Top Scholar

Chapter 629 Spring Tide
On the water's surface outside the ice mound, dozens of large iron pots were suspended in wooden crates, secured by several ropes spanning the river. Firewood and oil burned inside the pots, and the roaring flames baked the ice wall from below.

With multiple methods employed, the once aloof ice wall soon began to sweat profusely...

Behind the array of iron pots, several parallel ropes were stretched out, with a row of thin migrant workers standing on them. Holding long iron forks, they continuously threw bundles of firewood passed from the shore into the pots to keep the fire burning.

Large pots were still set up on the bonfires on both sides of the river, bubbling with boiling water. The laborers used wooden buckets to scoop out the boiling water and continuously poured it onto the ice mounds, accelerating the cracking of the ice...

In no time, the valley became incredibly hot, as if it had become Lao Tzu's alchemy furnace. The originally biting cold wind was turned into heat waves by the raging fire, constantly blowing heat that eroded the icy hills!

The busy laborers were all covered in sweat, and they took off their cotton-padded coats, baring their shirts. Some even took off their cotton-padded trousers, and though they were naked, they were still full of energy, constantly adding firewood and fuel to keep the high temperature going.

Then one could see the massive ice mound stretching across the riverbed melting at a visible rate, under the scorching heat, the scouring of hot water, and the erosion of the heat waves. The rushing water grew louder and faster as it flowed down the increasingly rounded ice mound.

The ice mounds were growing faster than they were melting. What were once towering mounds, reaching fifteen feet high, gradually became lower and looser. Now the water flowed even stronger and faster, eventually forming a waterfall over ten feet high, shimmering in the morning light…

Moreover, God helps those who help themselves, and today the weather is perfect, with clear skies... Well, in a year of severe drought, cloudy days are a rare treat.

While the command post on the mountaintop was already bathed in sunlight, the valley remained shrouded in the shadows of the mountains... so the sudden rise in temperature was mainly due to human intervention.

In short, everything is moving in a positive direction.

"There's no need for single-point blasting anymore. This gradual melting and slow flood discharge is the safest approach." Liu Daxia stroked his beard and smiled, his old face, which had been tense all night, finally relaxing.

"That would be perfect, achoo..." Su Lu nodded, and sneezed loudly in the sun. The Imperial Guard beside him immediately relayed the order.

Single-point demolition requires the deployment of suicide squads. He won't risk lives unless absolutely necessary.

Before long, Deng Dengying, who was in charge of the warehouse, rushed up to the command platform and reported breathlessly, "Sir, the firewood and lamp oil we brought are almost gone!"

Su Lu replied with a slightly nasal tone, "It's alright. Mentougou is right next door, and nearly half of the coal mines belong to us. I've already sent people to source coal."

"When will you arrive?" Deng Dengying was overjoyed upon hearing this and hurriedly asked.

"We'll be there right now!"

Before Su Lu could finish speaking, cheers erupted at the entrance of the valley. Someone shouted, "The people of Mentougou have come to our aid!"

Everyone hurriedly looked up and saw a large crowd gathered at the entrance of the valley. Men, women, and children from Mentougou were all there, carrying loads of black coal on their shoulders and backs, coming in a grand procession. They all knew that the ice mound was a sword hanging over their heads, capable of destroying their families and lives in an instant.

The people of Mentougou could no longer sit idly by. Following Song Xiaoyi's instructions, they went to the kiln before dawn to fetch coal and transport it over…

The water conservancy project office quickly arranged for migrant workers to step forward and take over the reinforcements carried by the villagers.

Soon, baskets of fine, black coal were added to the fire. The flames dimmed for a moment, then quickly flared up into an even fiercer blaze, noticeably hotter than before!
Fine coal has a much higher calorific value than firewood...

Now the ice mound melted even faster, with water gushing across its surface, seeping into the cracks in the ice and creating ever-deepening grooves.

The massive ice mound that once stretched across the river, inspiring fear and dread, now appeared pitiful, weak, and helpless in the face of this united force. By midday, the ice, which was originally ten feet high, had melted into a low, loose mass, its surface riddled with cracks, threatening to collapse at any moment.

After a short while, a loud crash suddenly came from the bottom of the ice mound—the left end of the mound could no longer hold on and began to collapse. Countless huge blocks of ice, carrying water, crashed onto the river surface with a loud splash, sending up sprays several meters high.

The pent-up water finally found its outlet, cascading down with a deafening roar. The entire ice mound's structure had been destroyed, and under this immense impact, it lost its balance and began to shake violently. The valley echoed with the ear-piercing sounds of ice blocks crushing and breaking, as if the very heavens and earth were trembling…

"Toot toot toot!" A sharp whistle suddenly pierced the sky, and the safety officer gave the evacuation signal without hesitation.

Upon hearing the commotion, the migrant workers on the river sprang into action, using their long wooden forks as walking sticks and quickly retreating back to the banks on either side by stepping on the ropes.

Most of the migrant workers had already evacuated from the valley, leaving only a few to add fuel and firewood. Upon hearing the whistle, they did not panic at all. They immediately stopped working and, following the green flags, orderly withdrew from the work area... According to the construction guidelines they had learned, red flags represented danger, green flags represented safety, and a string of green flags marked the safety passage.

