As time goes by, the Han Dynasty stumbles into the seventh year of Qianyou, bidding farewell to the disastrous autumn and winter of the sixth year of Qianyou. In the second half of last year, in the seventh month of autumn, there was a severe drought in Huainan, and the Huai River could not be waded; in the ninth month of autumn, there was a huge flood across the country, and the bad fields flooded the city.
What is annoying is that after floods and droughts, there is still no peace. In October of winter, there were earthquakes in Wei, Xing, Ming and other prefectures of Hebei Province for several days, often with more than ten degrees of intensity, especially in Weizhou. Hundreds of houses were destroyed, thousands of people were killed and injured, and there were more than ten cracks in the walls of Yuancheng.
However, no matter how great the disasters were, they were no longer enough to defeat the Han Dynasty today. Under the personal attention of the emperor Liu Chengyou, officials and generals inside and outside the Han court exerted great enthusiasm to fight against disasters and provide disaster relief.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, it also tested the governance ability of the Han Dynasty and the execution ability of the government. Although it does not satisfy Liu Chengyou, he can barely understand it. After all, the country has not been at peace for a long time, and the bureaucracy has not been completely upgraded.
During this process, a number of good legal officials emerged from various places who performed well, and a large part of them were selected and appointed by the Han court in these years.
Entering March, all things are growing and multiplying, and the city of Tokyo is as noisy as before. However, after more than a year of on-and-off expansion, Kaifeng City has changed dramatically.
The outermost part of Luocheng has been built, and Murong Yanchao obviously put his heart and energy into this matter. Compared with the original city, it is taller, thicker and stronger.
Everywhere in the city wall is full of new ideas, giving people a refreshing feeling. Liu Chengyou left the palace and inspected Luocheng accompanied by Murong Yanchao and Chang Si.
Murong Yanchao was very interested and introduced to Liu Chengyou: "The outer city has been completed. After the expansion, the city will be fifty-six miles in circumference. The city walls are rammed, one foot deep into the ground and three feet wide. Inside the outer city, there are horses every hundred steps. There are walls and war sheds, and defensive warehouses are set up every two hundred steps to store imperial weapons. The tooth road is connected with four "imperial roads" and crosses them vertically and horizontally.
All houses, shops, buildings, and temples are all built facing the street. According to His Majesty's wishes, they will no longer be within the boundaries of the market. Ditches run through the city, extending in all directions, and five Hongqiao bridges are temporarily built in the city..."
Murong Yanchao was talking enthusiastically when he saw Liu Chengyou focusing on the trench outside the city. He pointed with his hand and said: "The trench in the outer city is about ten feet wide and runs through all kinds of water. It was originally named Hulong River. On both sides of the trench, the lines are Willow trees are planted along all the tooth paths in the city."
"There are twenty flood and drought gates in total. In addition to the four gates in the north, there are three gates in the east, south and west. Up to now, there are only the names of each gate. Whether it is to follow the old city or to rename it, it still needs to be Your Majesty, please tell me!" Murong Yanchao asked.
Liu Chengyou glanced around and said: "Since it is a new city, I should come up with a new idea. As soon as I answer the city gate, I will go to the Hanlin Academy to inspect and name it!"
"Uncle Emperor, thank you for your hard work! At a glance, everything is brand new!" Liu Chengyou sighed with emotion, with a smile on his lips. It was a kind of joy from the heart: "This is to build Kaifeng into the most powerful city in the world!"
At this time, Liu Chengyou somewhat understood why so many monarchs liked to carry out large-scale construction projects. It is easy to be intoxicated by the satisfaction of seeing such majestic buildings, but at this time, Liu Chengyou couldn't help but be intoxicated by it.
This is just the initial construction, larger and more detailed construction is still to come.
Murong Yanchao was obviously very satisfied with the emperor's attitude. With a smile on his face, he cupped his hands and said: "Your Majesty is the lord of the world. He acts as the supreme king and controls all the people. He is the first city in the world! This is also a symbol of the strength of the Han Dynasty. Now that the new city has been established, It shows your Majesty’s majesty!”
This Uncle Murong is getting better and better at talking.
In order to show the quality of his work, Murong Yanchao also ordered someone to bring a hammer and hit it three times on the female wall. After several bangs, only three white spots were left on the bluestone bricks. , nothing else was damaged at all.
