Chapter 281: 7. Great Buddha Site Selection

7. Great Buddha Site Selection

Ouyang Rong found that Watching Yuan Huaimin was familiar with everyone he met.

He rode Winter Plum, left the Jiangzhou Main Hall, and returned to the Huaiye Lane residence for lunch.

Watching Yuan Huaimin also followed, riding his thin black horse.

"Chief Clerk originally lived so close."

Ouyang Rong nodded.

Watching Yuan Huaimin was curious: "Chief Clerk, is this returning to the mansion for dinner?"

Ouyang Rong ignored him.

Watching Yuan Huaimin twisted his beard and said seriously:

"Winter Plum is a divine horse, Chief Clerk is young and promising, riding this horse, it is really heroic, a treasure horse matching a hero."

Ouyang Rong's mouth twitched.

Watching Yuan Huaimin looked left and right, and said mysteriously:

"Chief Clerk, to tell you the truth, the subordinate was once a famous romantic talent and dashing poet in Chang'an City.

"It's not that the subordinate is bragging, it's what the people in Chang'an City said. The subordinate's literary talent was top-notch in the Great Gan. Back then in Chang'an, I don't know how many courtesans and beauties pursued me, but the subordinate didn't bother to pay attention to them at that time..."

Ouyang Rong's group approached the Huaiye Lane residence, Watching Yuan Huaimin's head leaned over, talking endlessly, causing several long-term attendants from Nanlong who were with Ouyang Rong to look sideways, their eyes disgusted.

Ouyang Rong suddenly turned back: "So, what does Sima Yuan want to say?"

Watching Yuan Huaimin wiped his mouth and nodded seriously:

"The subordinate wants to write a poem for Chief Clerk's heroic posture riding the divine horse Winter Plum, how about it?" He sighed: "This is a good opportunity to leave a name in history, Chief Clerk should grasp it well."

Ouyang Rong stared at the somewhat narcissistic Sima Yuan for a while.

"Forget about writing poems... Winter Plum really can't be lent to you, I have something to do in the afternoon, and I have to go out of the city, another day." He sighed and asked: "Sima Yuan, where do you live, why haven't you gone back to eat?"

Watching Yuan Huaimin: "The subordinate is temporarily staying in Xingzi Ward."

A long-term attendant asked curiously: "You have an official position, why live in such a place with poor environment and security?"

Watching Yuan Huaimin didn't feel annoyed at all when he heard this, and scratched his head with a dry laugh: "Pocket is shy, pocket is shy..."

Ouyang Rong rode on the horse with a straight back, looking ahead, and said calmly:

"Not showing up for roll call is not showing up for roll call. Half a stone of salary has already been deducted. Registrar Yuan, take this as a warning; come earlier in the next few days. There aren't many days left until the end of the year anyway."

"Okay, okay, okay." Watching Yuan Huaimin nodded shamefully.

Answering so refreshingly, Ouyang Rong felt a bit embarrassed instead. Seeing that he arrived at the gate of the residence, he asked casually:

"Returning to Xingzi Ward seems quite far, do you want to come in for a meal?"

"Okay, okay, okay!" Watching Yuan Huaimin nodded vigorously, answering first, and then blushed with shame: "That, I have to disturb the Chief Clerk's family."

Ouyang Rong turned back silently, and couldn't help but look at Watching Yuan Huaimin who didn't treat him as an outsider at all.

"That's fine. The humble house is simple, just rough tea and light rice, Sima Yuan don't blame me."

"It's okay, it's okay."

Ouyang Rong brought Watching Yuan Huaimin back to the residence for lunch.

In the main hall, Aunt Zhen had already prepared a rich meal, directing the maids to place fruits, and Ye Weilai handed Ouyang Rong a hot towel to wipe his face and brought hot water to wash his hands.

The two women were quite curious about this strange colleague brought back by Tanlang.

