Chapter 63

Facing Zhao Chen's coldness, Zhao Yuankai ultimately didn't dare to show his teeth. He could only follow behind Zhao Chen with a face full of indignation and obediently return to the county office, staying in a room arranged by Zhao Chen.

Zhao Chen had two fierce soldiers guard the door, allowing Zhao Yuankai to do anything except leave the room. Of course, no one was allowed to approach Zhao Yuankai's room.

Not long after returning from Zhao Yuankai's residence, Liu Hui zhi brought Ma Zhou. This was the first time Zhao Chen had met Ma Zhou since coming to Lantian. Although he knew Ma Zhou was in Lantian last night, he had been too busy with other matters to meet him.

Zhao Chen always felt a sense of curiosity about Ma Zhou. He was one of the most legendary figures of the early Tang Dynasty. There were many records about Ma Zhou, the most famous being the more than twenty memorials he wrote for Chang He. It was because of these memorials that Ma Zhou caught the attention of Emperor Taizong.

From a humble background, Ma Zhou leaped into the core circle of the empire, a typical legendary phoenix man!

"Ma Zhou greets the Magistrate!" When Ma Zhou and Liu Hui zhi entered, Zhao Chen had just returned from Zhao Yuankai's room. Seeing Zhao Chen, Ma Zhou's expression paused slightly, and he bowed and said.

Even though Liu Hui zhi had long told him that Zhao Chen was a young man who had not yet reached the age of majority, when Ma Zhou saw Zhao Chen in person, a complex expression flashed in his eyes.

While Ma Zhou was sizing up Zhao Chen, Zhao Chen was also observing him. Ma Zhou wore a washed-out scholar's robe, stood tall, and had a faint air of arrogance in his eyes. Perhaps he had heard of Zhao Chen's extraordinary status, and he was slightly restrained at the moment.

"Brother Ma is too polite!" Zhao Chen smiled and led the two into the room. He then brewed a pot of hot tea and said to Ma Zhou, "In fact, I heard about Brother Ma from Secretary Liu last night. I am truly impressed by Brother Ma's character!"

"All thanks to Secretary Liu's praise!" Ma Zhou, hearing this, modestly bowed to Liu Hui zhi and said, "It is Secretary Liu's love for the people that truly impresses me!"

"Ha ha ha ha!" Zhao Chen laughed, interrupting Liu Hui zhi before he could be modest. "Both of you are people I admire. Let's not be too modest!"

As Zhao Chen spoke, he sat opposite Ma Zhou, his expression suddenly becoming serious. "Brother Ma, I assume Secretary Liu has already told you the purpose of your visit?"

"Yes!" Seeing Zhao Chen's serious expression, Ma Zhou immediately sat up straight and said formally, "When I came, Secretary Liu had already given me a general idea. However, I fear my limited abilities might fail to meet the Magistrate's expectations!"

"Brother Ma, don't be so modest!" Zhao Chen smiled and reassured Ma Zhou, "In fact, this memorial is not some grand literary work. Brother Ma, you don't need to worry. Just write down everything that happened here!"

Is it that simple? Ma Zhou's expression changed slightly, and he looked at Zhao Chen and Liu Hui zhi with a puzzled gaze, thinking to himself, if it's that simple, why couldn't the two of you write it?

Seeing Ma Zhou's puzzled look, Liu Hui zhi's expression became awkward. He was about to speak when Zhao Chen said, "Brother Ma, is there something you're worried about?"

"Magistrate, you are overthinking it!" Ma Zhou, hearing this, seemed to think of something, took a deep breath, and said, "I have no concerns. I will write the memorial."

"Ha ha!" Zhao Chen laughed happily and said, "If that's the case, let's not waste time. Brother Ma, start now!"

As he spoke, Zhao Chen carefully took out a box from under the bed and handed it to Ma Zhou. "This contains all the evidence of Zhao Yuankai's crimes. Brother Ma, take a look first to get a sense of it."

Just as Zhao Chen had when he first saw the evidence, when Ma Zhou opened the box and began flipping through the records of each crime, his originally calm face gradually turned ashen, and his hands trembled slightly.

"I never expected that County Magistrate Zhao would be so wicked in Lantian!" Ma Zhou, after looking through only a part of it, raised his head and took a deep breath, his face ashen. "He truly deserves to die a thousand deaths!"

Hearing this, Liu Hui zhi's face turned awkward. After all, he was also an official in Lantian. Seeing Zhao Yuankai act so recklessly, as an official in Lantian, he could only watch helplessly, making him seem like an accomplice to Zhao Yuankai!

