In the Song Dynasty, there was no law or order.

The huge flood rolled in like a tsunami, and the color of the sky and the earth seemed to change.

Countless people screamed and ran to a higher hillside. At this moment, nothing mattered, save their own lives was more important.

There were old people and children in the crowd, and there was no order. There were constant sounds of crying, screaming, and panic.

The roaring waves rolled, and the water roared so that the whole world was flooded by the terrifying waves.

Zhao Jun and others at the foot of the mountain in the distance had no time to go to the village to rescue supplies. They almost climbed up the mountain after discovering that the dam collapsed several miles away.

The young people carried the old man on their backs, supported each other, and climbed up with difficulty.

Almost as soon as they reached the high ground on the hillside, there was a roaring sound from behind, and the splash of water was more than ten meters high.

Looking back, Zhao Jun was already breaking out in a cold sweat.

Because the village at the foot of the mountain has been completely submerged, the houses have been washed away, and not even the rubble has been left. All kinds of wood chips, vegetable leaves, and branches are floating, and chickens, ducks, pigs, cattle and sheep can be seen splashing in the water.

If it had been a few minutes later, all of them would have been swallowed up by the water, like an insignificant wave in the tsunami tide, sinking to the bottom of the water in an instant.

Fortunately, they went down the mountain to pick up the old people, otherwise more than ten lives would have been lost.

There were all kinds of sounds everywhere, some were shouting, some were howling, some were mourning. The rain was still falling from the sky, and the rolling flood water was heading towards Changsha City in the north, hitting the city wall hard, and then being diverted and surging downstream.

Zhao Jun was among the crowd. He had four lost children, as well as old and weak women and children. Everyone supported the old and the young, and left with great difficulty toward higher ground, which was more than ten miles in radius, and later became Yuhua District, Changsha City. The hills and mountains in the area were crowded with people.

It was not until midnight in the afternoon that Chen Xiliang, who had not slept all night, found Zhao Jun. At this time, he was in a mess and covered in mud. He looked similar to Zhao Jun at this time, and his face looked ugly as if he was seriously ill and dying.

"Zhiyuan."

Chen Xiliang walked up to Zhao Jun in a very depressed mood and said bitterly: "The river bank has burst, and more than 20 of my men are missing."

At that time, the river bank was already flooded with water, but the terrain at the foot of the mountain was higher, so many subordinate officials from the prefecture and county government offices, including part of Zhao Jun's guards, were piling up nearby areas that were not yet flooded. sack.

After all, the quality of the sacks made in the Song Dynasty could not be compared with the polypropylene woven sandbags of later generations. The water broke through the dam and surged towards the foot of the mountain, directly destroying the sacks and sweeping people away.

Although most people reacted quickly and evacuated to the slope immediately, including Zhao Jun's side, which was relatively far away and considered safe.

But some people still didn't have time and died in the monstrous flood.

"You've done your best."

Zhao Jun's face was dull and numb, but he comforted Chen Xiliang in a mellow tone: "If you hadn't made a decisive decision last night, I'm afraid more people would have died in the flood now."

"God's will cannot be violated."

Chen Xiliang looked up to the sky and sighed: "Why does heaven treat His people like this? What have we done wrong to punish us like this?"

"There is no will of God that cannot be violated, it is just the law of nature. In the southeastern coastal areas, the southeast wind blows in summer and autumn, blowing the moisture over, causing rain in this season every year. In the Lingnan area, this is called plum rain weather."

Zhao Jun was sitting on a big rock at the moment. After hearing Chen Xiliang's words, he slowly seemed to have recovered from his numbness and sluggishness. He stood up with difficulty and said: "The power of nature is great and terrifying. Sometimes human power is really powerful." It’s hard to compete, but the reason why people are human is to fight against the world with their mortal bodies.”

"Man is stronger than God?"

Chen Xiliang looked at Zhao Jundao blankly.

"Yes, man is stronger than heaven."

