Three Kingdoms

Because locusts are so destructive, they are regarded as a symbol of disaster and destruction in different cultures. For example, in the Bible, God strikes Egypt with a plague of locusts, and in the Book of Revelation, locusts are also used as metaphors for the devil. This description is actually the same as the one promoted in the Han Dynasty. The theory of "Induction from Heaven and Man" is very similar. It is God, or gods, who are dissatisfied with some human actions, and then send disasters.

The emperor did something wrong, there was a natural disaster, the three princes stepped down, and the people were unlucky.

Pharaoh did something wrong, and locusts came. There is no specific record in the Bible, so I don't know if any of his men were removed from office, but his people were still unlucky.

As for the so-called emperors and pharaohs who did wrong things, did they experience the same pain as the common people?

It is very interesting that such a process is clearly stated in the Bible.

Pharaoh's heart was hardened and he did not take it to heart when the water turned to blood. Pharaoh was plagued by frogs, lice, flies, and animal plagues, but his heart was stubborn. There were plagues of boils, hail, locusts, and darkness. Pharaoh sinned more and more, and he and his servants hardened their hearts.

In the final disaster of killing the eldest son, every family was killed, including Pharaoh's family. When everyone died, Pharaoh was convinced and couldn't stand it any longer. He immediately expressed his sincerity, uh, obeyed God, and let those people leave.

Of course, according to later generations of scientists, the so-called Ten Plagues of Egypt were actually caused by global warming and volcanic eruptions at that time, and had nothing to do with the so-called miracles. It was even possible that some people at the time took advantage of these disasters and then caused them to Pharaoh exerted pressure, and then Pharaoh later figured it out, and then there was another pursuit in the Red Sea...

However, such a record also shows very clearly that only when the Pharaoh was threatened at close range would he feel the seriousness of the matter.

People, everything that happens to others is called a story.

So the "celestial induction" created by Dong Zhongshu is really something that does more harm than good...

Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty originally wanted to use "celestial induction" to cause trouble, but what he didn't expect was that it ended up being his own fault, and it would cause trouble for thousands of years. In the Tang and Song Dynasties, some smart people took advantage of this opportunity to cause trouble. Things, like that group of smart people trying to escape Egypt.

When Li Shimin ate locusts, they really tasted like chicken and were crispy? It was obviously a forced move. Just like the Xuanwumen rebellion launched by Li Shimin. He was picked on by his group of guys, and he had to do it even if he didn't want to do it, otherwise he would die, just like the former Lu Henggong, he had to do it or die. Of course, Li Shimin is also a ruthless person, and he will do it if his heart breaks.

Fei Qian consciously couldn't compete with Li Shimin in cruelty, so he couldn't do anything like eating locusts on the spot. Moreover, when he saw the locusts all over the sky and the ground, he felt somewhat disgusted. No way, there are really too many.

Locusts are larger than ordinary grasshoppers, and when they fly in swarms, they don't avoid people at all. If it weren't for the armor and masks, they might even hit their faces.

This is only the first batch. A large number of locusts are still ahead, but there is not much point in rushing forward. One is that locusts can fly, and the other is that most of the edible vegetation in front is eaten by locusts, so it is better to This interception.

Fei Qian resisted the urge to pull away the locusts crawling on his head with his hands. He turned his head and looked at the "women's army" huddled in a circle behind, hugging each other and shivering. He couldn't help but sigh in his heart, what a miscalculation...

Because the rumors pointed to these women, Fei Qian wanted to use the names of these women to exterminate the locusts. Just like when the locusts were infested in the Tang Dynasty, the finger was pointed at Li Shimin, and then Li Shimin swallowed them up. Not as a disaster. But what Fei Qian didn't think carefully about was that the interests of these women's soldiers were not consistent with Fei Qian's. Most of the women among them looked at Zhiyin Prison for fun, or they felt that having an official position would give them more face. For women I don’t have a high level of awareness about obtaining a position or rights. I even think that it’s not a big deal to go home and take care of my children if I don’t become an official...

So it's normal to act like a "little girl is scared" now.

Fei Qian felt a little headache.

