The Dyke Burst

The tables and chairs collided, and several people in the hall stood up abruptly, turning their heads to see Fan Xinglai hurrying across the corridor.

"I'll go open the door!"

Yan Chongwen, who was closer to the door, pushed off the ground with his toes, his figure passing through the courtyard, gracefully over the screen wall, and lifting the door bolt.

Li LiBo was frantically snapping at the iron ring, suddenly found his hand empty. He looked up and saw a stranger's face peeking out from under the brim of his straw hat. He immediately became wary and took a step back.

"Who are you!"

"I..."

Before Yan Chongwen could explain, Liang Qu interrupted, "Come in and speak!"

Without hesitation, Li LiBo braved the rain, passed through the hanging flower gate, and hurriedly ran into the hall. He didn't even have time to take off his raincoat, and explained while panting.

"The River Conservancy Office received a flood report saying that Hua Zhu County breached its dike last night, causing a major flood that submerged most of the county and affected several neighboring counties as well."

Lord Ran is currently in the Prefectural Office preparing troops and directing them to Disaster Relief efforts. He's sent us to fetch you immediately!

"Is it really a breach in the dikes of Hua Zhu County?"

Yan Qingshan looked anxious, and the three people beside him were in no better shape.

The four men were born in Hua Zhu County. They were persecuted by the Ghost Mother Sect and had no choice but to leave their hometown and come out to make a living with their families. However, many of their acquaintances and fellow villagers had difficulty walking and were still left in the county.

Li LiBo looked towards Liang Qu.

"My River Earl River Chief are not to be feared."

Upon hearing this, Li LiBo nodded vigorously. "Such a big matter, I heard it three times and confirmed it repeatedly before rushing here. It must be Hua Zhu County!"

The four of them were breathing rapidly, and their faces had lost all color.

Liang Qu asked, "Has Hua Zhu County never experienced a major flood before?"

Yan Qingshan hurriedly clasped his hands in greeting. "My lord, you may not know this, but there is a tributary of the Jianghuai in Hua Zhu County called the Black Water River."

For nearly thirty miles before reaching Hua Zhu County, the Black Water River flows straight, but the current becomes increasingly rapid as it flows downstream. However, there is a Great Serpent Mouth at Hua Zhu County.

Jiazi Year, there was a Long Lake in the northeast of Hua Zhu County that could still contain the rapid flow of the Black Water River. However, after the year 60, the water system between the Long Lake and the Black Water River was cut off and they are no longer connected!

From then on, Hua Zhu County suffered from torrential rains in summer and autumn, and floods occurred every year without exception! Until more than forty years ago, a Lord Qiu, County Magistrate Qiu came to our area. With the help of funds allocated by the imperial court, Lord Qiu worked together to build the Lord Qiu's Dyke at Great Serpent Mouth.

Since then, Hua Zhu County has experienced far fewer floods, but when the dikes breach, the situation is much more severe than in other counties!

Let alone the entire Huaiyin Prefecture, which county under the jurisdiction of any prefecture near the Jiang Huai Great Marsh could escape flooding? It's just that the floods caused by the Jiang Huai River were far less "fierce" than those caused by the Yellow Sand River upstream, so the impression is not deep.

There will be a minor flood every three to five years, but a major flood will occur every eight to ten years.

However, Hua Zhu County has a unique geographical location.

What was a minor flood in another county was a major flood.

The great flood in another county was a natural disaster.

Yan Qingshan's younger brother, Yan Chongwen, added, "This year, the Ghost Mother Sect has caused widespread panic. Most of the young people and Martial Master in Hua Zhu County have fled to other places to develop their careers. Those who remain in the county are mostly elderly people with mobility issues. For them to suffer such a great flood is probably..."

A hellish place on earth!

First Ghost Mother Sect, then came the breach of the dike! Hua Zhu County was originally a strong county, ranking among the top in strength in Huaiyin Prefecture.

After two such defeats, there are probably no outstanding figures left, and now they are even inferior to those in Feng Bu County.

"We brothers are reluctant to leave our homeland, so we were a bit too eager. Please forgive us, sir!"

Yan Qingshan knelt on one knee, and the three people behind him also knelt down.

Li LiBo his tongue in amazement.

If I'm not mistaken, all of them are Martial Master.

Looking again at the Liang Qu upstream.

