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Chapter 319 Unity of Knowledge and Action
During his recuperation at Erlangtan, Wang Shouren particularly enjoyed visiting the Chishui River dredging project.

Since the project was launched last October, Huang Ke, the military commissioner of Xuzhou and Luzhou, has been in charge of the project. Luzhou and its subordinate counties, Chishuiwei, Yongningwei and Taiping Garrison have all participated with all their might, and a total of more than 40,000 laborers have been conscripted.

Even the Yongning Pacification Commissioner took the initiative to dispatch 5,000 militiamen to be responsible for guarding the route, preventing mountain bandits and salt gangs from causing trouble, and ensuring the smooth progress of the project.

Based on on-site surveys conducted during the previous dry season, the River Engineering Institute divided the 320-mile river channel from Hejiang to Erlangtan into three sections—

The downstream section stretches from Hejiang County to Jiuzhi Town, a total of 100 li (approximately 50 kilometers). This section of the river is wide and has no dangerous shoals, but it is covered with deep silt and has scattered shallows, which often cause boats to run aground. Therefore, the focus is on dredging.

This section of the project involved 10,000 laborers who used manual dredging, bamboo cages to transport the mud, and oxen to pull wooden rakes to clear the silt and gravel from the center of the river. The goal was to deepen the waterway so that fully loaded, crooked boats could navigate smoothly during the dry season.

Meanwhile, prominent red marker posts were erected on more than 100 shallow shoals where ships are prone to running aground, to remind them to avoid the area in time.

The middle section, from Jiuzhi Town to Tucheng, is about 140 li long and is a concentrated area of ​​dangerous shoals, with many hidden reefs and rapid currents. It is the core section of the entire project, with the focus on 'reef removal and flow diversion'.

This section involved 20,000 laborers, whose main tools were iron chisels and hammers. They were also equipped with a large amount of firewood and gunpowder to break up large reefs.

For those large reefs that were half underwater, Wang Shouren saw that the laborers first used the method of rammed earth construction, using wooden planks and sandbags to build a wall around the reef and reinforce it. Then they used pumps to pump out most of the water inside the wall, which exposed the base of the reef.

Next, the stonemasons would look for natural crevices in the reef and chisel them open. When they encountered stubborn rocks that were difficult to chisel directly, they would use fire and water to create cracks before chiseling.

Finally, use bamboo baskets to remove the broken stones ashore to prevent them from remaining in the riverbed and causing secondary siltation.

In addition, in seven sections of the river with particularly rapid currents, such as Jiganshitan and Dabingtan, the laborers built sloping dikes extending into the river channel using bluestone, mortar, and nails. Each dike was ten to fifteen zhang long and two zhang high.

Su Lu told Wang Shouren that once these groynes were repaired, the water flow could be diverted away from the waterway, preventing the rapids from directly eroding the waterway. This would naturally reduce the flow velocity in the waterway, making it much safer and easier for ships to travel upstream or downstream.

The upstream section, from Tucheng to Erlangtan, is about 30 li long. The river is narrow and has a large drop, making navigation very difficult.

This section of the project required a full 10,000 laborers. The goal was to widen narrow sections of the river, such as the Narrow Mouth Shoal and the Gate Shoal, to allow two boats to pass side by side. The excavated gravel was packed into bamboo baskets and used to fill depressions in the riverbed, thereby reducing the drop in elevation.

However, some sections of the river had too large a drop to be navigable, so "winch stations" were built along the banks, with permanent winch frames erected. When boats reached these sections, they were secured with cables, and then laborers would pull them across the shallows...

~~
What impressed Wang Shouren most was the incredible enthusiasm of the laborers. They had begun construction last October and were now in the final, crucial stage. To finish before the March floods, the laborers were living and working along the Chishui River, tirelessly hauling away baskets of gravel from the riverbed, like ants carrying loads…

“The laborers I saw all regarded their labor as a form of imprisonment. They would quit as soon as the supervisor was not around. Even when the supervisor was present, they would find ways to slack off.” Wang Shouren sighed, “But these laborers always gave their all, treating it as if they were working for their own families.”

“The teacher has hit the nail on the head,” Su Lu said with a smile. “We people in the mountains desperately need such a convenient waterway. So as long as we let them know the benefits of this river being navigable, no one will stand idly by.”

“Indeed.” Wang Shouren nodded, deeply agreeing. “When I chatted with the laborers, they all hoped that the river would be repaired so that they would no longer have to cross mountains and valleys to go out.”

"Actually, many people didn't quite understand the benefits of river repair at first. It was the River Engineering Institute that specially organized teachers and students from the community school to repeatedly explain the benefits to the people in various villages and hamlets over a year, which gradually made this idea take root in people's hearts," Su Lu said with a smile.

"Will ordinary people listen to this?" Wang Shouren asked curiously.

"Of course, it's not about spouting complicated theories, but rather turning them into popular slogans and repeating them over and over again, imprinting the ideas into the minds of ordinary people," Su Lu said with a smile.

"Dredge the Chishui River and walk to Luzhou?" Wang Shouren immediately recalled the phrases that the laborers often used.

"If we grit our teeth and work hard, will our descendants be able to sail smoothly?"

“Yes.” Su Lu nodded with a smile. “There are also sayings like ‘Working together to repair the river, we have a bright future’ and ‘Controlling the water for the people, with boats running, everything prospers’. These are the kinds of sayings that you can’t forget once you hear them a lot.”

"This is the first time I've seen such thorough mobilization of the people before even starting construction," Wang Shouren exclaimed. "You've treated river repair like a war!"

