Chapter 222: Guarding the Lake, but All Are Landlubbers

Chapter 222: Guarding the Lake, but All Are Landlubbers

"At this point, it's too late to build a dam." Ci Xin shook his head.

"Then why not dig a channel to drain the water? It's easy! Little Heart is so clueless!"

The disdain from Ruo Xi Baby was, as always, cutting.

Ci Xin looked at her and couldn't help but feel that she knew far too much for her age.

"Dig a channel, but where should we drain the water to?" Ci Xin turned to look around at the surroundings.

Xiao Yin patted Ruo Xi Baby, feeling that the little girl was truly clever. He had actually thought of the same solution but chose not to say it, wanting to see if the little girl would mention it first.

"Go find the local magistrate." The Emperor instructed.

Even though the townsfolk knew that Beiling was now a vassal state of Great Wei, in their day-to-day lives, it was as if nothing had changed.

The Beiling royal family only thought of them during tax collection.

They were ignored unless it was time to collect taxes.

Now, with the sudden news that the Emperor had arrived, all the townsfolk from the lake village came out to see for themselves.

"It's truly the Emperor! They say one of the characteristics of the Emperor of Great Wei is that he always carries a child—a beautiful girl."

"Look at her chubby little face, those big eyes, long lashes. Oh my, she's so adorable!"

"The Emperor is handsome too, the number one handsome man of Great Wei! And the Princess Royal is also incredibly beautiful!"

The townsfolk, lacking education, struggled to find elaborate words to describe what they saw.

They simply knew that the Emperor was handsome, the Princess was beautiful, and the little girl was even more stunning.

"It must be said, people from Great Wei are just good-looking. Even their maids and nannies are beautiful!"

"That person over there… I think he's unnervingly beautiful, not just 'handsome'!"

"Hmm?" Hearing someone commenting on him in such a way, Ci Xin turned around, a little displeased. "Am I really that ugly?"

"No, no, Imperial Advisor..." The townsfolk immediately shook their heads. As the otherworldly figure approached, they quickly knelt and begged for forgiveness. "You, you are extraordinarily handsome, like an immortal, both masculine and feminine in beauty."

"Hmm, that's more like it!" Ci Xin withdrew his oppressive aura and gestured for them to rise. "Get up! Who asked you to kneel?"

Beside him, Xiao Yin and Xiao Yue exchanged a look of disbelief.

Didn’t you make them kneel in the first place?

And now you're saying this!

The townsfolk trembled as they stood up. They had heard stories that the Emperor of Great Wei was a tyrant, merciless and extremely cruel.

And the Imperial Advisor by the Emperor's side, they heard, was even more ruthless. He always wore a smile while taking lives.

The townsfolk also heard that he liked to mold dough.

That is, he would crush a person's bones bit by bit, shaping them into a ball.

And the victim would still be alive when the ball was formed. The thought of such torture sent shivers down their spines.

Not to mention, this guy was walking towards me with a strange smile on his face.

"Hey, these townsfolk, they hear things through rumors. Little Heart just likes to stir up trouble by getting people involved with each other; there's nothing to be afraid of!" Ruo Xi Baby couldn't help but sigh softly.

Little Azure Dragon is way too worried about saving face.

"I summon you all here to ask if every spring and summer, this lake overflows and floods your farmlands and villages?" Xiao Yin asked.

"Yes, yes, Your Majesty, in another half a month, we’ll have to move up the mountain with our clothes because our houses will be washed away!" the townsfolk quickly replied.

"Have you ever thought about moving away?" Dong Ju asked.

"Move? Move where? We’re in Beiling; we’re not allowed to move freely. Those fields aren’t ours, and even the mountains aren’t ours. We have nowhere to go!"

"Yes, even when the great flood comes, we only temporarily go up the mountain to avoid it. In the past, those mountains were planted with spring flowers and herbs."

"These damned beasts, they are inhumane!" Dong Ju cursed. She pointed to the lake and said, "The water is already so high; after a heavy rain, it will definitely overflow. Strengthening the levee is useless now, so let’s dig a channel!"

"Dig a channel to where? The best spot over there belongs to Lord Gong. If we dig from the side, our houses will be flooded," the townsfolk shook their heads and said. "We’ve thought about digging channels to drain the water, but it’s no use!"

"Dig from the side. Go and prepare now. You can’t get something new without letting go of the old," Ci Xin said, looking into the distance. "That’s Lord Gong’s house, right? Anyone whose house is going to be flooded, pack up and follow this Imperial Tutor!"

The townsfolk exchanged skeptical glances.

"Lord Gong is fierce. Even though he doesn’t rely on the government or mingle with officials, he’s stingy and cruel. The lake belongs to him, and we’re not even allowed to swim in it."

"Yes, if we go into the water, they say we’ll dirty the lake. Their fish will lose value."

The townsfolk shook their heads, indicating they didn’t dare.

"Baiyu, get people to call a team of a hundred men and prepare to dig the channel," Ci Xin turned to Baiyu and said.

"Yes!" Baiyu replied and immediately went to arrange it.

"Imperial Tutor, Imperial Tutor, this is Beiling. If you don’t understand Beiling’s matters, please don’t..."

"Boom!"

Ci Xin slapped his palm and sent the person flying into the lake.

"Is this the village head?" Ci Xin asked.

"Y-Yes!" The other townsfolk knelt down again.

"Village head, as the head of the people, if you only think of self-preservation and fear when encountering problems, why did the people choose you?" Xiao Yin sneered coldly.

"Help, Your Majesty, I just don’t want that cruel Lord Gong to bully the people!" The village head splashed in the water.

"Can’t swim?" Ci Xin asked.

"None of us can," the townsfolk all shook their heads.

"None of you can?" This piqued Ci Xin’s curiosity.

In the next moment, he pushed off the ground, flew up, grabbed the village head from the water, and tossed him aside.

"Guarding the lake but being a landlubber, it seems my uncle will have something to do again. Baby, sleep for a while!"

Dealing with a petty landlord like that is beneath her, Ruo Xi Baby thought.

"Your Majesty, Imperial Tutor, you may not know this, but we aren’t allowed to enter this lake. If we’re caught, they’ll kill us and throw our bodies into the middle of the lake," the townsfolk said.

"Divine creatures?" Not only the emperor but also Dong Ju and the others rushed to the lakeside, intrigued.