Dark Sand: My Players Are All Actors
Chapter 303 - 220 The Intersection of Two Lines_3

Chapter 303: Chapter 220 The Intersection of Two Lines_3

"So, the most pressing issue at this moment is how to get through the natural disaster."

"One can only say that the hardest thing to deal with in history is not inevitability, but a certain kind of randomness..."

In history, this natural disaster had become a critical factor that interrupted Wang Wenchuan’s reforms.

It’s quite a tragic tale, really.

Just a few years after the new laws were implemented, a severe drought swept across the country. This drought created a vast number of refugees and gave the old factions an excuse to attack the new laws. The Emperor was worried every day, thinking that this was a warning from heaven opposing the new laws.

And Zhang Renxia’s map of refugees became the last straw that broke the camel’s back.

Even in his memorials, he emphatically claimed that the severe drought was all because of Wang Wenchuan’s new laws, and that if the Emperor abolished the new laws, it would surely rain within ten days.

According to the historical records compiled by Wen Jun, it indeed rained within ten days after the Emperor had abolished the new laws.

The old factions used this as ironclad proof that the new laws were disastrous and provoked both nature’s wrath and the people’s resentment.

Wang Wenchuan’s initial response was very firm: "Natural changes are not to be feared!"

That is to say, whether it be landslides or droughts, nothing would make him fearful, nothing would stop him from implementing the new laws.

After he was dismissed from his position, he became much more helpless: Could it really be that the severe droughts and the rise in refugees were all because of the Green Seed Law? Would there be no droughts or refugees if the Green Seed Law was abolished?

But at that time, his helpless rebuttal had no effect whatsoever.

For Chu Ge, he would certainly stand by Wang Wenchuan’s side this time.

Because from a modern materialist perspective, whether it rains or not, whether the ground is dry or not, what does it have to do with the reform? It is merely a natural phenomenon.

Besides, now that Chu Ge was playing the role of Wang Wenchuan and needed to strengthen the country, he must overcome the obstacle of this natural disaster. Otherwise, if he were to be dismissed, the new laws would be abolished, meaning that all his efforts would have been in vain.

Chu Ge calmed his emotions slightly and began to look for solutions in the historical records.

His first thought was to start with Zhang Renxia.

This person, who had been played by a player before, had originally been both a mentor and a friend to Wang Wenchuan. However, at such a critical juncture, he had stood on the opposing side, triggering Wang Wenchuan’s dismissal.

In history, Zhang Renxia was also celebrated for centuries as a "concerned and caring insignificant figure" because of this event with the refugee map.

His change was quite clear in the relevant historical records.

Initially, he indeed deeply respected Wang Wenchuan, but after he went to the local areas, he saw more and more of the drawbacks of the new laws, so he quickly changed his thinking and began to oppose the new laws.

To call him a member of the old faction seems a bit biased since he wasn’t deeply involved in partisan conflicts, but his presence indeed created a significant obstacle for the new laws.

"Longsword, a cup of wine, the resolve of a man."

This is how the instance described Zhang Renxia, summarizing him with the character "heroic."

If Zhang Renxia’s story had ended with the refugee map, perhaps some might think he was an unpredictable and petty figure. But in fact, after Wang Wenchuan was dismissed, some officials kicked Wang Wenchuan while he was down, and Zhang Renxia spoke out in justice. If it wasn’t for the Emperor’s protection, he might have nearly lost his life.

From this, it is clear that Zhang Renxia indeed practiced his principles, embodying the character of "heroic" throughout.

Chu Ge’s initial idea was to use Wang Wenchuan’s identity to find a pretext to exile Zhang Renxia to Lingnan, then arrange for someone to intercept all his memorials.

If Zhang Renxia wasn’t in the capital, unable to submit the refugee map, perhaps things wouldn’t have escalated to this extent.

But soon, Chu Ge dismissed this idea.

Because he knew that Zhang Renxia’s actions were inevitable. Or rather, Zhang Renxia was just a pawn of the old factions. Even if there was no refugee map from Zhang Renxia, the old factions headed by Wen Jun would not miss this opportunity; they would do everything possible to use the natural disaster to attack Wang Wenchuan’s new laws.

Deceiving superiors and misleading the emperor might be an option, and silencing most people, preventing them from reporting to the Emperor, might be another option, but these methods were too risky.

Deception also has its considerations; small matters can be easily concealed, but with something as big as a natural disaster, the longer it is concealed, the more devastating it will be when it is exposed.

So, a solution must be found from a fundamental standpoint.

"The difficulty lies in the fact that, in the eyes of the people at the time, natural disasters and new laws were strongly correlated.

"The severe drought occurred right after the new laws were implemented.

"The Battle of Niuzhu is going to start in ten years, and I must race against time, not wasting a single second. So I cannot let the old factions govern the country first, and then implement the new laws after the drought strikes and causes public outrage. There won’t be enough time then.

"So I need to turn this heavy rain to my advantage.

"Zheng Xia might have been prepared to die when he submitted his report, but unexpectedly, after several months of drought, it really did rain. In the eyes of the people at that time, it seemed his spirit had moved heaven, but in reality, it was clearly a coincidence...

"However, this coincidence dealt a fatal blow to the new laws.

"What if I could turn this rain to my advantage? What if I could find a way to make divine intervention stand on my side?"

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