Chapter 207 It turns out he was prepared all along.
Liang An quickly arrived with the rescue team. Prefect Liang could see clearly that the members of the rescue team were indeed citizens of his Nanjiang City! Among them were three or four street bullies who usually liked to bully the weak, but now they were obediently following behind Liang An, holding torches and looking determined!
When Liang An passed Zhao Yunjing, he shouted "Lord Zhao" loudly. The rescue team members also shouted, and for a moment, the sky outside Nanjiang City was filled with the sound of "Lord Zhao". As for Prefect Liang and the dozen or so local officials, it was unclear whether it was because it was too dark to see them or what, but not a single citizen called out to them!
This was a huge blow to Prefect Liang.
He considered himself a good official.
He often goes to the village to find out if the villagers have any difficulties. When he encounters injustice on the street, he will stand up for the people and punish the wicked. He also takes the cases reported to the yamen seriously and assigns people to handle them.
Moreover, he had lived in Nanjiang City for fifteen years, yet his mansion was only slightly larger than that of ordinary people, and he only had five or six servants. This level of status was not even comparable to that of ordinary wealthy people.
He was probably the most honest prefect in the history of Nanjiang City, but why didn't the people accept him?
It must be Zhao Yunjing who uses witchcraft! Otherwise, how could these people listen to him?
Zhao Yunjing went straight back to his residence. He had just changed his clothes when he came out and saw Prefect Liang. He frowned and asked, "Why is Prefect Liang here instead of going home?"
Prefect Liang gritted his teeth and decided to go all out: "Please have Lord Zhao write a letter, and I will personally deliver it to the Jiangbei camp."
That expression made it seem like he was about to be put on a dangerous spree.
Xie Jiang chuckled, "No need, Lord Liang. General Jiang's men are already on their way. Lord Liang, I saw you fall seventeen or eighteen times today. Were you frightened? I'm sorry to have troubled you. My lord, it's already past midnight. You should go home and rest."
Lord Liang looked incredulous: "General Jiang is already on his way? How is that possible?! Lord Zhao hasn't even written a letter yet!"
Xie Jiang clicked his tongue: "Some people, even if others have pointed out the way for them and assigned them tasks, they still don't know how to do them. They're afraid of everything. But our Lord Zhao sent someone to Jiangnan Camp for help before he left today. Now, seven hours have passed, and General Jiang's men have probably already started the rescue from there. He didn't tell you beforehand because he wanted to see what rank you were. Now it seems, ha!"
Lord Liang, realizing he had overlooked the last part, stammered, "General Jiang is a difficult man to deal with. Eight out of ten times when I encounter him, he insults me. Although Lord Zhao is a top scholar, he is only a sixth-rank official, lower than me. General Jiang is arrogant and doesn't think he'll send troops just because he received a letter from Lord Zhao..."
"It's not that General Jiang is arrogant," Xie Jiang laughed. "It's that you, Lord Liang, are simply not good enough for General Jiang. And you might ask why General Jiang looks down on you? Because you, Lord Liang, are too spineless!"
Prefect Liang's expression changed, and a fire was burning inside him: "Please watch your words, Your Highness! Although I am only a sixth-rank official, I am a proper scholar and an official appointed by the court. You can insult me however you want, but I am still wearing this official robe. If you insult me, you are insulting all the officials of the Great Liang!"
"Come on, you're really breathing heavily now that I told you so!"
Xie Jiang said, "If Lord Liang doesn't want to be dismissed after the disaster, there are two things you can do right now. First, find the fifteen resettlement sites overnight, following the directions given to you by our Lord Zhao. Second, send people overnight to evacuate all the people near Xiaoniang Mountain. Be quick, because our lord will blow up the mountain before sunset tomorrow!"
Prefect Liang gasped for breath. Explode? They really wanted to blow up the mountain?
"If you can't do either of these two things, then Lord Zhao has the right to strip you of your official robes and hang you on the city wall for all the people of Nanjiang City to see how incompetent their prefect is!"
"Your Highness, he... he can't—"
Xie Jiang interrupted: "By imperial decree, wherever Zhao Yunjing goes, all officials appointed by the court, regardless of rank, must obey Zhao Yunjing's orders. Anyone who disobeys will be executed by Zhao Yunjing without prior notification!"
Execute first, then report later!
This is a privilege reserved for imperial envoys throughout history! The Emperor truly values Zhao Yunjing so highly!
Prefect Liang's face flushed red and then turned pale, while the group of officials behind him were so frightened that they could hardly stand, their minds buzzing.
"My lord," a junior official beside Prefect Liang tugged at his sleeve, "I think we can still give it a try. Even if we don't do these two things well in the end, it's better than doing nothing, isn't it?"
A thousand thoughts flashed through Prefect Liang's mind, and he even had murderous intent, but he suppressed it as soon as it arose. He bowed to Zhao Yunjing and said, "We are willing to obey Lord Zhao's orders! We will definitely work together with Lord Zhao to fight the disaster!"
Zhao Yunjing then spoke up: "Lord Liang, you've worked hard. Thank you, Jiang. Let's see Lord Liang off."
Xie Jiang made a move to leave, saying, "Lord Liang, please~~"
How could Lord Liang dare to actually let Xie Jiang deliver it?
The group of people were clearly exhausted, but they ran faster than rabbits and disappeared in no time.
He Jiu leaned closer and asked Zhao Yunjing, "Brother Zhao, can you really strip someone else of their official robes?"
"cannot."
"Then Young Master Xie—oh, Young Master Xie is talking nonsense!" He Jiu realized what was happening and became worried. "If Lord Liang finds out that the young master is talking nonsense, will he still do his job properly? No, I have to take some men to keep an eye on him!"
"Come back."
Zhao Yunjing said gently, "Prefect Liang is not a bad person, he's just a bit lazy. He also wants to speak up for the people. Xie Jiang's words just now sounded like a threat, but they actually gave him a way out. That way, even if he does something wrong in the future, he can blame it all on us because we forced him to do it."
He Jiu jumped up: "When the disaster is under control and the people are resettled, he will get the credit! He will get all the credit, but we will have to take the blame for the mistakes. This Prefect Liang is not a bad person, but he is a villain!"
Zhao Yunjing laughed: "There are ways to use petty people and lazy people. You can't use normal methods to deal with someone like Prefect Liang. Prince Xie is very experienced in this regard."
Xie Jiang blushed when he was suddenly praised.
Despite being a prince, Song Chengyu didn't receive any praise. He was seething with anger and thought to himself that he must show everyone his prowess tomorrow and earn Zhao Yunjing's praise!
"Your Highnesses have worked hard today, and everyone else has also worked hard. Go back and rest for half the night, and continue early tomorrow morning."
"Lord Zhao, you should get some rest too, don't overwork yourself. General Jiang's men have arrived, and Prefect Liang has also mobilized. This disaster will surely be brought under control soon!"
"Okay, I'll take a shower, eat something, and then go to sleep."
He said he would take a shower and then go to sleep, but he ended up sitting under the lamp anyway.
Soon after, Hu Peiran and He Jiu also arrived.
Zhao Yunjing raised an eyebrow: "What brings you here?"
“Brother Zhao, why aren’t you asleep? That’s why we’re here.” Hu Peiran sat down opposite him with a smile. “I’ve done my research. In Nanjiang City, the rainy season usually lasts at least three days. This is only the first day. Tomorrow and the day after, I’m afraid the rain will be even heavier and more destructive…”
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