Ximen Bao Governance Ye: What role did the dialogue between Ximen Bao and the old man play in this article?

During the Warring States Period, Wang Wei sent Ximen Bao as the envoy of Ye (now Linzhang County, Hebei Province). When Ximen Bao arrived in Yexian County, he saw that it was sparsely populated and desolate, and asked some people what was going on.

An old man with a white beard said, "It's all because Hebo married his wife. James Hope is the God of Zhanghe River. Every year, he marries a beautiful young girl. Otherwise, the Zhanghe River will flood and flood all fields and villages. "

Ximen Bao asked, "Who said that?"

The old man said, "That's what the witch said. Every year, local stewards force ordinary people to pay for Hebo's wedding. They charge millions of dollars a year, spend 200,000 to 300,000 on weddings, and share the rest with witches. "

Ximen Bao asked, "Where did the bride come from?"

The old man said, "The witch will take someone to choose the young and beautiful daughter. Rich families spend a little money on it, and those without money are out of luck. On the day of Hebo's wedding, they put a reed mat on the edge of Zhanghe River to dress up the girl.

Let her sit on the reed mat, put it in the river and follow Shui Piao. The reed mat was still floating on the water at first, but it sank after a while. So families with daughters have gone to other places, where the population is getting smaller and smaller and the place is getting poorer and poorer. "

Ximen Bao asked, "When Hebo marries his daughter-in-law, will the Zhanghe River stop flooding?"

The old man said, "It's still hair. The witch said it was a good thing to send Hebo a daughter-in-law every year, or else Zhanghe would send more water. "

Ximen Bao said, "The witch said that Hebo was still a spirit! Next time he marries a daughter-in-law, let me know and I'll see the bride off. "

On Hebo's wedding day, the river was crowded with people. Ximen Bao really came with a bodyguard. The witch and the local administrator rushed to meet him. The witch is in her seventies, followed by a dozen female apprentices in enchanting clothes.

Ximen Bao said, "Bring the bride here and let me see if she is handsome." I brought the girl here later. Ximen Bao looked at the girl's tearful face and turned to the witch and said, "No, this girl is not beautiful. Ask the witch to go to the river and tell Hebo to choose a beautiful one in a few days. " Say that finish, let the guards pick up the witch and throw it into the Zhanghe River. After a while, Ximen Bao said, "Why hasn't Woods come back yet? Let her apprentice rush. " Throwing one of her disciples into the river. After waiting for a while, she threw another apprentice into the river. After a while, Ximen Bao said, "It seems that women can't do this. Trouble the local steward to tell Hebo! " He also asked the guards to throw the steward into the Zhanghe River. The stewards in these places turned pale with fear, and hurriedly knelt down and begged for mercy. Ximen Bao said, "Well, wait and see." After a while, he said, "Get up! It seems that Hebo left them behind. You all go back! "

This time, everyone suddenly realized. It turns out that witches and local managers are cheating money. From then on, no one dared to ask Hebo to marry a divorced woman. Ximen Bao mobilized the common people to dig twelve large canals to divert the water from the Zhanghe River to the fields to irrigate crops. Since then, there has been a bumper harvest on both sides of the Zhanghe River.