The current choice of these women to make such a move is actually an instinct written in their genes, because when their ancestors who do not know how many generations have discovered that when they make such a "weak" behavior, they often have a reaction. Some foolish men will "voluntarily" stand up and solve some problems for them, so over time this behavior will be mapped into genes and passed on, and women will naturally develop it. When something happens, show "softness" and see if anyone will step up and do the work for them...

Only when they are alone, or when they cannot find a "voluntary" scapegoat, will they show their tough side, repairing the room, the children, the husband, and the earth.

So now...

"Wang's concubine!" come out! Someone come! Be prepared with it! Fei Qian couldn't help but start naming names.

You Mo girl, why are you pretending to be pitiful? Just looking at the calluses on your hands and the marks left on the tiger’s mouth, even if you say you are a veteran on the battlefield, you will believe it! Why are you still cowering behind and shaking?

Wang Shu raised his eyebrows, then looked at Fei Qian, feeling that Fei Qian must be serious, so he slowly put down the hand holding him, pushed away the other two women who were approaching, and moved forward proudly, He opened his hands and let the maids on the side put the armor on his body. Then he reached out and took the bag, weighed it up and down twice, then patted a locust off the bag and put it on his head. Go up and tie the silk ribbon.

Not interesting, not fun. Wang Shu walked up and stood beside Cai Yan.

Wang Shu is really not afraid of these locusts. When he was wandering with his father, what didn't he eat? Let alone bugs, your hands are even stained with human blood, so what else is there to be afraid of?

Fei Qian glanced at Wang Shu, who looked heroic behind his helmet, and then looked around among the other "women's troops". "Who else is willing to join me in exterminating locusts?" Fei Qian said in a deep voice, "This will be a great success for the ages, and it will leave its name in history!" 』

Although Cai Yan and Wang Shu took the lead, most of the female officers in Zhiyin Prison still looked at me and I held you. There was no movement. Just when Fei Qian was about to give up, a woman walked out, " Someone is willing to go! 』

Fei Qian took a closer look and recognized Chunyu Ying, whom he thought was a young man at first glance.

Chunyu Ying doesn't have much fear of these locusts, and even has some unspeakable disgust. After all, he has lived in Xize, Lishan Mountain for a while, and the most annoying thing every day is the mosquitoes and flies at night...

"Prepare armor with him!" ” Fei Qian nodded.

Three people are enough, just represent it. As for the rest, since you just want to "shake" from behind, then just shake from behind...

Locusts do not eat and fly all day long, but they fly for a period and eat for a period, and most of them fly during the day and stop at night, so they are given the opportunity to eliminate the locusts.

Fei Qian turned around, walked onto the high platform, and then said in a deep voice: "If you want to get rid of locusts, you must know the root cause!" During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, there were also locust plagues, which were recorded one hundred and ten times. It is most prosperous in autumn, and it is gluttonous to eat all kinds of food, and it will never be eaten until it is cooked, so it is very harmful! Locusts will be born at the end of a large swamp, in a place that suddenly fills up and suddenly dries up. This is the so-called dry swamp. Therefore, locusts are not a thing sent from heaven, but a harm caused by the earth! Most records in the Spring and Autumn Period are like this. If a place is hit by a disaster, it will spread to those who are affected by it. If it comes again year after year, don't avoid it and look for it, so that you can avoid the harm! 』

Fei Qian paused for a moment, giving everyone some time to think and buffer, and then continued: "There is a poem that says, "The feathers of the katydids are flying, and the descendants of Yier are shaking." It is not to respect the katydids, but to Pretend to beg your descendants to ask for help, but it’s true that you bow to your descendants and sting you! The locusts give birth to babies in large numbers, and they come in groups and cover the sky and the sun, which shows their current power! However, the ancients also said, "Get rid of the gnats and thieves, and they will not harm our children. Tian's ancestors have gods who are responsible for the fire." That's right! 』

Fei Qian spoke loudly, looked around, and then said, "Therefore, the ancient sages have told everyone that if they want to get rid of the locusts, the three laws of "Heaven, Earth, and Man" are spread! Today, someone is also using ancient methods to destroy him! 』

"The three laws of heaven, earth and man?" 』

"Katypus are not a natural disaster, but a growth of the earth?" 』

Suddenly there were whispers among the crowd.

