A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Starting from the Village Chief

Chapter 802 Heavenly Retribution
Li Yi's house in Luoyang was not large.
The living room was only a five-room, seven-bay structure of a fifth-rank official's residence, but it was wide and the beams were high, making it very poorly insulated.

Fortunately, the fire wall and heated kang (a traditional heated brick bed) were later replaced, and things got much better after the doors and windows were sealed off.

It was already dark.

The emperor and his minister sat on the kang (a heated brick bed), around a small red clay stove, brewing wine and talking about the present.

As evening approaches and snow threatens, the newly brewed wine is covered in green foam.

Li Shimin wasn't usually a heavy drinker, but today he drank quite a few cups of the newly brewed millet wine.
The kang (heated brick bed) is warm.
His face was flushed from drinking, and he reached out to pick up some dog meat, dipping it in minced garlic and cilantro.

The dog meat is first roasted with straw, then stir-fried in camellia oil in a pot until the oil is rendered. Dried chili peppers, cinnamon, ginger slices, and other spices are added and stir-fried until fragrant. Rice wine is then added and the meat is simmered until flavorful. Finally, bean sprouts and celery are placed at the bottom of the pot, which is then served in a small earthenware pot over a charcoal stove.

Keep it simmering over low heat, adding a little broth, and it's a feast for the eyes, nose, and palate.

"Everyone says that dog meat is not presentable, but I never thought that your dog meat could be made so delicious, just like your pork."

As he spoke, the emperor picked up another large piece of dog meat with the skin on.

This kind of dry pot is absolutely delicious in winter.
The skin is a deep reddish-brown color. One bite reveals a crispy skin and fragrant meat, with an amazing flavor that is spicy, numbing, and savory, yet not greasy at all.

Li Yi was also sweating profusely while eating.

"Winter is the perfect time to eat dog meat; it's even more nourishing than mutton. For the best flavor, the dog meat needs to be on the skin, especially roasted with straw. Secondly, the stir-frying step is crucial; the meat will only be fragrant and free of any unpleasant odor after the oil is rendered out."

Next, you need to stir-fry it in camellia oil first, then simmer it in glutinous rice wine. Ginger, star anise, cinnamon, and fennel seeds provide a base of five-spice flavor and neutralize the fishy smell. Adding angelica and cardamom will further enhance the removal of fishy odor. You can omit these ingredients if you're making a dry pot dish.

Sichuan peppercorns and chili peppers should be added to enhance the flavor.

Adding some angelica root and dried tangerine peel can help balance the heat and promote digestion.

Of course, adding bean sprouts, tofu skin, celery, or onions at the end can help cut through the richness.

Li Shimin found the food a bit spicy, yet he also found the spiciness quite enjoyable. He picked up his wine cup and said, "Come on!"

The emperor and his minister each drank from one cup.

Li Shimin put down his wine cup and reached for the dry pot with his chopsticks.

This dish is indeed better than many others.

"Did you learn your dog meat-making skills when you were a Taoist priest?" the emperor asked with a smile.

"Yes, when I traveled around with Master Li Zhenren, I certainly ate a lot of dog meat. Not only dog ​​meat, but also toads and locusts. And snakes, rats, ant eggs, bee pupae, bamboo worms..."

The emperor listened, completely stunned.
Are all of those edible?

“In years of famine, it is very rare to be able to eat these things. Starving people mostly peel tree bark, dig up grass roots, and even eat soil.”

"There is a type of soil that is white and very fine, looking like wheat flour. People who are starving will dig out this soil and eat it, and then they will no longer feel hungry."

When people were starving, they would eat this kind of soil, which was also called Guanyin soil.

However, this is just soil, not wheat flour. Eating a small amount might fool your stomach, but it will make you very thirsty and unable to stop drinking water.

When the clay in the stomach comes into contact with water, it quickly expands and solidifies, becoming indigestible and even impossible to excrete.
Many people who ate Guanyin clay eventually died from bloating or suffocation.

Li Yi intentionally steered the conversation toward the famine.

Li Shimin, who had just been enjoying his meal, put down his chopsticks without hesitation.

There will be famine next year.

"Fu Yi, Li Chunfeng, and other officials from the Imperial Observatory all predicted that there would be a drought in the spring of next year and locusts in the summer and autumn,"

A severe drought is always followed by locusts.

