China has many miracles since ancient times, and Dujiangyan is one of them. Sichuan is known as the "Land of Abundance", but without Dujiangyan, this reputation may never belong to Sichuan. The reason why Dujiangyan is a miracle is that it was born in the Warring States Period more than 2,000 years ago. In an era when technology was not developed today, it is incredible that such a grand water conservancy project could be completed. The miracle of Dujiangyan is that it has withstood the wear and tear of more than 2,000 years and is still intact, still delivering trickling clear water to the land of Bashu. The creator of this miracle is Li Bing.
Li Bing was a water conservancy expert during the Warring States period. He was originally from Yuncheng, Shanxi Province. He lived in the late Warring States period and was the governor of Shu County in the State of Qin. Due to the special geographical environment, the Shu region at that time was often threatened by natural disasters, either floods or severe droughts, and was known as "Zeguo" and "Red Basin". The people of Shu have suffered from droughts and floods. They have struggled with floods for generations, but have never found an effective way to control them. In 316 BC, the State of Qin annexed the State of Shu, and Shu became a county of the State of Qin. The terrain of Shu is difficult and it is of great strategic significance to control this area. Qin planned to build Shu into an important base, so he appointed Li Bing, who was proficient in flood control, as the guardian of Shu to go to Shu to control floods.
The Minjiang River is the "culprit" of floods in Shu County. As soon as he took office, Li Bing began an on-the-spot investigation on both sides of the Minjiang River. The Minjiang River originates from the Minshan Mountains in the north of the Chengdu Plain. Along the coast, the mountains are high and the valleys are deep, and the water is turbulent. When it reaches Guanxian County, the terrain suddenly opens up, and the huge water flow often destroys the banks and causes flooding. At the same time, the water flow brought a large amount of sediment to the upper reaches of the river. The sediment continued to accumulate, the river bed continued to rise, and the floods further intensified. The Yulei Mountain in the southwest of Guanxian County blocks the eastward flow of the river. Whenever floods come in summer and autumn, there will be drought in the east and floods in the west.
After understanding the actual local water regime and terrain, Li Bing formulated a strict water control plan and began to implement it. To control floods in the Minjiang River, the most important thing is to divert the water flow. Li Bing's solution was to cut a 20-meter-wide gap in Yulei Mountain, called "Baopingkou". Because the end of the separated Yulei Mountain looks like a pile of rocks, people call it "Lidui". In order to further divert the river flow, Li Bing built a water diversion weir in the middle of the river to divide the water flow into two, forcing one of the water flows into the mouth of Baoping. In the process of building weirs to divert water, Li Bing invented the method of using bamboo cages and stones to make weirs. Li Jifu's "Yuanhe County Chronicles" of the Tang Dynasty records: "The Jianwei Weir is located 25 miles southwest of the county. Li Bing built it to prevent the river. It was made of broken bamboo, with a diameter of three feet and a length of ten feet. It was made of stone. And the water is blocked." Jianweiyan was the name of Dujiangyan in the Tang Dynasty. The land of Bashu produces lush bamboo. This method can be used to build embankments using local materials, which is convenient for construction and maintenance. Moreover, layers of cage stones can not only prevent the embankment from breaking, but also use time gaps to reduce the direct pressure of floods, greatly reducing the possibility of embankment failure.
Because the front end of the dike is shaped like a fish head, it is named "fish mouth". The fish mouth faces the upper reaches of the Minjiang River and divides the rushing Minjiang River into east and west branches. The east branch is Neijiang, which is the main canal of the irrigation canal system. The head of the canal is Baopingkou. After passing Baopingkou, the water flow is divided into many ditches and rivers, forming a criss-crossing fan-shaped water network that infiltrates the vast Chengdu Plain. The west branch is the Waijiang River, which is the main stream of the Minjiang River. Later, Li Bing built a flat water channel and a flying sand weir at the end of Yuzui Dike to divert and overflow floods. Since the water diversion weir was built, there have been few droughts and floods in the Chengdu Plain.
After the completion of Dujiangyan, Li Bing established a maintenance system to ensure the quality and effectiveness of the weir. Every year during the frost season in October, the flow of the Minjiang River is at its smallest. At this time, Li Bing led everyone to repair the weak links and damaged parts of the project. "Deep ravine beach, low weir" is the six-character mantra he proposed during the maintenance process. Year after year of maintenance and water release, the water release day around Qingming Festival has gradually become a grand festival for local people. At the water release ceremony, people beat gongs and drums happily, showing their great joy after conquering the flood and their gratitude and love for Li Bing.
In order to measure the water level of the Minjiang River and control the flow of the inner river, Li Bing and his son made stone figures and stood in the river as a ruler to observe the water level. "Huayang Guozhi·Shu Zhi" records that Li Bing "made a man of three stones, stood in three waters, and communicated with the river god: the water will not be enough when it is exhausted, and it will not be full if it is full."
The completion of Dujiangyan completely eradicated the Minjiang River flooding in Shu for thousands of years and created a land of abundance on earth. From then on, in the land of Shu, "droughts will lead to water infiltration, and rains will block the water gates. Therefore, floods and droughts come from people, and they do not know hunger, so there will be no years of famine, and the world will call it Tianfu." Dujiangyan Water Conservancy Project is the pride of China and even the world’s water conservancy history. Its complete design and long history are enough to amaze people of any era. Li Bing and his great achievements have been passed down through the ages. Du Fu has a poem that says: "If you don't see the prefect of Shu during the Qin Dynasty, he carved stones to make five rhinoceroses. Although there has been a method of being tired of winning since ancient times, the natural river flows eastward. The people of Shu have been proud of it for a thousand years, and the flood cannot come close to Zhang Yi Tower."
In addition to Dujiangyan, Li Bing also presided over the construction of some other water conservancy projects in Shu County. There is a tributary called Moshui in the upper reaches of the Minjiang River that originates from Mengshan Mountain. This river channel has both underground rivers and is blocked by mountains. The situation is quite complicated and is very unfavorable for navigation. To this end, Li Bing led the local people to cut away the rocks in the middle of the river. The situation of Moshui was greatly improved, and navigation became smooth from then on. Rivers such as the Guanjiang River, the Wenjing River, and the Luoshui River also became resources that benefited the people under Li Bing's management.
The reason why Li Bing is a man who governs the country and brings peace to the world is not just because he built numerous water conservancy facilities. According to "Huayang Guozhi", when Li Bing was the governor of Shu, he also organized the construction of bridges and dug salt wells, which enabled the rapid development of transportation and economy in Shu County.
Li Bing's contribution to the people of Shu has been remembered by the world. The people of Bashu respectfully called him "Sichuan Lord" and built many "Sichuan Lord Shrines" to convey their gratitude and memory for Li Bing. Yu Qiuyu said that Dujiangyan's "scale is far less grand than the Great Wall on the surface, but it is destined to steadily benefit thousands of years. If the Great Wall occupies a vast space, then it actually occupies a long time." . Just like the real Dujiangyan, Li Bing may not have the vigorous deeds of emperors and generals to excite the world, but his legacy has truly made future generations feel very solid and warm. His Dujiangyan, like the glorious Great Wall, is a miracle in human history.
