In a rural area in Kaifeng, Henan, Uncle Wang looked at the cracked fields and couldn't help but pray in his heart.
"Lord Dragon, you can at least bring some rain. If it doesn't rain, there will really be no harvest in this land."
Since the beginning of spring, there has been no moonlight here in Henan for several months. The sun is shining every day, and the fields are cracked by the sun.
Looking at the wheat in his field, Uncle Wang couldn't stand it anymore, so he brought a bucket and prepared to jump into the river to water it.
It was only when I got into the river that I realized that the river, which used to have a good amount of water, had now bottomed out and turned into a trickling stream.
"There's no water even in the river."
Uncle Wang looked at the dry river bed, then reluctantly picked up his bucket and walked towards the village.
As soon as I walked to the entrance of the village, I saw many villagers sitting under the big trees at the entrance of the village, enjoying the cool air and chatting.
"This year's severe drought is really rare. Even the water in the river has dried up. I still want to carry some water to irrigate the fields."
Uncle Wang came under the tree and saw the villagers in the village sitting very leisurely, and he couldn't help but sigh.
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"I am sixty years old, and I have only seen this kind of drought twice. The last time it happened was more than 40 years ago, and I was only a teenager at that time."
"That year, just like now, there was no rain for several months. Even the river dried up and the crops in the fields died of drought."
"At that time, everyone was eating tree bark and Guanyin soil. After eating the bark, everyone began to flee. The road to escape was full of corpses. It was really terrible."
Uncle Wang recalled the scene at that time in his mind. There were some things that he had not even said out loud. After all, there were children around him. The matter of exchanging children and eating them must not be said, otherwise these children would definitely be frightened. bad.
"Isn't that right? At that time, after eating tree bark, a person's belly would be as big as a ten-month pregnancy, and he couldn't even poop out."
When the old man Li next to him heard this, he also said: "I remember that there were more than 200 households and thousands of people in Wangjia Village at that time. As a result, after the drought, there were only less than 80 households left in our village. Well, people are starving to death in every household."
"In the end, my eighth brother survived. Me and the fifth brother were both lucky. We met a kind-hearted man who cooked porridge for the victims. We managed to eat that bowl of porridge and water, and that's how we survived."
"Now I feel angry when I see these children wasting food. I wish I could give them a good beating. Look at the food in this place. If there was a piece of steamed bun like this at that time, I don't know how many people could have been saved."
"I have a biological sister who was bought with three steamed buns at that time. I don't know what's going on now."
When Old Man Li was talking, he couldn't help but want to hit his great-grandson, but he couldn't bear it. He usually kept it in his mouth for fear that it would melt away, so if he was willing to hit his great-grandson, he would just do it for a show.
"Isn't it true? In those days, food was very expensive. Especially in this year of famine, one person couldn't exchange for much food."
"Unlike now, even in this year of famine, there is no need to worry about food and drink. Every household in this world does not have hundreds of kilograms of grain, a cellar of sweet potatoes, and a beam of corn."
Uncle Wang also followed suit.
"There are also a lot fewer people in the village now. A lot."
"In the past, our village had a very large population and only a small amount of land. Every household clung to that small amount of land, and they didn't have enough to eat or keep warm throughout the year."
"Now, the immigrants and the immigrants who have come to the city to work have come to the city to work, and only us old men and women with their children are left in this village."
“In the past, there were only a few thousand people in a large village, but now there are less than one-tenth of the population.”
"Yes, yes, look at those fields in the distance. In the past, everyone was scrambling to plant them, but now no one is planting them for free."
"Actually, it doesn't matter if it's a severe drought or not. If there's no drought, no one is planting. It's hard to see the fields in your home being barren. That's something that was passed down from our ancestors with great difficulty."
Uncle Wang also sighed repeatedly.
The world has changed, so fast.
The fields that everyone used to fight for are now deserted and no one is cultivating them.
During previous famines, the land was full of hungry people and they fled everywhere.
Now it is also a severe drought that has only happened in decades, but everyone can sit leisurely and chat under the tree. The children hold corn cobs in their hands, eating half of them and spitting out the other half, making it easier for the chickens following behind.
"Food has been distributed, food has been distributed~"
At this moment, several four-wheeled carriages were seen arriving at Wangjia Village, dragging loads of grain. Several officials got off the four-wheeled carriages. They looked at the villagers and began to shout with tin trumpets.
"Distribute food?"
When Uncle Wang, Uncle Li and others heard this, they immediately gathered around and asked quickly: "What kind of food are you giving out?"
