The husband I snatched halfway through his life is strange.

Chapter 461 I can't squeeze myself dry anymore.

As soon as he finished speaking, all the doubts vanished, and silence descended.

In years of severe drought and famine, there was no harvest, the people suffered greatly, and corpses littered the land.

Although the capital city was considered important back then, its influence was limited by its remote location. The emperor and officials never witnessed firsthand the widespread suffering of the people.

Minister Yang was a man of the emperor.

He also knew that the emperor intended to suppress Ying Yin, and because the matter of the dragon aura had spread to his residence, he suspected that Ying Yin's loyalty was not genuine.

He took a step forward.

He couldn't wait to sever ties with Ying Yin.

"What Lord Yao said earlier was really inappropriate."

He said, “The nation is founded on the people. We expend manpower, resources, and money to prevent floods. Even if there are many complaints from the people, when the floods come, those people will surely praise the emperor’s virtue, won’t they? If there are no floods, and the farmland is undamaged and the houses are not destroyed, isn’t that a good thing? Do you expect something bad to happen?”

"As for whether the people cooperate or not, that's not your concern."

"Shouldn't the officials below, who receive salaries, be working hard for the Emperor and for the Great Jin Dynasty?"

Minister Yao frowned.

But in the end, he didn't say anything.

After all, Minister Yang's official rank was higher than his.

Yang Changzheng bowed to Ying Yin again.

"I hope my words will offend the Fifth Prince. I hope you will not take offense."

"But too many people died during the famine. If it weren't for Censor He noticing something amiss, conducting a reinvestigation, thoroughly reviewing the situation in the four cities near Ze County, making inquiries everywhere, and sending the news and records of the approximate death toll to the capital, how would we have known that the imperial envoy whom His Majesty had entrusted with high hopes and appointed to appease the people was your own uncle who embezzled disaster relief grain and silver, colluding with lower officials to conceal the truth?"

Upon hearing these words of loyalty, Emperor Yingqian gave a half-smile. His gaze shifted back and forth between Yang Changzheng and Ying Yin.

Yang Changzheng: "Back then, we all thought we had achieved the best control, and the lives of the people were back on track."

"Who knew that people would die and a plague would break out. The people there were suffering terribly. Anyone who felt unwell, whether it was a common fever and cough or the plague, whether alive or dead, was taken away."

"He was ruthless, preferring to kill a thousand innocent people rather than let one guilty person go free. Fearing that digging deep pits to bury people alive would affect water quality and cause the spread of the disease to become serious, thorough, and uncontrollable, he opted for centralized incineration. This is also why the epidemic was brought under control at that time."

"Although he hanged himself after the incident was exposed, his crimes remained. The long list of countless people sent by Imperial Censor He was a cautionary tale, a bloody lesson."

He spoke loudly.

"I believe that prevention is of the utmost importance. We should rather go to great lengths and make preparations that go to waste than allow the tragedy to repeat itself."

Gu Fuju did not respond.

Wei Zhao did not react.

I'm interested in watching these people fight like dogs.

But Marquis Zhongyong didn't want to just watch the show; he jumped in.

He nodded in agreement: "Chang Zheng, what you said makes perfect sense! No wonder the Emperor has promoted you all the way and said you are a good official."

Marquis Zhongyong: "I look down on you. I think you are very hypocritical and love to flatter."

He perfectly captured the recklessness of a military general.

"If I remember correctly, when the Duke of Shun was still alive, you were just an insignificant minor official. The memorial you wrote that time was quite good, and you were summoned by the Emperor."

Marquis Zhongyong smiled.

"As soon as you entered the hall, you knelt down with a thud. You said that it was your ancestors' good fortune to see the emperor for the first time."

"His Majesty asked you to sit down and reply. The servants below brought you tea. You took a sip and used all your knowledge to praise how sweet the tea was."

Yang Changzheng's expression was not good.

Marquis Zhongyong seemed not to have seen it.

"I don't know how you can lie through your teeth."

