Contentment with modest wealth

Chapter 69 A Sudden Disaster!
The flooded warehouse was the one that Lu Jia had helped Zhang Qi buy from the Liu family, located right next to the riverbank.

It is indeed extremely convenient for loading and unloading goods under normal circumstances, but once the river floods, it is also among the first to suffer.

When Lu Jia arrived, the three men guarding the warehouse were already working hard to dig a ditch to drain the water.

The water level wasn't high, but looking down from a high point on the embankment, the river had risen a bit more than it had during the day.

"Was the flood situation like this in previous years?"

He Qutangyu, who had always lived in the north, had never seen anything like this before.

“Prices have risen in previous years, but usually the most significant rises occur in May and June. Although there is abundant rainfall at this time, floods are rare.”

Lu Jia gazed at the distant ship lights and the merchant ships quietly moored on the water, where people could be faintly seen moving about.

The rising river water didn't affect them, but since it was raining heavily, they obviously couldn't be careless.

"You two go and hire some people nearby to move the rice. We'll put the rice on higher ground in case the water level rises again."

Lu Jia gave the instructions.

The river water did not overflow directly; what is flowing into the warehouse now is only water that has rushed in from the embankment due to insufficient drainage, so no damage has been caused yet.

Since they relied on the docks for their livelihood, they naturally had to take precautions against floods. Therefore, the warehouses had pre-installed partitions. As long as the grain on the ground was moved to the partitions in time, there would be no problem.

Fearing the water would deepen, Lu Jia picked up her umbrella again, intending to go home to find Qiu Niang as soon as He Qu and the others returned.

Qiu Niang is now focused on managing the household. She was born and raised in Shawan and has witnessed firsthand how Master Zhang does business, so she is definitely more experienced in dealing with these matters than Lu Jia.

Lu Jia had initially thought the two men Qin Zhou brought were just thugs from the underworld, but after these past few days, he was surprised to find them to be quite reliable.

For example, during this period, Zhang Lao Er and Zhang Lao San harbored resentment and would occasionally stir up trouble behind the scenes, but each time before they could make a move, He Qu and his group would see through their scheme and deal with them.

Over time, the two of them calmed down, after all, they didn't have much wealth left for them to squander.

Of course, He Qu and his companion still had to be careful in front of Zhang Laosan and his group, since they were both present when they swindled money from them.

However, with the Zhang family losing power, these details are no longer a threat.

That being said, Qin Zhou has been gone for over a month, and it's almost time for him to come back as promised. This guy should keep his word, right?
She sent the messenger who had gone to the capital to gather information, and he would be back soon. In another four or five months, the marriage between the Yan and Lu families would become a reality.

She wanted to take the initiative after returning to the Lu family, and besides having money, she also needed connections.

How could she fight against the Chiang family all by herself?

It should be noted that even Lu Jie in his previous life couldn't control the Jiang family, who had the Yan family as their backer.

Qin Zhou is currently her most powerful helper.

She was determined to take him to Beijing to make a name for herself!

"Jia Jie'er!"

Just as her thoughts were wandering, someone suddenly came into Lu Jia's view: "Luokou Wharf has been flooded, the flood is coming soon, did you know?!" "Boss Liu?!"

Lu Jia recognized the person who had arrived and was so surprised that she immediately stood up straight.

For the head of a large business to appear here in this situation is already surprising enough, but when Lu Jia thought back to what she had just said, she was even more astonished!

"Where did the flood come from? How can there be a flood at this time of year?"

This had never happened before in her memory!
Moreover, Luokou Wharf is only twenty or thirty miles away from Shawan. Luokou has already been flooded, which is definitely not good news for Shawan!
"I just heard about it too. Some merchants in Shawan have opened branches in Luokou. Their employees rushed down overnight to spread the word that all the shops along the river are flooded up to their ankles and the water is getting deeper!"
"It looks like the flood is about to come down, we need to make plans quickly!"

Liu Xiyu was panting heavily, her face and body were soaked with water, and it was hard to imagine how anxious she had been on the way!
Lu Jia quickly turned around to look at the warehouse. The partition was only about the height of a person. Even if all the grain was stacked on it, there was a great risk of it being flooded!

This one warehouse alone contains nearly 20,000 taels of silver worth of grain, not to mention the other warehouses and shops!
If this property gets flooded, all the wealth she's worked so hard to acquire will be gone in a flash!
"Then we must quickly mobilize everyone to build the dike!"

"That's what I said too!" Liu Xiyu said. "I've had some gongs brought over. Let's quickly have the workers wake up everyone upstream and downstream!"

As she spoke, the men following behind her immediately began to strike the gongs they had brought.

Just then, He Qu had already hired a group of people. Without saying a word, Lu Jia took two bronze gongs and handed them to them: "You two are quick on your feet, quickly split up and start by shouting to the biggest businesses on the dock! They have a lot of people and can attract more people!"

Upon hearing that the flood was only twenty or thirty miles away, He Qu and Tang Yu immediately understood the gravity of the situation and immediately began to act on their left and right.

Lu Jia counted the hired men again; there were already more than a dozen. He then sent ten of them to the granary to move grain, and said to the remaining men, "Quickly find everyone you can and bring them here. I'll pay them 100 coins each! Get them all to come and help build the dike! The more people the better!"

Everyone makes a living by doing manual labor, so of course they know the urgency of flood prevention, but when money is involved, they are more motivated to do things!
The crowd dispersed immediately, and Lu Jia braved the rain to climb to a high point on the embankment, gazing at the river.

Under the dim light, the changes in the river water could not be seen in a short time, but the current water level alone was already cause for concern.

She asked, "The autumn harvest is just around the corner. If the floodwaters come down, the people along the riverbanks will suffer. Does the government know about this?"

Liu Xiyu pointed in the direction of the county government office: "We've already sent someone to beat the petition drum!"

……

Since Shen Qingzhou left, Guo Yi has been carrying out his entrustment and dealing with Zhou Shengshang day and night, but he still cannot put down his work. As a result, he cannot fall asleep before 9 pm every night.

When the drum sounded, he felt a sudden jolt and instinctively went to the front hall.

As they crossed the threshold, they ran into Magistrate Fang Wei, who lived in the backyard of the yamen. Both of them looked extremely solemn and walked towards the door at the same time.

"Sir, the flood is here! It has already reached Luokou!..."

The drummer rushed in, knelt down with a thud, and began to explain why he had come.

Fang Wei's expression changed drastically: "Shawan doesn't usually experience floods this season. There was no preparation along the riverbanks. The docks are going to be in big trouble!"

After saying that, he grabbed the straw raincoat and bamboo hat hanging under the door and rushed into the rain without saying another word.

Upon hearing this, Guo Yi immediately led his men and followed!

(End of this chapter)