Chapter Seventy-Eight: Zhao Xin's Test

Zhao Xin is also an old minister, and Yongle Chu was a student of Tai, not a Jinshi.

So on top of promotion, it was suppressed.

Zhao Xin rose step by step, and went out to patrol various places many times, and he can be regarded as an old governor. Four years after Xuande, he served as a governor outside.

doesn't seem to have any great skills, but none of the governors he has ever made anything wrong.

This old minister, Zhu Qizhen feels that he can be trusted.

It's just that Zhao Xin at this time doesn't feel that he can be trusted. Because in front of the power of heaven and earth, there are very few things that anyone can do.

At this moment, Zhao Xin is already on the embankment of the Yellow River.

He was dressed in a cloak and hat, facing the heavy rain, supporting his thin body, surrounded by countless officials, walking on the river embankment.

Because of the heavy rain, the visibility was very low, so when they looked north, they could hardly see the embankment opposite, which gave people the illusion that they were not facing the Yellow River, but a sea.

The sound of rain drowned out almost all the sounds. If you want to be heard, you have to speak loudly.

Zhao Xin was silent, listening to the subordinates around him, one by one shouting and roaring.

"The imperial court has allocated 200,000 taels of silver to repair the river, and all of them have been distributed." One official said: "Now ------"

Zhao Xin's voice was a little hoarse, and as soon as he opened his mouth, he could hear the fire in his throat, and he said, "The silver from the treasury will be embezzled first." Something happened to me, and I took it. ”

"Yes." The official said.

It cannot be said that the imperial court did not pay enough attention to the Yellow River, and the 200,000 taels of silver were urgently allocated to Henan by the cabinet when they felt that the situation was not good.

The previous river repair money was a lump sum, and it was impossible to use it when it was idle.

Under normal circumstances, 200,000 taels is enough.

After all, 200,000 taels is not a small amount. It's just that this year's Yellow River is menacing, mainly because of the weather, the rain has been continuous in the past six months, and it seems that I want to give enough water this year.

It's not Henan, but even the Yangtze River basin is also raining constantly.

However, in terms of the fault tolerance rate of natural loads, the Yellow River is far inferior to the Yangtze River. The water of the Yangtze River has also risen a lot, but it is not too dangerous, but the water situation of the Yellow River has almost reached the point of emergency.

However, after ten days of hard work, 200,000 taels of silver, there was not a tael left.

It is not a problem to use the treasury, after all, in such a major matter, even if it is cut first and then played, the imperial court will not say anything.

But the problem is that there is not much money in the treasury. If the Yellow River continues to roar like this, it will not last much at all.

You must know that at this moment, almost all the men on both sides of the Yellow River have already gone up to the embankment.

Zhao Xin also mobilized all the local guards in Henan. He mobilized all the human, financial, and material resources that could be mobilized.

He himself was on the embankment.

And it is the most dangerous section in the north of Kaifeng.

The Yellow River makes a bend here, and then the water rushes directly above the embankment. Once the embankment breaks, Zhao Xin himself may also have to be with the fish and turtles.

But so what?

In doing so, he certainly inspired people's hearts, so that the officials at all levels of the prefecture and county, and even the county's teachings, ambassadors, and such nine-grade officials, also went to the embankment and guarded them in sections.

Facing the roaring sound of the Yellow River, he was still very weak in his heart.

An old man in cloth came over with a short beat, and said, "My lord, I sent someone from the north to venture across the river, and I want my lord to report that the embankment on the opposite side is already showing some signs of being unable to hold on." Please make a decision as soon as possible. ”

Zhao Xin said: "What decision? ”

The official gritted his teeth and said, "It is better to decide in the south than in the north." ”

In an instant, there was a thunderclap in the sky, Zhao Xin's eyes were as cold as electricity, and he stared at the official and said, "You mean to let me break the embankment?" ”

The old man knelt on the embankment and said, "My lord, the little old man's house is in Henan, and he will not make such a decision unless he has to." ”

"But this is the rule of the imperial court, the river is determined in the south, and the river is just entering the Huai River. Between the Yellow River and the Huai River, there are many rivers, the Yellow River is just to seize a river channel into the Huai, and once the river is broken in the north, it will enter the sea from Shandong, but within a thousand miles, it will be harmed by this river. ”

The old man began to cry as he spoke.

