Chapter 17, Jingshan Temple

Jingshan Temple in Jingzhou.

Jingshan is not very high; its terrain is more like a hill. Because Jingzhou has mostly plains and few high mountains, Jingshan is one of the few high places, so the local people call it a mountain.

Jingshan is not steep; on the contrary, it covers a large area and has a gentle slope, making it suitable for building a refuge.

Upon confirming the rising water level, Li Wanjing, the governor of Jingzhou, convened an emergency meeting and, overcoming objections, confirmed a disaster evacuation plan.

Although the response was swift, a month was too tight. A large number of shelters needed to be built, and the quality was sacrificed for the sake of quantity. There was even a shortage of manpower, so prisoners were used to redeem themselves and have their sentences reduced.

Furthermore, mobilizing the people was a major challenge. In the end, Li Wanjing swallowed his pride and made public appeals at the market on several occasions, and had daily hydrological data posted at various notice boards throughout the city.

If anyone doesn't believe it, they can go and see for themselves at the dam!

When Li Wanjing spoke out, most of the people in Jingzhou believed him.

Since Lord Li was recommended as a filial and incorruptible official and became the governor of Jingzhou, the people have witnessed the transformation of Jingzhou from decline to prosperity over the past ten years under his rule.

Lord Li is a good official, and they are all willing to follow him!

To prevent panic among the people, Li Wanjing also released the government's construction schedule. Knowing that the government was taking action, some people volunteered to work for the government in order to secure the "priority evacuation rights" mentioned by the government, while others donated supplies. With everyone working together, the entire city of Jingzhou was running at high speed for a time.

When news of the flood broke, some believed it, some doubted it, and naturally, many wavered between the two.

However, in the face of great disasters, the incitement, propaganda, panic, rumors and disturbances were all forcefully suppressed. The government followed the suggestion of the registrar, and once a rumor-monger was caught, he was immediately taken to the construction site to work for the government!

The people of Jingzhou are so busy that they can't keep up with the pace of things, yet they still have time to cause trouble. They must be bored out of their minds. They should be taken to work and let's see if they still have the energy to spread rumors everywhere.

For the people who were afraid to leave the city, the government followed the orders of the governor's office and did not obstruct them further.

Even though the central government has strict requirements on population movement in local areas, those who choose to flee do so for two reasons: first, they have some assets at home that can support their expenses while away from home. If they can hold out until after the flood, most of them will choose to return to Jingzhou, so the losses will not be too great; second, the more people leave, the less pressure there will be on disaster relief in Jingzhou. It is good to save some time and some supplies right now!

There were also elderly farmers who couldn't bear to part with their land. Their entire lives' work was devoted to those small plots of land, and giving up their land would be tantamount to taking their lives. Therefore, Li Wanjing guaranteed that regardless of whether a flood came or not, the government would provide subsidies to reduce their losses.

Most of the wealthy families in the city mocked Li Wanjing for running around trying to solve a baseless flood, laughing at him for "drawing water with a bamboo basket in vain," and saying that he would end up making the whole city a laughing stock.

The powerful and influential families stood aside and watched, turning a blind eye to Li Wanjing's attempt to freeload, as if they hadn't understood the implied meaning in his words. They took the opportunity to mock him, and when they saw Li Wanjing slink away, they made it a laughing matter at the banquet, causing everyone to laugh.

That damned Li the Stingy! He's been advocating for the people for over a decade, causing countless unpleasant encounters with them. Yet, he always manages to slip away unscathed, which infuriates them even more!

Jingshan Temple was originally a temple with relatively prosperous incense offerings, but it has now been requisitioned by the government as a disaster relief center to manage various departments.

"My lord, all the granaries in the city that can be moved have been moved."

"All the people in the city have been arranged in high places in various locations, and doctors and medicines have been distributed to each location according to the number of people."

"The hydrological line is rising steadily, and it's only an inch away from the highest water level in previous years!"

"Sir, there are still five elderly farmers in Linjia Village who are unwilling to abandon their fields and refuse to leave the village to enter the shelter."

"grown ups……"

After finishing his business, Li Wanjing returned to the dormitory arranged by the mountain temple, exhausted. The woman sitting by the bed was checking the bills. When she saw him return, she got up and handed him a glass of water.

After a moment, the woman brought out the account book: "This is the account of the household's recent expenditures. Husband, what we have left is not enough to support next month's expenses."

The woman knew this was not good news, but she still smiled reassuringly and said, "Husband, I still have some of my dowry left over. You can take it all."

Recently, due to insufficient cash flow and frequent rejections, even the resilient Li Wanjing couldn't help but feel frustrated and downcast.

His wife's unwavering companionship and support allowed him to maintain his composure and take charge of the overall situation. Now, hearing her words, he felt a gentle touch in his heart: "My wife has already sacrificed so much for me, how could I possibly harm your last remaining asset?"

The woman's eyes were filled with tenderness, and her hands, which had been working hard for many days, covered his equally tired face: "Jingzhou belongs to all of us. Everyone is working hard to help her get through the flood safely, and I am no exception."

"I'm sorry... you've had a tough time all these years."

He always focused on the development of Jingzhou, seemingly missing out on a lot of time with his wife.

The woman gazed at him intently and shook her head: "You are a good official for the people, a good father to Ran'er, and a good husband to me. I have always trusted my judgment, and I have never regretted marrying you all these years."

