Tang Dynasty: Father, if you don't rebel, I will!

The spring rain pattered on the ground, splashing up water droplets on the bluestone path of the First Official School of Taiyuan Prefecture.

Li Chengqian, who had just walked out of the teaching building.

Looking at the refreshing and tranquil scene of spring rain.

His brows furrowed deeply.

The second year of Zhenguan should have been the driest, and the second year of Zhenguan should have been the most water-scarce.

This spring rain, however, was continuous, with both large and small showers lasting for several days.

"Your Highness, is this the Huiyangcheng Palace?" Wang De asked cautiously.

After a long silence, Li Chengqian pondered for a moment and then asked, "Wang De, have the spring rains been like this in previous years?"

Upon hearing this, Wang De immediately shook his head, a smile on his face.

"Your Highness, how could that be? Spring rain is as precious as oil. If we could have such rain every spring during the planting season, our Great Tang would surely have bountiful harvests year after year, with abundant rainfall and no frost disasters..."

His face was full of joy, and this expression was not only seen on his face, but also on the officials of the Bingzhou Road Agricultural Department, and even the agricultural officials of Chang'an in Guannei Road.

Everyone was as happy as if they had won a prize.

However, upon hearing this, Li Chengqian's eyes showed even greater surprise and worry.

He swore he would never have misremembered.

"In the second year of the Zhenguan era, the capital suffered a drought, and a massive locust plague broke out..."

Looking at the rain scene before him, which showed no signs of drought whatsoever, he felt that the situation here was not something that had just happened in a short while.

"Go, quickly summon Li Chunfeng and Yuan Tiangang to Fenhe Bay. We'll go to Fenhe Bay right away!"

When Li Chengqian arrived at Fenhe Bay, he saw large ships and docks everywhere, with workers wearing raincoats and carrying things in the rain.

Seeing them working so enthusiastically, Li Chengqian summoned Pei Ruocai, the chief official in charge of the canal transport in Fenhe Bay.

"Ruocai, how has the river level changed recently?"

Li Chengqian's expression was solemn. Just as he was asking questions, the blind Yuan Tiangang and Li Chunfeng arrived.

"Your Highness, we pay our respects..."

"Alright, alright, Master Yuan, let's skip the formalities. Masters, let me ask you, what are the recent celestial phenomena like? Is there a possibility of drought in our Great Tang Dynasty?"

Li Chengqian's eyes were sharp as he heard this question.

Yuan Tiangang's heart skipped a beat, while Li Chunfeng, standing to the side, looked at the continuous spring rain with a puzzled expression.

"Your Highness, this year has seen abundant rainfall, so why do you feel that a drought has occurred?"

Li Chengqian did not speak, but looked at Yuan Tiangang, whose eyes were now gray.

Judging from the fact that this guy inexplicably went blind, yet still moves around so freely every day, showing no signs of being blind, this old man must possess some methods that ordinary people don't understand.

"Master Yuan, will our Great Tang Dynasty experience a drought this year?"

Yuan Tiangang took a deep breath, pondered for a long time, and then gently shook his head.

"Your Highness, the Tang Dynasty is prosperous and thriving... I do not believe that the Tang Dynasty will experience a drought this year."

Li Chengqian: "Then... what about floods?"

Hedong Circuit, Weizhou Prefecture.

"Hurry! Hurry up! Dig faster!"

"Brothers, we've finished the work. Lunch today will be steamed buns and stewed pork!"

"Hahaha! Good!"

It wasn't raining in the Hedong area, but the officials from the Ministry of Works in charge of dredging this canal were all looking gloomy.

With the deadline set by His Highness the Crown Prince for the project's completion drawing ever closer, the Imperial Guards sent to oversee the work were right beside him.

To avoid losing their entire family's lives, all they could do was live on the construction site around the clock.

Even on a spring-like evening, the air in the countryside is still bone-chillingly cold.

But compared to the gazes of those Imperial Guards, this slight chill was nothing.

"Commander Qian, rest assured, only this last section remains. Once this section is cleared, all the waterways around the Sanggan River will be cleared, and the irrigation canals for farmland will also be completed... It will all be finished in three days at most!"

The Prefect of Weizhou Prefecture has come here in person today.

Although His Highness the Crown Prince does not currently have direct legal jurisdiction over the Hedong Circuit.

But now, from top to bottom, who in the Tang Dynasty doesn't know about it? Who doesn't understand it?

His Majesty is merely a transitional figure in the Tang Dynasty's imperial power; His Highness the Crown Prince is the true "Son of Heaven" of the Tang Dynasty.

Qianlou was a man of few words and rarely smiled.

Nodding, I said, "I don't care about anything else. As long as the construction period is over and all the sites are completed, you can all report back and receive your rewards. I can also go back and report to His Highness the Crown Prince!"

Upon hearing this, the governor of Weizhou Prefecture nodded and smiled apologetically.

at the same time.

Suddenly, a series of fast horses carrying orders galloped out from the city gate of Taiyuan.

As soon as they rushed out of the city gate, they headed towards the counties and prefectures surrounding Taiyuan Prefecture, which had inland rivers and waterways.

Inside the Shougong Hall.

The team that implemented the new policies in Bingzhou Province gathered here, which was unusual, even when there was no large-scale court assembly.

Li Chengqian has not yet appeared.

A huge water map, over ten meters long, covering Bingzhou, Hedong, and even the Guannei Road, was unfolded before everyone.

present.

Xiao Rui, Director of the Commerce Department under the new policy.

