Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 707: Heaven's will, but it can be avoided

Boom!

There were lightning and thunder outside, and heavy rain was pouring down like crazy, forming a curtain of water in the air.

The entire Bianzhou was shrouded in rain.

On the doorpost of the lobby of the Bianzhou government office, there was a temporary plaque written vertically, with the name: Bianzhou Flood Control Command.

Fang Chongyong was sitting at his desk working, and the tables around him were also full of people.

Those who were writing decrees were writing, those who were drawing maps were drawing, and there were messengers coming in and out. It was extremely busy.

"Doctor Jia, hasn't it been marked yet?"

Fang Chongyong glanced at Jia Dan who was drawing lines on the map, and said with urging in his tone.

"Official, it's done. It will be done soon."

Jia Dan answered hurriedly, but his eyes were fixed on the map. The entire Bianzhou, the five canals, and many rivers including the Yellow River were clearly drawn on the map, and even the width of the rivers was marked.

"Yuan Fuyin, haven't the people inspecting the riverbank returned yet?"

Fang Chongyong looked at Yuan Jie and asked.

"It's almost time, the shift change is not yet here."

Yuan Jie wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. He knew that Fang Chongyong was very angry, but there was nothing anyone could do about it.

Floods in the Yellow River have been serious since ancient times. However, after Wang Mang, Emperor Ming of Han, Liu Zhuang, sent the great Confucian scholar Wang Jing to control the Yellow River, and the situation improved for a time.

After analyzing the causes of the flood, the latter proposed a set of practical water control plans.

Wang Jing's method may seem unremarkable to people today, but it was a pioneering effort at the time.

He took two approaches at the same time to solve the problem, namely digging a new river channel to divert the water and building sluices to block the silt.

Regarding the problem of river siltation, Wang Jing proposed opening up a new channel of the Yellow River, alleviating the problem of river patency by digging out the silt.

In the face of new silt brought from upstream, Wang Jing built a series of "water gates" to clear the silt along the way and reduce sand accumulation and siltation in the main channel of the Yellow River.

These innovative measures would undoubtedly bring results to the management of the Yellow River at that time.

However, during the Tang Dynasty, Wang Jing's benefits had come to an end. The Yellow River became sluggish when it reached the middle reaches, near Luoyang, and a large amount of silt was deposited there.

Moreover, the flood in Bianzhou should not have been so serious.

It was only because of the development of the canal that a large amount of Yellow River water was diverted into the Bian River and the various rivers near Kaifeng were connected, which changed the ecology of local rivers and caused the water levels in various river sections in Bianzhou to rise sharply.

For a time, there were dangerous dikes everywhere!
In previous years when there was not much rain, nothing could be seen and minor problems could be dealt with quickly. This year, there was a lot of rain, so the situation in Bianzhou... exploded.

It was a natural disaster as well as a man-made disaster, and it was the price paid for developing Bianzhou.

While enjoying the economic development and commercial prosperity brought by the canal, we must also bear the losses caused by floods. God has always been fair.

"How's He Baiwan doing? Can the sacks be delivered in time? We can't do without sacks to reinforce the river bank. The soil will disperse if it's washed away by water!"

Fang Chongyong looked at Liu Yan again and urged him.

"Sir, a batch was delivered last night and has been transported to the river bank. I'm afraid the new batch will not be delivered until tonight. We are already working day and night, and all the workshops are working overtime to weave."

Liu Yan said helplessly.

"It's too late. Go to Kaifeng City and the homes of residents around the Imperial Palace to buy anything that can hold soil, even if it's a bamboo basket, bring it to me!
What we lack now is time. Once Bianzhou is flooded, the results of many years of development will be lost.

Mobilize manpower door to door. Now is not the time to be lazy. No one can be spared when Bianzhou is hit by a disaster!"

Fang Chongyong urged again!
He was really anxious. He had to survive this year's flood season no matter what. While plugging the gap, he started to build a stone dam, but this would take time.

Liu Yan saluted him with his arms crossed, and then strode away. The rain was still falling outside, with no sign of stopping.

"Have the Silver Spear Filial Piety Festival taken place? Where are they now?"

Fang Chongyong looked at Li Quan and questioned.

“Reporting to the government, all the troops have been dispatched, divided into several groups, and are patrolling around several canals.

Including other states, 100,000 civilians have been mobilized to repair river embankments and dig new canals to divert water. "

Li Quan replied helplessly.

Fang Chongyong was too nervous, or rather, he took the flood too seriously.

Many rulers throughout the ages have experienced floods, but no matter how raging the floods were, they would never be submerged!
"That's good."

Fang Zhongyong breathed a sigh of relief. As long as the imperial guards took action, it meant they had really done their best. There was no point in forcing the people who were doing the work.

"Ask someone to bring some food over so you can take a rest first."

Fang Zhongyong called Da Congming beside him and said that they had been eating and living in the government office for several days and were exhausted. Even at night, when everyone took turns on duty, they ensured that at least half of the people were there.

