The Necromancer of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 110 What You Can Eat Will Not Be a Disaster

Yuan Xu has never been to Youzhou, at least since he came to this era.

After leaving Tian Feng's mansion, he summoned Wei Ji to Yuan's house.

Wei Xi greeted the ceremony: "Young master, do you have something to order?"

"Have you ever been to Youzhou? Yuan Xu asked him.

"I've been there." Wei Ji replied, "Youzhou is a good season, but in winter it's a place of bitter cold."

"The more miserable the people's lives, the more troubles and troubles there will be." Yuan Xu said, "There has been a plague of locusts there recently."

Wei Ke was surprised: "Where the locusts pass, not a single blade of grass grows. The plague of locusts is more terrible than the disaster of waterlogging."

"Clean up and come with me." Yuan Xu ordered: "There is a good opportunity to make money there."

There is a plague of locusts in Youzhou, but Yuan Xu says there is a chance to make money, Wei Ji is confused.

He asked Yuan Xu: "Isn't your son going to help the disaster?"

"Of course we need to provide disaster relief, and at the same time, we must also bring opportunities for the people of Youzhou to make a fortune." Yuan Xu replied: "I can't afford to delay this matter, I went late, let alone making money, there will not be a single grain left. "

"When is the young master going to leave?" Wei Jiao asked.

"You go back and prepare your luggage first, and leave in the afternoon." Yuan Xu ordered.

Wei Ke left, and Yuan Xu ordered the guards to invite Zhen Yan.

"I'm going to Youzhou." Seeing Zhen Yan, Yuan Xu said, "There is a plague of locusts there."

Zhen Yan was also taken aback: "The locust plague is so fierce, isn't it true that Youzhou has no harvest this year?"

"If you go there in time, it won't happen." Yuan Xu said, "I have something I want to entrust to you."

"My lord, please tell me." Zhen Yan replied.

"Here is a complete book of barbecue cooking, which contains the method of cooking locusts." Yuan Xu handed him a book: "You let the cook study hard, catch some locusts, and sell them at the auction. Word-of-mouth is created, and it is sold to the public. Sky-high price."

"Can locusts be eaten too?" Zhen Yan was stunned: "I've never seen anyone eat them..."

"I haven't seen it before, so it's not that I can't eat it." Yuan Xu said: "Not only are locusts edible, but they are cooked properly, crispy and refreshing. They are rare delicacies."

Zhen Yan licked her lips and swallowed: "I will tell the cook to study hard."

"After the word of mouth is built, the cooking method will be spread."

"How can you use locusts to make money when the cooking method is spread?" Zhen Yan reminded.

"The locust plague is important. How much can you sell just by selling it? I want to make locusts a delicacy recognized by the world."

"Young master cooks with locusts, we can try." Zhen Yan asked: "How much does this have to do with the locust plague?"

"As long as it is something that people can eat, once it becomes a delicacy recognized by the world, which one do you think has the chance to become a disaster?" Yuan Xu said: "The locust plague is nothing more than the fact that there are too few natural enemies of the locust. What is the biggest natural enemy of any living thing? People! Indiscriminate hunting, even if the locusts cover the sky and the sun, they can’t bear it. The cooking method is spread, and from now on, there will be no more locust plagues.”

Zhen Yan seemed to understand but not understand.

Living in the last years of the Eastern Han Dynasty, he had never experienced a certain kind of creature being sent to the dinner table, and it was on the verge of extinction soon, so of course he couldn't understand what Yuan Xu meant.

"Go ahead, everyone in Youzhou is waiting." Yuan Xu ordered, "Try to spread the news before I get there."

"I'll do it now." Zhen Yan resigned and left.

In the afternoon of the same day, Yuan Xu led Wei Ji and Deng Zhan to leave Yecheng and rush to Youzhou.

The plague of locusts was raging, and the people in Youzhou complained endlessly. Yuan Xi organized manpower to hunt and kill, but the effect was not great.

A few days later, Yuan Xu entered Youzhou.

Where he passed, the fields were barren, and the crops were gnawed without leaving any roots.

Many Youzhou farmers sat on the ridges of their fields, looking helplessly at the places where locusts had ravaged.

Knowing Yuan Xu's arrival, Yuan Xi went out of the city to meet him.

After meeting Yuan Xu, Yuan Xi said helplessly, "My lord is here."

"There is a locust plague in Youzhou, how could I not come?" Yuan Xu asked, "How is the situation now?"

"There is no grass growing in the southern part of Youzhou, and the bark has been eaten clean by locusts." Yuan Xi replied: "I don't know where these locusts came from. Could it be that I am not a good official and angered the heavens."

"It's obviously a gift from heaven, but when it comes to my second brother, why is it related to being a bad official?" Yuan Xu asked.

Yuan Xi looked at him in astonishment: "The plague of locusts is raging, and my lord still says it's a good thing?"

"Second brother issued a document ordering the people to catch locusts. If they are alive, every fifty locusts will be paid a copper coin. If the dead ones are kept intact, a hundred locusts will be paid a copper coin." Yuan Xu explained: "The broken ones will not be accepted."

Yuan Xi looked bewildered: "My lord, why do you buy locusts? Although the price is not high, after the common people hand it over, they will pay a lot."

"Second brother, just trust me." Yuan Xu said: "It won't be long before the price of locusts will be raised to one copper coin for every five locusts. Before the price is raised, the Youzhou government can make a lot of money."

He said a lot of strange words that people can't understand, but they were fulfilled one by one. Although Yuan Xi was puzzled, he still responded: "Xian Xin explained, I will pass it on immediately."

Yuan Xi issued an order, and the people of Youzhou heard that locusts could be sent to the government to exchange for money. Men, women, old and young all went to battle and rushed towards the raging locust swarm.

If locusts had thoughts, they would be stupefied in the face of sudden capture.

It was still raging around triumphantly, but suddenly it became the target of being hunted.

Before the swarms of locusts hit the ground, someone would pounce on them with a cloth bag.

Not only the peasants in the countryside, but even those living in the city rushed to the fields to catch locusts.

Wei Ji is the Deputy Commander of Jucai, so of course the matter of buying locusts is entrusted to him.

The government announced that the locusts can be exchanged for copper coins. Although the people of Youzhou caught them at first, they did not try their best.

Only when someone actually got the money, did the common people know that there was an opportunity to take advantage of the natural disaster to make a fortune openly.

More people participated in the catching ranks, and in just two or three days, the damage of the locust plague was greatly reduced.

Yuan Xi's residence, he and Yuan Xu sat in the study.

There were only the two brothers in the house, Yuan Xi changed the address outside: "The fourth brother buys so many locusts, and the live ones are worth more, what's the use?"

"Second brother will find out in a few days." Yuan Xu replied, "The Youzhou government will definitely make a lot of money."

"I still don't understand what benefits locusts can bring." Yuan Xi was at a loss.

Yuan Xu ordered outside the door: "Set up a fire in the courtyard, get some seasonings I brought, and chop some thin bamboo sticks."

Instructing the guards to make preparations, he said to Yuan Xi: "Second brother will know why locusts can be exchanged for money later."

With only the fire and bamboo sticks, Yuan Xi still couldn't guess what he was going to do.

He said that seasoning was needed, and Yuan Xi immediately understood: "Does my lord want to eat locusts?"

"Locusts are delicious." Yuan Xu replied: "Second brother will know after one bite. This thing should only exist in the sky. How many times can we taste it in the world?"

Yuan Xi looked embarrassed, he didn't come to Youzhou for disaster relief, he came here specially to taste delicious food.

(End of this chapter)