Since Wu Cao usurped the Tang Dynasty and changed the Zhou Dynasty and set the capital Luoyang, the era name has been changed infrequently.

First, it took two years for "Heavenly Grant", and then two years for "Ruyi". The "extension" of the following year name.

It only took one year for the "extension" to be replaced by "sanctification".

……

The first year of Wu Zhou's Zhengsheng, the ninth day of October.

Since Cui Geng's Chinese New Year's Eve, hearing the shocking secrets, more than half a year has passed.

On this day, Dingzhou, Hengyang County, Tangjia Town.

"The method of fighting locusts is like marching. With ten people as a team, two people with shovels to dig a long trench more than three or four feet deep, floating soil pile on the opposite side, four people behind, two people in the side, with a long broom into the ditch. After the six of them, the two of them used their long-handled leather palms to slay the unclean. ”

"One officer, two hundred men, twenty teams, ten loads a day. Those who marry in the midst of the marriage will make the women and children burst out, or sell, or exchange wheat, and listen to the convenience of the people. ”

"Those who hide in the rocks near the river are mostly boiled in lime water. If you can't reach the broom on the cliff, you can use a nozzle to blast up. Where there are locusts, such as a field other than a sandboard, pounce the jumper, hire oxen to plough the plow, and pick out the seeds. 100 pieces per Yong. The locusts were picked up, and then the ground was flattened with stone rollers, and then they were dug out with iron palladium, and all of them were eroded......"

A middle-aged man dressed in silk and satin, white and fat, quite wealthy, was looking at a yellowed notice and was fixedly distracted.

"This old guest, don't look at the old yellow calendar, this locust plague has passed, hasn't it? Or come to our store and take a look at this Dingzhou porcelain. The guy from the Houdetang porcelain shop next to him greeted.

The middle-aged man obviously had no interest in porcelain, waved his hand, and said in a dumb voice: "You are busy with your own going, miscellaneous...... That one...... Let's just take a look. ”

"Just take a look, then you have to take a look at our Dingzhou porcelain." The guy continued to greet politely, "Listen to your accent, you're not local, right?" Let me tell you, if you don't look at Dingzhou porcelain, you won't be able to come to Dingzhou. ”

"Pull it down, don't think a certain family is a layman." The rich middle-aged man said disdainfully: "The porcelain of our Great Zhou has to be said to be green in the south and white in the north." That is, there are Yue kiln, Ou kiln and Wu kiln in the south, and Xing kiln, Gongxian kiln and Mixian kiln in the north. When will it be your turn to Dingzhou porcelain? ”

The guy shouted unconvinced: "Hey, hey, old guest, don't look down on people, tell you, our porcelain in Dingzhou is by no means under those famous kilns." ”

Seeing that the middle-aged man was still full of disbelief, the man added: "This is the porcelain that Cui Qingtian instructed our Dingzhou people to burn, and now it is sold overseas." ”

"Cui Qingtian? Which Cui Qingtian? The rich middle-aged man asked curiously.

"When I arrived in Dingzhou, I didn't know Cui Qingtian? You're so lonely! The guy despised a handful of middle-aged people and introduced: "Cui Qingtian is the deputy envoy of the five states to eliminate locusts, let's set the governor of Shi, the head of the fifth room of the Boling Cui family, Cui Geng Cui Erlang." ”

"Oh? He? This Dingzhou porcelain is actually related to Erlang? Then we'll have to take a look. The rich middle-aged man changed his mind and entered the store where the guy was.

"You come with the little one."

The guy looked at the middle-aged man's dress, and knew that this person was not bad for money, and as soon as he entered Houde Hall, he took out the treasure of the town store, "Yunlong Chengxiang" porcelain vase.

The porcelain vase is white all over, and the Yasai mutton fat is beautiful and jade, which is exquisite and abnormal. What's even more unique is its pattern, the dragon is proud, soaring in the clouds; The waves are surging, continuous in the flowing water; Inclusive, expansive, tranquil, peaceful...... Give people the most beautiful enjoyment.