Once the last group of laborers had evacuated the valley and reached the safe zone on high ground, the command post immediately issued the order to fire!

The gunners, already in position at their designated gun emplacements, immediately lit the fuses inserted into the touch holes. Amidst a chilling hissing sound, white smoke billowed through the valley, followed by the earth-shattering roar of cannon fire!
Nearly a hundred cannons unleashed a fan-shaped barrage from all directions, shells whistling as they rained down from the heights, striking the already crumbling and brittle ice mound in succession. Instantly piercing the soft ice, the massive mound was blasted into a sieve amidst a shower of ice shards, spewing water everywhere…

The migrant workers watching from the higher ground had never seen anything like it before, and they were all terrified. Many were so shaken that they fell to the ground with a thud, their ears ringing. Others covered their ears, bent over, and buried their heads in the ground...

Clearly, they were still a long way from being able to serve in the army and fight. After an unknown amount of time, the cannon fire finally stopped, and the gunners blasted out all the shells they had brought. These cast-iron and stone boulders were incredibly heavy, and no one wanted to take them back to camp.

The sound of cannon fire echoed through the valley for a long time, not yet completely dissipating...

Immediately afterwards, another deafening roar shook the entire world! The shattered, riddled, and shattered ice mound could no longer withstand the immense pressure of the floodwaters flowing upstream and collapsed completely!

Huge chunks of ice scattered and flew downstream with the turbid, surging water. The river channel, which had been completely blocked, was instantly and completely cleared!
The long-suppressed river water finally broke free of its restraints, rushing and roaring as it poured down the riverbed!

"Awooo! Awooo! Awooo..."

Cheers instantly echoed throughout the valley. The laborers and soldiers jumped and cheered with joy. Overjoyed and immensely proud, all their exhaustion vanished in that instant…

The officials and guards on the command platform were all beaming with joy, and their eyes looked at Su Lu with even more admiration.

Su Lu remained calm, even showing a hint of barely perceptible tension, and whispered to Liu Daxia beside him, "Lord Liu, the river is still surging quite a bit. Do you think this is a problem?"

"Hehe." Liu Daxia stroked his beard and laughed, his expression calm. "It's alright, it's alright. This kind of momentum is normal for the Peach Blossom Flood. Otherwise, how could it be considered a flood? Besides, the river channel is open now, and once this momentum passes, the water will gradually calm down."

"Okay!" Su Lu trusted Liu Daxia's expertise and felt relieved upon hearing this. He then enthusiastically called out to him, "Let's go back with the peach blossom flood and see if the water tank can store water normally!" With that, he took the lead and quickly went down the mountain.

"Here we go again. How could the water tank I oversaw repairs not work?" Liu Daxia scoffed, taking steady steps down the mountain. He saw Su Lu already mounted his horse and galloping away into the surging floodwaters.

"Sir, shouldn't we hurry up and chase after them?" Lin Wenpei asked hastily.

"We won't pursue him." Liu Daxia said, glancing at the not-so-young Lin Wenpei: "Doctor Lin, besides studying water management, you should also think about how to be an official in your spare time."

"Yes," Lin Wenpei quickly replied.

~~
Su Lu galloped along the banks of the Wuding River, the wind whistling past his ears. Looking at the rushing, muddy waters beside him, and listening to the melodious roar of the spring tide, his heart surged with emotion, filled with boundless pride—

This feeling is so exciting it sends shivers down your spine—who says that if productivity is insufficient, you can only resign yourself to fate?

Today, with their unity and cooperation, they broke through the ice mound, relieved the flood, and temporarily tamed the raging Wuding River!

I will fight against the heavens! I will defy fate and change the destiny of the Ming Dynasty!

Riding high on the spring breeze, Su Lu followed the vanguard of the peach blossom flood, galloping forty miles before finally returning to the Shuigui Dam.

He dismounted and quickly climbed the levee. Looking up, he saw that in just half a day, the ice on the river had completely cracked. Under the powerful impact of the flood, it was on the verge of collapsing completely.

"Open the floodgates! Open the floodgates!" Su Lu immediately shouted the order.

The soldiers guarding the dike immediately opened all thirteen floodgates.

The floodwaters surged in, and the water level at the sluice gate continued to rise. Finally, the turbid floodwaters, carrying remnants of ice, slowly flowed into the water tank through the sluice gate.

The water tank retains its original structure, with the terrain decreasing towards the center and a significant drop at the sluice gate. As a result, the incoming water flows faster and faster, continuously flowing down the depression and quickly reaching its center, where it gathers into a small puddle.

As the water continued to flow in, the puddle gradually expanded and spread...

~~
When Zhu Houzhao arrived after hearing the news and climbed the embankment, he saw Su Lu sitting quietly on the stone slabs of the embankment, staring intently at the Yongding Water Tank, which had already gathered water to form a lake.

Zhu Houzhao, however, was more concerned about Su Lu. He noticed that his good brother looked exhausted and had red eyes, as if he had just been crying.

Zhu Houzhao gestured to Zhang Yong and the others that they did not need to follow, and quietly walked up to his side.

Su Lu then realized that he had arrived and was wearing a dragon robe, so she struggled to get up and pay her respects.

Zhu Houzhao, however, pressed down on his shoulder and sat down beside him, watching the lake water rise slowly with him...

(End of this chapter)