King of Song

Chapter 438 Natural and Man-made Disasters
The Yellow River breached in Daming Mansion, and the Great Song Dynasty was suddenly gloomy.

No matter what, things have happened, and we still have to find a way to deal with them.The first one, of course, is to count the disaster situation and find out the cause, the second is to provide disaster relief as soon as possible, and the last is a very traditional thing, that is-to investigate responsibility.

Nothing in the court is so pure, and there are interests behind it.This is especially true for river governance. Why was the Liuhe Pagoda selected?To put it bluntly, this has something to do with Fu Bi and Wen Yanbo, as well as the people connected with their interests.

In the eyes of the bigwigs in the court, it doesn't matter if the plan is right or wrong, the important thing is that you are not wrong and your own interests are not lost.It is precisely because this situation has intensified that the party disputes in the Great Song Dynasty have gradually become more serious, and it has reached its peak after Shenzong. This is also one of the reasons for the fall of the Great Song Dynasty.

The reason why the Liutahe plan was passed back then is not necessarily so clever, and the ministers may not have carefully discussed politics.A very important reason is that they have a rival, the former prime minister Jia Changchao who sentenced the Daming Mansion to "restore the old way".

For the time being, it doesn't matter which of them has a better plan, because the husbands directly ignored this point.Because the river control plan means political capital, the success of the river control is a great contribution.For Jia Changchao, once his plan is approved and the river is successfully cured, it can become the capital to worship the prime minister again, make a comeback, and be proud of the temple.

How could Wen Yanbo and Fu Bi allow such a situation to happen?So naturally he would not choose his plan.It's just that he couldn't find a more suitable plan for a while, so the opportunistic Liutahe plan was pulled out by the dwarf.However, they did not carefully consider the right and wrong, and did not even consult people who understand the river engineering and water conditions.

The Liutahe plan failed, that was doomed.However, the method of restoring the old road may not be feasible. After all, the old road in Henglong has been seriously silted up. If it is to be completely dredged, it may take decades, and at least a million laborers will be used, and the cost will be even more astonishing.

It is not feasible in terms of feasibility and cost performance.It's just that the Liutahe plan is even more unreliable than him.Although Ouyang Xiu objected at the time, the objection was ultimately invalid.Because the plan had already started to be implemented at that time, if it was stopped at this time, wouldn't it mean that Wen Xianggong and Fu Xianggong had a problem with their vision and made a wrong decision?Moreover, the two of them thought that Ouyang Xiu was speaking for Jia Xianggong, so they naturally objected without hesitation.

The two husbands couldn't save face, and they didn't want to admit their mistakes at all. In the end, they could only stick to the end and make mistakes again and again.When tested in practice, everything is clear.Does it make sense to be right or wrong at this time?It is the people along the river who suffer, and the Song Dynasty is the one who suffers.

This is politics. Harnessing rivers in the Northern Song Dynasty was definitely not a technical issue, nor an engineering issue, but a political issue.

This time is no exception.

Wang Anshi presided over the plan for the second year of Xining, so there were many impeachments against him in the court.Of course, it was the emperor Zhao Xu who agreed to take the lead. After all, Wang Anshi was not the prime minister at the time, so he couldn't blame him.

As for the local officials of the Daming Mansion at the Dahe Breach, although there was impeachment, most of them did so quietly, at most it was just a taste, and they didn't go too deep.Because it was none other than the former Prime Minister and Hebei Road Xuanfu envoy Han Qi who sentenced the Daming Mansion.

It wouldn't be surprising if it was just the former prime minister, but Han Qi is quite special.

Han Qi, courtesy name Zhigui, self-named Gansou, was born in Anyang, Xiangzhou, a Jinshi in the fifth year of Tiansheng, a veteran of the three dynasties, and served as prime minister for decades.Only Fu Bi and Wen Yanbo can be compared with them in the court. Although Ouyang Xiu is famous, his official position and political achievements are inferior, and the qualifications of others are relatively inferior.

Now, although he left Bianjing, he was sentenced to Daming Mansion.You must know that Daming Mansion is the largest and most important city on Hebei Road.At the same time, he also served as the Xuanfu Envoy of Hebei Road.As mentioned above, the Xuan Fu envoy is a very important official position, representing the emperor, and has great power in military and political affairs.

The two most important Xuanfu envoys in the Song Dynasty were Shaanxi Road and Hebei Road, one against Xixia and the other against Liao.Relatively speaking, the Liao Kingdom was the number one opponent of the Great Song Dynasty, and it was a thorn in its heels. , is more important.Emperor Zhao Xu's ability to trust Hebei Road to Han Qi shows his trust in him.

Furthermore, due to the problems of the Yellow River breach and diversion, in recent years, Hebei Road has been corrupted and is a complete mess.Han Qi was able to cook, and gradually recovered, which also showed his ability.

In addition, Han Qi has another special feature, which was told by Di Qing to Lin Zhao.

Zhao Zongshi was able to become the prince and inherit the big position, Han Qi contributed a lot, and he can be said to be a minister of the dragon.Back then, Runan King Zhao Yunrang had a good personal relationship with Han Qi, so Han Qi naturally wanted to contribute to his family, Thirteen Lang.In Renzong's later years, Han Qi repeatedly advised Renzong to establish a prince, and Zhao Zongshi was the best candidate for the prince at that time.

