Just like when going on tour in the past, as long as you go north, your first stop is Huazhou. The total number of troops during this patrol was more than 20,000, which was more than four times that of the previous northern tour. Although there were many people, there were enough vehicles and horses, and there was almost no delay during the journey. Due to the improvement of the roads around Kaifeng, it only took After three days, we arrived at White Horse.
This time Emperor Liu went on a tour and first went to Henan. In addition to declaring power and marshy areas, he also had another purpose, which was to inspect the Yellow River and inspect the embankments to soothe the people who suffered from floods in the past.
This route also passes through the downstream counties of Hua, Pu, Yun, Qi, Zi, and Qing. Although the river sometimes gets angry and brings disasters and persecutions, it is still the mother river. People along the river still rely on it for their livelihood, and there are many prosperous towns along the river.
White Horse is not only an important crossing on the river, but also an important line of defense for Tokyo. After several reductions over the years, the number of troops stationed there is still 3,000.
In the early years, Baima was the area hardest hit by the Yellow River breach. It once caused a headache for Emperor Liu, and he even came to inspect it in person specifically to deal with the breach. Later, Bai Chongzan, the Marquis of Boping, led the servants to build an embankment at the fortress, and the subsequent state and county generals continued to repair and complete it. Now it has been stable for several years.
In fact, after so many years of governance by the imperial court, the yellow plague in the vast area of Bianluo has been greatly improved. Judging from the frequency of floods in recent years, it can be seen that the investment of so many people and financial resources from the imperial court was not in vain.
On the contrary, the downstream areas may be more naughty, eager to flow eastward into the sea, repeatedly breaking through the embankments, but unwilling to be restrained, rushing south and north. After several breaches, the river course has also undergone considerable changes. In addition to causing diversion, the breach also caused considerable damage to the downstream areas, but it is more obvious that the flow is biased towards the north.
Not long ago, an official from the Ministry of Industry suggested manpower diversion and the use of southward diversion of river water to allow it to flow through the Huaihe River into the sea. Although it was just a direction proposed and there were precedents to follow, it was decisively rejected.
In Emperor Liu's opinion, the water flow of the Yellow River needs to be divided, but how to divide it is best to follow the temperament of the mother river and not to block it forcefully. Since the trend of northward flow is obvious, then make a fuss about the north. Moreover, in the current Han Dynasty, due to political and military considerations, there are many fewer, and it can be governed relatively "purely".
Of course, the main problem lies in the accumulated river sand. You know, today's big man, even the problem of sand accumulation in Bianshui River has been highlighted.
When arriving at Baima, the first stop of Emperor Liu's inspection was the Liuhe Embankment. He had visited it in person in the early years, and now he was revisiting his old place. Compared with the original, the Liuhe Embankment at this time is much more spectacular. The neat stone strips are tightly compacted together to form a solid line of defense, restraining the rushing river water and protecting the people along the river.
The most obvious thing is that a large number of elms and willows are planted along the embankment. This is to stabilize the water and soil. Under the imperial edict, local officials and people have continued to achieve this for more than ten years. In Baima alone, more than 100,000 trees of various types have been planted over the years, and they are still being added every year.
It can be found that in areas where flooding occurred frequently in the past, artificially planted trees have grown to a large scale, and Liuhe Embankment has even formed a landscape. In recent years, many more travelers have chosen to come here for outings.
It is late spring, everything is growing vigorously, and the dense woods along the coast are also dyed with a layer of dark green, glowing with vitality. Under the green trees, the scenery is beautiful. Compared with its original simplicity, the scenery now is much more eye-catching.
The river water is scouring the embankment tirelessly. Although it has not yet reached the flood season, standing on it, you can clearly feel the powerful impact.
"Is this a big river? It's really spectacular. No wonder it's called the Yellow River. Compared with Bianshui, it's much turbid!" Liu Jia followed Emperor Liu, clinging to his father, looking at the river, and said in surprise.