After a cup of tea, at the dining table, they looked at Watching Yuan Huaimin's wolfing down appearance and looked at each other, unable to help but be dumbfounded.

Watching Yuan Huaimin ate heartily, his mouth unclear: "Chief Clerk, you... where is your rough tea and light rice? Another day, I will take you to my humble house, that is rough tea and light rice."

Ouyang Rong picked up his bowl and chopsticks, shaking his head as he said: "It's just plain tea and rice, and yet Registrar Yuan still arrives late and skips roll call—wouldn't that mean even less salary?"

"Chief Clerk, this is wrong." Watching Yuan Huaimin sat upright, unusually firm:

"Other times, we should do something meaningful. There is no need to be annoyed by external things, excessive pursuit, and the same is true for going to work."

Ouyang Rong nodded: "Then I deducted half a stone from you today..."

Watching Yuan Huaimin suddenly had a bitter face: "Less half a stone, just not enough, I have to be hungry for three days."

Ouyang Rong's mouth twitched. Eating is also stuck to death, right? The salary after deduction of absenteeism every month is just enough to eat?

"Sima Yuan's arithmetic is not bad. Tomorrow I will arrange some accounting work for you."

Watching Yuan Huaimin froze with the bowl, suddenly feeling that the delicious food in his mouth was not fragrant: "Chief Clerk, this..."

Ouyang Rong suddenly asked: "Then what does Sima Yuan think is something meaningful for us?"

"Others, I don't know." Watching Yuan Huaimin sat upright, his tone firm:

"But in my case... Chief Clerk, don't be scared by you, thinking that I am arrogant."

Ouyang Rong reached out and made a "please" gesture: "You say."

"I want to write a poem that is unparalleled in the world! Amazing the entire literary world of the Great Zhou, making the scholars and people of the two capitals pass it on, and leave a name for eternity!"

This remark came out, and the hall was silent.

In front of the dining table, Ouyang Rong stared at Watching Yuan Huaimin for a while, reached out from under his sleeve, and moved the food in front of him away a little.

Ouyang Rong nodded, as if expressing affirmation, turned his head to pick up vegetables and eat.

Aunt Zhen and Ye Weilai also continued to pick vegetables for Tanlang.

Looking at the three people burying their heads and eating quietly, Watching Yuan Huaimin laughed dryly, "Cough cough."

Continued to eat.

About a quarter of an hour later, Watching Yuan Huaimin was full of wine and food, and under the polite stuffing of Aunt Zhen, he couldn't refuse, packed some dishes and left.

Fully loaded.

"Tanlang, this colleague of yours is quite interesting."

Aunt Zhen covered her mouth and shook her head: "I heard that he was demoted? This mentality is quite open-minded, but he is a bit fond of bragging."

Ouyang Rong yawned: "I'm going to sleep, call me at the second quarter of the afternoon."

He took Ye Weilai back to Yinbing Zhai for a nap.

Mount Kuanglu, the top of a main peak named Yunwu.

"It's not easy for the Magistrate to come to Mount Kuanglu once, don't you want to visit famous scholars and play around?"

Beside Yan Liulang supported his knees and asked the slender figure on the cliff ahead, panting slightly.

Ouyang Rong shook his head, standing on the top of the mountain, looking down at the scenery below seriously.

Mount Kuanglu is not a mountain, but a group of mountains, with a relatively high altitude.

The clouds and mist evaporated from the Yangtze River and Yunmeng Marsh surged toward the Kuanglu mountains, making them shrouded in clouds and mist all year round, like a fairyland.

It is truly a good place for summer retreat and seclusion, even now in winter, there is spectacular snow scenery.

It's just that these two days, Ouyang Rong solved the official documents every morning, and took Beside Yan Liulang to visit the high mountains and flat lands around the city in the afternoon. Today, he finally came to Mount Kuanglu.

But it was not to see this strange scenery.

"The view from this main peak is good." Ouyang Rong suddenly said.

