It turned out that Wei Jian saw that Jiang Shuo was so young and expected that he had no real abilities. He thought that the leaders of these big gangs saw the seriousness of the flood and randomly found someone to be a scapegoat.
Jiang Shuo knew that he was young, and it was only natural for Wei Jian to have doubts about him. It was useless to say anything in front of a man of character like Wei Jian. Only by doing his best to solve the flood in front of him could he win Xianggong Wei's trust. Jiang Shuo asked Lu Yuxuan: "Lu Lang, didn't you say you want to dredge the Bian Canal? Why do I think the people are building cofferdams, completely blocking the river and Bian River?"
Before Lu Yuxuan could speak, Wei Jian snorted again and said, "What do you know? This is a strategy to contain water and wash away sand."
Lu Yuxuan explained to Jiang Shuo: "The river is high and the Bian River is low. If it keeps flowing, the river water will continue to wash the sediment into the Bianshui River. Even if the boatmen work day and night, there will be no time to dig the sand. Therefore, Wei Xianggong adopted this strategy of 'bending water to wash away the sand'. First block the river, and then dig a small opening. The water flow at the breach will be very fast, and the silted river sand can be washed away. This dredging method of controlling sand with water is really miraculous."
Wei Jian said: "Lu Lang, you are in trouble now."
Lu Yuxuan hurriedly asked what happened, and Wei Jian said: "The Peach Blossom Flood was too severe this time. It took the villagers ten days to finally block it. However, the water in the river surged in recent days, and the earthen dam was too high. No one dared to go up. Dig it up.”
Lu Yuxuan said: "Yes, once the earthen dam is dug, the river water will gush out instantly, which will inevitably wash away a large area. No matter how fast the person digging the dam runs, he will be swept into the water."
Wei Jian said: "Originally, we considered it and built a wooden gate in the middle. However, the river rose too fast. When filling in the cofferdam, the wooden gate was buried in the dam. Under the squeeze of the river, it could no longer be pulled out. "
Everyone was talking and walking, and they had already stepped onto the cofferdam and earthen dam. The river was still rising, and the water had overflowed and formed a thin waterfall on the dam. Everyone was carrying water and walked to the center of the embankment. They saw a large wooden frame standing with a red flag on the top and a gourd hanging below. This gourd was not a gourd for making ladles, but an iron pulley because it had two wheels. Hence the name "gourd". A thick rope is passed through it. It is thought that it was originally used to pull up the wooden gate.
Jiang Shuo reached out and grabbed the rope and took a dip. Lu Yuxuan hurriedly said: "Young master, no, if we lift the wooden door now, all of us will rush into the Bian River!"
Wei Jian was greatly disapproving, thinking that hundreds of people had tried before and couldn't pull it up. How could this little baby be able to pull it up? Lu Langte was also scared to death. He said: "Those who can't pull it up are on both sides." The chute is stuck in the mud, and the river is pushing it out. Hundreds of people can't pull it up." He looked to the southeast and said: "Seeing that the water in the Yuexi River will rise tonight, it will destroy the cofferdam. , or even if the dam breaks, the people on both sides of the Bian River will become fish and turtles..."
Jiang Shuo said: "Is it so serious? Wouldn't it be a good idea to 'reinforce the water and wash away the sand' if the river breaks down the dam?"
Lu Yuxuan said: "Young Master, the only way to flush out sand with water is to open a small opening in the middle of the cofferdam. If the dam breaks, it will become a flood to flood the city."
Jiang Shuo asked anxiously: "What should we do?"
Wei Jian turned around and walked back, pointing to the bottom of the embankment and said: "We can't do it on land. We are going to take the waterway..."
But I saw hundreds of rolling logs laid on the west bank from Bianshui to the river. Thousands of boatmen and river workers were shouting slogans and dragging a boat along the bank. It seemed that they were transporting the boat from Bianshui to the river. In the river.
Wei Jian said as he walked: "We thought of a way to use a boat to hit the center of the cofferdam. The boat is heavy. If it can open a hole, it can also achieve the effect of 'confining water and washing away sand'." .”
Jiang Shuo said: "What if the boat is operated improperly and the entire dam is destroyed?"
Wei Jian said: "After all, the force of the ship collision cannot be compared with the river water rushing into the dam, and we have modified the bow of the ship so that it can only hit a small opening in the dam without destroying the entire dam."
Everyone walked down the dam and came to the boat. They saw that the boat had a short and fat hull. It was the Xie Zhijiang boat on the Bian River, but this boat had a large iron plow installed on the bow. Wei Jian said: " This is a sand axe, which was originally used by Xiehaozhijiang boats to break the sand on the river. It was enlarged and used to break the earthen dam. Now there is only one last question, who is going to sail the boat? To push the ship sideways and then hit the earthen dam is impossible without good skills."
Xiao Dayi patted his chest and said, "Of course it has to be me, Lao Xiao!"
Xu Lai also stood up and said: "When it comes to steering, Xu is second, and no one dares to be first."
Jiang Shuo said: "Two eldest brothers, I will go with you!"
Xiao Dayou quickly stopped and said: "Young Master, sailing on this river is already difficult and dangerous, and it is even more dangerous now. You are not a boatman, so it is better not to take risks."
Xu Lai also said: "Young Master, although your martial arts are high, you can't use them on this ship. It's up to us, the boatmen on the east side of the river, to do anything about the boat!" Jiang Shuo could only nod in agreement and told them to be careful.
At this time, the civilians had put the big boat into the river and tied it with dozens of thick ropes to prevent it from drifting downstream. Xiao Dayou selected forty of the most capable oarsmen to board the boat with him, while Xu Lai steered behind. Everyone on the shore slowly let go of the rope. As soon as the rope was relaxed, the big boat was washed away from the river bank by the river water, and the rope immediately tightened again.
