Live streaming life: The ancients begged not to stop

Chapter 282

After putting away the things he brought back, Qi Cheng picked up an old book and lay on the sofa to read.

This article is quite interesting, it talks about some old buildings.

If you were to talk about the most famous building in my country, it would definitely be the Great Wall. There's a saying that goes, "If you haven't been to the Great Wall, you're not a true man." During festivals, the Great Wall is visited by countless people.

There are actually many interesting things about the Great Wall. For example, most of the Great Wall we see today was built during the Ming Dynasty, and the ones from the Qin Dynasty have long been reduced to ruins.

[The Qin Dynasty was not the first to build the Great Wall. During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Qi and other states had already built parts of the Great Wall. After the Qin Dynasty unified China, these parts of the Great Wall were connected.]

Everyone has probably heard the story of Meng Jiangnu weeping at the Great Wall. I remember there was a TV series about this story set during the reign of Qin Shi Huang.

【In fact, according to historical records, this happened when the Qi Great Wall was being built.】

Daqin

Qin Shihuang was quite happy that people in later generations liked the Great Wall so much. Look at those people on the wall, they are so crowded that they can’t move.

"Fusu, remember everything about the Great Wall. Don't blame me for everything," Qin Shi Huang ordered. "And go easy on the people who built the Great Wall."

"Father, I think the later dynasties also needed the Great Wall, otherwise they wouldn't have rebuilt it during the Ming Dynasty. Why don't we carve stones at the foot of the Great Wall to record some of the major events in its construction?"

"That's a good idea."

There is still some controversy about the Great Wall in later generations, mainly about whether it was used for offense or defense. Some say it was a bridgehead, and when it was necessary to fight against the grasslands, the troops would be assembled at the Great Wall and used as a forward base.

Qin Shihuang nodded, he did have this idea.

[Of course, later dynasties mostly used it for defense, to resist cavalry on the grasslands.]

[Of course, there's a rather bizarre theory out there that the Great Wall interfered with communication between the grasslands and the inland. For those who hold this view, we should send them outside the Great Wall to see if communication was possible in ancient times.]

big man

Liu Bang also scoffed at the last statement. What kind of brain did he have to speak for the barbarians on the grassland? When they came in to gather grass and grain, they didn't care whether they were educated or not.

All of them were captured and taken to the grassland as slaves.

.......

Tang Dynasty

Li Shimin looked carefully at the article on the sky curtain, guessing which building of the Tang Dynasty would be written in the book.

The Tang and Song dynasties also boasted many interesting buildings, but we won't discuss them here. Instead, let's focus on a Yuan Dynasty structure. Calling it a building isn't quite right; it's actually a canal.

[Of course, I'm not talking about the Grand Canal, but the Jiaolai Canal in Shandong Province. The purpose of digging this canal was actually for water transport.]

Because the Yuan Dynasty used sea transport to transport grain, and because they were concerned about the dangers of the mountainous terrain to the east, they dug the Jiaolai Canal. Of course, this canal also used some of the original river channels.

However, the canal was dug too hastily, and the channel was too narrow. Furthermore, because it was diverting seawater, the land on both sides was eroded by the seawater, becoming salinized.

Although it was rebuilt during the Ming Dynasty, it was eventually blocked by silt.

Omoto

Kublai Khan hadn't had any expectations. It had been days since he'd mentioned the Yuan Dynasty, and he hadn't expected it to be mentioned today. Regarding the Jiaolai Canal, he had no real options.

No one, including the entire Mongolian ethnic group, could do anything about it.

He could only look for water control experts among the Han people to see if there was any way to remedy the situation. If there was a way, he would give them any amount of money or food.

Tang Dynasty

Li Shimin looked at the Jiaolai Canal carefully, feeling a little dissatisfied. The Jiaolai Canal would not be used in later generations, so why mention it? Was there no architecture worth mentioning in the Tang Dynasty?

"This Jiaolai Canal..."

Wei Zheng stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, we must conserve the people's strength. The Jiaolai Canal has so many problems. It is better not to build it."

"Hey, I want to know when we can develop those machines of the future. We in the Tang Dynasty really need them!"

........

Although the Jiaolai Canal has many problems, the idea behind it is not a big problem. Some people still want to dredge the canal again or dig a new one.

This will usher in a major development for ports within the Bohai Sea.

[Of course, the concern remains the problem of seawater erosion of the land.]

The people outside the tent felt that this problem was difficult to solve. After all, fertile land was still important. With the advanced technology of later generations, couldn't this problem be solved?

Qi Cheng took a look at the book. It was indeed written several years ago. Although Shandong Province did not dig the Jiaolai Canal, it did renovate the Xiaoqing River.

Implement river-sea linkage.

However, its carrying capacity is really average, and it can only handle small ships of several thousand tons. I don’t know what the carrying capacity of the Jiaolai Canal is like. If it can handle large ships of tens of thousands of tons, it would be very promising.

As for the erosion of land by seawater, can it be solved by planting sea rice?

……

[The last thing we're talking about is a Qing Dynasty building. Actually, it can't really be considered a building; it's more like a regulation.]

【It is the willow edge.】

The Qing Dynasty ruled that the Northeast was their ancestral land and prohibited anyone from entering it. Therefore, they surrounded it with trenches and other things. Because willow trees were planted on the area, it was also called the Willow Border.

Everyone knows that the Northeast is rich in mineral resources and the land is very fertile. The Qing Dynasty failed to properly develop it, which was a waste of natural resources.

The Great Wall was built to serve as a shield against external interference, and the Jiaolai Canal was constructed to facilitate water transport. Only the willow-lined border of the Qing Dynasty hindered local development.

By the late Qing Dynasty, the Willow Border was no longer in existence, and some landless farmers in the north moved to the Northeast to cultivate wasteland, cut down trees, and mine.

If the Willow Border had been abolished earlier, perhaps the Qing Dynasty's power would have increased a bit.

Daqin

Qin Shi Huang could not understand the thinking of the Qing emperors. Isn't it good to let the people have enough to eat? Look at the grain production in later generations. Even if the Qing Dynasty's technology was not good, it could still accommodate a large population.

Our Great Qin also started from a remote place, and it did not forbid people from other countries to come to Xianyang. Only when talents move around will there be more and more people.

Qing Dynasty

Emperor Qianlong was so angry that he smashed an inkstone. How could Tianmu say that about his own dynasty? Don't people always leave themselves a backup plan? What's wrong with the Qing Dynasty leaving itself a backup plan?

If there is any problem with their rule, they can retreat to the Northeast and try to make a comeback.

"Send someone over there to check and arrange for some wild Jurchens to cultivate the land."