Royal Gold Medal County Magistrate

After ten days of travel, Fang Zheng finally arrived at Jianjiang City.

As he approached the city, Fang Zheng intentionally separated from the others.

He drove into the city alone, while the others acted separately.

He had Xie Xian's address, so he should be able to find them once he arrived.

Fang Zheng's caution was the reason for this arrangement.

Jianjiang was not like the capital; a mighty dragon cannot suppress a local snake. In the capital, Emperor Jing was a clear and reliable backer.

As long as he held on tight, he would essentially be invincible.

But arriving in a new place, unfamiliar with everything, it was best to keep some cards up his sleeve. This was his way of surviving.

Driving his carriage to Jianjiang City, Fang Zheng's mood gradually sank.

The sun was high in the sky, but outside the city, there were vast numbers of refugees.

Many soldiers were using sticks to beat and chase them away, trying to maintain some order.

A dozen or so porridge stands were set up outside the city, with soldiers distributing porridge.

Looking around, many refugees who had received their porridge were lying crookedly on the ground.

Because of the hot weather, many people were expressionless, with their chests and bellies exposed.

Beneath their dark skin were gaunt figures, with occasional movements proving they were still alive.

The air was thick with the stench of sour food, and flies buzzed around everywhere.

Tens of thousands of people had not bathed for months, and in the hot summer, the smell was unimaginable.

Fang Zheng jumped off the carriage, untied the reins, and rode his horse. He rode to a place not far from the porridge stand, and looking over, he saw that the pot contained not porridge, but white water.

Looking at the consistency, there was no way to associate it with the word 'porridge'.

Fang Zheng frowned. He had not expected the situation in Jianjiang to be far more serious than he had imagined.

Drinking such porridge could only replenish some water; in terms of nutrition, it was just a waste.

How could refugees possibly survive on this kind of thing?

Fang Zheng frowned and scanned around, gaining a general impression of the situation before riding into the city.

At the city gate, he was stopped by guards. Fang Zheng took out his travel permit, but not his official dispatch.

Fortunately, the guards saw that he was richly dressed and did not stop him, extorting a tael of silver before letting him into the city.

He didn't take these small matters to heart. He had arrived a few days early, and it was necessary to investigate the situation among the people. Taking office rashly might obscure many problems.

Although the position of Jianjiang's Assistant Administrator was not high, he had the right to report directly to the emperor.

Moreover, he was in charge of grain and water conservancy. If he was not careful, the blame might be shifted onto him.

Fang Zheng was in a heavy mood, riding his horse through the streets and constantly observing.

The situation inside the city was not good either. There were few people on the streets, and even those who were there mostly looked pale, obviously suffering from severe malnutrition.

After riding around the city twice, countless eyes had already been fixed on him.

Fang Zheng dared not wander around anymore and quickly headed to the address left by Xie Xian.

Fortunately, Xie Xian was very meticulous, and the information was extremely clear. Fang Zheng quickly found the residence that Xie Xian and the others had prepared.

He arrived at the gate and knocked. Before long, the door opened.

The man recognized Fang Zheng and exclaimed in surprise: "Sir! Why have you come!"

Fang Zheng didn't say anything, but put on a stern face and strode into the house.

Bai Rui followed tremblingly behind him.

It's over. I didn't expect our group to make such a commotion! Now we've alarmed the master himself!

It seems we're in for a good scolding when we get back!

After Fang Zheng entered the main hall, he sat down in the master seat in a commanding manner and said in a deep voice: "Where are the others?"

Bai Rui swallowed: "The others... uh... We bought a pleasure boat, and most of the people are on the boat on weekdays. I stayed here to watch the house, sleeping during the day and acting at night."

"Well, gather everyone for me! Especially Shen Zhaoxuan! He must come! Go!"

Bai Rui began to feel apprehensive. It's over, the master is really angry!

He used to be merciless when he punished people!

"Why aren't you leaving yet?"

"Ah! I'm going now, right away!" With that, Bai Rui ran out of the house as if he were flying.

After waiting for an hour, the dispatched personnel from Taoyuan County began to rush back from outside.

Fang Zheng walked around the courtyard twice and didn't find anyone else, so it seemed that this group was cautious enough, which was quite satisfying.

After everyone had arrived, they sat around a large table, looking at Fang Zheng, who was sitting in the master seat, with anxiety.

After a moment of silence, Fang Zheng slowly opened his mouth: "You..."

"Oh! I'm sorry, sir, I'm late!!" A loud voice suddenly came from the gate of the courtyard.

Zhou Tie stumbled in, shouting loudly.

Then he stood still in place, looking at Fang Zheng with both hands constantly rubbing shyly in front of his chest.

Fang Zheng said lightly: "Why are you so late? Everyone else is here, and you're the only one late? Are you looking down on me?"

Zhou Tie swallowed and didn't dare to speak.

Xie Xian quickly smoothed things over: "Sir, he's injured!"

Zhou Tie quickly said: "Yes, yes, I'm injured. Sir, it's not that I deliberately arrived late, I got lost! I'm sorry!"

"Got lost? How did you get here?" Fang Zheng looked at him askance.

Zhou Shen said softly: "I walked here."

Fang Zheng sneered: "Walked here? When we go out, we all take sedan chairs, or carriages. You walked here, no wonder you got lost! Since you walked here, you shouldn't have come to this meeting."

Zhou Tie immediately cried out: "I'm wronged, sir! They threw me alone on the boat, and I had no money! I could only walk here."

Fang Zheng said impatiently: "Ah, alright, alright! Find a place to sit yourself. And how did you get injured? Did someone hit you?"

Zhou Tie looked embarrassed: "Uh... I fell into the water, it's nothing, it's nothing..."

Fang Zheng shook his head helplessly.

"Forget it! Xie Xian, tell me what your situation is now, what have you done?"

Hearing this, Xie Xian took out a notebook from his arms and, looking at the contents of the notebook, said: "Sir, you've come just in time, we haven't done anything yet."

"Shen Zhaoxuan has founded the Free Sect, which now has 5,500 followers."

"Wei Cai and others have dug several tunnels connecting to the granaries of several famous wealthy households in Jianjiang, but fortunately, they haven't taken action yet."

"We've inquired about the families whose tunnels we've dug through. Most of them have good reputations, but they're secretly engaging in petty and dirty activities."

"They're taking advantage of the famine to frantically lower prices, merging a lot of land, and have even driven many people to death. Bai Rui has gone out to verify this one by one."

"The most important news is that there's a big problem with the grain in the official granaries. Most of the stored grain is moldy and stale."

"We suspect that someone in the government is colluding with local wealthy households to profit by exchanging new grain for old on the market."

Fang Zheng glanced at everyone and smiled: "Not bad! Not bad! I thought you were going to cause a disaster, but I didn't expect you to give me such a great gift as soon as you arrived!"

Saying this, Fang Zheng's eyes suddenly became sharp: "However, if it weren't for you bastards, I wouldn't have been demoted!"