"We have a severe drought in Henan, and the imperial court has allocated food."
"Everyone should go back and get their ID badges. Every household and every four people will be given a fifty-pound bag of flour."
Zhang Ping said with a smile, he was a soldier, and after retiring, he became an official servant here in Kaifeng Mansion. This time, he was not sent down to distribute food to everyone.
"Fifty pounds of flour for four people?"
Upon hearing this, many villagers immediately rushed to tell each other excitedly. Each one hurried home to get their identity cards, and then excitedly came to the carriage to wait to receive the flour.
Although there is enough food at home, the food provided by the court for free will not be taken for nothing.
“It’s better to live in today’s era!”
Soon, Uncle Wang was carrying several bags of flour and placing them under the tree. He was smiling from ear to ear.
His family was prosperous and received four bags of flour, which totaled two hundred kilograms.
All the young people in this family have gone to work in the city, leaving only the elderly and children. These two hundred kilograms of flour are enough to last until next year.
"Yes, yes~"
"The world is so good now. If we had this bag of flour at home back then, my brothers would have survived, and my sister wouldn't have been bought away by someone with just a few steamed buns."
Uncle Li looked at the flour and sighed and nodded.
Only those who have experienced the Great Famine will truly understand the value of food.
At that time, people's lives were at a loss, and a few steamed buns could buy a girl, which was considered a good thing.
Bought by a wealthy family, at least they would still have something to eat and would not starve to death. However, more people starved to death in the great famine, and corpses could be seen everywhere on the roads.
"Everyone can eat food at home with peace of mind. If there is not enough food, the court will still have food distributed by the time."
"This time, the drought in Henan is very serious. The emperor has also exempted many taxes in Henan. We don't have to pay grain for farming this year and next year."
"Also, I heard that the businesses and factories in the Beijing-Tianjin area are also organizing donations for disaster relief. I guess there will be some things distributed by then, such as cloth, tea and so on."
After Zhang Ping distributed food to the villagers, he also routinely promoted the court's disaster relief policy.
The most feared thing about famine is the lack of food. In fact, it is fear of chaos. As long as there is no chaos, everything will be better. Natural disasters are not terrible. What is terrible is the combination of natural disasters and man-made disasters.
"And some cloth and tea leaves?"
When many villagers heard this, they were even more stunned.
This is when people are sitting at home and things fall from the sky.
Even if this grain is distributed in large quantities, we still need to distribute horses and tea to everyone. Is this,,, is this still a year of famine?
"There must be some. Don't worry, everyone."
"Do you know the Chinese characters? Have you read the newspaper?"
“Didn’t the Ming Dynasty Daily publish the imperial government’s disaster relief policy?”
"This grain is 50 kilograms per bag for four people. It must be distributed to everyone in full. Once everyone gets the grain, they will have to testify to us when the time comes, and the superiors will send people down to verify."
"If someone withholds disaster relief food and supplies, we will all lose our heads."
Zhang Ping said very seriously.
As soon as the disaster relief supplies arrived, the Ming Dynasty Daily announced the methods and conditions of the disaster relief, and everyone in the world knew about it.
The amount of food distributed to the disaster-stricken areas, how many people there are, and how much each person will receive are clearly written down.
On the one hand, it is to make people in the disaster area feel at ease and not to be afraid. There is enough food for you to eat until next year. On the other hand, it is to prevent anyone from embezzling the food and materials for disaster relief.
In the past, due to lack of information, even if the emperor had a heavy downpour, when it comes to the people, there may not even be a drop of rain.
No matter how much money is appropriated, under these layers of deductions, not even a tael of money will fall on the heads of the common people, only the grain for disaster relief, and these officials may work together with profiteers to sell it at a high price.
Even if you go out of your way to publicly use part of the food to cook porridge for disaster relief, you can be considered a little conscientious, and at least you can save some of the victims.
How did the common people know that enough money and food had actually been allocated for disaster relief? At least they were swallowed up by the officials in the middle.
It's different now. With the Daming Daily, the imperial court can announce the methods and quantities of disaster relief and let everyone in the world know.
In addition, now primary schools and middle schools are vigorously popularizing it. It can be said that every household has people who are literate, which also explains the situation of disaster relief.
If the food and materials for disaster relief are in short supply in the hands of the people, the people will know about it and will naturally make trouble. Once the higher-ups find out.
The corrupt officials among them would never escape the fate of losing their heads. Embezzling disaster relief funds was a serious crime in that dynasty. If anyone found out, they would be killed, and even the three tribes would be exiled thousands of miles away.