Answer: The correct answer is : C. the Yangtze River basin.
Explanation: The Grand Canal was designed to link the centers of Chinese civilization in the northern plain with the Yangtze River basin to the south. The channel measures 1700 kilometers, linking the yellow and yangtze rivers. Its construction began in the Han period and was completed in the Sui empire in the 7th century in the reign of Yangdi. The great canal was built by forced laborers.
