Along the way, Li Yan also gleaned quite a bit of information from Zhao Zhihuan.
First was the man's identity. Zhao Zhihuan was the prefect of this province, governing Jiaoming Province under a country known as Great Qi.
Today, Zhao Zhihuan had led men out on an inspection. Jiaoming Province lay at the southernmost edge of Great Qi, with part of its territory bordering the outskirts of a place called the "Heavenly Eye Wind."
Based on the experience of previous years, another Heavenly Eye Wind would appear in half a month.
Normally, no one would live where Zhao Zhihuan had appeared today. This place was already on the fringes of the Heavenly Eye Wind. Even so, its power remained formidable—at best, fertile fields would be utterly ruined; at worst, villages would be destroyed and lives lost.
Thus, Zhao Zhihuan had long since declared the surrounding thousand li a forbidden zone, prohibiting anyone from establishing villages or reclaiming land there.
Yet because the soil in this area was fertile, people still secretly came here every year to grow crops. They believed they had grasped the patterns of the Heavenly Eye Wind and all clung to a gambler's hope.
As a result, quite a few people had died beneath the sweeping Heavenly Eye Wind. Zhao Zhihuan had therefore issued another decree: minor offenders would be beaten with boards, while serious offenders would be thrown into prison, and so on.
Even so, people still secretly came to reclaim land and farm, especially refugees.
In their eyes, nothing was worth risking their lives for more than gaining land of their own and no longer paying rent or taxes.
In his annual reports to the court, Zhao Zhihuan had to report the number of casualties caused by disasters, which would be used to assess his