Chapter 988: Chapter 824: Breach of the Dikes Again

Xia Qing originally wanted to make a sarcastic remark, but the moment she looked up, she found the Crown Prince already standing on the steps not far from them, though she didn’t know when he arrived.

"Indeed! It’s getting late, and the morning court session is about to begin. Pingyun, let’s go!"

Xia Qing ignored Gu Chengyu and was the first to walk forward. Min Feng bowed and followed his teacher.

Gu Chengyu smiled slightly, not taking it to heart.

Seeing that most of those who were earlier there to enjoy the spectacle had left, the Crown Prince walked over to Gu Chengyu and walked alongside him.

After Gu Chengyu paid his respects, the two walked out of the palace together.

"Don’t you feel angry?" After a while, the Crown Prince suddenly asked.

"Why be angry? Isn’t that using others’ mistakes to punish oneself?" Gu Chengyu chuckled lightly and casually replied.

The Crown Prince laughed heartily, "That’s quite an interesting thought, and it’s only someone like Mr. Gu who can have such a carefree mindset!"

In fact, the Crown Prince somewhat admired Gu Chengyu’s candid attitude. Compared to Gu Chengyu, Min Feng was lacking.

"Having someone steal your thunder, only you can remain so composed."

Gu Chengyu raised an eyebrow, "Steal my thunder? That’s not necessarily the case, is it?"

Gu Chengyu didn’t think that just because he lost the matter of the Jiangnan flood, he wouldn’t be promoted. Moreover, the Jiangnan flood matter wasn’t over yet!

He had been silent for two years; it was time to act high-profile. Otherwise, he might be forgotten by everyone in court.

"Mr. Gu indeed has great confidence!" the Crown Prince remarked, and then they parted ways at the palace gates.

Watching Gu Chengyu’s carriage leave, the Crown Prince remained silent. Gu Chengyu is someone who is neither easily swayed nor intimidated!

Maintaining this not too close, not too distant relationship really felt like camaraderie. It’s good to keep things this way!

"My lord! We’ve received news from Hangtian Prefecture saying their river embankment has started leaking significantly. The Hangtian Prefecture Magistrate, Lord Yang, has already rallied the people to reinforce the embankment."

Chen Zhao, having received the news, quickly reported to Qian Hui Chun.

Qian Hui Chun frowned, "Are they seeking reinforcements? Our Changtian Prefecture is severely afflicted and needs help more than they do. We can’t send our people back."

Previously, when Changtian Prefecture had a breach, Qian Hui Chun sought help from various states, so Hangtian Prefecture had sent people to aid Changtian Prefecture.

Obviously, they weren’t expecting additional reinforcements from disaster-stricken Changtian Prefecture, but surely the original reinforcements ought to be returned?

However, it was clear that Qian Hui Chun had no such intentions; he needed those people now and wasn’t going to give them back.

"Ignore it. Our situation is the most severe; we can’t spare anyone!"

Chen Zhao was a bit hesitant, "My lord! We indeed need people here due to the peril, but Hangtian Prefecture’s situation is no less serious. Should they also face a breach, won’t we be held accountable?"

Qian Hui Chun snorted coldly, "We can barely take care of ourselves, how do we have extra hands to send? If there’s to be blame, it should be on Yang Chaoying, not us!"

Seeing this, Chen Zhao refrained from persuading further. In any case, once the court dispatched officials here, they would have to face the music, so this matter didn’t seem significant.

At this moment, everything they were doing was to make amends for previous mistakes, to atone!

"I’ve instructed you to evacuate the nearby villages; how is it progressing?"

Qian Hui Chun focused on the flood situation; he had already sent a message to the Capital via pigeon yesterday.

As for seeking support, he was planning, waiting a couple more days, but who knows when there will be a response from that side.

"Reporting to you, my lord! We are halfway through, and I will hurry to transfer all the villagers out."

Chen Zhao watched as two constables retrieved a bloated corpse from the water, which had been submerged for several days, causing parts of it to swell and begin to rot.

Since it was summer, the corpse was not easily preserved and emitted a foul stench.

Chen Zhao felt a bit saddened, as this was a small child, about four or five years old, whose facial features were no longer discernible.

He fled from the scene, leading people to check on the refugees.

Though they had settled on safe high ground, with so many people, their food and water had to be arranged properly. Otherwise, with such weather, they could be suffocated to death.

Especially after so many had died, the spread of corpse odor heightened the risk of an epidemic!

Chen Zhao was uneasy, knowing his superior had reported the deceased numbers yesterday.

The reported numbers were less than half the actual count, only three hundred.

Such an outrageous underreporting left him anxious and unsettled; nearly eight hundred had perished!

Can we really guarantee that the court won’t find out? If an imperial envoy comes and discovers the false report, will we face even harsher punishment?

As Chen Zhao was lost in thought, he suddenly heard a frantic shout behind him.

"It’s bad! The river embankment has collapsed again..."

Chen Zhao was taken aback. When he turned to look, he found the government official who had been shouting was nowhere to be seen.

The waves from the surging river roared and surged, overwhelming everything. The river embankment rapidly crumbled, falling into the vast river.

The situation was dire, but Chen Zhao’s mind suddenly became crystal clear.

"My lord, it’s bad! We need to go; the flood is here!"

He mounted the nearest horse, whipped it hard, and the horse darted forward like an arrow.

Qian Hui Chun panicked, fleeing in terror, even leaving his official’s hat on the ground, running swiftly toward Chen Zhao.

Without hesitation, Chen Zhao grabbed Qian Hui Chun and tossed him onto the back of the horse, then galloped away.

"My lord! It’s bad, Changtian Prefecture’s embankment has breached again!"

In pouring rain, a constable, trudging through mud, shouted to Hangtian Prefecture Magistrate Yang Chaoying, who was supervising the workers.

Yang Chaoying was not surprised upon hearing this, knowing that once a breach occurred, failing to fill it immediately would certainly lead to another breach.

However, he had heard from the people he sent that Qian Hui Chun was ordering the villagers to move to high ground, ignoring the seepage issue of Hangtian Prefecture’s embankment.

The reinforcements he had sent earlier hadn’t returned, leaving Yang Chaoying quite displeased.

It had been two days; the downstream villagers of Changtian Prefecture should have been relocated by now. Even if there’s another breach, it’s only a loss of property!

But for Hangtian Prefecture, reinforcing the embankment was imperative to avoid the same fate.

This cursed weather, more rain; his anxiety was overwhelming, leaving him no time to manage other prefectures’ affairs.

Why was the embankment so fragile? Once the court’s inspectors arrive, he planned to report all the involved officials.

How did such substandard construction get approval? Isn’t this sheer disregard for human life?

With these thoughts, Yang Chaoying waved his hand, preparing to continue directing the laborers to move that massive stone into place.