Feida came online, and his words were fiery and well-founded. He quoted scriptures and seemed to have a coherent story. The soldiers and civilians around him were stunned for a moment, and they suddenly became a little more confident in exterminating the locusts. After all, is it possible that future generations are afraid of things that our ancestors have done?

Even Cai Yan was pondering on the sidelines, does this so-called "three laws of heaven, earth and man" really exist? If so, why haven't I seen it in my memory? Or are there any other books in Fei Qian that I haven’t read?

Fei Qian waved his hand and ordered three red lacquer plates to be served. On them were the three scrolls of "Heaven, Earth and Man".

There is no way, people in ancient times just did this.

Now Fei Qian can be regarded as treating others with his own way. Since he has spread rumors about "Heaven and Human Sensation", then he will bring out a set of things that are earlier than "Heaven and Human Sensation" to deal with it. …

As for whether this "Three Laws of Heaven, Earth, and Man" is true or false, it can only destroy locusts. Even if it is not true, it is still true. Of course, if the locusts cannot be eliminated, no matter how true it is, it will become false.

"Zhiyin Supervisor and Supervisor Cai came forward to accept the "Heaven's Strategy" to destroy the locusts! Fei Qian picked up a scroll and looked at Cai Yan.

Cai Yan was stunned for a moment, then realized what he was doing, and climbed onto the wooden platform, received the scroll, and then stood aside.

"Zhiyin Supervisor Shi Wang came forward to receive the "Earth Policy"! Chunyu, the supervisor of Zhiyin, stepped forward to accept the "people's strategy"! Fei Qian also handed out the other two scrolls very simply, and then waved his hand and said, "You three, lead the army and the people, implement the three strategies of "heaven, earth and man" to eliminate the locusts!" 』

It's just a show, so of course I have to do a full set.

The sense of ritual is very important.

Sure enough, as a result, almost everyone focused their attention on the scroll in the hands of Cai Yan and the others. It seemed to contain the majestic power of heaven, earth and man, and then when it was unfolded, there were thousands of brilliance and locusts flying all over the sky. It will be like ashes...

Cai Yan hesitated, and even felt the heavy weight of the scroll in his hand.

Well, of course.

Can a scroll handle made of fine sandalwood not sink?

There are naturally good things in the general office warehouse, but as for the rotten and soft pine wood, you can't even find it...

Fei Qian nodded slightly.

Cai Yan mustered up his courage and unfolded the scroll. Suddenly...

There is no brilliance, just a large black text.

"The locusts, when they go against the will of heaven, destroy the thick soil and harm the people, they are the thieves among insects!" However, thieves have short-sightedness, are greedy for words and forget morality and justice, and drive away small profits to the exclusion of themselves. Therefore, when the sky is dark and the Yin Qi is rising, they can gather the Yangming fire in the wild, just like wealth exposed in the market. , the insects and thieves gathered together, luring them into the fire and burning them! ” Cai Yan read it aloud and felt that it seemed to make some sense, “This is how to get rid of the weeds with the right time!” The measures are as follows...』

This is not Fei Qian's own invention, because the method of burning locusts already existed during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. The Book of Songs quoted by Fei Qian before contains sentences about burning locusts. However, due to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, this method of the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods was not officially inherited and matured until the Tang Dynasty.

If you want to "burn the locusts", you must light a bonfire when it gets dark. In addition to the bonfire, you must also set up lights on the roads according to the flight routes of the locusts. Use lights and fire to attract large numbers of locusts along the routes. Then the locusts that are burned by the fire will naturally be removed, while those whose wings are burned by the flames will also lose their ability to fly and will naturally not be able to continue flying forward, so they can take the opportunity to hunt and kill the killed locusts. , buried together in trenches.

During the Kaiyuan period of the Tang Dynasty, faced with the great locust plague that swept across the Central Plains, Yao Chong, the prime minister of the Tang Dynasty, eliminated the interference of the so-called "disaster from heaven" and used bonfires to kill the locusts, thus eliminating the locust plague. In the Song Dynasty, when agricultural technology was more developed, large-scale locust extermination and wasteland burning were often used. Burning locust breeding grounds and plowing them would not only eliminate hidden dangers of disasters, but also obtain a certain amount of fertilizer to replenish field capacity. It can be said that Kill multiple birds with one stone.

