Liu Zhan frowned and watched, because everyone around him knelt down one after another, exposing him. He was very unhappy with the atmosphere, so he simply rolled up his sleeves and turned around to leave.
Su Ziji stared at the flames that kept flying into the air. Everything was as he expected. Half an hour of illusion was enough for him to place the body of the "Locust God" in this place, so that the people nearby came to see it, and lit the fire in public.
Burn.
Even if time has passed and the locust god inside has turned back into a wolf corpse, under such fire, everything will return to dust and dust will return to dust, and there will be no evidence anymore.
Hearing the spontaneous shouts of the people, he felt relaxed, turned around, faced the crowd, and felt his body relax.
"It's settled."
He turned around and asked the clerk: "Now, has anyone exchanged locusts for rice?"
This was the first time for many people to see Su Ziji. When they heard the questions, the clerk smiled apologetically: "Sir, it will take time to inform the villagers about the exchange of locusts for food. Many people don't know about the exchange of food."
"The people who issued the order are still running around the entire township and every village."
Su Ziji suddenly realized that communication was difficult now, and he was afraid that the news had not spread yet. Even if the prefecture and county sent people to inform him, they would not be able to get through immediately.
"Besides, it's only been less than two hours since the magistrate issued the order for the grain to be transported from the warehouse."
"The transportation of food is very cumbersome. It hasn't arrived yet. Logically speaking, the locusts have been killed. However, because the food has not arrived, no one has replaced the rice."
Just as he was talking, he suddenly heard the sound of wheels. When he saw it, the clerk quickly said: "Look, the grain has arrived."
Su Ziji took a look and saw that there were indeed many grain carts on the road, transported by ox carts, and they were full of rice. When he looked closer, he saw that they were all old grains and coarse grains, and some were even a little moldy.
But this was nothing. Su Ziji didn't go crazy to find fault. He was here to do something, not to mess with things.
"It just depends on who comes to exchange for food."
With the burning of the Locust God, many people witnessed it with their own eyes, and even more people heard about it and approved it. Even if some people want to incite the people and spread rumors, there is no hotbed for fermentation.
The temptation to exchange a bushel of locusts for a bushel of rice has doubled now that the crops are all gone, there is no harvest, and there is a huge shortage of food.
But when it comes to 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 to step forward.
A young farmer named Zhao Aniu lives in Zhaojiapo, Wu'an County, Shun'an Prefecture. A large area of farmland here has been destroyed by locusts to the point where almost nothing is left.
The crops have been eaten, so of course the farmer refuses to cull the locusts. If he culls again, he will be helping others and not benefiting himself. Moreover, it is very energy-consuming. There is not much food in the family, so it is better to save a little.
Zhao Aniu was young and watched the burning of the Locust God. He rushed home happily without even saying hello to his parents. He took his tools and bamboo basket and ran to the farmland.
A large group of locusts were buzzing by, as if they were looking for something to eat. Zhao Aniu was tall and strong, and he was able to catch a lot of locusts with his basket in just a few strokes.
I didn't light a fire. I waited until the lock was tight and took it home. I fetched two buckets of water from the deep well and directly immersed the basket and basket in the water. After a while, all the gadgets that were bumping around inside stopped moving.
This happened two or three times. After his parents finally discovered what they were doing, Zhao Aniu had collected at least a dozen locust corpses and even had some leftover, so he ran out.
Behind him were his father and mother, slapping their legs and yelling: "You bastard! Those are locusts! You are not afraid of the Locust God's punishment!"
Zhao Aniu ran away, but he did not forget to turn around and explain to the old couple who did not go to the scene to watch the scene of the burning of the Locust God: "Father! Mother! The Locust God was killed by the Dragon Girl long ago! The corpse was burned.
It can come to punish me even if it’s scum, it can come as long as it comes! Compared with food, what does this mean?”
After saying that, he ran away.
I ran straight to the exchange point and saw seven or eight ox carts, surrounded by government servants who were all issued with knives. Because the grain exchange was basically done near the grain depots of each county.
Of course, this grain truck is a specially opened entry point to convince the people.
Zhao Aniu had asked everything before he came back, but now that he was so close and looking at the government servants who were looking at him, he felt a little nervous again.
Ordinary people like them would never go to the government office if they could solve any problem they encountered. They had an almost instinctive fear of officials and errands.
At this moment, Zhao Aniu had a hunch that there must be many pairs of eyes staring at him secretly. His calves were trembling a little, but he mustered up the courage and walked towards the Yamen step by step.
I thought it would be difficult to open my mouth, but I didn't expect that before he could open his mouth, the yamen servant's eyes lit up when he saw him approaching. He immediately walked out and asked enthusiastically: "Are you here to exchange locusts for food?"
This is the first one to come after waiting for so long. If no one comes, Shangguan will take out his anger on them. After all, this also affects whether Shangguan will be reprimanded by adults above him!
"Ah? Yes!" Zhao Aniu was even more frightened by the squeezed smile, but now, it was too late to regret.
Several government officials almost half-welcomed and half-sent him off. People outside held their breaths when they saw this scene. It wasn't until a moment later that Zhao Aniu, who was in a daze, came out and left the range of the grain truck.
Finally, someone came up and asked directly, regardless of whether they knew him or not: "Hey, brother, how are you doing? Is it true that a bushel of locusts is worth a bushel of grain in the Yamen?"
Six or seven people surrounded Zhao Aniu, which made him wake up immediately. He glanced at it cautiously and hugged the basket containing a small bag of grain a little tighter.
"Yes! I exchanged one and a half bushels of locusts for one and a half bushels of rice!" After he finished speaking, he took advantage of these people's daze and ran past them, quickly running away.
"They actually gave me food!"
Even if I heard the official's promise with my own ears, more than once, it was far less exciting than the fact that people actually exchanged locusts for food.
The six or seven people looked at each other, and the next moment they all ran away in the direction of home.
There are still a lot of locusts on the roadside. While we can still catch them, we must catch as many as possible so that we can exchange them for more food!
And the news that someone actually exchanged locust corpses for rice was like a strong wind, and it instantly filled the entire Shun'an Prefecture.
People finally stopped waiting and watched, and swarmed out to hunt. Some people were from poor families and almost ran out of food. The few bushels of locust corpses they caught that day were actually exchanged for bushels of rice. They saved food and at least saved their lives.
, delay for a while longer.
Immediately, tens of thousands of people continued to kill the locusts using various methods. The fastest among them was the bonfire, which attracted the locusts. Once the fire burned their wings, they could be carried with nets and cloths.
A bushel of locusts for a bushel of rice!
The swarming enthusiasm meant that eight carts of food were exchanged in only half an hour.
"Folks, go to the yamen, go to the yamen to exchange for food!" the yamen servant shouted. The people who were originally afraid of the yamen also came up with a way to collect bags of locusts, each with a stone, and went to the yamen to exchange for food.
Throughout the night, there were bonfires and torches everywhere, lighting up the countryside and making it really lively.