Rebuilding in the Flood Year: Saving a City with a Single Ruler

When torrential rains collapse the Qiting Granary, Yu Che, a low-ranking apprentice at the Construction Bureau, is forced to sign a confession under duress. He must find evidence of material substitution before dawn or face imprisonment while his sister, Yu He, is cut off from food rations. Compounding the crisis, the main flood peak will reach the city in just ten days. The damp broken beams, burned material ledgers, and deep cart tracks within the inner gates all point to a corrupt network embezzling disaster relief supplies. Without official rank or supernatural abilities, Yu Che relies solely on a ruler, incomplete water maps, and the skills of unpaid craftsmen. He signs a seventy-two-hour wager to clear old drainage channels, dismantle damaged beams, and salvage the granary. Although the warehouse is temporarily secured, erroneous water routes, forged seals, and fraudulent cross-city transfer orders continue to surface. To ensure the construction crew survives to collect their wages and help the lower city withstand the coming flood, Yu Che must trace the true source of the water and the destination of the stolen materials before each wrongful order can be executed.