Confucian and Taoist scholar

Chapter 468 The City God's Fear
Lu Zheng and Qing Wan headed to the county town. When they arrived at the town gate, they spotted a familiar figure.

Upon seeing the two, Yang Wan's eyes lit up, and he quickly stepped forward to greet them, "The two immortal masters have indeed come. The City God wishes to see you both. I wonder if you two are available?"

Yang Wan had come to the county town earlier and informed the county god of some matters.

Of course, his purpose in doing this was also to take advantage of the situation and hope that the county magistrate would promote him.

When the county god learned the details, he understood why there had been such a commotion recently, with even the wind god and rain god from above sending rain and distributing new bean seeds.

The county god wanted to see Lu Zheng and the other man, but Yang Wan didn't know where they were and could only wait in the city, almost getting impatient.

When Lu Zheng heard that the local city god wanted to see him, he asked Yang Wan to lead the way.

Soon, the group arrived at the City God Temple and went to the main hall at the back of the temple.

The county god himself, dressed in casual clothes, greeted them, "Ah, it's an honor to have two immortal masters grace us with their presence... I'm so sorry for not welcoming you sooner..."

The county magistrate dared not put on any airs when he thought of the person in front of him being rewarded by the Chu Emperor, and instead wore a warm and eager expression.

Lu Zheng couldn't help but say, "Your Majesty, there's no need for that. We are not some kind of immortal masters, but rather scholars."

Lu Zheng then performed a Confucian scholar's salute and said, "Lu Zheng is from Anguo. When I am away from home, it is sometimes inconvenient, so I have concealed my identity before."

Now that the Moon Goddess has stopped bothering him, Lu Zheng no longer needs to change his appearance or conceal his identity and origins.

The county god was taken aback when he heard this. He said that Lu Zheng's face looked somewhat familiar.

"You're that Lu Zheng!" the county magistrate exclaimed in surprise, "The one from Hongzhou in Anguo, the one who received the imperial decree!"

Upon hearing Lu Zheng introduce himself, the county magistrate recalled some things.

Lu Zheng smiled slightly and said, "That's right."

The county god smiled and said, "Oh my, I've heard of your deeds before, and seeing you today, I can confirm that you are indeed an outstanding person!"

The county magistrate was still somewhat confused. How could Lu Zheng have received a reward from the Chu Emperor?

However, since it concerned the emperor, he dared not inquire casually, so he invited Lu Zheng and Qing Wan to sit down and have tea.

Lu Zheng asked frankly, "May I ask how things are in the various villages and towns of the county? Are the people in each place all...?"

Upon arriving, Lu Zheng immediately inquired about the disaster prevention measures.

The county god's expression shifted slightly, and he inexplicably had the feeling that he was being questioned by his superior.

"People have already been sent to various villages..."

The county god quickly explained in detail the arrangements he had made.

I heard from Yang Wan that this person had been granted permission by the Chu Emperor to perform judicial duties.

He didn't want to be punished by Lu Zheng, or by an outsider. If word got out, it would be a huge joke.
In that case, it won't just be him who loses face; he can't afford to take that kind of loss.

Moreover, the county magistrate knew about some of the things Lu was doing in Anguo and Hongzhou. He wasn't an official, but he was truly ruthless and not to be trifled with.

Lu Zheng listened calmly to the county god's account, nodded slightly, and said, "We don't know how long this year's natural disasters will last, so we'll have to trouble the county god to take care of things."

"It's my duty, it's my duty," the county magistrate said with a smile. "I feel truly ashamed to have a traveling scholar like you worry about such things."

Lu Zhengdao said, "In the face of natural disasters, we should all do our part."

Lu Zheng then took out a storage bag and placed it on the table beside him. "Inside are some drought-resistant grain seeds. I would like to trouble the City God to have more people cultivate these seeds to help the people."

"In addition, I am worried that some people will substitute inferior bean seeds with superior ones, and the seeds that reach the people will not survive the dry season. The City God will have to inspect more often."

Upon hearing this, the county magistrate solemnly replied, "Certainly, such a thing will never happen under my jurisdiction. I also have to thank you both for saving the people of the county..." After learning some more about the situation from the county magistrate, Lu Zheng and Qing Wan got up to take their leave.

The county god politely asked them to stay a few more times, then watched Lu Zheng and his companion leave.

After the two had walked away, the county god couldn't help but wipe his forehead, thinking to himself that talking to such a young man was more stressful than talking to the god of the prefecture.

Previously, he had only heard that Lu Zheng had suppressed some powerful local families to the point of no return, and he thought that the families in Anguo were not powerful enough.

Now that he's experienced it firsthand, even though Lu Zheng didn't do anything special and was just chatting casually, he still feels immense pressure.

The county magistrate, his mind racing, quickly summoned several subordinates and instructed them, "Go and inspect the various places. Make sure that the seeds the villagers received are the bean seeds sent by the Minister of Agriculture! Anyone who dares to secretly switch the seeds will not be spared by me!"

Substandard or inferior relief supplies were given to the people; this kind of thing has happened many times before.

In some places, people have become accustomed to it and can't stop it.

However, at this critical juncture, the county god does not want any problems to arise in his county.

If someone gets hold of something against him, he can forget about staying in this position.

Qingwan walked briskly and said leisurely, "He seems to be very afraid of you!"

Lu Zheng smiled upon hearing this, "He's not afraid of me, even though I am indeed more powerful than him. The reason he's like this is because his reliance has given me the power to make him fear me."

Just like the River God of Yushui before him, the County God feared the Chu Emperor.

The greatest backer of the Chu state gave Lu Zheng power, and even a little power was enough to make the local gods and officials fear him.

Even without Emperor Chu's verbal decree, Lu Zheng was still capable of winning over these deities, though it might have been a bit more troublesome.

With the Chu Emperor's words, things became much easier for him.

Lu Zheng and Qing Wan soon left the city.

When they arrived at the open space outside the city, Lu Zheng casually drew a line, and a large white crane appeared.

The two leaped onto the crane's back and rode away on the white crane.

We flew with a favorable wind, and the sun in the sky was so hot it was blinding.

Lu Zheng looked down at the land below and could clearly see the situation below.

Before long, the two rode cranes and flew over mountains to another place.

A scorching heat surged up from below.

The two of them suddenly felt as if they had entered a giant steamer.

Qingwan frowned. "Why is it so hot all of a sudden? It must have rained here, right?"

The previous heavy rain covered a wide area, so it shouldn't have been unaffected here.

Lu Zhengyao looked around and slowly said, "It did rain, but it seems that because of the terrain here..."

Lu Zheng knew quite a bit about geography. The terrain of this area was quite unique, making it prone to hot and dry weather.

It's the height of drought right now, so the drought here is even more severe than in other places, and a single rain shower won't help.

In the distance, black smoke rose faintly from between the mountains, and the firelight was dazzling.

Lu Zheng's gaze paused; it was a wildfire, and the fire stretched for tens of miles, its area still gradually expanding.

(End of this chapter)