Chapter Twenty: Three Rivers

  The vermilion bird street in front of the palace of Chang'an city is lined with many maple trees, and when the autumn wind blows, the trees are already full of red leaves. As soon as it dawned, officials on their way to court were carrying lanterns, forming a long dragon of fire, reflecting against the crimson maple leaves, exceptionally beautiful.

  The bright spots of those lanterns were in an orderly sequence, moving forward one by one. At this time, a lantern suddenly broke away from the dragon and quickly moved forward for a while before finally stopping. The fire dragon resumed its calm and unhurried pace. The young man with a long face wearing a green robe and holding a lantern was none other than Zhang Jishi, the imperial censor. He caught up to his uncle Zhang Shuo's horse and said in a low voice: "All the evidence is stored in the Imperial Censorate, and there are backup files. In a moment, I will explain the relationship between the past and present to His Majesty."

  Zhang, who was in his forties, sat on horseback with the imperial secretaries to handle official documents, just like a prime minister. His facial features were angular and distinct, his waist was straight, and his arm holding the reins was strong and powerful. Zhang nodded calmly: "The timing is almost right, we can do it this way."

  What they said was about the impeachment of the officials along the canal for their corruption and bribery. The Imperial Censorate had already obtained the account books, confessions and other evidence, with both human and material evidence available, it was a solid case that could not be refuted by empty words. So Zhang said with confidence... Of course, his confidence did not come from just a few small pieces of evidence, but also from the preparation he had done beforehand.

  To thoroughly define the despicability of those "slanted officials", several upright people from both the government and the opposition had previously, without prior consultation, done two things that have a relatively large impact, making sufficient preparations.

  It was two months ago that Yao Cong, a government official from Luoyang Prefecture, submitted a memorial to the emperor stating that the governance of the surrounding counties and prefectures in Dongdu had deteriorated, with corruption and greed prevailing. Furthermore, the governor of Ru Prefecture had forcibly taken a local woman as his concubine in order to curry favor with his superiors. Yao Cong was known for his integrity both within official circles and among scholars, and his words carried weight, so his memorial had a significant impact. As a result, people inside and outside the imperial court became even more critical of the abilities and conduct of those "slanted seal officials" who had been demoted to local posts.

  The second is an article by Zhang Jiuling, a literary man from Lingnan, "Three Rivers Fu". Zhang Jiuling was able to write at the age of seven and his poetry and writing were already famous in Lingnan. Even in Chang'an, there were people who knew his name.

  Zhang Jiuling's reputation is still outside, at this time his reputation can't be compared with Yao Cong. The influence of this article mainly comes from the source of writing: it took nearly a year to follow the grain transport fleet from Lingnan to Chang'an, and conducted on-the-spot investigations of the hardships of the grain transportation route, including detailed descriptions of the scenery, human feelings, and hardships along the way. It bitterly complained about the greed and cruelty of corrupt officials, and was filled with pity and sympathy for the common people. The article is lengthy and well-documented, with beautiful language and sincere emotions, and has extremely high cultural and realistic value.

  "The Three Rivers Ode" was published, and the price of Xuan paper skyrocketed by 30%. Printing merchants made a fortune, while young patriots who wanted to buy copies couldn't afford them and had to borrow books to copy them.

  Inside and outside of Chang'an, on top of the city walls, how many kind-hearted men with aspirations look up to the wind, reciting the "Three Rivers Ode" with deep emotions, waiting for a noble person to discover their ambitions, entrust them with important tasks, and bring clarity to the world.

  Whether in the imperial court or among the people, there is a growing call for the imperial court to rectify its governance, public opinion is surging, and the voice of justice is even more frequent than the autumn wind this golden autumn season.

  The drums of the Great Ming Palace sounded, and the guards in their shining armor stood at attention, exchanging fish-shaped tokens on either side of the gate. A loud, majestic shout rang out: "The time has come, the fish-shaped tokens have been exchanged, open...the palace...gates!"

  "Clang, clang, clang..." The dense iron hooves marched along both sides of the main road, with swords and spears like a forest, and the collision of helmets and armor rang out. Outside Danfeng Gate, civil and military officials stood tall, walking towards the palace gate, ready to participate in the decision-making operation of the world's strongest empire.

  The rooster crows, the people hold their breath as dawn breaks, and the imperial carriage advances with a cloak of green clouds. The nine heavens open up the palace gates, and the people of all nations don their ceremonial attire to pay homage to the emperor's majesty. As the sun rises over the sacred palm trees, incense smoke wafts alongside the dragon boat. After the morning court session, the five-colored imperial edict must be carefully crafted, and the sound of jade pendants returns to the Phoenix Pool...

  In the grand and spacious Xuanzheng Hall, Prime Minister Zhang Yue stood among the officials and loudly recited a passage from "The Three Rivers Rhapsody", saying with righteous words: "What is to be feared is not scarcity but injustice! The grain taxes of the empire are transported to Chang'an along treacherous roads, yet petty men profit from them! Where is the justice of our great Tang? Where are the hearts of the people? If this continues, the people's hearts will be lost and the state will be in danger. The Son of Heaven must not fail to investigate!"

  Another minister echoed: "When the world is at peace, the first thing to consider is the governance of officials. Local officials represent the emperor in governing a region, and if they cannot restrain themselves and serve with integrity, the central government's policies will be ineffective."

  "The imperial court should pay attention to the selection of local officials, correct the tendency of valuing those close to power and neglecting those far away, and select officials based on their virtue and ability, not just following seniority..."

  This time, the officials who attended the imperial court meeting spoke out straightforwardly, a rare scene in these years of turmoil in the palace. On the other hand, the powerful officials from the peaceful faction were all tight-lipped and speechless, with a guilty look on their faces. In short, the situation in the imperial court was quite abnormal.

