Chapter 261: Chapter 143: Prefecture City
Recently, however, not even a shadow stirred on the Chujiang River, save for a few shattered sampans drifting on its surface...
Qin Fang planned to follow the waterway upstream.
So, riding Xile, he headed for the riverbank.
The closest point to the river from his location was near Wanshui.
Just as he reached the mountain path outside Wanshui, Qin Fang suddenly froze and quickly brought Xile to a halt.
Xile went "HA HA HA" and turned its head to look at Qin Fang, but Qin Fang was frowning, his gaze fixed on the scene below...
To his surprise, ships had appeared on the river.
There were quite a few of them, all large vessels flying flags that bore the words "Great Yu." One or two were docked near Wanshui.
The rest were still heading downstream.
’...Official Ships?’
And Wanshui City, which had been completely destroyed, was now filled with a surprising number of people.
These people, mostly men dressed in ragged clothes, were clearing away silt and debris in the flood-ravaged remains of Wanshui City...
Nearby, constables in Black Clothes patrolled back and forth.
Some who moved a bit too slowly were even berated.
’Who are these people?’
Qin Fang frowned.
After a moment of thought, he slid off the dog’s back, patting Xile’s head. "Go home and watch the house. I’ll come back for you later."
Xile blinked, gazing at Qin Fang. Qin Fang patted its head and whispered, "Stay away from people. Do your best not to be seen. Go on..."
Xile seemed to realize something. Unwilling to leave, it looked at Qin Fang, let out a "HA HA HA," and shook its head and wagged its tail.
But Qin Fang just patted its head, signaling for it to leave.
It hesitated for a good while but ultimately obeyed, looking back every few steps as it went.
Seeing that Qin Fang had no intention of calling it back, it finally turned and headed toward Old Ox Back.
After watching Xile disappear into the distance, Qin Fang finally set off, planning to investigate.
He had only just set out when his ears twitched. He looked in a specific direction... someone was coming this way.
With a quick scan of the area, he ducked behind a nearby rock outcropping. A moment later, footsteps approached.
Qin Fang peeked out and saw a group of people walking along the mountain path, led by several officials.
One of the officials was holding a Geomancy map, studying it carefully. After a moment, he pointed in a direction and said, "There’s a village over there, Jiudao Village. It has over 1,300 mu of good farmland. Let’s go have a look."
The other officials by his side nodded. One of them called out to the group, and they started heading in the direction of this ’Jiudao Village’.
Only then did Qin Fang get a clear look. The group consisted of several dozen people. There were about eight or nine officials; the rest were clearly poverty-stricken commoners.
They were all men, dressed in coarse, tattered clothes, following the officials toward Jiudao Village with numb expressions on their faces.
Qin Fang, of course, knew of Jiudao Village. It was the closest village to Wanshui.
But like the other villages in True Martial, it had been destroyed.
The last cataclysm, in particular, had brought a furious gale that flattened almost every house in the village.
Watching them go, Qin Fang considered for a moment, then began to follow them discreetly.
Not long after, the group arrived at Jiudao Village. The officials stood on high ground at the village entrance, looking down at the weed-choked, long-abandoned settlement.
Terraced fields had been carved into the mountain slopes near the village, but they were now completely overgrown with weeds.
The official compared the sight to the Geomancy map and finally nodded.
"This is more or less it... Have them clear out the village first. After that, they can get these fertile fields back into shape."
The official gave his orders after nodding.
Soon, the numb-faced men filed into the village.
Before long, a series of startled cries rang out.
It turned out they had discovered the skeletons in the village.
...A great many people had died in these villages, their bodies left unattended. Now, after several months of exposure to the sun and wind, picked clean by crows and other scavengers, all that remained were fields of white bones.
Hearing the commotion, the officials hurried over to investigate. Their own expressions shifted at the sight of the bones.
But they quickly composed themselves.
"It’s just some dead people. What’s all the shouting for? Get on with it! Deal with these bodies first."
An official barked.
Although the commoners were terrified, they feared the authority of the officials more. Trembling, they began to search for the white bones amidst the weeds and collect them.
Soon, they had gathered dozens of skeletons. An official ordered them to find a spot on the mountain path, dig a pit, and bury all the bones...
Watching from the shadows, Qin Fang saw all this. How could he not understand?
’These people... they must be Forced Laborers.’
’After that giant hand descended upon True Martial, the Mysterious Power—most likely the Blood Luo Sect that Chen Shanhe mentioned—must have been dealt with completely.’
’From the looks of it, they’ve started dispatching forced labor to rebuild True Martial.’
’But it’s been more than three months since the giant hand appeared. Why have they only come now?’
He frowned, looking down...
But he quickly formed a couple of theories.
’Either it was winter back then, and the heavy snows made travel difficult, causing a delay.’
’Or... after that giant palm fell, there were some lingering troubles that were only completely dealt with recently.’
Qin Fang’s eyes glinted.
’But... regardless of the reason, it means at least one thing...’
’The Prefecture City must be secure.’
’...If the Prefecture City were still facing issues, the Court certainly wouldn’t be concerned with rebuilding True Martial.’
He looked down from the mountain path. The Forced Laborers were panting with exhaustion as they cleaned up the wreckage, while the officials patrolled nearby, barking a reprimand or two from time to time.
The sight made his eye twitch...
’...If it weren’t for Master and Senior Brother, had his refugee status been discovered, he would have been deported back to Jingping and turned into a Forced Laborer like them long ago.’
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