Daming Yuanfu

Chapter 2165 Zong Baikui (Wei Jiu) Pragmatically Controls Locusts
It's summer, the sun is shining, the heat is rolling, and the cicadas are singing.The trees inside and outside the capital of the Ming Dynasty seemed to have been scorched by the high temperature, and each and every one of them looked dejected.

In recent years, the climate has become more and more weird. It is extremely cold in winter and extremely hot in summer.Last winter, the northern section of the canal was frozen for up to [-] days, and the commercial belt centered on the canal was shut down for more than three months. Merchants, farmers, and even some factories in the north complained incessantly, because the rhythm of production and commerce was disrupted.

In the south, even the northern part of Guangdong and Guangxi had a blizzard. Although it didn't last long, it was shocking enough, and it undoubtedly brought unprecedented trouble to the local area.

Now that it is summer, the whole country immediately enters a state of roasting.In just over ten days, Gao Yushi received urgent calls for drought relief from 47 prefectures and 110 five counties in the cabinet, and locust plagues broke out in some of these areas.

Floods and droughts are often not emergency rescues, and more often rely on pre-established water conservancy systems for adjustment.However, the Ming Dynasty was lackluster on this point. There were basically no large-scale water conservancy projects worth mentioning except for the treatment of the Yellow River, which has been the norm in China for thousands of years, and there is no merit.

It wasn't until a decade ago that the high-level pragmatic status was able to promote some small and medium-sized water conservancy projects.His method is not difficult to say, the main thing is to add KPI items to Gao Gong’s examination method in those years—for example, several miles of water conservancy projects newly built or renovated by officials in a certain place were included in the examination scope.

Of course, the level of construction or renovation and reinforcement must be double-checked by officials dispatched by the Ministry of Industry and local inspectors, and the Ministry of Household Affairs may also conduct expenditure audits on some of these projects.

Today's Daming, the ability to deal with floods and droughts has improved compared to ten years ago. However, due to the increasingly severe extreme weather, objectively speaking, these water conservancy facilities are just a drop in the bucket, and there is still a long way to go for various constructions. .Right now, what Gao Pragmatic can do is to work hard on issues such as disaster relief and immigration to avoid famines and civil uprisings.Especially civil uprisings.

Civil uprisings can't solve any problems, they can only exacerbate the famine - people have rebelled, who will plant the land, and who will save the disaster?It is nothing more than eliminating a large number of people through war, and solving the problem of insufficient output with more people and less land from the "root level".But who is that damned person?Those ordinary people who were innocently involved in the war, especially the old and weak, women and children, should they deserve to die?
Therefore, relief and refugee resettlement during the disaster are regarded as the top priority of the imperial court.As for the second priority, that is to deal with the locust plague.

Gao Yushi has been busy with these two major issues for several months, and he has paid much less attention to matters in Japan, southern Xinjiang, and northwest.In just half a month, Gao Wushi presided over six disaster relief meetings, two of which were imperial meetings to discuss disaster relief methods.

There is not much to say about the drought, it is all a set of customary systems, and the high-practical meeting is only to put the responsible persons in place in each region, and repeated orders and repeated requests for disaster relief tasks will be included in the examination.The emperor seemed to have paid more attention to it because of the high level of pragmatism. He ordered that the four local officials who were not effective in disaster relief be sent to the Liaodong army for two of them, and the other two would be pushed to the end and "never be used."

Then there is the problem of locust plagues.The locust plague not only threatened food production, but also posed a great threat to the court.First of all, when locust disasters occur frequently, the court’s tax revenue cannot be guaranteed; second, locust outbreaks can easily cause riots, so all dynasties have paid great attention to locust control and formulated many policies.

The earliest recorded locust plague in China may have been during the period of King Zhou You. In the "Book of Songs", it is said that "the ancestors of Tian have gods, and they take advantage of the fire." It can be seen that the ancestors at that time knew how to use fire to eliminate locusts.

However, the agricultural society still has great limitations. Due to the low level of social production and people's limited ability to understand the natural world, they deified the disaster of locusts.For example, Confucius, Dong Zhongshu, Ban Gu and others all believed that the cause of the locust disaster was the ruler’s bad governance. They believed that the locust was a punishment from heaven to the ruler. They also firmly believed that the locust was a “divine insect” and could not be killed.

Under this kind of thinking, many people at that time adopted a negative attitude towards locusts and allowed them to eat crops.In the early Tang Dynasty, there were few locust extermination campaigns organized by the government.

In the late Tang Dynasty, this kind of thinking gradually changed.During Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, a plague of locusts broke out in Shandong. Prime Minister Yao Chong advocated extermination of locusts. Although many people opposed it, it was finally implemented.Finally, the locust disaster in Shandong was brought under control. Since then, the imperial court has set up special "locust catchers" to control the locust control work across the country.

Since then, the governance of locust disasters in ancient Chinese society has entered a new stage, and successive rulers have introduced many policies.At this time, Gao Pragmatism held consecutive meetings to summarize various experiences and methods of controlling locust plagues, and to publish and distribute them to guide local governments in their governance.

