No one anticipated that this early summer thunderstorm would trigger landslides in several villages outside Ping Province City, causing heavy casualties among villagers.

When news reached Wen Yu’s ears, she had just finished washing up and was merely handling some official business at her desk before bed as usual. After hearing the urgent report, she quickly issued orders dispatching several battalions to rescue the people.

Wave after wave of people left the government office in the rain, treading through the courtyard’s accumulated water, while another wave hurried in through the rain. Rain poured onto the courtyard paved with green bricks—the ripples stirred up by the standing water never ceased.

This night was destined to be sleepless.

Wen Yu changed clothes again, had someone summon Li Yao, Li Xun and others to jointly discuss methods for flood control and disaster relief.

Li Yao, with sparse white hair and leaning on his cane, entered the room. His first words were: “Quickly dispatch people to patrol the river embankments! Several counties downstream of Ping Province just finished spring plowing. If the Shao River swells and destroys the embankments, hundreds of thousands of mu of good farmland will turn into vast waters—there’ll be no harvest come autumn! At that time, forget collecting military grain—even the common people will need purchased grain for relief to survive!”

His words had barely fallen when a military messenger came splashing through the water from outside the courtyard, saying anxiously: “Report—on the Shao River’s west bank, part of the embankment near Majia Village has been breached!”

Everyone in the room was shocked.

Wen Yu’s face remained relatively calm as she ordered: “Quickly relay orders to Fan Yuan. Command him to lead soldiers from the East Third Battalion, West First Battalion, and West Second Battalion to plug the breach in the embankment.”

Li Xun, having served as an official in court for many years and having participated in flood control, knew that once there was a breach, given the speed at which embankments collapsed, it was basically very difficult to stop the flood again. He said gravely: “I fear it’s too late. By the time General Fan leads people there, the entire embankment section will probably already be destroyed. Rather than letting soldiers needlessly sacrifice their lives in the torrents, we should patrol other sections of embankment and wait until the rainstorm stops and floodwaters recede before plugging this breach!”

Other aides were stunned: “Then what about the thousands of people and farmland in Zhao Village and Wang Village next to Majia Village, and further down in Zheng County and Xin’an County—just abandon them?”

The candlelight reflected on Li Xun’s temples, already completely gray. He said: “Not that we won’t manage it, but that we can’t! Wind, frost, rain, snow, earthquakes, mountain floods—these are all heavenly phenomena. How can humans contend with heaven?”

The aides fell silent, looking toward Wen Yu, awaiting her decision.

Facing undercurrents of power struggles, Wen Yu could calmly unravel threads, seeking a thread of survival from those intricate intersecting forces. But facing such natural disasters, what she could do was truly limited.

Allowing flood waters from the breach to submerge nearby villages wasn’t a solution. Knowing the breach couldn’t be plugged yet still having soldiers risk being swept away by torrents to plug it also wasn’t a solution.

In mere moments, almost thousands of thoughts weighed in Wen Yu’s mind. She pressed against the desk: “Have Fan Yuan lead people there. If the breach can be plugged, plug it. If not, dig ditches toward the wasteland downstream to divert part of the flood. Also quickly dispatch people to rescue around Majia Village and evacuate villagers near Zhao Village and Wang Village as soon as possible.”

After speaking, she raised her eyes to look at the aides in the room: “If we can’t save the farmland, preserve the villagers’ lives as much as possible.”

The aides all clasped their hands in acknowledgment.

Messengers rushed to the military in the rain.

Another messenger hurried to the prefectural office, already shouting from outside the courtyard: “Report—the West Second Battalion has temporarily plugged the breach on the Shao River’s west bank near Majia Village! Requesting troop reinforcements!”

Wen Yu’s head shot up.

After their shock, the aides’ faces all showed joy without exception.

“The breach was plugged—then downstream villages and farmland can still be saved!”

“West Second Battalion? Isn’t the commanding officer precisely Colonel Xiao!”

Wen Yu said to the messenger from West Second Battalion: “Reinforcements have been dispatched. Relay to Xiao Li—he must hold the breach tight until reinforcements arrive!”

Having received the message, the messenger hurried back through the rain again.

Li Xun volunteered to Wen Yu: “Wengzhu, when this subject remained in office in Taiyuan, I dealt with the great flood of the seventh year of Shaojing. This subject wishes to go assist General Fan and Colonel Xiao.”

Wen Yu said: “Approved.”