"That tea was indeed good, but the Ninth Princess was still young at the time, and with her childlike nature, she secretly added a handful of salt to it."

"Don't you find it cloying at all?!"

"The gift from His Majesty has warmed your heart, hasn't it?"

Marquis Zhongyong walked over and patted him on the shoulder.

"I only realize now that you're not a bad person! You just like to take crooked and unethical paths."

Yang Changzheng was furious.

But that's the truth.

He couldn't refute it yet.

"puff."

Someone laughed.

Yingcheng quickly covered his mouth, terrified and at a loss for what to do.

He spoke tremblingly to his future father-in-law, "I...I'm sorry."

"I'm not trying to make fun of you."

Yang Changzheng: ? ? ? ?
This fourth prince is truly awful! There's not a single thing about him that satisfies him!!!
What's wrong with being a flatterer?
If he had promised to do it, he wouldn't have remained unknown for so many years!

Some officials from the Fifth Prince's faction, dissatisfied, couldn't help but stand up and say, "Lord Yang, Qing Tan is Qing Tan, and the Fifth Prince is the Fifth Prince. How can they be confused? Qing Tan has committed many sins, but the Fifth Prince is good. He also knelt before the Emperor for a long time and ate vegetarian food for several months because of such an uncle, trying to atone for his sins. You can mention the guilty ministers, but why do you have to single out the Fifth Prince?"

"Do you perhaps believe that the famine back then was caused by the Fifth Prince?"

This statement is even more targeted.

Yang Changzheng was not surprised to be targeted, and he was not flustered at all.

The more he is targeted, the more it proves that he and Ying Yin are not in cahoots.

He was about to speak.

Someone else beat us to it.

He was still the Marquis of Loyalty and Valor.

Marquis Zhongyong walked up to the other man and patted him on the shoulder.

“You’re right! The Fifth Prince shouldn’t be made to take the blame for what Qing Tan did.”

“Yang Changzheng! Your daughter is betrothed to the Fourth Prince, and it’s understandable that you have some personal reasons, but you can’t deliberately nitpick at the Fifth Prince.”

Some officials frowned, and regardless of other matters, Yang Changzheng's words should serve as a warning.

Mingming was discussing the floods.

It's best to put personal grudges aside for now.

"Your Majesty."

Someone bowed respectfully.

"I believe that we should summon the people from the Imperial Observatory to discuss this together."

With so many people living near the river, it's impossible for them to be a threat everywhere.

How many places have been experiencing continuous torrential rain lately? We need to send people to investigate these areas.

We will take further action depending on the situation.

There is humanity.

“I remember that every year Lord Yang proposed to build water conservancy projects, which shows that he cares about the people and makes us feel ashamed.”

The emperor did not interrupt, but simply watched the officials and listened to their chatter.

There are supporters of the Second Prince and supporters of the Fifth Prince.

There are also some who are not involved in partisan disputes.

But also...

Emperor Yingqian's gaze fell on Gu Fuju and Wei Zhao.

But that's also what he fears most.

Have to guard against it.

Some people expressed doubts.

“In previous years, the dams and ditches were built well in advance, so why is there no sign of it this year?”

As soon as the words were spoken, someone sighed.

It is Wei Zhao.

"No, it's not me."

Wei Zhao tried to stand up, but failed several times. Finally, the Marquis of Zhongyong couldn't bear to see him like this and helped him up.

He was utterly dejected, his eyes lowered.

"I'm incompetent."

Wei Zhao's legs were weak, and his body was swaying unsteadily.

The lips were pale.

"Being injured and unable to risk my life for the Great Jin Dynasty is a deep worry for me."

“If it were before, it would have been the duty of the Duke of Shunguo’s mansion to fund water conservancy projects, and I wouldn’t have hesitated to do it.”

"Can……"

"I'm sorry, everyone."

“My household accounts are already running a deficit, and the household expenses are not small either; it’s barely enough to make ends meet.”

Wei Zhao: "Gui Zhi can no longer squeeze himself dry."