fake prince

Chapter 469

Liu Zhan watched with a frown, because everyone around him knelt down one after another, revealing him instead. He was very displeased with the atmosphere, so he simply flicked his sleeves and turned to leave.

Su Ziji stared at the flames that kept rushing into the air, everything was as he expected, half an hour of illusion was enough for him to finish placing the corpse of the "Locust God" in this place, so that all the nearby people could watch and light the fire in public incinerate.

Even if the time has passed and the locust god inside has turned back into a wolf corpse, under such a fire, everything will turn to ashes, dust to dust, and there is no evidence anymore.

Hearing the spontaneous shouts of the people, he relaxed, turned around, faced the crowd, and felt his body relax.

"It's settled."

Turning around, he asked the little official, "Now, has anyone exchanged locusts for rice?"

It was the first time for many people to see Su Ziji. After listening to the question, the little official smiled apologetically: "My lord, it takes time to inform the village about the exchange of locusts for food. Many people don't know about the exchange of food."

"The person who announced the order is still running throughout the township, all over the village."

Su Ziji suddenly realized that communication is difficult now, and he was afraid that the news had not been spread. Even if the government and the county sent people to notify, it would not be possible to get through immediately.

"Besides, it's only two hours before the magistrate issued an order to bring the grain from the warehouse."

"The transportation of grain is very cumbersome, and it hasn't arrived yet. Logically speaking, there are also locusts that have been culled, but because the grain has not arrived, no one has exchanged rice yet."

Just as he was speaking, he suddenly heard the sound of wheels, and when he saw it, the little official quickly said, "Look, the food is here."

Su Ziji took a look and saw that there were indeed many grain carts on the road, which were brought in by ox carts, and they were full of rice. When he looked closely, they were all old grain and coarse grain, and some of them were moldy.

But it's nothing, Su Ziji didn't go crazy to criticize, he was here to handle affairs, not to smash the market.

"It depends on who comes to exchange food."

The burning of the locust god has been witnessed by many people, and more people have heard of it and recognized it. Even if someone with a heart wants to incite the people and spread rumors, there is no breeding ground for it.

The temptation to exchange a bucket of locusts for a bucket of rice has doubled in the current situation where the crops are all gone, the crops are not harvested, and the food is greatly in short supply.

But for matters related to the government, even if you are very willing in your heart, it still takes a lot of courage to be the first person to stand out.

A young farmer named Zhao Aniu lives in Zhaojiapo, Wu'an County, Shun'an Prefecture. A large piece of farmland in this place has been ruined by locusts to the point where there is almost nothing left.

The crops have been eaten, so of course the farmer is unwilling to cull the locusts. If he culls them again, he will help others, and he will not benefit himself. Moreover, it will take a lot of energy. There is not much food at home, so it is a little bit to save a little.

Zhao Aniu was young, and he watched the burning of the locust god. He rushed home excitedly, and without saying hello to his parents, he just picked up tools and baskets, and ran to the farmland.

There was a large group of locusts buzzing past, as if they were looking for something to eat. Zhao Aniu was tall and strong, and with just a few strokes, he used a basket to hold down a lot of locusts.

There was no fire, and when the lock was tight, I took it back home, fetched two buckets of water from the deep well, and directly immersed the baskets and bamboo baskets in the water. After a while, the little things bumping inside disappeared.

This happened two or three times, and after his parents finally found out what they were doing, Zhao Aniu had already collected at least one bucket of locust corpses, and even had some left over, so he ran out.

His father and mother followed behind, slapping their legs and cursing: "You bastard! That's a locust! You are not afraid of the locust god's sin!"

Zhao A Niu ran away, but he still didn't forget to turn his head and explain to the old couple who didn't go to the scene to watch the locust god being burned: "Father! Mother! The locust god was killed by the dragon girl a long time ago! The corpses were all burnt to pieces." If it is scum, it can still come to punish me, just come! Compared with food, what is this?"

When he was done, he ran away.

When I went straight to the exchange point, I saw seven or eight ox carts, surrounded by government servants who were all issued with knives, because the exchange of grain was basically done near the grain depots of the counties.

Of course, this grain truck is a specially opened entry point for the people to believe.

Zhao Aniu had asked clearly before he came back, but now that he was so close at hand, looking at the yamen servant who looked at Hu Shi and delayed him, he felt a little bit drummed again.

Ordinary people like them would never go to the Yamen if they could solve any problems by themselves. They had an almost instinctive fear of officials and errands.

At this moment, Zhao A Niu had a premonition that there must be many eyes staring at him in the dark, his calves trembled a little, but he still mustered up his courage and walked towards the yamen servant step by step.

I thought it would be difficult to open my mouth, but I didn't expect that before opening my mouth, the yamen servant whose eyes lit up when he saw him coming, immediately walked out and asked enthusiastically, "Are you here to exchange grain with locusts?"

This is the first one to come after waiting for such a long time. If no one comes, Shangguan will vent his anger on them. After all, this is also related to whether Shangguan will be reprimanded by the adults above!

"Ah? Yes!" Zhao Aniu was even more frightened by the forced smile, but it was too late to regret it now.

Several yamen servants almost half-welcome and half-send him in, and the outsiders held their breath when they saw this scene, until a moment later, Zhao Aniu, who was in a trance, came out and left the range of the grain truck. Finally, someone came up, regardless of whether they knew each other or not, and asked directly: "Hey, brother, how is it? Is it true that a bucket of locusts is exchanged for a bucket of grain in Yamen?"

Six or seven people surrounded Zhao Aniu, which woke him up immediately. He glanced vigilantly, and hugged the basket containing a small bag of grain tightly.

"Yes! I exchanged one and a half buckets of locusts for one and a half buckets of rice!" After he finished speaking, he hurriedly ran past them while they were in a daze, and ran away in a flash.

"It's actually giving food!"

Even if I have heard the official promise more than once, it is far less exciting than the fact that people actually exchanged locusts for food.

These six or seven people looked at each other, and the next moment, they all ran towards home.

There are still a lot of locusts on the roadside. While they can still be caught, we must catch as many as possible, and exchange them for more food!

And the news that someone actually exchanged locust corpses for rice was like a strong wind, blowing the entire Shun'an Mansion in an instant.

People finally stopped waiting and watching, and flocked out to hunt and kill. Some people were poor and almost broke their cooking. The few buckets of locust corpses caught that day were really exchanged for a few buckets of rice. If you save food, at least you can save your life. , delay for a while.

Immediately, tens of thousands of people continued to cull them with various methods, the fastest of which was the bonfire, which attracted the locusts. Once the fire passed, their wings were burned, and they could be wrapped with nets and cloths.

A bucket of locusts is exchanged for a bucket of rice!

With so much enthusiasm, eight carts of food were exchanged in just half an hour.

"Folks, go to the yamen, go to the yamen to exchange food!" The yamen servant shouted, and the people who were afraid of the yamen also figured out a way to gather up bags of locusts, each with one stone locust, and go to the yamen to exchange food.

Throughout the night, there were bonfires and torches everywhere, illuminating the countryside dotted with stars, and it was really lively.

(End of this chapter)