He ran away, and those he left behind panicked, not knowing what to do.
They couldn't forge the prefect's order to open the city gates, since the prefect had taken his seal with him!
Fortunately, there was a well in the prefectural government office that provided them with water and water, which allowed them to manage to survive until now.
Chengcheng frowned deeply after hearing this.
"From this day forward, open the government office and distribute water!"
"No! That well doesn't have much water left, it's almost empty! It's just enough for a few of us to eat and drink!" the constable shouted.
Cheng Cheng drew his longsword, and the constable's throat was slit instantly, blood gushing out. The constables watching froze on the spot, too afraid to move.
"What do we do now?" The other Imperial Guards looked at Chengcheng.
To be honest, they were all scions of powerful families and looked down on Chengcheng, who had risen from humble beginnings. But when it came to disaster relief, just as Chengcheng had told them before he arrived, if they listened to him, he would take responsibility if anything went wrong; if they didn't listen to him, he would kill them first and then plead guilty to the Emperor. He believed the Emperor would understand that he was acting expediently in an emergency.
The group of thirty-odd people were intimidated by Cheng Cheng's ruthlessness and immediately gave up their desire to challenge him.
He was right about one thing: if things went wrong, he would take the blame; if things went well, everyone would get a reward.
"Stay temporarily at the prefectural government office and wait for the disaster relief regulations to be issued," Cheng Cheng said coldly. "Close the city gates. If any people want to leave the city, only a hundred people are allowed to go out each day."
He went to the well again and saw that, just as the yamen runner had said, the water bucket rope had been lowered to the bottom before the sound of water could be heard.
"Porridge will be distributed at the entrance of the government office in the evening, and each person can only receive it once a day based on their household registration."
"How many days can this last?" His colleagues were incredulous, feeling that they would be devoured alive by the disaster victims before the imperial relief grain arrived.
"Old Xu, take two men and bring back the head of the prefect of Yunzhou!" Cheng Cheng ordered.
Old Xu, whose name was called, turned and left with the two men.
When the yamen runners heard that they dared to kill even the prefect, they dared not say a word and could only obey orders.
The imperial court's disaster relief plan was quickly and swiftly sent to several prefectures surrounding Yunzhou. By the time it reached these prefectures, their capitals were already filled with refugees from Yunzhou.
Those who were able to come out were those who still had some water and food at home; those who couldn't come out had nothing left and no strength left.
There was no shortage of grain in Yunzhou's granaries, and each household had some leftover rice, but there was no water. How could they process the grain?
Fortunately, Bai Sanyuan and a few others were selling water. Chengcheng led people to take over their water supply and distributed porridge at the entrance of the prefectural government office every day, quickly gathering all the surviving people in Yunzhou City together in one place.
"Let's just hold on for one day at a time. The most important thing is that the imperial court is willing to go to the trouble of digging ditches to bring water to Yunzhou."
Bai Sanyuan handed the water to Chengcheng today, which was part of their plan.
"You've worked hard," Chengcheng said softly.
Transporting water every day is no easy task; countless people are constantly on the road. It's fortunate that the Peng family is backing them up; otherwise, the men Bai Sanyuan hired to cover for them wouldn't have been able to ensure a continuous water supply.
"You too." Bai Sanyuan handed over the water and drove the oxcart away.
One of the Imperial Guards stared at Bai Sanyuan's back for a few moments, then casually asked Chengcheng, "Do you know him?"
Chengcheng glanced at him. "We've been dealing with each other for several days now, how can you say we don't know each other?"
The ambiguous answer made the imperial guard awkwardly twitch his lips. "I just think this guy is pretty strange. He actually thought of selling water, and not only that, but for just a few coins. I wonder if he can even make a profit by going through all that trouble to transport water and selling it so cheaply. Is he doing all this for disaster relief?"
Cheng Cheng stared at him with cold eyes for a long time before saying, "What's it to you? What's it to me?"
After saying that, he carried the water jar and walked towards the prefectural government office.
The imperial guard scoffed and turned to go inside. He needed to find a chance to write a letter back; this damned place was terribly short of water, even water for grinding ink was a rare treat!
However, he didn't get a chance to steal water to grind ink before someone slit his throat in his sleep that very night.
However, simply distributing porridge was a drop in the ocean; the daily amount was only enough for one-third of the city's surviving inhabitants. They had to rely on a single bowl of porridge to last three days before they could eat the next. The strong and healthy could manage, but the elderly, the frail women and children could not survive, and people died every day.
After receiving the imperial decree, the various prefectures began setting up porridge stalls along the roads leading to Yunzhou.
Upon receiving the news, people in Yunzhou City immediately began organizing them to seek refuge in various states.
Before setting off, each household was given a water bag and ten flatbreads. However, the daily water supply was very limited, and when they could leave the city depended on a lottery.
For a time, wealthy or influential families were eager to use their money and power to pressure others in order to be among the first to leave the city.
When Chengcheng learned of this, he immediately made an example of someone, killing a powerful figure to quiet the crowd down.
Everyone wants to leave early, but what happens after they leave?
Many of the soldiers in the prefecture died of thirst. How could they avoid being robbed by bandits after they went out?
Although other cities in the surrounding states also sent troops to protect them along the roadside, there were always areas they couldn't reach.
"Yunzhou City is about to become a ghost town."
Looking at the migrating people, Chengcheng murmured.
The Southern Yan King and his army were located dozens of miles away from Yunzhou. During the severe drought in Yunzhou, they did not benefit much. Just when they were racking their brains for water, it rained.
This is truly a blessing from heaven for Prince Yan!
"Your Highness, Yunzhou is almost a ghost town. Should we...?"
The Prince of Yan raised his hand to interrupt him, saying, "Now is not the time. The country is in peril. If I were to raise an army, it would be illegitimate and would only incur the hatred of the people and lose their support. You should first spread the news that 'the emperor has angered the heavens, which is why the drought has occurred.'"
Upon hearing the King of Yan's words, the subordinate's eyes lit up.
These brutes are only good at fighting; they're not smart enough to play political games.
The Prince of Yan stroked his stubble-covered chin, thinking to himself, "You, Yuwen Wuji, have been sitting in that position for long enough. It's time for me to take a turn."
Now that Yuwen Wuji's harem is in trouble, and now Heaven has sent down punishment, they can easily destroy Yuwen Wuji through propaganda alone.
The disaster relief efforts in Yunzhou were progressing in a positive direction, while at the same time, the imperial court in the capital was embroiled in a heated debate over whether or not to repair the river.
The cabinet ministers were divided into two factions. One faction believed that the project should be carried out, as it would benefit all people and be passed down for generations. The other faction believed that it should not be carried out, as it would be a waste of resources and manpower, and that large-scale construction would harm the foundation of the country. They also believed that if foreign countries invaded at this time, it would damage the country's fortunes.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com