Liu Chengyou's eyes were slightly bright. This scene seemed vaguely familiar. He couldn't help but leaned forward, touched it, and said with emotion: "The city wall is so solid!"
Murong Yanchao said: "The strength of the capital lies first in the city wall, how dare you neglect it? In addition, Your Majesty has warned me, so I dare not be careless. Therefore, I have clearly issued the order, and in all sections of the city, if there is anyone who cheats on work, The supervisors, workers, and even the brick kilns involved must be dealt with severely!"
"Previously, there were bricks supplied with poor quality and passed off as good ones. The ministers found out that all the brick kilns involved were closed down, and the officials and businessmen who neglected and violated the law were arrested! After that, no one dared to perfunctory and pretend to be good!" Murong Yanchao said this While talking, he glanced at Chang Si inadvertently. The old man noticed it and lowered his head subconsciously, feeling a little awkward.
Ignoring him, Murong Yanchao continued: "Look, Your Majesty, every area is marked with brick kilns, masonry and supervision. Anyone who makes a mistake cannot escape..."
After listening to Murong Yanchao's explanation, Liu Chengyou couldn't help but cast a surprised look at this dark and rough man. He was surprised that he could do something so meticulous and thoughtful.
"Uncle Huang is attentive!" Liu Chengyou praised.
"It should!"
Stroking the thick city wall, it was rough to the touch, but he seemed to be able to feel its thickness. After calming down his joyful mood, Liu Chengyou couldn't help but sigh: "Such a majestic city, but it has cost my great people so much blood and sweat!"
"Have all arrangements been made for the city construction casualties?" Liu Chengyou asked.
"Your Majesty is kind and always considers the people!" Chang Si took the initiative and said: "Everyone is given money and food to support them, and no one is left out..."
"I heard that before and after the city was built, there were some cases of corruption and even indifference to human life?" Liu Chengyou glanced at Chang Si and said leisurely.
As soon as these words came out, Chang Si's face darkened and he hesitated, feeling a little uneasy. He nervously gestured to Murong Yanchao, and Emperor Murong just spoke to relieve his embarrassment: "With such a large project, it is inevitable that some people will be blinded by the power of others, but please rest assured, Your Majesty, I will strictly monitor it to prevent any slight mistakes!"
Liu Chengyou did not express his position on this, but still touched the city wall, sighing secretly in his heart, wondering how much flesh, blood and lives had been devoured under this city foundation. As far as he knew, in order to build the city, hundreds of death row inmates in Tokyo Prison alone were used. It was a very cruel method...
Building a city with flesh and blood is not an exaggeration.
Seeing that the emperor's interest suddenly weakened, Murong Yanchao took the initiative to suggest: "Your Majesty, may I take you to see the city gate and the urn city?"
"Okay!" Liu Chengyou waved his hand lightly.
Leading the way, Murong Yanchao continued to report the progress to him: "The old city walls are being demolished and the foundation of the inner city wall is being built. In the inner city, streets are being opened up, and official offices, market shops, shops, and temples are being rebuilt. , the people have all been relocated and resettled, and if nothing unexpected happens, it will be over by the beginning of next spring!"
After hearing what he said, Liu Chengyou finally smiled again and said, "Now, I am somewhat looking forward to seeing how grand Kaifeng New City will be after it is completed!"
"In addition, I am also planning to put the expansion of the imperial city and palace on the agenda. I don't know the plans for the pavilions of the palaces, various government offices, prisons, and military camps. They have all been drawn up and need to be reviewed by Your Majesty..." Murong Yanchao said again.
Upon hearing this, Liu Chengyou stopped, thought for a while, raised his hand and instructed: "First, focus on the inner and outer cities to meet the needs of the officials and the people. As for the imperial city, are you in a hurry?"
Murong Yanchao was stunned. In his opinion, the most important thing about Kaifeng New City was the palace city and the imperial city. Those were the face projects that the Han Dynasty really valued.
I secretly wondered for a while whether the emperor wanted to show off his "simplicity" again. Although I muttered in my heart, I still accepted the order. After all, with the city's construction reaching this level, it would be a matter of time before the palace was expanded.