"Indeed... it's just that this mountain is inevitably too high and too difficult to climb. The Magistrate shouldn't want to choose this place, right?"

Beside Yan Liulang thought for a while and suggested:

"To build a Great Buddha, it is better to choose a flat land, or a place close to Xunyang City, which is convenient for the mobilization of laborers and materials."

"That's right." Ouyang Rong nodded in agreement.

Mount Kuanglu is located on the east side of Xunyang City. Almost the entire Xunyang City is built with its back to the Kuanglu mountains, and it borders the Yangtze River in the west.

Because of this, standing on this highest main peak of Kuanglu, one can clearly see the terrain and surrounding situation of the entire Xunyang City below.

Ouyang Rong's eyes reflected the entire Xunyang City below, and he couldn't help but mutter to himself:

"Looking at it from here is much clearer than books and the like.

"Xunyang City is good in everything, but there is too little flat land around, leaning against Kuanglu, and all around are big mountains or sandbars.

"Or rather, Xunyang City was originally built on the largest piece of flat land here.

"From the Chaisan and Xingzi wards on the west side and the shore, to the Lianxi ward on the east side near the foot of Mount Kuanglu.

"It has expanded to the extreme, leaving only hills that are not easy to expand..."

Ouyang Rong muttered:

"With such a compact space, where should I choose to build the Great Buddha?

"It can't be like the Shangyang Palace in Luoyang, building a Great Buddha directly on flat ground. It is spectacular, but how much financial and material resources will it consume?

"Moreover, Xunyang City doesn't have such a large piece of spare flat land, and it can't delay the people's livelihood..."

Ouyang Rong looked at the cliff and pondered.

Behind, Beside Yan Liulang ran to fetch a bag of clear spring water, handed it to Ouyang Rong, and talked endlessly:

"Magistrate, I heard that there is a Kangwang Valley on the south side of this peak. There is a clear spring in the valley called 'Gulian Spring', hanging for a hundred meters, clear and incomparable. The tea brewed with this spring is a must in Kuanglu.

"There should be quite a few famous scholars who love tea there right now, should we go and taste it..."

Ahead, Ouyang Rong took the water bag and answered without looking back: "High mountain clouds and mist naturally produce good tea."

"Then does the Magistrate want to go and see..."

Ouyang Rong suddenly stopped drinking water, pointed his hand holding the water bag to the west, and ignored the spring water flowing down from the bag, interrupting Beside Yan Liulang's words:

"What place is that?"

"Ah?"

"What is that place called?"

Beside Yan Liulang was stunned, turned his head to look, and found that the Magistrate was pointing at two mountain peaks not far to the west of Xunyang City.

The two mountain peaks were quite short, the vegetation in winter was sparse, the two mountains were bare, leaning against each other, with a long and narrow valley in the middle.

"Magistrate, wait a moment." Beside Yan Liulang hurriedly flipped through the map, found the location, and read out after a while:

"Reporting to the Magistrate, it seems to be called... Shuangfengjian."

"Shuangfengjian... why is it a bit familiar, have I seen it somewhere."

"Is it? We don't seem to have been there yet." Beside Yan Liulang was curious.

Ouyang Rong muttered for a while, and suddenly turned his head.

"Go, go down the mountain, go and see."

How come I just climbed up, and I have to go down again... Beside Yan Liulang was helpless, but had to follow obediently.

On the way, Ouyang Rong suddenly remembered where he had seen this place name.

Midnight.

Chaisan Ward, Huaiye Lane.

The bamboo forest in the south after entering winter is still deep green bamboo leaves.

The evening breeze blew, and among the swaying bamboo shadows, there was a bamboo forest courtyard with lights not yet extinguished.

In the room, a desk was piled high with documents, Ouyang Rong was draped in a fox fur cloak, with a blanket on his legs, he buried his head in the documents, his eyes blinking for a long time, flipping through the materials.

By his feet under the table, there was a small stove, and the red hot charcoal emitted some heat waves that distorted the air.

