The Prosperous Era of Longwan

"Shandai, come and have a look, this is an urgent letter from Shandong."

Wei Guangde had just stepped into Zhang Juzheng's office, and before he had time to salute, he felt a flash in front of his eyes, and Zhang Juzheng had already rushed to him and handed him a memorial.

"Shandong, what happened there?"

Seeing Zhang Juzheng's hurried and angry look, Wei Guangde asked while reaching out to take it.

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"The siltation of the Yellow River has affected the navigation of the canal, and many canal ships have been stranded as a result."

Zhang Juzheng directly told Wei Guangde the main content of the memorial, and Wei Guangde was immediately shocked.

The navigation of the Grand Canal is really of great importance. It not only affects the food rations of nearly one million people in the capital, but also the food and clothing of hundreds of thousands of soldiers on the border. How can he not care about it?

So, he immediately lowered his head and flipped through the memorial in his hand, not even bothering to find a place to sit down.

The memorial was sent by the Governor's Office of the Jining River, because they were in charge of the river.

Since the Yuan Dynasty straightened the Grand Canal of the Sui and Tang Dynasties, Jining has gradually become an important town along the canal.

Especially during the Ming and Qing Dynasties, a special government office appeared in Jining - the River Governor's Office. As the highest administrative agency managing the entire Grand Canal, it has continued for more than 500 years.

Such an important administrative agency is located in Jining, which is inseparable from the special local terrain.

Jining is located in the central area of ​​the Huitong section of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal. It is located in the Shandong hills and is the highest altitude area of ​​the entire Grand Canal, becoming an unavoidable obstacle for the Grand Canal.

Nanwang Town in the north of Jining City has an altitude of 39 meters, which is 30 meters higher than Linqing in the north and Peixian in the south. It is known as the "water ridge" of the canal.

In the Yuan Dynasty, due to the difficulty of water supply, this section of the river suffered from "embolism".

Ships traveling from south to north will run aground if they are not careful when passing through this place. In drought, there is "river without water".

In the early Ming Dynasty, Song Li, the Minister of Works, adopted the suggestion of Bai Ying, a local farmer and hydraulic engineer, and adopted two major strategies to solve this problem.

The first major strategy is to "draw water from the Wen River to transport and use water to sail".

Daicun Dam is located on the Dawen River north of Nanwang Hub. The water volume of this river is relatively abundant and the altitude is higher than that of Nanwang Hub. So a dam was built here to block the water flow, and then a Xiaowen River was excavated to divert part of the water of the Dawen River to the Nanwang Hub.

Therefore, Daicun Dam is also called the "heart" of the canal, providing abundant water for the highest altitude section of the Grand Canal.

In addition, Song Li and Bai Ying also adopted the second major strategy of "digging various springs and repairing water tanks", diverting the surrounding springs into the Xiaowen River, further supplementing the water source of the canal.

Using natural lakes and depressions, three large storage pools, also called "water tanks", were built around the Nanwang Hub to store water during the flood season and replenish water to the Grand Canal during the dry season.

In order to keep the Grand Canal unobstructed, the Ming Dynasty thought of countless ways in the early and middle periods, the most important of which was to inject water into the canal.

"Huai'an is the place where the Grand Canal, the Yellow River and the Huai River meet. If the Yellow River floods, the Yellow River will backflow, causing the Huai River and the Grand Canal to silt up, and the water transport will be blocked. This stubborn disease can never be cured.

Yellow River."

Wei Guangde couldn't help but put down the memorial and sighed.

In recent years, the problems of the Yellow River and the Grand Canal have always been the most pressing affairs of the Ming Dynasty court, but no matter how much financial resources are invested, they will always recur.

The Jia Canal, in essence, wants to bypass the Yellow River to keep the canal shipping unobstructed.

But the Yellow River is there, and it can never be bypassed.

Also because of the Yellow River, the Grand Canal has always been affected by it year after year.

