Kyoshi, Prime Minister's Office.

Yi Yi put down the phone, glanced at Su Shun a little depressed, and said, "I said that I would call later..... ”

Call later? Su Shun said suspiciously: "Could it be that there are other important matters?" ”

The drought in the northern provinces is severe, what could be more urgent than this? Yi Yi said nothing with a calm face, such a large-scale severe drought, the amount of silver needed for disaster relief was tens of millions, and the imperial court alone would definitely not be able to provide relief.

He was a little depressed in his heart, how could everything be rushed, first the world economic crisis, it took a lot of effort to stabilize the domestic economy, and there was a drought in several provinces, which was endless.

Seeing that he was silent, he said slowly: "Although Yuanqi has gradually diluted its status and role in disaster relief in recent years, Yuanqi will definitely not stand idly by in such a big disaster, I am afraid that Yuanqi will be powerless, the five-year plan has cost 400 million silver, and recently invested 200 million ........silver in the United States." ”

Hearing this, Yi Qi's heart tightened, of course he knew that Yuan Qi would not stand idly by, otherwise he would not have made this call, but if Yuan Qi's funds could not be turned over and he was unable to help, what should the court do?

In such a big disaster, if the relief is not effective, the cabinet will inevitably become the target of public criticism, and the government and the opposition will be in turmoil, and he, the prime minister, will bear the brunt of the disaster, and may even step down early because of this.

Thinking of this, he was shocked, could it be that Yi Zhixin had the intention of letting him step down early? Just when he was suffering from gains and losses, the phone rang, and he hurriedly stepped forward to pick up the phone, "This drought in the north may exceed our imagination, and I hope that the cabinet will attach great importance to it and draw up a long-term and thorough disaster relief .......plan." ”

Unbelievable? Long-term? Hearing these words, Yi Yi couldn't help but be stunned, and when he came back to his senses, he hurriedly said: "I'll rush to Shanghai immediately." ”

On the other end of the phone, Yi Zhixiang was silent for a moment before saying, "It's okay to meet and talk in detail." ”

Putting down the phone, Yi Qi's face was extremely ugly, and Su Shun said suspiciously: "Yuan Qi really let it go?" ”

"No, it doesn't matter." Yi Yi shook his head slightly, "Yi Guocheng said that this drought in the north may be far beyond our imagination ....... ”

After hesitating, Su Shuncai said: "With Yuanqi's strong support, no matter how big the drought is, there is no need to be afraid of ........" ”

Yi Yi rolled his eyes, "Aren't you still worried that Yuan Qi is powerless?" ”

"If it's a rare catastrophe, don't worry about it." Su Shun said with a smile: "Even if Yuan Qi can't withdraw funds, Yi Guocheng will find a way, I'm afraid that the disaster is not big or small, and Yi Guocheng will leave it alone." ”

"You've seen it thoroughly." Yi swallowed a smile, and his mood also relaxed, secretly laughing at the previous suspicion, groaning slightly, he held down the phone and shook it again, and then picked up the microphone, "Pick up Jinan, Shandong, Governor's Office." ”

Jinan, Shandong, Governor's Office.

It was noon, the weather was sweltering, and Ding Baozhen, the governor of Shandong and in his early fifties, was taking a cool nap under the shade of the trees on the shore of the lake——。 ”

Listening to King Gong's call, Ding Baozhen turned over, got up and hurried to the signing room, and asked as he walked, "What is the matter?" ”

"Nope." Xue Fubao also said: "Recently, there have been no major events in the DPRK and Shandong, and the students are pondering that it is nothing more than two things, one is the water conservancy project, and the other is the drought..... Water conservancy projects are reported on a monthly basis, and there are Yuan Qi supervisors, most of whom should inquire about the drought. ”

Drought? What is there to ask about the drought? From 1840 to 1874, among the 107 prefectures and counties in the province, more than 50 prefectures and counties were affected by the major drought 3 times, and the moderate drought of 20-49 prefectures and counties occurred 10 times, and the small drought never stopped.

