Once he completes the task assigned by Yinyin, Yinyin will surely forgive him if he is honest.

Driven by this delusional ambition, the system flew towards Ningpei County, completely forgetting that all the pocket money it had worked so hard to earn should rightfully belong to it.

—

Ningpei County.

As Shen Ling walked through the muddy fields, looking at the river where the water level had dropped significantly despite the rain the day before, her eyes were filled with sorrow.

Shen Ling was a county magistrate from Ningpei County. His hometown was in this county, and his family was of average social standing, considered a small family in Ningpei County. Due to a bit of luck and talent, Shen Ling passed the imperial examination and ranked among the top two in the palace examination, and was assigned to his hometown as a county magistrate.

Returning to Ningpei was a triumphant homecoming for him, and the Shen family, because of him, had become the most prominent family in Ningpei County.

Shen Ling is meticulous and thoughtful, and therefore very cautious.

This is neither a good nor a bad thing. Because of this cautious nature, Shen Ling missed several opportunities for promotion, but also escaped several conspiracies and schemes.

Everything has its advantages and disadvantages. Overall, Shen Ling is satisfied with his current position.

Ningpei County has a superior geographical location, fertile soil, and a river that facilitates irrigation for the people's fields. As a result, Ningpei has always had abundant grain production, and the local people are mostly relatively wealthy and affluent.

However, in the past few days, some unusual phenomena have occurred during Shen Ling's trip to the countryside, such as the water level dropping and the water becoming turbid... This has never happened in Ningpei County before.

Shen Ling felt vaguely uneasy, and a similar terrifying thought floated through her mind, but then it touched on her common sense that she had never experienced a natural disaster in Ningpei County, and she ignored this thought.

They only viewed the river water level as a short-term, normal change.

He's also hoping that the local rivers will return to normal in a few days.

But such a change is destined to go against reality.

Shen Ling walked into the field once again, and looking at the river water, which seemed to have dropped by 10 millimeters, his eyes changed.

No, this situation is too unsettling.

Unable to suppress his unease, Shen Ling had someone grind ink and write this letter before returning home, which he then sent to the capital.

This is why Qingyin from the capital received this letter.

Even after writing the letter to Qingyin, Shenling was still not at ease. A county magistrate liked to run to the countryside every day, which made the county officials whisper about their master's strange behavior.

As Madam Shen watched Shen Ling slowly walk in, her delicate, fair face curved into a gentle smile, revealing a quiet and serene demeanor.

"My husband has gone to the countryside again? Or has the water level dropped again?"

“Yes, Yinniang, I felt uneasy when I saw the condition of that river. This has never happened in Ningpei before. I even personally looked through the general government's catalog from the past thirty years, but there was no record of it.”

Shen Ling sighed deeply, his face, which, despite its beard, was filled with worry and tension.

Yinniang was Madam Shen's childhood name. Shen Ling had a good relationship with his wife and loved to call her by her childhood name affectionately.

Madam Shen smiled gently, comforting her husband who had gotten a bit tanned from running around the countryside every day these past few days, and said, "Didn't you write a letter to His Majesty? Surely His Majesty is wise and mighty and will be able to answer your questions."

Shen Ling sighed, looking at Yin Niang who was comforting her, but she couldn't quite bring herself to voice the dark thoughts in her heart.

He couldn't very well tell Yinniang that his unfounded and unimportant agricultural matters probably wouldn't even attract His Majesty's attention, and that the capital would most likely not take any action.

Thinking of this, Shen Ling frowned even more deeply.

But he didn't want to tell his wife about these worries. After all, what could he do besides adding another person to the burden of these dark matters?

Therefore, Shen Ling pretended to be relaxed and at ease in front of his loving wife.

Looking at his expression, Madam Shen's tension lessened somewhat.

System 996 flew to Ningpei County overnight and began preparing to carry out its mission.

Meanwhile, in the capital, Qingyin also began her operation.

In the imperial court, the officials looked at the memorial that His Majesty had suddenly produced with puzzled expressions.

Is Your Majesty facing a difficult problem, which is why you specifically asked them?

The expressions on everyone's faces varied, and Qingyin observed their expressions.

He tapped his fingers lightly on the dragon throne. "Li De, read the memorials to the ministers."

Li De bowed respectfully and said, "Yes, Your Majesty."

Holding the memorial, he cleared his throat and said, "In Ningpei County... the water level has dropped... and the water is turbid, etc. I am reporting this to Your Majesty..."

At first, the crowd was a little curious when they heard Grandpa Li De talk about agricultural matters in the county, but they became more attentive as they listened.

In particular, four officials in the imperial court, who were born in the southern regions and had experienced the floods, looked at each other, their eyes showing seriousness and worry.

Looking at the appearance of the four officials, Qingyin thought: I guess I won't need to take action again.

That is indeed the case.

After listening to the memorial, the four officials, without waiting for the expressions of the other officials, stepped forward with concern and began to report to Qingyin.

"Your Majesty, I have witnessed these strange events in Ningpei County."

Qingyin pretended not to understand, "Hmm? Minister Zheng, have you ever seen such a strange thing? Is there any reason for this in Ningpei County?"