Zhao Shouzheng has already reported to all the departments and is only waiting to be received by the governor before he can go to Suzhou City to meet the bigwigs in the government.

Normally, once a visiting card is delivered to the governor's office, it would take at least five to seven days for the person to be summoned.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he returned home that day, Fan Datong, who stayed behind, reported that someone from the governor's office had come today and ordered Zhao Shouzheng to meet him early the next morning.

"I was planning to go to Qinhuai River for some fun after taking a bath, but now I don't have time to go." Xu Wei sighed regretfully after hearing this: "Hurry up and pack up and get ready to take up your post."

The reason was simple. He was summoned just one day after he submitted his invitation. It was obvious that the governor had skipped other applicants to see him in advance.

They were not related to each other, and the governor of Yingtian did not have to consider anyone's face, so he would naturally order them to do something urgent.

At this juncture, it can almost be asserted that it is because the flood situation has worsened.

"Don't sleep tonight." Xu Wei said to Zhao Shouzheng, "Get ready, there will be a big test tomorrow. I heard that the current governor is Lin Run, who is a man who can't tolerate any sand in his eyes and will not tolerate the slightest ambiguity!"

"Ah, so scary?" Zhao Shouzheng took a breath.

"Boss, Xu Wenchang is not exaggerating." Wu Chengen also advised from the side: "Lin Zhongcheng is different from ordinary frontier officials. He is a ruthless character. In the past, Yan Shifan, Yan Maoqing, Luo Longwen... half of the Yan party fell into his hands. Moreover, he is well versed in government affairs and is very smart. If you don't prepare well, he can really take off your official hat and let you not have to take office."

"Then please help me," Zhao Hao said seriously, "Practice with my father in advance.

"It is my duty." Wu Cheng'en responded to his requests for a bright light.

Xu Wei had no choice but to agree reluctantly.

~~

The next day it was still cloudy and rainy.

Zhao Shouzheng dressed neatly and took a sedan chair to the Yingtian Governor's Office on West Chang'an Street.

On the large square in front of the government office, there was a blue banner about 30 to 40 feet high with a banner and a line of golden characters written on it:

'Imperially appointed as the Minister of Grain Reserves, Commander in Chief of Military Affairs and Governor of the Ten Prefectures of Yingtian'!

The Yingtian Governor not only had jurisdiction over Yingtian Prefecture, but also the military and political affairs of nine prefectures in the south of the Yangtze River, including Suzhou, Songjiang, Changzhou and Zhenjiang, so he was also called the "Governor of Jiangnan".

Its jurisdiction was the most prosperous and wealthy area of ​​the Ming Dynasty, and its taxes accounted for one-third of the country's total, so the Yingtian Governor was truly the "No. 1 Governor in the World."

In front of the eight-character wall of the governor's gate, a pair of stone lions show off their power.

Behind the tightly closed gate, sixteen of the governor's personal guards, armed with swords and wearing bamboo hats and raincoats, stood motionless in the heavy rain.

Zhao Shouzheng got off the sedan chair early and asked Fang Wen to report quickly. He followed behind with an umbrella.

The two men waited in the rain for another cup of tea before a gatekeeper came out and asked the guards to open the gate and let Zhao Shouzheng in.

Zhao Shouzheng quickly followed the doorman without looking away, along the corridor, through the main hall, the second hall and the third hall, and came to the signing room of the governor.

The attendant outside the signing room went in to report, and soon let Zhao Shouzheng in.

Mr. Zhao went into the bond signing room. He did not dare to look around and quickly paid great tribute to the governor.

"Zhao Zhixian, please don't be polite." A young voice sounded. "Please take a seat."

Zhao Shouzheng hurriedly thanked the governor, half-rested his butt on the official hat chair against the wall, and then sat upright.

Only then did he dare to look at the young and over-the-top governor.

Oh my god, so handsome...

Mr. Zhao thought he looked pretty good, with fair skin, thick eyebrows, big eyes, a nice nose and mouth, and he didn't look old.

