Feng Yunshan is actually ready to gather troops, ready to capture the nail of Fuzhou, and completely take down Fu Jian. Pen %Fun %Pavilion www.biquge.info Anyway, there can't be more than these two or three mansions.

However, at this time, a piece of news came that made Feng Yunshan worried: a large-scale locust plague occurred in Guangxi, and the crops were severely damaged, and various places reported emergencies.

For two days in a row, Feng Yunshan was shocked by the urgent documents from all over the country, and immediately didn't care about the attack on Fuzhou, and led the officials of the Holy King's Mansion to find out the disaster situation and exterminate the locusts and provide disaster relief.

In fact, locust plagues have been there since a few years ago, and they also happened last year the year before last, but because of the Taiping Army uprising in Guangxi, the local congresses and parties also made a lot of trouble, and the local government of the Manchu Qing Dynasty was busy fighting the anti-thieves, and they didn't have the heart to take care of the locust plague, but just issued an official document to let all localities exterminate the locusts on their own.

But I didn't expect that after the beginning of summer this year, locusts suddenly became more abundant in many state capitals in Guangxi, and with the hot weather, they began to spread all over the world.

Feng Yunshan also regretted that he remembered it too late. In fact, as soon as the locust plague occurred now, he remembered that in the past few years in Xianfeng, locust plagues have occurred frequently in various places, and they are particularly serious. In particular, Liangguang in the south and Henan, Hebei and Shandong in the north.

Feng Yunshan picked up the first urgent report casually, but it was reported by Liang Guozhen, the prefect of Taiping Mansion. Liang Guozhen is a local talent in Taiping Mansion, originally served as the master of Zuozhou Governor, and later took refuge in Li Kaifang to help recover the states and counties of Taiping Mansion, and studied again, and was appointed as the prefect of Taiping Mansion by Feng Yunshan.

The urgent newspaper of Taiping Mansion wrote: "In Longzhou, Taiping Province, where the locusts have passed, the rice is empty; Sizhou locusts have injured countless rice; In Chongshan and Zuozhou, locusts and drought were the double disasters, and thousands of people died. Guozhen led the government officials to various places, and spent more than a month in the countryside and fields with the people everywhere, lighting poisonous smoke and mobilizing women and children in the countryside to catch locusts, but there were too many insect swarms, and it was still to no avail. Seeing that the people's families did not have much food and that there was no harvest this summer, he begged the Holy King to have mercy, pardon the tax for two years, release the relief food, and treat it as soon as possible. ”

Feng Yunshan read what was written in this urgent report, and the locust plague was indeed serious. Liang Guozhen, the prefect of Taiping Mansion, himself knows, does have a good reputation, from here, the disaster relief is also considered dedicated, there is nothing wrong, and he dares to petition for the people, which can be regarded as a good official for the people. But thousands of people starved to death in Chongshan and Zuozhou, and he couldn't escape the blame for being the prefect.

Feng Yunshan randomly took another copy from the emergency report, picked it up and looked at it, but it was a joint emergency report from Lianzhou Mansion and Yulin Prefecture: "The two counties of Qinzhou and Lingshan in Lianzhou Prefecture are covered by locusts and seedlings in the fields, and they are all rooted in an instant; In the two counties of Luchuan and Beiliu in Yulin Province, locusts are everywhere, and there are young children playing in the fields, because their bodies are covered with leaves, and the locusts swarm and eat, causing the young children to suffocate to death. ”

Look at another copy, but it is an urgent report from Liuzhou Mansion: "Liucheng is a place, and locusts cover the sky." The locusts lay their eggs and lay their seeds, and they were eaten all over the mountains, not only the seedlings, but also the other saplings. Cereal prices began to skyrocket. ”

Feng Yunshan didn't look any further, he immediately summoned the officials of the Holy King's Mansion to arrange disaster relief and response strategies.

Liu Changyou, vice minister of agriculture, advised: "Holy King, your subordinates are responsible. For the sake of today's plan, first of all, we must not let the locust plague spread to the eastern part of the country and the southern part of the country; The second is to mobilize grain and transport it to areas where the disaster is severe, to provide relief to the victims, and to prevent the people from dying of hunger. ”

Feng Yunshan waved his hand, indicating that it was not Liu Changyou's fault. He also knew that Liu Changyou had just arrived as vice minister of agriculture, and the Ministry of Agriculture did not have many manpower, so many things had not yet been sorted out, and the locust plague was a natural disaster, which was originally going to happen in history.

