“Waterway is not feasible,” Magistrate Qian immediately rejected.
Captain Wu had also felt that there were too many hidden dangers in the waterway, but when he heard that the magistrate disagreed, he immediately became rebellious: "Why not? I think it's a good idea."
Magistrate Qian knew, of course, that Lieutenant Wu was deliberately defying him because of the rift that had just been created in their argument. He was so angry that he blew his beard: "How are we going to travel by water? Most of the county soldiers don't know how to swim. Besides, we have no boats or rafts. The water is flooded and it's dark at night with no way out. Do I really need to explain all the reasons why we can't go through this?"
Zheng Quchi stopped Wu Xiaowei, who was about to retort, and said to the county magistrate, "Right now, the camp is busy with many things and we also have to go to the disaster area to search for survivors. We urgently need manpower. The county soldiers are already insufficient, so we don't need to use the county soldiers for this rescue. Wu Xiaowei can lead a garrison to go."
"This..." Of course, that would be good, but if he agrees, would Lieutenant Wu agree?
The county magistrate looked at Captain Wu. He thought that with Captain Wu's stubborn and eccentric temper, he would definitely not be convinced. But to his surprise, under Lord Zheng's suggestion, he didn't utter a single word.
Strange, could it be that Commandant Wu is afraid of Lord Zheng?
But Lord Zheng is a Grand Master of Crafts with no real power. To be honest, he is not as powerful as a Captain. There is no need for him to be so wary and tolerant of her.
Many things in Shengjing were not as widely known throughout the country as exaggerated. A rather obscure and unspeakable matter would not spread quickly to the county and township jurisdictions. In addition, the county magistrate was not a gossipy or meddlesome person. It was normal for him not to know about Zheng Quchi. After all, official documents would only write "Grand Master Craftsman Zheng Quchi" and would not give more substantial names such as relatives and family members.
“But the problem isn’t who can go.” Magistrate Qian thought that Lord Zheng didn’t understand the implications, so he patiently explained to her: “Lord Zheng, look at this area. This whole area has been flooded and is impossible to cross. What used to be a good road has now turned into water. We could try to take a boat, but the city has been washed away. Where would we find boats?”
“If we don’t have a boat, we can build a raft or a bamboo raft. It won’t take much work. The people I brought are all very skilled. Building a few rafts will be a piece of cake.”
Oh right, I forgot they were officials of the Imperial Workshop... No, I've never heard of officials of the Imperial Workshop doing this kind of work. Aren't they usually in charge of managing all kinds of crafts and major construction projects? Why would they personally do manual labor?
"If that's the case, then it's truly a lot of trouble for you gentlemen, but..." He first praised and then changed the subject, which was the usual rhetoric of officials who flattered their superiors while adhering to their principles: "At night, especially with the weather these past few days, it's basically pitch black. Under this vast flood, it's even harder to tell which way is which. Not to mention outsiders, even we locals who are used to this terrain will be stunned for a while. So, the waterway is really no faster than the mountain road."
Wandering aimlessly in the water without knowing the way is only delaying the dangerous situation. The magistrate must explain the key points.
“I just looked at the map. They are located in this mountain valley, right? The water level has risen on all sides, flooding the roads and filling in the low-lying areas, creating a flat water surface. We can go straight here from here, shout loudly, and once we get a response, we can determine the direction. Then we can send soldiers who can swim to bring them out one by one, and then return the way we came.”
Zheng Quchi simply gestured a few times on the map with her fingers to recount her rescue operation.
The plan is good, but please think it through.
Captain Wu finally couldn't hold back any longer and said with a troubled expression, "Lord Zheng, please don't take offense at the truth, but this waterway is completely open and deserted, with no way to find our way. Plus, it's pitch black. Even if we spend the whole night on this water, we probably still won't reach the location you specified."
"Listen to this, even someone with a brain full of stones understands this principle, but this Lord Zheng just can't think of it," Magistrate Qian complained.
"It's not difficult at all, you see..."
Zheng Quchi stepped out from under the canopy and pointed to the North Star on the horizon. Its presence was very obvious in spring, and once the sky cleared up slightly, it would hang high in the brightest spot.
When she arrived, she saw that the sky was as if it had been washed clean, with no moon to compete for brilliance, only the stars shining with their own unique charm.
"Star?" The two followed them out and looked up.
Throughout history, people have always attributed a mysterious power to the stars, using them as symbols for fortune-telling and divination. Currently, the Ye Kingdom does not have such a nominal star official, but it is said that other wealthy countries have people who are specifically in charge of this position, and their status is quite high.
"Have you ever heard of using stars to determine direction?"
In ancient times, people used the Big Dipper to determine the seasons, as evidenced by records such as "When the handle of the Big Dipper points to winter, it is spring all over the world; when the handle points to the south, it is summer all over the world; when the handle points to the west, it is autumn all over the world; when the handle points to the north, it is winter all over the world."
The county magistrate himself had also passed the imperial examinations and had studied for several decades: "I have heard of some of these things."
"That brightest star is called Beichen, or Ziwei Star (Polaris). It is located due north. Since you, Captain Wu, have become an officer, you must have studied combat command and orientation. With it pointing north in the sky, how could you not be able to identify your direction?"
Captain Wu was taken aback for a moment, but after a quick reaction, he said confidently, "Yes!"
Zheng Quchi said, "I observe that the wind is calm tonight, and with the mountains surrounding us, there is neither a risk of landslides nor any danger of surging waves. Rescue is feasible. What do you think?"
Captain Wu basically obeyed her orders without question, and only he knew the reason why.
"This humble general will immediately lead the troops there."
After clasping his hands in a fist salute, Captain Wu acted immediately without delay.
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