It's just that his whole body is wet with rain, and he can't see what rain is and what tears are.

This old man said it easily, but Zhao Xin didn't know that things were not so simple.

Where the Yellow River passes, what will happen to it? Not to mention the extinction of humans and animals at that time, just to say that in the future, even if the gap is blocked, these fertile fields will become saline-alkali land, or even sandy land.

Otherwise what did Lankao Sands come about?

Every time the Yellow River bursts, it affects not only at that time, but also after that, and we must use great efforts to eliminate the sequelae. There were even some things, with the productivity of the time, that simply could not eliminate the sequelae.

That is, the damage caused to local agricultural production was almost permanent and irreversible for the time.

The old man also understood this, so he couldn't help crying.

Zhao Xin also understood.

If the Yellow River breaks from the north bank and rushes out of a river channel into the sea, it will be a terrible disaster for Henan and Shandong. What's even more terrifying is that once the Yellow River does not enter the Huai, the entire canal system will collapse.

This was again a result that the imperial court could not tolerate.

Therefore, in times of crisis, it is better to decide in the south than in the north, which is what the ministers who govern the river must think of.

Zhao Xin took a deep breath and said: "Send someone to tell the prefect of Wei Hui, just say what I said, once the river is decided, I want his life, on both sides of the big river, the embankment over there cannot be decided, and it is not allowed to be decided." ”

The old man said, "My lord, if it were just like this, the little old man would be able to hold on." But I'm worried, worried. ”

Zhao Xin said: "What are you worried about? ”

The old man said, "Worry about it." ”

Zhao Xin was silent for a moment, and asked the people around him: "Did the prefect of Luoyang report it, how many fingers of rain did it fall there?" ”

These people were silent for a while, and said, "More than five fingers." ”

A few fingers of rain, one way to measure it, is to put your hand horizontally in the container, submerge one finger, that is, one finger, and so on.

Zhao Xin suddenly felt extremely bitter in his mouth.

If it's just Luoyang, he isn't too worried, but the problem is that there is not only one Luoyang in the upper reaches of the Yellow River, and the rain in Luoyang is like this, so what will happen to the rain in Shaanxi?

This is something that Zhao Xin doesn't dare to think, can't think, and doesn't want to think.

"Sheep and Horses." I don't know who shouted, and suddenly the people on the entire embankment looked into the distance, looking at a red dot in the monstrous waves.

That's a red flag.

A small red flag.

It's also a human life.

When the upstream water rises, it is necessary to notify the downstream urgently, otherwise, it will cause immeasurable consequences.

But how do you get the message to you before the flood arrives?

Only with the help of the power of water.

Upstream warriors should be selected, and they will ride on sheepskin rafts and go down the river to report to the lower reaches that the flood peak is approaching.

The Yellow River in the flood season is a terrible dragon, even if the water is good, it may not be able to compete for a way out in the Yellow River.

This is a more dangerous game than rushing the tide of the Qiantang River, and it is an almost lifeless choice.

This little sheepskin raft, with its sharp whistle and raised red flag, could not even get close to the embankment, and was desperately pushed by the raging Yellow River, and flew in the eyes of everyone.

It's like this life is gone.

The final whereabouts of such brave people are generally not seen in life, dead without seeing corpses, and they do not know that they are sleeping together with this mother river in a certain corner of the Yellow River.

But what he brought down was the vitality of the people on both sides of the strait.

"My lord, if you don't act, it's too late." The old man said.

Almost all the sounds on both sides of the strait stopped, even the sound of rain.

The sky has not cleared, it is already dead depressing.

Zhao Xin took off his hat, revealing a head full of white hair, trembling slightly in the wind, he opened it several times, and finally closed his mouth.

The decision to give up the lives of some people to save another part of the people, so that this old man, who has read the books of the sages, cannot make this determination no matter what.

What to do?