8-3 Gaining Through Calamities

Eight: Craving For Grandiose
3: Gaining Through Calamities



In 1998, in the Yangzi River region, a small scale flood triggered a huge disaster of the century. Nearly 400 million people were affected, and direct economic losses were over 300 billion yuan, that’s 36 billion US dollars. The reason was that Jian Zemin, like Mao Zedong and many other CCP high ranking officials, deeply believed in fortune-telling Fengshui, to guard the levee, and protect his dragon vein, refused to divert the flood.

On August 6, 1998, the water level at Changsha, reached 44.68 meters. According to the State Council, the flood gate at Jingjiang had to be opened, so that water may be diverted to the floodway. Residents in Jingjiang’s floodway moved twice to prepare for the water diversion. And the Party Committee of Hubei Province requested the action many times. The flood gate, however, never opened.

Jiang Zemin had issued an order, that nearby military troops must all work on the levee. He commanded