With complicated thoughts, the rest of the day was spent visiting Zhao Junchen.
Under the locust plague, there was an atmosphere of helplessness and despair everywhere, which made Zhao Junchen feel a little depressed.
The locust plague occurred only a month ago, and most of the people still had a little of last year's food reserves, so Zhao Junchen did not see the flood of victims. However, the locust plague occurred at an unlucky time. It had just entered autumn, and it was the green and yellow that were confused. See
The food in hand gradually bottomed out and could no longer last for a few more days. The food for the second year was no longer available. The unrest among the people had reached its extreme. In Zhao Junchen's view, the large-scale chaos and the emergence of refugees,
I'm afraid it will be in the not too distant future.
In fact, Zhao Junchen saw many people fleeing the famine along the way.
Sitting on the carriage driving back, Zhao Junchen was silent, frowning and thinking about what he had seen and heard this day.
After this day's inspection, Zhao Junchen discovered two serious problems.
First of all, the food gap in Lu'an Mansion was larger than Zhao Junchen imagined. The disaster relief food and grass distributed by the court were far from insufficient. However, Zhao Junchen had long been mentally prepared for this problem and had found a solution, so he did not
Worry.
What really worries Zhao Junchen is another issue - after visiting the people, Zhao Junchen found that the people of Lu'an Prefecture were far more superstitious about the locust god's punishment than Zhao Junchen imagined. No wonder even Liu Changan
Deeply affected by it, after making up his mind to cull the locusts, he even mobilized troops from nearby places to prepare for emergencies. I thought it was just Liu Changan who was overly worried, but now it seems that Zhao Junchen thought about things too simply.
He also underestimated the ignorance of people in this era.
During this day, Zhao Junchen talked to many people, and also vaguely tested their opinions on exterminating locusts. As a result, as long as Zhao Junchen showed any intention, the people who talked would cause a strong backlash, or accuse Zhao Junchen of offending the locust god.
, or simply fled far away, not daring to talk to Zhao Junchen again.
Originally, when Zhao Junchen thought about it, although the people were afraid of the locust god, when it was a matter of life and death for their own children, as long as they made a little publicity, they would follow the trend and follow the government officials to cull the locusts. But now it seems that,
The actual situation is not that simple. Instead of culling locusts, the people are more inclined to wait for the government's relief, and even seek a way to survive by fleeing from famine. They would rather leave their fate to the unknown than fight with their own hands.
.
Even in the eyes of many people, most of the plant food in Lu'an Prefecture has been eaten by locusts anyway, so what is the use of killing them again? As for whether the locust plague will spread to other places because of this, or whether it will
But when it relapses repeatedly, people don't want to think about it that much.
Zhao Junchen found it unimaginable that the people in ancient times were so ignorant and stubborn.
Regarding this point, Liu Changan has his own unique understanding.
Lu'an Prefecture is one of the birthplaces of Chinese civilization. Various legends about gods and witches have been circulated since ancient times, such as the Yan Emperor and the Yellow Emperor, Kuafu chasing the sun, the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, and Jingwei filling the sea, all originated from this place.
Shamanism and Shintoism have spread far and wide, and because of this, the people in this area are more reverent and more convinced of various superstitions than in other places.
After the locust plague occurred, the magic stick witches in Lu'an Prefecture took advantage of the situation to spread the word, which not only made people panic, but also made the people's fear of the locust god and heavenly punishment even stronger.
According to Liu Changan's plan, if the government wants to mobilize the people, it must first convince the gentry and elders from various places. Zhao Junchen originally thought that this plan was feasible and thought that it would be easy to convince these people as long as he came forward. But after understanding the actual situation, Zhao Junchen
Junchen lost his confidence.
Because both Liu Changan and Zhao Junchen ignored the power and influence of religion when planning.
In fact, even without the trouble caused by those witches and magicians, after Zhao Junchen understood the actual thoughts of the people, he was still no longer optimistic about using the help of the squires and elders to mobilize the people.