—

In the pitch-black night, the sky seemed torn open, rain pouring like an overturned basin.

When Li Xun and Fan Yuan rushed to the embankment breach, Xiao Li was leading West Second Battalion soldiers in driving stakes along the riverbank.

The ground flowed with muddy yellow water—nowhere to set foot.

Xiao Li was thoroughly drenched by the rainstorm, wielding an iron hammer to pound stakes as thick as rice bowls. One blow sent water droplets flying while the wooden stake sank a large section deeper.

Subordinate soldiers carried freshly cut timber toward the riverbank. With those rows of stakes as barriers, the piled logs at least weren’t immediately swept away by floodwaters. Soldiers digging earth and stones on nearby mountains carried baskets of soil and stones to cover the timber, trying to raise the embankment as quickly as possible.

Fan Yuan wore a rain hat yet was still drenched enough that he could barely open his eyes. From far away he called: “Brother Xiao!”

Xiao Li looked up in this direction, threw the iron hammer to a nearby soldier, and waded through knee-deep muddy water toward Fan Yuan: “Big Brother Fan arrived.”

Seeing Li Xun who came with him, he nodded in greeting: “Minister Li.”

By torchlight, Fan Yuan looked at the muddy yellow expanse where riverbank and riverbed could barely be distinguished, asking with considerable dismay: “What’s the situation?”

The rain was too urgent and the flood control scene too chaotic—people speaking to each other practically had to shout.

Xiao Li’s soaked hair clung messily to his forehead. He turned to look at the soldiers still carrying soil and stones to fill the breach behind him, saying loudly: “The breach is too large. We’ve plugged it several times but it keeps being washed open by floodwaters. This isn’t sustainable.”

Li Xun, a civil official with a gaunt frame like a broken branch or withered tree in this rainstorm, could only stand steady supported by two guards. Even wearing a rain cape and hat, he was thoroughly drenched. Seeing subordinates using freshly cut trees to fill the breach, he quickly called out: “Wood has buoyancy—how can you use wood to block water?”

Xiao Li explained: “The breach is too wide to plug properly. When stones are dumped in, they’re swept away by floodwaters. We can only first use stakes to hold back the logs, blocking the gap, then cover the logs with mud, sand and rubble.”

Li Xun shouted: “This won’t work! When water flows urgently, wood floats upward—the breach can’t be held. Have soldiers cut more bamboo and vines to weave into long baskets. Put rubble in the baskets and sink them together with the baskets into the breach!”

Xiao Li wiped rainwater from his face: “I’ll give orders immediately.”

He had subordinates take Li Xun to a temporarily erected rain shelter tent while he himself waded through muddy water toward the most dangerous breach area.

Fan Yuan watched his tall figure receding in the rain curtain, then swept his gaze over those soldiers risking their lives to follow him. He shook his head and laughed: “This kid…”

He turned to shout at the soldiers he’d brought: “We’re digging ditches to divert flood waters—can’t let those kids from West Second Battalion show us up!”

His two battalions of subordinates, thus provoked, worked with full energy, picking up hoes to start digging channels and ditches.

This rainstorm lasted two days before stopping. Xiao Li and Fan Yuan, leading their subordinate soldiers under Li Xun’s command, worked sleeplessly plugging embankments and digging ditches. The Ping Province area managed to avoid suffering too great a loss.

But landslides caused many village dwellings to be destroyed—these disaster victims also needed resettlement.

Wen Yu arranged for Chen Wei to handle relief for disaster victims. To prevent widespread infection of cold and epidemic diseases among the people, she had some of the medicinal materials sent by the Xu family’s cargo ships transported there to provide porridge and medicine to disaster victims.

Li Yao privately said to her: “The Wengzhu expended such great effort obtaining those medicinal materials. Using them here isn’t using them on the blade’s edge.”

After the rain cleared, water droplets from under the eaves dripped into puddles in the courtyard, shattering reflections of gray eaves and blue sky.

Wen Yu glanced sideways at the late-blooming crabapple tree in the courtyard. Wind passing through the courtyard stirred her wide sleeves as she said: “Sir once taught Yu that people’s livelihood is the foundation of establishing a nation. Used on the common people, it is being used on the blade’s edge.”

Li Yao looked at her: “This old man only mentioned it once. This should be what Yu Zijing taught your elder brother.”

He raised his aged, gaunt hand to stroke his beard: “But it’s not wrong either. As long as the Wengzhu knows what she’s doing.”