After the middle-aged man saw it, his face was incredulous, and he praised sincerely: "You guy is not bragging. Well, yes, this Dingzhou porcelain is not inferior to tribute porcelain. ”

"That's where it is." When the guy saw the middle-aged guest, he couldn't help but say arrogantly, "Although our Dingzhou porcelain is generally white, there are also sauce, red, black and other colors." However, the other colors are so beautiful, as soon as they come out of the kiln, they are set to leave, and now they are priceless. ”

"So powerful? Is there still a price in the market? Not really, right? How come a certain family has never heard of the name of Dingzhou porcelain? ”

The guy explained, "This is really not an uncommon thing in our Dingzhou. Nowadays, the best Dingzhou porcelain has been rounded by two sea merchants. These two big money owners, one is named Lin Zhixiang and the other is Zhang Yuanchang, both of whom are good friends of Cui Qingtian. ”

As soon as the middle-aged man heard this, he became interested again, and asked: "Who is it sold to, even if you have Cui Qingtian's face, you don't have to sell it all to the two of them, right?" ”

"You can't do that ungrateful thing." The man's face sank at that time, and he said: "The two sea merchants Lin and Zhang have great favors to our Dingzhou, who dares not to sell them to them, then they will be the whole Dingzhou, ah, no, the old and young masters of the five states of Dingwei, Ji and Yicang, poke the backbone." ”

"Oh? What do you mean by that? "The interest of middle-aged people is getting stronger.

The guy said: "These two sea merchants not only came to Dingzhou to buy porcelain, but also to sell grain. All of this food comes from overseas, and it's very cheap. If it weren't for these grains, after this locust plague, the price of grain in the five states would not have risen to the sky? ”

The middle-aged man said: "Could it be that the matter of these two sea merchants transporting grain is also related to Cui Erlang?" ”

The guy proudly said, "That's nature." Locusts eat food, but these beasts can't eat china clay. We Dingzhou people, now in every county there are kilns to burn porcelain, the porcelain is sold for money, and then exchanged for food, won't this catastrophe pass? ”

The middle-aged man was puzzled: "There are places where clay is there, and there are no places, so what should I do if there is no clay in Dingzhou?" ”

"That's naturally Cui Qingtian's relief, such as catching locusts...... Haha, this thing is rare, old guest, listen to me talk to you......"

The guy said that Cui Geng thought of a lot of ways to control locusts, although most of them were better than nothing, adding up to quite a lot.

For example, the ancients believed that the locust plague was a sin from heaven and could only be accepted by the contrary, not captured and killed. Even His Majesty Li Er ate locusts, and he had to say: "If Heaven wants to condemn you, please condemn me alone, and do not harm my people." ”

But Cui Geng has to break this statement in Dingzhou.

He personally worshipped the locust god and passed down the news that this locust plague was caused by the unfilial son of the locust god, and everyone was not guilty of it, and it was of great benefit.

What's in it? Of course, it is because these locusts have divine powers, and they are great supplements. Nourish yin and beauty, aphrodisiac and refresh, calm the mind and intellect, nourish blood and nourish the body, neutralize the spleen and stomach...... All in all, what effect does the 10,000-year-old ginseng have, and the locust has what effect.

This is a locust plague from heaven, it is simply a miracle medicine from heaven!

How? You don't believe it? Actions speak louder than words.

There was a man named Meng Shun in a certain village, who was so sick that he was lying on the kang and couldn't move. The family is not rich, he thinks that he is going to die anyway, and he should not waste food, so he eats locusts for three meals a day. As a result, this Meng Shun not only did not starve to death, but also cured a serious illness.

If you think this is hearsay, is it not fake that Cui Changshi spent money to collect locusts? The price of each locust varies. If you catch the locusts passing by your house, although you can't make a fortune, you will have no problem chewing for a month.

……

When the middle-aged man heard this, his face was already full of gossip and asked, "What?" Is there still a price for this locust, this plague thing? Still the price is not the same? ”

"Of course, our Cui Qingtian from Dingzhou said that it turns out that some people eat locusts and get sick, and that is because some locusts are poisonous, not some from heaven. Therefore, the non-poisonous locusts are one valence, and the poisonous locusts are another. If it is not poisonous, it is fed or grilled, and if it is not finished, it is dried and ground into powder, and it is left for later consumption. The poisonous ones are fed to the chickens and ducks, don't you know, there are many chickens and ducks in our five states, and they are all eaten ......."

"I know this!"

The middle-aged humanitarian: "The matter of earthworms raising chickens, a certain family has heard about it as far away as Luoyang, and it is not unusual." Tell me about it, Cui Erlang exterminates locusts, what other measures are there? ”

"The old guest actually knows that it has been passed to Luoyang? Our Cui Qingtian is really capable! ”

The man Balabala continued: "The next step to get rid of locusts is naturally hard work. Cui Qingtian asked the government of the five states to hire the people to build water conservancy and get tens of thousands of hectares of fertile land. Fertile land is secondary, mainly so that the common people have work to do and a place to receive food. ”

The middle-aged man bowed his head and said: "Well, this is a project to benefit the people, and if you do it well, it will be used by all the people, but if you don't do it well, you will be handed down by those corrupt officials and corrupt officials, and the people will fall into blood mold." ”

"But no, in order to prevent this, Cui Qingtian took his four great King Kongs, Feng Changqing, Song Genhai, Zhou Ghost and Huang Youwei, in the name of the deputy envoy of the five states to eliminate locusts, ran all over the land of the five states in a few months, and ate and lived with those people. Anyone who discovers corrupt officials who harm others will be brought to justice immediately. Otherwise, why would everyone call Cui Changshi Cui Qingtian, and people deserve this title. ”

Hearing this, the middle-aged man shook his head slightly, shouting a little strange.