Country squires and elders are often representatives of pedantic and outdated forces. Zhao Junchen has a hard time convincing even ordinary people. How easy is it to convince them? Even if these people are in awe of Zhao Junchen's official authority and agree on the surface, after returning to various places,
I'm afraid it's still more of a yang service than a yin disobedience.
In fact, persuading the gentry and elders from all over the country to assist the government in culling the locusts was just a trivial matter, but Liu Changan actually wanted to ask Zhao Junchen to come forward in person, which in itself speaks volumes.
I am afraid that the reason Liu Changan asked Zhao Junchen to come forward was precisely because he did not have the confidence to convince these people.
Zhao Junchen didn't think much about it before and readily agreed to Liu Changan's request, but now that he thinks about it, it was Liu Changan who threw the most troublesome hot potato to Zhao Junchen.
Thinking of this, Zhao Junchen glared at Liu Changan fiercely.
Liu Chang'an was sitting not far from Zhao Junchen at this time, peeking at Zhao Junchen from time to time, showing a timid look of respect and caution. Along the way, he and Zhao Junchen made secret visits in plainclothes, but they heard many people's dissatisfaction about his excessive taxation.
and crying, which made him extremely embarrassed. Although he didn't think that a big corrupt official like Zhao Junchen would do anything to a small corrupt official like him because of this kind of thing, seeing Zhao Junchen's gloomy look still made Liu Changan feel a little uneasy.
, panicked.
Seeing Zhao Junchen looking at him with a somewhat unkind expression, Liu Changan felt suddenly and asked quickly: "What are your orders, sir?"
Seeing the flattery and humility in Liu Changan's expression, Zhao Junchen sighed in his heart, and finally suppressed the thoughts of "doing justice for heaven" deep in his heart. After all, no matter now or in the future, he cannot do without corrupt officials like Liu Changan.
support.
Therefore, Zhao Junchen just asked softly: "Master Liu, which temple and Taoist temple has the greatest influence in Lu'an Prefecture?"
Liu Changan didn't understand why Zhao Junchen asked this question, but he still replied respectfully: "Sir, this Lu'an Mansion is different from other places. Various legends of gods and witches are widely circulated, and the people are deeply affected by them.
It is precisely because of this that few people in Lu'an Prefecture believe in Buddhism and Taoism since ancient times. Instead, they are quite respectful of the more primitive ways of magic and magic. Although the influence of the ancient Qinglian Temple and the Yuanqi Temple is gradually increasing, they are still
It is not popular, so there are no influential Taoist temples. On the contrary, the Nainai Temple in Nanshan is the leader of the two sects of gods and witches in Lu'an Prefecture. It has great influence, constant incense and many believers."
Zhao Junchen nodded, thoughtfully.
After thinking for a moment, Zhao Junchen suddenly turned his head and looked at Xu Qingyan.
Zhao Junchen couldn't help but smile when he saw Xu Qingyan's careless look.
Zhao Junchen knows very well what Shinto witchcraft is. They are the most primitive religion in China. They take advantage of the ignorance and ignorance of believers. They do not have strict theories and doctrines like Buddhism and Taoism, and the gods they believe in are also messy.
, even among the many gods they believe in, the most famous in later generations is Wong Tai Sin. The doctrines and ideas they promote have no connotation. Most of the people in charge are magic sticks and witches. Apart from deceiving people with their words, there is basically nothing.
Other skills, in the final analysis, Shinto witchcraft is nothing more than something used by a group of magicians to deceive and bewitch the common people.
Although I look down upon this kind of primitive religion, the situation in front of me seems to be unavoidable.
In fact, most of the theory of the Locust God was propagated by these witches from the Shinto sect. Nowadays, the fear of the Locust God among the people is mostly due to the witches who spread it everywhere.
If you want to deal with these witches and magicians, people like Xu Qingyan are the most suitable ones.
Thinking of this, Zhao Junchen said to Xu Qingyan: "Qingyan, don't go back with me today, help me do something..."
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PS: I have caught a cold these past few days. It feels very uncomfortable, especially my head is feeling dizzy. Please pay more attention to your health during this period. It is not easy to get rid of a cold in summer. Also, please continue to ask for favorites and recommendations. Thank you everyone!!