"The memorial needs careful planning, Brother Ma!" Zhao Chen, noticing Liu Hui zhi's awkward expression, smiled inwardly and stood up to Ma Zhou. "I and Secretary Liu won't disturb you. To be honest, I came to Lantian with no official business, only to be entangled in such matters."

"Magistrate, please go about your business. I will do my best with the memorial!" Ma Zhou, hearing this, quickly stood up and bowed to Zhao Chen.

"Good!" Zhao Chen smiled and nodded. Then, without further ado, he and Liu Hui zhi left the room, leaving Ma Zhou alone to work on the memorial.

Qin Ming had stayed up all night and, after returning from Zhao Yuankai's residence, had gone to his room, yawning. By now, he was probably snoring loudly and couldn't be woken up.

Without Qin Ming, Zhao Chen had to ask Old Qin to send two other family guards to guard the door, still not allowing anyone to approach the room without his permission.

There was no need to worry about Xue Wanche. The three of them had probably noticed the dozen or so fierce soldiers guarding the door. These soldiers were not like the ones they had encountered last night, who would foolishly fight with them. Zhao Chen had given strict orders: if Xue Wanche and the others made any move, they were to be killed immediately!

The plight of the people in Lantian needed to be resolved quickly. Last night, Zhao Chen had promised the owners of several taverns and restaurants that if they provided porridge for three days, he would settle all the refugees by then, ensuring that Lantian would return to its former peace after three days.

With only three days left, Zhao Chen and Liu Hui zhi left the county office and headed straight for the southern part of Lantian. This time, the snow disaster had only collapsed a few thatched cottages in the southern part of the city, while the most severely affected areas were in the surrounding villages of Lantian.

As Zhao Chen had said in court, almost every household had a vegetable cellar. On the way to the southern part of the city, Zhao Chen explained this method to Liu Hui zhi. Without further explanation, Liu Hui zhi immediately agreed.

Upon arriving in the southern part of the city, they immediately went to a house that had been collapsed by the heavy snow, found the location of the vegetable cellar, and had people clear the snow around the entrance and open it.

The vegetable cellar was about one meter deep, with a vertical entrance. At the bottom, it branched off into a cave about eighty centimeters high, where vegetables could be stored.

As soon as the entrance was opened, a damp, unpleasant smell rose. Zhao Chen frowned and was about to signal the constables to go down and dig, but before he could speak, Liu Hui zhi had already taken off his outer robe, braced himself at the entrance, and jumped down.

Seeing this, Zhao Chen smiled and couldn't help but shake his head in amusement.

The soil below was indeed very soft. Liu Hui zhi, holding a shovel, dug lightly and immediately scooped up a large shovel of soil. He dug around, and the results were the same. With this, it wouldn't take more than an hour to dig out a large space.

"This plan is excellent! This will solve the problem of the people's winter shelter!" Liu Hui zhi, confirming that the plan was feasible, climbed out of the vegetable cellar excitedly and said to Zhao Chen.

"Secretary Liu, don't be too excited yet!" Zhao Chen, though equally pleased, said to Liu Hui zhi, "Let's wait until it's completely dug out."

"Ha ha, Magistrate is right!" Liu Hui zhi laughed and said, "We'll count it once it's done."

Immediately, he arranged for the constables to take turns digging.

The digging progressed quickly. With Zhao Chen, the "demon," supervising, the constables didn't dare to slack off. They swung their hoes with all their might.

As basket after basket of soil was hoisted up, the space below grew larger. Initially, only one person could dig, but later, five or six people could dig together.

In less than half an hour, a space about three meters high and about ten square meters in size was dug out, similar to a thatched cottage for a family of four.

Seeing that it was almost done, Zhao Chen called a few constables to start digging upwards. This was the most critical part. Only by removing the top layer and covering it could the vegetable cellar be completed.

Another half hour later, with a loud "thud," the top layer collapsed, revealing a large, square pit.

The constables quickly cleared the soil inside and then removed the collapsed roof of the house, placing it over the pit. The vegetable cellar was complete.

It was a bit dark inside, but Zhao Chen, walking down the sloping entrance, felt the temperature and nodded in satisfaction. It was much better than being exposed to the cold outside.

He estimated that the temperature inside was warmer than the thatched cottage the family had lived in.

Mission accomplished! Zhao Chen walked out of the vegetable cellar with a smile. This would serve as a sample. Soon, he could call the people over to see it, and the next day, he could arrange for the able-bodied to return and dig more vegetable cellars, then move everyone back.

What a simple task! Even if Zhao Chen hadn't come, this could have been done easily. But that old man, Wei Hui, had forced him to Lantian, which made him furious just thinking about it!