But compared with this governor who was wearing the official robes of the third rank, he immediately looked pale and dim.

This governor looks exactly like a human being - his facial features are clearly defined, his eyebrows are sharp, his eyes are bright, his spirit is as handsome as jade, and he is handsome and extraordinary.

Two lines of poetry suddenly popped up in Mr. Zhao's mind:

'The piled stones are like jade, and the rows of pines are like emerald green. Lang Yan is unique and there is no other like him in the world.'

If it weren't for the gray hair on his temples, no one would doubt that this governor was twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old.

But it was precisely those two streaks of white hair that gave him the majestic bearing of a high-ranking official, making people dare not look at him closely.

~~

This governor, whose surname is Lin, whose given name is Run and whose courtesy name is Ruoyu, is indeed not very old, only 38 years old.

Lin Run is only two years older than Zhao Shouzheng, and he has already become the governor of Jiangnan, while Mr. Zhao has just passed the imperial examination... and he did so by cheating.

"Why is there such a huge gap between people?" Mr. Zhao thought to himself, feeling ashamed of himself.

"County Magistrate Zhao should have figured out why our court wants to see you in advance?" At this time, Lin Run spoke, his voice was very pleasant, gentle, steady and smooth.

"Yes." Zhao Shouzheng replied hurriedly: "This humble official is just speculating. Due to the continuous rainfall, the water level of Taihu Lake has been rising again and again, and the flood situation has become more serious."

"Yes, the latest horse racing news this morning is that the water level on the south bank of Taihu Lake has exceeded the previous year by two feet." Lin Run said solemnly: "The water levels of Dianshan Lake and Cheng Lake have also exceeded the warning line."

The lower reaches of Taihu Lake are not only a major tax collection area in China, but also the most severely affected area by floods. A set of means for strict monitoring and rapid transmission of flood information has long been established.

Carrier pigeons were the fastest means of delivery, but the heavy rains made it impossible to send messages by pigeon. They could only make use of the post system throughout the south of the Yangtze River, changing horses but not people, and reporting flood conditions by traveling 600 miles a day.

The flood information sent from Suzhou could be sent to the governor's office in Nanjing the next day.

Zhao Shouzheng's heart tightened when he heard this. "So fast? I heard it rose by one foot just the day before yesterday."

"Yes, the water level has risen beyond expectations." Lin Run nodded and asked in a deep voice, "Do you know what this means?"

Zhao Shouzheng knew that the test from the governor had begun. He quickly cheered up and reported:

"It means... half of Kunshan is already submerged in water."

"Which half of Kunshan?"

"South of the Wusong River. Although Kunshan's terrain is high in the south and low in the north, the Dianshan Lake and Cheng Lake in the south of the county have been severely reclaimed and have lost their storage function. As long as the water level exceeds the warning level, waterlogging will occur."

Fortunately, he took advantage of the time to prepare for the exam last night - Xu Wei listed sixteen questions that Lin Run might ask, and he and Wu Cheng'en helped him answer them one by one, and then Mr. Zhao memorized them by rote.

"The water overflowed the lake, flowing from south to north, until it submerged all the southern counties and then merged into the Wusong River." At this time, he answered fluently by reciting the script.

"This has greatly increased the burden on the Wusong River - it is the main channel for Taihu Lake to flow into the Yangtze River. Adding pressure from the south bank, the risk of dam breaching has been greatly increased."

"To make matters worse, the drainage of the lower reaches of the Wusong River is not smooth and the flood cannot be discharged in time." Zhao Shouzheng raised his head and looked at the governor worriedly.

"There is pressure from the upper reaches, stagnation from the lower reaches, and crowding in the middle. This is why Kunshan County repairs its dikes every year, but they still break every year."

"Good!" After hearing what Mr. Zhao said, Lin Run's stern expression finally relaxed. He nodded in appreciation and said, "Zhao Zhixian has put in a lot of effort. It's better than I imagined."

P.S. I took a nap and a walk yesterday, and wrote these two chapters at night. But I have recovered my spirits, so you will see three more chapters today!!