It's not strange about Cui Geng's ability, but strange when did his character become so good? It is true that Cui Erlang, who he knows, cherishes the people, but he is just like ordinary people, he likes to work hard, and likes good wine, food and even beautiful women.

How could he be so able to endure the toils and eat and live with the people?

This is an official, it is clearly a cow and a horse for people.

This is definitely not the Cui Geng Cui Erlang I know!

In fact, how did he know that Cui Geng was completely frightened.

Since Chinese New Year's Eve, Cui Geng got the news that King Luling had intervened in the five states, and he had been sleeping and not knowing the taste of food.

The catastrophe is together, and it is a great opportunity to start an incident, can Wang Yan of Luling let it go?

Being in the middle of it yourself, helping the King of Luling rebel with the five states? Doomed!

Help Wu Zetian? The king of Luling will ascend the throne and sit in the palace in the future, and he will be able to spare himself when the time comes? not

No matter which side you choose, you are doomed to have no good end.

So, the best thing to do is to ...... No one chooses, no one helps!

And if you want to really stay out of the matter and get out of the way, the first premise is to completely eliminate this locust plague, so that King Luling and Khitan Sun Wanrong have no chance to get into trouble. No chance. Presumably, with the cautious nature of King Luling, he will naturally extinguish that thought.

Therefore, Cui Geng did his best to this drought, not only invited Lin and Zhang to help, but also personally went into battle and led the entire work-for-work relief work.

After a few months, he was tired and skeletal, dark and thin. From a distance, it is the personable Cui Changshi, who is clearly an old farmer who farms!

The common people saw it in their eyes and remembered it in their hearts, and the word "Cui Qingtian" spread far and wide. Now if someone is in the land of Wuzhou, dare to say a bad word about Cui Qingtian, and guarantee that no one will report to the official if he is beaten to death.

The guy's admiration for Cui Geng, of course, the middle-aged people can also hear it.

Suddenly, he sighed and said, "The so-called locust big mending clouds, I'm afraid it was made up by Cui Erlang." Although the people exterminated the locusts and eliminated the catastrophe, I am afraid that the heavens will eventually descend on Cui Erlang! ”

"That can't, never!" The man shook his head like a rattle and said, "Why don't you want something good?" Let me tell you, now Cui Changshi is not only not sick or sick, but also has great benefits. ”

"Oh? What are the benefits? The middle-aged man swears that his curiosity and gossip today are absolutely unprecedented.

The guy said: "It's this year, Your Majesty changed the Yuan Zheng Sheng, do you know?" ”

The middle-aged man smiled and said, "You guy, really think that a certain family is a hillbilly?" How could I not know about such a big deal? As far as I know, there is a high monk named Yiman in our Great Zhou, who lasted 25 years, traveled through more than 30 countries and returned to Luoyang, bringing back nearly 400 Sanskrit scriptures, laws, and treatises. His Majesty heard that after Xuanzang, another monk who traveled west to learn scriptures returned with a full load, and personally came to the east gate of Luoyang City to greet him, ask for rewards, and the courtesy was very generous, and changed the yuan to prove the holy ...... Oh! I know the benefits you said! ”

Speaking of this, the middle-aged man suddenly realized and said, "Do you want to say that last month, Your Majesty specially rewarded Cui Erlang for being safe and sound because the locust plague in Dingwei, Jiyi, and Cang Five Prefectures subsided, right?" Cui Erlang let the locust plague subside, proving that His Majesty is deeply virtuous, and he has fulfilled the word 'Zhengsheng'. ”

"Isn't it? Do you think this is a great benefit? The man said, "Look, this must be just the beginning." Cui Changshi is such a good official with ability, he will be a hundred sons and thousands of grandchildren, and a prince for all generations! ”

Hearing this, the middle-aged man shook his head, didn't seem to agree with the guy's words, and then said: "Young man, you only know one and don't know the other." The cycle of retribution, reincarnation is unpleasant. Having exterminated so many locusts, Cui Erlang he... Oh, that's your Cui Qingtian Cui Changshi... I'm afraid it is."

"What are you afraid of? Old guest, you talk all the time, it's weird! ”

"Eh, I'm afraid that you, Cui Changshi Cui Qingtian, are about to be in trouble!"

sanjiangge