The Jiangnan region is characterized by a mix of low mountains, basins, and hills. When floods breached the dikes, they were unstoppable and wreaked havoc once again. Although not as fierce as the first time, it still claimed many lives.
The 300,000 catties of disaster relief grain that the imperial court had just transported were also submerged in the flood, with only a portion remaining.
If all the disaster relief grain had been kept in one place, it would have been fine. But since it was distributed, the grain was scattered and washed away by the water, so it could not be retrieved.
The crops that had just been salvaged were on the verge of reviving when they were hit by another flood. Many people, though not swept away by the flood, knelt before their small plots of land and wept bitterly.
No harvest in autumn, how to feed the family, how to get through the winter...
The beauty of a country only exists in books. If a country were so easy to govern, there would be no changes of dynasties and no incompetent rulers.
As the saying goes, misfortunes never come singly, and a delayed boat encounters a headwind. Upon returning to Jiangnan Prefecture, Zhao Shu was stunned.
In front of the Jiangnan Prefectural Government Office, a dense crowd of people, some holding hoes, some holding sickles, and some holding kitchen knives, surrounded several old men, each of whom held a piece of black iron.
Xuan Tie was held high, and the leader demanded, "Please, Crown Prince, come out and give an explanation!"
"We beg Your Majesty to punish the Crown Prince!"
"The Crown Prince is a demon reincarnated!"
"The Crown Prince will kill us all!"
These lines, which seemed to have come from who-knows-where, made the Crown Prince tremble. The people he had dedicated his life to building a peaceful and prosperous world for were now calling him a monster!
What does all that hard work amount to?
Why give up so much, even almost losing your life, for this?
“You…” Zhao Shu was about to comfort the Crown Prince when he pushed aside the guards and deliberately exposed himself to the public.
"I am the Crown Prince you speak of." As soon as he finished speaking, all sound ceased, except for the sound of the hot wind blowing in his face and the leaves of the trees on the street rustling in the wind.
Since the Crown Prince arrived in Jiangnan, he has personally supervised the flood control efforts. Sometimes he even digs mud and moves stones just like the common people, and eats with them and the soldiers. He never puts on airs as the Crown Prince.
Some of the people gathered in front of the Jiangnan government office had seen the Crown Prince before. They were moved by his virtue. What a wonderful Crown Prince! He personally dug mud and moved stones without complaining or fearing hardship. His brocade Crown Prince robes were covered in mud, but he didn't care at all.
But at this moment, the iron block in the old man's hand clearly and plainly stated that the Crown Prince was a demon reincarnated, and his purpose was to turn the human world into hell! To leave the fields littered with bones, he came to take their lives.
Faced with fear, whether others would be wronged was no longer important. The raging floods and the rampant plague had killed the prince, which had become a straw in the turbulent waves. They only wanted to survive, so the virtues they once thought were virtuous and the words of praise they had uttered when they were moved were long forgotten.
After the flood, there will be famine and plague. They have no choice but to believe in the gods in the sky, the bodhisattvas in the temples, and the rumors about gods and ghosts. They don't know what to believe in or what can save them from their suffering.
So don't tell them that traitors will be beheaded, or that the imperial authority is inviolable. Since they're going to die anyway, why not take a gamble?
After a brief silence, the entrance to the government office was instantly filled with shouts and angry curses.
"Give me back my son! Give me back my son!" An old woman was the first to attack, digging at the crown prince with a hoe in her hand. The imperial guards around her knew that the crown prince would not harm a commoner, so they took the blow for him.
The Crown Prince ignored the old woman and pulled the Imperial Guards aside. "Not harming the common people is a principle, but you did nothing wrong. You don't have to take their beating. Next time you encounter something like this, don't suffer it."
"Your Highness, I am willing to suffer for you. No matter what others say about you, in my heart you are a good Crown Prince." He was just an ordinary soldier who often protected the princes and princesses when they went out. He was not naive. He could see clearly that the Crown Prince was different from others.
Although he has only lived for over thirty years, he joined the army at the age of seventeen or eighteen and was later selected as a member of the Imperial Guard. He made a living on the edge of a knife. Over the past ten years, he has gotten to know several palace maids and eunuchs and knows some secrets that cannot be passed on. This time, he is protecting the Crown Prince to come to Jiangnan. Whether his love for the people is genuine or not, there is no need to test it.
He felt sorry for the Crown Prince!
"You wicked lackey! Die, die!" The old woman swung her hoe and continued digging. This time, the Imperial Guard dodged and did not take the blow head-on. At the same time, he protected the Crown Prince behind him.
Upon hearing this, Zhao Shu sneered. The lines were clearly pre-designed, nonsensical, yet each one was piercing to the heart.
However, since the Crown Prince had chosen to step forward, he must have had some plans. She did not get out of the carriage, but listened quietly.
The prince, protected by soldiers, was no longer a child. His shattered confidence was temporarily suppressed. He mustered his spirits and tried his best to appear extremely calm, as if everything was under his control.
"Everyone thinks that I brought the flood and that the plague is my fault. So I ask you, if I have such power, why do I still want to harm you? What do you have? You have neither money nor beauty. Why should I make things difficult for you?" He wanted to reason with them and did not want to order a bloodbath, nor could he order one. He could only reason with them.
A country is only a country if its people are involved.
However, while he tried to reason with others, they didn't see it that way. Someone in the crowd shouted, "You are a demon, so naturally you're going to suck our souls away!"
"Yes, yes, so many people have died, you monster! Give me back my son's life!" someone immediately echoed.
The tales of gods and ghosts have a long history. What is the imperial authority compared to these myths?
Provoked again, a large number of people immediately raised their hands and angrily denounced the crown prince, as if they were mortal enemies, shouting, "Burn the demon! Burn the demon!"
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