Added some warmth to the room with tightly closed windows.

However, in front of the small stove, a petite white-haired girl sat on a small stool, covered with a blanket, hugging her knees and burying her head, accompanying the master to read at night.

At a certain moment, Ouyang Rong put down an old bamboo slip and exhaled a long breath: "It's this one, finally found it."

He muttered a sentence, stretched, and saw the girl on the small stool in front.

Ye Weilai curled up her body, closed her eyes and leaned her face against her knees, her body swaying slightly like the candle flame on the desk.

Ouyang Rong stood up lightly, took off the fox fur cloak and walked over, covered it on the girl who was sleeping soundly, picked her up by the waist, and walked toward the neat bed in the inner room.

"Mm Master... is Master finished?"

"Shh."

Ouyang Rong pressed his index finger on Ye Weilai's soft pink lips, and she subconsciously held it in her sleep, not knowing why, sucked it skillfully... maybe she recognized the wrong thing?

"..." Ouyang Rong carried her back to the bed, covered her with the quilt, returned to the desk, and wiped his fingers.

People's saliva is sticky when sleeping, and the girl is no exception.

Ouyang Rong shook his head, picked up the old bamboo slip on the table that had been stored in the warehouse of the Jiangzhou Main Hall for an unknown amount of time.

He walked to the window, paced back and forth, lowered his eyes and read carefully.

This is a water control bamboo slip, proposing a water conservancy plan to govern the floods near Xunyang City.

That's right, Xunyang City, like many counties below, is also troubled by floods, but it is not as serious as counties like Longcheng.

It is mainly concentrated during the flood season of the Yangtze River in summer.

So Ouyang Rong is not in a hurry, originally planning to finish the New Year's Day and Winter Solstice holidays before preparing to prevent it, but now it seems that it can be prepared in advance...

Ouyang Rong glanced at the signature on the bamboo slip. The proposer of this water control plan was a small official from the north who was demoted to Jiangzhou more than ten years ago. His hometown was close to the Yellow River and he was quite proficient in water conservancy knowledge.

This person submitted this water control bamboo slip to the Jiangzhou Main Hall, but it was not adopted by the Jiangzhou Main Hall in the end and was shelved.

The reason why Ouyang Rong has an impression is because he prepared for the "Ten Strategies for Water Control in Jiang Nan" and "Map of Water Systems in Jiang Nan" submitted not long ago.

At that time, he made a lot of preparations and privately consulted the water control plans proposed by many prefectures and counties in Jiang Nan, which can be considered as drawing on the wisdom of the masses.

So he had some memory of this plan involving Xunyang City's water control.

After returning from Mount Kuanglu, on that day, Ouyang Rong went to the warehouse of the Jiangzhou Main Hall and turned out this original bamboo slip.

Because this water control plan happened to mention Shuangfengjian and also focused on it.

Ouyang Rong read it again and nodded to himself:

"Xunyang City's floods are different from Longcheng County's floods. Longcheng is trapped by the floods of the Yunmeng Marsh upstream, while Xunyang City is harassed by the rising water during the flood season of the adjacent Yangtze River.

"And this tributary of the Yangtze River, the Xunyang River, converges south of Shuangfengjian and is blocked by this mountain, unable to flow north, so it is easy to form a vast ocean, causing floods and submerging the Xunyang City on the shore."

He held the bamboo slip and frowned slightly in thought:

"The idea of opening Shuangfengjian is a bit whimsical, but it can be slightly improved.

"Chisel a canal between the two peaks, dredge the Prince Xunyang, and let it flow into the Yangtze River together, thereby solving the flood in Xunyang City...

"There is something to do."

(End of this chapter) ===== CHAPTER 282 =====

"Carve a canal between the two peaks, dredge the Prince Xunyang, and make it flow into the Yangtze together, thereby solving the flooding in Xunyang City...

"It's doable."

(End of chapter)