Chapter 436: Qingjiangpu (4)

The rain had stopped, and a crescent moon hung high in the sky, turning the ground white. The bluestone slabs on the river embankment are as smooth as paper, mirrored in the moonlight.

However, the water of the Yellow River, which was already rising around him, was still roaring, flashing yellow light in the dark night, like a galloping dragon, and people's eyes were dazzled to see it.

Even if he was reluctant in his heart, under Xia Yan's urging, the boatman still had the courage to sail the boat to the south shore.

Xia Yan knew what was going on here, so he immediately jumped onto the embankment with someone and shouted with a cold face: "Come on, come over with a shovel and a crowbar, and pick up the stone slab on it for me." ”

"Yes." At the sound of the order, several officials began to move.

The wind was very strong, and under the clear moon, Fu Lin felt a little chilled, and his voice trembled: "Lord Xia, what the boatman said just now is too outrageous, more than 600,000 taels of silver, more than 30 miles of embankment, turned into tofu slag, and it was actually made under the nose of our river yamen, it is really unbelievable......

Xia Yan suddenly calmed down and said lightly: "Before we open the embankment, we don't know what's going on, and we can't listen to the words of the shipwright." Master Fu, you seem to be a little cold? ”

Fu Lin's body couldn't stop shaking: "My lord." ”

Xia Yan: "Don't worry, calm down, say something else." ”

"Yes, yes, yes." Fu Lin also felt a little embarrassed in front of Xia Yan, so he took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. He had nothing to say, and said, "My lord, I heard that you came to Nanhe River to serve this time because Yang Shoufu personally appointed you?" ”

"Not really." Xia Yan replied with a smile: "It was recommended by Sun Dan and Sun Jingyuan to His Majesty, but it has nothing to do with Lord Shoufu." ”

"Ah, it was recommended by Sun Jingyuan." Fu Lin suddenly became a little excited: "Fu Lin admires Sun Jingyuan's talent and learning, I didn't expect that Lord Xia was actually familiar with Sun Dan, it was too exciting." If there is an opportunity in the future, please also ask the adults to recommend one or two in front of Sun Jingyuan, and the lower officials can also ask Sun Dan for advice on the strategy of governing the river. ”

Xia Yan suddenly smiled: "Actually, I am only one side of Sun Jingyuan, and I am not familiar with each other. Speaking of which, I had a little misunderstanding with him back then. Now, Sun Dan is a close minister of the Son of Heaven and a candidate for the future minister. Xia Yan is just a small soldier, and I thought that I would never have any intersection with him again. But I didn't want Sun Dan to think about this official, and recommended me in front of His Majesty, which is really surprising! ”

"Remember, it's a good thing to let Sun Jingyuan worry about it, why haven't I been remembered?" Fu Lin sighed, and lowered his voice again: "The lower officials heard that the imperial court intends to combine the three sections of river defense together and set up a general river yamen, which is the same as that of the political envoys. In other words, the governor of the river will be concurrently served by the second-rank officer. ”

Fu Lin's heart suddenly froze, and he also learned the news through the same year in the capital. This political reform can be described as earth-shattering, if the three sections of river defense are combined into one, it is just a simple addition to the establishment of a political envoy, and I don't know how many people soar into the sky. This Xia Yan became the prime minister of Nanhe at this juncture, is it to prepare for the establishment of the Zonghe Yamen in the future, is this Xia Yan going to be of great use?

If in that case, a sixth-grade official suddenly becomes a second-grade official, what else can it be if it doesn't go straight to the clouds?

Hearing Fu Lin ask, Xia Yan did not shy away from it. In fact, since he came to Nanhe Daodao, the people in the river yamen have been very repulsive to him. In a place like the river, a lot of money passes through every year, and a huge interest group has been formed, so naturally he is unwilling to let him, an outsider, come to "intervene". And Fu Lin was not treated well in the river yamen, so the two got very close. Perhaps, from the bottom of his heart, Xia Yan has regarded Fu Lin as his own.

Xia Yan didn't think about it, and replied directly: "The imperial court has this idea, in fact, this opinion was put forward by Sun Dan. Sun Jingyuan said that the river and the Cao Yun are integrated, and it is not only unnecessary to divide the river into three sections, but also artificially increases the operating cost. If the river is managed in sections, the three sections of the river will be handled separately, which is not conducive to overall planning and cooperation, and there are many more troubled things. It is better to combine them to facilitate the use of river workers' funds and the requisition of local manpower and material resources. ”

Fu Lin thought so: "That's true, this is the way to govern the river, it really takes all sections to work together." If each does his own thing, many demon moths will come out. For example, if the upstream wants to release water to drain the flood, if the downstream side is not well coordinated, it will be an unprecedented flood if you are not careful. ”

Xia Yan nodded: "Also, this imperial court allocates so much river silver every year, if an independent yamen is not established to manage it, there will be more people who handle it, and it is inevitable that some people will reach out and be greedy for ink." ”

As he was talking, several officials had already picked up a few bluestone slabs on the river embankment.

At this digging, Xia Yan and Fu Lin both raised their spirits, and they didn't care about speaking, so they hurriedly walked over and watched from the side.

Originally, according to the Nanhe River, the embankments in this area were all made of bluestone, but the stone slabs on the surface were "exposed" a layer of loess.

