Zhao Jie nodded quickly, "Don't worry, sir. I will make sure to thoroughly inventory all the supplies in the yamen and make sure no one with ill intentions takes advantage of the situation."
If it weren't for Lord Lu's reform of the Ministry of Works, he would still be a lowly official in the Ministry of Works, suppressed by those people with no chance of advancement.
My promotion is now thanks to Lord Lu.
Upon hearing that Lord Lu was coming to Qingnan for disaster relief, he immediately gave his name without hesitation.
This was the first time an adult had asked him to do something, so naturally he wanted to do it well.
Thinking it over, he quickly said, "My lord, how about this? I'll send someone into the city to ask the people there, so we can find out how Lord Zhou handled the floods in the past."
Now, the area outside Yuncheng Prefecture is ravaged by floods. In addition to settling the disaster victims, they also need to put post-disaster reconstruction on the agenda.
At the very least, we must prevent Qingnan from suffering from floods again next year.
It was necessary to know what had happened in previous years. Since the constables in the yamen did not know, he went to ask the people in the city.
Surely not a single one of these tens of thousands of ordinary people would be unaware of this.
Jiang Yimian hesitated upon hearing this, realizing that even the guards at the city gate were unaware of the flood, let alone the common people, and she probably wouldn't be able to get any information out of them.
Seeing that she seemed to have something to say, Lu Cijian simply asked, "What's wrong? Do you know something?"
Zhao Jie also looked at her.
Jiang Yimian thought for a while before telling him what she had heard from the soldiers guarding the city yesterday, and also mentioned the matter of the Princess.
Upon hearing this, both Lu Cijian and Zhao Jie fell silent.
After a long while, Zhao Jiecai said with a look of panic, "The Princess hasn't arrived in Qingnan yet. Could it be that something happened on the way?"
The eldest princess should have arrived in Qingnan sooner than them, so how could she not have arrived yet?
Lu Cijian frowned as well. He had been so focused on dealing with Zhou Shiwen that he had forgotten about the Princess.
If they haven't arrived in Qingnan after more than half a month, something must have happened.
With no news of General Wei and Xie Yu nowhere to be found, this trip to Qingnan will likely not be easy.
Thinking it over, he quickly said, "Call Zhou Shiwen over, I have some questions to ask him."
Zhao Jie quickly agreed and immediately ordered someone to go to the Zhou residence to fetch someone.
Half an hour later, in the front hall of the yamen.
Lu Cijian toyed with the cup in his hand, and as he listened to Chen Tongzhi's words, a cold smile appeared on his lips.
Chen Tongzhi glanced at the person in the main seat, unconsciously swallowed, and after a while continued, "Sir, Lord Zhou said that Young Master Zhou is seriously injured and will be taking care of his son at his residence today, so he cannot come to the yamen for the time being."
If he had known that the heir of the Marquis of Anding would be coming today, he would have settled everything with Zhou Shiwen last night, instead of waiting until this morning.
Not only did they fail to accomplish anything, they also offended Lord Lu.
Unfortunately, Zhou Shiwen still dares to show disrespect to Lord Lu, leaving him to deal with this mess.
He really is an unlucky guy.
Lu Cijian glanced at him, his expression indifferent, "Considering Lord Zhou's deep love for his son, I will grant him a half-month leave. He doesn't need to come to the yamen for the time being."
Zhou Shiwen's plan to regain face with him has failed.
Since this person doesn't want to come to the yamen, then he doesn't need to come anymore, so as not to ruin his business.
Listening to the other party's feigned sympathy is pointless, so I might as well just ignore it.
Chen Tongzhi was taken aback, clearly not expecting Lu Cijian to say such a thing, and was so shocked that he dared not speak for a moment.
On the surface, this is supposed to be a holiday, but isn't it actually a direct way of taking away Lord Zhou's power?
Previously, Lord Zhou could assist Qingnan in his affairs, but now he can't even get involved.
The situation is already quite complicated. If Lord Zhou cannot intervene in the disaster relief efforts in Qingnan, things will likely become even more troublesome.
I had long heard that the heir of the Marquis of Anding was decisive and had extraordinary methods, but now that I have seen him with my own eyes, I realize that those words are just too kind of flattery.
Despite her seemingly indifferent expression, every word she utters is one that has them firmly in her grasp, gradually controlling them.
Thinking it over, he quickly explained, "My lord, please give Lord Zhou a chance. Lord Zhou is only worried about Young Master Zhou and has no intention of neglecting his duties. He also cares about the people of Qingnan."
These days I spend day and night in my study trying to do something for the people of Qingnan, but I can't seem to do anything.
"I implore Your Honor, considering Lord Zhou's dedication to the people, not to strip him of his authority in the yamen."
Lu Cijian glanced at him, twitched his lips, and asked in confusion, "What does Chen Tongzhi mean by this? I am only giving Lord Zhou a leave of absence. How can you say that I am depriving him of his rights?"
"Prefect Chen is slandering me!"
Terrified, Chen Tongzhi immediately knelt on the ground and explained, "My lord, that's not what I meant, it's just..."
Lu Cijian waved his hand, too lazy to listen to his nonsense anymore, and said only: "I know that Lord Zhou is wholeheartedly for the people, but the flood in Qingnan is severe, and now that Young Master Zhou is injured, I am afraid that Lord Zhou will harm his health. For the time being, you should stay at home and take care of Young Master Zhou."
Before Chen Tongzhi could speak, Lu Cijian gave him a cold glance, which immediately made him shut his mouth in fear.
Lu Cijian glanced at everyone in the room, and seeing that most of the officials from the yamen were present, he continued, "Prefect Chen, I ask you, since the flood, how many people have gone missing outside the city, how many have been injured, and where are they now?"
Chen Tongzhi glanced cautiously at the person in the main seat before pondering, "Sir, you may not know this, but those people have all fled in all directions and do not want to be discovered by the soldiers."
They were very wary of the officials in the government office, and our people couldn't easily get close.
Officials from other government offices immediately chimed in, "That's right, sir. You have no idea how outrageous those troublemakers are. They're really not easy to mess with."
We tried our best to help, but they didn't appreciate it.
Jiang Yimian frowned and said, "If that's the case, then how come the government's warehouse is empty? How do you usually deliver supplies to those disaster victims?"
Prefect Chen choked. What else could he do but send supplies? Of course, he wouldn't send any. He would only occasionally throw out some moldy grain every ten days or so, as long as those troublemakers didn't all die.
For so many years, they have been left to fend for themselves. As soon as the flood starts, Yuncheng Prefecture will close the city gates, so those people will have no chance of entering the city.
Despite this thought, he still said, "Naturally, we should leave the supplies in places that haven't been flooded, and those people can retrieve them themselves."
Rest assured, sir. Although those unruly people are despicable, Lord Zhou still diligently and responsibly distributed the supplies, ensuring they did not starve.
We are all very good at handling these things, so the adults don't need to worry about the safety of the disaster victims.
"Gentlemen, you must be tired after traveling for so long. Why don't you rest well today and discuss these matters tomorrow morning?"
These people appeared too suddenly, and he hadn't made many preparations yet. Right now, he should try to buy as much time as possible.
Lord Zhou cannot interfere in the affairs of the yamen now. He must first stall these people and at least discuss the follow-up matters with Lord Zhou.
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