At that time, the river was turbid and turbulent, and the boat shook violently as soon as it left the shore. Under the command of Wei Jian, the people on the shore let go of the ropes, and the boat immediately went down the river and passed the center of the dam.
Seeing that the big boat was about to float downstream, Xiao Dayoufa from the bow suddenly heard a shout, and forty people shouted together and shook their oars. The big boat then moved up the river and returned to the center of the dam. The boatmen from the owner of the channel are really amazing. They supported each other with their feet on the slippery deck, and they were like one body. Their feet did not move at all in the rough waves. Their upper bodies were bare and their backs were bare, letting the rain hit their bodies and faces. Their arms were neat and tidy. With a steady motion, the ship was firmly anchored in the river.
Xiao Dayou shouted again, Xu Lai turned the rudder horizontally, and the oarsmen on the boat paddled left and right, and the people on the shore tightened the ropes. These dozen ropes were tied to the starboard side of the ship, and everyone tightened them immediately. Tightened up, the boat and the shore worked together, and the big boat slowly turned across the river.
At this moment, the big ship was lying sideways, and the people using oars could only control the front and rear. To hold the big ship, which weighed more than a thousand stones, against the current, they could only rely on the river workers on the river bank. The name of the Xiezhouzhijiang boat refers to the short name of Xiezhou. Xiezhou means that its hull is fat and short, while Zhijiang means that its draft is shallow, as if it is on the water. Therefore, the boat can slide sideways on the river without capsizing. The river workers on the bank used the long ropes previously released to hold the starboard side of the boat. They did not need to go up the dam, but they could help the boat stabilize in the river.
Seeing the hard work of everyone, Jiang Shuo also went up to pull the long rope to help pull the rope together. Seeing this, the heroes such as Hun Weiming, Lu Yuxuan, Xie Yanchang, etc. also stepped forward to help pull the rope. The heroes were all martial arts masters, and each helped with the rope. The people on the shore suddenly felt much more relaxed.
On the river, Xiao Dayou saw the boat on the bow aiming at the place where the red flag was planted on the earthen dam. With an order, Xu Lai immediately pushed the handle to straighten the rudder. The rudder of this big boat was not much smaller than the door panel of the mansion. It takes several people to operate, but Xu Lai's innate supernatural power can be operated freely by one person. At this moment, the rudder is cutting across the river, and the impact of the river water is so violent, but he holds the rudder firmly. Xiao Dayou takes the lead and shouts the trumpet, and all the oarsmen They rowed against each other together to push the boat away from the shore, and then rowed quickly and steered the boat into the embankment.
A muffled sound was heard, and everyone on the boat and on the shore was shocked. The iron sand ax on the bow of the ship was embedded in the dam for several feet, but it did not break through. Upon seeing this, Xiao Dayou shouted to the oarsmen to start maneuvering the oars again and move the boat further away. As the boat moved towards the center of the river, the water flow became more rapid, and everyone on the bank felt more and more heavy on their hands. They could only hear the creaking of the ropes. One piece, showing great exertion, Xiao Dayou shouted again, this time the big ship rushed towards the dam faster, and saw that a lot of sand fell on the dam, but it was still not broken.
After being hit like this several times, the earthen dam still remained intact. It turned out that the gates inside the earthen dam were made of logs tied together. The wood was tough and strengthened the earthen dam. When the ship collided again, there was a "click" sound, and the sand ax was embedded in the wood in the dam. When the ship retreated, the iron ax collapsed from the bow, bringing with it a large piece of wood, which actually tore the bow. .
The river water poured into the boat. Although it did not sink, the bow became heavier and the stern was tilted up, which lifted Xu Lai up. Although Xu Lai was strong, there is a saying that strength rises from the ground. Others were lifted up and their feet were lifted off. He was on the deck, unable to exert any force, and naturally could not hold down the rudder. The rudder turned sharply under the impact of the river water, and actually knocked Xu Lai over into the river.
The bow of the boat was filled with water, and the rudder was out of control. The big boat suddenly began to swing violently on the river. There was a "stretch" sound, and the outermost long rope was broken, and all the people fell over with a crash. Seeing this scene, Jiang Shuo didn't care anymore. He grabbed the broken rope and wrapped it twice around his waist. He jumped into the turbulent river. Xiang'er screamed and wanted to chase him. But he was stopped by Lu Yuxuan, who said: "Come and pull the rope!"
The rope flew into the river like flying. Everyone knew that Jiang Shuo was on the other end of the rope. If the rope was lost, even if Jiang Shuo was a god descended to earth, he might not be able to come back amid the angry water and turbulent waves. Lu Yuxuan, Hun Weiming and others immediately rushed forward and grabbed the rope. Fortunately, the rope was very long. Jiang Shuo took it down for a long time, but there was still a large section on the shore.
Everyone was about to pull back, but Lu Yuxuan shouted: "Don't be busy yet!" It turned out that Jiang Shuo had emerged from the river, and he was swimming hard towards Xu Lai who had fallen into the water.
Xu Lai got out of the running boat, and the water quality was naturally very good. After falling into the water, he could float on the water, which would not cause him to drown immediately. However, the river was very fast and he took several sips of water. It was difficult for him to get back to the boat by his own strength. As if he were in the sky, he thought he was going to die today. Suddenly he felt his ribs tightening and he was being lifted up by someone. At that time, the waves in the river were turbid and the rain was pouring from the sky. Xu Lai couldn't see clearly who could be there. He jumped into the water to save himself in such a huge wave, and then felt his body lightened. Xu Lai's fat body actually rose and fell back to the boat.
