The Government Official saw that his superior was still unmoved, knowing that the superior hadn’t realized the severity of the situation yet.

The Government Official wiped the rain off his face and shouted, "Sir! This is a very serious breach of the Changtian Prefecture’s embankment, flooding nearly a dozen villages, with an estimated death toll around seven to eight thousand."

"What?" Yang Chaoying turned around in shock, looking at the constable with disbelief in his eyes.

"How many people did you say died?" Yang Chaoying’s hands trembled, rainwater mixing into his mouth, tasting like rust.

"We can only estimate temporarily, about eight thousand. Even the Prefectural Magistrate’s Office of Changtian Prefecture is flooded, and the area downstream of the Changtian Prefecture is submerged by the river."

Yang Chaoying stood dumbfounded on the spot; he hadn’t expected the situation to be so severe.

"Where is the messenger? I need to ask him, didn’t Qian Hui Chun evacuate the people to higher ground? Why are there still civilian casualties?" 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

Yang Chaoying suddenly felt a sense of despair and his legs went weak, almost unable to stand.

Seeing this, the Government Official quickly stepped forward to support him.

"Quick! What did your master instruct you to do? Why weren’t those people evacuated? What was Qian Hui Chun doing?" Upon seeing the person, Yang Chaoying immediately shouted in exasperation.

"Lord Yang! It’s not that Mr. Qian didn’t evacuate the civilians. Everything was going smoothly and would have been completed in one more day. But who knew the embankment collapse this time was so severe? More than half of the embankment collapsed downstream, flooding over a dozen villages, and civilians and government officers couldn’t outrun the river; they were all swallowed by the water. The water rose too fast; how could they outrun it?"

The messenger wiped his tears; he also lost many relatives in the breach. Surviving to bring the news was already a narrow escape for him.

"We were already moving to higher ground, but the water rose too fast and violently, even high ground wasn’t spared, people had nowhere to escape!"

Yang Chaoying took a sharp breath; this matter was so serious it must be reported to the court immediately. Not only do relief funds need to be allocated, but also an imperial envoy must be requested to take charge of the situation.

"Where is your master? Is he still alive?"

The messenger nodded, "The master survived the ordeal!"

Yang Chaoying sneered, alive indeed. Had he drowned in the river, the court might not have pursued the matter so relentlessly.

Qian Hui Chun’s family might survive, but who would have thought that Qian Hui Chun’s life would be that resilient.

What use is surviving now? Doesn’t he know the court will not let this slide?

"Prepare ink for me!" Yang Chaoying steadied his mind, planning to report immediately.

Three days later, the Emperor was holding court when De’an brought in two bamboo tubes in his hands, arriving at the Taihe Palace.

"I have already sent officials to inspect Jiangnan and other places. Yet Qian Hui Chun, the magistrate of Changtian Prefecture, still hasn’t reported the disaster’s toll; this person is indeed detestable. After this matter, I will certainly punish him severely."

The Emperor mentioned the Changtian Prefecture flood disaster again; the officials all remained silent, the hall as quiet as a cemetery.

De’an seeing the Emperor in a rage had to muster the courage to step forward, "Your Majesty! A messenger pigeon from Jiangnan has arrived!"

"Bring it here quickly!" The Emperor, having been interrupted, was displeased. But the news from Jiangnan must be about the flood disaster.

The Emperor looked at the two red bamboo tubes and randomly opened one.

Seeing what was inside, his previously furrowed brows relaxed. Three hundred people? That’s still within a controllable range, not too serious.

The Emperor’s anger subsided a bit; it seemed the earlier estimates were overly pessimistic.

However, the words of Qian Hui Chun could not be trusted. It would still be necessary to wait for the officials sent to Jiangnan to verify the numbers before confirmation.

Knowing this was a letter from Jiangnan, and seeing the Emperor’s eased expression, all the ministers breathed a sigh of relief.

It seemed the disaster in Jiangnan had been brought under control, with few casualties.

Officials from the Ministry of Industry and the Ministry of Revenue felt as if they had narrowly escaped disaster. If the embankment collapse had been severe, their departments wouldn’t have been able to avoid blame.

Though they were not directly in charge at the time, they all received some benefits, more or less.

The Emperor put down the paper in his hand and saw the other red bamboo tube, his heart lifted again.

Could it be that other states and prefectures also suffered disasters? Otherwise, why two letters?

He took a deep breath; what was meant to happen would happen.

Unrolling the letter from the bamboo tube, after just a glance, the Emperor could not hide his shock.

Sitting up straighter, he incredulously read it twice from the beginning, finally standing up with agitation.

"Scoundrel! This is outrageous! Qian Hui Chun is incompetent!"

The Emperor slammed the armrest of the Dragon Throne furiously, his expression like a storm, pressuring everyone in the hall into silence.

De’an saw the Emperor’s face and knew his majesty was intensely furious.

The ministers, hearing the Emperor call Qian Hui Chun incompetent, immediately understood another incident had occurred in Changtian Prefecture.

"De’an! Summon the Hanlin Academy’s Assistant Lecturer Gu Chengyu to an audience!"

The Emperor had a splitting headache at this time, loathing Qian Hui Chun to the extreme!

De’an immediately took orders to leave, knowing something urgent must have happened. To avoid delays by those foolish men below, De’an went to the Hanlin Academy himself.

"Hmph! I’ll have Qian Hui Chun brought to the Capital and watch him be torn apart by horses with my own eyes to relieve my hatred!"

Xia Qing saw the Emperor’s rage and knew the matter in Changtian Prefecture was not minor.

Qian Hui Chun had to die, but not by being torn apart in the Capital, rather in Changtian Prefecture.

However, with the Emperor suddenly summoning Gu Chengyu, Xia Qing knew the Emperor intended to send Gu Chengyu to Jiangnan. His young disciple had just gone to Jiangnan, traveling day and night, could arrive today.

But if Gu Chengyu went, would there be a chance for Min Feng to take credit? With Gu Chengyu there, Min Feng would be redundant; what sense does that make?

"Your Majesty! What foolish thing did Qian Hui Chun do?" Minister of Rites Yu Zheng asked first, seeing no one dared to inquire.

Although the Emperor was in fury, he was unrelated to the Jiangnan dike matter. If no one inquired in the hall, the Emperor would naturally be angrier.

Annoyed they neglected the people’s hardship; all preserved themselves, not sharing the court’s burdens with the Emperor.

"Hmph! What foolishness did he do? The Changtian Prefecture’s embankment breached again, and this time severely, flooding over ten villages. Civilian casualties are temporarily set at seven to eight thousand. Such a tragedy! Shouldn’t I have him torn apart by horses? Those were all living, breathing people!"

The Emperor, holding onto the Dragon Throne, barely able to stand, felt an indescribable sense of sorrow.

Since ascending the throne, such a large-scale disaster has never occurred.

Unexpectedly, after reigning for decades, this year encountered a once-in-a-century flood disaster.

Could it be that Heaven was punishing him, punishing his thoughts of immortality?