They were in charge of being beautiful, and she was in charge of taking the hits.

Wu Ziyan patted Han Yuxiu on the back and said loudly, "Any man who wants to learn a skill can sign up. That's all for this matter. Now, let's move on to the second thing."

At first, everyone looked around hesitantly, until a little boy stepped forward and said, "I want to learn martial arts. I want my mother to know that I can protect my family too!"

Seeing that even a little boy dared to speak up, those who had hesitated also joined in shouting.

"I want to study medicine!"

"I want to learn to read!"

"I want to eat!"

Wu Ziyan was very satisfied to hear the mixed shouts and told them to go to the side to register.

"Now that the first matter is concluded, let's move on to the second matter, which is to invite the officials present to come up and say a few words."

The officials below straightened their clothes and strode confidently toward the platform, wondering if Wu Ziyan was a pragmatic person who would offer such superficial reassurance.

As they walked up, they exchanged glances, as if to say, "I didn't expect this newly appointed person to be so incompetent."

"There is disaster and greed. So what if she is a princess? There are plenty of princesses who have come before."

Then, with malicious smiles on their faces, they strode onto the platform, but Wu Ziyan did not play by the rules: "Kneel down!"

His tone was casual, and the others thought they had misheard him. Wu Ziyan said sternly, "I said you should kneel down!"

"My lord! What do you mean by this?!"

"Yes, sir." They were starting to get confused; just a moment ago they had acted like fools.

"What do I mean? You have failed the people, failed the court, and failed heaven and earth! Do you deserve the high salaries you receive every year?!"

The group faced off on the high platform, locked in a stalemate. Wu Ziyan spoke softly, and the people below were unaware of what was happening. The expressions of the officials changed repeatedly, as they had not expected Wu Ziyan to resort to such a tactic.

They looked at each other, asking whether to kneel or not. Wu Ziyan thought to herself that, as expected, the emperor was far away and her status didn't matter.

She stood up and approached step by step: "Are you lords defying orders? You know that generals in the field may disobey the emperor's orders, right? Even if you die, I can still report back to my superiors that the floodwaters are high and that you gentlemen are bravely building the dikes..."

The words echoed in their ears, words they seemed to have heard somewhere before, but this wasn't the rhetoric they had prepared. Now they wondered how it could be used on themselves.

With several thuds, he knelt down one after another. The people below were secretly delighted, but dared not show it on the surface. At least, Wu Ziyan's actions greatly increased their goodwill towards him.

"Gentlemen, tell me, why is this dam never properly repaired? We allocate funds every year to repair it, yet you all become so fat and bloated!" Wu Ziyan didn't care about his image at all, squatting down in front of them.

"My lord, it really wasn't us! The money we received wasn't the amount initially allocated. We were able to complete the project only because the prefects of various prefectures pooled together the funds!"

"Oh? Where did the money go? Why don't you ever report it! And where is all my disaster relief funds again?!"

"Ah...this..." This is truly a slap in the face, a resounding slap in their face.

After a period of silence, unable to give a coherent explanation, the threatened woman finally stepped forward and recounted what had happened. The officials turned ashen-faced, as today's sudden turn of events was completely unexpected!

Wu Ziyan removed the official hats of the key officials on the spot, but kept the rest. If she had eliminated them all, who would cooperate with her in the future? Moreover, there were still hidden assassins lurking in the shadows, and when would they finally reveal their true colors?

After the first round of rectification, Wu Ziyan inspected each tent and then led some strangers to patrol the river embankment. This second group of people was also completely fine, but we must not let our guard down.

Looking back, Han Yuxiu's tent was filled with people queuing for treatment, while Chu Qiu's group consisted of lean, average-looking men with a rather androgynous appearance.

There were only a few people in front of Changsun Boyu's tent, who wanted to learn how to do makeup and disguise. Although they didn't need it now, it would be a way to make a living in the future.

Wu Ziyan watched from a distance, and after Changsun Boyou was no longer around, he went over and joked, "Business isn't so good, is it?"

"Oh, sir, what are you saying? It's not about quantity, but quality."

Changsun Boyu still looked lazy as ever, but he actually kept everything in mind. At this moment, a figure watched them from the shadows for a while before leaving.

"That bitch is no pushover, but she thinks she'll be fine just by getting rid of us? Don't even think about sending a message to the higher-ups."

"Yes."

Those officials who had been stripped of their official positions were still secretly engaging in underhanded and extremely dishonest activities. Soon, they received a reply instructing them to cooperate with someone.

A few days later, the weather turned out to be much better, and the floodwaters receded considerably. All the people exclaimed that Wu Ziyan's benevolence had moved Heaven, but Wu Ziyan did not believe in ghosts or gods.

Those dismissed officials knelt in front of Wu Ziyan's tent early in the morning, crying and saying they were wrong. They even offered to take on the labor work. This was truly a case of no one getting up early for nothing, and it was annoying to watch.

But their feigned sincerity and repentance made the people want to forgive them, and in the end, they made those people work as laborers.

The group turned their backs and began plotting how to make Wu Ziyan suffer. They were meeting with the mysterious person, who was the same person who had spied on Wu Ziyan and her companions that day.

It turned out that she was the Prime Minister's confidant, an assassin, whose public identity was also the grain officer in charge of the later stages of this supply transport. She looked at the group and took out a packet of powder: "Find a way to put this powder in Wu Ziyan's food. It's not poisonous, don't worry, it will only make her..."

The men nodded and chuckled maliciously. If Wu Ziyan took the medicine and they caught her red-handed, her benevolent image would be immediately ruined.

They acted without hesitation, but after several attempts, they still couldn't succeed. Finally, at dusk, one of them delivered porridge to Wu Ziyan, but was stopped by another. Then, taking advantage of the moment, they poisoned him and sent the medicine into his tent.

"My lord, your meal is ready." The man respectfully placed the porridge on the table and then withdrew.

Unfortunately, Wu Ziyan looked at the river chart and said, "I'm not too hungry." Changsun Boyu didn't stand on ceremony with Wu Ziyan and gulped down the porridge.

I haven't been feeling very full lately anyway. After finishing the drink, I smacked my lips, still wanting more, and asked, "Can I have another bowl?"

"Let's go over there and see if there's anything left." Wu Ziyan was still looking at the map, thinking about what flood control solutions there might be.

But after a while, Changsun Boyu remained motionless, sitting there staring blankly at Wu Ziyan, his eyes slightly narrowed. After spending so much time together, he found Wu Ziyan's profile quite charming, though the outline had become somewhat blurred.