Chastity Layman

In front of the state government office, the smell of blood permeated the air.

When Zheng Yuanxuan came out of the yamen, the officials in the yamen gave way one after another, and everyone was silent.

On the street in front of the yamen, the guard of honor of Qin Qiong and his son was in full swing, and countless cavalrymen from the town and Fusi surrounded the yamen. On Yaqian Street, countless people came to watch.

Those dozen or so bald corpses were scattered across the street.

Everyone is silent.

Zheng Yuanxuan looked at the corpses, his face was livid.

"My lower official Qizhou Inspector Zheng Yuanxuan pays homage to Qin Xianggong and Qin Xueshi!"

Qin Lang didn't even get off the horse. He sat on the horse and asked Zheng Yuanxuan, "Zheng Yuanxuan, as the governor of Qizhou in the imperial court, why did you openly disobey the order issued by the Zhengshitang, and why did you disobey the emperor's edict to catch locusts?"

"Locusts are natural disasters, how can manpower eliminate them? Besides, killing too many insects will harm the peace of heaven."

Zheng Yuanxuan's words really made Qin Lang laugh out of anger.

"President Zheng, I am young and don't read many books, but I have also read that King Chu Hui swallowed leeches and cured his chronic diseases, and Sun Shuao got a blessing by killing snakes. Now that locusts can be expelled, this is saving the people from fire and water. If Let it cause a disaster, and the food will be eaten up. What will the people do then? Exterminate the locusts to save people, if a disaster falls from the sky, there will be countless herdsmen officials from the court to bear it on behalf of the people, so you don’t have to worry about suffering!”

But Zheng Yuanxuan couldn't listen to it at all, he still had that set of stubborn ideas.

"I am familiar with the scriptures and history. I have never heard of a manpower that can catch all the locusts and eliminate the locust plague. To control the locust plague, only the cultivation of virtue can eliminate this natural disaster. You said you have read the story of King Chu Hui and Sun Shuao. Then, have you read that Zhao Liucong failed to eradicate locusts, but instead caused even greater harm?"

Qin Lang retorted loudly.

"Of course I have also read about Liu Cong's failure to eradicate locusts, but Liu Cong is a usurping king, and his virtue cannot defeat demons. Your majesty is the sage Lord, and demons cannot overcome virtue. In ancient times, there were good guards in the state, and locusts did not dare to enter. Now it is said that Xiu Virtue can prevent locust plagues, locust plagues are caused by lack of virtue, then I would like to ask, there are states with locust infestation in all parts of the world, and the locust infestation is decreasing everywhere, but Qizhou is getting more and more serious. Dare to ask, according to what you said , does it mean that you are a state shepherd without virtue?"

As soon as these words came out.

All of a sudden, the state government was silent again.

Qin Lang didn't argue with Zheng Yuanxuan about how the locusts came from. Since he said that they were produced without virtue, how can Zhao Yuanxuan, the governor of the state, control the worst locust situation in Xiazhou? Does this mean that you are not worthy of virtue?

Using the other party's point of view to refute the other party is the most deadly.

After all, for a diehard like Zheng Yuanxuan, it's useless to tell him more about natural science. If he wants to talk about the relationship between heaven and man, and if he wants to talk about virtue, then tell him.

Use his spear to attack his shield!

Zheng Yuanxuan was really speechless.

Then Qin Lang questioned him again why the imperial court issued an order to set up Changping warehouses in various places, temporarily requisitioning food from free warehouses and requisitioning surplus food from the homes of wealthy and powerful families for disaster relief, but Qizhou did not take any action. Why can the people in other states receive food, but the people in Qizhou can't buy food even if they have money?

"Zheng Yuanxuan, as a minister of herdsmen, you can see the crops in the state being eaten by locusts, but you can't help it. Now famine is raging and you are helpless. How can you feel at ease? How can you treat the people under your rule? These thousands of people?"

"What's on your mind?"

"Is it incompetence, or is it immoral?"