According to the results agreed at the last imperial meeting, the cabinet made the following guidance for the current severe locust plague:

First of all, the reward system was improved to encourage the people to catch locusts.For example, the imperial court stipulated that whoever catches a bucket of locusts will be given fifty cash; those who catch more can be rewarded with a small bank note from the Ming Federal Reserve.

At the same time, in view of the characteristics of clan society in China since ancient times, and the special national conditions of "imperial power does not come down to counties", the cabinet specially stipulated that for those who take the initiative to organize private collectives to catch locusts and reach a certain number, in addition to giving monetary rewards, third-class honors will also be considered. Jue—referring to the recommendation by the local government, inspection by the censor, and submission to the cabinet. The cabinet will then submit a vote to the emperor.

Honor, this is a new system proposed by Gao Yushi more than half a year ago. It is a kind of appreciation for local gentry. It is mainly honorary, and of course there are certain benefits.According to Gao Pragmatic's proposal, the system is roughly as follows:

The first class is given an honorary title, called a jazz, allowed to leapfrog the clothes, leapfrog the lintel, leapfrog the car, and allowed to build a memorial archway by itself. Accepted immediately.This honor is not the official title of the imperial court, there is no rank, and it cannot be hereditary, gifted, traded, etc., and will be eliminated upon death;
The second class is given the name of a sage in a certain mansion, such as a sage in Hangzhou, who is allowed to see officials of the fifth rank and below, and if there is a lawsuit, the yamen must accept it immediately.This honor is valid for ten years, and cannot be transferred, traded, etc., and will be eliminated upon death;
The third class is given the name of a good gentry in a certain county, such as a good gentry in Qiantang, who is allowed to see officials of the seventh rank and below, and if there is a lawsuit, the yamen must accept it immediately.This name is valid for five years, and cannot be transferred, traded, etc., and will be eliminated upon death.

Ever since this honor system was proposed by Gao Yushi, the emperor has agreed to it, and there are not many courtiers who have objected to it. After all, Gao Yuanfu said that honors are not official titles, nor can they be hereditary, or even second- and third-class honors. There is still a limit for the nobility, although some preferential treatment such as clothing color, door lintel, car driving and non-admission to officials are given, but it is still within the range that everyone can tolerate.

Of course, the more critical and fundamental reason is that who among these officials is not a gentry in their own locality?Even being able to study in the gold list of high school may have the support of local celebrities and gentry behind it. Now it is an honor to be an official, but wouldn't it be great if you can also get honors for your relatives and friends?
Although the imperial court requires these people to have recognized "righteous deeds" and will send inspectors and other officials to check, but this kind of thing is still easy to solve-for example, if I build a road or dig a canal for my hometown, it will not cost much , maybe you can get an honorary title, why not do it?

Now, in order to deal with the locust plague, Gao Wushi implemented the honorary system for the first time, and unexpectedly received praise from the court, which surprised him a little.It can only be said that being a gentry in Daming is really good. These guys really have "spare money" in their hands, and they don't mind spending some spare money to buy honors--a mistake, if I knew this, I should have suggested implementing it 30 years ago up.

Speaking of locust plagues, there are punishments in addition to rewards, so the cabinet also formulated relevant locust catching laws to punish local officials who failed to control locust disasters.For example, if local officials encounter locust disasters and fail to take measures as soon as possible, they will be punished in four categories: first-class exile in frontier fortresses;

Of course, the above are all principles, and the specific rules are issued by the cabinet in an official letter, and local governments at all levels must implement them according to the system.

As for the third, it is to carry out propaganda and agitation work on the control of locust plagues.The cabinet printed and distributed many pamphlets on locust control as quickly as possible and distributed them widely.

The contents of these pamphlets were partly summed up by officials based on experience, and partly added by Gao Yushi based on his understanding in later generations.

After all, he worked as a grassroots cadre in his previous life. Although he didn't know much about the locust problem, he had some understanding to some extent.According to research, there are three main conditions for locusts to reproduce. First, there must be a large area of ​​wasteland; second, there must be gaps in the land; and the last is sparse vegetation coverage.

From these three conditions, it can be seen that the stability of the water level is the key factor affecting locust disasters. If the water level is stable, a large number of wasteland will appear to encourage locusts to lay eggs and cause locust disasters.

Therefore, the most fundamental reason for the outbreak of locust plagues is the deterioration of the ecological environment. For example, with the development of ancient society, the ecological environment of the Huanghuaihai Plain gradually shrank.

After the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the canyons in the middle reaches of the Yellow River were extensively reclaimed, causing serious soil erosion, which directly affected the safety of the lower reaches of the Yellow River.So far, the natural balance in northern my country has been seriously damaged, and climate disasters are frequent.

