Transmigrated into a female county magistrate during a famine, leading her country to prosperity

Chapter 1212 The Great Altar

absurd.

This is ridiculous.

Looking at the altar that occupied almost half of the street, Shen Zheng felt from the bottom of her heart that the scene was absurd and ridiculous.

When an insect plague strikes, those who believe in gods and Buddhas, hold sacrifices, and seek divine forgiveness can be merchants or ordinary people, but they must never be officials who are the parents of the people.

At this moment, the magistrate of Wangyue County knelt in the center of the altar, his hair revealing his piety.

The altar was covered with a brand-new piece of earth-yellow silk cloth. On the cloth, three large bronze cauldrons were lined up in a row. The incense inside the cauldrons was burning very brightly, with flames leaping more than half a foot high. The smoke was carried by the southwest wind, sometimes hanging low and sometimes rising.

On both sides of the large cauldron, fresh rice was piled up into mounds, but that wasn't enough. Beside the rice mounds, there were also whole pigs, several wine jars, and even a few pieces of cotton cloth in good condition.

Upon seeing the cotton cloth, Shen Zheng felt an almost eerie sense of participation.

Wang Cuncheng specially used cotton cloth for the sacrifice, in order to express the sincerity of Tongan County to the Locust King.

The wind blew the banners at the four corners of the altar, sounding like ghosts wailing or wolves howling.

Wang Cuncheng finally made a move.

He kowtowed three times reverently to the memorial tablet in the center of the altar before getting up, supporting himself on the table, and turning to look at the people below.

The gazes of the people guided his vision, and he saw Shen Zheng and her group below the stage.

Almost instantly upon eye contact, he confirmed Jiang Zhiming's identity.

"Prefect Jiang?" Wang Cuncheng's expression was very strange, with a hint of excitement that "you've finally come," and a hint of panic that "how did you get here?"

"Get down here." Jiang Zhiming's voice wasn't loud, but it was enough to reach Wang Cuncheng's ears.

Wang Cuncheng glanced back at the memorial tablet before hesitantly taking a step down from the stage.

The people in the audience whispered among themselves.

"Your Excellency the Prefect! Your Excellency the Prefect has arrived?"

"The government hasn't given up on us? Is there any hope for us?"

"Wasn't it said that the prefect went to Liuyang Prefecture? How come he's back so quickly?"

"Your Excellency, could you please do something about the county magistrate? My family's land has only been half harvested. I really don't want to keep bowing to him. If I keep doing this, my whole family will starve next year..."

"Shh, keep your voice down, or the Locust King will hear you and punish you for disrespect!"

"What locust king or anything? I've wanted to say this for a long time: locusts are pests, why should we feed them? Let them grow fat and strong so they can fly back and eat our rice next year?"

"Oh, please stop talking..."

"I knew it! What kind of Locust King is this?! I'm not worshipping him anymore!"

"Stop arguing! Look! The prefect seems very angry!"

"Snapped--"

A loud slap interrupted the crowd's discussion.

Seeing Wang Cuncheng's head tilted to the side and the bright red "five fingers" on his cheek, the people gasped in shock.

"The prefect is really angry!"

Yes, Jiang Zhiming was really angry.

"I and Lord Shen traveled for a whole day and night, went hungry for three or four meals, and were even afraid of missing a meal while taking a piss. And what were you doing? Huh! Tell me what you were doing!"

"Snapped--"

Another resounding slap landed, making the "five fingers" on Wang Cuncheng's face symmetrical.

The people were trembling with fear when they saw the enraged prefect turn to them and yell, "Get back to your fields and harvest! Anyone who dares to bow again, I'll burn their rice fields to the ground! Get up, all of you, get out of here!!!"

A fire burned down the rice paddies!

Just thinking about it makes people feel like their hearts are bleeding.

If locusts come, at least some rice straw will be left, but if a fire is set, everything will be gone...

"Let's go, let's go..." Several people were the first to get up, pulling their companions along as they ran towards the outskirts of the city. "The prefect is doing this for our own good, let's hurry and harvest the crops..."

However, some people hesitated: "The ceremony is almost over, what if the Locust King gets angry... Anyway, we've already wasted so much time, why don't we finish the ceremony before we leave?"

It's true what they say, you can't reason with a damned devil.

When the words reached Jiang Zhiming's ears, his face contorted with rage: "Where are the county constables and yamen runners?!"

"We...we are here!" The constables and yamen runners replied, their voices betraying their fear.

"He! She! He! And her!" Jiang Zhiming pointed at several commoners and said viciously, "Go, burn their rice paddies to the ground!"

It's really burning?!

The constables and yamen runners looked horrified. Before they could react, the people who had been called out disappeared in a flash.

"Run!" they shouted as they weaved through the crowd. "There are so many people now, the prefect might not remember us! Hurry to the fields, harvest as much as you can, lest the county magistrate's lackeys catch up with us!"

Jiang Zhiming watched silently as the group ran away, his eyes calm.

"No need to chase them." He raised his hand to stop the constables who were about to follow: "All constables and yamen runners, listen up! Leave two people to guard this altar and count the offerings, and send two more people to the villages under your jurisdiction immediately to check the altar's condition and ensure that no one is performing the sacrifices and that every household is harvesting the offerings. Do you understand?"

"I understand!"

One was the prefect, and the other was the county magistrate. The constables and yamen runners knew perfectly well whose orders to take.

In a short while, the crowd dispersed, and the previously extremely congested streets became deserted. Only wisps of smoke lingered in the air, as if unwilling to dissipate.

Wang Cuncheng covered his burning cheek, his stubbornness growing stronger: "Your Excellency, the sacrificial ceremony... is almost finished."

To end the sacrificial ceremony at this point would be to waste all previous efforts.

Jiang Zhiming's forehead twitched, and without saying a word, he raised his hand again.

"Your Excellency, please calm down!" Wang Cuncheng subconsciously took a half step back, then knelt down with a "thud." "Your Excellency, I did all this for the sake of the people!"

For the sake of the people?

Jiang Zhiming's anger flared higher and higher. He barely suppressed the urge to kick Wang Cuncheng, and with a flick of his sleeve, he mounted his horse: "All constables and yamen runners, listen to my command! Except for those who remain to guard the altar and the county yamen, all the rest of you, follow me to the foot of Wangyue Mountain. Let's depart immediately!"

After saying that, he lowered his eyes to look at Wang Cuncheng: "You come along too. On the way... Lord Shen and I will listen to your explanation."

Jiang Zhiming uttered the word "explanation" through gritted teeth, while Wang Cuncheng looked at Shen Zheng beside him.

Lord Shen...

Lord Shen's eyes seemed even colder than Prefect Jiang's.

.......

The group headed to Wangyue Village, where Wang Cuncheng was forced to share a horse with Xin Ji.

From the moment he mounted the horse, Xin Ji whispered a devilish voice in Wang Cuncheng's ear: "Wang Cuncheng, you're finished."

Feeling the cool air coming from behind his ear, Wang Cuncheng guessed in a trembling voice, "You...you are the son of Lord Jiang?"