Just like Murphy's Law, the more you fear something, the more likely it is to happen. The more the people in Jiangnan were worried about the heavy rain, the more it continued. After one day and two nights, there was no sign of stopping.
The ponds were full, the rivers were full, and the streams were swollen as if they would overflow at any moment.
The next day, after a round of inspection, Zhu Ping'an deeply felt that a flood disaster was imminent.
"Zhang Dianli, I appoint you as the chief of Qinghe River, responsible for the management of Qinghe River and flood prevention and control; Liu Dianli, I appoint you as the chief of Xiaochuanxi River, responsible for Xiaochuanxi River and flood prevention and control; Han Dianli, I appoint you as..."
Zhu Ping'an summoned all the clerks in the county government office and, drawing on the successful experience of my country's modern river chief system, appointed all the clerks in the county government office as river chiefs of the main rivers, streams and lakes in Jingnan area. They were responsible for organizing the management and protection of the corresponding rivers, streams and ponds. Their current main task is flood prevention and control.
Of course, Zhu Ping'an also claimed a river, which is the Sanli River outside the city. The flood prevention and control task of this river is the most important.
After being appointed as the river chief, Zhu Ping'an planned several high and open flood-avoidance areas based on the inspections in recent days. He built rain shelters and prepared sufficient food, drinking water, stoves, bedding and other supplies. He ordered villages along rivers, streams, lakes and other high-risk areas to move to the flood-avoidance areas in advance to avoid flood risks.
"Bang, bang, bang... Attention, fellow villagers of Xiaozhao Village. Due to the continuous rainfall, the water level of Fengxi River has risen sharply and is in danger of bursting its banks. The county magistrate has ordered Xiaozhao Village to move quickly to the Gaolipo flood shelter."
In the midst of the wind and rain, a yamen runner wearing a straw raincoat, carrying a yellow bag with a small red flag on the back, and riding a yellow horse came to Xiaozhao Village. He held a gong in his hand, and while beating it, he shouted orders loudly.
This is the standard "Shuibao" outfit in ancient times. Anyone who sees this outfit knows it is Shuibao.
"What? Did I hear you right?! You want us to abandon our homes and move out in this heavy rain?!"
"No way, Brother Cha, are you sure you didn't misunderstand me? Why did the county magistrate suddenly ask us to move?!"
After hearing this, the villagers resisted instinctively. They were unwilling to move to any flood control area during the heavy rain.
Firstly, it is raining heavily outside now, and it will be very painful to move; secondly, Chinese people are attached to their land by nature, and they would resist the thought of leaving their homes and moving, even temporarily; thirdly, they have repaired the dam of Fengxi River at the east end of the village, so why do they need to move
"Fellow villagers of Xiaozhao Village, how many of my heads would dare to falsely convey the order of the county magistrate? This is absolutely true. Folks, quickly pack up your gold and silver jewelry, take some food, and move away quickly. Folks, I am not exaggerating. I just came from the Fengxi River embankment. The water level of Fengxi River has risen to the top of the embankment." The officer spoke loudly to the elders and villagers of Xiaozhao Village while sitting on horseback.
"What? Is this true?!" People didn't expect that the water level of Fengxi River would rise so quickly.
"Lizhang, who is the Lizhang of Xiaozhao Village?" the officer shouted loudly.
"It's me, the old man." The head of Xiaozhao Village walked out from the crowd. He was an old man who was only sixty years old.
"The Gaolipo Flood Refuge is in Gaolipo. Do you know where it is? It doesn't matter if you don't know. There are signs along the way and red ropes tied to the trees. You can lead the villagers to follow the red rope at the entrance of the village. It will be about five miles to the Gaolipo Flood Refuge. The county magistrate has reserved a resettlement area for Xiaozhao Village in the flood refuge. I'll leave this place to you. I still have to go to Wangzhuang to convey the relocation order."
After the officer gave instructions to the head of Xiaozhao Village, he rode his horse anxiously towards Wangzhuang to convey the relocation order.
"My dear men, you all heard what the officer said just now. I just came down from the Fengxi embankment, and what the officer said is true. The water of Fengxi River is about to overflow the embankment, and it is only an elbow high. If the county lord had not ordered us to repair the embankment before, the embankment would have been washed down by Fengxi River long ago, and our Xiaozhao Village would have been soaked in the flood. The county lord has bought us time to escape, and we cannot let him down. My dear men, hurry back to pack up your gold and silver, bring some dry food, and help the elderly and children, and we will go to the Gaolipo flood shelter."
Although the village head was old, he was in good spirits. He clapped his hands and spoke to the villagers, directing everyone to move.
"Li Zheng, do we have to move? If we leave, what will happen to our family? What if a thief breaks in?"
Some people are worried about their homes and don't want to move.
"You poor boy, is human life more important, or are those things in your family more important? It's already this time, and you still can't tell the priorities! Even if you don't care about your own life, you should at least think about the lives of your father, mother, wife and children, right?!" The head of the village cursed angrily when he heard this.
"Leader, please go ahead. I won't leave. If a flood comes, I will climb onto the roof."
A villager said, thinking he was smart.
"You're climbing on the roof, why don't you climb up to the sky? Your house is made of mud, and the flood will collapse!"
Upon hearing this, the village head cursed even more harshly.
"Everyone move away. No one can stay in Xiaozhao Village. Whoever stays in Xiaozhao Village, I will open the ancestral hall and drive him out of Xiaozhao Village." The head of the village did not give everyone a chance to discuss the matter and gave the order directly.
After hearing the threat from the headman to expel them from the village, the villagers dared not make any more claims and went back to pack up their things.
In this era, once you are driven out of the village, life becomes difficult. Without land or house, you become a refugee.
Under the strong leadership of the village head, the villagers of Xiaozhao Village began to migrate, carrying the elderly and children, carrying bags, and driving pigs, cattle and sheep.
When various places in Jingnan began to mobilize for evacuation, the neighboring Taiping County and Linhai County had already suffered from floods, especially Taiping County, where the situation was even more serious. Taiping County has many rivers, including Xiangxi River, Machuan River, Qingxi River, Yangxi River, Shuxi River, Zhuxi River, and Lingyang River, and the terrain is somewhat complex, which is prone to flooding. Last night, the Machuan River and Qingxi River in Taiping County had overflowed, and several villages downstream of the two rivers were razed to the ground overnight.
During the day today, the situation in Taiping County was even worse. The overflowing river water roared and rushed over an area of more than ten miles like a mad beast. Even Machuan Town, which was closest to the Machuan River, was hit by the flood.
The new magistrate of Taiping County hurriedly organized flood prevention and disaster relief, but it was too late and there was nothing he could do. Emergency reports of floods came one after another, and even Taiping County was flooded. The rain in the courtyard of Taiping County Government was not even above the ankles.
Thinking back to the past, the Taiping County Magistrate regretted it so much that his intestines turned green. He acted like a madman. He found the letter he had discarded from the trash can and stuffed it into his mouth without caring about the stains on it.