The third emperor of the Sui Dynasty

Chapter 419 Carrying Forward the Road to Victory
With the end of the exciting martial arts and general competition, Yecheng returned to the tranquility of the past, and the weather became colder. At this time, a sudden heavy snowstorm swept across the city. The heavy snowstorm stopped, and the whole north turned into a world of ice and snow. Thick fluffy snow covered fields, wheat fields, mountains, official roads and cities like cotton.

The road has completely disappeared, and the river bed covered with solid ice still has a little outline, so it has become the best and most convenient road for pedestrians to travel.On both sides of the river bed are crystal clear eucalyptus trees and viburnum flowers, and the vast land is extremely enchanting.

The snow in the streets of Yecheng has been cleaned up. The black snow is piled up on the corners of the buildings on both sides. People come and go, making the flat green brick floor wet.

Looking down from Chaotian Temple, the whole city seems to be a beautiful sketch.

Yang Tong and a group of high-ranking officials watched the bustling scene in the city with worry in their eyes. The blizzard made him worry about whether the houses of poor families could withstand the heavy snow.

Especially the collapse of Yueyue Pavilion in the palace last night made him even more worried that this blizzard would bring great disaster to Sui.

"Holy!"

The guard's report interrupted Yang Tong's train of thought.

"What's the matter?" Yang Tong turned around and asked.

"Gyeonggi officials are here."

"Xuan!"

After a while, several officials covered in mud and tired faces walked quickly to Chaotianding. The leader of the official was Shi Yu. He was originally the prefect of Loufan. officials, including the county magistrate of Wei County and the magistrate of Wu County included in Yecheng.

Shi Yu and others stepped forward and bowed to salute, "My humble servants see the Holy One!"

"Pingshen!" Yang Tong waved his hand and asked, "How many houses collapsed in the city? How about the casualties?"

"My Majesty, as of early morning today, a total of 73 houses in the city have collapsed. Unfortunately, 26 civilians have been killed or injured, and 55 people have been injured. At present, the dead have been buried, and the injured are being treated by the imperial medical department. All the collapsed houses have died. It was placed in a post house. The people in the city did not panic or riot.”

Hearing this, Yang Tong felt a little relieved. This loss is not too big for Ye City, which has a population of nearly one million. It is much better than he imagined. This is also the benefit of starting a new city from scratch. At the beginning, it was based on quality, so it can generally withstand the test of natural disasters, but other places outside of Yecheng are hard to say, he nodded, and said to a group of important officials: "I want to look along the city wall. Everyone follow me to see if there is a solution."

"Here."

A group of people followed Yang Tong down the Chaotian Palace, out of the palace, and up the outer city wall.There were already guards in the city with horses, and when Yang Tong got on the horses and went forward, all the people followed.

As the heart of the Sui Dynasty, Yecheng was designed with defense in mind at the beginning of the design. The tall and solid inner and outer walls sandwiched a [-]-foot-wide urn city.

The South City Gate is the main city gate of Yecheng, named Hongwu Gate. The tower is tall and magnificent. The main gate is facing Shenwu Street in the central axis of Yecheng. It is usually not opened, and only Yang Tong travels, the army enters and exits, or large-scale celebrations day will open.People and officials usually enter and exit through the side doors on both sides.

The inside and outside of Hongwu Gate is very lively. Stalls selling melons, fruits and vegetables, charcoal and firewood, and meat, rice and noodles are arranged in a long string along the city wall in an orderly manner. There are hundreds of large and small stalls, which are very similar to those of later generations. outdoor market.The people in the city flocked everywhere, surrounded the vendors tightly, and the sounds of hawking, cursing, and bargaining could be heard, making it extremely noisy and lively.

At this time, Yang Tong and others have already visited here.

Standing by the parapet wall, Yang Tong looked down and saw that the 'bazaar' below was in order, and there were Jinwu guards carefully patrolling. If there were any disputes, soldiers would mediate in time. He couldn't help but praise: "This 'market' The city's arrangements are quite good, and the officials should play the role of guidance, evacuation, and mediation."

Shi Yu introduced with a smile: "My lord, we were worried that heavy snow would block roads and cut off traffic, making it difficult for the people in the city to buy goods, but we didn't expect that more than a thousand sleds came from all directions every day, and they brought a lot of vegetables and fruits. And meat and game, to a large extent relieved the shortage of food and firewood. Fortunately, the New Year is approaching, and every household has a lot of items, otherwise, it is really difficult to cope. Of course, the main reason is that the heavy snow came too suddenly. There was no warning in advance, and everyone was caught off guard."

Yang Tong nodded, then turned around and asked, "You said that the sled is the main means of transportation, does that mean that the common people know the road?"

Shi Yu shook his head and said, "The roads are not good. The people mainly use the Qingzhang and other rivers, and the rivers can be easily distinguished."

Yang Tong came to the crenel of the outer wall and stared into the distance, only to see that the outside of the city was completely flat and white, even the trees turned silvery white, and the snow-covered earth and the sky merged into one.

I also saw dozens of sleds running on the river bed. This convoy dragged out a long black track, and they were particularly eye-catching on the snow.

