The ceremony of offering sacrifices to heaven was relatively complete. The rain stopped, the wind subsided, and the weather became sunny.
However, the amount of water stored in Taihu Lake still greatly exceeds the capacity. Many places in Pingjiang Prefecture and Jiaxing Prefecture have been flooded due to flood discharges, and it will take several days for the water to completely recede.
Fortunately, there was a planned flood discharge, and the water situation was relatively gentle. Except for the crops in the fields, the damage in other aspects was still under control.
Naturally, disaster relief was unavoidable, but with Wu Qian and other officials to worry about it, Zhao Mengqi was happy to be the hands-off shopkeeper, so he signed some documents and military transfer orders.
Most of the time, he was busy taking care of his four little ladies.
Although people in this era were not as delicate as later generations, many people still fell ill after being soaked in the rain for too long. The four Wanwans all fell down without exception because of great sorrow and joy, which weakened their vitality.
Among the four, Wanwan was the most seriously ill. Perhaps because of her martial arts practice, she had a good physical condition and recovered fairly well. She was able to get out of bed and walk the next day.
Zhao Han has been in poor health since he was a child. In the past few months, his nutrition has caught up. Zhao Mengqi is more attentive and considerate about medicine and exercise. He is no longer so fragile. This time, the cold problem is not big. In terms of self-cultivation and conditioning, Just some time.
Zhao Feng, a golden girl, used to have a very fragile body, like a porcelain doll, which would be broken accidentally. However, she became much stronger after leaving the palace. After falling ill this time, she slept for a day and a night, and she gradually got better. .
On the contrary, Qian Duo, who was most lively and active during the day, had recurring symptoms. Three days later, she was still weak and could only lie down.
Because he was sick, the four of them lived separately. Although they all arranged maids, Zhao Mengqi had to take turns running between the four houses.
At noon, Zhao Mengqi delivered meals to them one by one, and finally carried the food box into Qian Duo's house.
Looking at the couch, only scattered black hair was exposed outside the quilt, but Qian Duo's face was not visible.
"Why are you lying down?"
Hearing Zhao Mengqi's words, Qian Duo did not move, but made a muffled voice, "I can't get up, so I have no choice but to lie down..."
"You are already small, so you are not afraid of being crushed." Zhao Mengqi opened the food box and joked casually.
Qian Duo was embarrassed, "I want you to take care of it!?"
"Okay, okay, I don't care, get up and eat first." Zhao Mengqi moved the small table to the side of the couch and called to the maid, "Qingyu, help the little lady get up."
Qian Duo, however, was being naughty and said, "I'm not hungry, I don't want to eat!"
Zhao Mengqi smiled bitterly, waved his hand to let Qingyu go out first, then sat by the couch and pulled Qian Duo over.
The originally beautiful face was now bloodless, haggard and slightly swollen, her eyes were tightly closed, and she was groaning.
Zhao Mengqi folded the pillow for her and wanted to help her sit up, but Qian Duo was not happy, "I don't have the strength!"
Are you still so arrogant when you don’t have the energy?
"Okay, okay, I'll take care of you."
Helpless, Zhao Mengqi had no choice but to hug her and let her lean into his arms. She was soft and fragrant, but a little hot. He didn't have any bad thoughts.
"I used to be a cow and a horse for you. Shouldn't you serve me a few times?"
Qian Duo's eyes showed joy, but his mouth still sounded arrogant.
At this time, Zhao Mengqi didn't want to argue with her, so he said along the way, "It should, it should, you are the patient and you are the best."
"Then you just said I was young?"
"Uh...eat, eat, eat more and you will grow bigger."
"Hmph! You're a liar."
"I never lie to ghosts. Come on, open your mouth and eat whatever you want to make up for it."
"What's this?"
"Spinach and tofu soup, made by myself, double tonic."
"...Well, it's okay, not too bad."
