In 244 BC, the seventh year of the reign of Prince Chu of Qin, everyone arrived in fear.
This year, there was neither drought nor flood, but the wind was not steady and the rain was not smooth.
It seemed like God was deliberately playing a joke on the poor farmers. It didn't rain when the fields needed water, and there was no sun when the crops needed sunlight.
If it doesn't rain, fields with good irrigation conditions can still barely survive; if there is no sun at harvest time, the grown crops will rot in the fields and no one can do anything about it.
The population was very small during the Warring States Period.
By the time Qin Shihuang unified the world, the total population was only over 20 million, similar to the permanent population of a coastal metropolis such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou in later generations.
Now that the Qin State's territory has expanded and absorbed a large number of refugees from other countries, its total population does not exceed 10 million.
With such a small population, the ability to resist disasters is even weaker.
As a result, this year, the grain harvest of Qin State was at least 30% less than the previous year.
The weather was crazy bad, and it wasn't just Qin that was affected.
Qin had made advance preparations, and Zhu Xiang thickened Qin's blood. Compared with other countries, the Qin people were relatively better off.
In October of the seventh year of the reign of King Qin, it should have been harvest time, but there was a great famine throughout the country and people were eating each other.
However, because the common people of the five countries were already living in poverty and the fertile land with good irrigation conditions was concentrated in the hands of the nobles, the monarchs and nobles of the five countries did not feel much about the famine.
They had plenty of food.
Besides, even if the grain harvest fails this year, can't we still eat meat? Livestock breeding is not afraid of the continuous autumn rain.
They were celebrating because Qin had stopped its attack on the Central Plains.
Most of the scholars in the court of the five countries were celebrating.
They said that it was God who opened his eyes and brought disaster to Qin, preventing it from conquering the world.
This is because the gods did not allow Qin to harm other countries, which shows that the destiny is not with Qin!
As a result, the societies of the five countries became fragmented and magical.
On one side, scholars were celebrating as if it was a prosperous era, while on the other side, the common people were experiencing a tragic scene of cannibalism.
The king and the nobles held a banquet together, celebrating all night long that God had stopped the Qin from being destroyed.
They piled the high altar with grain, cloth and precious sacrifices, and slaughtered cattle and sheep to thank God.
Outside the city, the farmers had exhausted their food last year and had to eat grass roots, tree bark, and relief crops sent over from the Qin State to survive the autumn harvest this year. However, they had gained almost nothing and were now digging the soil in the ground and making cakes with the moldy grains to fill their stomachs.
There were also people crying and exchanging babies that could no longer be raised and the corpses of their loved ones who had starved to death.
The Qin State was in no mood to pay attention to the magical daily lives of other countries.
The Qin State now has a vast territory, spanning a large range of longitude and latitude from north to south and east to west, so we can always find some places that have not been affected by disasters or have been less affected.
Prince Chu of Qin had no time to worship God.
Since the Qin army was recalled, he has been riding in the Qin king's carriage, not only inspecting Guanzhong, Guandong and the three newly conquered counties of Han and Zhao, but also entering Shu and personally meeting with the wealthy and powerful families in Shu.
The Dujiangyan Irrigation System built by Li Bing took effect as it was being constructed, and the Chengdu Plain has now become a fertile land.
Although this basin surrounded by mountains and rivers was also affected by extreme weather, it was less affected than other places in Qin.
The Chengdu Plain was isolated for many years, which allowed the local tyrants to make a fortune in silence and accumulate a lot of grain.
Prince Chu of Qin openly sold titles. As long as one donated 1,000 dan of millet, one could be promoted to a higher rank.
The powerful people in Shu generously donated grain in exchange for titles. Qin Prince Chu stamped his seal on the spot and cashed it out, and the saved grain was immediately transported to the Guanzhong and Guandong hinterland of Qin, which was the hardest hit by the disaster.
After collecting food, Prince Chu of Qin took a big ship and sailed down the turbulent Yangtze River. He vomited all over the ship and arrived at the three counties of Southern Chu.
He summoned all the major clans in Southern Chu and told them that the whole world from south to north was suffering from the disaster, and that the five countries had resorted to cannibalism. Only Qin had the best life because of advance preparations and the presence of Lord Changping, so life was the best in the three southern Qin counties under Lord Changping's rule.