Wang Ming and his son Wang Qingyun were the governors and military commanders of Bingzhou.

New Secretary for Justice, Attorney Pei.

General Hou Junji, Duke of Lu, Commander-in-Chief of Yanmen Commandery.

Royal Bank President, Duke Ying, Wu Shiyue.

Changsun Wuji was appointed as the Prefect of Zhenbei Circuit and concurrently the Chief Supervisor of the Yellow River Water Conservancy Project.

In addition, Li Gang, Junior Guardian of the Crown Prince, Yu Shinan, Junior Tutor to the Crown Prince, Lu Kexin, President of the Imperial University, and the chief officials of the Six Ministries of Bingzhou all solemnly attended the event.

In addition, all the princes living in Yangcheng Palace, as well as the eldest princess Xiangcheng and the legitimate eldest princess Li Lizhi, were present.

Prince Lu, Li Yuanchang, felt a strong sense of unease sitting among these powerful figures.

Compared to those who contributed to the new policies of their nephew, the Crown Prince, through their own abilities, Li Yuanchang was more like someone who relied on the influence of his father, the retired Emperor Li Yuan.

A good-for-nothing who freeloads off His Highness the Crown Prince.

Despite being a law-abiding citizen, he wholeheartedly supports all kinds of policies.

But... he still felt a bit awkward, like a husky that had wandered into a pack of wolves.

A short while later, Li Chengqian walked in from one side of the side hall.

He waved his hand without even giving everyone a chance to bow.

"Alright, enough with the small talk. Everyone has a lot of work to do, so I'll get straight to the point... This year, my Great Tang Dynasty may face a flood!"

"Wha, what?!"

Even before the meeting started, when everyone looked at the geomantic map of the water area that had been laid out, they already had some guesses in their minds that this year's events were probably related to water conservancy infrastructure.

However, all they could think of was that His Highness the Crown Prince was probably planning to increase investment in the Yellow River water conservancy project.

No one expected that His Highness the Crown Prince would drop such a bombshell right from the start.

Li Chengqian winked at Yuan Tiangang, who was standing to the side, and then realized that the latter was blind.

Just as he was about to speak to remind the other party, he saw Yuan Tiangang, whose eyes were grayish-white, step forward.

"My lords, I recently observed the celestial phenomena last night..."

"Can a blind person observe the stars?" Li Zhi asked, somewhat puzzled.

No sooner had he finished speaking than he received a sharp slap on the back of his head from Princess Chang Le.

Yuan Tiangang coughed twice: "I observed the celestial phenomena last night, and with the help of the Eight Trigrams, I deduced that the planet Mercury is guarding the water position, and the problem lies in the north. The yin stars are not dispersing, so this year our Great Tang Dynasty may face a flood, and a major one at that!"

Everyone looked at each other.

However, Li Chengqian then gave Li Chunfeng behind him a wink.

The latter hurriedly distributed the water level and rainfall records that Li Chengqian had asked him to retrieve and screen to the hands of the Bingzhou generals present.

"My lords, these are the reports from various parts of Bingzhou since the beginning of spring, concerning rainfall and river levels."

"The Yellow River's water level is not fluctuating much, but the Fen River, Qin River, and Sanggan River's water levels are more than half a foot higher than usual..."

As Li Chunfeng spoke, everyone frowned.

Xiao Rui frowned: "It's only half a foot. With the continuous spring rains, isn't it normal for the water level to rise?"

Li Chunfeng shook his head: "Lord Xiao, but the water levels I just mentioned only rise and never fall! If the rain stops after a few days, that's fine, but if it continues, it might even rise further."

"I'm afraid that at that time, not only the Fen River and the Qin River will be flooded, but the situation along the Yellow River will be even more dangerous!"

Suddenly.

Inside the Shougong Hall, the heads of various departments held their documents and exchanged hushed conversations with furrowed brows.

If that's really the case, then it's indeed a very big problem.

Li Chengqian tapped his fingers on the table.

"I have already dispatched fast horses to obtain the latest water levels and rainfall information from various places. In addition, I have also sent people to Chang'an, Luoyang, and Youzhou."

"Now that our Great Tang Dynasty is enjoying a period of rapid progress with its new policies, and the Emperor Emeritus is winning battle after battle on the front lines, I hope even more than you that this flood is just a rumor. However, this matter is of great importance and cannot be ignored!"

"Bingzhou Road, Zhenbei Road, Hedong Road, and Guannei Road must do a good job in flood prevention and control."

"In addition, I will have Chang'an inquire about the situation in the Jianghuai region as soon as possible."

As Li Chengqian spoke, everyone nodded in agreement.

Li Chengqian looked at his uncle Changsun Wuji, whose face was solemn. Every time he met the old man, he would become thinner, but fortunately, Sun Simiao and the others said that there was nothing wrong with him.

"Uncle, how's the situation on the Yellow River waterway? Is the second phase going smoothly?"

Changsun Wuji snapped out of his daze and was about to stand up when Li Chengqian pressed his hand down, indicating that he should sit down to reply.

"Your Highness, the waterways in Longyou are not much more difficult to repair than those in Yanmen County; the main challenge is the construction time..."

Li Chengqian nodded. Seeing the other person's worried face, he naturally knew what the other person was worried about and gently comforted him.

"Rest assured, we have anticipated this situation. As long as we are prepared and the local officials cooperate fully, even if the heavens send down a torrential downpour, we will surely be able to lead the people of our Great Tang Dynasty to safety!"