Shulong Daojun

Upon hearing this question, the county magistrate fell silent.

As the local official, he was well aware of the situation in Chuzhou County.

The official granaries were nearly empty, but the gentry and local magnates in the county still had enough grain in their courtyards.

However, those were all private grain supplies, and he had no right or ability to allocate them.

Moreover, the local people and the refugees already had conflicts, and the county had lost much of its prestige, so it was even more difficult to mobilize private grain.

Under such circumstances, there is only one feasible method: order the garrison troops in the county to forcibly requisition grain from the homes of local gentry and powerful families in order to stabilize the refugees outside the county.

But this would undoubtedly shake the foundation of Chuxian County and trigger an incident.

Therefore, what Jiang Heng said was truly a last resort.

Although it was not what I wanted, it was still a feasible method.

But... I couldn't bear to do it.

Upon hearing this, the county magistrate couldn't help but look at Gu Changming and the other righteous gods, a hint of expectation flickering in his eyes.

When human strength falls short, it is precisely when divine assistance is needed.

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However, Gu Changming and the other blue-robed local deities smiled awkwardly, their faces showing some embarrassment.

It wasn't that they dared not act because Lin Shu, the righteous god of the city, was present, but rather that they had no good solution to the problem of Chuzhou County having no grain.

The fish, shrimp, crabs, wild mushrooms, and other seafood in the surrounding area had already been mostly searched by people from Pingjiang City, leaving the lakes, rivers, and forests almost completely empty.

Even if they wanted to stop it, they were unable to act due to various reasons...

Thinking of this, Gu Changming and the others sighed inwardly and shook their heads at the county magistrate.

The county magistrate's heart sank.

His body suddenly slumped slightly, but he struggled to sit up again, just about to speak.

Just then, Jiang Heng's eyes flickered, and he suddenly knelt down, kowtowed heavily, and said, "If the county magistrate has a way to save our lives, I, Jiang, am willing to commit suicide in front of the people of the county to atone for my sins."

The seizure of the county was caused by me, and the refugees who rose up were all instigated by me; they are truly innocent.

They pleaded with the magistrate to save their lives.

As soon as he finished speaking, Kong Ling threw away the spear in his hand, unfastened his leather armor, slammed his fist on the ground, and cried out, "I beg the magistrate to save my life!"

As soon as the sound ended, one figure after another knelt down, with one loud thud after another.

The surrounding people who had risen up cried out in unison, "We beg the county magistrate to save our lives!"

The chorus of over a hundred people shook the county magistrate, causing him to tremble and collapse to the ground in despair.

His eyes were bloodshot as he stared at the blurry figures that stretched out into one, and he murmured weakly, "I...I am just a mortal, not a Taoist, nor one of those righteous gods."

There's no food in the county, what can we use to save you? I don't know... I don't know at all.

Jiang Heng! Why are you forcing me like this!

The county magistrate glared and roared, "Chuxian County has fallen into your hands. Do you really think I can't see through your actions?"

What exactly are you trying to achieve with this pretentious act?

Jiang Heng stood up, wiped the blood from his forehead with his robe, and said calmly, "It means that the county magistrate has done his best to help me."

From now on, I will be in charge of governing Chuzhou County. All matters concerning finances, criminal law, education, and government affairs will be subject to my review and decision-making.

All the three shifts and six offices within the county must obey my command and dispatch, with the county magistrate assisting from the side.

If the county magistrate can't come up with a solution, I will. If the county magistrate can't protect the people, I will protect them. If the county magistrate can't do something, I will do it.

"In Chuzhou County, under my rule, the people are no longer suffering from hunger, and all things are flourishing."

The magistrate's pupils contracted, then he coldly retorted, "Then tell me, how do you plan to resolve the issue of the county's lack of grain?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Heng was secretly delighted.

The county magistrate was gentle by nature and protecting the people was his inherent trait.

