Chapter 269: Urgent Letter

Xu Yangjun's forehead started sweating, stuttering, "I, I will go back to the yamen to investigate, maybe I can find some useful information."

Hua Zhi thought that she had scared him with her previous words, nodded gently and said, "Please trouble Mr. Xu, but please be discreet, and please do not disclose the people and events here to others. Thank you."

Not daring to accept the courtesy before, Xu Yangjun had some suspicions in his heart. Without waiting for Hua Zhi's actions, he hastily bowed and retreated, "I understand, I will go investigate now."

Hua Zhi didn't mind, drank the remaining half cup of tea, and said, "It may be too late for all this, if the rain continues like this, it will be too late. But it's not entirely useless. If we can dredge the seven rivers after the flood season and widen and deepen them, and find a suitable place to build a reservoir, we can have a more stable year next year."

Shao Yao frowned, "If we gather the efforts of the people, we might not fall behind."

"Has there been any manpower requisition in Xiangyang this year?"

Xie Xu hurriedly interjected, "Not yet, in previous years, most of the manpower requisitions come after the busy farming season in the second half of the year before winter."

That's good, she didn't want the people to undergo forced labor again because of her idea, even if she didn't gain anything from it.

"That's all I can think of. The rest is not my concern. How to do it and to what extent, you decide for yourselves."

Seeing Hua Hua about to leave, Shao Yao didn't give her a chance to refuse this time. She went up to take her pulse, and after a moment she said, "Rest well for a couple of days, don't overexert yourself. Bao Xia, make some nourishing food for Hua Hua. Also, continue taking the medicinal diet from before. Watch out for any signs of fever in Hua Hua. If she has a fever, inform me immediately. As long as I'm at home, I will come to change her medicine. If I'm away, you must do it for her."

"Yes, I will remember."

Hua Zhi squeezed Shao Yao's hand and went back to her room. Coming up with ideas was one thing, but if she had to take matters into her own hands, then she would be seen as acting recklessly. She needed to strike a balance.

It seemed like even the heavens were on Xiangyang's side. The rain stopped gradually as night fell, and the next day turned out to be sunny and hot, transitioning from cool to peak summer temperatures.

When Yu Tao came to seek an audience, Hua Zhi had Bao Xia tell him that she was still resting. Bao Xia came back later looking puzzled, "Miss, why didn't you see him?"

"He probably just saw the clear sky and thought the disaster was over, came to ask me if we should continue digging those rivers. Why should I bother? I've already come up with a plan. To dig or not to dig is now a matter of state affairs, which is none of my concern. Why should I take the lead?"

The door could stop Yu Tao, but it couldn't stop Shao Yao. She pushed the door open with a bang, slammed her hat on the table, looking furious as if she had eaten explosives...wait!

Hua Zhi sat up straight. How could she forget about this?

Although the Great Qing Dynasty did not have gunpowder, she remembered that black powder was mistakenly created by alchemists!

If they had explosives to clear the way, it would be much faster than manually digging and lifting loads one by one.

But this had to be handled carefully, to prevent it from falling into the wrong hands.

"Caocao, is there a celestial master in Xiangyang?"

Shao Yao, still catching her breath, was startled by the question. Her anger subsided a bit. "Except for the capital, where every celestial master has been driven out, which county couldn't find one? What's the matter?"

Hua Zhi stood up and paced back and forth. Shao Yao knew she was deep in thought and didn't care about her remaining anger. She hugged the teapot and drank heartily.

"Prepare brush and ink."

These were things Hua Zhi often used, so they were placed in the most conspicuous place. Bao Xia brought the things over, poured some water, and began to grind the ink, her sleeves rolled up.

Quickly writing a letter, Hua Zhi examined it carefully, blew on it, folded it, and handed it to Shao Yao. "Send someone back to Yanxi immediately, and also find a way to clean up the celestial master here."

Shao Yao didn't ask any questions. She opened the door, handed it to Yu Tao outside, gave a few instructions, and then returned.

"How many days will it take for a round trip?"

"Using the war horses of the Seven Stars Bureau, and changing mounts at each station, if they depart from Xiangyang day and night, it will take about six days to make a round trip."

Hua Zhi nodded, "Why were you so angry earlier? You almost kicked the door down."

"It's just those people. They're short-sighted. As soon as the weather turns good, they say openly and secretly that there's no need for such a big fuss. Let alone that it's still early before the flood season is over, even if it does pass, they won't come next year? Why not take this opportunity to widen and deepen those rivers and suffer a loss?"

"So what happened later?"

"Naturally, I blocked them all back." Shao Yao snorted coldly, "Now that the Seven Stars Bureau has taken over this matter, whoever interferes, I'll deal with them."

Hua Zhi shook her head, "It's a good thing you don't usually manage anything. If all the actions of the Seven Stars Bureau were as rough as yours, wouldn't it cause public outrage?"

"Hmph, I don't even bother to care. I'm too lazy to be angry with them." Shao Yao's disdainful expression clearly showed her impatience with those people's actions.

Hua Zhi could imagine what the situation was like, and she also understood the mentality of those officials. For most officials, it was better to do less rather than do more and make mistakes. For them, being an official was not about doing a lot for the people, but about climbing from one position to another, rising higher and higher.

Or perhaps they all started out with lofty ambitions, but in the end, most of them became the kind of people they used to despise the most, just like her, like the vast majority of ordinary people, they would always unknowingly become the kind of person they hated most when they were young.

"So you still requisitioned corvee labor to repair the dried-up riverbed?"

"Yes, since there is a way to alleviate the floods, why not use it? Isn't it better than being ravaged by floods every year? I have already reported to Lingzhou, regardless of the situation of the flood season this year, Lingzhou must take action. After the people have been relocated, dig a branch river directly from there to connect to the Sha River, and the pressure on the entire Wei Shui River will be greatly reduced in the future."

"Dig a river?" Hua Zhi was surprised. This was much better than she had expected.

She had previously thought of increasing the number of dams and diverting water into Lingzhou County, although it would be easier, but in the long run, it would be more beneficial to build a river.

"Yes, I'm begging that all the people of Jingzhou in the next few years go to Ling County to serve as corvee labor. With more people, there will be more strength. In three or five years, we will be able to see results."

"Are you sure it will be approved?"

Shao Yao raised her chin, "With Yan Ge around, there's no problem."

Hua Zhi laughed. It seemed that Yanxi was indeed favored, and not just superficially.

"By the way, Huahua, when are we leaving?"

"No hurry, wait until the water recedes a bit. These few days, take Xiao Liu with you and let him see more of the outside world. There aren't many opportunities like this."

"I know, don't worry about the outside matters if you don't want to. I think Xu Yangjun is pretty good, he has a good brain and a good memory. He is already familiar with these things, so I let him take charge of this matter. If he does a good job, I will recommend him for merit."

This is Shao Yao. She is not incapable, but it depends on whether she wants to or not. Or perhaps, it is because Gu Yanxi protects her very well.

Thinking about it, they had only been separated for more than twenty days, but it seemed like... they hadn't seen each other for a long time.