He said in a sullen voice: "What year has there been no drought in Shandong?" In this year's drought, there are only 38 affected counties, which can only be regarded as moderate drought, and the imperial court is no longer surprised, so King Gong will deliberately ask? ”

"Shandong is not the only province that has suffered from drought this year." Xue Fubao explained: "It is reported that there are drought ...... of varying degrees in Zhili, Henan and Shanxi. ”

Entering the signing room, Ding Baozhen calmed down, and then picked up the phone, "Lord Wang, the next official Ding Baozhen ......" ”

Yi Yi had been waiting a little impatiently, put the microphone on the table, and listened to the voice from the microphone, he picked up the microphone and said: "This year, Shandong reported a moderate drought, and 38 prefectures and counties were affected?" ”

As soon as he heard that it was indeed a drought, Ding Baozhen hurriedly said: "Back to the prince, it is true that the drought in 38 prefectures and counties is serious. ”

Yi Yi said slowly: "This king remembers that you reported last year that someone in Shandong drilled a well to fight drought, and the effect was very good. ”

Listening to the inquiry, Ding Baozhen secretly breathed a sigh of relief, and said slowly: "There is indeed such a thing, it is the use of machines to drill wells, and it is a deep well, the depth of the well is generally more than seven zhang, even if there is a big drought, it will not be dry, but the cost is expensive, it must be two yuan and one zhang, a well is often dozens of yuan, and the well is inconvenient to absorb water, it is not popular, only when the drought is serious, there are rich households willing to dig deep wells." ”

Zhennan Wangfu, Changle Book House.

The ceiling fan on the ceiling was spinning rapidly, and Yi Zhizhi sat on the wide Taishi chair and smoked silently, such a large area and a drought that lasted for four or five years was an extreme headache even in the next generation, let alone in this era of extremely backward industry.

What made him depressed was that this great drought happened at this juncture, Yuan Qi had already issued a huge amount of paper money, and invested 200 million silver in the United States, not to mention the shortage of funds, he did not dare to increase the issuance, and this disaster was bound to have a huge impact on the economy of the Qing Dynasty.

After a long time, Zhao Liewen tentatively said: "If it is a rare catastrophe, why not take this opportunity to continue to implement the immigration policy?" Shandong and Henan are both populous provinces, and Northeast China, Wa Province, Siam, and Myanmar also need a large number of immigrants. ”

Yi Zhishu nodded, "It's to consider immigration, but this time the imperial court will take the lead, and Yuan Qi can't always act as a substitute." After a pause, he continued: "Drought control requires a large number of steam engines and pumps, and orders are placed for factories with production capacity to produce as much as possible. ”

Three days later, Yi Yi rushed to Shanghai, and as soon as they met, he asked directly: "Will this drought last until next year?" ”

Yi Zhixiang smiled, stretched out his hand and said, "Let's talk about it when we enter the house." ”

After entering the house and sitting down, he said: "If I say that this is the biggest natural disaster since the founding of the Qing Dynasty, not only in the northern provinces, but also for four or even five years, will King Gong believe it?" ”

Yi Yi looked at him stunned, speechless for a long time, such a big matter, it is impossible for the other party to joke with him, and he also knows the other party's temperament, after a long time, he asked: "Yuan Qi also has an institution similar to Qin Tianjian?" ”

Yi Zhishu sneered: "King Gong questioned my judgment? ”

"How dare you dare, just ask casually." Yi Yi hurriedly waved his hand, he really didn't dare to question the other party's judgment, the other party who saw it seemed unwilling to say, and he was inconvenient to ask again, so he immediately turned his head, "Such a rare disaster, how to deal with it?" ”

"Such a catastrophe, Su's court and Yuan Qi work together." Yi Zhizu said slowly: "Over the years, Yuanqi has spent a lot of money on disaster relief, which has caused serious dissatisfaction among shareholders, so it has been gradually reduced in the past two years, but in the face of such a catastrophe, Yuanqi will definitely do his best to help the imperial court!"

I have ordered that merchant ships returning from Burma, Siam, Annam, Java, and Luzon be allowed to load grain, and that I have also called the New York branch to import grain on a large scale. ”

Yuan Qi, who listened to it, had already taken action, and Yi Yi hurriedly arched his hand and said: "Brother Guocheng Gao Yi ........" ”

Yi Zhizu waved his hand to interrupt him and said: "This disaster relief has to be led by the imperial court, this is a rare opportunity to establish the prestige of the imperial court, the Qing Dynasty suffered a worldwide economic crisis and rare disasters at the beginning of the constitution, if properly handled, it will definitely win the hearts of the people." Of course, led by the imperial court, these grains that were transported for relief had to also be purchased by the imperial court. ”

Yi Yi was stunned for a moment, "Where did the imperial court get the silver?" ”

"Yuanqi low-interest loans." Easy to be content without thinking.

