Fertile land

The next morning, a carriage drove out of Fengjing City.

Li Xier closed her eyes and rested...

The closer we got to Linzhou County, the more shocked we were by the disaster nearby.

Houses collapsed, fields were flooded, and crops were completely destroyed.

On the road, you will often encounter beggars, robbers, lonely, old, sick and disabled people, which is so miserable.

Their carriage was stopped more than once by people hoping to ask for food, which posed a huge problem to them.

They didn't give him a penny, but asked him to rebuild after the disaster, provide basic living security, and appease people's hearts...

"Senior Brother, this matter is not that simple. If you don't do it well, you will be punished. But it is very difficult to do it well..." Li Xier sighed while looking outside.

"I know about this, but I can't just watch them starve to death with no one to turn to for help!" The ministers in the court avoided this matter, fearing that they would be named by the emperor. Everyone knew it was a tough job! If they were not careful, they would lose their lives!

Only Feng Qingcheng did not refuse!

"Brother, do you have any good ideas?"

"Let me think!"

When they arrived in Linzhou County, even though they were mentally prepared for the disaster, they were still shocked by the flat farmland and collapsed houses!

The flood killed 3,000 people, destroyed countless houses, and washed away crops. The people have spontaneously organized to build shacks to live in, and many people are still living on the roadside. A lot of sewage in the city cannot be discharged, food is scarce, robbery and theft are common, the government does nothing, and the amount of relief food distributed to the victims is almost zero. They are lucky to be able to eat moldy beans.

"That's unreasonable!"

Feng Qingchen watched the old grandfather tremblingly feeding his grandson moldy bean soup, and the little kid crying so hard that he almost went crazy!

"These corrupt officials!"

He clearly remembered that he had specifically asked the emperor for a thousand dan of grain before he left, so why did they still do this? Before he left, grain was transferred from nearby counties to Linzhou County. According to common sense, it should have been distributed to the victims, so why couldn't they even eat moldy beans?

"Brother, calm down!" Li Xier was of course also angry about this situation, but now was not the time to vent her emotions and anger!
"Uncle, where is your county magistrate?"

"Alas, we haven't seen him since the flood!" "Hasn't anyone gone to the county government to cause trouble?"

"Of course there isn't any, but everyone who went there was driven out by them, saying that this is the amount of food that was given by the higher-ups. If we are not satisfied, we can go to the higher-ups, but they can't do anything about it. If we continue to cause trouble like this, don't blame them for arresting us all for treason and putting us in jail..."

The emperor is far away and the sky is high. They are already in such a situation and can barely take care of themselves, so how can they have the energy to make trouble!

"That's unreasonable!"

"Brother, has the emperor allocated funds?"

"None." The emperor's brother said that Fenglan Kingdom had been at war for years and the treasury had been empty for a long time. The emperor asked him to think of a solution himself and giving him food was already the limit.

It would be more accurate to say that he was asked to suppress the local uprising rather than provide disaster relief. The government did nothing about the disaster and just kept suppressing it, which eventually backfired!

Li Xier sneered. This was the reason why he was unwilling to pay the money. She remembered that the various taxes in her Liulichang were not low. There were so many merchants in the country, and they levied heavy taxes. Wouldn't he collect some money?

Isn't the money in the national treasury used for infrastructure? Can those officials spend so much of their salaries?
Feng Qingcheng's eyes flashed, "Junior brother, let's go and do something!"

Li Xier nodded. She probably knew what he was going to do.

Looking at the mess on the roadside and the flying insects, Li Xier said seriously: "Brother, there will be a great epidemic after the flood. Most people inside and outside the city are hungry, which makes it easier to trigger diseases. There may be disasters and diseases at the same time, famine, plague, locust plague, especially plague, such as plague, sepsis, cholera, pneumonia and other infectious diseases..."

"What?" Feng Qingcheng was just thinking about disaster relief funds and food. Is the situation so serious?
He was not ignorant. For one thing, it was his first time doing such a thing, and for another, the ancients did not have as much knowledge about post-disaster events as Li Xier knew.

"Brother, this matter must not be taken lightly. Once it breaks out, the consequences will be extremely tragic!"

Li Xier narrowed her eyes.

"So, this disaster relief needs to solve several issues: first, where to get the money, second, food, third, plague, and fourth, assisting the victims in post-disaster reconstruction and rebuilding their confidence."

“As long as these points are resolved, there is no need to suppress the people, and everyone can live and work in peace.”

(End of this chapter)