Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 1259 Natural Disaster? Man-Made Catastrophe!
The Eastern Depot was established in the 18th year of the Yongle Emperor's reign to supervise and control the Embroidered Uniform Guard. For over two hundred years during the Ming Dynasty, the Eastern Depot was an important henchman of the emperor, and its power often surpassed that of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Besides the Eastern Depot, the Ming Dynasty also had the Western Depot and the Inner Depot, but these two institutions were later abolished, while the Eastern Depot remained. The powerful eunuch Wei Zhongxian, who once held immense influence in the court, was the head of the Eastern Depot, demonstrating its immense power.

However, during the Chongzhen era, due to the misleading of the Donglin Party, Emperor Chongzhen weakened the power of the Eastern Depot, and even almost abolished it. From then on, the Eastern Depot never recovered; although it still existed in name, it had lost its former prestige.

After Zhu Shenzhui seized power and ascended the throne, he placed greater emphasis on the Embroidered Uniform Guard (Jinyiwei) due to Zhou Anmin's influence. The Jinyiwei's authority was gradually restored, and it replaced the Eastern Depot as the Ming Dynasty's most important intelligence and espionage agency. Later, considering future developments, Zhu Shenzhui began to dismantle the Jinyiwei, dividing it into three parts and gradually transforming it from a purely espionage agency into an intelligence agency. At this point, the Eastern Depot became even less important; although it was never abolished, it was essentially dispensable.

After Lu Jiude led Fang Zhenghua in, he quickly withdrew, leaving Fang Zhenghua alone in the side hall.

"Your Majesty, this is the information I have gathered. Please review it..." Fang Zhenghua respectfully handed over a memorial. After Zhu Shenzhui took it, he took two steps back and continued to stand with his hands at his sides as before.

Ignoring him, Zhu Shenzhui took the folded document and opened it to read it carefully. At first, his expression was normal, but after reading for a while, his expression gradually became serious. After reading it all, a look of anger appeared on his face.

Are these true?

"Your Majesty, this servant would not dare to deceive you," Fang Zhenghua replied hastily.

Zhu Shenzhui frowned and asked again, "Why hasn't the Embroidered Uniform Guard sent a report yet?"

"This servant is not entirely sure, but according to the timeline, the Embroidered Uniform Guard should have already verified it, and if there is a report, it should arrive in the capital within the next two days," Fang Zhenghua replied.

Zhu Shenzhui nodded slightly. Fang Zhenghua's words made sense. However, the reason he secretly sent Fang Zhenghua to investigate was not because he distrusted the Embroidered Uniform Guard, but because he did it on purpose. Although the Embroidered Uniform Guard was different from before, the officials in the court were still wary of them. Even though the Embroidered Uniform Guard was conducting the investigation into the Yellow River breach in secret, it was still difficult to guarantee that the news would not leak out.

To be on the safe side, Zhu Shenzhui took double precautions this time, secretly dispatching the Embroidered Uniform Guard while also mobilizing the Eastern Depot.

Although the Eastern Depot's presence wasn't as strong during the Yongming Dynasty, even a centipede with a hundred legs doesn't die easily. The Eastern Depot's network remained powerful, and in recent years it had done almost nothing in the court. To others, the Eastern Depot was practically defunct, but no one knew that the Eastern Depot was still an institution, just unknown to the world.

"well done."

"Serving His Majesty is my duty," Fang Zhenghua replied, neither arrogant nor humble.

Zhu Shenzhui still had some goodwill towards Fang Zhenghua. Although Fang Zhenghua had been marginalized by him over the years and had lost his positions in the Directorate of Ceremonial and the Imperial Horse Administration, he was still diligent in his work. Moreover, he was usually very serious and cautious in his work. If it weren't for this, Fang Zhenghua would have been dealt with or sent far away long ago when the inner court was purged.

"Keep an eye on this matter, and report back immediately if you have any news!"

"This servant understands!" Fang Zhenghua was overjoyed. His power as the director of the Eastern Depot was not great, and it was worlds apart from that of Wei Zhongxian back then. Moreover, the Eastern Depot now was not the same as before and had long been neglected. But he never expected that it would catch His Majesty's eye this time. How could he not be happy?

This time, His Majesty's sudden use of the Eastern Depot and his secret investigation into the Yellow River breach presented Fang Zhenghua with an opportunity. As the saying goes, opportunity favors the prepared mind. Although the Eastern Depot had become a mere shell of its former self in recent years, Fang Zhenghua hadn't given up. He continued to diligently maintain its intelligence network and basic organization, hoping it could one day be put to use and serve the Emperor. Unexpectedly, the opportunity finally arrived. Upon receiving the mission, Fang Zhenghua used all his abilities to obtain concrete intelligence before the Embroidered Uniform Guard could, which is why he was recognized by Zhu Shenzhui today.

Zhu Shenzhui waved for Fang Zhenghua to leave, but before he did, he specifically instructed Lu Jiude that if Fang Zhenghua needed to see the Emperor again, he could come directly to the Qianqing Palace without having to pass a message as before. Lu Jiude agreed and then personally escorted Fang Zhenghua out. Once outside the hall, Lu Jiude quietly congratulated Fang Zhenghua. Fang Zhenghua quickly returned the greeting, saying that he would need Lu Jiude's continued care in the future. Lu Jiude smiled and nodded before watching Fang Zhenghua leave.

