Liu She gently said, "Lanting come here."
She immediately took a few steps toward the long table. She noticed her father staring at the map.
It was a crudely drawn territory map. The territory sizes, mountainous ranges, and waterways were all messily scrawled.
"Lanting, can you guess which is the county I govern?" Liu She pushed the lamp towards her so that she could see better. "I left Hejian County all those years ago… I wondered if you would hate me for it… But I had to leave you behind."
Jiang Pengji raised her head and looked at him suspiciously. She did not understand why Liu She was talking about this now.
"You governed here, Xu County, and the land is as big as a prefecture," Jiang Pengji said, replying to his former question. She was not Liu Lanting and could not give him an honest answer to his other remark.
Liu She touched the crudely drawn Xu County on the map. "Yes, Xu County… Before I was appointed there, that land was the most uninhabitable in the Dongqing. The emperor had sent many officials there, and many died on their way there. Or they became governors there, but they were unable to flourish and make it back home."
Xu County was poor, and the land had been infertile since before the start of the Daxia dynasty.
The farms could not produce much food because of the decade-long drought. Most families could hardly survive, and most guards and servants ultimately became bandits. It was also normal for families to sell their children.
Families who had the means fled Xu County. Any other place would be far better than staying in that piece of hell.
Not only was the land infertile, but the rations that the imperial court had given went through corrupt officials. By the time the rations reached the commoners, there was hardly enough for them to eat.
Once Daxia collapsed, Xu County came under Dongqing's rule.
Before Liu She assumed his role as governor of Xu County, there were many outstanding officials who had wanted to try and bring order to that land. None of them succeeded.
Liu She was Xu County's longest-serving senior provincial officer. The people there practically treated him as a god.
"What happened that caused you to be assigned to such a harsh area?"
Jiang Pengji frowned. Xu County was notorious for being hard to live in, and no one would willingly go there to become an official. The Lius might not be a top family in Dongqing, but they were not a small family, either. There should have been other options for Liu She.
"When you place a person in front of death, they will fight to live. It was my choice to go there."
"Choice?"
It was his choice to seek death?
Or was it that Liu She was sure he could survive in Xu County?
Or did he mean that someone had tried to sabotage him and cause Liu She's death?
"To many people, Xu County is a place of death. But to me, it was a place that could become a paradise one day."
Liu She sighed with regret as the memory of that year resurfaced. He had worn a hemp garment for mourning, and he could still recall his grief after Gu Min's funeral. He had packed Gu Min's memorial tablet and took off to go to Xu County.
That year, he had lost two sons, and then his wife succumbed to illness. There was danger lurking outside the small Liu residence. Liu She was taking care of his remaining child but felt utterly lost. He had wanted to die.
But Gu Min was right. Lanting and their enemies were still alive. He could not die yet.
If he went to Xu County, there might be a way to survive!
He forced the memory and pain from his face way and then pointed at Xu County. "Since we're free now, let me test you a bit. If you were me back then and had to go Xu County, what would have done to ensure your safety and still govern the land?"
Chapter end
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