The farce passed quickly. Xue Shiliang and others tried their tricks to no avail, and their faces were full of dejection.
Under the strict control of Qian Niuwei, the news that Beijing officials were about to go to the countryside for inspection did not spread.
The county magistrates, county captains and other officials and aristocratic families who stayed in the county did not know the situation in the governor's mansion. Everyone was still living in the dream of freedom and happiness.
Disasters happen every year, but they never come to my home.
Who cares? They are just living their own prosperous lives and don't care about the lives and deaths of other people.
For the first stop of the inspection, Fang Xuanling chose Jiangxian County, the state capital.
All officials were on horseback, and escorted by more than two thousand cavalry, the team marched toward Fenhe River in a mighty manner.
Since the problem occurs at the source of the tributary, investigate it from the source.
The horses galloped all the way and quickly arrived at the nearest tributary of Fenhe River.
Although the water volume of the tributary, which is more than ten feet wide, is less than usual, the river water is still relatively abundant, and it is no problem to irrigate tens of thousands of acres of fertile farmland.
Fang Xuanling, who was riding a tall horse at the front, turned around and asked, "Didn't you say that the tributaries have dried up? Why is the water still so abundant?"
Bifang Xue Shiliang, who was half a step behind Xuan Ling, had a strange expression on his face. He glanced at the cold-blooded iron guards on both sides and didn't know how to answer.
After walking a few hundred meters further, the tributary actually built a dam with stones and sand, diverting all the water to the ditches on both sides.
Fang Xuanling suddenly realized it. He snorted and his face darkened, "Huh! Whose land does this land belong to, Governor Xue? The crops are growing really well!"
< p> The endless stretches of wheat on both sides are green and sway when the wind blows.Xue Shiliang said angrily, "My husband is unjust! I don't know who blocked the tributaries of the Fen River. If I knew, I would definitely beat him up and skin him!"
He groaned secretly in his heart.
Oops!
The tens of thousands of acres of fertile land by the river belong to officials like them and several prominent local families.
A simple search revealed everything.
After walking on a flat road for more than twenty miles, and then turning around two mountains, the road became narrower and narrower, and the area of the cropland became smaller and smaller.
Before walking into a small village, Fang Xuanling saw a scene different from that outside the mountains.
The crop fields on the roadside have been cracked and cracked with large holes, and most of the crops have withered and fallen to the ground.
The further they walked into the village, the more frightened Fang Xuanling became.
Compared to the fields outside, this place is like hell.
The village was deserted. There was not a single young person in the village of dozens of mud houses.
Occasionally, you can see old people, women and children walking back from the fields, covered with a layer of dirt, looking like they haven’t bathed for many days.bath.
Their lips were chapped, their faces were dark and thin, and their hair was yellow and cross-cut. When they saw the officers and soldiers passing by, they hid in the narrow alley.
From this moment on, Fang Xuanling had already made up his mind to thoroughly investigate these morons.
They formulated many national policies in Chang'an that benefited the country and the people, including opening warehouses to release grain and several measures taken by the government to help farmers survive the drought.
Going up and down doesn’t work! It's not implemented at all.
The unkempt villagers were like wild monkeys, running around in panic, in sharp contrast to their group of people wearing official robes and armor.
Who would have thought at this time that these people, who even have a luxury to live, are the cutest people who defend the country with their lives during the war.
Fang Xuanling's heart was full of mixed emotions at the moment.
An old man carrying an empty barrel walked back to the village. Fang Xuanling got off his horse, walked up quickly and asked in a low voice.
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"Brother, where have all the young people in the village gone? Why did you come back with a load of empty barrels?"
A captain on the left jumped off his horse and took Fang Xuanling's The mount is well led.
The old man looked at the officials and sergeants who could not see their heads with hazy eyes. Knowing that the person who asked him was a high official, he said tremblingly.
"Some time ago, there was a military recruitment in the county, and the selected candidates were given 50 pounds of wheat. All the young men in the village signed up."
Then the old man licked his chapped lips and trembled. He raised a thin black palm with protruding blood vessels and full of wrinkles and cracks.
Pointing to the dry barrel, there was a bit of sadness on his face, "The creek has dried up, and the water in the Fen River has been cut off. There is no water everywhere."
"Then How do you live?" Fang Xuanling felt both pity and anger in her heart.
The old man looked around and thought for a few breaths, then said sadly, "We have to go to the Fenhe River 30 miles away. If you pay 1 penny, you can carry five loads of water. If you save it, you can use it for half a month."
"You need money to carry water from the river? How unreasonable!" Fang Xuanling suddenly turned into an angry lion, turning around and staring fiercely at the Jiangzhou officials.
Fang Xuanling's sudden roar startled the old man, causing the bucket on his shoulder to fall to the ground.
/p>
The old man found that the official today was different from those in the past, so he bravely begged, "Sir, can we wait until next year to pay the grain we received this year? There is no harvest in the fields, and there is no food left." "
Fang Xuanling suppressed her anger and tried to remain calm, "Brother, I will investigate this matter carefully, and I, Fang Xuanling, will definitely give you an explanation for the rest of my life! All in the countryside,I don't know who Fang Xuanling is. Looking at the grand ceremony, I just know that he is a high official.
"Thank you, sir, thank you, sir!"
The old man put down the barrel, kowtowed several times on the ground, and could faintly hear his cry as he thanked him.
"Old man, what are you doing? Get up quickly." Fang Xuanling walked over and helped the old man up without any airs, and said shyly.
When Niu Jinda saw the close contact between the prime minister and the old man, he quickly jumped off his horse and stood by his side in case of any eventuality.
Xue Shiliang turned around and winked at the Jiangzhou County Magistrate behind him.
The Jiangzhou County Magistrate has always been dizzy, and now he is scared to death.
After receiving the hint from the governor, his legs softened, he rolled under the horse, got up and walked over with trembling feet.
"The old man will lose his head if he talks nonsense. Do you have any evidence to prove that you have to pay 1 penny to carry water?"
When he heard that he was going to lose his head, the old man immediately panicked. , he stammered, "I...I didn't lie."
He did not dare to talk about collecting money anymore. After living for decades, who is a good person and who is a bad person? A bad guy can be seen clearly even if he is wearing sheep's clothing.
"Mr. Wang, when will it be your turn to interrupt when I am speaking?" Fang Xuanling glared at him displeased.
"Prime Minister, I..."
Before giving him time to finish speaking, Niu Jinda had already signaled to the two iron guards to take him down.
Xue Shigui looked at Fang Xuanling's actions with gloomy eyes, and the desire for survival in his heart actually gave rise to a murderous aura.
After comforting the good old man, Fang Xuanling didn't say anything, just got on his horse with a straight face and rushed to the next place quickly.
There are always many mountains and ravines in Qingqiu. Looking at the mountains will make your horse run to death.
The group of people galloped in Jiangzhou like this.
The blocking of the Cha tributary was just the beginning. Fang Xuanling had to fight drought and provide disaster relief as well as clean up the borers.
On the way, Fang Xuanling divided another 500 cavalry to go alone to investigate the real situation in Jiangzhou counties.
An anti-corruption campaign involving gangs and pornography began, blowing like a whirlwind from Jiangxian County to the entire Jiangzhou.