Late Han Zhao Tang

Chapter 457 Gains and Losses in the Central Plains
February of the first year of Shenwu's reign.

"Your Highness, I have been ordered to build the Fangtou Weir at the mouth of the Qi River to divert water and redirect the Qi River eastward to connect with the Baigou (the old course of the Yellow River)."

Inside the hall, Xu You presented the map of the Qishui River and said, "Nowadays, the grain transport ships land on the Yellow River, travel overland for dozens of miles to Baigou, and can then be transported by water to Ye City. Conversely, the grain and provisions of the various prefectures of Ji Province are first transported to Ye City, and then transported overland to Fang City and into the Yellow River. This way, the grain from Hebei can be distributed to all directions."

Baigou was originally the old course of the Yellow River. After the Yellow River changed its course and flowed eastward into the sea, it became one of the few rivers in Hebei that flowed from southwest to northeast, almost traversing the entire Ji Province. However, Baigou had scarce water and an unstable water season, making it difficult for boats to navigate and hindering the allocation of resources in Hebei. Furthermore, because there was no river connecting it to You Province, although You Province submitted to Zhang Yu, Zhang Yu failed to gain deep control over it.

Therefore, after Zhang Yu subdued Hebei, he adopted the suggestions of Xianyu Fu, Tian Yu, Xu You and others, using the Baigou River as the main waterway to connect the various counties in Hebei, thereby strengthening his control over Hebei and facilitating subsequent conquests of the Central Plains.

Taking into account the overall situation and the availability of manpower, Zhang Yu assigned Xu You to be in charge of the first phase of the project, which was to increase the water volume of the Baigou Canal so that boats could travel on it.

During Xu You's tenure, he constructed the Fangtou Weir, diverting the Qi River eastward into the Baigou Canal to increase its water volume and make it navigable. Upstream, he repaired the Wanshui irrigation system, which had been established during Wang Jing's Yellow River management project, irrigating hundreds of hectares of fertile land.

Zhang Yu pointed to the Hetu map and asked, "Baigou is only a few dozen miles from the Yellow River. Could we divert water from the Yellow River into Baigou, or divert water from Baigou into the Yellow River to save the trouble of transporting it by land?"

"That might be inconvenient!"

Xu You shook his head and said, "When we were repairing the river, I originally intended to build only the Fangtou Weir to divert the Qi and Qing rivers eastward into the Baigou River, connecting Suxukou with the main river so that boats could travel upstream and downstream, saving the effort of transporting goods. However, Suxukou is low-lying, and without building a weir, the water in the Baigou River would flow into the main river, greatly reducing the water volume. In order to ensure the passage of grain transport, I had no choice but to build another stone weir at Suxukou, allowing the Wan, Qi, and Qing rivers to flow eastward into the Baigou River."

Zhang Yu nodded slightly. The fundamental problem was that the Baigou River had a small water volume and was greatly affected by the rainy season. To maintain a water level suitable for canal transport year-round, the Baigou River needed a stable supply of water at its source. If the goal was to connect it to the Yellow River, it would actually hinder canal transport.

“The Baigou River flows northeast into the sea, bypassing Ye City. How is it now connected to Ye City?” Zhang Yu asked.

Upon hearing this, Xu You stepped forward, pointed to the Hetu map, and explained, "Although the Baigou River does not pass through Ye City, its tributary, the Huan River, originates from the Taihang Mountains and flows south of Ye City. Therefore, one can depart from Yedu Bridge in the morning, cross Fangtou Weir in the evening, and travel by boat through the Baigou River, ensuring an uninterrupted supply of provisions!"

As he spoke, Xu You said proudly, "The Baigou Canal passes through the four prefectures of Wei, Qinghe, Anping, and Hejian, and flows into the Bohai Sea. If you wish to travel by boat to Youzhou, you can build canals to connect the Zhang, Hutuo, and Pi rivers. If Your Highness does not mind, I am willing to oversee the repair of the Hebei waterway."

"The matter of building the canal is crucial and should not be decided hastily."

Zhang Yu looked at the River Map and said, "Ziyuan has made meritorious contributions in repairing the canal, and I hereby temporarily appoint you as the Chief Secretary of the Privy Council."

Xu You's expression showed slight displeasure. When Zhang Yu rewarded the officials, he was granted the title of Marquis of Duting, with a fief of three hundred households, the same rank as Tian Feng, which made him somewhat dissatisfied. Now, having made meritorious contributions to the repair of the canal, he had expected Zhang Yu to reward him generously, but unexpectedly, not only was his fief not increased, but his official position was also not above the others.

