Wang Pu and Ye Hua, two important ministers, accompanied the prince out of Beijing and went straight to Hebei.

They left the capital, and within 200 miles, they saw the fragile side of the empire...... The wide road was originally built for the soldiers who conquered the Khitan, but now it is crowded with homeless people, helping the old and the young, and in tattered clothes, heading towards the capital. In fact, most people don't know where the capital is, they just instinctively move forward until they have food, or die!

Spring is warm and cold, there are frosts in the morning and evening, and every morning when they get up, there are people who can no longer get up, and every deceased person has a strange smile on his face, at least they are happy and content before they die, like the little girl who sells matches......

Wang Pu only felt as if his heart had been poked, as the prime minister, he couldn't assist the holy monarch, appease the people, and sit back and watch so many people starve to death, he is guilty!

Some people want to ask, if the land has not been divided, why can't the common people live?

Taking Hebei as an example, due to the relatively dense population, Mei Yiding can only get about 30 acres.

If it's a good year, of course, the land is enough to feed a family. But if it is two or three famine years in a row, it is enough to crush any small peasant family.

And due to the reason for coping with the war, the warehouses in Hebei are already empty, and in the event of a disaster, there is no way to help, so they can only throw the people to the capital, and the emperor will always have a way. The officials think so, and so do the people, so there are hordes of victims.

Along the way, the more Guo Zongxun looked at it, the more uneasy he became, his heart kept sinking, and he almost fell to the bottom.

If this is the case in Hebei, what will happen to Yecheng?

Those cooperatives of their own, which have just been created, can they withstand the test of the locust plague?

Or will it be even more miserable?

The little guy kept his mouth closed, and his heart was in a mess.

"Your Highness, don't worry, I've already asked people to ask, there are no victims from the direction of Yecheng, maybe the situation in Yecheng is not bad!"

The teacher's words, Guo Zongxun naturally believed it, but if he didn't see it with his own eyes for a moment, he couldn't put his mind at ease, he kept urging the war horse, running faster and faster, and he couldn't wait to fly to Yecheng.

Finally, five days later, they appeared at the Yecheng Realm.

As soon as they arrived, they encountered dozens of Ding Zhuang, who were blocking the road, patrolling around with hoes and sticks, and when they saw Ye Hua and his party, they immediately stepped forward to stop and interrogate.

Guo Zongxun jumped down from his horse and glared at them.

"Ma Gang, you don't work in the fields, why do you dance knives and guns again?"

When the man led by Guo Zongxun saw him, he immediately nodded on one knee and was ecstatic, "Little master, you are here, we all think that you don't care about the big guy!" ”

Guo Zongxun came to Yecheng to promote the cooperative, but did not reveal the identity of the prince, so the ordinary people did not know, but it did not hinder their joy.

Soon the big guys surrounded Guo Zongxun and talked with tongues......

The enthusiasm of the people made Guo Zongxun very excited, he introduced Wang Pu and Ye Hua to everyone, he did not report the official position, only said that these two were his senior teachers, and his skills were taught by the teacher.

The villagers immediately surrounded Ye Hua, "This lord, you taught the little master how to deal with locusts?" ”

Ye Hua nodded slightly, "I mentioned some ...... in class How do you do it, and it works? ”

"Yes, of course!"

They said that before Guo Zongxun returned to Beijing last year, he mentioned that if the spring drought continues, it is very likely that locust plagues will occur again, and if the locusts take off, it will be too late.

By the time the year was just over this year, locusts had indeed been discovered, and there were quite a few of them!

All the cooperatives immediately mobilized, men, women and children, to catch locusts. Last year, various cooperatives bought some chickens and ducks, and they were reluctant to eat the eggs. They are all used to hatch, and when it is spring, big and small, roosters and hens, all rush to the edge of the field to hunt locusts.

Every chicken has a bulging stomach.

The children did not let the chickens hear the news, rushed around, ran their stomachs empty, and continued to eat more locusts.

As the locusts grew older, many women joined the army of locust hunters, roasting them, crushing them to pieces and feeding them to cattle, sheep and livestock.

Not to mention, with the addition of locust powder, the livestock are more fond of eating, and before the spring ploughing, a large circle of fattening.

The common people are very happy.

In the blink of an eye, in late March, when the locusts were about to take off, all the people of Yecheng went out to dig trenches at the edge of the fields and pile up hay.

When the locusts flew over, they lit a bonfire.

The locusts are phototaxis, and when they fly towards the light, the common people keep driving them away, adding firewood, and burning the locusts alive...... The common people were ruthless, it was these damn insects who ate their food, and some old people even threw locusts in their mouths, screaming and chewing and squeaking.

Many people say that fighting locusts is more tiring than actually fighting a war.

But when the results were checked, the people of Yecheng laughed, it was worth it!

"In the counties next to us, at least more than half of them have been eaten, but Yecheng has kept ninety percent of the seedlings!"