—

On this afternoon after the rain stopped, Wen Yu personally went to see the camp temporarily housing disaster victims.

To accommodate as many disaster victims as possible, soldiers had erected large communal tents with oil cloth. Injured or cold-infected disaster victims rested inside the tents. Women helped physicians care for these people while farming men worked with soldiers to dig ditches and channels.

Chen Wei guided Wen Yu through the inspection, saying: “With the medicines you allocated, Wengzhu, not many disaster victims caught colds. However, quite a few soldiers who blocked breaches and dug channels in the rain these past days have fallen ill.”

Wen Yu frowned: “Weren’t the battalions supposed to take turns blocking embankments and digging ditches?”

Chen Wei said: “Quite a few common people from nearby villages also spontaneously came to help dig channels. Cold medicine was prioritized for the people, so soldiers often didn’t get any.”

Though Wen Yu had subordinates transport medicinal materials over, medicines were precious and portions were allocated per capita for soldiers and disaster victims. She hadn’t anticipated earlier that villagers from other villages would spontaneously come help to preserve farmland.

She looked at Chen Wei: “Minister should have informed me of this situation earlier.”

Chen Wei bowed his head guiltily: “This subject also didn’t know about this matter earlier. Only today when dozens of soldiers with severe cold infections were sent to the camp did this subject learn of it.”

Wen Yu withdrew her gaze: “I’ll have more medicinal materials sent over.”

Having such an incident occur, she had to visit the front lines of embankment plugging and ditch digging no matter what.

Since this trip hadn’t been planned in advance, Xiao Li and Fan Yuan’s side hadn’t received advance notice either.

Tan Yi, who had replaced Xiao Li’s position and was temporarily commanding soldiers to repair embankments, saw Wen Yu arrive and appeared rather flustered. Stepping deep and shallow through the mud, he walked to the carriage, licked his lips—licked mud splattered on them at some point but didn’t dare spit it out—only piling on a smile and asking: “Why has the Wengzhu come?”

Zhao Bai half-lifted the carriage curtain for Wen Yu. She sat inside and asked: “Where are General Fan and Colonel Xiao?”

Tan Yi dared not look directly at Wen Yu. He clasped his fists and answered truthfully: “General Fan went to survey terrain for digging ditches—he should return in a while yet. Colonel Xiao has been guarding the breach commanding soldiers these past days without closing his eyes. Today when the rain stopped and floodwaters receded somewhat, this subordinate finally persuaded him to go rest.”

Wen Yu turned: “Colonel Xiao returned to the military camp?”

Tan Yi said: “No, he’s in the temporarily erected tent here.”

Thinking Wen Yu had matters to discuss with Xiao Li and Fan Yuan, he was about to have someone summon Xiao Li when Wen Yu stopped him. She said: “Colonel Xiao has labored many days—don’t disturb him. I heard quite a few soldiers fell ill due to insufficient cold medicine. I happen to have some matters regarding ditch digging to discuss with General Fan and came by on the way to take a look.”

Tan Yi then said: “Then please wait in the tent for a moment, Wengzhu. This subordinate will immediately have someone relay a message to General Fan.”

He earnestly personally guided Wen Yu over. The temporarily erected camp had only three military tents—two side tents used for storing supplies and brief rest for officers, while the main tent in the middle was for discussions.

The group had just reached the main tent when another young soldier came seeking anxiously—apparently some thorny problem had arisen at the embankment.

Wen Yu said: “Embankment repair is urgent. General Tan, please attend to it. I’ll wait in the tent for General Fan to return.”

Tan Yi hastily clasped his fists toward Wen Yu and strode quickly toward the breach.

Zhao Bai stepped forward to lift the main tent’s flap for Wen Yu. Just as Wen Yu was about to step inside, seeing the person sleeping in the round-backed chair, her feet suddenly stopped.

Zhao Bai saw clearly who was in the tent—her eyes also changed slightly.

Xiao Li’s face and hair were covered with mud. His head tilted against the chair back as he slept.

His boots and trouser legs were so caked with mud that boundaries couldn’t be distinguished. The soaked clothing on his body had been dried halfway by body heat, leaving only some traces of water dripped from clothing remaining under the chair.

An unfolded river map lay spread on the table. By the looks of it, he’d fallen asleep while studying the map from exhaustion.

This was what Tan Yi called him returning to the tent to rest?

Wen Yu’s gaze lingered long on Xiao Li’s weary yet still handsome sleeping face, her brow slightly furrowed.