"how?"

Seeing that Xu You remained silent, Zhang Yu turned his head to look at him and asked, "Do you perhaps have a different opinion?"

"Thank you for the reward, Your Highness!"

In front of Zhang Yu, Xu You dared not complain directly, and could only accept the official position with a sense of frustration, thinking to himself: "If it weren't for my suggestion, how could Zhang Yu have conquered Ji Province?"

In Xu You's eyes, his official rank was at least above others; even if he couldn't become a senior official, he was still on par with the likes of Jia Xu and Dong Zhao. Yet he was ranked alongside Tian Feng, which truly displeased him!
In fact, the official rank and title that Zhang Yu bestowed upon Xu You were already quite high. The Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, Du Ji, had a fief of only 800 households, Jia Xu and Xun You each had 600 households, and Dong Zhao had 400 households. Therefore, Xu You's fief of 300 households placed him in the second tier of civil officials.

As for why Tian Feng and Xu You held the same official rank, it was because Tian Feng had made great efforts in pacifying Ji Province.

Tian Feng was a former official of the Han Dynasty and enjoyed a prominent reputation in Ji Province. After serving Yuan Shao, he was deeply admired by the officials of Ji Province and respected by the soldiers. Since serving Zhang Yu, Tian Feng had often traveled to appease or persuade Yuan Shao's former subordinates to surrender, and his contributions were not much less than those of Xu You.

Of course, Xu You's use of the river repair project to enrich himself and seize fertile land had already greatly diminished Zhang Yu's impression of him.

"Your Highness, although the Baigou River flows through Yin and Hai prefectures and empties into the Bohai Sea, if Changshan, Zhongshan, Zhao, Julu and other prefectures want to connect with the Baigou River, they must first pour into the Zhang River, meet the Baigou River at Hejian, and then turn back upstream to go west, which will be a detour of more than a thousand miles, which will be detrimental to the grain transport."

After observing the Hetu map for a while, Tian Yu cupped his hands and said, "I think it would be better to dig a canal in Wei County to connect Baigou and Zhangshui. The grain transported from various counties in Yinzhou can first reach Wei County and then go south to Baigou, instead of first reaching Hejian County and then transferring to Baigou."

The Baigou River and the Zhangshui River both flow from southwest to northeast. They converge in Hejian County. If grain and fodder from various counties in Yinzhou were transported via the Baigou River, they would have to go to Hejian in Haizhou and then change course to the Baigou River to reach Henan. This would involve traveling over a thousand miles of waterways, which would be time-consuming and laborious.

Therefore, Tian Yu believed it would be better to connect two rivers within Wei County to save time on detours and administrative communication costs incurred in transferring to Haizhou.

Zhang Yu stared at the Zhang and Bai rivers on the Hetu map, nodded, and said with emotion, "Hebei is flat and vast, with a complex water system. If all the rivers can be connected, the grain from Hebei will flow into the Yellow River in an endless stream. If the world is at peace, I will certainly follow suit. However, the world is in chaos, so I dare not impose corvée labor."

Zhang Yu was quite interested in Tian Yu's suggestion. After all, in an agrarian society, water transport was always the most convenient and labor-saving mode of transportation. However, the massive manpower and resources required to repair the canals were comparable to a large-scale military operation.

“Your Highness, the campaign to conquer the Central Plains will use troops from Guanzhong and grain from Hebei, so that the people of Youzhou will not suffer. Now that the Baigou River is already flowing, why not let Youzhou dredge the canals and make the Hutuo, Pi, and Zhang rivers interconnected?”

Tian Yu pondered for a moment and said, "Now that we have worked hard to build the canal, and the Central Plains are at peace, our troops and provisions will gather in Youzhou, and we will be able to attack Liaodong!"

“Yes!” Zhang Yu was slightly moved. According to the previous plan, the Guanzhong troops would be sent to conquer the Central Plains, and the people of Jizhou would be responsible for supplying provisions, while the geographically remote Youzhou would not be affected too much. If Youzhou could open up the canals connecting the rivers and the Baigou River, conquering or subjugating Liaodong would be a natural progression.

Seeing Zhang Yu's interest, Xu You, greedy for the benefits of repairing the canals, said, "Your Highness, what Military Advisor Tian said makes sense. I am willing to go to Youzhou to repair the canals for Your Highness, so that the grain from Hebei can be diverted to the Yellow River."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Yu glanced at Xu You and, seeing his eagerness, knew that Xu You must be trying to profit from the situation again, and thus felt disgusted.