After coaxing and persuading, it took half an hour to feed Qian Duo one tablespoon at a time.
After putting away the tableware, Zhao Mengqi held her and walked around the room for a while.
This is what Qian Duo strongly requested, euphemistically calling it Xiaoshi.
Before, Zhao Mengqi would definitely not agree to such unreasonable demands, but now he is working hard without complaint. He only hopes that these young ladies will recover soon.
However, Qian Duo in his arms wished he could continue to be so sick.
After finally serving Qian Duo, Zhao Mengqi was able to eat by himself.
While they were eating, Wu Qian came over and asked, "Your Highness, are you eating now?"
"Yeah." Zhao Mengqi took a few mouthfuls and swallowed hastily, "Did something happen? I want Mr. Wu to come here in person."
"Nothing happened. Everything is normal. There is enough food and there are tens of thousands of soldiers. There will be no trouble."
After all, Wu Qian was a prime minister, so he could handle disaster relief matters easily. In addition, he was temporarily in charge of the daily administration of Pingjiang Mansion, and he also arranged it in an orderly manner.
"That's good. Mr. Wu, you can make your own decisions on other matters without asking me for instructions." Zhao Mengqi felt relieved and continued eating.
"Your Highness, I want to talk to you about the aftermath of the disaster, but there's no rush. We'll wait until you finish your meal first."
Wu Qian said he was not in a hurry, but his face was serious. Zhao Mengqi didn't keep him waiting for long, and finished the meal in two gulps.
The two moved to the flower hall and sat opposite each other.
"Wu Gong, what do you think?" Zhao Mengqi had a feeling that something would be serious, so he had a good attitude and was ready to listen carefully.
Wu Qian did not beat around the bush and said directly, "Your Highness, this Taihu Lake is a unique treasure land. In order to bring benefits and avoid disadvantages, various water conservancy facilities have been built since the pre-Qin Dynasty to the present day when the dynasty crossed south, and the results have been pretty good. For a long time, there have been few droughts and floods in the Taihu Lake area."
Zhao Mengqi nodded, water conservancy is about diverting water so that low areas are not flooded and high fields are irrigated. He has also learned some things about water conservancy in Taihu Lake these days.
Generally speaking, Taihu Lake can be divided into east and west sides. The terrain in the west is higher. Water conservancy facilities are mainly for water conservation and irrigation. Ponds are built and canals are built to divert water. An irrigation water network is formed from high to low, covering the highlands in the north and south as much as possible, and finally collecting water. Enter Taihu Lake.
As the terrain in the east is low-lying and flat, it is necessary to build dams to avoid flooding and protect farmland. At the same time, river channels must be widened to prevent siltation. Artificial water diversion channels running north-south must be dug among dozens of natural rivers running east-west. , used to allocate water sources and regulate the hydraulic power of each outlet river to prevent local disasters.
In addition, there is the construction of canals for transportation, and, yes, there are also projects to prevent seawater intrusion.
Wu Qian continued, "There are often construction initiatives in our dynasty, but they are often abandoned halfway, either due to lack of finances or opposition from powerful forces, which is disappointing."
"After the southern crossing, the population increased, the enclosure of farmland became more intense, disorder and chaos, and the system was corrupted. Among the three major rivers, the Dongjiang and Loujiang rivers have long been annihilated, and the Songjiang River is also blocked and narrow. As a result, the Taihu Lake area has become It is prone to floods and droughts.”
"Xiaozong lamented, "As long as there are fenced fields, there will be floods." The imperial court issued many bans on sieges, but they were hard to come back. The powerful people ignored the imperial ban and continued to add new sieges. In the tenth year of Chunxi, the number of sieges was 1,400. One hundred and eighty-nine, it has only been seventy years since then, and there are four to five thousand in Pingjiang Mansion alone. "
Zhao Mengqi frowned, "What does Mr. Wu mean, is it strictly forbidden to encircle the fields again?"