If there is any emergency, it can be dealt with at any time.

After a while, the simple meals were served, which were things like Hu Bing and Bo Tuan that were easy to hold and eat.

Fang Chongyong grabbed a steamed bun and put it into his mouth, looking at what Jia Dan drew on the map. The many rivers were like blood vessels, but there were many "patches" around them.

Those are old river embankments, which were originally located in low-lying areas and had already experienced flooding.

These places are not actually a cause for concern, as trouble often occurs in "unmarked" locations. For example, yesterday, a section of the Baigou River leading to the Juye Lake was flooded.

Tens of thousands of people went there and blocked the road all night, and it was only at noon today that the road was barely blocked.

“Please rest assured, I have already marked the more dangerous places when I drew the map.

Now the canal will basically not have any problems, and the water volume of other rivers is not large, so even if they burst their banks, it will not cause a huge loss for a long distance. "

Jia Dan comforted Fang Chongyong.

In fact, everyone knows that the rivers in Bianzhou are all insignificant. Even if the water floods, it will not cause any waves.

The real trouble lies in the Yellow River, whose water volume is dozens of times that of the canal. If the river bank were to burst anywhere, the consequences would be disastrous.

No one has mentioned this situation, and speaking out about it now would not change anything, but would instead shake the morale of the troops.

"Sir, please don't just focus on flood prevention and disaster relief. There is another important matter that needs to be addressed!"

Yan Zhuang walked over carefully and spoke in a low voice.

"Is there anything more important than disaster relief?"

Fang Zhongyong questioned Yan Zhuang with a dissatisfied look on his face.

"Don't say that. This year's floods happened just as the new emperor ascended the throne. This is a warning from heaven.

If the emperor does not issue an edict of guilt, will the people discuss how the previous emperor died? Moreover, will there be people with ulterior motives who point the finger at you, the emperor?"

Hearing this, Fang Zhongyong was speechless.

Yan Zhuang's perspective on things is very novel, but it is completely in line with the values ​​of ordinary people of this era.

The emperor is the shepherd of the country on behalf of God. The flood now is a punishment from God. The emperor must have done something wrong!
If the emperor does not issue an edict of repentance, does it mean that... there are treacherous people in the court who are covering up the truth and deceiving the emperor?

This cannot be investigated in depth. In short, it is necessary to let Li Wei issue a self-criticism edict and take the "blame".

If he didn't take the blame, someone would point the finger at Fang Zhongyong. Using foolish methods to deal with foolish mental debuffs was also considered a magic duel.

"Write the edict of apology and have Li Wei seal it! We are busy with flood prevention right now, don't waste time talking to him!"

Fang Chongyong was very decisive. He didn't hesitate at all and just waved his hand and followed the advice.

This is his good point, he is not stubborn when listening to advice. As long as the advice of the advisers is pertinent and useful, he will adopt it immediately.

"I will do it now."

Yan Zhuang crossed his hands and bowed, then continued, "Your Excellency, please take a break. Floods are destiny. Since ancient times, the Yellow River has been known to burst its banks every three years and change its course every ten years. This cannot be reversed by human power."

"I treat the people as human beings. When Bianzhou is in trouble, they are willing to fight to the death. You just need to do your job, no need to say more."

Fang Zhongyong waved his hand.

Development comes at a price, but the price can be controlled within a certain range and cannot be allowed to expand indefinitely.

Through flood control, the local organizational structure of Bianzhou can be reorganized, as can the officials of the Bianzhou court.

Talents will always emerge after the great waves wash away the sand!

In short, it’s not in vain!
Just as Yan Zhuang turned around and was about to leave, Che Guangqian, wearing a straw raincoat and a bamboo hat, came to the lobby of the yamen with two personal soldiers.

The two bodyguards were tying up a man who was soaking wet and had a bruised face and nose.

Che Guangqian threw his bamboo hat on the ground, without even taking off his raincoat, and saluted to Chongyong, saying, "General, I led my troops to patrol the Yellow River and saw a group of people digging the river bank! The soldiers under my command were so angry that I couldn't control them, so I killed them all, leaving only one for questioning. Please forgive me, General!"

"Dig a river bank? The Yellow River?"

Fang Zhongyong's eyes widened and his heart skipped a beat.

They didn't have enough time to repair the river bank, so they worked overtime and mobilized more than 100,000 civilians. But at this time, someone was digging the river bank, trying to drown them!
Fang Chongyong went up and kicked the man, knocking him to the ground!

"Please spare my life, sir. We didn't ask to dig it up. Li Guiren forced us to do it. If you don't dig it up, we will kill our whole family! My wife and children are still in Yecheng. We have to dig it up!"

The man knelt on the ground and cried, tears streaming down his face.

"This person only knows this much, he doesn't know anything else, and this is what he told us. His family was controlled by Li Guiren, and then they crossed the river by boat at night and dug the Yellow River embankment.

