The emperor was happy to see someone take the blame. He originally wanted to give him a title, but now he gave him the position of the magistrate of Xiangyang district. Although Xiangyang district was not rich, it had a vast land. It was just that it was remote and uninhabited.
In order to cover up his embarrassment, the emperor specially allocated 500 dans of grain and 1,000 imperial guards. He ordered his trusted aide, Huang Tan, to announce the edict.
Huang Tan was Huang Song's godfather.
Huang Tan sat down and massaged his cold legs. He lamented, "I have to admit that I'm old. The young ones today are really impressive."
The earth turned upside down, Shangjing was almost in ruins. The emperor killed an important official in a fit of rage. No one dared to take over this hot potato. Liu She's son had the guts to recommend himself. This seemed to be a narrow escape, but at the same time it was a huge opportunity.
He thought of his grandson and reminded him, "You should be more alert. Don't cause trouble everywhere."
Huang Song rarely had time to rest, but he was lectured by his godfather. He could not help but put on a bitter face.
He had a sweet mouth and was not afraid of Huang Tan's years of prestige. He immediately thought of a way to divert Huang Tan's attention.
Huang Song got up and massaged Huang Tan's shoulders. He said with a cheeky smile, "From what I see, I'm not old. Those young boys are impatient and have no sense of propriety. How can they compare to me? My contributions to the country and the country are unparalleled … "
Although this was a bootlicking, Huang Tan had indeed protected many loyal and virtuous officials.
It was not that he had a conscience. He was just trying to please both sides.
Jiang Pengji was lucky this time. She met Huang Tan who brought people to announce the edict.
If it were other eunuchs, things would not be so simple. There were many tricks.
If the eunuch in charge of announcing the imperial edict found Jiang Pengji an eyesore or was greedy by nature and wanted to sabotage her secretly, he would definitely choose the old rice. If he was more black-hearted, he would directly replace it with rice bran. The 1,000 imperial guards could also be replaced by those who were physically weak, violent, and disobedient.
Huang Tan liked to be on good terms with the gentry and young people with potential. He would not play tricks in this area.
"You … only your mouth is sweet. I haven't settled down yet, so it doesn't matter. I can't be like this when I marry Mr. Ji's beloved daughter in a few days. "Mr. Ji was Huang Song's teacher and also a prestigious scholar in Dongqing.
"Grandson understands. I will definitely not disappoint grandfather's painstaking efforts."
After a while, Huang Tan tidied up his clothes and prepared to bring people to announce the imperial edict.
At this moment, the Golden Crow fell from the west.
Along with the passage of time, the curtain of night grew darker, and his line of sight gradually blurred.
When the last ray of light disappeared from the horizon, the entire land was shrouded in darkness.
Shangjing City, which was usually brightly lit, was now pitch-black and silent. The warm wind carried the lingering heat through the walls and alleys, bringing with it a rustling sound. From afar, it sounded like the wailing of a wronged soul, making one's hair stand on end.
After a day of searching, the number of survivors found had already reached 512, and the search and rescue team had expanded to 123. As for the ice-cold corpses that were carried out from the ruins, there were at least two to three thousand of them. They were densely piled up into a pile, causing people's hair to stand on end.
This number, for the once prosperous Shangjing City, was really insignificant. It was just a drop in the ocean.
Among them, most of the people who survived were injured. Some of their injuries were light, only their arms or legs were injured. Some of their injuries were very serious, with a high fever that did not subside. They were delirious and hovering on the edge of life and death. The maidservants from the two residences and the rescued women and children volunteered to take care of the injured.
"Xiaoyu, bring some people to this place to collect rations at night. Move stealthily."
Jiang Pengji passed a map to Xu Ke. This matter should be done by herself, but she was the only one who could search and rescue at night. The efficiency of the others was too low. Rather than that, it was better to send some people to collect rations to temporarily alleviate the food shortage and stabilize the people's hearts.
Feng Jin saw that Xu Ke was so tired that his face was pale and his eyes were still green. He said, "Why don't you leave this matter to me?"
"No need. Huaiyu, you stay here and take charge. I can still handle it." Xu Ke composed himself. He knew that Feng Jin did not have much rest during this period of time. He was tormented by his wife's labor, and then there was the earthquake. He did not sleep at all.
He was alone now. His wife, Xunmei, was far away in Hejian County. Feng Jin was tied down by his family and could not leave his wife and daughter at will.
It seemed that he was the most suitable person to handle this matter.
20 hours had passed since the earthquake. Jiang Pengji did not know how many survivors there were in the entire Shangjing City and how many people had died in the long wait. All she could do was to search for the survivors from the ruins and send them for treatment.
Jiang Pengji held a simple torch. She was not afraid of walking at night, but the people behind her could not.
"Is there anyone alive? Respond if you are alive!"
"Is there anyone alive here?"
"We are here to save people. Is there anyone alive?"
The servants behind her put their hands by their mouths. After shouting for a day, their voices had long become hoarse. Their throats were very painful.
In order to cover up her abnormality, Jiang Pengji did not stop them from shouting. She only focused her mind and looked for traces of life.
Suddenly, Jiang Pengji said in a hoarse voice, "Wait … Don't make a sound …"
She raised her hand and gestured for them to temporarily stop shouting.
After one day, these people had already regarded her as a god. Her every move fell into their eyes. Even when the government did not take any action, this person was still able to stand out and not give up even a single life. This made the eyes of some simple and honest men sour.
Jiang Pengji listened for a while and found that the source of the sound came from under a pile of rubble in front of her.
"There is a child crying …"
Everyone listened carefully. That intermittent crying sound was indeed that of a baby.
Jiang Pengji stepped on the rubble. The dull pain from the soles of her feet went straight to her brain.
It was very difficult to walk through the ruins after the earthquake. Jiang Pengji's shoes had long been useless. If the audience in the streaming room had not reminded her, she would not have even realized that the wooden clogs under her feet had been completely destroyed. The soles of her bare feet were bleeding and cut by the sharp gravel in the ruins.
After returning, she asked someone to get a coarse cloth. She folded it into a stack and tied it to her feet to make it easier to walk.
However, there was no time to treat the wound on the soles of her feet. The torn flesh and the coarse cloth stuck together. If it was torn, a layer of bloody skin would come off.
"You go here and here. Look in these two places. Move the rubble away …" Jiang Pengji divided the teams. One person held a torch to illuminate the way, while the others buried their heads in work. After a day, it was unknown how much sweat they had shed and how many bowls of salt-mixed water they had drunk.
After dividing the teams, Jiang Pengji forcefully moved the huge wooden beam that was weighing down on them.
After a day, the skin on her palms was no longer intact. Layers of flesh and blood mixed with dust had accumulated.
After moving the last piece, Jiang Pengji took the torch. Everyone looked and saw a woman curled up on the ground. Her legs and femur were crushed by the fallen beam. Only her back was still stubbornly protruding. Her head was against the ground and her arms were folded in front of her chest as if she was hugging something. The blood that flowed from her body dyed the surrounding area dark. The strong smell of blood drifted along with the night wind.
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