Therefore, if we want him to agree to help, we should start by appealing to the "people".

The key to understanding his situation lies in knowing the hardships people face and the solutions that can be found.

Now that the first step has been completed, the county magistrate's reaction clearly indicates that he is starting to relax and is ready to take the second step.

Jiang Heng pondered for a moment, his expression confident, and said solemnly, "I am no ordinary person. I am born with a destiny ordained by Heaven. My destiny is associated with the Wood element, and I am naturally noble. Therefore, I am often guided by the Azure Dragon in my dreams."

When my life was in danger, a blue dragon appeared and saved me, helping me through the crisis.

After a slight pause, he continued with an air of seriousness, "Your Excellency, you may not know this, but my trip to Chuzhou was also due to a message from Qinglong in a dream."

When Chuxian was in trouble, they came following his directions to help the people.

As expected, upon arriving here, one would find that the conflict between the people of the two places had intensified, food was in short supply and would soon run out, inevitably leading to disaster.

However, the story of the Azure Dragon appearing in a dream was too supernatural; the county magistrate would certainly not believe it. Therefore, he was forced to resort to this desperate measure—taking over Chuzhou County—to avert disaster.

After saying this, he sighed softly, revealing a compassionate and sympathetic expression.

Kong Ling and the others were stunned and stood there dumbfounded.

The county magistrate frowned, his gaze falling on Jiang Heng as he scrutinized him repeatedly.

He had expected Jiang Heng to have some extraordinary insight, but unexpectedly, he suddenly came up with the idea of ​​the Azure Dragon, which seemed rather nonsensical.

However, his appearance did not seem fake...

The magistrate thought for a moment and said, "You haven't yet explained how to resolve the issue I just asked about?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Heng laughed and said, "A few nights ago, I had a sudden urge, based on past experience, that the Azure Dragon would appear in my dream again soon."

I pray that it will come to Chuxian County, fall into the fields, and breathe life into them, so that the rice and wheat planted in spring will ripen overnight.

"If this happens several times, the grain shortage problem in Chuzhou County will naturally be solved."

This method... The county magistrate's lips twitched slightly, and he didn't know what to say for a moment.

If such remarks were heard under normal circumstances, the yamen runners would have kicked the person out of Chuzhou County to prevent him from spreading falsehoods and harming the people.

Such tricks are like those of street swindlers; one doesn't need to go to a temple to ask the true gods to discern the truth from falsehood.

One could barely believe in the Azure Dragon's dream, but the request to ripen rice and wheat was simply a pipe dream.

You are just a mortal, yet you pray to the Azure Dragon and it comes to you?

Just as he was pondering, a faint voice suddenly rang out: "I have already given you the solution, Jiang."

I know the magistrate will not believe this is true, but the truth will be revealed in a few days.

However, some things cannot wait until then.

Jiang Heng, holding a blood-stained spear, walked up to a powerful figure and aimed it directly at his abdomen.

"This man has a terrible attitude towards us refugees. He often shows contempt during our conversations. Keeping him around is just asking for trouble." Jiang Heng gestured with his spear a couple of times and muttered to himself.

The county magistrate was startled and suddenly shouted, "Jiang Heng, what you said earlier about not harming the lives of the people in the county—could it be a lie?"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Heng raised an eyebrow and said coldly, "It is indeed true."

This action was merely a reminder to the county magistrate that Chuzhou County was now in his hands, and that the power of life and death over the people was entirely in his control.

Under these circumstances, Mr. Jiang still spoke kindly to you and offered solutions to the county's food shortage, which was more than enough.

But what about the county magistrate?

Isn't it going too far to hesitate even to agree to wait a few days to verify the truth of Jiang's words?

Having said that, his eyes sharpened, he raised his spear high, and asked, "Let me ask the magistrate, is it appropriate or not?"

The magistrate looked up and stared at Jiang Heng for a long time before finally saying in despair, "...Fine, I'll agree."