The emperor faked his death? Never mind, I will ascend the throne directly!

The relief supplies arranged by Lord Zhang left the city in an orderly manner. They headed south, and other carriages and horses on the official road gave way.

About thirty miles out of the city gate, the official road gradually became narrower, the mountains on both sides gradually rose, and the number of pedestrians on the road also became sparse.

The escort team moved forward slowly, and the wheels made a squeaking sound as they rolled over the gravel.

The cavalry at the front of the team looked back from time to time to ensure the safety of the convoy.

"Whoa--" The leading cavalryman pulled the reins and raised his right hand to signal the troops to stop.

"There's someone ahead!" he shouted.

I saw dust flying in the distance and a group of people staggering towards me.

They were dressed in rags, walked unsteadily, and supported each other. They looked like a group of refugees.

"Let's go and take a look." The leading cavalryman ordered, and two soldiers rode forward and approached the newcomers cautiously.

"Who is coming?"

The soldier held his sword across his chest to prevent them from moving forward.

When we got closer, we found that the group of "refugees" were pale and thin, and their eyes had become numb.

Some of the children were starving to death.

As soon as the "refugees" saw the officers and soldiers, their eyes lit up.

"Sir, please be kind and give me something to eat. Please, sir."

"Sir, please give us some water. We have been walking for three days and we can't stand it any longer."

"Sir, please save my child. He is so young. Wuuuuuu"

"My Lord, I kowtow to you."

"grown ups..."

The escorting officers and soldiers looked at the "refugees" kneeling and kowtowing, and a trace of pity flashed in their eyes.

But he still said, "Get out of here, get out of here! We are escorting supplies to provide disaster relief under imperial orders. Can you bear the responsibility of standing in the way of the imperial court?"

When the “refugees” heard about the supplies, they became even more excited.

"We only need a little bit of life-saving rations, which will definitely not hinder your lordship from doing his work."

After saying that, he banged even harder.

The soldier looked at their tear-stained and dirt-stained faces and couldn't help but look at the captain.

"Alas, poor things, give them some dry food." the escort officer ordered.

He wanted to get rid of these people quickly so that he could continue on his journey.

The soldiers opened the food carts, took out some dry food and water, and threw them to the "refugees".

The eyes of the "refugees" who were originally crying suddenly changed!

They rushed forward like hungry wolves seeing their prey and started to grab the prey frantically.

The officers and soldiers were caught off guard and were scattered by this sudden change before they could react to what was happening.

These people are not refugees at all, they are clearly a group of well-trained robbers!

They drew swords hidden under their rags and slashed at the officers and soldiers fiercely.

"Protect the supplies!" the escort officer shouted loudly and drew his sword to fight.

The officers and soldiers also drew their swords to resist. For a moment, the sounds of shouting and weapons clashing resounded throughout the valley.

Although the escorting officers and soldiers were well-trained, their numbers were limited after all, and they were caught off guard, so they soon fell into a disadvantage.

Many officers and soldiers fell in a pool of blood, and the rest gradually became exhausted.

The robbers were ruthless and their moves were deadly.

They quickly took control of all the supply vehicles and moved food, cloth, medicine and other supplies to their own vehicles hidden in the mountains and forests, their movements were skillful and quick.

The robber leader looked at the supplies that had been moved and a sneer appeared at the corner of his mouth.

After he confirmed that all the supplies were in hand, he took out a fire starter from his pocket and threw it at the government vehicle.

A raging fire broke out instantly, engulfing the government vehicles.

The robber leader waved his hand and disappeared into the depths of the forest with the looted supplies.

After this group of bandits cleaned up the battlefield and left, several soldiers who had pretended to be dead in the chaos struggled to get up.

They supported each other and walked away from this Shura field.

One of the soldiers, the one who was least injured, said to his companions, "I'm going to the post station to deliver the message first. You guys come with me as soon as possible!"

After saying that, he ran towards the nearest post station without looking back.

After arriving at the post station, he wrote down the details of what had happened in a letter and handed it to the soldier at the post station.

The soldiers at the post station did not dare to delay and immediately changed to fast horses and galloped towards the capital without stopping.

The sound of horse hooves broke the silence of dawn.

The officers and soldiers of the post station rushed all the way and finally arrived in the capital early the next morning.

He didn't even have time to rest and immediately handed the letter to the palace gate guard.

The guards did not dare to delay and quickly delivered the letter to the palace.

In the Golden Palace, Li Chengfeng stared at the letter in his hand, his face livid. His fingers gripped the paper tightly, making a crackling sound. "Outrageous!" He slammed the letter onto the dragon table and shouted angrily.

"He Sheng!"

"I'm here!" He Sheng immediately stepped out and knelt on the ground.

"The scandal of looting imperial supplies has occurred beneath the Emperor's feet. Pass on my order to investigate this matter immediately and thoroughly! Make sure these daring robbers are apprehended and brought to justice!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!" He Sheng took the order and hurried out of the hall.

"Retreat."

"Jiangnan Prefecture Governor Tang Feng and Jiangnan Water Conservancy Director Gu Changnian will stay. The others can disperse."

Li Chengfeng strode out of the Golden Palace and headed towards the imperial study.

The two people who were called looked at each other and quickly followed.

When they arrived at the imperial study, Li Chengfeng dropped a teacup at their feet.

"Tang Qing, are you aware that refugees from Jiangnan have already appeared in the capital?"

Tang Feng's knees weakened and he fell to the ground. "I am terrified. I really don't know."

"Oh? So you're saying the refugees who looted supplies this time weren't from Jiangnan?"

Tang Feng said with a cold sweat, "I have handed over the management of the Jiangnan flood to Lu Wen, the governor of Zezhou. I have caught a cold recently and have been feeling unwell, so Lu Wen has been doing a lot of things."

"In his report to me, he was full of positive reports about the situation, and I didn't think much of it. Your Majesty, please punish me for my failure to manage my subordinates strictly!"

After saying this, he knelt deeply on the ground.

Li Chengfeng looked at him coldly.

"Since Mr. Tang is unwell, I will allow you to return home and recuperate. You don't need to worry about the flood in Jiangnan."

Tang Feng's body stiffened, and he said, "I thank you for your grace, my Lord."

At this time, Li Chengfeng said to Gu Changnian, "Have you, Lord Gu, ever sent anyone to inspect the water conservancy dams in Jiangnan?"

Gu Changnian replied, "During the reign of the previous emperor, there were floods of varying sizes in Jiangnan, but they were always well managed."

"This flood happened suddenly, and the heavy rain lasted too long. The road is long and bumpy. I plan to wait until the rain stops before sending people to inspect it."

"Heh." The emperor at the top snorted disdainfully.

"You can wait for the rain to stop, but can the people in the disaster area wait?"

"The flood has been going on for so long, and you, the Governor of Water Resources, have done nothing. What use are you to me?"

Gu Changnian quickly knelt down and kowtowed: "I acknowledge my guilt, Your Majesty, and I beg you to give me a chance to make amends."

Li Chengfeng no longer wanted to see the two of them again.

"Little Liuzi."

"The slave is here."

"Pass on my decree. Jiangnan Prefecture Governor Tang Feng is ill. I have ordered him to recuperate at home and not to leave without my permission."

"Governor Gu of Water Resources has neglected his duties for many years, causing a serious mistake. He will be temporarily detained in the Dali Temple."

After hearing this, the two men turned pale, but they could only kneel down and kowtow.

"I resign"

"I thank you Lord for your kindness."