That's incredible, truly incredible.

What a man!

"It's alright, now is not the time to talk about this. Hurry up and go to the River Conservancy Office to await orders!"

Liang Qu accepted the raincoat and bamboo hat handed to him by Fan Xinglai, and without saying a word, rode up Red Mountain and led the four men to River Conservancy Office.

Li LiBo also went out to inform the others.

A few cups of hot tea Water Mist, and the bustling hall instantly fell silent, with only the sound of heavy rain outside.

"Um... are you still making the Flying Dragon Soup? We haven't slaughtered it yet."

Aunt Zhang poked her head out from behind the wall, one hand gripping the dragon's wing, the other holding a sharp knife.

Just then, as they were boiling water to scald the hair, they heard a commotion in the hall, with people saying that there was a flood somewhere. Immediately afterward, the owner rode out on horseback without saying a word.

Fan Xinglai a moment and realized that flood control would take a day or two to complete, and the Old Monk didn't eat meat.

"Keep it."

"Giggle, giggle!"

The Ground-Running Flying Dragon, having narrowly escaped death, trembled its wingtips, attempting to struggle.

Aunt Zhang raised the back of the knife and rubbed it against the chicken's neck a few times, which made the chicken's head tremble in fright.

"I'll give you two more days to live!"

Torrential rain.

The surface of the lake was shrouded in mist, and the reeds on the bank drooped low.

Red Mountain stopped pacing, his iron hooves squeezing out muddy water from under the stone slabs, causing ripples to emerge from the cracks.

Liang Qu looked back and saw no trace of Yan Qingshan and the others.

Their horses weren't as fast as Liang Qu's.

Ignoring his belated subordinates, Liang Qu strode into the Prefectural Office.

The sky was dim, and the several-story buildings cast large shadows. The bluestone slabs on the ground were soaked with Rain Water and turned into the color of dark blue tiles. The entire Central Court was empty.

Not many people came.

The River Conservancy Office Government Office was located in the middle of the river between Ping Yang County and Yi Xing Town. Liang Qu was close by, so they learned about the news quickly and were among the first to arrive.

I climbed the stairs to Ran Zhongshi's study, but it was empty. I went up another floor to Xu Yuelong's study and finally found a few people there.

There were more than a dozen people standing in the study, all busy and flustered.

Ran Zhongshi's wrists were constantly moving as he drafted documents, issued orders, and allocated resources.

The flooding was truly unexpected, especially for the officials from the River Conservancy Office who had just arrived in the area.

"Has the water report been sent out?"

One person looked up and replied, "We've made it! We're going by both land and water; all the horses and boats are setting off!"

"What about the early warning? Have the counties downstream been notified?"

Someone else looked up and said, "On my way."

"On the way? What do you mean 'on the way'?! Why did we only receive the news today after the floods started?"

"Are all the people at the Hydrology Station dead? No one came to warn us when the water level reached the warning level? Huh? Have they all gone mute?"

Xu Yuelong flew into a rage.

No one dared to answer; at this moment, they all became cowards.

The breach of the Lord Qiu's Dyke in Hua Zhu County, without any prior water level warnings, was undoubtedly a major oversight! Xu Yuelong knew that identifying the problem wasn't the key issue at the moment, so he looked up and asked, "Liang Qu, has Liang Qu arrived yet?"

"They're here!"

Liang Qu pushed through the crowd and stood in front of Xu Yuelong.

Xu Yuelong waved his hand, and the Record Keeper handed over several thick volumes and two thin books.

The pages were filled with the task details, and the titles of the two books were "General Treatise on Dyke Construction" and "General Treatise on Dyke Defense".

"We'll see what happens on the way. I know you're a good swimmer, so take your men to Hua Zhu County right away! First, to rescue people; second, to find out the extent of the disaster; and third... it's all in the booklet, so you can look it up yourself."

I want you to arrive in Hua Zhu County before midnight tomorrow and see the County Magistrate Hua Zhu County the day after tomorrow morning. If you conceal, lie, or falsify anything, I will allow you to be detained! Can you do this?

Tomorrow night at midnight?

Hua Zhu County doesn't border Ping Yang County! It takes a day and a half to get to Feng Bu County by myself!

But at this moment, Liang Qu could not say no.

"It can be done!"

"Alright, let's set off immediately!"