little vague. He only said that the Governor of Xichang was not as bad as the rumors said, that he had been helping him all this time, and that he was the benefactor of our Chu family.
Only then did she feel a little relieved. God knew how tormented she had been going through these past few months. She was afraid that she had killed her second brother, and she was afraid that her second brother would become her scapegoat. She couldn’t sleep every day, and when she fell asleep, she dreamed of her second brother’s tragic death. She would never forget that feeling in her life.
But she could do nothing, and sometimes she felt she was useless. The only thing she could do was pray endlessly, praying to see her second brother again.
Chu Yinyin sat on the stool next to Chu Fengqing, resting her head on his shoulder, and said softly, “Second brother, thank you.”
Chu Fengqing was stunned for a moment, then rubbed her head with his hand. “No need to thank second brother.”
He paused and smiled, “My Yinyin has grown up too.”
……
In a blink of an eye, it has been more than two months since Ji Yujin left the capital.
Ji Yujin took that man’s advice and spent several days developing a detailed plan and began to dredge the waterway. This was a huge project and could not be completed in a short period of time, so it could only be dug bit by bit.
Through dredging and blocking, the flood was barely prevented from wreaking havoc in the city, but the hidden dangers are still great.
The county, which was originally lifeless, is now much more vibrant, and the destroyed houses are being rebuilt. The supplies have also been distributed. If the court does not have enough supplies, Ji Yujin will buy them from the rich merchants, and if they are still not enough, he will borrow them from the neighboring counties.
In the end, they managed to scrape enough money together, enough for everyone to start their lives again.
Just when it seemed that there was a way to control the flood, new problems arose.
On this day, the usually calm Qing Niao appeared in front of Chu Fengqing and was a little anxious. “Madam, His Majesty summoned you.”
