“Your Excellency, the reason you rewarded me is because I am a commoner, while Lord Duan is an official. Although Zhao Qianyu is only a student, his father is also an official, just like Lord Duan!”

"Oh? Since you guessed so accurately, then tell me in detail!" The prefect stroked his beard and looked at Jiang Ling with a meaningful gaze.

Jiang Ling smiled faintly and continued, "If you reward me, outsiders will think you are a good and honest official. But if you reward them, outsiders will only think that you are protecting each other and enriching yourselves!"

"How dare you!" Before Jiang Ling could finish speaking, the clerk beside the prefect immediately rebuked her.

"No problem, no problem, let her continue!" The prefect waved his hand, signaling his clerk to shut up.

Jiang Ling ignored the earlier surprise and continued, "Two years of famine have made life extremely difficult for most people, and there have even been scenes of refugee riots. If you, sirs, do not take action, the world will surely not be at peace!"

"Although Lord Duan and Zhao Qianyu have both made contributions to the management of the displaced people, the current period is indeed very sensitive. If we lose the hearts of the people because of a mere hundred taels of silver, the consequences are not what you want to see!"

"Furthermore, Lord Duan is, after all, a local official who receives a salary from the imperial court every year. Although Zhao Qianyu is a student, his father is also a student, and he has been well-off since childhood. But we farmers rely on the weather for our livelihood."

"This year and last year, two years of famine have already caused unbearable suffering. This reward of one hundred taels of silver is a complete change for us. So, I dare to speculate that the reason you rewarded me, sir, is firstly to show that you care for the people, and secondly to show that you distinguish between public and private matters! I wonder if what I say is correct?"

Jiang Ling had been speaking for a while, and even she herself felt her mouth was a little dry. When she finished speaking, there was complete silence around her, as if someone had pressed the pause button!

"Hahaha! Excellent! Jiang, you truly are an extraordinary woman!!"

After an unknown amount of time, the prefect's hearty laughter reached everyone's ears, and everyone present breathed a sigh of relief. Even the usually meticulous Lord Duan was now sweating profusely and anxiously glancing around every now and then.

"Your Excellency is too kind! I was merely stating the truth!" Hearing the prefect's laughter, Jiang Ling knew she had at least passed this hurdle and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

"Then let me ask you, Madam Jiang, what should be done if I don't reward you with this silver?" the prefect asked again.

"Your Excellency, you jest. How would I know about these things? However, I did hear Lord Duan mention some of them when I visited him!" Jiang Ling said, glancing at Magistrate Duan.

Magistrate Duan was a clever man. Upon hearing Jiang Ling's words, he walked up to the prefect, lifted his robe, knelt down, and said, "I believe that it is better to guide than to block. This principle has been used since the time of Yu the Great when he controlled the floods. These refugees are not bad by nature; they are all forced into this situation. Rather than imprisoning and torturing them, it would be better to let them rebuild their homes. And this silver can serve as their starting point!"

"Hmm? This method sounds novel. Come back with me later, and we'll study it in detail!" Upon hearing this, the prefect immediately showed an interested expression.

His gaze fell on Jiang Ling as he continued, "Since this reward has been bestowed upon you, you should take care of your subordinates. It's not easy for a woman to raise four children alone!"

"Don't refuse me! I don't want to use my official authority to intimidate you! At least for now, I'm still a good official in your hearts, right?" The prefect quickly added, as if he had expected Jiang Ling to refuse him.

Seeing this, Jiang Ling didn't say anything more, and could only nod her thanks and put away the white snowflake silver.

The prefect was about to leave when Jiang Ling spoke up again: "My lord, may I be so bold as to ask you another favor?"

"How dare you!" the clerk beside the prefect shouted impatiently.

"Master Liu, it's so hot, why are you so angry? What unreasonable demands could a common woman possibly make?" The prefect glanced at Master Liu beside him and said meaningfully.

"This... I wouldn't dare!" Upon hearing the prefect's words, Master Liu quickly lowered his head and remained silent.

"Your Excellency, I hope you will be lenient in your punishment of Lord Zhao. Zhao Qianyu's injuries were caused by saving my daughter. As parents, no one wants their child to get hurt, especially since Zhao Qianyu is the son of an official. It is understandable that Your Excellency blamed me before!"

Jiang Ling's words stunned both the prefect and Duan Kang'an. The prefect looked at Jiang Ling but said nothing, while Duan Kang'an began to have wild thoughts.

"She! She pleaded for Zhao Tianqi? Could it be that she's really fallen for Zhao Tianqi?"

"Zhao Tianqi is indeed a tiny bit better looking than me, but... I think my knowledge is far superior to his!"

"Oh dear. What should I do? The prefect is here right now, and I can't be too presumptuous..."

Before Duan Kang'an could finish his wild thoughts, the prefect nodded and said to Jiang Ling, "Alright! I agree!"

With that, Duan Kang'an left Jiang Ling's courtyard with a complicated expression.

A few minutes later, after confirming that all the troublesome guys had left, Jiang Ling breathed a sigh of relief. Just then, a few drops of refreshing liquid landed on the tip of Jiang Ling's nose.

"Oh dear! It's raining!" Before Jiang Ling could react, she heard Zhao Erleng's wife's loud voice.

"It's raining?" Jiang Ling looked up at the somewhat gloomy sky and reached out to catch the falling rain.

This seemed to be the first time she had felt rain since she came to Lujia Village.

"Mom! Don't catch a cold!" Just as Jiang Ling was staring blankly at the rain, a raincoat was draped over her shoulders, and then Jiang Yaojie's voice came from beside her.

Jiang Ling looked back and saw that Jiang Yaojie was also wearing the same raincoat. As if she had thought of something, Jiang Ling glanced at the roof of her house, cried out in alarm, and ran into the house with Jiang Yaojie.

It was raining heavily outside and drizzling inside. Jiang Suihe and Nianci, the two children, huddled helplessly in a corner, clutching their bedding. Jiang Ling felt a pang of sadness; she had been so busy with her business these past few days that she had completely forgotten about repairing the house.

Jiang Ling quickly went to the two children and said to them, "It's all my fault. I promise I'll fix the roof as soon as the rain stops!"

Fortunately, the rain didn't last long, and soon the sky cleared up. Jiang Ling looked up at the sun in the sky and told the children to hang the quilts out to dry in the yard.

Jiang Ling trudged through the mud on her own land, heading towards Zhao Erleng's house next door.

At this moment, Zhao Erleng's family was also busy preparing their own grain. When they saw Jiang Ling arrive, Zhao Erleng's wife hurriedly went over to greet her and asked, "Sister-in-law Jiang, is there anything I can help you with?"

"My roof leaks a bit, I'd like to ask..."

"Oh, I know, it's no big deal. Wait a minute, I'll call my husband!" Before Jiang Ling could finish speaking, Zhao Erleng's wife turned her head and shouted towards the backyard.

A moment later, Zhao Erleng came out from the backyard. His wife and husband exchanged a few words, and Zhao Erleng nodded. He then carried a bundle of straw to Jiang Ling's side and said, "Let's go. While it's not raining now, I'll help you fix the roof!"