Shocked! The salty concubine was spoiled by the cold prince

Chapter 154 Accountability

The night passed peacefully.

By noon, the results of the investigation were already in front of him.

The more Pei Xu looked, the tighter his brows furrowed. It was obvious that the truth was even more outrageous than they had imagined.

"These people are enriching themselves, driving up prices, and taking human lives lightly. If this continues, I'm afraid this small county will become a burial ground."

Pei Xu handed the investigation results to Gu Jiaorong, his tone already full of dissatisfaction.

Gu Jiaorong took it and looked at it, and she was so angry that she laughed.

"Where do these people get the courage? Aren't they afraid of being found out?"

Any one of these things alone would be enough to cost them their lives.

"Faced with the enormous benefits, they have forgotten their fear. Moreover, if they were not protected by their superiors, how could they dare to act so recklessly?"

Pei Xu sneered. It was obvious that the previous corruption case had not been investigated thoroughly enough.

He was playing with the folding fan in his hand, but his expression was not so relaxed.

Anyone who knew him knew that he was angry.

But he had the pregnant Gu Jiaorong by his side, so no matter how angry he was, he couldn't vent it.

Gu Jiaorong's current body can't withstand any hardship.

He stretched out his slender fingers and took the thing from her hand.

"Don't look at it anymore. The more you look at it, the angrier it gets. It's not worth getting yourself hurt over these little villains. Let's go straight to the county government office and handle this matter."

Pei Xu didn't waste any more time. If he delayed any longer on such matters, it might cost a life.

Hearing this, Gu Jiaorong suppressed her anger.

What Pei Xu said made some sense, and she was not alone anymore.

Gu Jiaorong raised her hand and touched her belly. Her child might know that his mother had something to deal with, so he was very well-behaved.

In fact, she secretly thought about it many times and felt that the child came at the wrong time, but when she thought again that the child was connected to her by blood and was her only relative in this strange world, she softened her heart again.

No one knew how bitter and painful it was for Gu Jiaorong to carefully hide her identity and learn how to be a maid.

As a time traveler, she is different from Shen Zhaohua. She has no expectations and no attachment to this world. She is like a rootless duckweed, with no support.

She didn't dare to die because she was already dead in modern times.

She wanted to live, but living seemed a bit boring.

Until the arrival of this child, until Pei Xu changed, until she saw the people of this era who were suffering but struggling to survive.

In the past, she always watched from the sidelines and did not try to intervene to change the world. She just wanted to protect herself and survive. But now, she feels that it would not be a bad thing if the world became a little better.

Gu Jiaorong tilted her head and looked at Pei Xu beside her.

Pei Xuxing was probably irritated by those corrupt officials. His lips were tightly pursed and his temperament was fierce, very similar to when they first met him.

They arrived at the county government office, but found that there was no one on duty there. It was completely deserted.

"You can't even give me a perfunctory answer?"

Gu Jiaorong was shocked. It was the first time she knew that she could play like this.

Pei Xu's expression grew even colder. "They must have heard that the Third Prince had headed straight for Jinzhou City, so they felt that no one cared about them anymore."

As for how this news came to be known?

It's easy to figure out with your toes that it must be those corrupt officials in the court.

"As we journeyed, the refugees' eyes were filled with turbidity and cunning, no longer the simple and honest people they used to be. It turns out there's a reason for this."

Gu Jiaorong sighed, and suddenly she could no longer care about the hateful people who were staring at the mother and son.

Times are tough, and they just want to survive.

"The Tao Te Ching says: 'When the government is strict, the people are imperfect.'"

Pei Xu stood in front of the county government office, looking at the drum of grievance, with countless emotions in his eyes.

"If this unhealthy trend is not completely corrected, the people will not be able to live and work in peace."

What Pei Xu didn't say was that this was not just a problem for local officials, but also a problem for the imperial court and those who sat firmly on the throne.

Without a wise ruler, how can we talk about political clarity?

"Your Highness, let's finish this as soon as possible and rush to Jinzhou City."

Gu Jiaorong knew without thinking that the people in Jinzhou City were probably living in dire straits.

As soon as they finished speaking, Fu'an brought people to invite the county magistrate over.

"I didn't know Your Majesty had arrived. I'm sorry for not coming to greet you."

The magistrate bowed with a flattering look on his face, half-bending and not daring to look up at Pei Xu carefully.

Even though he was just a small county magistrate, he had heard of Pei Xu's reputation.

This is an evil spirit!

I just don't know how this evil spirit came to their little place.

Logically speaking, even if he was ordered to deal with the locust plague, he should go to Jinzhou City.

Pei Xu glanced at him indifferently without saying a word.

But this one look was enough to frighten him, and he kept reflecting on what he had done to offend this evil spirit.

But he searched his memory and could not find anything related to this evil spirit.

Prince Su is a man of great merit, holds a high position and has great power. He is also the nephew of Your Majesty. How could a small official like him possibly see him?

"Why did your Highness come here this time?"

Seeing that Pei Xu didn't speak, the magistrate had no choice but to ask.

When Pei Xu heard this, he glanced at him, but that look was so cold that it frightened him.

"Kou Youwei, County Magistrate Kou, I would like to ask you, why is Feng County filled with beggars, and why are the people fleeing the city?"

As soon as Pei Xu finished speaking, Kou Youwei felt a chill in his heart and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

He knew that Pei Xu was a difficult person to deal with. Now that he asked this question, he must have known the truth, so he answered cautiously.

"Your Highness, I have failed to govern properly. After the locust plague, the county government's treasury could no longer sustain itself, forcing the people to leave the city and seek refuge with relatives."

Kou Youwei seemed to have taken the responsibility, but his words and deeds only said that it was due to the locust plague, and he had done his best.

Pei Xu snorted coldly and gave Fu An a look.

"Master Kou, I have investigated overnight. Since the locust plague, the government has not opened the granaries to release grain, and the prices of rice and grain shops in Fengxian County have been rising continuously. Now it is two taels of silver per catty of flour."

Two taels of silver for a pound of flour, in times of peace, the rice and flour you buy is enough to feed a family for a year or two.

"This, this... the warehouse is out of food. Even if I wanted to open it and release the food, there's nothing I can do. As for the rice and grain shops, they'll just have to wait and see the market prices go up. After all, there's no food in the city right now, and the supply can't keep up with the demand."

Kou Youwei forced a smile and looked at Pei Xu more flatteringly.

"Your Highness, I really have no other options. It's not that I don't want to care about the people of Feng County, but I hope Your Highness will understand."

Pei Xu didn't believe his nonsense. The country had been peaceful in recent years, there had been no wars, and there was no need to requisition food and fodder. How could the government's granary be out of food?

It’s just Kou Youwei’s excuse!

If the government opens its granaries to release grain, how can those rice shops and grain stores take the opportunity to raise prices and make a fortune?