According to him, they have been digging for several days."

Che Guangqian said helplessly.

Li Guiren's move was truly vicious. Instead of sending soldiers, he sent civilians. He took the families of these civilians as hostages and threatened them to do such immoral things that would exterminate their descendants.

However, even if the person is caught, even if he is under control on the spot, what can be done?

Li Guiren could have easily said that he knew nothing about this matter and that it was the unruly people in Hebei who had gone mad and were trying to shift the blame to someone else.

After all, as long as the south bank of the Yellow River suffers a disaster, the north bank will be safe. This is actually not difficult to understand, right?

Although these Hebei laborers who dug the river embankment were forced, they also had the thought of "I would rather die than let my fellow Taoist die".

“How’s the levee now?”

Fang Zhongyong looked at Che Guangqian and asked.

"Reporting to the commander, we have sent people to repair it, and it is fine for now. However, I have only heard of thieves who can steal for a thousand days, but I have never heard of guarding against thieves for a thousand days.

This group of people were digging on the bank of the Yellow River in Puzhou, and we happened to run into them because we were close to them.

But what if there are others that we haven't seen? Along the Yellow River, not far from Feng County are Zhengzhou, Huazhou, and Puzhou, and a little further away are Qizhou and Jezhou.

No matter how many people there are, there are not enough to patrol the thousand-mile-long levee.

Besides, if we continue like this, we will be extremely passive and will eventually be unable to defend ourselves."

Che Guangqian said worriedly.

Fang Chongyong has a bottom line, but that doesn't mean other people have a bottom line. For example, Li Guiren has no bottom line at all. He doesn't care how many people drown on the south bank of the Yellow River.

This kind of warlords who rose from the grassroots have no taboos in doing anything. If they are pushed into a corner, they will do anything immoral.

"Li Guiren, we can't keep him."

Fang Zhongyong stretched out a hand and made a chopping gesture.

Everyone present nodded frequently.

It has to be said that Li Guiren's actions have exceeded the psychological bottom line of everyone present.

This person and this force must be resolutely annihilated. Otherwise, no one knows what will happen on the banks of the Yellow River.

Perhaps, Li Guiren's move was to deliberately provoke Fang Chongyong and the Bianzhou court and lure them to attack. These are all difficult to say.

However, even if it was a trap, even if there were difficulties, there was no way to retreat.

Natural disasters and floods, coupled with the warlords causing trouble, with two ghosts knocking on the door, Bianzhou is likely to be in big trouble.

"Sir, since Li Guiren dares to do it on the first day, we can do it on the fifteenth.

People were sent to dig trenches on the north bank of the Yellow River to divert the water of the Yellow River into the old course of the Yellow River, the entrance of which was on the opposite bank of Baima in Huazhou.

If the Yellow River takes this route, it will go directly to Xiangzhou, pass through Yecheng, rush into Fushui; pass through Mingzhou, and finally rush to Youzhou, drowning the two bastards Li Guiren and Shi Siming in one breath! "

Yan Zhuang suggested sinisterly to Fang Zhongyong.

You are really cruel!

Fang Zhongyong gave Yan Zhuang a strange look.

Before the Han Dynasty, the Yellow River flowed through Hebei, also known as the "Northern Route". Later, it stopped flowing that way and started to flow parallel to the Jishui River, becoming the so-called "Eastern Route".

It was even more severe at the end of the Northern Song Dynasty. For some reason, it went to the southeast and was called "Nan Road" or "Huai Si Road".

Today, the general flow of the Yellow River is the "Eastern Route", and it does not pass through Hebei in the traditional sense.

The Yellow River changed its course, and the two banks near Puyang were considered the "waist of the river". The upper reaches of the waist of the river were extremely stable, and the river course had remained the same for thousands of years. The lower reaches of the waist of the river were plagued by disasters, like the ground swept by a broom, and the course often changed.

Yan Zhuang’s meaning was very simple. Fang Chongyong also followed Li Guiren’s example and sent people to the Hebei border on the opposite side of Puyang to find the old course of the Yellow River (very easy to find). He then dug a shovel and kicked the Yellow River in the middle of the river!
The Yellow River will change its course in an instant!

People in Xiangzhou, Mingzhou, Jizhou, and Youzhou, prepare for the unprecedented Yellow River flood! The old river courses have long been filled up, some of which are still fertile fields, and the surrounding areas are full of people.

It’s scary to think about how powerful this move is.

Everyone looked at Fang Chongyong.

Bianzhou is upstream of Puzhou. No matter how much trouble there is, it will not affect the economy of Bianzhou.

"Animals can learn from humans, but humans cannot learn from animals."

Fang Zhongyong shook his head and did not adopt this evil plan.

"Take him to every street in Bianzhou to kowtow and admit your mistakes, so that the people of Bianzhou know what happened.

After doing all this, let him live. "

Fang Zhongyong waved his hand tiredly and let out a long sigh.

(End of this chapter)