GBP Chapter 368 Rumors
Chapter 368 Rumors
Just when Liang Jingcheng was talking excitedly, he felt that Ye Changyan, who was sitting on him, seemed to have some physiological reaction in the lower abdomen.
Seeing the slightly excited smile on Ye Changyan's face, Liang Jingcheng blushed slightly and said shyly.
"I'm telling you something serious! What are you thinking about?"
When Ye Changyan saw that Liang Jingcheng had discovered him, his face turned red. He then turned over and pressed Liang Jingcheng under him.
"I heard everything you said. We will go to Yunfeng Building to make arrangements tomorrow morning. Now we need to hurry and get things done."
As soon as Ye Changyan finished speaking, he pulled up the quilt, which was a little damp, and covered both of their heads.
Later that night, raindrops as big as beans hit the roof tiles again.
The emperor, who had just moved back to the palace from the temporary palace outside the capital, did not sleep well the night before. At the small court meeting early the next morning, the emperor was not in a good spirits.
The officials in the court did not seem to be too worried about the possible hidden dangers behind the continuous rainfall. Only the Minister of Works mentioned that due to the continuous rainfall, a bridge on the Fuqiu River in the suburbs of Beijing had fallen into disrepair. Under the erosion of rainwater, the base of the bridge had sunk and it had now become a dangerous bridge and was temporarily impassable.
This bridge is the main official road from Shengjing to Mangshan area. The Minister of Works hopes that the Ministry of Revenue will raise money in advance, and the Ministry of Works will arrange craftsmen to inspect and repair the bridge as soon as possible.
After the small court meeting was over, the emperor saw the continuous dripping of rain, and he couldn't help but think of the dream that Qiu Bao mentioned that Ye Changyan told the fourth brother about that day.
The group of old astronomers at the Imperial Astronomical Observatory observed the celestial phenomena every day, but they couldn't calculate when it would rain. However, not long after Ye Changyan mentioned the dream to the fourth brother, it really started to rain that day, and the rain has lasted for seven or eight days. It seems to be consistent with what Ye Changyan mentioned that day. Could it really cause a flood?
The emperor did not quite believe the claim that Gongshu Wuji had sent a dream to Ye Changyan, and Ye Changyan had just visited Yujing Palace not long ago. If things really developed as he told the fourth brother, the emperor would become more interested in the rumors that Gongshu Wuji had left a method to communicate between heaven and earth in Yujing Palace.
The emperor instructed Zuo Wenxing, the chief eunuch of the Qinzheng Hall who was serving at the side, to go and summon Qiu Bao.
Soon, Qiu Bao arrived at the Qinzheng Hall, and the emperor began to ask questions.
"Have those experienced people at the Imperial Astronomical Bureau calculated when the rain will stop?"
"Reporting to your Majesty, the Astronomical Observatory seemed to be relieved since the rain fell on June 13th. These days, they haven't been observing the celestial phenomena in shifts every day like before."
When the emperor heard Qiu Bao's report, he immediately became furious.
"What's the point of keeping these assholes? Ask them when it will rain, they are just farts. It has been raining so hard for several days in a row. I am really worried that what Ye Changyan said to the fourth brother that day will all come true."
Seeing the emperor's angry face, Qiu Bao reported the news he had just received to the emperor.
"Your Majesty, I just received news that Ye Changyan and Liang Jingcheng went to Yunfeng Tower early in the morning. Then there were rumors from Yunfeng Tower that the rain would continue and that everyone should be prepared in advance."
The emperor looked at Qiu Bao with some surprise, and then listened to what Qiu Bao continued to say.
"In addition, early this morning, beggars in some prosperous areas of Shengjing were also spreading similar rumors."
The emperor gave a somewhat relieved smile.
"These two kids are good at using this trick. It's rare that they have such a compassionate heart. In comparison, those officials who eat the emperor's food but do nothing and just sit there doing nothing, I want to see how many people will lose their heads if a flood really hits."
Qiu Bao heard the murderous intent in the emperor's tone. It seemed that if the rain continued, something serious might happen.
"Is there any news coming back from Yujing Palace?"
"Reporting to your Majesty, although the Ye family and Cai Zhengqing are all recuperating in Yujing Palace, only Ye Xiaozheng can enter the back mountain of Yujing Palace for one hour every day, and he is accompanied by the little Taoist boy Xingwang who went down the mountain with Ye Changyan. In addition, since Ye Changyan and others went down the mountain, the guards at the back mountain of Yujing Palace have been stricter than before."
The emperor shook his head secretly and guessed in his heart that there seemed to be something strange about the mountain behind the Yujing Palace.
Soon, rumors spread to the ears of the powerful in Shengjing City that the rain would continue and might cause floods, and the well-informed people also sensed something was wrong.
In people's eyes, Shengjing City is naturally impregnable. Many people living in Shengjing City are dismissive of rumors about floods.
However, there is no guarantee that these powerful people have countless industries outside Shengjing City and in the surrounding prefectures, and the common people also have relatives in the suburbs of Beijing or in the surrounding prefectures.
Therefore, the news that the rainfall would continue and might cause floods began to spread from Shengjing to the suburbs of Beijing and surrounding provincial capitals. Among them, there were people who were good at observing the weather and chose to believe it. Of course, there were also many people who believed that it was just a rumor that was spread by word of mouth.
Those who chose to believe it naturally made some preparations to deal with it. Those who thought it was a rumor, of course, dismissed it. Even if there was a real flood, with the dense river network and developed water system in Shengjing and surrounding prefectures, the ability to drain flood water was unquestionable. It was not easy for a flood to happen so easily under the feet of the emperor around Shengjing.
When the Fourth Prince Li Jingping received Ye Changyan's warning, he still had some doubts in his heart, but not long after, it really started to rain, and the momentum of the rainfall was consistent with what Ye Changyan had described.
Compared with other princes, Li Jingping did not have many properties under his name, so he instructed the chief historian of his mansion early on to make adequate preparations to deal with possible floods.
When the eldest prince heard the rumors, he was skeptical, but he still asked the chief secretary of his mansion to make some preparations for the response with regard to several important properties under his name and the name of the imperial concubine.
The Second Prince is now in a state of panic because of the Dragon Boat Festival match-fixing case. It seems that the Three Departments have been given a gag order, and his own people cannot find out any useful information.
The Second Prince was already overwhelmed with his work, so he had no mood to pay attention to the rumors that continued rainfall might cause floods, and naturally he did not make any arrangements to deal with it.
The third prince was born to the queen and is the emperor's legitimate son. The property under his name is relatively more abundant than that of his other brothers. Although several important ministers who have surrendered to him might be implicated in the aftermath of the polo case and come to him for help, when the third prince heard the rumors about the flood, he still arranged for his chief historian to make some preparations to deal with it.