Zhao Jun didn't bother to pat his muddy pants. He took a deep breath, turned his head and looked at the dense crowd behind him and said: "Floods are ruthless, so we will immediately transfer all the remaining supplies from the state and county offices. Then send someone to notify the Wugang Army to immediately transport a batch of military tents to Changsha for the resettlement of the victims. "

"yes."

Chen Xiliang responded with difficulty and left unsteadily.

The impact of this disaster on Changsha City was not bad, because the flood level did not rise higher than the city wall and was blocked by the city wall. However, there was waterlogging in the city, with the highest level reaching one meter.

But the people outside the city suffered. In the Shanhua County area, most of the land was submerged, more than a dozen villages were destroyed, and tens of thousands of acres of farmland were destroyed.

Strictly speaking, the scale of this flood was much smaller than that of 1998. Although the affected areas were not only Changsha, but also Xiangtan, Liuyang, Ningxiang, Xiangyin and other places, except for Changsha and Xiangyin downstream, , the rest of the place is pretty good.

Only the villages along both sides of the river were affected, unlike Changsha and Xiangyin, where the city was almost submerged.

Zhao Jun also immediately organized the aftermath. After three days, the heavy rain finally began to subside a lot. The floods have not receded yet. The people are living in wooden houses and tents temporarily built by the government. All food depends on the government's distribution of porridge and rice.

Fortunately, there were changping warehouses all over Tanzhou, and the Wugang Army sent a large number of military tents, and asked the surrounding Shaozhou and Hengzhou to raise a batch of clothes, so the victims could barely be comforted.

After more than twenty days, the flood finally receded slowly, and the foot of the mountain was in a mess. Inside and outside the city, there was desolation and dilapidation everywhere.

The fields were completely destroyed, many houses collapsed, and nothing was left after the flood.

Xiaolinzhuang, Qiaotou Township in the southeast of Shanhua County, is a small village located not far from the Xiangshui River. There are many fewer people in the village than usual. Some have gone to the city to get relief food and porridge, and some have Gone forever.

Qin Sanniang was carrying her two-year-old child in despair and holding one in her hand. Her house was gone.

Only two and a half sides of rammed earth walls remained, and most of the roof collapsed. The wall facing the Xiangjiang River completely disappeared into the waves, leaving only the collapsed rammed earth stones in the house.

Half of the window on the right was still hanging down, and the door panel was washed away by the flood. I don't know where it went. Most of the pots and pans are gone, and even if they are still there, there are only some broken pieces of porcelain. The bed was intact, but the bedding on it was in tatters.

The house was covered with a thick layer of silt. Qin Sanniang let go of the child's hand. The rough and slender rural woman's arms reached down, struggling to find useful things in the house. This was already her The last hope for survival.

Two relatively well-preserved porcelain bowls, a black iron pot with a huge crack on the edge but still usable, a few copper coins, half a bag of moldy rice, and the husband's remaining two pieces of clothing.

Looking at the clothes, Qin Sanniang thought of her husband who had been leading them up the mountain with difficulty, but when the embankment burst, her foot slipped and he fell into the flood and was swallowed up. She was heartbroken and knelt down on the ground. , burst into tears, and the shrill cries pierced the entire sky.

Perhaps due to her infection, after a while, the whole village was sobbing.

Zhou Wu from the neighboring village also sat blankly in a dilapidated and desolate house. He was only twelve years old this year. His father died young and his mother remarried, so he was raised by his grandparents.

But during the disaster, in order to take away some valuable things from the family, my grandfather was drowned when the embankment burst and he had no time to run. Grandma cried all day long. Her body was already weak and she fell ill after being exposed to the rain. Within a few days Leave him to die too.

In that lonely grave, a few young men who had also suffered the disaster felt pity for him, so they helped him throw a pit and put his grandmother's body in it without even a tombstone.

Overnight, he became an orphan.

"Mom, I'm hungry."