Given the current situation, a severe drought next spring is inevitable, and such droughts are often followed by locust plagues.

If the season remains abnormal after the summer locust plague, then there will be another locust plague in the autumn.

Locust plagues are more terrible than droughts. If there are two consecutive locust plagues, it will lead to a deadly famine.

When the locusts arrive, they darken the sky and wipe out everything in their path.

Although the ancients were not entirely clear about the root cause of locust plagues following severe droughts, they were aware of the consequences.

"Wu Yi, do you have any good solutions?" Li Shimin humbly asked for help. He was invincible on the battlefield, but he was truly helpless in the face of this natural disaster.

Li Yi looked at the emperor in front of him; he was only twenty-four years old.

Thinking back to when I was this age, I had just graduated from university and entered the workforce. I was just a rookie doing odd jobs, unable to lead even a small project, let alone rule a country.

Li Shimin was able to ascend to the throne not only because he was the emperor's son, but also because he conquered the throne himself.

He was in power for only six months.
But he has already performed well enough.

"Does Your Majesty know why a severe drought is always followed by locusts?"

The emperor shook his head. Many people said that locusts were actually a celestial omen, a warning from heaven.

This theory of natural disasters was first proposed by Dong Zhongshu of the Han Dynasty. He believed that all kinds of natural changes were the reactions of "Heaven" as a personified and morally conscious force to the social and political situation at that time.

In general terms, things in heaven and earth that undergo unpredictable changes are called anomalies, and minor anomalies are called calamities. Calamities usually come first, followed by anomalies. Calamities are the punishment of heaven, and anomalies are the majesty of heaven. If one does not understand the punishment, one will fear the majesty of heaven.

This idea later became popular, with people believing that locust plagues were a form of divine poison causing famine, a punishment from the Heavenly Emperor.

Therefore, many people believe that when a locust plague occurs, the locusts cannot be eradicated, and one must beg for divine forgiveness.

Thus, the Locust God came into being.

Even today, most people believe that locust plagues are caused by the emperor's lack of virtue and the officials' corruption. Therefore, to deal with locust plagues, one must take actions to move Heaven, and the locusts will naturally disappear.

Some even say that locusts, in virtuous regions, will pass through without eating crops.

Thus, historical records often contain reports from officials that locusts passed through without eating crops, and even exaggerated accounts of locusts dying clinging to thorns.

Many officials, however, concealed the truth.

It seemed that this indicated they were virtuous. Fueled by a bit of alcohol,

Li Yi gave the emperor a popular science lesson about the living habits of locusts.

According to historical records, the areas most severely affected by locust plagues throughout Chinese history were mainly in the Yellow River basin, especially the alluvial plains in the middle and lower reaches, where locusts were extremely prone to infestations.

Locusts are afraid of water; rain will kill locust larvae, while stagnant water will drown the eggs.

Therefore, in years with abundant rainfall, locusts are less likely to occur.

In the plains of the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River, the severe drought caused the water levels of rivers and lakes to drop, exposing the wet mud and sand on the river and lake beaches after the water receded, which is the best place for female locusts to lay their eggs.

A locust can lay dozens or even hundreds of eggs at a time, and the eggs laid by a locust in a year can still reproduce for one to three generations after they develop into adults.

The moist, receding riverbed allows these insect eggs to survive in large numbers. At its peak, a small plot of riverbed can produce tens of thousands of egg masses, with each egg mass containing fifty or sixty eggs. Thus, a small plot of land can contain millions of locust eggs.

If there is abundant rainfall,

These riverbanks and lakeshores, once flooded, are often quickly submerged again, and most of the locust eggs are drowned.

However, during severe droughts, these receding water areas will not be flooded again. The locust eggs, buried in the soil, will hatch after a period of about twenty days, provided the temperature is suitable.

"A million locust eggs in a single plot of land? Wouldn't that be tens of millions in an acre?" Li Shimin was so shocked that his face turned pale.

This is only one acre of land, but how much of this wet riverbed land must there be along the Yellow River after the water recedes?

Everyone says there will be a locust plague next year.

Is this truly divine retribution against me?