"Brother Uncle, if we want to keep the grain, we can choose to give up the canal and go by sea.

However, the Yellow River flood is always an unsolvable problem."

Wei Guangde has no way to solve the Yellow River problem, and there is no Yellow River flood in the future, so there is no way to learn from it.

But the canal can avoid the Yellow River by sea, but the people on both sides of the Yellow River cannot.

The siltation of the Yellow River actually means that at some point in the future, once the Yellow River floods, it may endanger the fields on both sides of the Yellow River and the countless people living here.

This is what Zhang Juzheng and Wei Guangde are most worried about. As for the blockage of the canal, in fact, the two of them don't take it to heart.

They all have backup means, so they are naturally confident.

This year, some grain ships have directly entered the sea through the Yangtze River, bypassed Shandong along the coastline and went straight to Tianjin to transport grain to the capital.

Although there are certain losses, it is still within an acceptable range.

However, sea transportation is ultimately a substitute. Neither Zhang Juzheng nor Wei Guangde will publicly propose that sea transportation replace river transportation.

The Yellow River disaster has always been an important factor affecting the stability of the court.

The song "The stone man with one eye, stirring up the Yellow River and causing the world to rebel" originated in the late Yuan Dynasty, when the Yellow River frequently flooded and the Yuan Dynasty government organized migrant workers to dredge the Yellow River.

Later, during the dredging process, the migrant workers dug out a one-eyed stone man in the Yellow River, which was regarded as an ominous sign, causing public anxiety and discussion.

The final outcome was the overthrow of the Yuan Dynasty and the establishment of the Ming Dynasty.

With such a pearl in front of them, the two cabinet leaders had no choice but to treat it with caution.

"Who can govern the Yellow River?"

Wei Guangde suddenly said abruptly.

"Who?"

Zhang Juzheng asked subconsciously.

Wei Guangde and Zhang Juzheng looked at each other, both speechless.

Wei Guangde picked up the memorial again and looked through the comments of the Ministry of Works, but soon shook his head.

It was no surprise that the Ministry of Works recommended dredging.

This is a tried-and-tested solution for all Yellow River blockages. If the blockage is blocked, clear it.

However, Wei Guangde knows that if it is cleared today and blocked again next year, the result will be not only a waste of people but also a loss of money.

"This matter has to be dealt with by the Ministry of Industry."

Zhang Juzheng looked at Wei Guangde and said.

Facing Zhang Juzheng's words, Wei Guangde was speechless.

The Ministry of Industry is in charge of this, but Zhu Heng needs to think of a solution.

"I'll go to the Ministry of Industry in a while and discuss with them to see who can solve the Yellow River problem on their own."

Wei Guangde could only answer.

“I remember that during the reign of Emperor Sejong, Zhu Heng once regulated the Yellow River and opened a new canal. I remember that there was also sediment blockage at that time, and the Ministry of Industry had different opinions on dredging.

Shandai, do you still remember who was working with Zhu Shangshu on water control at that time? "

Zhang Juzheng asked casually as he fell into memories.

Of course Wei Guangde remembered it, otherwise his superior memory would have been in vain.

It's just that he didn't answer the call. How could he answer the call?

If you really go on to say it, wouldn't it mean that Zhu Heng's opinion was wrong and things were done wrong.

I remember that at that time, because Zhu Heng and Pan Jixun had different political opinions, the two were very unhappy, and the lawsuit was brought to the capital.

At that time, Wei Guangde naturally stood firmly on Zhu Heng's side. They were fellow countrymen.

As for Pan Jixun, that's him.

Wei Guangde lowered his head and thought. At first, he was just pretending not to look directly into Zhang Juzheng's eyes, but then he really started to think.

In fact, the opinions of the two people are not necessarily very wise.

One talked about dredging, and the other talked about digging new rivers. In the end, a compromise was reached, which involved digging new rivers and dredging them again.