Zhang Yu ignored Xu You and looked at the assembled civil officials, asking, "I have ordered Youzhou to repair its own canals. What are your thoughts on this?"

Dong Zhao, with a prepared speech in mind, cupped his hands and said, "Your Highness, Youzhou has been returned to its former glory but is not yet well governed. Therefore, we may use the pretext of repairing the canals and rivers to actually deepen the governance of Youzhou. Once the canals and rivers are dredged, Youzhou will be well governed!"

As previously mentioned, repairing the canals is comparable to a large-scale military operation. Laborers need to be conscripted, and soldiers need to protect them. Therefore, officials and soldiers from all counties and prefectures in the province will be mobilized.

Based on this consideration, Dong Zhao believed that it would be better to gradually concentrate the power of Youzhou in the hands of the central government by repairing the canals, which would be conducive to the subsequent transfer of officials to Youzhou.

"Gong Ren's view is not without merit!"

Zhang Yu pondered for a moment and said, "Ziyuan has been repairing the canals for a long time, and is exhausted from the wind and sun. Now it would be better to let Gongren do the work. I will appoint you as the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat and concurrently as the River Conservancy Commissioner. You will be given an imperial insignia to take up your post in Youzhou and be allowed to lead three thousand soldiers to be in charge of the canals in Youzhou."

"I accept your order!"

Dong Zhao accepted the position without hesitation, bowing respectfully.

Seeing Zhang Yu delegate the task to Dong Zhao, Xu You's face showed his dissatisfaction, and he muttered, "Without my construction of the dam, how could there be the Baigou canal transport!"

In his eyes, since he dredged the Baigou River, he should be responsible for the water conservancy of Hebei. Now, Zhang Yu's actions are a case of discarding a useful tool after it has served its purpose.

Jia Xu, standing beside Xu You, listened to Xu You's muttered complaints as if nothing had happened, his expression calm and composed, only consciously pricking up his ears to listen.

Zhang Yu was unaware of Xu You's complaints. Now, Zhang Yu had no intention of using Xu You to repair the canals, which showed his dislike for Xu You's act of using public office for private gain.

When Xu You built the Fangtou Weir, the Qi River irrigated nearly a hundred hectares of fertile land, of which Xu You embezzled more than half, all of which were top-quality farmland. When conscripting laborers, Xu You took the opportunity to have the laborers help him repair his houses. With these precedents, how could Zhang Yu be willing to let Xu You repair the canals in Youzhou?

"With the two Yuan brothers fighting each other and their sons falling apart, is it still possible to attack Yuan?"

Zhang Yu looked away from the Hetu and asked the others.

"With the Baigou Canal dredged to connect Hebei, supplies will be plentiful, and we can now attack Yuan Shang!" Tian Feng said enthusiastically.

"It would be easy to attack Yuan, but I fear Yuan Shu might send troops to aid him!"

Guo Tu stroked his beard and pondered, then said, "If Yuan Shu sends troops to the Central Plains, then Your Highness will attack Yuan Shu, not Yuan Shang!"

"Guo Shizhong is right!"

Xun You said, "Yuan Shang is allied with Yuan Shu. If we attack Yuan Shang now, Yuan Shu will certainly not sit idly by. If Your Highness sends troops, it will be to attack Yuan Shu, not to conquer Yuan Shang. Therefore, in my opinion, Your Highness should plan carefully before launching an attack."

"Yuan Shu!"

Zhang Yu narrowed his eyes, agreeing with what everyone said.

Although Yuan Shang and Yuan Tan were fighting each other, Yuan Shang had Yuan Shu behind him. If he sent troops to the Central Plains, Yuan Shu would most likely send troops as well. At that time, the war would become a decisive battle between him and Yuan Shu, and this battle might determine the outcome of the Central Plains. If he could defeat Yuan Shu, he could not only control Yan and Yu in the south, but also wipe out the Yuan families along the coast in one fell swoop.

With all the provinces of the Central Plains under his control, the unification of the world is not far off!

“What the scholars say is not without reason. Attacking Yuan is still an attack on Yuan Shu.”

Zhang Yu paced back and forth, saying in a deep voice, "This battle concerns the gains and losses of the Central Plains. The country should first prepare military provisions, and then we will discuss the military strategy for conquering Yuan Shikai once we receive news of the military situation in Henan."

"No!" everyone responded in unison.

(End of this chapter)