Li Yi poured the emperor a full glass of wine. “Your Majesty,” he said, “the locust plague is caused by natural changes; a severe drought is bound to be followed by locusts.”

"Then is the severe drought a natural disaster, or perhaps a divine punishment?"

"These are all natural changes."

"If there's a drought, we can provide drought relief. If there's a locust plague, we can also control the locusts and provide relief!"

Upon hearing the words "locust eradication," Li Shimin's hand trembled.

Locusts were considered a calamity, a divine punishment. In every dynasty that encountered locust plagues, sacrifices and prayers were offered, and even prime ministers would resign to take responsibility. In severe cases, the emperor would issue an edict of self-reproach.

They could only beg the locusts to leave.

Who dares to eradicate the locusts?

"I have heard that there was once a farmer whose crops were devoured by locusts. In anger, he caught and ate the locusts, but ended up dying from poisoning," Li Shimin said.

"Your Majesty," Li Yi said slowly, taking a sip of wine, "locusts have three life stages: egg, nymph, and adult."

"The eggs live in the soil and cannot move freely. The nymphs have five instars and molt five times. They usually do not feed before and after molting."
After molting five times, it becomes an adult insect with wings that enable it to fly and reproduce.

It takes about a month for locusts to hatch from eggs and mature into adult locusts to reproduce.

Locusts can lay eggs several times a year. They lay their eggs in the soil in autumn. If the weather is warm and there is a drought, locusts are likely to appear the following summer.

Summer brings floods and droughts, followed by locust plagues in autumn.

Locusts are poisonous, but they only become poisonous when they swarm in large numbers.

"How large of a group is considered toxic?" Li Shimin asked.

"It was probably when these locusts swarmed across the prefectures and counties."

"Can it poison people?"

"Eating too many of these locusts directly could be poisonous."

There are many ways to deal with locusts.

"Locusts are controllable. In winter and early spring, locust eggs can be dug up. Locust eggs are found in the soil one or two feet deep in riverbanks and lakeshores. Mobilize the people to dig them up repeatedly, and the number of locust eggs can be greatly reduced."

When the locust eggs hatch next summer, during the nymph stage when they cannot fly, chickens and ducks will be introduced to feed on the locust nymphs. Each duck can eat more than two hundred locust nymphs per day.

Another method is to use fire to lure and kill them. Like most insects, locusts are attracted to light. At night, bonfires or lights can be set up to attract locusts and kill them.

They can also be killed by digging a trench two feet deep and two feet wide to lure locusts together and then killing them, or by flooding the area with water.

To encourage public participation, an imperial edict could be issued allowing locust eggs and locusts to be exchanged for money.

For example, one liter of locust eggs could be exchanged for five dou of millet, and one dou of catching locusts could be exchanged for one dou of millet.

Li Shimin was surprised, "Trading locust eggs and locusts for grain?"

"Yes, the specific exchange rate can be adjusted depending on the situation, but exchanging locusts for grain is the best way to motivate the people."
Ideally, the success of locust control efforts by local officials in prefectures and counties should be linked to their performance evaluations.

"Your Majesty, the locusts we obtained in exchange won't go to waste. They can be steamed, dried, ground into powder, and used as livestock feed."

It can also be mixed with coarse grains and processed into disaster relief food during famines.

Even after steaming, removing the wings and legs, and drying them, they can be eaten just like dried shrimp.

"Wasn't it said to be poisonous?"

"Locusts are poisonous, firstly because they only become poisonous when they swarm and begin their long-distance flight, and secondly because their toxicity is greatly reduced after being steamed, dried, or mixed with other substances."

In times of famine, even tree bark, grass roots, and clay are a thousand times better.

Although Li Shimin still harbored some fear of the locust god, the thought of the terrifying sight of locusts blotting out the sky and leaving thousands of miles of uninhabited land made him grit his teeth and say, "Wu Yi, write a detailed memorial about this matter, preferably as detailed as your memorial about Baiguwu."

Then we will work with the prime ministers to devise a countermeasure.”

At this moment, the emperor once again displayed the same decisiveness and ruthlessness he displayed on the battlefield.

"If it brings peace and tranquility to the world, and I were to avert disaster to save all nations, I would gladly do so without hesitation!"

(End of this chapter)