Borrowing Boats

Rain was falling outside the window, and the study was quiet.

Liang Qu and Yu Dayi faced each other across the table, the candlelight flickering on either side.

Lu Xinqing was sandwiched in the middle, trying to curl up and breathe as quietly as possible to minimize his presence.

Yu Dayi frowned and twisted his brows into the word "ji". He couldn't think of a way to refute for a while.

Liang Qu guessed that the other party couldn't figure it out for the time being, because the whole story was very smooth, which was to reduce a macro phenomenon to an individual.

Is it accurate? Generally accurate, but it overlooks a considerable number of details and the differences between people.

Given the Da Shun productivity of Da Shun, no matter how hard the county magistrate works, it is impossible to create a perfect "Peach Blossom Spring" where everyone is safe and well.

Lu Xinqing might be a born scoundrel, destined to be a river bandit. If he's not going to be a good person, how can you blame others?

I understand it all, but I can't put it into words.

It's a case of "shirking responsibility," especially at this critical juncture when the dike is about to burst.

Yu Dayi felt a weight on his shoulder.

Whether by mitigating the conflict or exacerbating it, both approaches can help Yu Dayi emerge from the mire.

Unexpectedly, Liang Qu, at such a young age, skillfully shifted the blame...

Outside the ship's window, flickering lights dart about like beans.

The boatman's shouts echoed from afar, reverberating through the empty space.

Is anyone still in town?

"I haven't been to the southeast corner much, but I saw someone standing on the roof holding a fire!"

"Grandpa, is anyone in the southeast corner?"

"Yes, yes..."

"A'Bao, take the fleet over there and take a look! If you can take everything, take it all; if not, tell them to wait. If there's any grain, take some more; otherwise, just throw it away! Once you're done, get to the next place quickly!"

Lu Xinqing stood in the study, feeling suffocated and unable to breathe. Hearing the boatman shouting outside the boat, he seemed to suddenly have a flash of inspiration and, as if possessed, offered two steps.

"My lords, please don't let things get out of hand. Arguing won't get you anywhere, but lives are at stake outside. We can't afford to wait. Let's talk things over later. We're all serving His Majesty, so let's get through this crisis first, shall we?"

Lu Xinqing shamelessly approached the two men, cupped his hands in greeting, and hunched over, looking rather comical.

Liang Qu glanced at him, and Lu Xinqing shrank his neck and bowed even faster, just like Oolong when he squatted down and waved his paws to beg for food.

Beneath the humor, the stagnant air gradually began to circulate.

"Alas..." Yu Dayi sighed, "You, a mere river bandit, see things more clearly than I do."

Driven by a survival instinct, Lu Xinqing's intelligence prevailed. "No, no, Lord Yu is concerned about the people, hence his worries..."

Yu Dayi stepped out of the long table and opened the boat window.

Rain Water splashed against the windowsill, and lanterns lit by candlelight swayed in the wind.

"The Ghost Mother Sect is indulging in debauchery and immorality, but with natural disasters raging and innocent people suffering, regardless of our differing opinions, we should work together to overcome this difficult time. What does Water Official Liang think?"

Yu Dayi turned to face Liang Qu.

He wasn't angry, so he wouldn't lose his temper. He was genuinely worried that the other party was too young and impetuous to back down, so he immediately took the first step when he saw an opportunity to save face.

Liang Qu felt a little relieved. "That's how it should be, but I still have to remind Lord Yu that the Ghost Mother Sect is undoubtedly wicked and immoral, but at present there is no evidence to prove that the Ghost Mother Sect was responsible for the collapse of the Lord Qiu's Dyke."

Yu Dayi.

After a while.

"Lord Liang is right..."

After these words were spoken, the tension in the room dissipated.

The wind blew through the boat window, turning up the pages of the book.

Lu Xinqing relaxed his back and felt completely at ease.

"Now that Lord Yu has calmed down..."

Liang Qu took off the "Liang" character Waist Token from his waist, slapped it on the table, took out his ink box, and unfolded the album.

"Liang Qu, a bridge and a water channel, is a native of Pingyang, Huaiyin."

