The flood season in the Yangtze River Basin is from late June to September, which is from late May to August according to the calendar of this era.
Millet is now planted in most areas of the Chengdu Plain, and begins to mature in August. Now in mid-July, the millet has already formed ears and filled with grain, and a good harvest can be expected.
The farmers had just suffered a flood last year and had barely managed to survive the year relying on weeds, leaves and moldy grains. Now they were watching the millet mature.
There was no heavy rain in June, and there was no heavy rain in July. The harvest would be ready in half a month, so why is the sky cloudy now
At this time, the farmer still had a hope.
Although the sky is cloudy, the rainstorm may end in a few days and it will clear up soon, and maybe even the harvest will not be delayed.
But Li Bing knew that the flood was a fact and there was no chance of luck.
People in later generations know that all water veins are a whole. If there is heavy rain in the upper reaches, the lower reaches will encounter flood peaks even on sunny days.
The most difficult thing about water management at this time is that people cannot sort out all the water veins of a river, and can only treat headaches with head pains and foot pains with foot pains. Only after the whole of China is unified, the central dynasty will be able to send people to explore the waters and record the upstream and downstream tributaries of the river on the map.
Every ancient water map contains countless money, time, sweat, and even human lives, because those water maps were all drawn by foot in the wild mountains and ridges where few people go, spending several years, dozens of years, or even generations.
In the Warring States Period, the upstream and downstream of a river might belong to different countries. The Spring and Autumn Annals once described a story in which two countries had different interests when building a dam, so they left it unfinished, and ended up being submerged when a flood hit.
During the Warring States Period, all the countries wanted to tear down each other's dikes, so overall water control was out of the question.
Fortunately, the grain-producing area that Li Bing needed to protect - the Chengdu Plain - was not deeply affected by the floods in the main stream of the Yangtze River, so he did not have to look at the face of the State of Chu.
The Chengdu Plain belongs to the Min and Tuo Rivers in the Yangtze River Basin, and the devastating floods it encountered mainly came from the Min River, Tuo River, Dadu River, and Qingyi River. These tributaries happened to be under the control of Shu County, which gave Li Bing the conditions to control the water.
It was too early to deal with the flood control. Li Bing had just arrived, and the governor who had left Shu County and returned to Qin had already done his best to appease the people of Shu and teach them how to farm. Of course, he could not be counted on to explore the waters. Li Bing should have been at a loss at this moment.
Over thousands of years, Sichuan's hydrological conditions have undergone dramatic changes, but fortunately, the conclusion that "the devastating floods in the Chengdu Plain mainly come from the Mintuo River system" is still correct.
Therefore, Zhu Xiang suggested to Li Bing that he send people to observe the rainfall conditions at the confluence of the upstream tributaries of several major rivers.
More than a dozen days ago, observation stations informed Chengdu that heavy rains had occurred in the tributaries of several rivers. In some places, the rainfall had even continued for seven or eight days, causing mountain torrents.
Even though there has been no rainfall in the Chengdu Plain, the water levels of several rivers surrounding Chengdu have been rising steadily. Once heavy rains begin to fall in Chengdu, the water will probably overflow the dikes in a short time.
The most important city in Shu County was Chengdu. Chengdu had been a large city very early. After the Qin State established Shu County, the county governor's office was located in Chengdu.
Zhang Yi, Sima Cuo and others expanded and renovated Chengdu City in imitation of Xianyang City. The powerful people of Shu County and almost all the high-ranking officials sent by Qin State lived in Chengdu City.
Li Bing's greatest wish was to keep the dam from being destroyed, and at the very least, he had to keep the city of Chengdu.
After Li Mu arrived in Shu County, with the support and cooperation of Li Bing, he quickly took over the defense of the entire Shu County. Some Qin generals who were reluctant to obey Li Mu, a "Zhao man", lent the royal decree to Li Mu. Li Mu mercilessly executed them all and did not listen to the words "I am from XX family".
