After rewarding the army, Chen Chong returned to Chang'an. As promised before, Chen Chong transported 200,000 stones of grain and grass to Lu Bu and stored them in Qixian County.
In March, Lu Bu followed Chen Chong's previous suggestion and gave up attacking Han Sui's Ma Teng tribe in Hanyang and Anding, and instead recruited Beidi County. Beidi County is so remote and difficult to travel that Lu Bu had to go up to Long from the mouth of Jingshui Valley, and then climb the mountain with great difficulty. The farther west he went, the higher the mountains became, as if he were ascending to the sky. He had to go all the way to Qixian County before he could barely see in the mountains. To a livable narrow plain.
After the narrow plains, there are still many high mountains, standing like thousands of swords. Many clouds gather and disperse between the peaks, as if the mountains pierce the sky. Lu Bu entered Beidi County from here and continued walking north. After walking for about sixty miles, they saw an empty city with the word Yiju written on the gate. It turned out that this place had been occupied for a long time and had been invaded by Qiang people and rebels. The army was abandoned.
Cao Xing suggested that Lu Bu use this city as his residence, but Lu Bu rejected it. He planned to build a new city to increase his reputation. So we continued walking north and stopped at a mountain col where ten ravines met. There was muddy water passing through this place, and there were grasslands and wasteland around it. Lu Bu was very satisfied with this, so he built a city and county here and named it Ningwu.
After Lü Bu settled in Ningwu, Zhang Chang and Zhang Meng talked with various Qiang tribes around him. Sure enough, some Qiang people gradually joined him. In May, Lü Bu sent a letter to the court, saying that he had captured Niyang, Yuzhi, and half of them. Northland County was in his hands.
But at this time, Chen Chong didn't feel any joy. On the second day of May, Chang'an was suddenly hit by an earthquake. The people in the capital were in panic. Then on the third day of the fifth month, there was another earthquake, which collapsed the White Canal [1]. Other water canals were also damaged, not to mention the ordinary houses that were destroyed. In fact, Chen Chong was planning to hold a court meeting to discuss this matter. On the fourth day of the lunar month, there was another solar eclipse!
When the solar eclipse occurred, Chen Chong was discussing with Zhong Yao and others in the chancery to see how to come up with a disaster relief charter and how to repair the canals. Also present were other ministers and ministers, such as Chen Qun, Wang Yi, Shi Sunrui, Fu Wan, Yang Biao and others.
The sky is clear and the sun is shining brightly. The front and back doors of the Chancery are wide open, allowing the breeze to pass through. Everyone sat around the banquet, looking at the eucalyptus tablets and drinking ice water.
At this moment, the originally bright atrium suddenly darkened. No one paid attention, thinking it was just the clouds covering the sun. However, Mr. Habayashi from the palace hurriedly ran over from outside and said, "Oh no, the sun in the sky is gone!"
Those present were all well-educated people, and they immediately understood that a solar eclipse had occurred. Chen Chong ordered the officers to not panic and not to look to the sky to avoid hurting their eyes. He himself took a candle and lit it gently with flint. Unexpectedly, Yang Biao put down the eucalyptus slip and said, "It's better not to order it. The celestial phenomena are God's will. Just let nature take its course." Everyone agreed.
After a while, the sound of drums could be heard faintly in the palace, and then slowly became louder until the whole of Chang'an could hear it. It was a routine warning sound during a solar eclipse.
Yang Biao listened to the sound of the drum and said slowly: "Solar eclipses have occurred frequently in recent years. I remember it started during the Guanghe period. In the past ten years, I have heard the sound of the drum seven times. Every time there is a solar eclipse, the Three Dukes are appointed and dismissed, so it is also called the Luogui Drum. I thought it was interesting when I first heard it, but now I don’t want to hear it anymore.”
After that, they stood up together and put red-green swords on their waists according to etiquette, as a symbol of aiding the Yang. On the way, Chen Chong said: "A solar eclipse is just a solar eclipse, what does it have to do with people? No matter how the heaven, earth, sun and moon work, we should be angry and strengthen ourselves."
Scholar Sun Rui disagreed. He said: "Solar eclipse is a sign of yin invading yang, and it has the following meaning: it is the so-called hexagram of earth, fire, Mingyi, and heaven and earth are warning. As mortals, how can we not care about it? ? I just don’t know who should be responsible for the following crimes?"
