Chapter 1486: A Great Flood Not Seen in Twenty Years

Facing Emperor Liu's question, the three men's expressions remained grave. They exchanged glances but did not speak directly. Seeing this, a few more traces of severity appeared on Emperor Liu's face. He flicked his loose, wide sleeve and said coolly, "You came in haste, undaunted by the toil of the climb, yet now that you see Us, you hem and haw!"

"Speak!" The short, forceful shout made the three men's bodies stiffen.

Meeting Emperor Liu's gaze, it was Liu d who finally drew a deep breath, clasped his hands, and said, "Reporting to Your Majesty, Chanzhou has reported—the river has burst!"

"Breached again!" Emperor Liu's brows knit tightly at once. He asked, "What is the situation? How severe is it?"

Not daring to conceal anything, Liu d said in a deep voice, "A major breach of the river mouth! According to the report, the levee broke for several li, the floodwaters spread, sweeping through Puyin—the entire county is submerged, fields and homes largely destroyed, the city walls shaken, and losses to officials and commoners are severe. The situation is extremely grave! In addition, there is also a breach at Daming Prefecture, but fortunately officers, soldiers, and commoners plugged it in time, and the flood situation has only just been brought under control!"

"Breaches, great floods, inundation, disaster... Within this single year, this is already the second time We have heard of these!" Hearing this, Emperor Liu's expression could be seen to turn cold with the naked eye: "Last autumn at Huazhou, this summer at Chanzhou—breaches at every turn. Is the Great Han's river defense so fragile and worthless? Over the past twenty years, so much manpower, resources, and money have been invested in river works and water conservancy—and the result is all shoddy construction?"

These words of Emperor Liu's were somewhat one-sided, but the anger came through clearly. Staring at Liu d, he rebuked him this time without mercy: "Last year you toured the river defenses to the east. Did you not return and tell Us that everything was in good order apart from Huazhou? Your words are still ringing in Our ears, and how long has it been before the Yellow River floods again? Hm?"

Even with Liu d's current depth of composure, facing Emperor Liu's interrogation like this, he could not help but flush red to the ears. In truth, when he first heard of the flood disaster, he truly felt the shame of being slapped in the face in public.

Lowering his head slightly, Liu d confessed his fault in a somewhat dejected tone: "It was Your servant's negligence in inspection and failure in supervision. The crime lies with the court, and the calamity has fallen upon the people along the riverbanks. I beg Your Majesty to punish me!"

As he spoke, Liu d had already risen and prostrated himself in supplication.

Seeing this, Emperor Liu narrowed his eyes but made no statement. Zhao Pu seemed unable to sit still either. He rose, bowed, and spoke a fair and impartial word: "Your Majesty, in Your servant's view, the breach at Chanzhou cannot be blamed on the Crown Prince. This is rather the negligence of this old minister, as well as the slackness of the local authorities!"

"Chancellor Zhao need not make excuses for me!" Seeing Zhao Pu speak up for him, a trace of gratitude flashed through Liu d's eyes, but his expression was earnest and resolute as he solemnly tried to take the responsibility upon himself: "Not to mention anything else—Your Majesty entrusted me with the duty of regency. That such a disaster occurred and I failed to detect and prevent it in time—that is my fault!"

"You certainly have a sense of responsibility!" Emperor Liu remarked flatly, neither warmly nor coldly.

Emperor Liu then looked toward Zhao Pu and said, "We would also like to hear—where exactly did you all neglect your duties?"

Upon the question, Zhao Pu replied in a grave tone: "To answer Your Majesty, since midsummer there have been reports that in certain areas of Henan and Hebei, heavy rains have fallen repeatedly, with continuous downpours that persist to this day.

It is only that We, your servants, did not maintain sufficient vigilance over this. Edicts were also issued urging the officials of the prefectures and counties along the river to guard against flood disasters. Your servant consulted specialists, who said that this summer's continuous rains are extraordinarily abnormal, unlike those of previous years, causing water levels to surge and rivers to be unable to discharge. They further said that this great flood may well be a calamity not seen in twenty years.

And the court has indeed invested enormous sums in recent years in river defense and water conservancy construction, which has had real effect. The officials and people along the river have also gone nearly ten years without major flood disasters, so their awareness of danger has naturally diminished greatly. As for last year's breach, it was also quickly plugged and defenses restored, and the impact did not spread.

Later, because of the Huazhou case, the local authorities conducted inspections and improvements of the levees within their jurisdictions, repairing and filling gaps. However, when heaven-sent disaster comes, its speed is so swift and its force so great as to far exceed imagination. Every locality could hardly be prepared, and so Puyin breached—sudden and impossible to withstand..."

