The next day, the sky was slightly bright.
As soon as Su Liang opened his eyes, he heard the voice of Li Zhongchang, the canal director, from outside.
"Senior Ouyang, please don't bother me, a small official. I will be offering sacrifices to the Dragon King here in half an hour. You must not miss the auspicious moment!"
Ouyang Xiu said coldly: "Can't you offer sacrifices elsewhere? Do you have to chase us away now? Let Jia Changchao come here to chase me away!"
Due to the rain yesterday, Ouyang Xiu's voice was a little hoarse.
But full of energy.
"Scholar Ouyang, this is the place that Mr. Jia has decided on a long time ago. Why don't you go talk to him?"
…
At this time.
Su Liang put on his clothes and walked out of the tent.
"Ahem..."
Su Liang was feeling a little weak after being soaked in water and raining yesterday.
Hearing the cough, little Shen Kuo not far away quickly ran over to help Su Liang.
Ouyang Xiu turned around and asked with great concern: "Jing Ming, how are you? Do you want a doctor to take a look?"
Su Liang showed a faint smile.
"I'm fine, how are you guys?"
"Fortunately, with the help of the villagers, there were no casualties, but there are still a dozen people with headaches and fever who are already making ginger soup!"
Su Liang nodded.
"Then let's go, the mission is completed, it's time for us to go back!"
Ouyang Xiu thought for a while and said, "Okay, let's withdraw!"
Jia Changchao didn't want to see Su Liang and Ouyang Xiu.
Ouyang Xiu and Su Liang actually didn't want to see him. Both parties believed that they were just and seeking the welfare of the Song Dynasty.
Seeing Su Liang's pale face, Li Zhongchang wanted to come over and show concern.
Who would have thought that Su Liang didn't even look at him, turned around and went somewhere else.
He believed that Su Liang was too arrogant and jealous of his strategy of "draining the Six Towers River".
In fact, Su Liang hated him for coming up with this bad idea of diverting water away.
"strike camp!"
Li Zhongchang shouted to the soldiers and river workers behind him.
About a quarter of an hour later, more than ten carriages stopped on the road outside the embankment.
Everyone was drinking ginger soup and eating flatbread.
After breakfast we set off.
Yesterday we jumped into the river for measurement in the rain. Everyone was feeling a little uncomfortable, so we would all take a horse-drawn carriage on the way back.
At this moment, Su Liang was no longer in a hurry.
Su Liang had seen the implementation strategy of diverting the Liuta River, and throughout March the main focus was on dredging the Liuta River.
Today is March 3rd.
They returned to Bianjing around the eighth day of March, and it took about seven or eight days to make the river sand table.
As long as the imperial court can be persuaded to suspend the eastward flow of the Yellow River before March, it will be considered a success.
Take advantage of this free time.
Su Liang wrote a letter while sitting in the carriage, and then came to Ouyang Xiu and Zhang Maoze with the letter.
The three of them stood on a slope.
Su Liang unfolded the letter and handed it to the two of them.
"Scholar Ouyang, Mr. Zhang, it would be best if we could use the river sand table to convince the officials when we return to Beijing this time. But..."
"But if I can't convince the officials, I'm worried that once the Liuta River breaks its banks, all the surrounding villages will be destroyed, and thousands of people will be flooded. I want to give this letter to Uncle He, If the Henglong and Shanghu mouths are really blocked and the water from the river is diverted into the Liuta River, let Uncle He persuade the people around him to flee upstream in advance, and save as many people as he can!"
"If the embankment had not been breached, I would bear the consequences of this matter alone, and I must not harm the people."
Although people in the Song Dynasty could move freely.
However, if when the Liuta River is being diverted, some people spread public opinion about breaking the dike, causing many people to move and flee, there will inevitably be some robbery and theft incidents.
Some people even gathered people to rebel and rob government offices.
If the people left their homes and rushed upstream, the Liuta River would not burst its banks.
The sin of those who spread public opinion is great.
Su Liang is prepared to take all this responsibility on himself. If he succeeds, the people will benefit, but if he fails, he will be severely punished.
The reason why he wanted to inform Ouyang Xiu and Zhang Maoze was to prevent if the letter was lost and Uncle He had another accident, the crime would easily be blamed on the people.
The people are innocent and they should not take this risk.
Ouyang Xiu frowned slightly after reading the letter.
"Jingming, this crime cannot be borne by you alone. I also believe that if the river is diverted into the Liuta River, the dam will burst. I will also sign my name!"
"Sister Ouyang, don't be impulsive! If I am punished, the most I can do is to be demoted. I am still young and still have a chance to make a comeback. If we are both demoted, it will not be worth it!"
Ouyang Xiu shook his head.
"Jing Ming, this is wrong. In the Hebei area, I, Ouyang Xiu, still have a certain reputation. Adding my name will make me more convincing. I should be able to save more people."
After that, Ouyang Xiu shouted to Shen Kuo who was not far away: "Brother Shen, get the pen and ink!"
Shen Kuo immediately went to get pen and ink.
Su Liang smiled helplessly.
He really couldn't deny Ouyang Xiu's reason.
"Then Mr. Lao Zhang will testify!" Su Liang heavily handed over to Zhang Maoze.
"Don't worry, you two!" Zhang Mao nodded.
At this time, Zhang Maoze was very envious of Su Liang and Ouyang Xiu's actions.
If he were an ordinary official, he would definitely puff out his chest and ask for his name to be added.
But he is a chamberlain.
He represents the emperor and cannot have his own ideas.
He can only be a witness.