Regarding the breach of the Lord Qiu's Dyke, I still have many questions to ask Lord Yu.

On one side of the large ship, Ling Shixiong and other Martial Master, who had nothing urgent to do at the moment, sat in a large Black Awning Boat, drinking wine around a small table.

Gorgon Fruit with Shrimp, Steamed Whitebait, fried peanuts, Osmanthus Chestnut Chicken, Taro with Spareribs... all are seasonal delicacies.

County Magistrate Yu asked several Martial Master for help, not expecting much in return, but at the very least, he provided them with good food and drink.

But the Martial Master masters were not focused on the food at all; their eyes kept drifting outside.

"Is it still arguing on the ship? Shixiong, you're the strongest, can you hear what they're arguing about?"

Ling Shixiong shook his head. "The rain is too heavy, and the sound behind us is too faint to hear clearly."

"I don't know when the flood will recede. My son went to Ping Yang County and wanted to take me with him, but we've lived in our Village Elder for decades, passed down to me for three generations. How could I bear to leave?"

"Who says otherwise? I'm seventy-six this year. I don't know a single person when I go out. I'm an old man, and I really don't want to go through all that trouble. It's too tiring."

"Once you've taken root, you can't leave. Hey, Old Song, you're the oldest, do you remember how many times the Black Water River has flooded?"

A Martial Master with age spots on his face shook his head. "I haven't kept a record. It used to happen almost every year, but it's been much less since Lord Qiu came. Maybe it's happened two or three times? If you want to know, you can check the county annals."

"Don't think too much about it, old buddies, we can live at least another sixty years! Come on, eat up, we haven't had dinner yet!"

"What a pity about the food, Old Li won't be able to eat it."

The sound of bowls and chopsticks clattering came from inside the Black Awning Boat, and soon enough...

"Hey, hey, it's out, it's out!"

The Martial Master looked up and saw Liang Qu leading Lu Xinqing out of the door, with Yu Dayi following closely behind.

The three of them came to the deck, and their voices could be heard occasionally carried on the wind.

"Does Lord Yu believe that someone deliberately destroyed the dike?"

"It must have been done by external forces! The Water Standard Tablet is broken, and there has been no news of the people from the Hydrology Station. I suspect they have already perished."

Lord Qiu's Dyke was a major disaster in Hua Zhu County. When it suddenly struck, Yu Dayi would undoubtedly send people to investigate, and naturally he would know that the Water Standard Tablet was broken.

Furthermore, the people working at the Hydrology Station are not ordinary people; they shouldn't have died from the levee breach.

The two events combined are no coincidence.

Yu Dayi: "It must be the work of the Ghost Mother Sect!"

Liang Qu: "..."

Yu Dayi hardly speak three sentences without mentioning the Ghost Mother Sect, treating it as his lifeline.

Liang Qu could roughly understand the mood.

The flood was merciless, and human lives were at stake; the imperial court would certainly punish them severely.

Decades of hard work could turn to nothing, and there's even the possibility of losing one's life. The fact that Yu Dayi could stand up and organize his thoughts shows that he has a remarkably good mental fortitude.

"Hydrological station, Water Standard Tablet..."

Liang Qu lowered his head and stared at the pages, unable to make sense of it.

He was not a chief criminal officer, but he was extremely perceptive and his reasoning was unparalleled.

Fortunately, it doesn't matter if you can't think of anything. Just present the evidence you've collected and let the Three Laws Department handle it; they're professionals.

Having obtained some basic information, Liang Qu prepared to leave, but before leaving, he wanted to ask Yu Dayi to borrow a fleet of ships.

Xu Yuelong's top priority among his three tasks is to save lives.

You can't get anything done without a boat.

Unexpectedly, Yu Dayi refused outright.

"It's not that I don't want to lend it, it's just that I can't. The fleet is too strained, and I can't spare any more manpower to help Lord Liang. However... Lord Liang actually has another way."

Liang Qu narrowed his eyes slightly. "Which one?"

Yu Dayi pointed north.

"Sand River Gang!"