The rain has not stopped, and the floodwaters roar like an insatiable giant python.
The shrine statues are subrged in water, with the gold lacquer of the Buddha peeling off piece by piece, revealing the decaying wood within.
On the high hillside, the surviving villagers stand numbly, staring at the distant subrged fields and the rooftops protruding slightly above the water line.
The water level in the streets continues to rise, with murky waves pushing restlessly. Heart-wrenching cries can be heard everywhere.
"Has anyone seen my grandson Chang? He was just here, but how could he disappear in the blink of an eye?"
An elderly hunched woman frantically clutches at people on the high hill, asking. In the end, she only gets one reply.
"A child just fell in."
She cries out in grief, clutching the person’s hand tightly.
"Since you saw him, why didn’t you pull him up? That’s a life, it’s the root of the Liu Family!"
She is fiercely pushed away, even spat upon.
"Are you crazy? Your grandson isn’t my grandson. Do you expect to risk my life to fish him out?"
"Whose family hasn’t lost soone? Is your family the only precious one?"
As the argunt escalates, the other person squats down and cries bitterly, slapping his own face hard twice.
"Damn it, I couldn’t even protect my own daughter-in-law. She was seven months along, nearly due."
The elderly woman falls to the ground but ignores the pain.
She was already half-buried in the earth; without her grandson, what hope does she have left? Wiping away her tears, she stumbles down the hillside.
By the ti half of her body is subrged in water, she moves with difficulty.
Sothing strikes her calf.
The elderly woman reaches out to catch it.
It’s a pile of stark white bones, swept out from who knows where.
Her cries are faint but evident.
At this mont, amidst the torrent of river water, the Wei Family Army erges, lifting an unresponsive child.
In every place, the figures of the Wei Family Army can be seen, helping to rescue disaster victims.
They also make it a point to highlight the Court’s inaction.
Disaster Victim 1: "Will the Court help us?"
Wei Family Army: "No."
Disaster Victim 2: "The Court has sent grain, everyone hold on. We will surely be saved."
Wei Family Army: "By the ti it arrives, we’ll have starved to death."
"The Holy Emperor is a wise ruler. We, his people, must..."
The Wei Family Army interrupts: "As his people, have you ever had a good day?"
Disaster Victim 2 thinks for a while and can’t hold it in anymore, bursting into tears.
Disaster Victim 3, angry, points at the Wei Family Army: "Stop talking nonsense!"
"I’ve never seen the Holy Emperor, but I’ve had the honor of eting the Fifth Prince!"
The speech is excited and respectful: "Back when he went to Ze County to retrieve General Wei’s coffin, learning that the people of four nearby cities were oppressed by local officials, he stayed, oversaw the situation, and allowed accompanying officials to reopen old cases. The bullied people of the four cities could also seek justice in Ze County."
"At that ti, we gained a lot of benefits! The four cities were also reorganized. Now, the Court is sending officials for aid in various places."
The more he speaks, the more confident Disaster Victim 3 becos.
"With so many disaster areas, the Court is too busy to reach us promptly."
Wei Family Army: "Oh."
He is puzzled.
"But how do I rember it was mostly Mr. He from the Imperial Censorate who handled the case?"
"But I must have rembered wrong; if it weren’t for the Fifth Prince’s approval, how could a small Imperial Censor like Mr. He dare to overstep and provide justice to the common people."
"The Fifth Prince indeed is good; he still has Dragon Energy on him."
The Wei Family Army continues: "If the Holy Emperor coughs up blood and sothing happens, the Fifth Prince would be the next new emperor."
This statent is bold.
In Shangjing, it would lead to arrest.
But in remote areas, the people know little, nodding in agreent.
"That’s right, if the old man dies, the family business is inherited by the son."
Although the Holy Emperor has other sons, they only recognize the Fifth Prince.
The Wei Family Army seemingly unintentionally remarks: "I just wonder if the Fifth Prince, who loves the people like his own children, will feel uneasy about the masses and co with the officials to aid the disaster relief."
The crowd goes silent.
Faces look at each other.
"That shouldn’t happen, the Fifth Prince is too noble to be put at risk."
"Our lives are cheap, but the Fifth Prince is different."
Yet, an old woman is displeased, pulling a long face.
"How is he different? He just knows how to be born in the right place! Without us, where is the kingdom?"
"Officials rush to the frontline, and the Prince should lead by example; this is the determination of the Imperial family to share the hardships with us."
The old woman provides an example.
"In the previous dynasty, when the earth dragon turned, the ground shook suddenly, opening a large black crack several feet wide, like a fierce beast with its bloody mouth wide open. Many people fell into the abyss, and in an instant, the terrifying crack closed up with a roar, swallowing the cries and flesh entirely, leaving only the crimson new soil, as if stained with uninvited blood."
"Many died back then too."
"But the Crown Prince of the previous dynasty personally arrived, residing for half a month to aid relief efforts, wearing coarse cloth and eating the sa porridge as the disaster victims."
"This is the kind of leader the common people should revere."
"If the Fifth Prince can’t do it, only spouting empty words, what use is Dragon Energy on him?"
Beside her, an old man, who has experienced two natural disasters, sits on the ground, his stomach growling in hunger.
He laughs loudly, seemingly mad or crazy.
"Hahaha."
"Back in the famine, a bunch of people died, and now, the flood will claim another group. It’s as if all sufferings are on us poor souls."
The Wei Family Army can’t stand it, steps forward and gives him a handful of beans.
"There’s no way around it, who told you your last na isn’t Ying."
Old man: "I don’t seek great wealth, just to live peacefully."
The old man hesitates to eat.
He mutters: "They say wrong deeds bring retribution, but we’ve always lived honestly."
The Wei Family Army sits down beside him.
"Old man, that’s not right. Honest people always die the fastest; in these tis, it’s always the good who et an early end."
This reminder brings back mories to the crowd.
"During the famine, King Yan personally ca to deliver grain. He wept witnessing the people’s suffering."
"But soon, the late Emperor called him back, and later the Court sent a gluttonous envoy to dismiss us, embezzling relief silver and monopolizing everything. If King Yan stayed, how could so many have died?"
"The late Emperor wouldn’t allow it; after all, he loved King Yan the most."
But King Yan died.
Who could have known such a noble person would end up like that.
Soone whispers: "I don’t believe the claims of treason."
The Wei Family Army rolls his eyes.
Not allow?
That’s clearly because King Yan’s reputation was too good. It hindered the current Emperor Ying’s path.
"Coincidentally, wasn’t that envoy the Fifth Prince’s uncle by marriage?"
"Ah, then the Fifth Prince doesn’t sound that great."
A devoted follower of Ying Yin quickly interjects: "An uncle is an uncle, the Fifth Prince is the Fifth Prince, they are not the sa."
But the voice grows lower, losing certainty.
Everyone stares at him.
The old man on the ground suddenly jumps up and slaps him hard.
"Uncle Zhang, why did you hit !"
"Because you stand on this ground!"
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