Chapter 269: Urgent Letter
Xu Yangjun’s forehead began to sweat as he stammered, “I… I’ll return to the yamen to investigate. Perhaps I can find some useful information.”
Hua Zhi assumed her earlier words had frightened him and nodded gently. “Thank you, Mr. Xu. However, please be discreet. I ask that you do not speak of the people and matters here. I appreciate your discretion.”
Previously, Xu Yangjun had hesitated to accept her courtesy. Now, with suspicions forming in his mind, he was even less inclined to do so. Before Hua Zhi could react, he hastily bowed and retreated. “I understand. I’ll go investigate immediately.”
Hua Zhi paid it no mind. After finishing half a cup of tea, she looked up and said, “These measures may already be too late. If the rain continues like this, we won’t make it in time. Still, they’re not entirely useless. If we can clear and widen the seven river channels after the flood season, deepen them, and find suitable locations for reservoirs, we might secure more stability for the coming year.”
Shaoyao frowned. “If we mobilize everyone’s efforts, we might still catch up.”
“Has Xiangyang’s corvée been conscripted this year?”
Xie Xu quickly replied, “Not yet. In previous years, corvée labor was usually conscripted in the latter half of the year, after the busy farming season and before winter.”
That was fortunate. She did not want her suggestions to burden the common people with additional corvée, even if she stood to gain nothing from it.
“This is all I can think of. The rest is beyond my control. How you proceed and to what extent is your decision to make.”
Seeing Hua Hua about to leave, Shaoyao seized the opportunity without giving her a chance to refuse. She took her pulse and, after a moment, said, “Rest properly for a couple of days. Don’t overexert yourself. Bao Xia, prepare some nourishing food for Hua Hua. Also, continue with the Medicinal Cuisine from before. Keep an eye on whether she develops a fever. If she does, inform me immediately. As long as I’m home, I’ll come to change her dressings. If I’m delayed outside, you’ll need to do it for her.”
“Yes, I’ve noted it down.”
Hua Zhi squeezed Shaoyao’s hand and returned to her room. Offering advice was one thing, but overstepping would be inappropriate. She needed to maintain this balance.
It seemed Heaven had taken Xiangyang’s side. By nightfall, the rain gradually ceased, and the next day brought brilliant sunshine, abruptly shifting the weather from cool to midsummer heat.
When Yu Tao came to request an audience, Hua Zhi had Bao Xia decline on the grounds that she was still resting. Upon returning, Bao Xia seemed puzzled. “Miss, why didn’t you see him?”
“He likely thinks the crisis has passed now that the sky has cleared and came to ask whether we should continue digging the river channels. Why should I intervene? I’ve already offered my advice. Whether to dig or not is now a matter of governance, none of my concern. There’s no need for me to make that decision.”
While the door could keep Yu Tao out, it was no barrier to Shaoyao. She slammed the door open with such force that it bounced back, tossed her Veiled Hat onto the table, and fumed as if she had swallowed gunpowder… Wait!
Hua Zhi straightened up. How could she have forgotten? Although the Daqing Dynasty had no gunpowder, she recalled that Black Powder was accidentally created by Celestial Masters who miscalculated ratios while refining elixirs!
Using explosives to clear paths would be far faster than manual digging and carrying loads basket by basket.
However, this required caution. It must not fall into the wrong hands.
“Cao Cao, are there any Celestial Masters in Xiangyang?”Shaoyao was still catching her breath when she froze at the question, her anger dissipating slightly. "Apart from the capital where they've been completely driven out, which county town can't find a Celestial Master? Why do you ask?"
Hua Zhi stood up and paced back and forth. Shaoyao knew this meant she was deep in thought, and immediately forgot her lingering irritation, gulping down tea directly from the pot.
"Prepare ink and brush."
These were items Hua Zhi frequently used, kept in the most conspicuous spot. Bao Xia brought them over, poured some water, and began grinding the ink while holding back her sleeve.
After swiftly writing a letter, Hua Zhi reviewed it carefully, blew on it to dry, folded it, and handed it to Shaoyao. "Have this delivered immediately to Yan Xi. Also, find a way to clear out the Celestial Masters here."
Without asking any questions, Shaoyao opened the door, handed the letter to Yu Tao outside with brief instructions, then returned inside.
"How many days for a round trip?"
"Using the warhorses from the Seven Constellation Bureau, changing mounts at each relay station, and traveling day and night from Xiangyang—about six days for a round trip."
Hua Zhi nodded. "Why were you so angry earlier? You nearly kicked the door down."
"It's those shortsighted people! The moment the weather improved, they started hinting openly and covertly that such extensive measures were unnecessary. Never mind that the flood season is far from over—even if it truly passed, would it not return next year? Wouldn't it be better to take this time to widen and deepen those river channels? How could that be a loss!"
"What happened then?"
"Naturally, I shut them all down." Shaoyao snorted coldly. "Now this matter is under the jurisdiction of the Seven Constellation Bureau. Anyone who interferes will answer to me."
Hua Zhi shook her head. "It's fortunate you're not usually put in charge of affairs. If the Seven Constellation Bureau operated as roughly as you do, it would provoke public outrage."
"Hmph, I don't even care to manage such things. Can't be bothered to argue with them." Shaoyao's fuming expression clearly showed her impatience with their ways.
Hua Zhi could easily imagine the scene and understood the officials' mindset: "Rather do less than make mistakes" was the prevailing attitude among most officials. For them, holding office wasn't about serving the people, but about climbing from one official position to the next, steadily rising in rank.
Perhaps they all started with lofty ambitions, but ultimately most became the very people they once despised. Just like her, like the vast majority of ordinary people, they often unwittingly become the versions of themselves they hated as children.
"So you've conscripted statute labor to repair the dried-up river channels after all?"
"Exactly. Since we have a method to mitigate flooding, why not use it? Isn't it better than suffering flood devastation year after year? I've already reported to Lingzhou—regardless of this year's flood conditions, Lingzhou must take action. After the residents are relocated, we'll dig a tributary there connecting to the Sha River. This will significantly reduce the pressure on the entire Weishui River."
"Dig a new river channel?" Hua Zhi was astonished. This far exceeded her expectations—she had initially considered building additional embankments to divert water into Lingzhou County. While that would be simpler, creating a new channel would undoubtedly benefit future generations more in the long term.
"Yes. I've requested that all Jingzhou residents perform corvée labor in Ling County for the next several years. Many hands make light work—we should see results within three to five years."
"Are you confident it will be approved?"
Shaoyao lifted her chin. "Yan Ge will handle it."
Hua Zhi chuckled. It seemed Yan Xi was indeed highly favored, and not just superficially so.
"By the way, Hua Hua, when are we leaving?""No rush, it's better to wait for the water to recede further. Take Little Six with you these days and let him see more of the outside world. Opportunities like this don't come often."
"Understood. If you don't want to deal with external matters, just ignore them. I think that Xu Yangjun is quite capable—he's sharp-minded and has a good memory. Since he's already familiar with these affairs, I'll put him in overall charge. If he handles it well, I'll recommend him for recognition."
This was Shaoyao. It wasn't that she couldn't handle things—it just depended on whether she wanted to. Or perhaps it was because Yan Xi had always protected her so well.
Strange how even though they'd only been apart for about twenty days, it felt... like they hadn't seen each other for ages.
PS: Just take a rough look at the place names. Kongkong made a mistake—should've fictionalized everything from the start instead of mixing real and fake elements. This just makes it harder for readers to follow and more troublesome for me to research.
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