Xuanyuan Zhan glanced at the uneasy officials again and raised his voice once more: "And officials from the North, if they have also committed any evil deeds, or if you have suffered oppression at their hands, you can all report it. This man beside me is the Marquis of Dingping. From now on, he will be in charge of reporting officials or these bandits. You can come to him with any grievances. Just like those bandits, if these officials have committed any heinous acts, I will punish them as I should, and I will never protect them!"
Xuanyuan Zhan's words deeply moved the people.
"Thank you, Your Highness!"
"Your Highness, you are truly wise!"
"Your Highness is wonderful! Now that Your Highness has arrived in the North, we have a chance to survive again!"
This was the first time the people of the North had encountered such a good official, and he was even a prince!
These low-ranking officials still act arrogantly and dismissively towards them all day long. Even if they have any grievances and complain to them, these officials will protect each other.
Who would have thought that someone in such a high position and with such power would stand up for ordinary people like them and think so thoughtfully about their needs!
Such a good prince must have been someone they'd been blessed with for many lifetimes!
Xuanyuan Zhan didn't think he had done anything particularly remarkable. He just felt that since he had come to the North, he couldn't just do disaster relief and bandit suppression.
He also needs to clean up this chaotic officialdom, otherwise even if they survive this drought, the people of the north will still be living in misery!
Xuanyuan Zhan looked at the officials and said, “If you have done any evil deeds, you can come to Marquis Dingping to surrender yourselves. Those who surrender themselves will be given a lighter punishment if the circumstances are minor. If the circumstances are more serious, the punishment will also be reduced. If you have done evil deeds and concealed them, and the people report them to you, then once it is verified, you will no longer be eligible for a reduced sentence.”
Xuan Yuanzhan's words sent chills down the spines of those officials who had done wrong.
They had a feeling that this time they were really finished.
Chen Chuan's body was still lying there. Thinking about Chen Chuan's fate, they panicked even more, and some were already thinking about turning themselves in.
Of course, some people were thinking about how to cover it up.
As Xuan Yuanzhan spoke, he glanced at the bandits again: "You're the same; you reported it yourselves. Based on your crimes, your sentences can be reduced. This is your only chance for a reduced sentence!"
The bandits lowered their heads and began to think about surrendering themselves.
After dealing with the bandits and officials, Xuanyuan Zhan looked at the people and said, "This time, I came to the North on the Emperor's orders, not only to suppress bandits but also to provide disaster relief. Our North has suffered from drought for many years and is severely short of water, which affects the growth of rice and crops. This year's severe drought has caused everyone to lose their entire harvest, leading to famine throughout the North. Many people in the North have fled elsewhere because they have no food, but those who are unable to flee and cannot bear to leave their families have no choice but to remain in the North as refugees."
Xuanyuan Zhan's words resonated deeply with the people of the North. They were all heartbroken and wept as they knelt down, their eyes red with tears, and shouted.
"The northern region is suffering from a severe drought, and our harvest has failed completely. We truly have no way to survive!"
"We really can't find anything to eat. We've eaten everything edible, even dug up tree bark and grass roots. We're starving to death. Please, Your Highness, save us."
"Your Highness, please have mercy and save us!"
When the drought and famine were mentioned, the people became excited again and all knelt down to kowtow to Xuanyuan Zhan.
Xuanyuan Zhan understood them well and gestured for them to be quiet: "Please calm down, everyone. We are already working on a solution to the drought in the north. You may not know that my fief is in Xiangnan, which is located at the southernmost tip of Eastern Chu, completely opposite to our north. Xiangnan is rainy and has many rivers and lakes, so it often suffers from floods. I came to Xiangnan when I was seven years old and it took me three to five years to control the floods there. The solution I came up with at that time was to divert water from the south to the north. Seven or eight years ago, I started working on this, digging canals from Xiangnan towards the north to divert the excess water from the south. This would solve both the floods in the south and the drought in the north, killing two birds with one stone."
Xuanyuan Zhan's words instantly stirred up the crowd again.
"Would it really work to bring water from the south to the north?"
"I think this is a great idea. The south is flooded, while we in the north are suffering from drought. They have too much water, while we don't. If we divert the water from the south to the north, then we won't be affected by the disasters, right?"
"Yes, Your Highness's idea is excellent. If we can really bring the water from the south to our northern lands, our northern lands will be saved. With the water from the south, our crops in the north can survive, and we will never have to go hungry again!"
"That's great! Does that mean our drought is over and we don't have to flee anymore?"
Many people originally did not want to stay in the North. Even if this famine can be resolved, the North is short of water and will suffer from droughts frequently in the future. No one knows if there will be another major drought.
But if the water shortage problem in the North is solved, then they really won't need to move.
If there were any other way, who would want to leave their hometown? After all, this is the place where they were born and raised!
Not only were the common people happy, but even bandits like Zhang Debiao and Bai Ying were delighted by the news.
If Your Highness can truly cure the drought in their northern lands, that would be wonderful.
Many of them turned to banditry because they had no food to eat. If there were any other way, who would be willing to risk their life like this?
Zhang Debiao and Bai Ying all looked at Xuan Yuanzhan with eyes full of admiration.
This person is really amazing. He was only seven years old when he went to his fiefdom in Xiangnan. At that time, he was just a child, yet he was able to successfully manage the floods in Xiangnan and even came up with the idea of diverting water from the south to the north in advance.
This is a solution that even the ministers of Eastern Chu probably couldn't have come up with. If they had a solution, they would have already solved the floods in Xiangnan and the droughts in the north.
The Holy King Xuanyuan Zhan is indeed a man of great talent!
The people were discussing it enthusiastically, and someone excitedly asked Xuanyuan Zhan, "Your Highness, according to you, when will the water from the south reach our north?"
Xuanyuan Zhan raised his hand again to signal everyone to be quiet: "Xiangnan is at the southernmost tip of Eastern Chu, while Beidi is at the northernmost tip of Eastern Chu. The two places are thousands of miles apart. Even though I started working on the South-to-North Water Diversion Project seven or eight years ago, the project of digging canals and building roads is huge. Therefore, it will take about two more years for the water from the south to be truly brought to the north!"
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