When Zhao Zongshi succeeded to the throne, the Queen Mother Cao had a great influence, and holding the jade seal in her hand, she could listen to politics behind the curtain.It was Han Qi who coerced and lured Zhao Zongshi to seize power from Empress Dowager Cao.It has to be said that if Zhao Zongshi was unfilial to Empress Dowager Cao, Han Qi would be somewhat disobedient.

From this point of view, Han Qi is not a good person, at least he is Lin Zhao's enemy.

Outsiders may not know these merits of Han Xianggong, but Zhao Xu definitely knows, and naturally he will not treat his own meritorious officials lightly.The ministers of the DPRK and China dare not impeach Han Xianggong too much because of his reputation, and Zhao Xu also ignores it on purpose, and at the same time does not believe that Han Qi made a mistake in the embankment.

When Han Qi reported the disaster on Hebei Road, he also explained the reason for the breach.It was because the Ergu River was silted up and the flood discharge function was limited. The embankment near Daming Mansion was built two years ago, and it was not very strong. After a long period of heavy rain, it collapsed after being soaked.In addition, the terrain in the north is more terrain, so the river flows northward, and there is a breach.

Such an explanation seems reasonable, but it is a natural disaster rather than a man-made disaster.In addition, Han Xianggong personally inspected and strengthened the embankment, but in the end there was nothing he could do, and it seemed that he could not be blamed.

Natural disasters are natural disasters!Flooding in the Yellow River has become commonplace, so the kings and ministers of the Song Dynasty had to acquiesce to this fact.

Only in this way, the river control plan failed, how to solve the flood of the Yellow River?

Naturally, it is impossible to go north all the time. Tangbo is the only barrier. The national defense of the Song Dynasty is really worrying.Therefore, the Yellow River must try its best to resume its eastward flow. This is the consensus of the ministers of the Manchu Dynasty, and river governance must not be given up.

Just what to do?Zhao Xu was a little helpless.

After thinking about it, Zhao Xu issued an order to solicit river control plans from the whole country.He has clearly realized that the Yellow River flood has completely threatened the life and death of the Song Dynasty.Therefore, this time, it must be solved anyway, as an engineering problem, not a political problem.

Zhao Xu has made up his mind that river governance must no longer be a means for ministers to fight for power and profit.He wants to preside over it himself, truly devote himself to governing the Yellow River.

Immediately, the edict to solicit river control plans was issued. Both the government and the people can propose river control plans. If they have been adopted and feasible to implement, they will be rewarded heavily.When many huge rewards such as tens of thousands of mu of fertile land, 30 yuan, promotion and title were announced, the Song Dynasty boiled.For a while, many people gathered on the bank of the Yellow River to "survey", or wrote a letter to propose a plan, hoping to be selected.

Seeing such a situation, Lin Zhao laughed and said, "Is this a joke? It seems that there must be an audition first!"

Li Chengdao: "There are not a few people who are so opportunistic. Most of them are aiming at rewards, making up for it. As for the plan, how many people can come up with it? Even if they come up with it, most of them are nonsense nonsense!"

Di Qing smiled and said: "That's all, the key is who's plan will be chosen in the end? At that time, the princes in the court will inevitably fight with each other, and they will not give in. It is true that Zhao Xu wants to control the river, but he just wants pure river control. It's not easy."

"However, it is a good thing that he has this kind of heart. After all, the flood in the Yellow River is quite serious and needs to be solved urgently!" Lin Zhao heard the news. Tens of thousands of people were killed and injured during the breach, and the number of damaged houses and land was astonishing. They really worked hard, and some moved their hearts of compassion.

Di Qing asked softly, "Is your son also interested in submitting a letter to participate?" Lin Zhao asked them to collect information about the Yellow River earlier, and he guessed it.

Lin Zhao nodded and said, "That's right, after all, river governance is good for the Song Dynasty and the common people. And..."

"Moreover, it's a good opportunity to win the hearts of the people!" Di Qing took it very seriously. The flood in the Yellow River was a serious problem in Song's confidant.It must be widely praised, and the people on both sides of the Yellow River must be grateful.

"Hey!" Lin Zhao smiled lightly. He did have some considerations in this regard, so it was naturally best to count in one fell swoop.

Di Qing said: "More than that, if you can really manage the river, you can also take this opportunity to develop your local strength."

Jiang Leiting said worriedly: "It's just that it's not so easy to control the river. We need to have a proper plan. If so, the embankment is not strong enough, and something will happen sooner or later."

Lin Zhao vowed: "I can solve the problem of the river embankment, and I guarantee that the dam will be solid and will not break easily."

"Is it true?"

Lin Zhao said with a smile: "We are already experimenting, and there will be results in the near future. However, no matter how strong the embankment is, if the river cannot flow smoothly, there will be problems sooner or later. This is the biggest problem."

Di Qing said: "This, I think Uncle Ouyang Yong will think about it, I will try my best to recruit water workers to advise you."

"The most important thing is to collect data on the water regime. It will be convincing at that time. Otherwise, how can the princes in the court support it? We don't even have a chance to get involved!" Lin Zhao intends to speak with facts, just like bidding, and win in one fell swoop. The big project of harnessing the Yellow River.It may seem like a thankless task, but it actually has unlimited potential benefits!
But Di Qing said earnestly: "Young Master, besides materials and plans, people should also consider human issues in river governance. When a flood is just a natural disaster? The first consideration should be man-made disasters!"

(End of this chapter)