After Ouyang Xiu signed his name, he couldn't help but smile happily and said, "Jing Ming, even if the dike didn't burst and we were punished, it was right to do so."
Just when Ouyang Xiu was about to hand this letter to Uncle He, a group of people appeared in the distance, led by Uncle He.
Moreover, the man behind was carrying a jar of wine on his shoulders.
Su Liang and Ouyang Xiu rushed over.
"Scholar Ouyang and Yushi Su, we are here to see you off. This is our home-brewed rice wine. After drinking the wine, warm yourself up before leaving!"
"Haha... Uncle He, you're welcome, you're welcome. Without your help yesterday, it would have been difficult for us to succeed!" Ouyang Xiu said with a smile.
Su Liang didn't show any pretense and shouted to the back: "Brothers, bring the bowls and pour the wine!"
Suddenly, everyone started pouring wine.
at the same time.
Ouyang Xiu and Su Liang pulled Uncle He aside, handed the letter to Uncle He, and gave him a few instructions.
Uncle He nodded heavily.
It is better to believe that this kind of thing exists than to believe that it does not exist.
He didn't believe at all that the river officials who were preparing to hold a ceremony to worship the Dragon King were on the other side of the dam.
These river officials have deceived them more than once, and they have always regarded the lives of the people as nothing.
The river has burst its banks several times in recent years.
Not to mention that these people went into the river, even the soles of their shoes were not soaked by the river water.
After a while, everyone raised the big bowl together.
"Come, let's drink this wine together!" Ouyang Xiu stood on the shaft of the car and said loudly.
Gudong! Gudong! Gudong!
Everyone raised their wine bowls at the same time and drank the wine in one gulp.
Rice wine is sweet and fragrant, with a hint of bitterness.
In terms of taste, it is naturally not as good as the rice wine in Bianjing City.
But Su Liang poured the rice wine into his stomach and felt a heat steaming in his belly, and the coldness on his body was quickly dissipating.
Drinking this wine will give you a lot of energy.
Finished drinking.
Uncle He looked at Ouyang Xiu and Su Liang.
"You two, we have a rule here. Anyone who braves the wind and waves on the river for the livelihood of the people on both sides of the river and returns safely is a warrior. What you did yesterday can definitely bear the title of warrior. We will We offer our highest courtesy, send him a gift from three miles away, and give him a song!"
Ouyang Xiu and Su Liang both handed over their hands and got on the carriage.
Leaning slightly, the convoy moved forward.
Uncle He waved his hand backwards, and the men all opened their mouths and sang while following the carriage.
"The Yellow River comes from the west to conquer Kunlun. It roars for thousands of miles and touches the dragon gate. The waves surge into the sky, and Yao sighs. Dayu regulates hundreds of rivers, but his children can't even see home when they cry. The killing turbulence drowns the floods, and silkworms and silkworms begin in Kyushu..."
This word is from Li Bai's "Gongwu Crossing the River".
It implies a spirit of crossing the river knowing that it cannot be done but doing it.
The people on both sides of the river made it into a chant on the river, which was widely sung.
The men's voices were loud and majestic, complementing the surging sound of the river not far away.
And this time.
Beside the river bank, Jia Changchao and others were holding a ceremony to worship the Dragon King.
A river official just shouted: "Sacrifice to the Dragon King!"
As soon as the sound fell, the singing of Uncle He and others could be heard in the distance.
It is clear to the ears and has strong penetrating power.
Jia Changchao's face suddenly darkened.
He was sentenced to Daming Mansion for more than a year, and he knew very well the meaning of the song "The public has no intention of crossing the river".
He was still thinking last night that when he returned to Bianjing after implementing the plan to flow the river eastward, the people on both sides of the river bank would definitely use this highest etiquette to bid him farewell.
did not expect.
Su Liang and Ouyang Xiu were the first to enjoy this kind of treatment, and they had only been here for more than ten days.
"Sacrifice to...the Dragon King!" the river official shouted again.
But his voice was completely suppressed by the distant sound, and even the river workers behind him could not hear it.
Jia Changchao said angrily: "Don't you have ears? When they are gone, let's start worshiping the Dragon King again!"
Li Zhongchang quickly came to the angry Jia Changchao.
"Don't be angry, Mr. Jia. I have inquired about it. Those villagers were hired by Ouyang Xiu with money. When you return to Beijing, I...I will pay to hire five times their number and send you ten miles away. I also sing Li Taibai "The public does not cross the river"." Li Zhongchang said in a low voice.
After hearing this, Jia Changchao's expression softened a little.
He snorted coldly: "For more than ten days, Ouyang Xiu and Su Liang were able to patrol the river. They were just pretending to continue admonishing, and they were afraid that I would return to the court after performing meritorious deeds. It's just a young man, I don't believe it, the official Can the family and Manchu officials believe the words of these two laymen!"
…
On the eighth day of March, night falls.
Su Liang and his party finally returned to Bianjing City.
Zhang Mao then went to the palace to report to Zhao Zhen on the situation these days.
Su Liang, Ouyang Xiu, Xiao Shen Kuo and some old waterworkers and carpenters made sand tables for river waterways.
Su Liang took a break from his busy schedule and went home late at night to spend time with his wife and children. He then started busy again early the next morning.
At the moment, no one in Bianjing City is optimistic about Ouyang Xiu and Su Liang.
Officials either felt that the two were trying to get into trouble, or that they were seeking revenge because of a personal grudge against Jia Changchao.
Su Liang and Ouyang Xiu didn't care about these opinions at all. They just wanted to do their best to deduce the truth.
(End of chapter)
