To put it bluntly, half of the reason for the demise of the Northern Song Dynasty was being played to death by the Yellow River.

  Before the Song Dynasty, from Han to Tang, the Yellow River was in a long period of 'stable flow' and basically did not have large-scale flooding, and the people in the Yellow River basin also benefited more than suffered from it.

  However, since the late Song Dynasty, the Yellow River has reversed its previous attitude, from a gentle mother river to a violent yellow dragon. From the first breach in the first year of Jianlong, it almost breached once a year, or even several times a year. As a result, if the Yellow River did not overflow in any given year, historians would definitely write "the river was peaceful this year", such records were filled with a sense of celebration.

  The Yellow River bursts its banks and floods, not only bringing disaster to the people's lives and property, but also consuming a huge amount of manpower and resources in each flood relief effort. If it can be coped with year after year like this, so be it. After all, it is just a painful point for the country and the people, anyway, everyone has gotten used to it over the past hundred years.

  But the sad thing is that this negative patchwork cannot solve the problem, it's just a negative compromise, until a certain degree, when the compromise can't go on, a terrible change will occur.

  The Song Dynasty is unfortunate, it has to pay for the excessive destruction of the Yellow River's middle and upper reaches by the Chinese nation since the Han and Tang Dynasties. Today's official Zhao Zhen is even more unfortunate, he has to pay for the excesses of the founding dynasty.

  In the first year of Jingyou, a breach occurred in the Hengyong section of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, and the floodwaters swept away people and livestock, overflowing into the territory of Daming Prefecture, then turning northward. The imperial court exerted itself to repair the dikes, but it was all in vain, and they could only let the river change its course. From then on, floods frequently occurred in the Central Plains, and for nearly 80 years, there was no peace...

  But this was only the beginning. Fourteen years later, in June 1067, a lucky day, the Yellow River burst its banks again at Shanghu Decree in Bian Prefecture, with a breach over one li wide, and the turbid waves surged into the sky, overflowing the northern part of the Central Plains.

  After these two times, the Yellow River changed its course completely. Its river water turned north, passing through Neihuang in Henan to the east and Daming in Hebei to the west, crossing the Hebei Plain, flowing into the Yuhe River, and then entering the sea via the Jie River.

  A disaster of this magnitude would only need to occur once or twice more to wipe out a country.

  After the disaster, it has become a consensus among all parties to devote national efforts to controlling the Yellow River. However, surrounding the question of 'how to control it', from the emperor to the ministers, everyone was drawn into endless debate.

  No way, in this era known for producing famous ministers, there were too many talents who could master the universe. Everyone had their own ideas and firmly believed that only their own ideas could solve the problem. So the quarrel began, with various gods and goddesses arguing with reason and force, repeatedly exploding at each other, shouting until their faces turned red and their ears were ringing, and they argued for four whole years without deciding on a plan.

  After the course change, the Yellow River had a four-year period of tranquility, which was also the golden period for water control, but it was wasted by these fools in a meaningless way.

  Four years later, the Yellow River burst its banks again at Guogongkou in Handan Prefecture's Guangtao County. It took five months to repair the main dike, but officials who went to inspect reported that the silt deposits inside the riverbed were growing thicker and the water level was always on the verge of overflowing the dikes and bursting through them again.

  The imperial court finally lost its patience and ordered the ministers to come up with a plan immediately. At this time, the prime minister of the Song Dynasty had been replaced by Wen Yanbo and Fu Bian, who were welcomed by the whole country when they took office, saying "the wise prime minister is in power". The wise prime minister was indeed different, they found a suitable plan from various options, jointly reported to the imperial court: "The river enters the six towers, this is it! Please start construction immediately!"

  This plan was proposed by Li Zhongchang, the governor of Hequ, who suggested digging a canal from Shanghu Decree to Liu Ta, diverting the Yellow River eastward along the old course of the Wei River. This would alleviate the disaster at the Shanghu Decree breach and make it easier to block. Once successful, it could become a permanent diversion channel for the Yellow River, allowing the main riverbed to safely pass through the flood peak, ensuring that the Yellow River would never again be a source of trouble!

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  This perfect plan was put forward and quickly crushed the previously most promising plan, "Restore the Old Way" proposed by former Prime Minister and Grand Duke of the Imperial Clan, Jia Changchao, which had been approved by the imperial court.

  Thus, the powerful administrative machine began to operate, and manpower and resources were concentrated on the Liu Ta River, preparing to solve the Yellow River flood problem once and for all.

  Just then, Ouyang Xiu returned to the capital and learned about this plan. He was so angry that he almost burst his lungs. What kind of pig-headed person could come up with such a method?

  He immediately submitted a memorial, severely criticizing this foolish and unworkable plan. Once the facts are clear, gentlemen, this is to reduce the water of the northernmost major river! And yet, the glorious task of undertaking this responsibility falls on a prefectural-level river that does not flow into the sea. If its capacity is insufficient, the Yellow River will inevitably overflow back to its original course, and the pressure upstream will increase dramatically. Ouyang Xiu's sharp assertion was that when the time comes, the upstream will surely burst!

  At the same time, Ouyang Xiu also put forward his own plan. The Yellow River's breach and change of course are due to the lower reaches being silted up; whether reinforcing the river dikes or restoring the river channel, these are all treating the symptoms but not the root cause. If you really want to solve the problem, then fix the Yellow River's estuary. Water flows eastward, channels become self-flowing. This is the fundamental right path!

