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Chapter 527 Beggar-thy-neighbor

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    Ten thousand miles of water will form a pond, and two thousand years of embroidered fields will form a fair.

    As the boat sailed on the Wusong River, Wu Chengen explained to Zhao Hao:

    "Originally, the water flow out of Taihu Lake was very fast, and there was almost no sedimentation at Guajingkou and the upper reaches of the Wusong River. But after the construction of the Grand Canal, Suzhou's population increased and commerce developed, so many long bridges and embankments were built in the downstream water system.  Hewan Road has greatly slowed down the flow of water out of Taihu Lake, so sedimentation has become serious, and the low-lying south bank has become a tidal flat."

    "Yeah." Zhao Hao nodded and listened very seriously.

    "Later, people transformed the tidal flats into polders." Wu Chengen pointed to the river embankment

    "They first dug a ditch on the muddy ground, and then used bamboo and wood to make two permeable retaining walls on both sides of the ditch. In this way, the water in the soil seeped into the ditch through the bamboo and wood fences, which is the so-called 'œ¾'  Hong Kong'zhong."

    ¡°The excavated soil was piled on the shore of the lake to form a river embankment, and new land appeared on the south bank of Taihu Lake.¡±

    "This method is great, and the land enclosed is extremely fertile. There are many people and little land in Susong area. Who can not be jealous? So the counties rushed to build polders and encroached on the tidal flats." Xu Wei took over the conversation with a sneer:

    "For example, in Wujiang County on the south bank, the county seat was only two miles away from the lakeshore more than ten years ago, but now it has increased to three miles. This extra mile is the river that has been invaded."

    "In fact, Guajingkou is also called South Taihu Lake. The vast lake is directly connected to Dianshan Lake and Chenghu Lake in Kunshan. After hundreds of years of siltation, only this trumpet-shaped river is left.  Bay, where does it have any water storage function?" Xu Wei slapped the railing and said angrily:

    "If I were Lin Run, the first thing I would do would be to demolish all these polders."

    "Don't be too extreme." Wu Chengen said with a wry smile: "Actually, there are sluices in all ports. There are 18 sluices in the entire 18 ports in Wujiang County. Now as long as the sluices are opened, ten  With eight flood outlets, the pressure of water coming downstream is naturally greatly reduced.¡±

    "It's just that if this happens, all the polder fields on the south bank will go to waste. Of course Wujiang County will not agree." Wu Chengen said, pointing to a group of people patrolling in the rain on the embankment facing the lake:

    "That's the pond protection team in Wujiang County. They patrol day and night during the flood season, lest the stone pond they build has an accident and floods their polder."

    "Stone pond? Isn't it made of mud?" Mr. Zhao interjected and asked.

    "How can mud be as strong as stone?" Xu Wei laughed and said, "They have already replaced it with a hundred-mile stone pond!"

    "Baili, such a big deal?" Mr. Zhao took a breath of air. Could it be that a certain Wujiang magistrate has the same ability to make money as my son?

    "It was built by several county magistrates and took decades to build." Xu Wei smiled and said: "This is a great thing to keep the county safe. It is necessary to set up merit monuments and enter the village ancestral hall. It can also be justified and obeyed.  Of course no one wants to be left behind when it comes to making money.¡±

    "They themselves are no longer flooded, but all the water from Taihu Lake has come downstream of us." Wu Chengen sighed: "This is what Mencius called 'beggar-thy-neighbour'."

    "Kunshan County is just watching them beggar their neighbors? Doesn't the government care about them?" Zhao Shouzheng asked angrily.

    "I don't know how many times the people fight over this matter every year. Otherwise, how could Wujiang County organize a pond protection team?" Wu Cheng'en said with a wry smile: "The magistrate of Kunshan also went to the government to file a complaint. Let alone demolish the stone pond, I just begged them.  I don¡¯t agree with opening the gate to release floods during the flood season.¡±

    "Their reasons are very good. The stone pond was built to prevent floods. How can there be any reason to open the gate to release the flood and flood yourself?" Wu Chengen spread his hands again and said: "There is another fundamental reason. When Xia Yuanji governed Taihu Lake two hundred years ago, the polder fields  They all belong to the government. With an order from the superiors, the gates can be opened directly to release the flood, and the polders can be flooded for flood diversion."

    "But in the past two hundred years, the official polders have long been divided up and occupied by powerful families. How could they sacrifice their own interests for the people of other counties?"

    Zhao Hao nodded silently. There were too many polders on the lakeside, and they could not bear the flood discharge function of the polder itself, so the downstream would naturally suffer.

    "People in Wujiang County also plausibly said that it is natural to build dikes to protect water. Kunshan can also build dikes, and no one is stopping it." Wu Chengen sighed softly.

    "Then why not practice it?" Zhao Shouzheng asked.

    "I don't have any money." Xu Wei thought his boss was really cute.  "If you don't have enough to eat, how can you have the money to build a dike? What's more, Wujiang only needs to build a single dike. How complicated is your situation in Kunshan? The Wusong River twists and turns throughout the whole territory, with two lakes hanging above its head and another below.  There is a Lou River. The terrain is low, and you still want to build a dike? Just dream."

    "Hey, I, Kunshan, discharged floods for the whole government, but the neighboring counties not only did not thank them, but also treated them as beggar, in every possible wayIronically, the world is really in decline.  "Second Master Zhao let out a long sigh and couldn't help but feel grievances for the people of Kunshan.

    ??~~

    While talking, the official ship entered Kunshan County.

    The scene of a stone pond over ten feet high guarding the land of plenty was gone, replaced by a vast pool of yellow mud.

    That is the water overflowing from the Chenghu Lake several miles away, flowing slowly along the terrain towards the Wusong River.  There is also a larger Dianshan Lake in the southeast. The overflowing water from the two lakes can cover three-quarters of Kunnan.

    The vast rice fields, mulberry trees, roads, and villages in front of us were all soaked in the yellow water.

    In the heavy rain, groups of people carried carrying poles, pushed carts, brought their families, and led their cattle, trudging through the mud along the higher ridges in the fields.

    They must leave their homes and seek refuge in northern Kunming or neighboring counties before the flood arrives.

    In the yellow mud soup beside the ditch, there are floating garbage, weeds and wood, as well as the bodies of drowned small animals.

    There are also rats that use it as a refuge, scurrying around in circles.

    Although the villagers are accustomed to this, the atmosphere of this escape is particularly solemn.

    In the fields beside the ridges, the rice that has begun to ear is lying in pieces in the yellow water

    "You don't have to wait for the flood to reach its peak. If you just soak it in the water for a few days, this year's crops will be wiped out."

    The common people were about to cry but had no tears, and numbly followed the people in front and kept moving forward.

    Only the shivering children sitting in the barrels and carts were crying with hunger.

    The crying sound reached the official ship, and everyone felt it was extremely harsh.

    No matter how serious the problem was before, it was nothing compared to seeing it with my own eyes, which made people feel heavy.

    From this moment on, in this troubled land, these suffering people are their unshirkable responsibility.

    "Where are these people going? How to get there? Why are there no officials to guide them?" Zhao Shouzheng held the railing with his hand and looked solemnly at the people fleeing along the Wusong River.

    "Some victims went south, to Suzhou or Wujiang, but most of them went north. There is a wooden bridge in front of them to go to Kunbei."

    Wu Chengen was familiar with geography and replied sadly: "After all, in his own county, he can still be regarded as a human being. If he leaves Kunshan, he will be a beggar refugee As for official errands, you can only know after you get the county government."

    "Yeah." Zhao Shouzheng nodded and said no more.

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