The eldest daughter was taller, already reaching Emperor Liu's chin. Her youthful age and beautiful face were like a bud waiting to bloom. Although she is getting older, she is still Emperor Liu's favorite princess, and she probably has a habit of favoring her. This time when I came to Liuhe Embankment for inspection, the only one who brought his children was Liu Jia.
Putting his hand gently on his beloved daughter's shoulder, Liu Chengyou sighed: "In the future, I'm afraid it will become even more turbid, and the sediment problem will be difficult to solve!"
In fact, facing this big river, Emperor Liu sometimes felt really powerless. From his cognition and knowledge, he can see these problems, and even get to the essence. However, if he wants to solve them, there is really no good way.
He also hopes to see a clear and clean mother river, but that is just an extravagant hope and fantasy. Even the emperor who holds the power of the world can only try his best to do what he can. As for more, it is really difficult.
If he were just a native of this era, perhaps he wouldn't have so many worries and worries. Sometimes, knowing too much doesn't seem like a good thing.
"Dad, you sighed again!" Liu Jia said suddenly. His bright eyes sparkled with wit.
Upon hearing this, Emperor Liu couldn't help but smile and said: "You caught me!"
This is the agreement between father and daughter. Liu Jia reminds herself to sigh less and smile more. Putting away his emotion, a smile filled his face again, and he glanced at a middle-aged official standing next to him. He was wearing a crimson official robe. He was not too old and was already a fifth-grade magistrate of Huazhou.
"Lu Duan, you have done a good job as a magistrate! Since I entered Huazhou, I have heard many stories from you!" Liu Chengyou said.
Lu Duan, whose courtesy name was Yizhi, was the younger brother of Lu Yin, the governor of Zhejiang Province and a Jinshi in the fifteenth year of Qianyou's reign. If we talk about the speed of promotion, it can be said that it is fast. Of course, his brother Lu Yin is responsible for this. Lu Yin's promotion was suppressed to a certain extent because of Emperor Liu's appointment. Therefore, out of compensation, the benefits eventually fell on Lu Duan.
The governor of Huazhou was appointed by Emperor Liu. At that time, it aroused some criticism. Although Huazhou is not a big state, it has an important geographical location and belongs to the prosperous area of the Central Plains. This is much better than the border states that Zhao Kuangyi and others went to.
Lu Duan had only been in office for less than half a year, and he had not achieved any outstanding achievements. He was not praised by everyone, and seemed very mediocre. Completely unlike Zhao Kuangyi, he can always come up with some tricks wherever he goes.
But similarly, nothing went wrong. There was political harmony and people's livelihood was stable. There were no adjustments to the existing governance. We just let nature take its course.
One of the stories Emperor Liu heard about Lu Duan was that when he first took office, several of his assistant officials, such as Chang Shi and Sima, were unconvinced by his lack of qualifications, especially Chang Shi Zhang Tingmin (son of the hero Zhang Xun) who had a chance to take over as the governor of the state. ), taking the lead in ostracizing him. First, he lost face at the banquet, and later made things difficult for him in the process of governing.
And Lu Duan's performance is amazing. He is neither angry nor annoyed, neither impatient nor impatient. He just lives a low-key life and does things in a low-key manner. He neither fights with nor quarrels with him. When meeting Zhang Tingmin on weekdays, he always smiles, responds humbly, and is polite. After a while, Zhang Tingmin himself was embarrassed to target Lu Duan again.
Lu Duan has always maintained this warm-water character and style, and the same is true for Huazhou's political style. The government rarely takes any action, leaving the people to develop on their own, but order and security have always been good.
At this time, facing Emperor Liu's praise, Lu Duan secretly wondered if it was irony. He didn't feel that his reputation was very good.
Therefore, after hesitating for a moment, he raised his hand and said: "I have not been in office for a long time. I have neither contributed to the court nor educated the people. I really dare not accept your majesty's praise!"
After hearing what he said, Emperor Liu shook his head and looked at him carefully. His appearance was somewhat similar to his brother's, but his personality was completely different.
Giving him a playful look, Emperor Liu said slowly: "Lu Duan, you are such an interesting person!"