Well, that matter is over, and Wei Guangde doesn’t want to continue.

However, Zhu Heng was definitely unable to control the Yellow River.

As for Jiang Zhi, as far as Wei Guangde knows, there seems to be no good solution. Most of them are treating headaches and treating pains.

"Did you call Pan Jixun?"

Suddenly, Zhang Juzheng seemed to remember and asked Wei Guangde.

"It seems so."

Wei Guangde was not sure whether Zhang Juzheng had already made up his mind to come to the Ministry of Works and wanted to push him out to intervene in the affairs of the Ministry of Works.

However, the Ministry of Industry is really helpless about the Yellow River and it seems difficult to stop it.

The Yellow River is important, but no matter what happens, you will still think about yourself and be suspicious of your opponents.

Wei Guangde had actually remembered that during the Longqing period, Pan Jixun conscripted more than 50,000 people into labor service and spent 92,000 taels of money to control floods. However, soon after, he was hit by a river survey because of an accident while floating a canal boat. Comply with impeachment and dismissal from office.

Could it be that Pan Jixun followed Zhang Juzheng's path and wanted to resurrect him?

At this time, Wei Guangde began to think of ways to solve the Yellow River floods, and became suspicious of Zhang Juzheng and Pan Jixun.

"Shandai might as well go to the Ministry of Industry and ask if Pan Jixun can really control floods."

Zhang Juzheng said again.

Wei Guangde nodded slightly. Now the cabinet minister Lu Tiaoyang is recuperating at home, and his official memorial has been left behind.

Since there were still three cabinet ministers in name, Zhang Juzheng's previous memorial requesting for additional cabinet ministers was also kept in the palace.

After all, adding more cabinet ministers is not a trivial matter, it is related to the stability of foreign dynasties and imperial power.

After coming out of Zhang Juzheng's duty room, Wei Guangde went back to his own duty room first and briefly looked through the memorials on the desk. They were all not important and needed to be dealt with immediately.

So, after putting down the memorial, Wei Guangde left the cabinet directly and went to the Yamen of the Ministry of Industry.

The six departments of the Ming Dynasty, except for the Department of Punishment, were all located outside the imperial city, so the distance was not far.

Even the farthest Xingbu Yamen is actually only two streets away.

Wei Guangde arrived at the Ministry of Industry and was quickly connected to the Shangshu's room.

He didn't go to the lobby of the Ministry of Industry. After all, Wei Guangde thought it would be better to say some things in private.

He knew that the relationship between Zhu Heng and Pan Jixun was very bad because of what happened back then.

"Shandai, you're here for the memorial in Shandong, ahem."

After entering the door, Wei Guangde raised his hands and said nothing before Zhu Heng spoke.

"Yes, Brother Shinan, the floods in the Yellow River are causing serious problems. I also know that it is very difficult to deal with. The imperial court has been unable to solve the problem since the founding of the People's Republic of China. However, the issue of siltation and siltation cannot be taken lightly."

Wei Guangde immediately answered.

"How could I not know that today's water transportation is blocked, but tomorrow's flood will flood thousands of miles, alas."

Zhu Heng sighed and said, "If we just protect the canal, it is still within human power. But this time it is not just the canal. If the siltation of the Yellow River continues, I am afraid that there will be another serious problem of diversion of the Yellow River."

“Brother Shinan, doesn’t the Ministry of Industry do anything about the sediment blockage of the Yellow River?

As far as I know, the Yellow River carries a large amount of sediment and settles in the middle and final sections every year. This is also the reason why the Yellow River encounters danger all year round. "

Wei Guangde asked seriously.

"Shandai, the Ministry of Industry really has no good solution to the problem of sediment in the Yellow River."

Suddenly, Jiang Zhi's voice came from behind.

He also heard that Wei Guangde was coming, so he came here from his own room.

When Wei Guangde heard this, he turned around and cupped his hands at him as a salute.

