Three Kingdoms: Ten Times Speed, Diao Chan Says I'm Too Fast

Just as Geng Bi was waiting in the carriage.

Duan Yu and his group were still outside Ji County.

The official was not lying; Duan Yu was indeed outside the city at that moment.

Heavy snow has been falling in Ji County for several days.

The deepest snow, both inside and outside the city, is deep enough to submerge an adult.

Snow disaster.

This has reached the level of a snow disaster.

The situation is better in Jixian County, because snow is being cleared every day, so there isn't much snow on the streets.

Moreover, with the city walls providing some shelter, the wind wasn't too strong.

However, some villages outside Ji County suffered the consequences.

Some of the roads leading to the villages no longer exist.

Heavy snow has blocked roads and mountain passes.

Many people have frozen to death in the surrounding village pavilions.

After receiving the news in the morning, Duan Yu led the officials of Ji County out of the city to inspect the surrounding villages and towns.

In the midst of wind and snow.

Duan Yu and his party of several dozen people were all on horseback.

The snow, which was above knee-deep, made it impossible for horse-drawn carriages to pass.

Only warhorses could barely get through.

Riding on the Crimson Dragon Cloud-Treading Beast, Duan Yu was wrapped in a thick gray wolf-skin cloak, and the hat on his head was also made of wolf skin.

Behind Duan Yu were Gai Xun, the Chief Clerk of Hanyang Commandery, Yang Fu, the Chief Clerk of Liangzhou, Yan Zhong of Ji County (who had been promoted by Duan Yu to Magistrate of Ji County), and Jiang Xu, the Assistant Clerk.

Following them were Tie Shitou, Wang Hunu, Chen Qing'an, Zhang Liao, and four other generals, along with dozens of guards.

About half an hour after leaving Ji County, Duan Yu and his party arrived at Weiyang Township outside Ji County.

From a distance.

In the distance, everything was white, and only half of the houses were exposed above the snow.

The remaining half was completely buried by snow.

The intersections were completely blocked, with only signs of snow being cleared from the front of each household.

Perhaps knowing that Duan Yu was coming, villagers in Weiyang Township were clearing the snow from the road.

The wind and snow were too heavy, so Duan Yu didn't say anything, but simply pointed ahead.

A procession of dozens of warhorses trudged through the snow toward Weiyang Township.

Meanwhile, the village head of Weiyang Township, who was leading the villagers to clear the snow, immediately led a group of minor officials, including the village assistant, the patrolman, and the pavilion chief, to meet Duan Yu's group.

Stopping in the passageway cleared by the villagers, Duan Yu dismounted.

Duan Yu frowned as he saw that the villagers' beards and eyebrows were covered with white frost.

The prefecture was divided into counties, and the counties were in charge of the townships and villages.

The village was staffed with officials in charge of local affairs, three elders in charge of education, a patrol officer in charge of local security, and a village assistant in charge of collecting taxes.

While in Jinyang, Duan Yu served as a patrol officer for a period of time.

Therefore, they have a good understanding of these low-level officials.

"Your humble servant Yang Wu greets Your Majesty." Yang Wu hurriedly stepped forward and apologized, saying, "I was unaware that Your Majesty was on patrol and failed to clear the roads in advance. I beg Your Majesty to punish me."

Duan Yu took a deep breath.

That's what bureaucracy is all about.

It's inevitable.

Currently, there is a snow disaster, and the snow in front of people's houses has not yet been cleared.

Upon learning of his impending arrival, the village official actually led the villagers to clean the roads.

It's definitely a formality.

"Let all the villagers go home. There's no need to clear the snow," Duan Yu said with a dark face.

Yangwu was so frightened that his eyelids twitched.

After the villagers all went home, Duan Yu, led by Yang Wu, and a group of officials went directly to Yang Wu's home.

At this time, a charcoal fire had already been lit in Yangwu's house.

Although the temperature inside is still low, it is much better than outside.

Duan Yu sat beside the brazier.

Gai Xun, Yang Fu, Yan Zhong, Jiang Xu and others knelt behind Duan Yu.

In front of Duan Yu, separated by a brazier, were Yang Wu, a local official, and several other minor officials.

"How many people in the village have frozen to death so far, and how many families are too poor to keep warm?"

Duan Yu held a cup of hot tea in his hands and asked.

Yang Wu wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, glanced at Duan Yu, and then stammered, "Reporting...Reporting to Your Majesty,...more than a dozen people have frozen to death..."

boom!

Before Yang Wude could finish speaking, Duan Yu slammed the teacup in his hand to the ground and glared coldly at Yang Wude.

"Do you think I'm blind?"

"As I travel along the road, I have seen countless houses where the snow has not been swept in front of their doors. Do you think I haven't seen them?"

Yang Wu immediately knelt down on the ground, his buttocks sticking up high.

"Your humble servant... Your humble servant deserves to die..."

"Humph."

Duan Yu snorted coldly: "You deserve to die."

“If it were any other time, I would have killed you right now.”

"But I'm giving you a chance now. Starting today, compile a complete list of all the people in the village who are having difficulty getting warm and who don't have the manpower to clear the snow."

“The local officials spontaneously organized themselves, starting with you, the village head, the elders, the village patrolmen, the village assistants, the village chiefs, the village leaders, the village leaders, the village leaders, and the village leaders. Each household sent one person to help those who were unable to clear the snow.”