Zheng Yuanxuan was speechless with a series of questions that hit the soul directly.

Qin Lang hated this kind of person the most.

It's like the Donglin Party in the late Ming Dynasty. Every day, they say that they are straight ministers, upright and loyal, but they don't have the slightest ability to do things.

At this time of catastrophe, what ideology, what Confucianism, Taoism, what old and new parties, what gentry powerful nobles, what is there to fight for?

If you have the ability, you will find another way to save disasters and solve difficulties. You are just not allowed to do this or that, and let everyone wait to die?

According to what Zheng Yuanxuan said, only by cultivating virtue and praying sincerely, the plague of locusts will eventually pass.

But is this the result of your practice and prayer?

The locust itself can only live for one or two months, and its life is so long. If you don't practice virtue and pray, it can't live for a year or two, but the problem is, the time of one or two months , if it is allowed to wreak havoc, how many disasters will it cause and how many people will die?

Zheng Yuanxuan was defeated in front of Qin Lang, and his theory could not be justified in the end.

Qin Lang asked Qin Qiong to remove Zheng Yuanxuan from his post on the spot.

Qin Qiong stepped forward.

"Emissary Zheng, are you willing to treat locusts and relieve disasters now?"

Zheng Yuanxuan stood there, feeling ups and downs.

After a long time, he finally lowered his head.

"willing."

"Okay, it's not too late to make up for it." Qin Qiong praised, and asked Zheng Yuanxuan to start working on disaster relief immediately. The result of this disposition made Qin Lang very dissatisfied. This kind of person should be dismissed on the spot and even held accountable, but now he is still allowed to continue to eat vegetarian food?

"I believe Shijun Zheng will reform himself and actively rescue the disaster."

Zheng Yuanxuan bowed his head in shame, he didn't expect Qin Qiong to help him at this time.

In fact, it's not that he can't refute what Qin Lang refuted him just now, but he can't say it. Because he gave an example that Liu Cong's virtue is not enough to exterminate locusts, and Qin Lang said that the current sage master is invincible in virtue. Zheng Yuanxuan couldn't openly say that the current emperor, like Liu Cong, is an emperor with insufficient virtue in front of these countless people, right?

If you say that, it's really looking for death, and it will even implicate the entire Zheng family.

Since he didn't dare to say that, then he could no longer refute Qin Lang.

"The Book of Songs says in the middle way," 'Bing the thieves, pay for the flames. ’ Emperor Guangwu of the Han Dynasty also issued an imperial edict: ‘Mian obedience to current affairs, persuading the governor of Nongsang. Go to the moth, and the thieves. ’ These are enough to prove that it is necessary and possible to eradicate locusts. Except for Qizhou, the results of catching locusts and exterminating locusts in other prefectures are very good, so please unite and eradicate locusts together! "Qin Qiong made a speech, and changed the tone from chasing Zheng Yuanxuan to the fight against locusts and disaster relief.

At this time when Qin Lang is his son, he can no longer refute Lao Tzu, so he has no choice but to give up temporarily.

At the moment, Qin Lang and his father are stationed in the prefectural office, presiding over the locust control and disaster relief in Qizhou.

Zheng Yuanxuan is still the governor, but in fact it is Qin Lang and his son who are calling the shots in the state government.

Qin Lang led people to crack down on black market grain merchants, expropriating grain from big households, building Changping warehouses, registering household registration and issuing grain coupons, so as to ensure that the grain in Qizhou can be controlled in the shortest possible time, so that the people can buy grain and stabilize the situation.

Qin Qiong was responsible for supervising and catching locusts, leading the people to dig ditches during the day to repel locusts and light fires at night to lure locusts, catching locusts in exchange for food.

Although Zheng Yuanzhen is still the governor, in fact, not many people really listen to him. The task he is now assigned by Qin Qiong and his son is to demolish the locust temple, the insect king hall, and the prayer altar that he asked to build in various places one by one. Get out, and arrest those who deceive the public and take the opportunity to cause chaos.