After explaining the situation in the world, Prince Chu of Qin also sold his title in Southern Qin. He also donated 1,000 dan of grain and could get a first-level title.
He also promised that if more donations were made, although he would not give more titles, he would give each county an additional twenty places to enter the academy, allowing the scholar families of the three counties of Southern Qin to compete.
After years of management by Zhu Xiang and Ying Xiaozheng, the three counties of Southern Qin had already been loyal to the rule of Qin. Therefore, compared with the secluded Shu, Prince Chu of Qin was more willing to give scholars from the three counties of Southern Qin more opportunities to enter the central court.
What's more, the three counties of Southern Qin are richer, and he can squeeze out more grain.
Zhu Xiang had already bought a batch of grain in Southern Qin using gold, silver, silk and cloth.
During the famine years, there was no market for grain. The fact that the people of Southern Qin were willing to sell grain to Zhu Xiang was already a great favor to him.
Prince Chu of Qin used his title and the recommendation of the Imperial Academy to squeeze out more grain. Many scholars and noble families united together, and even if they tightened their belts, they still had to collect grain to compete for the 20 admission places.
As everyone knows, as long as students can study in the academy, they can at least become a county magistrate after graduation.
After collecting food from the three counties of Southern Qin, Prince Chu of Qin came to the State of Southern Chu.
Zichu, who was coughing, looked at Zhu Xiang, who was also coughing, and they looked at each other in silence.
Xue Ji said unhappily, "My dear, you have been caught in the rain for several days. My Lord, you have also been caught in the rain?"
Zichu said hurriedly, "No, how could I be as stupid as him, running out to get wet in the rain for no reason and not taking care of my body? I just don't have good health to begin with."
Zhu Xiang coughed and said, "Your health is not good to begin with, are you very proud?"
Xue Ji glared.
Zhu Xiang quickly shut up and dared not provoke Xue Ji anymore.
Although Zichu and Zhu Xiang were both ill, they still had to keep busy.
Even Prince Zheng could not replace the King of Qin and make promises to the people of Southern Chu to reassure them.
Prince Chu of Qin traveled to every city in southern Chu State and summoned the elders in the city and nearby villages to have a heart-to-heart talk, telling them that there was a great famine in the world, especially in Chu State, where the disaster was particularly severe and there were refugees everywhere scrambling for food.
Qin is the only State in the world that is doing relatively well, so we hope they can restore order as soon as possible, organize guards and patrols spontaneously, and prevent the refugees from Chu from coming to steal their food.
Moreover, the Chu people north of the Huai River have no food to eat, and it is very likely that a large number of bandits will cross the river to the south, or even the King of Chu may directly send the Chu army to rob food. They must be vigilant.
The people of Southern Chu felt particularly sad.
They were abandoned by the King of Chu and ceded to the traitor Lord Nanchu.
When they were oppressed and exploited by the Lord of Southern Chu and suffered from famine every year, the King of Chu did not lend them a helping hand.
Now they were barely living a good life under the governance of Lord Changping and the Crown Prince of Qin, but the King of Chu was sending people to rob them of their food.
The King of Qin came all the way to comfort them personally, telling them that even if Qin suffered a disaster, it would not add to their burden, so they could rest assured.
It was the first time for many scholars to meet the monarch.
They heard that the King of Qin was cruel and ruthless, with a hideous face, and even ate human thighs for every meal, and was picky about the meat and would not eat even old legs.
The gentle King of Qin in front of them, who was thin, pale, and coughing, finally broke all the bad impressions of the Qin State in their minds.
In a society with clear class divisions, being humble and courteous is the most effective way to win the favor of people at the bottom of society, and it always works.
If you condescend to show respect to others and give them tangible benefits, they will be even more grateful.
Ying Xiaozheng watched his king and father chatting with the elders of the Southern Chu State, and promised them that he would build more academies and schools in Southern Chu State so that their children could also study in the academy.
This is no longer the State of Southern Chu, but a new county of the State of Qin; they are not people from Southern Chu, they are all Qin people.
