Chapter 3373 3375【Damming the Yellow River】
After Xiang Nan checked into the hotel in Xinzheng, he asked the inn cook to cook some local delicacies.
“Your Majesty, these are vulgar things, how can they enter your mouth?” When the local officials heard this, they quickly stopped them.
"Shut up!" Xiang Nan shouted loudly after hearing this, "The purpose of my southern tour this time is to survey the people. Food is the most important thing for the people, so I want to eat the same food as the people, so that I can understand the people's feelings. .You are so obstructive, don’t you want me to get close to the people?”
The local officials were frightened by Xiang Nan's reprimand and did not dare to be verbose anymore.
Subsequently, the cooks at the inn began busy cooking for Xiang Nan and others.
In fact, as the chefs of the largest inn in Xinzheng, their cooking skills are naturally good. Even if it is not as good as the Royal Chef, it can still be used.
By dividing three by five and dividing by two, several tables of wine and food were prepared, most of which were local Xinzheng specialities. Such as baked carp noodles, fried tofu, fried purple crispy pork, soup dumplings and so on.
Everyone enjoyed the meal very happily.
In fact, in the harem, whether the emperor or the concubines, there are not many types of food available.
Because the dishes cooked in the imperial kitchen follow the fixed menu passed down from generation to generation in the palace. These menus have been tested by generations of people. Regardless of taste or safety, they are the most stable and stable. One notable feature is that they are "old and unchanged".
The purpose of the imperial chefs is not to seek merit but to have no faults. They rarely try to develop new flavors, new dishes, and new ingredients, so as not to get into trouble because the taste does not suit the emperor's liking or makes the emperor feel uncomfortable in his stomach.
In addition, the imperial chef was also afraid of offending the emperor, so the food, fruits, tea, etc. were not of the best quality.
Moreover, most of the emperor's royal meals are prepared in advance and then reheated before serving, so most of the dishes are no longer fresh.
Each dish also had to be tested by eunuchs who tested it for poison. By the time it was served in front of the emperor, most of the dishes were already cold and not tasty at all. According to the memories of eunuchs in the late Qing Dynasty, the characteristic of imperial cuisine was that it was "tasteless and greasy."
Puyi also recalled that most of the imperial meals were presented for show, and could only be looked at but not eaten. And in order to save costs, even if it rots and becomes smelly, it has to be put up.
The emperor also knew that the royal food was not delicious, so most of the time he would go to the concubines in the harem to eat at meal time. Because most of the concubines had their own small kitchens, which were called "dining rooms".
Because it is not as elaborate as Yushan, the taste is actually better. The concubines were also willing to use food to compete for favor, and often arranged for their trusted eunuchs and palace maids to learn cooking skills from folk chefs.
So they all ate well when the inn chef cooked the food, and even gave the chef a reward.
…
Turning around, Xiang Nan led his elder brothers and ministers, accompanied by local officials, to inspect the defense of the Yellow River.
They rode horses on the Yellow River embankment for two to three hundred miles, randomly inspecting the construction projects of the Yellow River embankment.
Since taking the throne, Xiang Nan has been investing heavily in repairing the Yellow River embankment. In the past, the Yellow River embankments were mostly made of sand, gravel, soil mixed with straw, and they were useful. However, when they encountered major floods, they could not withstand the erosion of the floods, and they often collapsed.
After Xiang Nan succeeded to the throne, the embankment was instead made of concrete mixed with steel bars. Especially in some critical areas, high dams were built to prevent floods from overflowing.
Therefore, in recent years, floods in the Yellow River have been basically controlled, and the damage caused is much smaller than in previous years. Xiang Nan looked over and saw that the Yellow River embankment was entirely made of concrete and steel bars. It was as solid as gold. Under the constant erosion of the river water, it still showed no signs of damage. He couldn't help but nodded with satisfaction.
"You have finally lived up to my expectations. This embankment is quite well built and can provide protection for a hundred years." Xiang Nan nodded.
"The emperor is wise and powerful, protecting all people, and the ministers dare not take credit." The local official knelt down quickly and said.
"When several dams are built on the Yellow River in the future, floods will be completely eliminated." Xiang Nan added.
“Building a dam on the Yellow River?!” When everyone heard this, they didn’t dare to say anything.
I have heard of damming small rivers, but no one dared to think of damming the Yellow River.
Because the Yellow River is too wide, with the narrowest point being 300 meters, and the water flow is very fast. No matter how large a merchant ship is, it cannot be stabilized by a flood. How can such a river be dammed?
"Why, you think it's impossible? Don't forget, before the Yellow River Bridge was built, who would have thought that a bridge could be built on the Yellow River." Xiang Nan smiled and said, "Never underestimate people's wisdom. Now Our technology may not be able to do it yet, but given time, we will definitely do it.”
“Yes, the Holy Spirit is right.” Everyone nodded.
Xiang Nan felt a little regretful.
In his lifetime, he may not be able to build a dam on the Yellow River.
Mainly because the technology is not up to par and there is still a lack of sufficient construction machinery. Not to mention anything else, it would be impossible to transport sand and gravel back and forth without one or two hundred large trucks. After all, if there is less luck, the foundation will not be stable enough. The river will rush away and it will have to be left for future generations.
Fortunately, relevant talents are already being cultivated and relevant technologies are being passed on. If future generations are not too stupid, sooner or later, dams will be built on major rivers such as the Yellow River, Yangtze River, and Pearl River.
From now on, China will never be flooded.
…
After seeing the Yellow River Embankment, Xiang Nan and others also went to the Shaolin Temple in Songshan to offer incense.
Shaolin Temple is known as the ancestral temple of Zen Buddhism. It is the place where Bodhidharma faces the wall. It has been very popular in the past dynasties and has many believers. In the late Ming Dynasty, Shaolin monks participated in the struggle against the Qing Dynasty. Therefore, after the Qing army entered the customs, they suppressed the Shaolin Temple in many ways.
For example, if the Shaolin Temple’s privilege of not paying taxes is cancelled, the establishment and salary of the monks and soldiers of the Shaolin Temple is cancelled, and the imperial court no longer appoints the abbot of the Shaolin Temple, it is equivalent to losing the official recognition... This makes the Shaolin Temple increasingly declining.
In the Kangxi period, after the imperial rule gradually became more stable, its attitude toward Shaolin Temple softened. Kangxi once wrote a plaque for the Shaolin Temple, Yongzheng also renovated the Shaolin Temple on a large scale, and Qianlong even stayed at the Shaolin Temple.
Although in martial arts novels, Shaolin Temple has always been regarded as the authentic martial arts, the Taishan Beidou in the martial arts world. But in fact, the martial arts in Shaolin Temple are not very strong, and they are mostly just bragging.
Yu Dayou, a famous anti-Japanese general in the Ming Dynasty, once admired the martial arts of Shaolin Temple and went up the mountain to observe it. It turned out that the martial arts demonstrated by the monks in the temple were just superficial, so he expressed his disdain.
Shaolin monks were naturally unhappy and stepped forward to challenge him one after another, but they were all defeated. Later, it was Yu Dayou who passed down part of the Kungfu to the Shaolin Temple, which was regarded as a treasure by the monks of the Shaolin Temple.
Xiang Nan went to the Shaolin Temple this time not to compete in martial arts, but to offer incense and travel. Songshan Mountain is the middle mountain among the Five Mountains, and Shaolin Temple is also a thousand-year-old temple with many scenic spots.
(End of this chapter)