Shu County is isolated, and as long as Li Mu and Li Bing have no gaps with each other and their military and political power are unified, they can almost cover the sky with one hand.
In addition to conscripting the people, the army has also been responsible for large-scale corvée since ancient times. In addition to guarding against the Chu army, Li Mu pulled almost all the soldiers who could be mobilized to the dams that needed to be defended and set up camp.
They had already started reinforcing and raising the embankment, and the logs and sandbags used to fill the embankment were ready.
Zhu Xiang deliberately placed the soldiers recruited from Shu County in the most important position, and told them tirelessly that guarding the dike was guarding their homes. Once this dike was flooded, Shu County would suffer another overall reduction in grain production this year, and their families would starve to death.
While evacuating the elderly, the young, the sick and the weak along the route, Zhu Xiang also made propaganda to the people along the way, asking them to help build the dam.
An official was puzzled: "Lord Changping, wouldn't it be fine if we just levy corvée labor?"
Zhu Xiang's words concealed cruelty: "Just mention conscription and labor service, they will not die for the embankment."
Even if someone knew Ying Xiaozheng's identity, he was young, and Zhu Xiang was the most influential person in Shu County. Although he did not hold a specific position, Li Mu and Li Bing, the top military and political leaders of Shu County, were willing to listen to him, and other officials naturally cooperated.
After a period of publicity, Zhu Xiang began to recruit corvée laborers on a "voluntary" basis. He changed the practice of corvée laborers bringing their own dry food and instead collected large amounts of grain from wealthy merchants as food for the laborers.
Zhu Xiang did not come in person. He sent the eloquent students of the Xianyang Academy to lobby the wealthy merchants and tyrants in various places. If the dams could not be saved, the farmers would lose their homes and lives, and the rich would also lose their fields and industries. Now they only paid some food, but when they went bankrupt, it might be more painful than death.
Moreover, the Qin State sent Changping Jun to Shu County to guide farming in order to turn Shu County into a granary for attacking Chu. Even if Shu County had no harvest, when it was time to attack Chu, the King of Qin would still order troops to go out, and Shu County would have to provide food, grass and weapons. Civilians died of starvation and disease in two consecutive years of floods, and Shu County could not collect enough taxes, so who would the King of Qin target
Could it be that the powerful people in Shu would expect the King of Qin to be soft-hearted towards them and would rather miss the opportunity to attack Chu than find an excuse to raid their homes
In fact, the King of Qin certainly had no intention of forcing the powerful to revolt, but he was too cruel. Once the students of the Xianyang Academy threatened, the rich people in Chengdu who thought that resisting the flood had nothing to do with them immediately donated generously.
Although Li Bing cooperated with Zhu Xiang, he was frightened by Zhu Xiang and said, "You even dare to make up stories about the emperor!"
Zhu Xiang said: "As long as good things can be done, the king will not care about these trivial matters."
If it is not done well, then we will settle the score and execute them together in the autumn, Zhu Xiang added in his mind.
Li Mu blindly believed in Zhu Xiang and did not take Zhu Xiang's fabrication of Qin Wang and falsification of national affairs seriously.
He also felt that the King of Qin would surely not be able to hold back and would attack the State of Chu once more before his death, so that he could die happier.
After Ying Xiaozheng learned about this, he rolled over on the bamboo bed with his head in his hands.
He was really considering whether he should force his way into the palace and become the King of Qin at the tender age of less than ten. Although it was impossible.
Uncle, please don't commit suicide before Zheng'er becomes the King of Qin!
Some powerful people also offered to help. Zhu Xiang took note of all of them and would actively cooperate with them in the future.
He had a lot of ideas in his mind that would benefit these people, such as bamboo paper that would soon become a tribute.
Everyone in the world knew that Lord Changping Zhu Xiang cared about the common people and had first-rate farming skills. But no one knew that if he wanted to do business, he would immediately become a wealthy man.
