Temporary camp on the high slope.

The county magistrate and his assistant magistrate were eventually located after a sustained search and rescue operation.

As the criminals and potential accomplices in the assassination, the guards took extra care of them, which saved them from certain death, although the magistrate's situation was extremely dire.

He was elderly, had both arms cut off, and struggled in the water for a while before the bleeding was barely stopped, but he fell into a coma.

Qin Zhaoyue and Yin Zhe interrogated the county magistrate who had miraculously survived.

Why did the magistrate attempt to assassinate the princess?

"I don't know... I really don't know!" The county magistrate, his hands tied behind his back, slumped in a corner, roared out upon hearing this, his behavior frantic.

His clothes were disheveled, his hair was messy, and his left eye socket was swollen high, whether from hitting something or being punched, he looked extremely pathetic.

"Assassinating a royal heir, do you know what a crime that is? If you cannot atone for your sins, you will surely die, or your family will be implicated."

Yin Zhe spoke in a deep voice, this was not a threat, but simply stating the facts.

"What's wrong with the county magistrate? Why is the dam being filled with reeds? Why are those river workers so hostile?"

But the county magistrate was terrified and kept repeating that he knew nothing about it.

Meng Jian drew his sword and held it to his neck, roughly grabbing his hair and trying to drag him out of the tent.

Feeling the cold touch on his neck and the stinging pain on his head, the county magistrate finally came to his senses. "No! I'll talk, I'll tell you everything!"

He was slammed hard against the tent entrance, but he scrambled back to the corner on all fours, as if there was immense terror outside the tent, cowering and afraid to look in that direction.

"explain!"

The county magistrate trembled with fear and dared not delay any longer, finally revealing the truth.

The widening of the waterway and the construction of the wharf in Longmen County was a major project that took two and a half years. Even though some wealthy merchants contributed part of the funding, the imperial court still spent nearly 500,000 taels of silver.

The materials and laborers used for river works were often corrupt, so it's not surprising that reeds and clay were used as fillers.

The entire county government, from top to bottom, was aware of the situation and all of them benefited from it.

"There's nothing we can do. The funds allocated from the state government were already insufficient, so we had no choice..."

"Speak to the magistrate!"

"Yes, yes... Magistrate Lu is a good official... really!"

During his more than ten years in office, Longmen County remained peaceful and stable. I truly cannot understand why he would attempt to assassinate His Highness!

The county magistrate knew this answer was unconvincing; he had been present when Magistrate Lu stabbed the princess with a dagger, a fact that could not be denied. Therefore, he immediately retorted:

"I know why the river workers have grievances!"

He then revealed in detail how Magistrate Lu had solicited grain from wealthy merchants and gentry, and how the disaster relief grain had been mixed with a large amount of bran.

Everyone inside the tent was stunned and lost in thought. All that had been collected was fine grain.

"Wait, you said a lot of bran?"

"Yes, that accounts for about 50%."

"Impossible! At most 20%."

"It's true. The disaster relief grain was distributed uniformly by the county government. We checked it multiple times, and it was basically all 50% complete..."

Who distributed the grain?

"His name is unknown, but he is known to be the Chief Clerk of the Ministry of Civil Affairs."

Meng Jian narrowed his eyes and looked at Qin Zhaoyue, "Your Highness, there is no official in charge of affairs among the officials from the Ministry of Civil Affairs accompanying the disaster relief team."

Now it's all clear: Longmen County is a trap that was set up long ago, just waiting for the Princess to fall into it.

The county magistrate was unable to provide any more valuable information and was immediately taken away.

Qin Zhaoyue explained the aftermath of the illegal iron ore mining to the two of them, and Wu Gangji also confirmed it.

"What's the point of inciting public resentment? Even without the river works riot, the old magistrate still had the opportunity to launch a surprise assassination attempt..."

She stopped mid-sentence and pressed her lips together tightly; she had already figured it out.

If it were merely to assassinate the elder sister, such a large-scale operation wouldn't have been necessary.

The scheme involved collecting fine grains, exchanging disaster relief grains, influencing the mental state of thousands of river workers, the iron-cast black turtle hitting the embankment, and the legend of the River God. This whole operation was far too grand.

Assassinations should be swift and efficient, with as few variables as possible.

This suggests that the other party's goal was not merely to assassinate the eldest princess, but to subtly target the empress through public opinion and resentment.

Having figured everything out, Qin Zhaoyue felt a chill run down her spine. What would have happened if Liu Yan hadn't been hiding by her side?

She would be killed at the entrance of the county government office. Even if all her guards attacked, they would not be able to defeat a sorcerer who was only half a step into the third rank.

On this side of the riverbank, the eldest sister is poisoned. If the sorcerer manages to entangle Yin Zhe, she will definitely not be able to escape either.

Two princesses died here, and with the legend of the River God and the people's resentment rising, what choice will Longmen County make?

Adding to the iron ore that had been illegally mined for many years, and the coincidentally discovered Black Steel Ridge, it's possible that the smelted and forged ironware did not flow to the Northern Territory.

The word "rebel" came to the minds of all three people present, and their faces turned extremely grim.

It sounds like a joke. How could a mere county possibly rise up in rebellion?

But what if we add cases of illegal iron ore mining and corruption related to water management?

The sorcerer's schemes are so powerful that a single move can have far-reaching consequences, and how many officials are involved in the chain of interests within them?

Longmen County is nothing, but what about the strength of two or three prefectures?

Going a step further, the Great Gan Dynasty's territory encompassed nine capitals and twelve circuits.

Leaving aside the four circuits of the Ziwei Border Court that practiced education and governance, there are still eight circuits remaining.

The three provinces of Tianxuan Road, where Hanoi Prefecture is located, Canglong East Road, where Bailu Prefecture is located, and Zhuque South Road, where Qingyao Prefecture is located, raised the flag of rebellion.

This year, the Northern Wind Dynasty has unusually been frequently knocking on our gates.

Beset by internal and external troubles, Da Gan will soon be in a precarious situation.

To quell external rebellions, internal stability must come first. In time, the powerful clans and officials might force the empress to abdicate in order to appease the rebellious forces within the country.

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