In the early years of the Hongwu reign of the Ming Dynasty, floods ravaged the Jiangnan region. Particularly in the Jiaxing area, the canal embankments frequently collapsed, making it the hardest-hit zone, with the people crying out in distress. Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang received continuous reports of the disaster. Although the imperial treasury had some silver, distributing it would be like trying to put out a fire with a cup of water. So he simply closed his eyes and declared, "The dynasty is newly established, the treasury is empty. For now, we can only reduce taxes; we cannot allocate grain for disaster relief!"

When Tang of Shang established the Shang dynasty, the first capital was at Bo (pronounced "bó," modern-day Shangqiu, Henan Province). Over the following three hundred years, the capital city was relocated five times. This was due to constant struggles for the throne and internal rebellions within the royal family, compounded by frequent flooding in the lower reaches of the Yellow River. On one occasion, a massive flood completely submerged the capital, forcing them to move.

How did human life evolve from primitive groups to the early stages of clan communes? Ancient China has many legends about this. In these legends, there are often great figures who were both leaders and inventors. These legends are mostly imagined by ancient people based on the lives of primitives in ancient times.

During the Jiajing reign of the Ming Dynasty, in the region of Shanzhou, there lived a poor scholar named Li Wenzheng, and his wife, Zhao Suyue. The couple loved each other deeply. Li Wenzheng studied diligently, hoping one day to achieve the highest honor in the imperial examinations.

During the Southern Song Dynasty, the triennial imperial examination period arrived once again. Scholars from all over the land flocked to the capital city of Lin'an, filling every inn to capacity.

During the early Warring States period, King Hui of the state of Chu wished to restore Chu's former dominance. He expanded his army with plans to attack the state of Song. King Hui greatly valued a master craftsman of the time, a man from the state of Lu named Gongshu Ban—later known as Lu Ban.

During the Eastern Han Dynasty, Ban Chao assisted his elder brother Ban Gu in compiling the "Book of Han." However, he believed that a true man's ambition should not be confined to writing and scholarship.

In ancient times, the world was vast and wild, and people suffered greatly from flooding and seawater inundation. During Emperor Yao's reign, he sent Gun, father of Da Yu, to control the floods. Gun, however, built dikes and dams wherever floods occurred, using mainly blockage methods. As a result, the flooding only worsened over time.

During the Western Han Dynasty, there lived a renowned thinker, statesman, and educator named Dong Zhongshu, from Guangchuan (present-day Dadongguzhuang Village, Guangchuan Town, Jing County, Hebei Province). He served as a Doctor during the reign of Emperor Jing and taught the *Gongyang Commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals*.

In 202 BC, Liu Bang defeated Xiang Yu, ascended the throne, and established the Han Dynasty, historically known as Emperor Gaozu of Han.When Liu Bang first became emperor, the territory directly governed by the imperial court consisted of only fifteen commanderies. The rest of the land was enfeoffed to meritorious feudal kings, almost restoring the fragmented, warring-state conditions of the Warring States period.