"Heh heh!" Emperor Liu gave two cold laughs upon hearing this, looking at Zhao Pu: "Minister Zhao certainly knows how to speak. This speech of yours shifts all fault and negligence onto heaven's disaster itself! What, do you think We cannot call the heavens above to account?"

Hearing these words, even with Zhao Pu's psychological fortitude and thickness of skin, he could not help but feel a jolt in his heart. He did not dare meet Emperor Liu's eyes, only saying in a deep voice: "Your servant has no intention of shifting blame. It is only that what ought to be said, I speak truthfully!"

Emperor Liu gazed at Zhao Pu for a while, until he grew somewhat uneasy, then let his eyes wander over Liu d as well. His demeanor softened somewhat, and he said, "We are not being overly harsh. It is only that—since the rains were abnormal, why was it that from the outside in, at every level of officialdom and every layer of supervision, not a single person raised a disaster warning or reminded Us to take precautions?

So many officials, including you all—can you only discuss the reasons with Us afterward, knowing things after the fact?"

"Your servant was negligent and remiss—a great fault. I beg Your Majesty to punish me!" Zhao Pu's attitude was exactly the same as Liu d's, which instead backed Emperor Liu into a corner.

Given Emperor Liu's temperament, it would not have been impossible to pursue blame against Zhao Pu on this account, but there was truly no need. Not to mention the many other factors—after Zhao Pu, he could not for the moment find another candidate sufficiently satisfactory, trustworthy, reassuring, and fitting for the position.

Wang Qiwu, who had remained silent all along, now spoke up as well. His face was as seriously composed as ever as he clasped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, Chancellor Zhao toils over state affairs and handles a myriad of matters daily. Though this flood disaster involved some failure of oversight, it was truly unforeseeable—by no means the fault of Chancellor Zhao alone. If he is punished for this, Your servant considers it improper. For the present, flood prevention and disaster relief must take priority. As for other matters, Your servant believes they can be dealt with after the crisis has passed!"

Hearing Wang Qiwu's words, Emperor Liu was somewhat surprised. That Wang Qiwu would actually speak up for Zhao Pu was something of a rarity in the present day. Between the two chancellors, the relationship could only be described as drifting ever further apart—of this Emperor Liu was well aware.

Still, these words did indeed suit Emperor Liu's sentiments. His gaze swept over the three men and finally came to rest on Liu d. He said in a deep voice, "Rise! Blaming will not stop the flooding river. For now, relief is the priority. Other matters can be dealt with later!"

"Yes!" At these words, all three men unconsciously breathed a sigh of relief.

Zhao Pu then took the opportunity to report: "Upon learning of the disaster, the Hall of State Affairs has already issued successive decrees on flood resistance and disaster relief, widely disseminated to the officials and people of the prefectures and counties along the river, ordering them to save themselves and avoid harm. We, your servants, believe that this bout of continuous rain has affected a very wide area. Puyin has already breached. To prevent dozens of prefectures and counties on both banks of Henan and Hebei from suffering further breaches, and to prevent even more people in even more regions from suffering harm—this is even more important.

In addition, rescuing the people and aiding against the flood will require the cooperation of local officers and troops. The order for troop movements will need Your Majesty's signature... At the same time, the Yellow River is rising, and so is the Bian River. Orders have likewise been issued to the prefectures and counties of the capital region to make preparations, including the Western Capital!"

"Your considerations are thorough and complete—proceed accordingly!" Zhao Pu spoke with fluency, clearly having prepared a response in advance. Emperor Liu approved well enough, for in matters of disaster relief, the Great Han court was quite experienced, and there was little need for Emperor Liu to offer much direction.

Of course, the attitude of seeking approval was still quite necessary—especially under circumstances where such a major oversight had occurred.

"The Great Han has walked through floods and droughts all along the way. In the early years, disasters came every year, and we survived them all. This time will be the same—act boldly!" Emperor Liu instructed, his tone unavoidably somewhat listless.

With this matter, Emperor Liu's interest in viewing the scenery from the high terrace had clearly vanished without a trace. He rose and went outside again, standing before the railing and gazing outward. The setting sun was like blood, and the raging wind seemed to carry a hint of the uncanny.

Emperor Liu knit his brows and murmured to himself: "Here in Luoyang the wind is gentle and the sun is fair, the sky clear for ten thousand li, yet Henan and Hebei have seen continuous heavy rains. This great flood is indeed unusual?"