To quickly promote new farming techniques, the support of local powerful people in Shu County is indispensable. Zhu Xiang believes that the practice of giving a sweet date after a slap must be universal in all times.
Everything is ready, now it all depends on what God will do.
The rain finally started to fall. The raindrops connected into lines, which then formed a rain curtain. Finally, the rain curtain became thicker and thicker, until it became a curtain, covering the entire sky and earth.
The calmly rising river water gradually became turbid, and the torrent, driven by the strong wind, was like a sharp blade, constantly cutting the embankments on both sides.
Judging from the speed of the rising water, it is obvious that the rain in the upstream tributaries has not stopped.
Heavy rains hit both upstream and downstream, and the worst situation that Zhu Xiang and others had expected occurred.
Li Bing, wearing a straw raincoat, came to the dam in person and looked down at the flood at his feet with a terrified expression.
Can he really save this most critical dam
But if this dam could not be saved, Li Bing would send an order to the dam where Li Mu was, to break the dam and divert the flood to protect Chengdu.
If this were the case, the farmers in Shu County would have to eat weeds and tree bark for another year.
Zhu Xiang returned to Chengdu. Li Bing and Li Mu did not allow him to go to the dam, fearing that something might happen to him. Besides, he was the only relative of Ying Xiaozheng.
Zhu Xiang held Ying Xiaozheng in his arms and looked up at the heavy rain outside the door.
"Uncle, can the dam be saved?" Before the rain, Ying Xiaozheng went to the dam.
The water level on the dam indicated that the river was rising every day. Even though the water was not turbulent, Ying Xiaozheng had a sense of urgency that danger was approaching.
This was a sense of danger of an approaching natural disaster that he had never felt in his dreams.
"I don't know." Zhu Xiang said.
Ying Xiaozheng released Zhu Xiang's neck: "Uncle, if you want to go to the dam, go ahead. Auntie will take care of me."
The aunt that Ying Xiaozheng mentioned was Li Bing's wife. Li Bing brought his whole family to Shu County.
Zhu Xiang said: "It's useless for me to go."
Ying Xiaozheng hugged Zhu Xiang's neck again, then released it again, and said, "Even if it's useless, uncle still wants to go, right? Uncle, go ahead. I will work with aunt to control the city and prevent panic."
Zhu Xiang looked down at the child in her arms.
Ying Xiaozheng opened his round eyes and looked at his uncle.
Zhu Xiang sighed deeply, patted Ying Xiaozheng's head, and said, "Uncle knows that you really have supernatural powers, but the responsibility of guarding the city gate is too heavy, and you are still young."
Ying Xiaozheng said: "Zheng'er may be young, but he dares to kill people. Uncle, do you dare?"
Zhu Xiang smiled bitterly: "I dare not kill people with my own hands, but I dare to order others. Don't underestimate my uncle."
Ying Xiaozheng didn't believe it at first, but within half a day, he believed it.
As Zhu Xiang had expected, riots soon broke out in Chengdu.
Some people said that the dam that Li Mu went to guard should be destroyed immediately, so as to save the city of Chengdu and incite the residents of the city to flock to the county governor's mansion.
Zhu Xiang and the officials who stayed in Chengdu immediately appeared at the scene. Without listening to the man's explanation, all the rioters, regardless of gender or age, were executed. The blood flowed into the rain, like a winding river of blood.
The official read aloud the Qin Law in the sound of rain. Qin soldiers wearing straw raincoats stood behind him, as dark as the dark clouds in the sky.
"Shu has been Shu County for many years. Don't you realize that you have become Qin people?" Zhu Xiang said coldly, "It is the duty of the county governor to protect the dam. The county governor has issued an order. Those who disobey the order will be killed."
Zhu Xiang ordered the confiscation of the property of the killed people, and drove their families out of Chengdu to fend for themselves. The grain and cloth were sent to the dike, and the remaining financial resources were recorded and stored for future rewards.