"lady……"

The warmth inside the house is just a small microcosm of the thousands of families in Jingzhou. Time flies relentlessly, and the moment of disaster, mentioned in the letter, is fast approaching in mid-July.

For days, dark clouds piled up, shrouding the entire city of Jingzhou in a gray haze. The wind howled, as if it would lift everything on the ground. Withered branches swirled in the air, and pedestrians were blown so hard they could not open their eyes, their sleeves fluttering wildly, almost being blown away.

Since the dark clouds began to gather over the sky, Li Wanjing hadn't had a good night's sleep. He was terrified that when he woke up, Jingzhou City would be submerged in a torrential downpour.

More than feeling relieved that the month's preparations had not been in vain, he was more afraid that the flood would swallow up the lives of thousands of people!

He paced anxiously under the eaves, frequently looking up at the sky and then at the temple gate. Finally, before nightfall, the registrar led his men back into the temple.

"Sir, the reinforced dikes have been inspected. The river is turbulent. For the safety of the patrolmen, I have sent them back first and instructed them to pay close attention to rain when they take over their shift at night."

"You should go back and rest early, so you can be in good condition to deal with the problems later."

As night fell, the people of Jingzhou City, who had not seen the sun for several days, were both alarmed and secretly grateful to Lord Li.

If it weren't for Lord Li overruling everyone's objections and leading them to higher ground for refuge, they might have perished in the flood, never to see the sunrise again.

Compared to the ordinary people who felt fortunate to be in refuge in high places like Jingshan, the powerful families in the city who stubbornly refused to move their posts looked at the increasingly dark clouds with growing fear each day. They silently prayed that the rain wouldn't be too heavy while hurriedly packing up their valuables and setting off by carriage to Jingshan.

Because they were reluctant to discard their gold, silver, jewels, pearls, agates, silks, and satins, they set up a long procession of carriages, but were blocked at the foot of Jingshan Mountain and were not allowed to climb the mountain.

They could leave the city; after all, the government no longer conducted business within the city, so whether they left or not was entirely up to them.

But even if they left the city, they couldn't escape the heavy rain. The wilderness outside the city was vast, and there was no good place to shelter from the rain. Why would they leave the city to suffer?

Since Li Wanjing lives in the Jingshan Mountain Temple, that area is probably a good place to avoid floods and shelter from the rain. They are not greedy and will just stay there for a while.

Thinking back to Li Wanjing's pitiful pleading with them for funding not long ago, they are now willing to spend money to buy the location of the Jingshan refuge site.

Many carts gathered at the foot of the mountain. After discovering that they could not go up the mountain, the tribal chiefs ordered their servants to cause trouble at the foot of the mountain. However, the soldiers were prepared and quickly suppressed them.

They sent people to communicate with the government troops, saying they wanted to see Governor Li Wanjing, but their arrogant attitude angered the government troops, and a fight between the two sides was about to break out.

Some of the more astute individuals went up the mountain to communicate with Lord Li. Just as Li Wanjing saw off the registrar, he received news that powerful families in the city were causing trouble at the foot of the mountain.

After thinking about it, he decided to go down the mountain to meet them.

When he reached the foot of the mountain, he noticed that the atmosphere between the two sides was not right. After listening to the explanation from the officials present, he knew that the clan leaders realized that they were now asking him for a favor, and suppressed the dispute that was about to break out.

Seeing Li Wanjing walk to the front surrounded by soldiers, the powerful clans chose their most senior elder to talk to him.

Since ancient times, the principle of filial piety has been enough to crush a person, and high seniority can certainly be used as a command to restrain Li Wanjing.

The old elder stroked his white beard and said, "Lord Li, we are also citizens of Jingzhou City. You cannot show favoritism and prevent us from going up the mountain."

A fierce wind swept through, flattening patches of lush grass and rustling the trees as the two sides engaged in a heated verbal battle in an unofficial venue.

Li Wanjing suppressed his recent fatigue and straightened up: "It's not that I want to stop you, but the refuge on the mountain was built by everyone in Jingzhou City through their joint efforts. Everyone who contributes gets the reward, so I can't force them to leave."

The old elder smiled, seemingly oblivious to Li Wanjing's accusations that they were lazy and trying to take advantage of others. However, seeing the white beard that the old elder had accidentally plucked, one could tell that he was not at peace with himself.

After a moment of distress, Li Wanjing came up with a solution: "Why don't you go up the mountain? But you can't jump over the warning signs set up by the government. Above the warning signs is a refuge area, so it's inconvenient for you to cross the boundary. But once you get up the mountain, you can avoid the flood."

They were initially excited to hear they could go up the mountain, but their expressions turned sour upon hearing what followed.

All they want is access to the shelter. If they can't get in, are they supposed to stay out in the rain?!

What's the difference between this and them leaving the city?

The clan leaders exchanged glances, and after a brief exchange of looks, the clan leader at the front spoke first: "Lord Li, what are you saying? We are willing to contribute money. After the disaster, there will be times when we need money to repair Jingzhou. We can contribute funds in exchange for the opportunity to enter the refuge area."

Li Wanjing pondered for a moment, then glanced at the crowd below. It was too dark, and the candlelight in the lanterns flickered in the wind. He spoke slowly from the juncture of light and shadow:

"No need for post-disaster recovery, I want 90% of the goods on your trucks right now."