Wu Qian shook his head, "No, there are already so many fields surrounded. It's useless to just ban new fields. What's more, even if it can be banned for a while, it won't be banned forever. After all, there are so many people, they have to eat."
"I would like to have Your Highness personally take charge of the project and make a comprehensive plan for the surrounding fields, thoroughly dredge the drainage channels, and eliminate flooding."
Zhao Mengqi thought for a while, "Should we reopen the three rivers? Does Mr. Wu have a specific plan?"
Wu Qian has a well-thought-out idea, "Except for the Songjiang River, it is already very difficult to repair the other two rivers. It costs a lot of money and the gains outweigh the losses. However, the overall direction is still through north, east, and south."
"First, it connects Dianshan Lake, Cheng Lake and the surrounding Bai Clam Lake, Changbaidang Lake, Bailian Lake, Jinji Lake, Dushu Lake, etc., and releases water through Songjiang, Jishui Port, Niuchangjingtang, Badang River and other waterways. water."
"Secondly, Fanjiabang is opened in Kunshan, connecting the Huangpu River above and the Yangtze River below. Mishi Ferry also branches into three branches. In the north are Xietang, Maohe and Damlugang, connected with Dianshan Lake, and in the middle
Yuanxiejing is connected to Yuhuitang at the top, Maogang to the south, and the water from Hangzhou, Jiahu and Jiahu. "
"Thirdly, the Taipu River is used as a dry river, connecting Ant Yang, Taohua Yang, Fenhu, Masie Lake, Qianshengdang and other large and small lakes. In the area from the canal to the north of Liuhe, according to the terrain, there are Yangcheng, There are three water systems: Chengxiyu and Huxi along the Yangtze River.”
Just by listening to it, you can tell that this is a big project, and the amount of manpower and material resources it will consume is definitely not a small amount.
Zhao Mengqi blurted out and asked, "Approximately how much food will be needed?"
When it came to money and food, Wu Qian became cautious and spoke softly, for fear of scaring King Yan.
"It is estimated that dredging waterways will cost about 4 million, and demolishing unreasonable land enclosures is estimated to cost 300 to 5 million."
"What!?" Zhao Mengqi was still frightened. "It's almost ten million. How can the court get it?"
Wu Qian quickly explained, "Your Highness, there should be a lot of stolen money that the Liu family has lost. In addition, I also heard that you implemented the Good Monk Order and blackmailed... No, you collected tens of millions of dollars and paid them in advance. Yes, you must know that by arranging these water systems, you can also create a lot of fertile land, at least 20,000 hectares. The difference in land price is enough to repay you. Moreover, as the output of fertile land increases, taxes will also increase a lot. "
Zhao Mengqi was deep in thought, tapping his fingers on the table unconsciously, making Wu Qian restless.
After waiting for a while, Zhao Mengqi slowly said, "Mr. Wu, I think your plan is flawed."
Wu Qian was anxious, "Your Highness, this is a century-old plan, and it will benefit the future. This flood discharge has submerged many crops, and many people have lost this season's harvest and have no food and clothing. It is a good opportunity to provide work for relief. If you miss this time, Even if we have to repair it in the future, it will cost even more money and food! Your Highness, this world belongs to you, why should you be stingy with some money and food?"
Seeing Wu Qian anxiously getting angry with smoke rising from his head, Zhao Mengqi laughed in his heart and was very moved. This old man was also dedicated to serving the country and the people.
"Don't be impatient, Mr. Wu. Wait until I finish. What I mean is that your plan is too small. If you want to do something big, do it thoroughly."
Wu Qian was stunned, "A big one? What do you mean by this, Your Highness?"
The corner of Zhao Mengqi's mouth twitched, "Hey, I plan to spend 50 million yuan to comprehensively renovate Taihu Lake's water conservancy!"
"Fifty million!?" Wu Qian felt that he must have heard wrong.