Qin Sanniang's five-year-old eldest son pulled on his mother's sleeve. At a young age, he might not be aware of the changes in the family.

Zhou Wu's neighbor saw him sitting in the ruins and couldn't bear to shout to him: "Xiao Wu, the county government is putting out porridge, I will take you there."

Countless victims outside the city slowly staggered toward the gate of Changsha City. Many of them were still dirty and messy, with a hint of numbness on their faces. No one knew whether they could survive this winter.

The fields were destroyed, the food in the family was washed away, and hope was gone. The only fortunate thing among misfortunes was that since it was still early for Chen Zhixian to see the opportunity, not many people were killed or injured this time.

But the number of people affected by the disaster was at least 200,000, so what if they survived? Many people like Qin Sanniang and Zhou Wu may not live long.

Outside the South City Gate, the accumulated silt has not yet been eradicated. The county government and state government are organizing to clean up the city first and restore order in the city. It was already September, and it was too late to think about planting late rice. We had to finish the work in the city first, and then organize the land reclamation outside the city in exchange for next spring plowing.

There are at least twenty porridge stalls near the city gate, and there is a long queue behind them. Thousands of people affected by the disaster are receiving supplies. After receiving it, drink the porridge first, and then a subordinate will come over to investigate the situation.

Zhao Jun stood aside, and next to him was a subordinate official sitting on a table and chair, recording the family status of the victims who received supplies, including where they lived, how many people were left in the family, how much food was left, etc. These are not only to prevent those who have surplus food from asking for relief food, but also to investigate the severity of the victims.

If the family situation is serious, the government will take care of it as soon as possible.

At this moment, Zhao Jun's face was visibly haggard, and gray hair could be faintly seen on his forehead and temples. He was only twenty-four years old, but he had been so worried that he couldn't sleep all night long these days.

In addition to asking Jinghu North Road to mobilize the grain from Changpingcang to relieve the victims in Changsha and surrounding disaster-stricken areas, the money and materials I brought with me were also used to purchase grain. I bought a large amount of grain and grass from wealthy landlords in neighboring states. , used to relieve the people.

But too many people were affected by the disaster. The victims lost the food stored at home and consumed countless amounts of food every day.

Even though they have been collecting food and grass from everywhere, they can only maintain basic food and clothing. It will take another eight or nine months for spring plowing next spring and harvesting in summer and autumn. How are the victims going to live in such a long time?

"Name."

"Zhou Wu."

"How many people are left in the family?"

"All dead."

"Don't you have any other relatives?"

"there is none left."

At this moment, the voice next to him interrupted Zhao Jun's thoughts.

He turned around and saw a half-grown child standing there dirty, with tears on his face.

This time, thanks to Chen Xiliang's early warning, most of the victims' lives were saved. It was rare that the whole family was missing like this child.

Zhao Jun saw the child's gloomy face and tattered and dirty appearance. He couldn't help but go up and touch his head, and asked softly: "How many acres of land do you still have at home?"

"There is only one acre of corner field in the village and a few vegetable plots."

Zhou Wu replied.

"well."

Zhao Jun couldn't help but sigh again, and was about to ask the adult next to him.

At this moment, the voice of a scribe on the other side talking to a woman holding a child came to his ears again.

"Name."

"My family calls me Sanniang."

"Last name?"

"Qin."

"How many people are left?"

"We are the only three mothers. My parents-in-law left early and my husband died."

"Then I'll give you an extra bag of rice. Can you carry it?"

"I don't want this rice anymore."

"Why?"

"The child is hungry, so he wants to be a starving man. If his husband is gone, he can't live anymore, so he will throw himself into the river after eating."

The indifferent and decisive tone made Zhao Jun couldn't help but shudder.

He turned around and saw that she was a woman in her twenties, equally dirty, holding a doll in her hand and carrying another on her back.

It was entering late autumn, and the weather was slowly getting colder. Their clothes were thin, and the two children's faces seemed to be turning purple from the cold.