  Emperor Li Dan sat upright in his superior position, saying nothing, occasionally responding with a slight "en" sound, looking at whoever was speaking, and listening very seriously to the ministers' advice.

  At this time, the Grandee Zhang Jishi stepped forward and accused several local officials by name, presenting a memorial with attached evidence to request that the emperor issue an edict to have those officials brought back to the capital for punishment. The name of the Governor of Ru Prefecture, Lü Duan, was listed first among the guilty officials, with ten major crimes attributed to him. Zhang Jishi said: "The Governor of Ru Prefecture, Lü Duan, is the most corrupt, deceiving his superiors and subordinates, and acting recklessly. He extorted bribes, curried favor with his superiors, and pursued personal gain. The evidence is conclusive. His ill-gotten gains amount to tens of millions of guan, all accounted for. Where did this money go? The parasites on the state are not limited to just Lü Duan!"

  "I'll tell you where the money went." a calm voice said.

  The voice was not loud, nor as passionate as the officials just now, but precisely because of its difference, it immediately caught everyone's attention. Everyone's eyes turned to the speaker, and they saw that it was Prime Minister Lu Xiangxian.

  Lu Xiang had always been of a calm and composed nature, with a good reputation. Although he rose to the position of Prime Minister due to the efforts of Princess Taiping, he never tried to curry favor with her or participate in the secret plots of the Taiping faction. He was fair and just in all matters, and people from both the imperial court and the general public still held him in high esteem.

  Lu Xiang, wearing a worn-out purple robe, with his hair and beard fluttering in the wind, stood tall with an air of elegance. He glanced at the officials present and said slowly: "As for the governance along the Grand Canal, I won't make any judgments for now. Let's just talk about the money Zhang Yuanshi mentioned - where did it go?"

  Li Dan slightly moved his body and said: "You say, how did they spend it?"

  Lu Xiang first showed a look of not being greedy for fame and wealth, and said calmly: "How to truly benefit the country and the people is what we thought when we first came into office. I just received a letter from Wei Guo Gong Xue Lang, who left Beijing several months ago, telling us how the money was spent. Do you want to listen?"

  Li Dan said curiously: "Read it out loud so everyone can hear."

  He then pulled out a letter from his sleeve pocket and held it up, indicating: "This document is plain and dull in its wording, far inferior to the 'Three Rivers Ode' in terms of literary style. However, I think that 'Xue's Letter' is better than the 'Three Rivers Ode'. Why? Because it is more beneficial to the country and the people.

  The great hall quickly fell silent to the extreme, at this time if a needle dropped, it would probably be audible, people had all sorts of thoughts, with curiosity, astonishment, incomprehension, and unease...

  Lu Xiangxian recited in a tone devoid of emotion: "The newly appointed Minister of Revenue, Xue, bows his head. Since leaving the capital, I have personally witnessed the situation with the grain transport along the Wei and Yellow Rivers. It is bitter, it is difficult. At Sanmen, I happened to meet a boatman who said that the river's waters are the blood of those who transport grain. I saw boats sink and people die, families crying out to heaven and earth, and I deeply agree with the boatman's words... Some say that the government is not well-managed, and this has led to heavenly anger. This saying can be applied everywhere, whenever there is hardship, it is said to be due to poor governance, with hardly any exceptions. However, I believe that the difficulties in grain transport are due more to the flaws in the system than to poor governance..."

  "...Please repair the three laws, namely: four-section law, granary law, and hiring law. The four-section law states that Jiang ships do not enter Bian water, Bian ships do not enter Yellow River, and river ships do not enter Wei water..."

  "When the "Sanhe Proclamation" came out, everyone in the temple was stunned and no one dared to speak loudly again. This document did not have any emotional language or local scenery descriptions, and its wording was not as good as the "Ode to Sanhe", but what they had in common was that both articles were written after on-the-spot investigations and were well-reasoned and persuasive."

  "The Three Rivers Fu" is a fu, mainly reflecting reality, expressing emotions and condemning ills; the starting point of "Three Rivers Law", however, is "how to change reality", and successfully created a brand new system of water transportation. From the perspective of discussion, this system is reasonable and in line with facts.

  From a governance perspective, Sanhe Law is far superior to Sanhe Tax!

  So those previously excited and upright officials are now speechless...

  Lu Xiang first looked back at the crowd and said: "Where did the money go? Building grain warehouses, hiring laborers, recruiting soldiers, building grain ships. How much money was 'collected', how much money was spent, how it was spent, the imperial court's council will ask Xue Lang to list out the accounts and report back. If there is any corruption, I will be the first to impeach him. It's about the matter, not the person, as long as we are all dedicated to the country, how can the country not be well-governed?"

  A few words, plain and unadorned, but the faces of many bureaucrats have turned red like pig liver, as if they had been slapped countless times with a loud "slap".

  Zhang subconsciously glanced at his nephew Zhang Jishi, whose face looked extremely unpleasant, as if saying: What have you done? You personally went to Dongdu and didn't even understand the situation, then came back in a hurry and stirred up a bunch of trouble. Isn't that just asking for a beating?

  The several trusted ministers under Taiping's seat, with a complacent look on their faces, made others want to slap him... Especially Dou Huai-zhen, who didn't even pretend, had an expression of a petty person getting his way, truly detestable.

  Li Dan said, "Taiping recommended Xue Lang to manage the river, and he did not disappoint me. I am waiting for the great management of the canal. Can it really be done as he said, transporting grain from the south in just one month? If it is achieved, I will definitely promote him to a noble title and reward his merits."