"Sir, you are absolutely right. This is a war! It's been incredibly difficult to repair this river. It's divided among different prefectures, counties, and garrisons, and the banks are inhabited by both Han and Yi peoples, creating too many obstacles. This time, we finally had a leader step forward, overcoming numerous obstacles to lead us in dredging the Chishui River. So we can only succeed; we cannot afford to fail. Otherwise, we might not have another chance for two hundred years," Su Lu said with emotion.

"Therefore, we must make every 'warrior' know why they are fighting. Only when they believe that repairing the river is for future convenience and for a better life for their descendants can we mobilize everyone's enthusiasm! When everyone treats repairing the river as their own business, they will naturally not be afraid of hardship and will overcome all difficulties!" "..." After listening, Wang Shouren looked at the busy laborers on the river for a long time before suddenly clapping his hands and saying, "I understand, this is 'unity of knowledge and action'!"

"Unity of knowledge and action?" Su Lu's eyes widened in disbelief. He'd already achieved enlightenment before even reaching Longchang? Old Wang's willpower was just too strong!
“That’s right.” Wang Shouren said excitedly, “Ordinary laborers regard forced labor as imprisonment because they only know ‘I have to do it’, but do not know ‘why I do it’— ‘Knowing’ is empty, and ‘doing’ is naturally just going through the motions, and they will slack off.”

“But these people are different. They truly understand that ‘once this waterway is open, they will enjoy convenience, and their descendants will also live a good life.’ They have put this understanding into practice, which is why they are putting in such a full effort. Why would they need a supervisor to oversee them?” He raised his voice, his expression revealing a clear and insightful understanding.
Ultimately, knowledge is the intention of action, and action is the practice of knowledge; knowledge is the beginning of action, and action is the completion of knowledge! All human actions originate from the knowledge of the heart; if the heart truly knows and recognizes, action will be as natural as water flowing downhill, and this is the power of the heart!

"What a wonderful saying, 'Knowledge is the beginning of action, and action is the completion of knowledge!'" A voice of admiration rang out behind the two.

"father in law."

“Sir, Military Commissioner.” Su Lu and Wang Shouren turned around and saw Huang Ke, the Director of the River Works Bureau, the Military Commissioner of Xuzhou and Luzhou, and Su Lu’s future father-in-law.

Since the second half of last year, Huang Bingxian has been working on the Chishui River construction site. His face has been tanned to a bronze color and his wrinkles have deepened, but he is more energetic and stronger than before.

He strode up to Wang Shouren, cupped his hands in greeting, and said with a smile, "Congratulations, Mr. Yangming."

"Oh?" Wang Shouren was overjoyed to hear that he wasn't being called by his alias. "Could it be that Liu Jin is dead?"

"That's not quite the case..." Huang Ke couldn't help but chuckle. "But it's good news nonetheless. The Grand Secretary persuaded Liu Jin to rescind the kill order against you, and the Embroidered Uniform Guards have already left Luzhou by boat."

"I see..." Wang Shouren's joy faded considerably, but he still breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Finally, I don't have to worry about being a burden to you anymore."

“Mr. Yangming only thought too little about himself and too much about others.” Huang Ke laughed. “There is also good news. Yang Xindu has finally joined the cabinet. With the addition of Wang Wuxian, the Grand Secretary is no longer alone. He should be able to gradually bring the court back on track.”

“It’s hard to say…” Wang Shouren shook his head, not optimistic. “If Liu Jin doesn’t die, all our efforts will be in vain, and he can destroy them at any time.”

“Teacher, a wise person acts according to the times. Given the current situation, and the fact that we are powerless to change it, we shouldn’t worry about it,” Su Lu advised.

“That’s true. I’m just a lowly postmaster now. I should be worrying about my own post station, not the whole country.” Wang Shouren smiled helplessly.

“Mr. Yangming, there’s no need for you to go to Longchang Post Station,” Huang Ke said. “I’ll send someone to give you a heads-up, and it will be considered that you’re serving there.”

"I appreciate your kindness, Your Excellency, but I am, after all, an official of the court. I would feel guilty if I didn't fulfill my duties in Longchang." Wang Shouren shook his head, insisting, "At least the previous postmaster is waiting to hand over his post to me..."

"Alright, fine." Huang Ke thought about it and agreed. Wang Shouren clearly had plenty of opportunities to hide, but he insisted on risking his life to travel thousands of miles to take up his post, which showed that he valued his responsibilities more than anything else.

“I will accompany you to your new post, Master.” At this moment, Su Lu said in a deep voice, “Longchang is much more desolate than ours; we cannot let you go alone.”

He chuckled and said, "Besides, I still need to continue learning from my teacher."

“It’s good to have someone to keep you company,” Wang Shouren said with a smile. “If something happens, someone will come back to report.”

Huang Ke was already quite familiar with Wang Shouren and knew his habit of talking and laughing without restraint, so he nodded and said, "I will arrange for some more people to escort you."

“No need,” Su Lu shook his head and said, “My second brother and sister-in-law are going too. Guizhou is my second sister-in-law’s maternal grandmother’s home.”

“Sure,” Huang Ke said with a smile. “Miss She is there, and her words carry much more weight than mine.”

He then asked, "When do we depart?"

“It’s already been delayed for too long, and I want to set off as soon as possible,” Wang Shouren said.

“Alright, then we’ll set off the day after tomorrow!” Su Lu said in a deep voice.

(End of this chapter)