As for the "strategy of the land", it was actually recorded in the book "Lunheng" written by Wang Chong in the early Eastern Han Dynasty. This method is to use the locusts' habit of flying and stopping to dig a large number of large pits two feet deep and wide in areas where locusts will pass. Then, after the locusts arrive, they are introduced into the pits by swatting and other methods, and then Concentrate efforts on landfill. A lot of locusts can be caught using this method. In comparison, it is naturally more efficient than direct swatting manually. However, the disadvantage is that if the pit dug is too shallow, the locusts will easily get out and gnaw again if they do not suffocate to death. Eat crops and seedlings.

So Fei Qian simply changed the standard to three feet, and then required that the landfill should be compacted with rocks...

The final "people's strategy" is even simpler, settling the scores and eradicating the roots.

Locusts fly, eat, mate and lay eggs all the way. Therefore, all the areas where the locusts stay and pass through must be burned in winter and then plowed. Naturally, a large part of the locust eggs can be removed, that is, The risk of subsequent disasters in the coming year is reduced.

Therefore, although the three strategies of "Heaven, Earth and Man" are talked about on the surface, it is actually a relatively complete strategy for getting rid of locusts. It just borrows the so-called concept of favorable time, place and people, which makes it appear a bit lofty.

What?

Chickens and ducks get rid of locusts? Or do people eat locusts directly?

Later, the Institute of Zoology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences discovered that locusts have a defense mechanism against natural enemies. That is, most of the scattered locusts are fine to catch and eat. However, once the locusts gather together, they are easily attacked by natural enemies such as birds because the group target is too large. , so locusts will secrete phenylacetonitrile to release an unpleasant smell to make natural enemies retreat. If these predators do not retreat, the locust community will turn phenylacetonitrile into HCN through a series of reactions, which is harmful to , which is hydrocyanic acid...

As for hydrocyanic acid...

Haha, I can only say that Li Shimin has a long life, or is he a locust? The dose is still too small. If he eats more, um, I don’t know what will happen to Li Shimin...

Even if chickens and ducks are resistant to the toxicity of locusts and can eat them, how many chickens and ducks are needed to extinguish the locust plague? Let alone the manpower and material resources to collect chickens and ducks in a short period of time, even if chickens and ducks from all over the country are caught in one place, after hundreds of chickens and ducks are gathered together, chicken plague, duck plague, and avian influenza will The sharp increase in risks is a huge problem that cannot be avoided by modern modern breeding farms in later generations. And if it broke out in ancient times, it would be so sour...

So those who want to use chickens and ducks to kill locusts should go to bed first.

After Fei Qian's packaging, the seemingly ordinary method of killing locusts became mysterious and classic. As orders were issued one after another, Ma Yan, Mayue, and Cai Yan were responsible for the specific deployment of soldiers and civilians. Cai Yan, Wang Chun, and Yuying acted as mascots. , the vigorous locust eradication campaign in Guanzhong began.

In fact, if you put aside the inexplicable fear of locusts, this thing is actually vegetarian, does not hurt people at all, and is docile than rabbits. After all, rabbits bite people when they are anxious, and locusts slap them down without even a little resistance. None, so after the soldiers and civilians in Guanzhong put aside the fear in their hearts, and with the support of the "Heaven, Earth and People" strategy of the Han hussar general Fei Qian, it seemed that they were becoming more and more powerful in dealing with the locusts.

After all, isn't it just to show some strength? The soldiers and civilians in this area, especially the people who cultivated crops in the area, even if they were extremely tired, sat down to eat and drink, take a short rest, and then rejoined the battle against the locusts.

How could the crops in our own fields, which we had only worked so hard for a year, be eaten by insects in vain?

Many people did not dare to be cruel to the gods, nor did they dare to challenge Fei Qian and others, but these people were cruel to themselves. They did not need any repeated orders at all, and almost risked their lives to cull the locusts. They dug holes and swarmed them manually during the day. Killing, setting fire to attract locusts at night, working day and night, immediately strangled the locusts from invading Guanzhong...