Ma Gang Xingchong told Ye Hua, "This year's wheat is better than last year's, and after calculation, one person can get a hundred catties of wheat." Adults come early, if it is two months late, you can invite adults to eat white flour steamed buns! ”

When it came to white-flour steamed buns, Ye Hua seemed to hear the sound of many people swallowing saliva.

Last year, the people of Yecheng went around begging, and in less than a year, they had changed.

When the summer grain is harvested, basically you won't be hungry, and when the autumn grain is harvested for another season, you can take out a little money for money, and when it comes to the New Year, you may be able to buy some pork and eat it.

"Little master, you said that you want to run a school, I think it makes too much sense, you have to do it quickly!"

Guo Zongxun smiled, "Ma Gang, didn't you say that reading is the most useless?" How did you change your tone? ”

"Huh?" Ma Gang hurriedly shook his head, "I didn't say it, I didn't say it!" ”

Everyone else laughed along, didn't you say? Jokes, you kid yells the most fiercely, opposes the establishment of a school, and says that reading is better than herding sheep!

Facing the ridicule of the big guy, Ma Gang couldn't resist it, so he had to say honestly: "Am I not ignorant? In the past, I used to think that reading was just shaking my head, full of sour words, and I couldn't even speak human words. Who knew that the school would also teach how to deal with locusts, if the school could teach how to farm, I, I would still be thinking about going to school! ”

"Hahaha!" Ye Hua said with a smile: "Don't say it, the school does have a subject of agriculture...... Farming is a university question, such as the selection and breeding of improved seeds, how to compost, field management, hoeing and catching insects, harvesting and preservation...... It's all a big deal, and it's not to be sloppy. Also, how to sell agricultural products, how to set prices, how to negotiate with merchants, how to trade...... This is also a very important knowledge. All in all, you have to produce more and sell at the right price, so that you can make your purse bulge! ”

……

After talking for a while, the big guy felt that this seemingly young character was worthy of being the master of the little master, and many things were all to the point, which made people feel stunned.

For example, he suggested that the big guy dig some big pits on the side of the mountain, and every autumn, pour the dung of the livestock, dead branches and leaves, and the sediment in the river together to make fertilizer, and wait for a winter, and then scatter the things in the pit into the field, more or less, to increase the yield.

In addition, when farming is slack, more wells should be dug, and an acre of irrigated field often produces three to five percent more than an acre of land without irrigation.

Although it will be harder, are the Zhuang families still afraid to contribute?

Ye Hua also suggested that all this labor should be included in the accounts of the cooperative, and when the benefits were distributed in the autumn, in addition to the basic output, the additional part would be distributed according to each person's contribution.

It is necessary not only to ensure the rations of the big guys, but also to let those who pay more get the benefits they deserve!

Ye Hua's words simply touched everyone's hearts, and at this time, a young man suddenly ran over, panting and said, "Uncle Ma, it's not good, someone is running to our farmland!" ”

"What a big bold!"

Ma Gang immediately raised his shovel, beckoned the brothers, and rushed over, leaving Ye Hua and them aside.

Someone else ran over and explained to Ye Hua.

It turned out that the surrounding prefectures and counties were hit by disasters, and the people had nothing to eat, so they ran to the fields of Yecheng and grabbed wheat to eat.

Now the wheat is not ripe, and it is impossible to eat at all, but the hungry people don't care about anything, grass roots, tree bark, and even Guanyin soil, when they are hungry, there is nothing that they cannot eat.

The young men of Yecheng had to organize and patrol day and night to protect their crops...... Ma Gang went with people, and after more than half a day, he returned, with two more redness and swelling on his face and an injury to one arm.

"Run miles, run miles! Dare to come over again, I'll discount their doglegs! Poor ghosts who have no interest know how to rob, they know how to steal, and they deserve to starve to death! ”

Ye Hua and the three of them looked at each other, they couldn't blame Ma Gang for anything, and it was understandable to defend the fruits of their labor.

Wang Pu took a deep breath, "Your Highness, Master Hou, the old man has been thinking about whether to promote the cooperative at these times, after all, the impact is too great, but this trip down, the old man has figured it out." Mencius has clouds, the people are the most important, the community is secondary, and the monarch is light. In the final analysis, people's livelihood is difficult, floods, droughts and locust plagues, and it is difficult to resist risks by relying on one family alone. Forming cooperatives is the trend of the times! ”

Hearing Wang Pu's words, the most excited person was Guo Zongxun, even Wang Xianggong agreed, it is not difficult to convince his father!

At this time, someone suddenly came running again, and the imperial history of the imperial court arrived, and now the government of Yecheng. I heard that Hebei was hit by a disaster, and Yecheng was the lightest, so Lord Yushi wanted to collect a batch of food in Yecheng to relieve the victims.

Spread to each cooperative, 100 stone of grain!

Ma Gang and the others were angry, "How can the imperial court do this?" Do you want to give it back? Let's go, let's find the official master theory! ”