Yi Yi couldn't help but gasp, "Such a miracle disaster, how much silver does it have to spend to properly provide relief, won't it all let the imperial court borrow?" ”

"Of course not." Yi Zhizhi said: "However, this year's relief must be borne by the imperial court alone, and the drought will continue next year, and Yuan Qifang will carry out the relief in a good name." ”

After a slight groan, Yi Yi said tentatively: "Then take a loan of 50 million first?" ”

"Yes." Yi Zhizhi said simply: "Give you the lowest interest, three points per year." ”

The annual interest rate is three cents, which can be said to be an unprecedentedly low interest, but Yi Yi is not happy, the huge loan of 50 million is three points, and the interest is 1.5 million a year, he sighed lightly, "After this relief, will the imperial court have to be in debt of hundreds of millions?" ”

"Almost 100 million." Yi Zhishu said slowly: "The subsequent loans should be interest-free loans." ”

Yi Yi hurriedly said: "Then it's enough to borrow 20 million first." ”

Yi Zhizu rolled his eyes and said angrily, "Are you sure?" Next year's Yuanqi disaster relief funds will be ...... on this basis. ”

"That's still 50 million." Yi Yi said with a smile: "You don't have to worry about more debts, you don't have to itch if you have more lice, and it's more conducive to relief if you are more lenient." ”

lit a cigarette, and said slowly: "It's not just relief, the imperial court also needs to use this disaster to immigrate, reasonably distribute the population of the provinces, and enrich and develop the frontier.

In the past few years of severe drought, the Yellow River will continue to flow, and the water level will also drop to a historical low, which is a great opportunity to cure the Yellow River for the era.

Finally, it is to encourage the provinces to actively help themselves -- digging wells to fight drought, and the northern provinces are prone to drought, and if we want to eradicate the drought, deep wells are the only effective way to draw water, and we must encourage the people to dig deep wells. ”

Yi Yi asked Ding Baozhen in detail about the situation of the country's deep wells, and even said: "The deep wells are not dry due to the great drought, which is indeed a good way to eradicate the drought, but the cost is too high for ordinary people to bear, and the wells are deep, and it is not easy to get water." ”

"It is not easy to solve the problem of deep water extraction, you can use a steam engine to pump water, and one village and one village can drill two or three large deep wells, and then equipped with one or two internal combustion engines, even in a year of great drought, it is enough to alleviate the drought and ensure the harvest." Yi Zhizhi said: "Yuanqi Bank can provide small low-interest loans to solve the funds needed to drill wells. ”

"It works." Yi Yi pondered and said, "The problem is that all villages can drill wells and produce water? ”

"Absolutely water can be produced, the problem is only in the depth of the well." With the continuous development of oil drilling technology, the technology of machine drilling is also constantly improving, the depth of thirty or fifty meters is no longer a problem, this depth can not produce water in the northern provinces of the other party can be said to be very few, after all, there is no problem of over-exploitation of groundwater now.

Yi Yi said suspiciously: "If this is the case, won't there be no drought in the north?" ”

"That's why I'm actively promoting the popularization of deep wells." Yi Zhizu said slowly: "However, at present, the machine is still in the initial promotion stage, and this drought has spread to several northern provinces, and it is difficult to popularize it in a short period of time. ”

Zhao Liewen, who had not spoken, suddenly interjected: "At present, there is a serious shortage of drilling machines, can we first transfer people from Fuzhou to the provincial capital for machine drilling training, and then return home after the machine is available, and then transfer people from various counties to Fuzhou for training, so that the machine drilling can be quickly promoted within one or two years." ”

Yi Yi praised without hesitation: "Huifu's method is good!" ”

"It's worth a try." Yi Zhishu said with a smile: "If we can really promote the popularization of deep wells within two years, we can also save a lot of silver." After a pause, he added: "It is important to be careful that the use of deep wells is limited to times of drought and is forbidden in normal times. ”

Yi Yi was puzzled: "Why is this?" ”

The dangers of over-pumping groundwater are well known, and it can easily cause subsidence on the ground, endangering buildings and agriculture on the ground, and it can also lead to seawater backflow along the coast, in addition to serious ecological hydrology.

However, he couldn't explain these truths to the other party, and after a little muttering, he said: "The water pumped from the deep well is limited, it cannot be pumped all year round, it takes a certain amount of time to replenish, if you don't know how to save, there will be no water available in drought." ”

And what's going on? Yi Yi was a little skeptical, "There are many wells in Jingshi, and it is extremely rare to see dry waters. ”

Yi Zhishu glanced at him and said, "The Jingshi well is mainly domestic water, and the water consumption can be compared with watering?" This article must be widely publicized, because the deep well water is sweet and delicious, and if you don't know moderation, once you dry up, you will regret it too late. ”

The amount of water used to water the land is obviously not comparable to that of domestic water, Yi Yi nodded, "Brother Guocheng, don't worry, it will be widely publicized." ”

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Chapter 990: Drilling Wells to Fight Drought (Page 1/1)

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