The immortal of the Tang Dynasty, but the game starts at Xuanwu Gate?

Chen Huai'an looked deeply at the young man in front of him: "By the end of the year, you can not only buy roast chicken for your sister, but also make your mother's life easier so she won't have to work so hard every day."

"So, where are we going?"

"Yes!" Zhang Peng agreed without hesitation. Twenty coins a day, six hundred coins a month. He had never done such a good job in his life.

I have to go no matter what.

Chen Huai'an nodded slightly: "This month's morning report will be published soon. You will receive the news soon. As before, there will be a special place to register."

"After you register and settle things at home, you can go."

"Thank you, Minister Xie." Zhang Peng breathed a sigh of relief, his eyes filled with gratitude.

He was young and thin; if it were someone else, they probably wouldn't even accept him.

Now that Chen Huai'an had spoken, the government officials dared not refuse to accept him.

"The morning report is here!"

At that moment, someone shouted, and everyone's attention was immediately drawn to it.

Since the publication of the imperial gazette, it immediately became a matter of great concern to the people, because much of the content published therein was closely related to their vital interests and the court's future plans.

In addition, Chen Huai'an just said that the court newspaper will be published soon, and the news about repairing the Yellow River dike will be released. This is a job that pays twenty coins a day, so who would dare to slack off?

Soon, government officials brought thick copies of the imperial gazette and posted them at the notice board. In addition, many officials, gentry, and literate teachers would read the contents of the gazette to the people at fixed locations.

Perhaps because Chen Huai'an was there, an official cautiously approached and, after obtaining Chen Huai'an's permission, read the document aloud in public.

The initial proposal was not the construction of the Yellow River dikes as everyone imagined, but rather the matter that Chen Huai'an had previously raised with Li Shimin.

"From this day forward, an imperial edict is issued throughout the land: locusts are not natural insects, but pests! Wherever locusts are encountered in a prefecture or county, the people may kill them, and the government shall not obstruct them for any reason, but shall fully support this action, with officials setting an example."

"I will personally eat locusts to demonstrate my resolve!"

"If Heaven intends to punish me, the blame lies solely with me, and has nothing to do with the people!"

The official addressed the people before him, saying, "This is an edict personally issued by His Majesty, proclaiming it to the world. It is also His Majesty's own words: locusts are not natural insects, but rather harmful pests."

"Therefore, everyone should not be afraid; if you encounter locusts, just kill them."

Among the crowd, the people looked at each other in disbelief.

"Kill...kill locusts?" an old farmer asked in a trembling voice. "Those are heavenly insects! Killing heavenly insects will be punished by Heaven..."

"Yes, what if Heaven punishes us? Last year there was a famine, and this year there are celestial worms. What if we hunt and kill the celestial worms, and Heaven punishes us?"

"Blame him?" Zhang Peng tilted his head back, sneering. "What can he do even if he blames me?"

"Since you say locusts are heavenly insects, sent down from the sky, yet these heavenly insects devour the crops I painstakingly planted, making it impossible for my sister and me to survive, how dare he blame me?"

"Does it have to be me who dies?"

"That's not how it works..." someone retorted. "Maybe it's because we made a mistake before, and God sent down punishment, which is why there's a locust plague."

"If we kill the locusts, and God continues to punish us, what if other natural disasters occur in the future?"

"What a joke." Huang Yun, the flatbread seller, was also a man of strong character. "If he blames us, we won't be able to survive. Who cares about the future?"

"Anyway, I don't believe in any immortals or Buddhas in heaven, or any so-called Heavenly God. If there really are immortals or Buddhas, where is their benevolence towards life? Where is their supposed compassion for all living beings?"

"Did any of you see it?"

Huang Yun scoffed, "I don't believe in any heaven, I only believe in what I see."

"It was Your Majesty who pacified the world, leading us out of the chaos at the end of the Sui Dynasty and giving us a peaceful life. In the first year of Zhenguan, there was a famine in Guanzhong. It was Minister Chen who found a way to bring in grain and lower the price of grain. It was also Minister Chen who firmly refused to impose corvée labor, instead giving everyone work, wages, and food!"

"This year's locust plague was also thanks to His Majesty and Minister Chen's compassion for the people, who gave everyone a way to survive."

"You don't trust those who are content to keep you alive and well, but instead believe in a heaven that punishes us at the drop of a hat?"

Chen Huai'an looked at Huang Yun with great interest.

This statement definitely has a hint of flattery about it, but he doesn't care about that. As long as things are done well, you can flatter him however you want.

Among the onlookers, many wore hesitant and apprehensive expressions, clearly unsure of what to do.

These long-held beliefs were ingrained in their very being, even causing Li Shimin to hesitate, let alone these uneducated common people who believed whatever others said.

But they also felt that Zhang Peng and Huang Yun made sense.

Since Heaven has treated them this way, what are they afraid of being blamed for?

Where else can he blame others?

Besides... isn't Minister Chen still here?

"Your Excellency... has His Majesty truly ordered us to hunt and kill locusts?" a woman asked cautiously.

"Of course," Chen Huai'an answered without hesitation. "Don't you all know how destructive locusts are?"

"In April alone, locusts can be seen everywhere outside. When the locust infestation is at its worst in May and June, the sky will probably be covered with locusts."

"I know that life is not easy for you. You work hard in the fields all year round, just waiting for the harvest so that you can have a full meal and buy your children a new piece of clothing, even if it is not made of good materials."

"But what about the locusts?"

Looking at the people, most of whom were simply dressed and had different expressions, Chen Huai'an said earnestly, "The appearance of locusts will only wipe out your months of hard work. They will devour your grain, which is tantamount to taking your lives."

"The laws of the Tang Dynasty stipulate that if someone commits murder, others will continue to kill him."

"Even humans are like this; some beasts want your lives, but you don't dare to lay a hand on them?"

An old farmer sighed, "Your Excellency, it's not that we dare not take action, but... we are truly afraid."

"We're afraid of locusts, even if there's only the slightest chance they might be 'sky insects'."

"I barely survived the chaos at the end of the Sui Dynasty, crawled out of the pile of bones on the Grand Canal, and struggled to survive in the chaos. During the Wude era, there were all kinds of natural disasters and chaos, and I tried my best to survive."

"We finally have a wise ruler, and we are blessed by Heaven to have met you and other officials who are wholeheartedly concerned for us. We are about to get through this last time, and good days are coming soon."

"How can we not be afraid?"

"How can I not be afraid?"

"..."