The woman seemed to have been crying and was tired from crying. There was no color in her eyes, and there was only a lifeless numbness on her face.

Like a dead person.

The scribe also looked at her blankly. She had already received the porridge and did not go to get the relief food. She put down the child behind her and fed it to him. The older one picked up the bowl and licked it.

Zhao Jun pulled Zhou Wu over and looked up again. He was surrounded by people whose faces were either sad, lifeless or numb.

At this moment, he felt sad, held back the tears that were about to fall, climbed onto the clerk's table next to him, and said to Qin Sanniang from a high position: "Qin Sanniang, please allow me to treat you well." I have a few words to say to the people.”

Qin Sanniang raised her head.

People around him also raised their heads.

Zhao Jun shouted with all his strength: "Folks, you must be very confused and in pain now. Why are we working so hard to live, but God is so unfair and makes us suffer so much."

"We farmed hard in the land under our feet, working day and night, not daring to take a break every day, and working hard every day. In exchange, we only got three meals of food and clothing."

"But sometimes, fate is like this. A disaster, a military famine, or an exorbitant taxation can make us bankrupt and our family is destroyed."

"Why is the world always so dark, and why does it always make it difficult for us poor people to survive?"

"It's not because we don't work hard, but because some people don't do a good job. It is the responsibility of the court and the officials of the world to let the people live and work in peace and contentment. But the court also has bad times, and officials also have bad times."

"But we don't want to lose hope in this world, and no one should say that they can't live anymore and want to leave this world. Because the court not only has bad officials, but also wants to feed the people of the world and all of you. Officials with food, warm clothes and housing.”

"Chen Xiliang, the magistrate of Changsha County, is such a person, and I am also such a person. We Han people have overcome obstacles all the way and stand tall in this world. We have been bullied by barbarians, submerged by floods, and starved to death by famine, but we have only Never perished."

"Because we always have hope. When some officials have power, they forget their roots and think they have climbed on your heads. But what I want to tell you is that you are the masters of the country and you are the people of the Song Dynasty. You The existence of the Song Dynasty is due to the existence of the people, not those high-ranking officials. "

"I, Zhao Jun, promise here that no matter what, I will ensure that everyone can live healthily. If there is no rice at home, the court will distribute it. If any landlord or wealthy grain merchant dares to raise the price of grain, I will confiscate their homes and exterminate their families. Distribute the rice they have hoarded to the people for free.”

"All those who want to take advantage of the disaster to lower land prices and deprive you of your land, just tell me and let them ask me whether the knife in my hand is sharp."

"Don't hold back the grievances you have suffered, tell me all."

"Don't fight your sufferings alone. Tell them all to the government and into my ears."

"I will listen to all of you seriously, hear what each of you says, the opinions that everyone puts forward, and the difficulties that everyone encounters."

"If you don't have enough food, come to me. If you don't have enough oil or salt, come to me. If you don't have seeds for spring plowing next year, if you don't have any labor at home, you all come to me."

"I want all the people affected by the disaster to survive the next autumn harvest."

"I want you to have your own land, have the hope of living, and have the belief that even in darkness and despair, the sky will dawn!"

"Do you believe me?"

Zhao Jun used all his strength to shout to the people around him.

that moment.

On everyone's face, a flower named hope blooms!

They heard Zhao Jun's name, heard his promise to the victims, and heard his oath.

Everyone shouted: "Believe! Believe! Believe!"

That voice.

It seems to be soaring into the sky.

Let the thief God who brings merciless disasters hear you!

In the last chapter, some people said that the protagonist was stupid, while others said that they should not read it and delete the book. All I can say is, comrades, you no longer have your own beliefs. If the same thing were done to a great man, do you think he would do it? If you put it on those martyrs who shed their lives and blood, guess whether he will go. What I want to tell you is that the protagonist is a person of faith. Although he was an angry young man who used to be a troll, he still has faith.

Sometimes, there must be hope in your heart, comrades.