  The memorial was presented and also published in the government gazette, which naturally caused a stir

  The whole nation is stirred up, and people are looking forward to him reversing the tide once again.

  However, Ouyang Xiu's three memorials were like stones sinking into the ocean, with no response at all.

  He was ignored, after Fan Wen went, the most prestigious official of the Song Dynasty was ignored like this.

  In Ouyang Xiu's political life, this taste was too familiar, so that he had not much anger, only a belly full of sorrow...... Human heart, really gone bad......

  After struggling in vain, Ouyang Xiu, who had always been full of fighting spirit, couldn't help but feel pessimistic. Therefore, in today's conversation with Chen Ke and others, there were many depressing words.

  Reclining on a couch, gazing at the swaying tree shadows outside the window, Old Ouyang said faintly: "Third Brother, why did you bring up this matter?"

  "The students have personally gone to investigate and seen that the Yellow River is at least 200 steps wide." Chen Ke said in a deep voice, "The Liu Ta River is only over 40 steps wide, it must not be able to hold. Moreover, since the diversion of the river course below Hengluo, silt has accumulated and formed high land, and the dikes on both sides are either intact or destroyed. It has completely failed to function as a river course. If the imperial court really wants to use the Liu Ta River plan, it can be done, but the Liu Ta River course must be dredged to over 100 steps wide, and the old course of Hengluo must also be cleared of silt and built with dikes and dams. However, this project... without ten years, a million people, and billions of dollars, I'm afraid it can't be done."

  "Sanlang, you've made me look at you in a new light again," Ouyang Xiu nodded and said: "Just based on this remark, you can be called a minister of the state!" He stroked his beard and continued: "Your judgment is correct. Last spring, when the water level of the Liu Ta River was low, only two or three tenths of the Yellow River's water flowed into it, but it still flooded several states and counties along the river, affecting over 30,000 households. If we really block the Shanghu mouth and let all the water flow eastward, it will surely burst its banks and overflow. By then, the people on the eastern bank of the river will become food for fish and turtles!"

  "This shouldn't be a difficult matter, right? As long as we conduct an on-site investigation, we can more or less come to a conclusion." Chen Ke asked in puzzlement: "Why don't the officials in the imperial court believe it?"

  "They don't disbelieve, they can't believe." Ouyang Xiu said with a sarcastic smile: "Third Brother, you haven't entered the official circle yet, so you don't understand. In the eyes of politicians, what's right or wrong about something itself isn't important; what's important is that oneself cannot be wrong!"

  "The Yellow River's flooding is a hundred-year-old festering wound for our great Song Dynasty, and it's getting worse by the day." Ouyang Xiu said with a sarcastic tone: "A project of such fundamental importance, whoever's plan succeeds will gain boundless prestige. For instance, if Jia Ziming's 'Restoration of the Old Course' method is adopted, he'll immediately have the capital to make a comeback."

  "It's also my fault for not being careful," Ouyang Xiu said with a bitter smile: "Gentlemen Wen and Fu have been arguing with Jia Ziming for half a day, and it was only after great difficulty that they established the principle of 'the river entering the six towers'. They can't help but think that I'm dismantling their platform and helping Jia Ziming."

  "And besides, the 'River Enters Six Towers' project has already been underway for over a year. If it's called off now, where would the officials and gentlemen like Wen and Fu put their faces? He sighed long and heavily, his voice low: "People can change, Sanlang. I was too arrogant, so it's only right that I'm humiliated."

  "But you haven't changed, teacher." Chen Ke said in a low voice: "So you are stronger than all of them."

  "Don't learn from me," Ouyang Xiu shook his head and said, "Otherwise you'll end up like me, standing on the sidelines for a lifetime."

  "But I won't learn from them!" Chen Ke said resolutely: "Right is right, wrong is wrong! I don't believe a country that distorts black and white can exist for long!"

  "Heh... " Ouyang Xiu's eyes showed a hint of appreciation once again, stroking his beard as he said: "Good kid, just like me when I was young."

  "Teacher, isn't boasting bad?"

  "Oh, haha...", Ouyang Xiu burst out laughing, dissipating a lot of his worries.

  "Teacher, don't give up!" After he finished laughing, Chen Ke looked at him steadily and said: "You often teach us that protecting the country, protecting the people, and protecting the right path is the responsibility of a gentleman!"

  "Not bad", Ouyang Xiu's spirit also rose and said: "Even if I have to jump into the Liu Ta River, I must stop them!"

  "There's no need to jump into the river." Chen Ke smiled and said: "How can we get this nearly completed project to stop, do you have any ideas, teacher?"

  "If I had a plan, would I be sighing here?" Ouyang Xiu said: "What's your clever strategy, Sanlang?"

  "I don't have a good way either," Chen Ke said with a bitter smile. "But summarizing the lessons from Teacher's last failure, it was nothing more than being isolated and having no connections, so there wasn't any momentum formed. On the other hand, looking at the high expectations for Liu Ta River, it's almost as if everyone is pinning their hopes on him, and with the full support of the officials and the aristocrats, Teacher's defeat isn't unjust in the slightest."

  "Hmm." Ouyang Xiu nodded and gestured for him to continue.

  "So, teacher, we must find a sufficient number and quantity of supporters!" Chen Xiao said: "In order to have a chance of winning the battle!"

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