Zhu Xiang didn't care at all whether such punishment would lead to revenge from the powerful. Such a swift and decisive measure made the powerful have a new understanding of this famous scholar who was famous for his "kindness".
The city of Chengdu fell silent for a short time, and every household stayed indoors.
Ying Xiaozheng sat on the threshold waiting for Zhu Xiang to come back. After Zhu Xiang came home, he washed off the bloody smell before coming to see Ying Xiaozheng.
Ying Xiaozheng asked: "My uncle hates to see others die, saying that everyone's life is the most precious thing. Wouldn't you be afraid and sad when you see someone die?"
Zhu Xiang touched Ying Xiaozheng's head and said, "When my uncle was in Handan, he saw many farmers starving to death or dying of exhaustion. When he went to Changping, many Zhao people died of injuries and diseases every day. When he entered Qin and Shu, he often saw corpses on the roadside."
Ying Xiaozheng shook his head vigorously, not being misled by Zhu Xiang: "You didn't order the killing! You could have let me do these things, or let the officials do them directly. Why did my uncle insist on doing it himself?!"
Zhu Xiang stroked Ying Xiaozheng's head again and was silent for a long time.
After Ying Xiaozheng's persistent questioning, Zhu Xiang said, "Whether I was at the scene or not, I gave the order to kill and confiscate the property. As the person with the highest status in Chengdu, I can make them obey more easily if I go to the scene, so I won't hide behind others just for a false sense of security."
On the dike, Li Mu and Li Bing received the supplies sent by Zhu Xiang one after another. They also learned that Zhu Xiang deliberately relaxed the guards in the city, causing riots in the city, and then killing one person to warn the rest.
"Changping Jun is a relative of the Qin royal family. The King of Qin loves him deeply and favors him more than anyone else. The relationships in Chengdu are complicated. There are powerful people and people who rely on the great nobles in Xianyang. Only when Changping Jun personally orders the killing and confiscation of property in front of everyone can he intimidate them. Because they know that they are not worth mentioning in front of Changping Jun."
"Unless they want to lure the Qin army into Shu again, they can only obey the orders of Lord Changping."
When the Qin officials guarding the dikes heard the news, they all knew the truth.
As long as Chengdu City is not in chaos, they only need to guard the embankment without any worries.
The heavy rain was still pouring down, and the sky seemed to have cracked open a big hole. What was falling was no longer rain, but the Tianhe Waterfall.
Li Bing touched his face and was about to say something encouraging when he heard the sound of crying behind him.
He turned around and saw a servant kneeling in the mud, howling and cursing the heaven for not giving him a chance to live.
Li Bing could not fully understand the Shu accent, so someone next to him translated for him.
In order to save food, the servant's mother quietly left home one night and no one knew where she went.
The servant's father ate wild grass day and night, and worked as a carpenter by moonlight at night to supplement the family income. He died of exhaustion one morning.
Before the laborer left home, his wife and children were still looking forward to a good harvest this year so that they could eat real food, but the heavy rain and surging floods were about to destroy everything.
He saw another crack in the dam and his spirit collapsed and he could no longer hold on.
After a laborer suffered a mental breakdown, people on the embankment began to cry and curse the sky.
Li Bing clenched his fists and said to the guard beside him: "Come with me to move the soil."
He did not whip the laborer. Instead, he and the servant lifted the straw basket filled with soil that the laborer had thrown on the ground and walked towards the crack in the dam.
Everyone on the dam knew that Li Bing was the county magistrate.
When Li Bing took action, the crying on the dam was still there, but the laborers all started to move. The laborer who had initially collapsed also got up from the ground, picked up a piece of wood and rushed towards the crack.
The laborers and soldiers who were good at swimming and had ropes tied to their bodies jumped into the crack, holding hands to slow down the water flow so that the wooden stakes could be driven into the mud.
The cracks finally closed up and the dam survived the first day.
(End of this chapter)