In the side hall, after Fang Zhenghua left, Zhu Shenzhui's expression was very unpleasant. This was not because he was dissatisfied with Fang Zhenghua, but because of the results of Fang Zhenghua's investigation.

He subconsciously opened the document Fang Zhenghua handed him again and glanced at it a few more times. He couldn't help but want to curse, his heart filled with anger, but he didn't know where to vent it.

According to the investigation results from the Eastern Depot, although the breach of the Yellow River dike in Huaibei appeared to be a natural disaster, it was actually a man-made disaster.

While the Yellow River itself was certainly a factor, and the torrential rains this year did cause the river to overflow, the real cause of the breach was the actions of local government officials, which even affected the people of three prefectures and seven counties.

Ironically, the real reason the Yellow River breached its banks was because the people of the three prefectures and seven counties along the Yellow River themselves breached the dikes and diverted the Yellow River water into canals. The main reason for breaching the dikes was to facilitate water access, namely, to irrigate farmland.

People living on both sides of the Yellow River breached the dikes, allowing river water to flow in through the gaps, and then used this water to irrigate their farmland. It was precisely because of their actions that the originally relatively stable Yellow River dikes were directly damaged, making the dikes in the Huaibei section of the Yellow River riddled with holes and completely unable to play a role in flood control.

Because of the drought in previous years, the Yellow River's water level dropped. Although the riverbanks were breached, it didn't cause flooding; in fact, the breached banks did bring water, resulting in better harvests for the surrounding farmland. However, the people didn't consider that the Yellow River's banks were so easily breached, or what the consequences would be if they were gone. They only saw the immediate problem and ignored everything else. The local officials were even more despicable. They clearly knew more about the serious consequences than the people, yet they turned a blind eye to this for their own selfish gain, allowing it to continue without intervention, ultimately leading to severe consequences.

Due to the problems with the river embankments, the flood control capacity of this section of the Yellow River has been greatly weakened. If the water flow is not large, it will not be a problem, but the Yellow River, the mother river, is unpredictable and has flooded countless times over the millennia. Especially in the last two years, with the easing of drought and the gradual increase in rainfall, the previous drought situation has been greatly alleviated. Under these circumstances, it is inevitable that the Yellow River will have an accident.

As a result, the Huaihe River basin experienced continuous rainfall after the start of the plum rain season, and several torrential rains in early summer further caused the Yellow River's water level to rise sharply. If the riverbanks were still standing and without the previous issues, under normal circumstances, reinforcing the dikes to prevent flooding would have been achievable. Even if some sections breached, the problem wouldn't be significant; at most, it would only result in small-scale flooding. However, the problem is that this section of the dike is now riddled with holes, with countless irrigation canals leading water from the breaches spreading across the riverbank, almost like a spider web.

When the Yellow River suddenly swells, these canals become channels for the roaring Yellow River to overflow. The surging river water rushes directly onto the banks through these canals, flooding most of the three prefectures and seven counties, causing the entire region to be flooded and resulting in heavy losses.

It is evident that this breach of the Yellow River was not only a natural disaster but also a man-made one. Moreover, this man-made disaster was actually caused by local officials colluding with the local people themselves. The consequence of their actions was that the Yellow River breached its banks in Huaibei, causing heavy losses to three prefectures and seven counties. Countless local people also lost their lives in this disaster.

To put it bluntly, it was entirely their own fault! When Zhu Shenzhui saw that this was the reason, the fire in his heart instantly ignited. He was so angry that he wanted to curse out loud. He couldn't believe that there would be such an ignorant person in the world who would do such a foolish thing. In particular, the local government turned a blind eye and a deaf ear to this matter and never took any action to stop it, which made Zhu Shenzhui extremely angry.

It's understandable that ordinary people are short-sighted and only care about the present, but don't these officials understand? These officials are all scholars, and they even passed the imperial examinations with great difficulty. Did all the books they read over the years go to waste?

What's even more infuriating is that since the Yellow River breached its banks, the reports submitted by the local authorities have not mentioned a single word about the real cause of the incident. They have only said that the Yellow River's water level rose sharply this year and that the early summer rains caused the breach. If it weren't for the secret investigation, the local authorities probably would never have let the emperor know the truth.

Thinking of this, Zhu Shenzhui clenched his fists, wishing he could immediately arrest all these officials and punish them severely. But despite his anger, Zhu Shenzhui remained calm and tried to compose himself.

Previously, Zhu Shenzhui blamed the Yellow River dike breach on Wang Mingxuan, the Minister of Works, believing that the main responsibility for the Yellow River dike breach lay with the Ministry of Works. However, he did not expect that the real reason lay with the local authorities. Although the Ministry of Works did bear some responsibility, the local authorities bore even greater responsibility. If it were not for the actions of the local government and the people, how could such a disaster have occurred?
As he gradually calmed down, Zhu Shenzhui pondered how to handle the matter. In the end, he did not act immediately. After all, the information was only from the Eastern Depot, and news from the Embroidered Uniform Guard had not yet arrived. Moreover, this was no small matter, involving so many local officials and common people. Although the latter were to blame, the emperor could not simply ignore the disaster relief efforts in the region. However, if the truth was indeed as described, then the former's crime would be even greater. Zhu Shenzhui was not a soft-hearted person. If the truth was indeed as described, then he would not be blamed for being ruthless.

(End of this chapter)