April 29th, at the hour of Mao.
The sky was slightly bright, and Fu Xiaoguan had already finished washing up and had breakfast.
Xu Xinyan put on a veil and drove the carriage with Fu Xiaoguan to the imperial city.
Last night, Fu Xiaoguan thought a lot. It is true that the crime of treason is a serious crime, but the method of collective punishment is extremely inappropriate.
After much thought, he decided to save Xi Xunmei and the others. This was not because he was a saint, but because of the clash of his concepts in two lives, which made him feel uneasy.
And these people are talented, he needs them.
The carriage stopped at the gate of the imperial city. Fu Xiaoguan got off the carriage. Xu Xinyan waved goodbye to him with a smile on her face, just like a young wife sending her husband to work.
Fu Xiaoguan walked into the imperial city. The sky had dimmed a little, but the lanterns in the imperial city were still lit. He walked towards the Chengtian Hall on the dim ground.
There were no other officials in the square outside Chengtian Hall except the guards on duty, so he arrived a little late.
He walked into the Chengtian Hall and stood at the back of the crowd. The officials around him looked at him...
Yo, Lord Fu is back?!
The officials in the back row suddenly became agitated, alarming the officials in the front row. As a result, there was some chaos in the court. Emperor Xuan also raised his head at this moment, looked at it with a little dissatisfaction, and then a smile appeared on his face.
He knew that Fu Xiaoguan had returned home yesterday. He had wanted to let the boy rest for two days, but he didn't expect that the boy would be much more diligent than before and actually came to attend the morning court today.
However, he didn't call out to Fu Xiaoguan at this time. Instead, he lowered his head and looked at a memorial in his hand and said, "Henan Daotai Dong Xiujin said that the population along the Yellow River in his jurisdiction has decreased by over 600,000. Among them, 380,000 fled the Yellow River floods in the past two years, and another 220,000 went to Wofeng Dao this year..."
He raised his head. "The management of the Yellow River has always been on my mind, but the treasury didn't have the extra money, so it has been put off until now. Now that I have money, the management of the Yellow River must be put on the agenda. I'm worried that if the Yellow River floods again this year, the two sides of the river will probably become a place without smoke or fire, without the sound of chickens or dogs."
"Minister Bi."
"I am here!"
Bi Dong bowed and stepped out to stand in front.
"Today's discussion is mainly about the Yellow River issue. Tell me, what are your plans?"
"Your Majesty... I believe the best time to regulate the Yellow River has passed."
Emperor Xuan frowned, "What do you mean?"
"It is now April 29th, and the frozen Yellow River has thawed, ushering in the flood season. Controlling the Yellow River should be done during the dry winter season. Therefore, I believe we should recruit laborers to widen the river this winter. From November to February of next year, the Ministry of Works will dispatch water diversion doctors. The two Yellow River governors will urge the prefectures, counties, and districts under their jurisdiction to recruit personnel, each responsible for the sections of the river under their jurisdiction. The project should be completed."
This was the second time that Fu Xiaoguan heard Bi Dong talk about the Yellow River management plan. He frowned slightly and walked up.
This is not a trivial matter. This plan is wrong. If it is not stopped or changed, it will lead to a big mistake.
"Your Majesty, I, Fu Xiaoguan, have objections to this."
All the court officials looked at Fu Xiaoguan. No, Lord Fu had just returned from a victorious battle, and many of his deeds had already spread, such as how the three brigades of the Divine Swords defeated Xi Hua's 130,000 troops, how a song of Chu songs caused Xue Dingshan's 150,000 troops to collapse, how he chopped off Xue Dingshan's head without bloodshed, and how he let General Fei An pick up more than 100,000 veterans for free, and so on.
Everyone in the Golden Palace is well aware of how powerful this kid is, but right now His Majesty and Minister Bi are discussing the issue of water management... Could it be that Lord Fu also knows how to manage rivers?
Emperor Xuan thought so too. I'm talking about serious business here, why are you here to butt in?
Only Yan Beixi stroked his white beard and smiled silently at Fu Xiaoguan's back.
Seeing that His Majesty did not respond, Fu Xiaoguan spoke again, "My opinion differs from that of Minister Bi. It is not a question of time. Minister Bi is right about the timing of governance. I also think it is best to deal with it during the dry season.
But Minister Bi said that the river should be widened, but I don’t agree.”
Emperor Xuan came to his senses at this moment and asked, "So what do you think?"
"I believe that the Yellow River should be narrowed!"
As soon as these words were spoken, the ministers were in an uproar.
Since it is about water control, of course we should let the water flow through the riverbed. The Yellow River is flooding, and widening the river channel can accommodate more water. This is a simple truth, but Lord Fu is an outsider.
Emperor Xuan was also stunned. What nonsense are you talking about?
"This... please step back."
"Your Majesty, what I said is true!"
Emperor Xuan curled his lips and thought to himself, I'm giving you a way out, but you still want to confront me?
"I know your abilities, but no one is perfect. Water management is a professional matter. I think it's better to let professionals handle it."
What the hell, don’t you believe me?
"Your Majesty, I am a professional... Please don't stare at me, it's scary. Just listen to what I have to say before you discuss anything else."
What could Emperor Xuan do?
"Okay, okay, tell me what you're talking about."
"The water of the Yellow River is different from that of the Yangtze River. Why is it called the Yellow River? Because it is yellow!"
The ministers laughed, and Emperor Xuan glared at him again.
But Fu Xiaoguan didn't care. He suddenly turned to face the ministers and asked with a smile: "My lords, why is the Yellow River yellow? Come, you smile the happiest, tell me."
Fu Xiaoguan pointed at Zhang Dingfeng, the Minister of Rites, and said, "That's you, Mr. Zhang. Please tell me."
Zhang Dingfeng wanted to slap himself at this moment. Why the hell am I laughing? This is Master Fu. My immediate superior is his uncle...
"Ah, this, I am not laughing at your absurd words, sir."
"Then what are you laughing at?"
"This... I was just laughing at the concubine I recently married. A small family might have done something funny, so please don't take it to heart, sir."
This bastard was very smooth-talking. "Then tell me why the water of the Yellow River is yellow?"
"This... is said to be due to the heavy sediment."
"Master Zhang is right..." Fu Xiaoguan glanced at the ministers, "The upper reaches of the Yellow River are extremely silted. The Yellow River water is carrying this silt with it. This silt will eventually settle in the middle and upper reaches of the Yellow River and even be carried to the lower reaches.
That is a huge amount of silt. When it is deposited in the river channel, it will raise the riverbed. The riverbed is getting higher and higher, which will cause a major disaster once the Yellow River floods.
The method of widening the river channel can only treat the symptoms, but not the root cause, because silt will still settle. No matter how wide you make the river, the riverbed will become higher and higher, and will eventually burst the dam and cause a major disaster.
My strategy is to build a dike to hold back the water and use water to attack the sand!
In addition, the river embankment cannot be connected for a hundred miles. A gap must be left where the river is turbulent, and at least three remote embankments must be built behind the gap to make it a water storage lake..."
The court was silent except for the voice of Fu Xiaoguan talking.
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