The Great Song Dynasty: You were put in charge of teaching, and you produced a whole bunch of prime

The West Lake at sunset is as beautiful as a painting.

The weeping willows by the lake swayed in the breeze, and the Leifeng Pagoda in the distance was silhouetted against the evening glow. A painted boat glided slowly across the lake, leaving ripples in its wake, and the sounds of traditional Chinese string and wind instruments and the laughter of women drifted from the boat.

"What a scene of paradise on earth!" Su Shi stood by the lake, looking at the beautiful scenery before him, and the pent-up feelings in his heart were swept away. He couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.

He had already begun to conceive of what kind of poem he should write to match this unparalleled beauty.

"Yes, it's so beautiful." Zhao Lingjun was also captivated by the scenery before her, her face showing a girlish intoxication.

However, a spoilsport sound soon followed.

"Beautiful my foot." Jiang Lin frowned, pinched his nose, and said with a look of disgust, "Can't you smell it? Why is there a...foot odor in the air?"

"Smells like feet?" Su Shi and Zhao Lingjun were both taken aback and sniffed carefully.

Jiang Lin's reminder made them realize that the fresh air did indeed carry a faint, pungent stench of fish and decay. The smell was particularly strong in certain areas along the lake.

"What...what's going on?" Su Shi frowned again.

"You'll know once you go and see for yourself."

Jiang Lin led the group along the lakeside path, heading towards the direction with the strongest smell.

The further you go, the worse the scenery becomes.

The once clear lake water has become increasingly murky, with various kinds of garbage and green duckweed floating on the surface. The shallow waters along the lake have been completely occupied by silt and overgrown aquatic plants, turning into swamps that emit a foul stench.

Swarms of mosquitoes and flies hovered and buzzed above the swamp, sending chills down one's spine.

"This...this is also West Lake?" Qian Duoduo was so shocked by the scene in front of her that it looked like a huge garbage dump.

This is a completely different world from the lake and mountain scenery we just saw!

"Shen Kuo, what do you think?" Jiang Lin ignored the surprise of the crowd and looked at Shen Kuo, who had been frowning the whole time.

Shen Kuo squatted down, scooped up a handful of black silt from the swamp, smelled it under his nose, and then rubbed it between his fingers.

"Master, the problem is very serious." Shen Kuo's expression was more solemn than ever before. "This is not ordinary silt. It is mixed with a large amount of urban sewage and garbage, which has been accumulating for years and has begun to rot and ferment."

Pointing to the rampant growth of aquatic plants, he said, "These aquatic plants are called 'water hyacinths,' and they are extremely resilient. If they are not controlled in time, they will cover the entire lake surface, deplete the oxygen in the water, and cause all the fish and shrimp in the lake to die."

"At that time, the entire West Lake will become a stagnant pool teeming with plague!"

Hearing Shen Kuo's analysis, everyone gasped.

They then understood what Jiang Lin meant by "foot odor".

This beautiful West Lake is like a glamorous woman on the outside, but in reality, she is suffering from a terrible disease and is rotting from the inside out.

"Why did this happen?" Su Shi's heart was heavy with sorrow. "West Lake is the lifeblood of Hangzhou. Didn't any of the officials throughout history do anything about it?"

"Manage? How?" Jiang Lin sneered. "Managing this thing is a huge, thankless task. How much money will it cost? How many people will be needed? Those officials, they're all just thinking about making a quick buck and leaving. Who's willing to do something so foolish as to benefit future generations?"

He looked at Su Shi, his eyes sharp: "Zizhan, now you understand why Liu Wenhai arranged for you to be here and dumped a bunch of old cases on you, right?"

Su Shi was startled and instantly understood.

This is a complex scheme!

Liu Wenhai first humiliated him with the dilapidated house and old cases, making him upset. Then, he presented him with the mess that was West Lake.

If he doesn't take action, his title of "Su Qingtian" will become a joke, and he will lose all prestige in Hangzhou.

If he wants to manage it, that's perfect. Managing West Lake is impossible without money and manpower; every step will be difficult. At that point, Su Shi will inevitably be overwhelmed, encountering obstacles at every turn, and ultimately forced to slink away and beg for mercy from Liu Wenhai.

No matter what he chooses, he will lose.

What a vicious scheme!

"Teacher, I..." Su Shi's fists clenched so tightly they cracked. For the first time, he felt the treacherous nature of officialdom and his own powerlessness.

"Do you want to win it back?" Jiang Lin looked at him and asked calmly.

Su Shi suddenly raised his head, his eyes blazing with fighting spirit: "I want to!"

"Alright." Jiang Lin nodded in satisfaction. "Then let's completely heal this West Lake!"

"But..." Su Shi sighed again, "Teacher, we have no money and no connections. The Hangzhou prefectural treasury certainly won't allocate a single penny to us. And those officials certainly won't obey my orders. How can we govern?"

"Who said we'd use their money or their people?" Jiang Lin's lips curled into that familiar, enigmatic smile once again.

He pointed at the foul-smelling mud in front of him as if it were a mountain of gold.

"Zizhan, you're still too young. What you see is trouble, a mess. But in my eyes, this stuff is all pure silver."

Jiang Lin's words stunned everyone present.

Qian Duoduo rubbed her eyes and glanced at the dark, muddy mess again. She couldn't see any connection between it and the money.

Zhao Lingjun was also puzzled. Although she knew Jiang Lin had a lot of tricks up his sleeve, she couldn't understand how a pile of stinking mud could be turned into money.

Only Su Shi, after a brief moment of astonishment, gradually brightened up.

He recalled how, outside Bianjing city, his teacher had used the "work-for-relief" method to turn a mess into a praiseworthy achievement.

He knew that his teacher was about to unleash his magical abilities once again.

"Teacher, what should we do?" Su Shi's voice was full of expectation.

Jiang Lin didn't answer directly, but instead asked, "Zizhan, what kind of people do you think are the most numerous in Hangzhou?"

"Merchants, literati, and...tourists," Su Shi replied.

"That's right." Jiang Lin nodded. "So, what do these people value most?"

Su Shi pondered for a moment: "Merchants value profit, scholars value reputation, and tourists value scenery."

"Well said!" Jiang Lin snapped his fingers. "Then we'll give them what they want."

He turned to face the crowd, like a magician about to take the stage, and began to announce his plan.

"Our first step is not to ask for money, but to create momentum. Zizhan, your task is to use your strengths to write articles, poems, and notices."

"Use your most eloquent words to tell all the people of Hangzhou that our great Prefect Su is about to begin cleaning up West Lake! We will transform this stinking ditch back into a paradise on earth!"

"The second step, Shen Kuo, is for you to immediately organize a team to conduct a comprehensive survey and measurement of the entire West Lake. I need to know how deep the lake is, how thick the silt is, where it is suitable to start construction, and where there are undercurrents."

"Then, make me something."

"What is it?" Shen Kuo asked curiously.

Jiang Lin smiled mysteriously.

"A toy that can make all the wealthy businessmen in Hangzhou willingly part with their money..."