By the time of the Northern Song Dynasty, the Huanghuaihai Plain had lost its status as the economic center of gravity in the past, and at the same time locust plagues became more frequent.After a long period of development and improvement of locust control technology, people's understanding of locust disasters has gradually deepened, and many locust control technologies have been created on this basis.

According to the summary, the cabinet provided the following suggestions in the pamphlet on locust plague control for local governments and officials to choose according to local actual conditions:

First, take the method of artificial prevention and control, which is the oldest and most common method.For example, using the laser properties of locusts to burn them out with fire. "The Book of Songs" once recorded that "set a fire in the night and dig a pit by the fire." This is the oldest method. With the development of the times, this method has gradually been perfected. The most important method of controlling locust plagues.Since locusts are to be controlled at this time, the cabinet will of course continue to use it and give detailed guidance.

Second, according to the evolution process of locusts, control them in stages.For example, ditches are used to kill locust larvae. This kind of insect cannot fly without eclosion, so it is driven into the ditch and buried with soil.According to Gao Pragmatic's introduction, the cabinet suggested that 50 people form a team in each locality, one person beats the drum, and the others follow closely with brooms, shovels, etc. to drive the locusts into the ditch.

Third, beat with special equipment.This method is relatively simple and the effect is relatively limited. However, with continuous development, various forms have been formed in the original history until the Qing Dynasty. Put a wooden pole inserted into the soil, and when the locusts come, drop the cloth head-on to trap the locusts in the cloth.Now, Gao Pragmatism has announced and implemented it in advance, which can somewhat do something for the extermination of locusts.

Fourth, dig out locust eggs.During the Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties, people realized that eliminating insect eggs could reduce the occurrence of locust disasters, so this work was promoted and implemented.The main content of this method is to look for small holes like beehives in the field, dig them up with a soil shovel, check whether there are locust eggs, and burn them with fire if there are any.

Fifth, the agricultural control method is also the most important method.This is a method provided by a Beijing official from Shaanxi, who said that the people in his hometown will first perform special treatment on the grain seeds, such as stirring horse bones, aconite, silkworm dung and other weakly toxic things with the seeds, and then Cultivate again to avoid locust disasters.

This method is highly pragmatic and I don't understand it at all, so when writing it into the booklet, it is emphasized that local conditions should be adapted to local conditions, and it is best to have experience in using this method.

In addition to the above, there are many highly pragmatic methods that are not clear whether they are useful, but they all follow the above method to "provide suggestions", including:

Such as diverting the time when locusts are prone to sowing.Some officials summed up the experience of planting crops in Henan, and believed that if rice is planted in winter, the crops will mature in the summer in the field, so as to avoid locust disasters. refer to.

Such as eradicating locust plagues by plowing.Some officials believed that plowing the ground in autumn could bury the yang energy in the soil, which would kill the eggs of locusts—in fact, Xu Guangqi later thought so.Of course, Gao Yushi believes that the problem does not lie in any "yang energy". The method should be to kill the eggs in advance by changing the soil temperature.

Another example is planting crops that locusts do not like to eat to avoid locusts, such as soybeans, mung beans, black beans, sesame, cotton, buckwheat, etc.This article can only be used as a suggestion, because the cultivation of staple food cannot be changed at will.

Another example is biological control law.That is to use the laws of the natural food chain to suppress and eliminate pests, such as protecting those beneficial birds that feed on locusts, and encouraging the breeding of domestic chickens and ducks.

In addition, there are some "technical streams". For example, an official from Hubei introduced a method of treating locusts with pox poison to Gao Yushi.This person said that there was a method in Hubei, which was to poke pox on the captured locusts and then release them, so that the infection would spread among the locusts.

After hearing this, Gao Yushi was shocked and relieved. This may be a precedent for the new crown pneumonia to control locusts. The wisdom of the working people is sometimes like a miracle.

Some officials also introduced some methods to remove locusts through chemical methods.Simply put, it uses mineral and oily compounds, or poisonous smoke to control locusts.

For example, lime and straw ash are used for control, that is, plant ash and lime are crushed into fine powder and sprinkled on the grain, so that locusts will not eat the crops.

There is also the use of oil to repel locusts.It is mixed with oil and water and sprinkled on the branches and leaves of the crops. The locusts will not eat the oily crops.

There is also smoke to drive away locusts.This method is to light up thick smoke with wooden poles, straw poles, etc., and use the harmful substances in the smoke to drive away locusts.

On this day, Wen Hua summoned the right—that is, after the imperial meeting ended, Gao Yushi was very tired, and was about to bid farewell to the emperor with all the officials, but he didn't want the emperor to keep him.

"All the officials will go on their own. Yuanfu please stay here. I still have something to discuss with Aiqing."

Gao Wushi didn't understand, but he had no choice but to bow slightly and said, "I obey the order."
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Thanks to the monthly ticket support of the book friend "Clouds Covering the Moon and Rain", thank you!
PS: The content before the Japanese War has come to an end, and then there will be one or two chapters inside the imperial court, and then transfer to the southern Xinjiang plot.

(End of this chapter)