“In the sixth year of Hongzhi, the Yellow River broke its banks in Zhangqiu and entered the sea from Wenshui River. Water transportation was blocked. The imperial court sent Master Liu Daxia to control the water. But in the end, they only built a dam on the north bank of the Yellow River to prevent the Yellow River from flowing northward and did not affect the security of the capital.

But because of this, the Jianghuai area has been invaded by the Yellow River, which directly aims to seize the Huaihe River and enter the sea.

Now the Huai River is almost blocked, and I am afraid that it is not far away from being diverted again. "

Jiang Zhi sighed.

"Does that mean that the court can only prepare for this?"

When Wei Guangde thought about changing the course of the Yellow River, he felt his scalp numb, because it was difficult to determine the new entrance to the sea and the place where it flowed through.

It can be said that new river channels may break out anywhere on the south bank of the river, and the people on the south bank are already in a precarious situation.

"Is it possible to dig a new river near the siltation area? If nothing can be done, dig out the river bank and let the Yellow River water flow into the sea from the new channel. At least the flood can be controlled."

At this time, Wei Guangde could only refer to the practices of the flood discharge area in the past, and thought of preparing a new river to dig embankments to release floods when the water level of the Yellow River surged and there was a risk of dam failure.

Since it is a blockage, just bypass the blockage area.

"It's difficult. The Yellow River is thousands of miles long and there are dangers everywhere. It's impossible to cover everything."

Zhu Heng shook his head and said.

"And time waits for no one. Even if we really want to dig a new river, based on what we know now, it will take several years. If there is no time, the court cannot afford it.

Even now, the excavation of the Jia Canal has involved most of the energy of the Ministry of Works. "

Jiang Zhi also interjected at this time.

“Don’t the officials from the Ministry of Industry have any good ideas?”

Wei Guangde looked at the two of them and asked seriously, "If this is true, Mr. Zhang Ge recommended someone before. If the Ministry of Industry is really unable to do so, it would be better to throw this hot potato away."

"who?"

Zhu Heng did not consider throwing a hot potato, but wanted to know who Zhang Juzheng recommended.

Wei Guangde glanced at Zhu Heng and whispered: "Pan Jixun."

"He."

Zhu Heng was not angry, he shook his head and said: "He only knows how to dredge, dredge, and then dredge. But you can clear a section, but you cannot clean the entire Yellow River. In the end, it is just a waste of people and money."

Zhu Heng was very disdainful because he knew Pan Jixun's little ability.

In fact, later generations' story about Pan Jixun's use of "water beaming and sand attack" method to clear the sediment blockage of the Yellow River is too mythical.

The water-beaming sand attack method increases the flow rate by narrowing the river bed cross-section, and attempts to use the power of the water flow to wash away the sediment at the bottom of the river bed to achieve the purpose of dredging and preventing floods. However, this method does not fundamentally solve the sediment blockage of the Yellow River. problem.

The theoretical basis of the water-beaming sand attack method is to increase the sand-carrying capacity of the water flow by increasing the water flow velocity, thereby reducing the sedimentation of sediment on the river bed.

Although this method can flush the river bed and reduce siltation to a certain extent, due to the extremely high sediment content of the Yellow River, the sediment in the water flow cannot be completely washed away, which will eventually cause the river bed to continue to rise.

Historically, the frequent diversions and breaches of the Yellow River were directly related to sedimentation.

The sediment content of the Yellow River is too high. Even if the flow rate is increased by beaming water to attack sand, all the sediment cannot be washed away.

The problem of diversion and breaching of the Yellow River is not only a problem of sedimentation, but also related to various factors such as the river's topography and climate.

Therefore, in fact, although Pan Jixun's flood control and use of water beams to attack sand were effective, the Yellow River floods were not eradicated at all, which also paved the way for his repeated impeachment.

Yes, soon after each flood control was completed, floods in the Yellow River recurred. As a flood control person, you would naturally be held accountable by the court and the censor.