"I Have a Picture Book of Ghosts and Gods"
Everyone immediately turned their attention to Chen Chong, but Chen Chong had no intention of discussing the matter. It was Chen Qun who came to the rescue and said: "The meaning of solar eclipse does not necessarily refer to the following. There is another explanation: the powerful one who controls the sun may be a supreme being. The strong will die, and the world will change."
Only Fu Wan lowered his head and said: "No matter what the explanation is, it is definitely not a good thing. Since God's will is angry, and there have been landslides and earthquakes before, it is better to remove the erring ministers from their posts as usual to appease God's will."
Chen Chong glanced at the future uncle and said nothing. He simply led his ministers all the way to meet the emperor, and said to the emperor: "Since Emperor Zhuanxu sent Juedi Tiantong, the heaven, earth, sun and moon have performed their respective duties. Today's solar eclipse is just a sign of the intersection of the sun and the moon. Your Majesty, please don't Don't panic. It's just that people's hearts are easily disturbed, so please ask your Majesty to issue an edict saying that the disaster should be in the east."
"Should it be in the east?" When the emperor saw the solar eclipse, his face was still filled with sadness. But when he heard Chen Chong's words, he was extremely surprised and asked, "Does sir really think so?"
Chen Chong nodded and said with a smile: "This is what I calculated. Last year, the rebel army faced off against our army for a year at Honggou. Our army was 100,000 strong, and we consumed nearly one million dan of grain. The enemy's army was several times larger and they were in a stalemate for a year. The food consumption in Yanzhou must be several times that of the imperial court. Although Yanzhou is a fertile land, only women worked on it last year, so the harvest will inevitably be small. How can the Linzi bandit army survive to this day when they occupy the land of two states? There will inevitably be a rift in the court, and last year the thieves If the army is not in a good position, one of the ministers will be killed to calm the hearts of the people."
At this time, the dark surroundings gradually became brighter again. It seemed that the solar eclipse would soon recede. The drums in the palace also stopped, and the happy cheers of the officials could be heard everywhere. Chen Chong squinted as he watched the light reappear, and finally asserted to the emperor: "We will receive news of the rebel army's rebellion by July at the latest."
Chen Chong's words were categorical, but everyone was doubtful. But Chen Chong insisted on this, and the others could not disobey, so they did as he did.
However, after the edict was issued, there were many voices of doubt in the government and the public, thinking that Chen Chong was greedy for power and wanted to keep friends, so he was unwilling to remove himself from high-ranking officials. Even his wife Cai Yan, in her spare time, advised Chen Chong that although there is no right or wrong in God's will, public opinion should not be offended, and it is best to act as usual. Chen Chong had a smile on his face, but he was disapproving in his heart.
Fortunately, Zheng Xuan supported him. After Zheng Xuan came to Beijing, with the support of Chen Chong, he reopened the Imperial Academy and built it in the southern suburbs of Chang'an City like Luoyang. It's just that after all, the world is in chaos, and wars are happening in various states, and countless people have lost their families and families. At this time, there are only a few people who have time to come to the capital to study. Today's Taisheng students can barely reach more than 600 people, and it is difficult to have more than ten students. A few years ago, tens of thousands of Taipei students were busy in traffic, blocking the scene in the capital.
However, Zheng Xuan was also happy to have some leisure time. He left all the preaching work to Sun Yan, Cui Yan and others, while he took a few Cangtou to visit famous mountains and rivers in Sanfu, such as Lishan Mountain, Huashan Mountain, Kuzong Mountain, Leishan Mountain, etc. He visited Shoushan and other places. It was not until the weather got hotter that he returned to the capital to escape the summer heat, and from time to time he went to Chen Chong's house to chat.
When he heard about this, Zheng Xuan was trimming his beard in Chen Chong's yard. His study tour experience when he was young made him accustomed to doing things on his own. At this time, he was fixing his beard in the mirror while talking to Chen Chong about the natural disasters of the previous twenty years.