Therefore, Feng Yunshan nodded: "What Zimo said is extremely true. In terms of food, Brother Shengkun, how much grain is there in the Holy Treasury in your Ministry of Finance and Taxation? ”

Zhou Shengkun, Vice Minister of Finance and Taxation, stood up and replied: "Holy King, the Holy Treasury has sufficient food. At the end of last year, a total of 2 million stone of grain was confiscated in Yongzhou Prefecture and Guilin Prefecture, a total of 120,000 tons of rice according to today's weight standards. In addition, 5,000 tons of flour and 2,500 tons of rice were bought from foreigners. This year, as long as the harvest in Munan and Guangdong is not bad, the grain tax should be more than last year. ”

"Well, the 2,500 tons of rice and 1,000 tons of flour sold from the foreigners will be transported to the affected prefectures by the Liangguang Ocean Company, and the prefectures will distribute them to the counties and towns themselves. Many people in Chongshan and Zuozhou counties have already starved to death, and the Liangguang Ocean Company directly transported a batch of grain to the prefecture and county for emergency relief. Feng Yunshan thought for a moment and ordered.

"At the same time, Brother Yukun, your Ministry of Justice has sent personnel to the affected areas to conduct roving inspections to strictly prevent officials from embezzling and misappropriating disaster relief food."

Huang Yukun hurriedly came out and agreed.

"Enjoy talents, your Ministry of Internal Affairs should also send personnel to supervise the wind assessment everywhere, and set up examples and give commendations to local officials who are effective in disaster relief; Those who are not effective in disaster relief will be dismissed and investigated! In addition, Liang Guozhen, the governor of Taiping Prefecture, although he was diligent and conscientious, more than 1,000 people starved to death in his jurisdiction and was dismissed first. Well, let him temporarily act as the prefect, make every effort to provide disaster relief, and if there is meritorious service, then recover. As for the two prefectures and counties of Chongshan and Zuozhou under the Taiping Mansion, why did it lead to thousands of starvation deaths if local officials were to be strictly investigated? If you are guilty, take it down immediately and send it to Guangzhou to punish the crime! ”

Xie Xiangcai, vice minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, nodded his head frequently.

"Eldest sister, as the Minister of Police, you must supervise the locust plague prefectures and counties to strictly enforce local security, not only to prevent the emergence of stealing and robbing rioters, but also to prevent the demons from inciting the people to gather for riots and other things. Let Vice Minister He Jianji make a special trip to Guangxi to sit in the town and lead the corresponding personnel of the local police bureaus to do a good job in disaster relief. ”

"Minister Yiyun, you should send more people to Guangxi to prevent the plague after the disaster, etc., and help treat the sick people."

"The most important task is still the Ministry of Agriculture! Zimo, the whole matter of locust control is headed by your Ministry of Agriculture! All the people from the Ministry of Agriculture were sent to Guangxi. In light of local conditions, we should study ways to control locusts and take more measures to drive away or eradicate locusts. Now, let's talk about it, but what's the best way to do it? Feng Yunshan assigned the task in one breath, and then asked the most important thing: how to prevent locusts?

Although Zuo Zongtang was a member of the General Staff of the Capture Army, he also participated in the discussion. He stood up and said, "Holy King, Zuo has read some ancient books, and the methods he said to prevent and control locust disasters are nothing more than these: the method of poisonous smoke, the method of feeding ducks to prey on locusts, as well as eradicating roots, digging seeds, removing locusts, and beating gongs and drums or poisoning. All towns and villages should be mobilized at the same time to prevent locusts from hiding in all directions. At the same time, in order to mobilize the people to catch locusts, the royal palace can set up a sum of silver taels to buy locusts and reward them for money. ”

"Yes, Ji Gao is right! Shengkun, you invest 100,000 taels from the Holy Treasury as silver taels to kill locusts, and you can buy 100,000 tons of locusts for every catty of locusts. Feng Yunshan said loudly.

Now, with the outflow of silver after the Opium War, silver taels are becoming more and more valuable, and one tael of silver can be exchanged for almost 2,000 copper coins. 100,000 taels of silver, exactly 100,000 tons of locusts.

Seeing that others couldn't say much to cure the locust plague, Feng Yunshan knew that this era was roughly what Zuo Zongtang said.

"Finally, Brother Wenmao, your Propaganda Department is going to all parts of Guangxi to publicize more methods of locust control, so that the people can move and fight the locust plague together." Feng Yunshan remembered the role of the Propaganda Department and added.

Li Wenmao and the others gave up.

Zeng Yuheng, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Public Works, suddenly said in a loud voice: "Holy King, the Ministry of Public Works can also make some efforts!" I asked the No. 1 Textile Mill to weave some strong nets, several miles long, and hang them on the branches of trees, and enclose the rice paddies, and net all the locusts and destroy them in a concentrated manner. ”

When everyone heard it, hey, this is also a good way, whether it has any effect or not, you have to try it.

Therefore, under Feng Yunshan's arrangement, all the departments of the Holy King's Mansion and the local yamen at all levels in Guangxi took action and threw themselves into the control of the locust plague in Guangxi. (To be continued.) )