In just a few days, the situation in Qizhou is rapidly changing to a favorable situation.

The soldiers and horses of the Zhenfu Division led by Qin Lang were decisive and acted quickly. A large number of unscrupulous grain merchants were overthrown. Grain is being supplied by ticket in front of the grain sales point, and the people finally bought 300 yuan a bucket of cheap grain.

From a thousand dollars for a bucket of rice with no market price, to now three hundred dollars for a bucket of rice, which is supplied by ticket, the moment everyone received the food, they all knelt down to thank the emperor for his kindness, and thanked Qin Qiong and Qin Lang and his son who came to rescue everyone.

The locust catching operation supervised and commanded by Qin Qiong was also very successful. In just a few days, the army, civilians and people of Qizhou went into battle, and a total of 140,000 locusts were caught, with amazing results.

According to statistics, there are about 20,000 to 30,000 locusts per stone, and the 140,000 stones mean that three to four billion locusts have been captured.

After winning the first battle, Qin Qiong and Qin Lang ordered everyone to take advantage of the victory to pursue and continue to hunt and exterminate the locusts.

For many experts who caught a large number of locusts, they were directly rewarded with money and food, and even asked the imperial court to invite them to be honored officials and dismissed ranks.

In order to exterminate the locusts in Qizhou, Qin Lang also taught everyone to dry or smoke the locusts for preservation. He also taught everyone to fry the locusts for food.

From all over Qizhou, there was a big upsurge of killing locusts and eating locusts for the whole people.

News of good news spreads frequently.

Every day, the state government asked the counties and townships to report the locust catching front, and then the top three in the locust catching battle every day would be praised by a circular with gongs and drums, and the bottom three who were not effective in catching locusts would be criticized in a circular.

Qin Lang also directly recorded their locust control achievements in their performance appraisal files.

Qizhou, which was originally severely affected by the disaster, finally cleared up the densely packed locusts before the jumping gnats evolved into migratory locusts under the joint command and management of Qin Lang and his father.

From the beginning when it was easy to get, and then everyone was looking for and catching it everywhere, although there were still many insects that slipped through the net, migratory locusts began to appear in the sky, but there was no such overwhelming swarm of migratory locusts as we were worried about.

The tender seedlings of the crops in the field were also preserved.

The warehouse is full of locusts, as many as hundreds of thousands of stones.

Originally, according to the method of catching locusts and controlling locusts in previous dynasties, most of the locusts were treated by burning or landfilling. Basically nothing was wasted, and all the granules were returned to the warehouse. One of them either became dry food dried in the sun on the smoked kang in the common people's house, or was directly ground into powder after being dried in the sun.

In the official warehouse, there are dried locusts and locust powder everywhere.

The people now eat three meals a day, and they cannot do without locusts.

Roasted dried locusts, fried dried locusts, boiled locust powder porridge...

Although this stuff is not tasty, at least it is more delicious than grass roots and bark, not to mention that if it is like in previous years, when the drought is extremely severe and the locusts are queen, there is not even grass roots and bark to eat, because at that time it is often a thousand miles away. , the vegetation is gone.

This year, we can eat locusts in different ways at home, and everyone is quite satisfied.

The locust plague was finally under control. When the people of Qizhou were grateful, they even quietly ran to the ruins of the locust temple and the palace of the king of insects that had been destroyed, and began to build temples spontaneously.

It's just that the statues in the temple made of mud and grass or carved from trees are no longer the locust gods and insect kings, but Qin Qiong and Qin Lang's father and son.

Qin Qiong is wearing armor, wearing a gold-winged helmet, holding a pagoda in his left hand, holding a four-edged mace in his right hand, and wearing a sword around his waist.

Qin Lang, with black hair and black clothes, holding a sword, stepping on turtles and snakes, and carrying a black flag, is honored as the king of Xuanwu with hair and demons!