He joked that he was almost seventy years old and had seen nine solar eclipses and heard of thirteen unseen solar eclipses. Every time the imperial court dismissed a third prince in order to bring justice to the will of heaven, he has been exempted so far. There are no less than sixty officials. If God's will is constant, how can we see that the imperial court is still in decline and the disasters are not reduced a little? Either the removal from office is useless, or the removal is useless. Isn't it also okay if we use this to change the emperor? After saying that, he and Chen Chong both laughed.
Therefore, Chen Chong turned a deaf ear to the rumors and only focused on repairing Bai Canal.
Before Shizu established his capital in Luoyang, the land of Guanxi was managed by the Qin and Han Dynasties for six hundred years, and numerous embankments and canals were built. Guangcheng Guo Canal, Zheng Guo Canal, Bai Canal, Cao Canal, Longshou Canal and other large canals are as long as thousands of miles, and there are countless small canal tributaries in various counties. Thanks to the water conservancy of dikes and canals, Guanzhong has been able to maintain its harvest despite droughts and floods, and there have been no bad years. It is known as the Thousand Miles of Fertile Wilderness and the Essence of the Emperor.
However, after the Wang Mang Chimei Rebellion, the people in Guanzhong suffered from water conservancy damage, and many embankments and canals collapsed without repairs. But when Shizu saw that Guanzhong was in ruins, he simply settled in Luoyang. After Shizu, the emperors paid little attention to the management of Guanxi. To this day, the people in Guanzhong are still not as far apart as they were back then.
Nowadays, Sanbai Canal has been destroyed by the earthquake. Although it is a cruel natural disaster, for Chen Chong, it is also a good opportunity to rebuild water conservancy. In his spare time, he recruited Sanfu people to rebuild the river embankment.
Soon, San Fu recruited about 100,000 people to build the canal. They were like a long dragon with no head or tail, digging soil and diverting water next to the white canal. The weather was hot at this time, and the sun in the sky seemed to penetrate the skin and penetrate into the flesh and blood, making people feel dizzy. Sometimes there is heavy rain pouring down, and when it hits my body, it is not a cool and refreshing feeling, but an analgesic and needle-pricking feeling. People say that even during severe droughts in earlier years, the weather had never been so hot.
But the canal construction was still carried out. Chen Chong knew that the people were working hard, so he simply moved the Shangshutai to the canal. He walked by the canal during the day to take care of things, and worked in Taichung at night. Many people said they were thirsty and hot, so Chen Chong ordered the Yulin army to boil tea and water for people to drink by the canal, and also ordered the Huben army to plant trees and build tents by the canal for people to rest.
Building the canal was not a day's work. It lasted until July, when the farming season was busy. One hundred thousand people had only just renovated the white canal. But Chen Chong originally had a long-term plan, and the immortal achievements of the First Emperor could not be completed in just one year. So the people were sent back to their hometowns, and it was agreed that they would come back to repair the canal in September.
After returning to Chang'an, Chen Chong reported to the court that he planned to build another canal on the north bank of the Weishui River based on the canal established by Emperor Wu. The Qianshui River was diverted to bypass Yi County and go straight into the Wugong Chengguo Canal. It could be named Gaode Canal to show the emperor's virtue and ensure that the emperor accurately performed it.
But at this time, Cao Cao, the herdsman of Yanzhou, wrote to the court, saying that there have been many changes in the Yanzhou rebel army recently. After asking around, he found that something happened to the Linzi rebel army, and it seemed that the false emperor was dethroned! The puppet general Zhang Rao was assassinated and died!
【1】Baiqu: It is the extension of Jingqu and Zhengguo Canal. During the Warring States Period, South Korea sent hydraulic engineer Zheng Guo to lobby the Qin Dynasty, and dug the Jingshui River from Zhongshan in the west to Hukou as a canal. It consumes Qin's national power and has no intention of going eastward. But after the canal is completed, Guanzhong will become thousands of miles of fertile soil. Regardless of drought or flood, there will be good harvests every year.
In the Western Han Dynasty, following the precedent of the Qin Dynasty, Baigong was used as a hydraulic engineer to pass through the canal to divert Jingshui. It started from the mouth of the valley, entered Yueyang, and poured into the middle of the Wei River. It was 200 miles long and irrigated more than 4,500 hectares of farmland, so it was named Baiqu. .