Yang Tong has excellent eyesight, and he saw a small village more than ten miles away. There are faint black spots walking on the snow. The village is close to the official road. The villagers should have identified the official road foundation according to their habits. .

"It's too dangerous for people to walk on the ice. If the ice breaks and falls into the ice hole, you can't even find your body." Yang Tong said to Li Jing, Minister of the Ministry of War, "I saw villagers in the distance. Traveling, it can be seen that the official roads can still be distinguished, and immediately ordered the First Army to bring tools out of the city and mark all the official roads."

Speaking of this, Yang Tong thought for a while, and then said: "The method of marking is also very simple, that is, to drive sharpened wooden sticks into both sides of the official road, and only need to peel off the bark on the parts exposed to the ground. After laying one, the road signs on both sides of the road will be more recognizable after they intersect. In a word, it is necessary to use the fastest speed to make the road clear in the shortest time."

"Your Majesty is wise!" Li Jing praised, "But I don't know how far the Majesty wants to mark?"

"First make Jingzhao Mansion well, and then extend to Ji County in the south. If a sudden war breaks out, the army can quickly go south through the signs. At the same time, contact the counties under the rule, let the garrison, county soldiers and militia people work together to complete the project. this task."

After Yang Tong ascended the throne, he renamed all the Wei counties in Yecheng to Jingzhao Mansion, and after confessing to Li Jing, he said to Shi Yu: "You call on the young and strong in the city to cooperate with the army to do this well. I hope that the army and the people will work together to bid Create a safe passage, a passage of life."

Li Jing made some calculations. If it was just the Jingzhao Mansion, the amount of work would be much smaller. With the assistance of the people, it could be completed within two days with only [-] troops. If there were a lot of people, it would not even take two days.

Yang Shidao, Minister of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, was moved in his heart, and he cupped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, the common people are living at home now, so let's just mobilize the common people to shovel off the snow on the official road. Take Jingzhao Mansion as an example, if the main official road leading to Sifang With [-] people dispatched each, the shovels can be cleaned up in a day at most. This is much more convenient for cutting and marking."

Yang Tong thought for a while and said, "Actually, it's not impossible to shovel the snow on the main official road, but areas with garrisons can use troops, but other counties may need to use a large number of civilians. I don't want to disturb the people too much."

Fang Xuanling said: "Your Majesty, I think Yang Shangshu's proposal is very reasonable, and the people of all counties will also enthusiastically participate."

"What's the reason?" This is just Yang Tong's impromptu idea, and he didn't think too far, but if the people are willing to cooperate with the local government to remove the snow on the official road, that would be great.

"I think this is not a nuisance to the people, but a benefit to the people. Because during the Chinese New Year, everyone has to go out to visit relatives and friends. Unimpeded roads are good for everyone. As long as the local government calls on the people to tell the benefits, the minister believes that people everywhere People will actively participate.”

Fang Xuanling glanced around, and said with a smile: "Besides, in the face of natural disasters, the entire Sui Dynasty should work together. As long as Chao Zhongwen Wu takes the lead in shoveling the snow, and then sends this news to the local government, I believe the local officials will also actively Action. Your Majesty, shoveling snow for all the people is not only a great opportunity to unite the hearts of the people, but also facilitates the rapid dispatch of troops! It is also a very interesting entertainment, allowing the whole people to re-experience childhood fun."

"My minister agrees!"

"My minister agrees!"

As soon as Fang Xuanling's words fell, the civil and military officials agreed one after another, thinking of shoveling snow and having a snowball fight at the same time, one and two were very excited

Yang Tong nodded and said, "That's fine. Then we will carry out cutting markings and snow shoveling at the same time. This matter will be led by the Shangshu Province, and the officials and people of Yecheng will be mobilized to participate. I will also participate at that time, and then let all counties follow suit, and strive to be in the New Year's Eve." Clear the snow off the main official road before arriving. But this can only be mobilized, not forced to participate.”

"Qi Zou Holy Majesty, Concubine Li gave birth to a princess, mother and daughter are safe." Just as Yang Tong and the civil and military ministers were planning the important event of shoveling snow for the whole people, Yin Mingyue hurriedly galloped over.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty!" Hearing this, all the people in the city bowed to congratulate Yang Tong with beaming smiles.

Yang Tong laughed heartily, and said, "The grand event of shoveling snow for all the people has just been finalized, and this child is born. It really is a double blessing!"

"My lord please give the princess a name to commemorate this grand event for the whole people." Yang Gongren said with a smile.

Yang Tong smiled and nodded. He also had the same meaning. After thinking for a while, he said: "The so-called sunshine, rain and dew are all blessings from heaven, and the people's contribution is a merit, and because the roads are smooth, this grand event of snow shoveling by the whole people is possible. Let’s name this child Yang Lu! At the same time, it can also be transliterated as the road of promoting merit and virtue, and the road of promoting victory!”

"Good name!"

Everyone applauds.

Yang Tong smiled and said, "I'm going to visit my little Lulu, and I'll leave the major issue of smooth roads to you. If you have other matters, you can report to me at any time."

"Congratulations to the Holy Majesty!"

……

(I wish my brothers and sisters a smooth and smooth journey in the new year!)

(End of this chapter)