How can I bow my head and serve the powerful officials?

"When the bell of heaven rings, it is either blessing or disaster!"

"The last time the Heavenly Bell rang was twenty years ago, when the Second Prince was born. It rang ten times, symbolizing a good omen!"

"Did you count? How many times did it go off just now?"

"Eleven sounds! Eleven in total! This is undoubtedly a sign of disaster! My Jian'an Dynasty is about to face a catastrophe!"

All the ministers knelt down, prostrated themselves on the ground in fear, and cried out in sorrow to the emperor sitting on the dragon throne.

Emperor Jian's face was as cold as frost, and he shouted sternly, "I am sitting on a high throne and I am not panicking. You have been officials for decades, how can you be so disgraceful? Stand still!"

The majestic voice of the emperor echoed in the majestic hall, shaking the ministers so much that they stood up one after another, but their faces were still bitter.

The astronomical officials of all dynasties may have misjudged auspicious omens, but they have never misjudged disastrous omens. Every time a bad omen is announced from heaven, it will inevitably lead to widespread famine, countless deaths and injuries, and may even cause the empire to split and the dynasty to collapse!

However, the emperor on the dragon throne seemed unconcerned and sneered, "I want to see what kind of disaster is going to disturb the peace of Jian'an!"

As time passed, Guo Tianheng, the chief of the Astronomical Observatory, dressed in a purple robe and holding a jade sceptre, finally entered the Golden Palace with four important officials of the Astronomical Observatory.

The ministers' eyes instantly fell on Guo Tianheng.

Guo Tianheng's eyes first fell on Xie Chengze in front of the hall, and then he walked solemnly to the front of the emperor and bowed, "Your Majesty! I have observed the sky recently and night, and found that the Ziweiyuan is cold and the stars are shifting. Especially around the North Star, there are clouds and mists, which are signs of wind and snow coming! I have also read the books "Taiyi" and "Liuren", combined with the calendar calculation, I am afraid that a great snowstorm that rarely occurs in a century will befall the northern territory of our dynasty!"

"This disaster is of great magnitude and may last for decades, covering the mountains and freezing the rivers. Farming will be disrupted, roads will be blocked by snow, and countless people will die of hunger and cold!"

It turned out to be a snowstorm...

Emperor Jian subconsciously glanced at Xie Chengze, who immediately lowered his head and pretended that the matter had nothing to do with him.

Emperor Jian couldn't help but laugh inwardly, then he paused for a moment and asked, "Do you know the exact date and the exact disaster area?"

"The snowstorm may affect a wide area, and it is difficult to tell which is more serious, which is earlier, and which is later!" Guo Tianheng shook his head and sighed, "The decree from heaven has been issued, Your Majesty, please make plans early and protect the people of Jian'an from this disaster!"

Upon hearing this, the ministers began to whisper to each other with shocked expressions, "This involves a wide range of people. Doesn't that mean that even the capital may suffer a severe snowstorm?"

"There are so many prefectures in the north, and countless counties. What should we do if heavy snow continues to fall?"

"First there was flooding in Yizhou, then famine in many places, and now there is a snowstorm in the north. Could it be that God wants to destroy our Jian'an Dynasty..."

"Silence!" Seeing the noisy crowd, Emperor Jian couldn't help but scold them, "It's just a snowstorm, there's nothing to be afraid of! The most urgent thing is to discuss countermeasures and make sure the people can survive this disaster safely!"

This bunch of useless things are not even as good as half a hair of Ze'er!

"Your Majesty, what you said is very true." ** stepped out of the line and said slowly, "I think we should quickly dispatch capable officials to various places. First, order officials to prepare sufficient food and grass to prevent food shortages in winter, and organize craftsmen to repair damaged houses to prevent deaths caused by house collapse due to heavy snow. At the same time, allocate money from the national treasury, encourage donations from the public, and collect disaster relief materials in advance, such as winter clothes, bedding, food, and medicinal materials, to prepare for the occasional disaster."