"In addition, all those who have difficulty getting heating and have no food to eat should be registered."

"Don't try to fool me with lies. I am not like the prefects of the past."

"If I find out, you know the consequences."

Duan Yu's tone was icy.

Yang Wu was so frightened that he pressed his face to the ground and didn't dare to lift it.

"Your subordinate... Your subordinate understands, Your subordinate... Your subordinate dares not."

Yang Wu's voice trembled.

"Chief Clerk Gai," Duan Yu called out softly.

Gai Xun, who was kneeling behind Duan Yu, immediately leaned forward and said, "Your humble servant is here."

"What was the situation of the snow disaster in Hanyang County last year? How many people froze to death?"

"This humble official...this humble official..." Gai Xun was somewhat ashamed, not much better than Yang Wu.

People freezing to death happens every year.

This has become commonplace.

Heavy snow blocked the mountains, making it impossible to gather firewood. With no able-bodied people in the household, they basically wouldn't survive the winter.

Coupled with food shortages, many people freeze to death every year.

However, no one has ever compiled specific figures.

Duan Yu took a deep breath.

Tie Shitou brought Duan Yu another bowl of hot tea.

Looking at the steam rising from the hot tea, Duan Yu felt helpless.

There is a long way to go.

Some things cannot be resolved overnight.

Even the so-called good officials of the Eastern Han Dynasty were rather careless in dealing with issues concerning people's livelihood.

It's not that they don't want to, but rather that some orders simply don't reach the county and township levels.

Every region has its own powerful figures.

If these officials want to stay in office, they must first be on good terms with the local powerful families.

The order issued by Duan Yu was undoubtedly directed at powerful local magnates.

In this Weiyang Township, the powerful and influential are called "Yangwu," while these minor officials are called "masters."

There is no reason for powerful figures and magistrates to help ordinary people and villagers.

The common people are born lowly, and from birth to death they are like roadside weeds. Who would care about the life and death of the villagers?

If there really are officials like this at the top, those below will definitely do everything they can to remove them.

But Duan Yu was not afraid.

Because he was different from all the previous prefects and governors.

It's all because of that one sentence.

Full of martial virtue!

As long as his martial virtue is sufficient, these powerful figures and petty officials will not dare to act recklessly.

Gai Xun couldn't answer, but that wasn't Gai Xun's problem.

It's a problem with the bureaucratic system.

Since the decision has been made to govern the people with benevolence and to win their hearts,

This must be changed.

"Write it down," Duan Yu said coldly. "From now on, take Ji County as an example."

“Each county, starting with the county magistrate, shall compile a list of all the townships and villages under its jurisdiction, as well as the officials and clerks within those townships, and shall act in accordance with my instructions.”

"The number of people who froze to death should be counted by the local officials, or they can report it themselves if there is no able-bodied person in the household."

"Print this document out and distribute it to every village and town."

"The documents were printed and distributed by the prefectural government, and the white paper used was provided by the county government. The documents were printed and distributed to the villages and towns, where the elders would educate the villagers."

"Anyone who disobeys orders, refuses to comply, or is negligent will be dismissed from office," Duan Yu said with a dark face.

“Yes.” Gai Xun replied with his hands clasped in greeting.

"Commander Jiang," Duan Yu greeted him after taking another sip of tea.

Jiang Xu took half a step forward, just like Gai Xun: "Your humble servant is here."

"The figures compiled by each county will be collected by the soldiers of Ji County from the surrounding areas. This task is assigned to you."

"Yes," Jiang Xu quickly replied.

As for the last remaining person, Yang Fu, Duan Yu naturally didn't need to let Yang Fu rest.

Yang Fu's official position was Liangzhou Zhizhong Congshi, which, in theory, should have placed him under the command of the current governor, Geng Bi, and he should have been following Geng Bi's orders.

But Duan Yu had no intention of giving Geng Bi the opportunity to exercise his power.

The governor's authority was to supervise whether powerful families' land and houses exceeded the prescribed regulations and whether they were abusing their power to oppress the weak.

The supervising prefect disobeyed imperial edicts and regulations, and plundered the people's wealth.

He was hated by the people for his unfair judgments, arbitrary killings, and capricious rewards and punishments, as well as for various rumors of natural disasters.

The supervising governor appointed his relatives and cronies, favoring flatterers and distancing himself from virtuous officials.

The sons and nephews of the supervising prefect's family made requests for bribes.

They monitored the prefects for currying favor with powerful local magnates and their collusion with them, which harmed the political situation.

But with so many prefectures and counties in the Eastern Han Dynasty, which governor could actually implement these powers and regulations?

Therefore, the position of governor was basically just an empty shell.

Unless it is a very strong-willed governor.

For example, if Duan Yu had taken up the post of Governor of Liangzhou, the situation would have been completely different.

Geng Bi... is far from it.

If it weren't for the support of the Yuan family, Geng Bi probably wouldn't have dared to come to Liangzhou, and even if he had, he wouldn't have entered Hanyang County.

Because here, Duan Yu's word counts.

Yang Fu's duty was to oversee the implementation of all these new policies.

This is Duan Yu's first sword strike of benevolence.