This is less than ten years ago.

He was very popular in Shang County and did an excellent job.

At this moment, he led a group of minor officials, including the registrar of Shang County, to kneel and greet His Highness the Crown Prince.

In ancient times, imperial power did not extend to the county level. Although a county magistrate was a minor official of the seventh rank, and might never be able to travel to the capital, they were indeed the absolute local officials.

Because for the people in the county town and the villages below, the highest official position they could ever see in their lives was a county magistrate.

Therefore, they are not without rights.

A good county magistrate can bring peace and prosperity to the people of a region. But if one encounters a greedy and insatiable county magistrate, the people of a region may find themselves with nowhere to turn for help.

Now, because of the disaster, His Highness the Crown Prince has personally come to the scene, and even Xie Bi, the county magistrate who rose through the imperial examinations in the capital years ago, is in a daze.

Moreover, the minor officials who knelt to welcome him, as well as some local people and wealthy households who had contributed to the disaster relief efforts, felt that kneeling today was an honor beyond measure.

That's how authoritative imperial power was in ancient times.

Shu Chengfeng, dressed in a golden dragon robe, walked along the muddy city gate and personally helped Xie Bi to his feet: "Magistrate Xie, please get up. As soon as I arrived in Laiyang Prefecture, I heard of the great name of Magistrate Xie Bi of Shang County. I know that you have been leading the people in disaster relief day and night. The people of this area are truly blessed to have Magistrate Xie."

"Your humble servant has only fulfilled his duties as an official; how dare I claim credit? Your humble servant is filled with trepidation!"

"Haha, no need to be alarmed. As long as one has made contributions, even a commoner should be remembered. How much more so for Magistrate Xie?" Shu Chengfeng said.

Magistrate Xie was naturally a beloved and respected official.

The people were naturally happy to hear that he had been praised by the Crown Prince.

They felt an even greater respect and admiration for this high and mighty Crown Prince.

They didn't dare to look up, and could only catch a glimpse of the golden hem of the robe and a pair of muddy boots.

But they thought, how could someone like His Highness the Crown Prince walk on this ground?

It's been raining so much that there's no suitable soil to line the ground, and even after sweeping, it's still muddy.

The group entered the county government office, which was not too dilapidated.

Shang County is not poor; it just suffers from disasters sometimes during the flood season each year.

This is a place for raising silkworms and planting mulberry trees, and the amount of cloth produced each year is astonishing.

So while the flooding of the fields was worrying, it did not shake the local people's livelihood.

Fearing the silkworms would be flooded, Xie Bi led the people to build the silkworm rearing houses far away from the riverbank several years earlier.

Shu Chengfeng didn't waste any words and went straight to find out about the disaster situation.

Xie Bi recounted everything in great detail, in a very logical and eloquent manner.

Around noon, a messenger suddenly came to report that Governor Zhou and his entourage had arrived.

Shu Chengfeng arrived here early in the morning, and by the time Governor Zhou and his men realized what was happening, they had already caught up with him.

They finally arrived.

"Oh, then please." Shu Chengfeng said with a smile.

"Your subject pays his respects to Your Highness the Crown Prince!" Governor Zhou hurriedly said. Officials of all ranks behind him also knelt down to pay their respects.

"I came here early this morning without inviting you all. It was my oversight," Shu Chengfeng said with a smile.

"I dare not, it was my negligence that led to this," Governor Zhou hurriedly replied.

"Alright, alright, get up. Let's have a simple meal here in the county government office, and then go to the embankment to take a look. I heard Magistrate Xie say that although the rain was heavy yesterday, the embankment is still quite sturdy. It's really fortunate."

Shu Chengfeng said these words with a smile, his face full of relief.

Governor Zhou's expression turned rather unpleasant. Although he managed a forced smile, there was a hint of distress in his eyes.

He did not personally come to see how serious the disaster was in the two counties.

In Shang County alone, it's clear that the situation isn't that serious.

The Crown Prince brought a shipment of grain with him...

Judging from the current situation in Li County, it's unlikely that the situation is one of widespread starvation.

After all, Laiyang Prefecture has always been a prosperous place, not a harsh or cold one.

He was used to asking the court for help whenever there was a disaster, but this time, who would have thought that His Majesty would summon the Crown Prince?

Regardless of what everyone thought, they all ate something there.

Although Xie Bi tried his best to have people prepare food for him, it was still just ordinary food.

In the afternoon, everyone went to the dam to take a look. Sure enough, it was clear that time and effort had been spent on the dam, with two layers, one inside and one outside.

It's clear that the water level had already reached its highest point and overflowed.

There are always traces left in places that have been flooded.

As Shu Chengfeng walked, he asked questions such as whether anyone had drowned and where the disaster victims had been settled.

According to Xie Bi's account, dozens of people died.

Some were killed when their houses collapsed, and others drowned.

Some of them fell in during the construction of dams and were never found.

But no one starved to death.

And since it was summer, no one froze to death. A few people did die from illness, but none of them were from epidemics. They just happened to be sick, injured, or caught in the rain and died.

Shang County has soup kitchens to accommodate the elderly and young. All able-bodied men are responsible for building dikes.

They'll provide food when they build the dike.

There are also temporary housing and accommodations, so the situation is basically under control.

Even though the flood season isn't over yet, there shouldn't be any major problems later on.

This means that Shang County has basically been able to solve the problem on its own.

Shu Chengfeng glanced at Prefect Zhou a few times, a half-smile on his face: "It seems that the place with the most starving corpses is Li County, isn't it?"

Xie Bi was taken aback, and then stopped himself from saying anything.

Although he had served as a county magistrate in the local area for many years, he also knew about things happening in the capital.

Although the emperor was far away, I had heard of the struggles among the princes in the palace when I was in the capital.

It is known that the Prefect of Zhou is a cousin of Consort Zhou Jing in the palace.

Consort Zhou had two sons.

As for Governor Zhou Chongguang's character... well, he wasn't exactly a bad person, but he wasn't exactly a virtuous gentleman either.

In which year, after a disaster, did we not ask the imperial court for grain?

Of course, it's not wrong to want food, but he cried so much that even a single grain of rice seemed like ten.

How many can actually be seen in the disaster area? Where did the extras go?

This year, they probably didn't expect the Crown Prince to come. They simply weren't prepared.

Little did he know that the Zhou family had actually sent someone to deliver the message, but it was intercepted by the Crown Prince's men on the way. It was imperative to prevent the Zhou family from informing Zhou Chongguang first.

It wasn't until a day after the Crown Prince left Yuezhou that Laiyang Prefecture was notified, but by then it was too late to ask him to prepare anything.

As for the current situation, Xie Bi was well aware of the disaster in Li County. Since Shang County was not in serious trouble, Li County would not be too badly affected either.

The two counties are very close to each other, and he was aware of that.

However, he didn't say much. He was a nobody and didn't want to meddle in other people's business.