The Salt and Iron Commissioner stepped out and added, "Heavy snow is coming. The roads to various places will definitely be blocked, and it will be difficult for grain carts to move. We need to prepare coarse salt in advance to melt the snow in case of emergency."

Shen Yuan stepped forward and said in a deep voice, "After all, crude salt is in small quantities and difficult to transport over long distances. I think the relief supplies should be transported in advance and mainly concentrated in Liaozhou, Yingzhou and Lanzhou."

"Minister Shen, why these three states?" Emperor Jian asked in confusion, "If a major snowstorm occurs, the most likely targets are Liaozhou, Shenzhou, and Shangjing in the north. Why do you mention Yingzhou and Lanzhou?"

Xie Chengze also looked at Shen Yuan.

He knew why these three states were the ones affected, because in the book, these three states suffered the most from the disaster, with Liaozhou being the worst hit.

Shen Yuan remained calm and said, "Since this is a rare event, we should not follow common sense. Moreover, these three states span across many prefectures in the north, and there are few official roads. If there is a disaster in the neighboring cities, the news can be quickly communicated. There is no need to report to the capital, and relief grain can be directly dispatched to save time."

"Well, that makes sense." Emperor Jian couldn't help but nod his head. "Regarding the disaster prevention issue, the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Works, and the Ministry of Personnel will work together to handle it. They must come up with a detailed plan as soon as possible to buy time for the people!"

Then he turned to Guo Tianheng and said, "I hope the Astronomical Bureau will continue to monitor the astronomical phenomena to ensure that the snowfall days and the worst-hit areas can be predicted."

Guo Tianheng bowed again, "Yes, Your Majesty."

After the Astronomical Supervisor left, the ministers in the hall started a heated discussion about the snow disaster. Xie Chengze, who was sitting on a chair, felt a headache after listening to the discussion. So he lowered his head and took out a round little tangerine from his sleeve.

Too many brain cells have died, and energy needs to be replenished manually.

Just as Xie Chengze was about to peel the skin, someone beside him tugged at his sleeve. He raised his eyes and heard Xie Zimiao whisper, "Second brother, I want to eat it too."

Xie Chengze looked at him, then at the orange, and decisively put the orange in Xie Zimiao's hand, "Then you peel it, and I'll give you half."

Xie Zimiao nodded, turned slightly, and began to peel the orange secretly with his back to the ministers. When he was done peeling, he only took out three petals and handed the rest back to Xie Chengze stealthily.

Compared to Xie Zimiao's cautiousness, Xie Chengze was much more open-minded. He took a petal directly and tilted his head back to put it into his lips.

Suddenly, the hall became silent, so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.

Xie Chengze:?

He turned and lowered his head, and sure enough, the ministers were staring at him, some with disgust, some in silence, and some with disappointment.

Emperor Jian also stared at him expectantly.

Xie Chengze: ...

This damn, late but finally, question-answering session!

Lifting his arm and nudging Xie Jinyu's thigh, Xie Chengze stuffed the orange into his mouth while covering his lips and asked quietly, "Brother Crown Prince, where were you talking about?"

"As for the matter of disaster relief money, Yang Qinghui's embezzled money is distributed all over the place, and we haven't investigated it clearly yet. And the money spent on purchasing disaster relief supplies is quite a lot, and I'm afraid there isn't enough money in the national treasury now." Xie Jinyu whispered to him.

"Oh, oh, oh." Xie Chengze swallowed the orange slices and nodded seriously. "It's simple! Didn't I say last time that instead of digging for small change in the corner of the national treasury, it's better to directly confiscate the house! If one is not enough, then confiscate ten!"

Ministers:? ? ?

Another house raid?! It’s not over yet, is it?

"This is inappropriate. A great disaster is approaching and people are in a state of panic. We must not disturb the people's hearts any further." ** shook his head in objection.

"Is that so..." Xie Chengze frowned, and after thinking hard for a while, he finally understood, "Then let's follow the method proposed by the prince last time and have all the ministers donate silver!"

Ministers:?

Donating silver again? Can you be a little more creative? Besides, what good would 100,000 taels of donated silver do?