Chapter 158: Opening the Grand Canal (1)
On the way north, they passed by Tianqi, Huayi, Zhouyi, and finally arrived at Hengshui!
Countless scholars joined them along the way. They all wore clean blue and white uniforms and slowly replaced the main group. Soon, the common people retreated to the back of the group. Later, even the army of guards retreated towards the rear of the ranks. Leading at the forefront were tens of thousands of students, devoutly guarding the giant ship, making their way forward!
They recalled the Princess’ promise, saying that the canal would be ready to open by the time they reach Hengshui. But once they’ve arrived and seen the excavated canal for themselves, they couldn’t help but sigh in admiration. This was a massive construction that should have taken over a month of labor to complete, and yet how much labor did they employ to actually excavate it in only a matter of seven or eight days?
Since the waterway was still under its final stages of construction, the waterway wasn’t completely open and the river was very shallow. Thus, by the time they reached Hengshui, the giant ship’s speed fell.
What surprised Chang Xi was that when they passed the two banks of Hengshui, the construction team ahead received news of their arrival and increased their speed of labor! Meanwhile, the civilians who saw the arriving ship were aware that the Princess and Crown Prince had arrived. They retreated and gave way to the scholars before bowing down deeply!
“We welcome the Crown Prince! We welcome the Princess!”
“We welcome the Crown Prince! We welcome the Princess!”
This scene caused some of the students to feel frightened. That’s because the local governor had exhausted nearly every single citizen of his town to help repair the last of the canal; the entire city knelt before the ship, their exclamations loud enough to shake the heavens! It was a moving scene that they had never seen before in their lives!
Quite a few scholars had wet eyes; the rope in their hands seemed to also grow heavier. They felt that they weren’t only pulling the ship, they were standing up for justice! Because they were righteous, they received so many people’s recognition, more so than the Emperor himself!
Pulling the boat was getting more and more tiring because they’ve been doing it for most of the day. The local governor excavated the canal from both ends towards the middle, although the progress from Longteng River was a little slower than from the other side. At this time, the water here still flowed from the neighboring river, so they had to put more effort into pulling the ship from this end!
How much strength could those scholars have? The speed of the ship plummeted. The commoners that followed along the way rubbed their hands. It was finally time for them to shine! Many farmers on the banks also went over and helped to pull the ship!
They had plenty of strength. The moment they helped, it greatly decreased the burden on the scholars. The ship once again picked up speed!
Normally, many scholars came from wealthy families and also read holy scriptures, looking down upon those mud legs. But right now, even as they stood side by side with the tanned workers, and with the muddy water staining their clean white scholarly robes, the scholars themselves didn’t show a trace of disgust.
Meanwhile, despite the countless old bruises on their own hands, the commoners felt more concerned for the scholars whose tender hands were blistered. Quite a few scholars felt emotional for their care, especially those who didn’t come from rich backgrounds. They couldn’t help think of their parents.
Whether you were born into a high or low status, the roots are the same. There is only division in men’s hearts because people believed in differences between the higher and lower classes.
At this moment, they finally understood the meaning of those words left behind by ancient wisemen. They comprehended the deep meaning that they would’ve never understood before.
A man quickly sped towards them on a horse while holding a white flag. His face was full of excitement as he cheerfully galloped closer!