The Magistrate's Hidden Kingdom

The Story

Emperor Chu Yuan of the Da Jing Dynasty dispatches 300,000 taels of silver to Cloudbrook County after hearing reports of barren land, starving people, and corpses everywhere. He travels to the region incognito to verify the situation. Upon entering the county, he is stunned by the reality before him. The area features cement roads and free schools that provide meals. Free clinics serve the population, while families possess surplus grain. Theft is nonexistent, and refined salt costs only two coins per jin. The fields yield 1,200 jin per mu, completely contradicting the dire conditions he was told to expect.