Fu Lin was startled, and couldn't help but shout: "Why is this so, doesn't the official document say that they are all stones?" ”

A servant asked Xia Yan: "My lord, are you still digging?" ”

Xia Yantie's face was blue: "Dig, keep digging." ”

According to the specifications of the general embankment, even if it is not an all-stone structure, it should be rammed earth underneath. Strange to say, the servant's hoe was easily dug into the dirt. In a moment, a large pit was dug underneath.

At this point, everyone felt that the problem was serious.

The officials also stopped: "My lord, are you still digging?" ”

Xia Yan paused, grabbed a handful of soil in his hand, and only gently pinched it, but he pinched out the water.

Fu Lin was a little frightened in his heart, and shouted timidly: "Lord Xia." ”

At this moment, Xia Yan's face was no longer bloody, and he looked extremely hideous in the moonlight: "Who built this embankment, who accepted it, and who allocated the money?" ”

"Adult ......"

"Say!" Xia Yan stood up suddenly, and threw the wet mud on Fu Lin: "Fu Lin, I remember that you are in charge of the accounts, the ins and outs of more than 600,000 taels of silver, labor, materials, and construction period are all you in charge of the accounts, say!" ”

Fu Lin only felt as cold as if he had fallen into an ice cave, but he also knew that if he didn't explain things clearly at this moment, he wouldn't be able to carry this black cauldron.

He raised his head and said loudly: "Lord Xia, Xia Guan is just an accountant. The embankment was repaired by Lord Wang, and after completion, it was accepted by Gonggong Gan, and finally, it was also allocated by Lord Wang. Xia Guan also thought about coming to Suining to see it in person, but every time he said that he wanted to come over, Lord Wang always said that Suining was personally responsible for it, so there was no need for me to do much trouble. ”

"Did Wang Shu and Gampida handle it personally?" Xia Yan's pupils contracted sharply and fell silent.

Wang Shunai is the governor of the Nanhe River, and the four-rank member is not only in charge of the Nanhe River, but also in charge of the transportation of the Grand Canal from Zhenjiang to Shandong, and holds heavy power. In terms of its scenery and power, it is three points greater than the governor of the second grade, and now it is Xia Yan, the top boss of Prime Minister Dao. This Wang Shu has taken refuge in Huang Jin, and Huang Jin has spoken for him in the capital, and now he has won the favor of the emperor. It is said that after the unification of the three sections of the river, this Wang Shu will become the governor of the river and become a second-class minister.

As for Gan Bida, the godson of the eunuch Qian Ning, who was in charge of the seal of the eunuch Qian Ning of this martial sect, after Qian Ning fell, he was very depressed for a while. Later, somehow climbed up to Huang Jin, and now he is working as a sitting eunuch in the Nanhe Caoyun Nanhe River.

These two have a lot to do with Huang Jin, and ordinary people can't afford to mess with them.

Fu Lin also knew how powerful it was, so he didn't dare to talk anymore, so he just stood there silently.

"Still digging?" The officials asked again.

"You can't dig it anymore, this embankment will collapse if you dig it again." Xia Yan came to his senses, waved his hand, and motioned for the officials to leave.

Only then did he ask Fu Lin: "Master Fu, this official also asks you, if you look at the current embankment, thirty miles, how much does it take?" You are in charge of the accounts, and you have experience in river management, you can tell me. ”

Fu Lin replied in a low voice: "If it is just like this, at most 100,000 taels is enough." That is to say......"

"In other words, the other 500,000 taels were swallowed up so inexplicably?" Xia Yansen asked.

Fu Lin nodded silently.

"Wang Shu thief, bold, this official should play the court and impeach this corrupt official." Xia Yan's eyes were red with anger.

"My lord, this ...... I'm afraid I won't be able to sue Lord Wang, right? ”

"What, you're scared?" Xia Yan sneered.

"No, the lower officials are just worried about ......" Fu Lin whispered: "Even if the adult writes the recital, but Lord Wang is Huang Gonggong's person, and Huang Gonggong is responsible for approving the red." I'm afraid that His Majesty hasn't seen this fold yet, so he will be left by Gonggong Huang. ”

Xia Yan continued to sneer: "Could it be that I won't do anything when I wait?" ”

Fu Linxin said: This matter is really difficult to do, and there are only a few people in the world who can move Wang Shu, such as Yang Tinghe and Guo Xun. Besides, this officialdom is a matter of pulling vines and leaves, and when the time comes, Huang Jin will be brought out, and things will be troublesome.

He couldn't bear to remind Xia Yan, and he could only remain silent at the moment.

At this moment, a dull rumbling sound was suddenly heard in the distance, and occasionally there was a flash of light.

This bright light alarmed Xia Yan and Fu Lin, and the two of them turned their heads to look at the same time, but saw that the bright light was located in the direction of Suining City ten miles ahead.

"What the hell?" Xia Yan was suspicious in his heart, and he couldn't help but ask.

But as soon as the words fell, I only felt a trembling under my feet, and then a rumbling sound of water came from ahead. The sound grew louder and louder, and the ground was crispy.

"Ahh Fu Lin exclaimed in a low voice.

Xia Yan still didn't understand what was going on, and asked, "What's wrong?" ”

Fu Lin's face was as white as a dead man: "The embankment has burst!" ”

"What!"

"The levee has breached!" Fu Lin shouted hoarsely.