The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 618 - 607 Inspection (Wishing "Beixing Chen" a Happy Birthday)

Chapter 618: Chapter 607 Inspection (Wishing "Beixing Chen" a Happy Birthday)

Governor Ming caught up with County Magistrate Tang, who immediately stepped aside obediently, waiting for his superior to pass before following respectfully.

Once they had left the prince’s mansion, Governor Ming said to County Magistrate Tang with authority, "Come, ride with me in the carriage, I have some instructions for you."

County Magistrate Tang bowed and responded with a "Yes".

After boarding the carriage and the curtains were drawn, Governor Ming gave him a sidelong glance and said, "Your audacity is growing by the day. Even though it involves the Prince of Yizhou’s residence, couldn’t you have been a little more subtle in your approach?"

County Magistrate Tang’s face was cold, and he said with a sneer, "This was already being polite. Do you know how many people died or were injured today on the main street?"

Governor Ming sighed, "There were too many people; casualties were unavoidably."

"They could have been avoided," County Magistrate Tang said angrily, lowering his voice, "I didn’t agree with setting up a high platform in the first place. If they wanted a lively event, inviting a troupe of performers for a ritual drama and hosting a boat race would suffice. But he insisted on having a floral vehicle and setting up a high platform. How much did they spend on the invited drama and boat race? And how much for the high platform and floral vehicle he insisted on having?"

County Magistrate Tang lamented, "Thirteen. Thirteen commoners died today in a stampede, and more than a hundred were injured. Yizhou had just begun to ease its suffering."

Governor Ming fell silent too.

He had been transferred here only after Governor Yan was escorted to the capital, three months before County Magistrate Tang had taken office. He was even more aware of the conditions in Yizhou City after the disaster.

Calling it "nine homes out of ten are empty" would not be an exaggeration.

At that time, walking on the streets meant seeing either damaged houses or sparse beggars; barely a few normal citizens were around.

It took him and County Magistrate Tang over two years to persuade the citizens who had fled Yizhou to return and settle down again. This year, the bleak atmosphere of Yizhou City had started to recover, with people just beginning to live peacefully.

Governor Ming sighed.

County Magistrate Tang rubbed his forehead, covering his reddened eyes with his sleeve, and spoke in a hoarse voice, "I need to go back to calm the people. The families of the deceased need consolation, and the townsfolk who are trapped in the city need to be settled. If not, we might see chaos breaking out within the city before the gates are closed for three days."

Governor Ming nodded, "It’s been less than three years since the flood in Yizhou; it’s very prone to disturbances. Be cautious, and if you really can’t manage, just open a small gate for checking and let people through."

County Magistrate Tang dropped his sleeve and asked, "What about the Prince of Yizhou?"

Governor Ming then smiled with profound meaning, "Lord Zhang is there, we needn’t worry."

At this point, Governor Ming couldn’t help but advise him, "Young nobleman, you should also temper your temper. This is Yizhou City, not the capital. This is the Prince of Yizhou’s land. If something like this happens again, know when to back down. You, a sixth-rank county official, dare to offend a prince; you truly are..."

"Are you blaming me?" County Magistrate Tang sneered, "The Prince of Yizhou takes money from the government, but wants to host the ritual drama in his own name. They arranged everything inside and out, and when trouble happens, they pin it on me. That would be fine, but when an assassin escaped into my Huayang County, I should have sent men to search, but he wouldn’t let me intervene and took direct control of the County Governmental Office and the stationed troops. The king’s guards led the search. How could I respond to that?"

He was already being quite accommodating just by saying this much. If this were in the capital...

Tsk, he wouldn’t even need to speak; the imperial censors would drown him in their saliva.

Governor Ming also felt that the Prince of Yizhou was overstepping, but one must bow their head under another’s roof; after all, this was the Prince of Yizhou’s domain.

Governor Ming exhaled deeply, "With Yizhou’s fertile lands, why did the late emperor give it away as a fiefdom?"

County Magistrate Tang remained silent.

Governor Ming delivered him to the County Governmental Office and was about to leave when he saw the office was almost empty. Feeling pity, he lifted the carriage curtain and asked, "Do you want me to transfer some people to help you?"

County Magistrate Tang waved his hand, indicating it wasn’t necessary.

After entering the office, he told the remaining staff, "Ring the bell; order all the officers outside to return."

"They’ve all gone with the king’s guards," one of the officers replied, "...the guards, when they asked..."

"It doesn’t matter. I will support the sky if it falls," and he had two even higher-ups to rely on above him.

The officer, hearing this, went to ring the drum.

The officers, who were searching houses, heard the distant bell signaling an urgent decree and immediately ceased their searches, making their way back to the County Governmental Office.

When the king’s guards tried to stop them, one of the guards said, "Forget it; let them go. If County Magistrate Tang dares to call them back directly, it might be an order from the prince himself."

The guard thought about it and agreed.

It wasn’t long before the officials returned, panting, "Lord Tang has ordered us to assist the king’s guards in their searches, primarily to lead the way so that no household is missed."

The king’s guards’ expressions slightly improved as they asked, "What did Lord Tang summon you back for?"

"It seems to be to guard the city gates. There’s a sizable crowd gathering there. It’s quite dangerous."

Once the guards understood, it seemed the city gates had been closed, and manpower was in short supply there.

County Magistrate Tang recalling his men was not just about guarding the city gates; he had to arrange for the bodies of the deceased to be collected, console the grieving families, and prevent any trouble.

He also needed to coordinate with the pharmacies to treat the injured, advancing the medical costs for now—costs that might ultimately come out of their own pockets...

Additionally, he had to soothe the populace at the city gates to prevent malicious individuals from inciting the innocent to wrongdoing, and reexamine for any hidden assassins.

County Magistrate Tang felt he was losing half his hair dealing with this. Tonight was going to be yet another sleepless night.

Manbao and the others, however, slept soundly; as soon as night fell, they climbed into bed. Tired, hungry, and frightened from the day, Manbao’s eyelids grew heavy the moment she lay down, and she soon fell asleep.

Manbao felt she had just closed her eyes and drifted off, wandering through a pleasant dream when suddenly, a loud "bang bang" jolted her. In her sleep, Manbao tried hard to open her eyes but found it somewhat futile...

Then another loud "bang" frightened her, and she sat up in alarm from the bed, clutching her racing heart, as outside someone shouted, "Open up quickly, the authorities are searching!"

Manbao had just thrown off the covers when Daji had already opened the door, bowing obsequiously and explaining, "The head of the household has already retired for the night, we truly didn’t hear."

Manbao opened the door to see a procession of guards with torches streaming in, and from next door came cries of alarm, evidently, the neighboring house was being searched too.

Mr. Zhuang also came out, and the lead guard scanned them briefly and ordered, "Search!"

Zhou SiLang saw them rudely rummaging and smashing jars when they reached the kitchen, causing him to frown.

Bai Erlang, sitting by the bed, watched dazedly as they searched, pulling out the money box from beneath his bed.

Coming to his senses with a start, he immediately held down his money box, saying, "That’s my box."

"Let go, we are searching for the assassin."

Bai Erlang, staring at the small box barely larger than his head under his hand, said incredulously, "Can an assassin fit in such a small box?"