Chapter 92: Soldiers Against the Flood

The thirty thousand troops did not move out together; they split into two columns.

Chen Mu led the first five thousand men ahead. Every soldier rode in a carriage, and the supplies were hauled by carriage as well, allowing them to travel swiftly and reach the disaster zone first to begin relief work.

He had learned this method of transporting troops from the Koreans. As the saying goes, among any three walking together, one is bound to be my teacher. The Koreans may be contemptible, but they still had things worth learning.

Moreover, apart from Chen Mu’s personal guards, none of the thirty thousand soldiers wore armor or carried weapons. They were dressed only in standard cloth uniforms, with earthen-yellow bands tied around their heads.

They wore no armor and carried no weapons because they were there to fight floods and carry out rescue work, so the burden had to be lightened. In any case, there was no need for battle.

The earthen-yellow bands were for luck, since earth overcomes water.

In the past, when Great Xia aided disaster areas, it did little more than open the granaries and distribute grain; the rest depended on how capable the local officials were.

This time, Great Xia saw its first flood-fighting soldiers.

Before they even reached the disaster zone after leaving the capital, the name of the flood-fighting troops had already spread far and wide.

Years ago, government troops had been synonymous with ferocity and menace; over the past two years, Great Xia’s army had come to mean victory in every battle.

But now, soldiers had become the people’s saviors, bringing supplies to the disaster-stricken and lending their strength to help the victims of the flood.

Such a thing was beyond what the people of Great Xia had ever dared imagine.

All of it was thanks to Chen Mu.

The Great Xia army was well practiced and soon arrived in the southern reaches of the Central Plains, the disaster area closest to the imperial capital.

Chen Mu ordered the army to camp outside the city, then took a few men straight to the county office to learn the local situation.

But before they even reached the office, they heard a great commotion ahead. Drawing nearer, they saw a sea of people packed tightly outside the county yamen.

Chen Mu sent a soldier in plain clothes to inquire. The onlookers did not know he was a soldier and answered without hesitation.

When he returned, the soldier reported that all those people had come to receive grain and tents, but the officials were distributing them too slowly, causing the crowding.

What was more, the constables had been using force to suppress the people, leaving the crowd deeply dissatisfied.

After hearing this, Chen Mu frowned. This county magistrate had no idea how to handle matters. Even the simple distribution of supplies had been botched.

“Go over there and have a look,” he said.

At his command, the guards took the lead, and the group arrived at the entrance of the county yamen.

A cluster of constables stood at the gate—some distributing supplies, others keeping order.

Those handing out provisions moved at a glacial pace, recording everything carefully in ledgers, asking their questions in a similarly languid manner.

The ones maintaining order looked fierce and menacing, as though the long staves in their hands were about to come crashing down on the people at any moment.

A glance was enough for Chen Mu to see it clearly: all these constables had put their effort in the wrong place. They were slack where they should have been urgent, and urgent where they should have been slack.

As the saying went, a crooked beam bends the rafters beneath it. This magistrate must be no good either.

When the constables saw more than a hundred armored men arrive, with a youth in brocade robes and leather armor at their head, wearing a golden crown and bearing himself with commanding elegance, they knew at once who he must be.

There was no need to say it: this must be the Crown Prince, come by imperial decree to oversee disaster relief.

Immediately, the constables plastered on ingratiating smiles and dropped to their knees, bowing low before Chen Mu.

“Your Highness, the Crown Prince!”

Chen Mu looked down at them coldly and said nothing to excuse them or tell them to rise. Nor did those constables dare stand.

He stared for the better part of a minute, then said to his guards, “Go bring out the magistrate and the others.”

“Yes!”

The guard accepted the order and strode straight into the county yamen to summon them.

The constables still kneeling had an ominous feeling.

By now, some bolder voices among the people had begun to cry out their grievances. Chen Mu listened without expression, while the constables kneeling on the ground were already drenched in sweat.

Soon, several people came out from the yamen and bowed to Chen Mu in turn.

This time, Chen Mu first bade them rise, then asked, “Magistrate, people are reporting that the county office is distributing supplies slowly and acting with arrogance and brutality. What do you have to say for yourself?”

The magistrate’s eyes rolled. “In reply to Your Highness, there are more than ten thousand disaster-stricken residents in this county, yet the office has only a few dozen constables. We truly cannot distribute the supplies fast enough.”

“And when some residents grew anxious, it was only natural for the constables to scold them a little.”

Chen Mu barked, “Nonsense!”

“It is normal to be short-handed, but you can explain the situation properly to the people, ask them not to panic, and distribute the supplies as quickly as possible.”

“As for maintaining order, that is putting the cart before the horse. Only two men are handing out supplies right now—how can the people not be anxious? Why not have all the constables distribute them?”

The magistrate looked at Chen Mu in confusion, as if to say, What is there to explain to these unruly commoners? Let them wait, and be done with it.

The magistrate said, “Your Highness, if all the constables were to distribute the supplies, I fear the disaster victims might rush and snatch them. Besides, only two constables know how to write. If all the constables were distributing, we would not be able to keep the records.”

Chen Mu frowned. “Distributing supplies at the county yamen gate itself is already a grave mistake. All that is needed is for the constables to deliver them from village to village. Why would you need records then?”

“Even if the court suffers some loss of supplies, even if a few ill-intentioned people receive more than they should, no disaster victim can be allowed to go hungry.”

“And you would actually let the people stand in the sun with empty stomachs.”

The magistrate stared at Chen Mu in astonishment, unable to understand his words. How could a crown prince think this way?

Chen Mu could not be bothered to speak with him any longer.

“Now I declare, in my capacity as Crown Prince of Great Xia, that the magistrate and the constables outside the gate are stripped of office and escorted back to the capital for lawful punishment.”

The moment those words fell, the magistrate and the constables nearly went mad. They begged for mercy, weeping and pleading.

But Chen Mu’s guards cared for none of that. They stepped forward and hauled the men away.

The people burst into applause and cheered.

Then Chen Mu said, “Fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters! Tell me, who should take over as magistrate?”

The people around him were dumbfounded. Wasn’t the appointment of a magistrate made by the court? How could the common people be asked?

Seeing their reaction, Chen Mu repeated the question twice more, patiently.

Only then did the people believe he was serious.

A stir ran through the crowd, and then they all shouted the name of the county deputy magistrate, Lu Qiang.

Chen Mu nodded slowly. He knew Lu Qiang. He had been a successful candidate in the first imperial examination, a man of humble cloth-clad origins.

He had recognized him when Lu Qiang had come out to pay his respects just now. It seemed that officials who came from common stock truly understood the people’s hardships better and were deeply loved by them.

“Very well! Lu Qiang, you will assume the post of magistrate!”

Lu Qiang was astonished, but privately relieved as well. If he were to serve as magistrate, he would be able to ensure the safety of the disaster victims.

Lifting his robe, Lu Qiang knelt. “This humble official, Lu Qiang, accepts the order! I will never fail the trust placed in me by Your Highness and the people!”

Chen Mu waved a hand. “Rise. There are no constables here now, so choose some from among the people present.”

Lu Qiang answered and turned to call out more than a dozen names.