Dredging and management of the Grand Canal

Timeline

1. 1561–1565Qingkou (Huai'an) · Huai'anWan Gong oversaw opening Qingkou and building the Gaojia embankment, dividing the Yellow River and guiding the Huai, improving siltation at Qingkou after the Yellow River captured the Huai, allowing southbound grain barges to resume navigation and easing the transport crisis north of Xuzhou.
2. 1565–1570Grand Canal, full length · ChinaPan Jixun proposed the strategy of "building dikes to constrict water, using water to attack silt," systematically dredging channels and reinforcing dikes, and coordinating with the grain-transport offices, restoring grain transport volumes to a relatively normal level by the late 1560s.