Which project on the bank of the Yellow River can rival the Great Wall of Wan Li?

The Great Wall of Wan Li stands tall, symbolizing the unyielding backbone of the Chinese nation. Maybe you don't know, in fact, there is a great project on the bank of the Yellow River that is comparable to the Great Wall. It is not only the "lifeline" of dynasties, but also symbolizes a fearless spirit. What is the epic project? The following small series will reveal the secret to you from the beginning:

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The Yellow River is the fifth largest river in the world. It originated in Bayan Kara, Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, then crossed the whole hinterland of China from west to east, and finally merged into Bohai Sea. The Yellow River is rolling and choppy. Although it brought ruthless disasters, it also nourished fertile land and gave birth to ancient and splendid Chinese civilization. Therefore, we also affectionately call the Yellow River "Mother River".

The earliest record of the Yellow River in history can be found in Shangshu Gong Yu in the Warring States Period, that is, "the stone is accumulated by drawing water from the river, as for Longmen". During the Zhenguan period of Emperor Taizong, Li Shimin sent troops to conquer Tuguhun and ordered people to find the source of the Yellow River, which was called "viewing the source of the Yellow River". Later, during the Kangxi period of the Qing Dynasty, Lashi and Lan Shu, after finding out the source of the Yellow River, also wrote the source of the Yellow River and drew the source map of the stars, which made people have a clearer understanding of the Yellow River. In addition to understanding the Yellow River, the ancients also learned to make use of it, the most important of which is shipping, which is the famous "Yellow River water transport" in history, which successfully transported a large number of materials and grain to towns along the river and promoted the development and prosperity of the regional economy. However, the problem is that the Yellow River water transport is not smooth sailing. Many times, it faces fast-flowing water or stormy weather. Therefore, in order to overcome the difficulties of the Yellow River water transport, the ancients built a project, namely the Yellow River plank road.

The plank road of the Yellow River is to build a passage on steep cliffs and steep stone walls on both sides of the Yellow River. According to archaeological findings, there are more than 40 plank roads in the Yellow River, mainly distributed in Sanmenxia, Henan and Yuncheng, Shanxi. Although most of the plank roads of the Yellow River have been destroyed by nature, we can still imagine their magnificence through the holes and steps of the destination.

As for the construction date of the plank road of the Yellow River, experts determined that it began in the Han Dynasty through some inscriptions and historical records. For example, the earliest inscription on the plank road is "the 11th year of Jianwu", which is the title of Liu Xiu, Emperor Guangwu of Han Dynasty. The plank road of the Yellow River has been built and developed in all previous dynasties. According to Li Daoyuan's record in Notes on Water Classics, the Yellow River carried the largest amount of water in the Tang Dynasty, so it was also the heyday of building the plank road of the Yellow River. From the Han Dynasty to the Tang Dynasty, from the Song Dynasty to the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the plank road of the Yellow River, which has been built for thousands of years, has already surpassed the Great Wall of Wan Li in length and scale, and has become a highlight in the history of water transportation in China.

Through observation and measurement, experts found that most of the plank roads of the Yellow River are "concave", about 2.5 meters wide and about 3 meters away from the river surface. The usual way to build the plank road of the Yellow River is to cut a square hole as big as a water tank on the cliff, then insert thick trees to fix it, and finally connect it into a road. If you meet a corner, craftsmen will also cut the "bovine nostril" to tie the cable of the ferry brought by the Yellow River. No matter which road the Yellow River plank road is, it is extremely difficult and dangerous, so compared with the Great Wall, its hardships are even worse. Maybe some readers will be puzzled when they see this. How did the ancients build the plank road of the Yellow River? As a matter of fact, Bian Xiao mentioned at the beginning that it is very difficult to transport water in the Yellow River, especially in places with fast-flowing water and frequent accidents. Therefore, when the ancients built the plank road, they pulled the fiber, that is, on both sides of the Yellow River plank road, the trackers pulled the water-carrying ship hard to control the speed and direction of its upward movement to avoid dangerous accidents.

Especially in the dry season of the Yellow River, the tracker and the plank road of the Yellow River played a vital role. Without them, there might be no Yellow River water transport. Thus, the role of the Yellow River plank road is enormous. If the Great Wall can make people sleep soundly, then the plank road of the Yellow River can make people eat well. Although the Yellow River plank road has long since withdrawn from the historical stage, its achievements will never be forgotten by history.