The Qin people had all the rights they had, including the right to become an official through education and recommendation.
Ying Xiaozheng recalled that in his dream he had also tried to stabilize the world by touring the country.
When he traveled around the country, he also gave benefits to everyone. Except for the top officials such as county governors and county magistrates, all other officials of the six countries could stay in their posts.
In order to win the loyalty of the scholars of the six states, he did not touch their land and even delayed the payment of land to the Qin soldiers for their military merits.
But he had little success.
Why
He carefully observed and thought about the differences between what his king and father did and what he did in his dream, and finally came to a conclusion.
The benefits that he brought to the scholars of the six countries in the dream were the benefits that they already held in their hands, so no one was grateful to him.
But before the king gave benefits to the scholars of Southern Chu, he first cancelled most of the benefits of the scholars of Southern Chu, and then the king came to appease them.
This is like taming a horse. You have to whip it to docile it first before you can feed it and cultivate a relationship with it.
There is no difference between herding people and herding livestock.
He who governs the people on behalf of Heaven is called the Son of Heaven.
After Prince Chu of Qin calmed the hearts of the scholars of Southern Chu, he also told them that they could purchase titles with a thousand stones of millet, but did not recommend them for places in the academy.
He told the scholars of Southern Chu that he had recommended the three counties of Southern Qin to the academy because they had studied Qin law and Qin language for many years and would be able to keep up with the courses of other students after entering the academy.
King Zichu of Qin promised that after another two years, he would also give the Southern Chu Kingdom additional "ennoblement quotas" so that they could send more people to study at the Xianyang Academy and compete with the Qin people for official positions.
The scholars of Southern Chu were so moved by the promise of Prince Chu of Qin that their eyes filled with tears. They privately lamented that the King of Qin really treated them as Qin people.
Ying Xiaozheng recalled that in his dream he seemed to have sold his title, but the effect was not good.
Where is the difference
He thought about it and came to a conclusion.
He only issued imperial edicts in the Xianyang Palace. He did not go to every place like an emperor or father to "do business" face to face with the powerful, nor did he treat scholars from different places differently.
Qianzhong County, Nan County and Wu County could use grain to purchase additional places for admission to the imperial academy, but other places could not. This was not the King of Qin begging them for grain, but a favor from the King of Qin.
Therefore, the emperor not only obtained grain, but also won the hearts of the people. Moreover, because it was a face-to-face transaction, the local officials did not have to force the common people to "donate grain", and he accurately took away from the surplus and made up for the shortage.
He felt very complicated as he looked at his father who was becoming increasingly thinner.
If the king or father in the dream had not died young and had been able to teach me for a few more years, would my ability to handle government affairs have been more mature
He is confident in his abilities, but it is definitely easier to have someone to help him than to stumble and grope his way forward on his own.
Ying Xiaozheng closed his eyes. After a long time, he opened his eyes and his mood calmed down.
It was already winter when King Zichu of Qin returned to Xianyang.
A whole year of running around quickly consumed his energy. Fortunately, this year was a warm winter, so his lung problems did not worsen, so he was not sick enough to be unable to get up, and was able to continue handling official business.
When he came back this time, Zhu Xiang came back with him.
After all, the water and heat conditions south of the Huai River are better than those north of the Huai River. After Zhu Xiang laid the foundation for agriculture in the Jianghuai Plain, he handed over everything to Ying Xiaozheng and returned to the worst-hit areas of Qin.
Zhu Xiang's health was much better than that of Prince Chu of Qin, and he recovered after coughing for a while.
He also visited Jiuyuan, Yunzhong and Yanmen counties, and instructed them to plant drought-resistant crops, such as potatoes and beans, as much as possible, so that they could increase their food self-sufficiency rate.
Zhu Xiang's inspection of the fields played a much greater role than other people's inspection of the fields.
Only by seeing what is happening in the fields with your own eyes can you make specific responses. Zhu Xiang's agricultural knowledge far surpassed that of others, being two thousand years ahead. Wherever he went, he could always give suggestions for local improvements.
Zhu Xiang's reputation in Qin was at its peak, even higher than that of the three southern Chu counties where he had lived for many years.
The three counties of Southern Chu were accustomed to Zhu Xiang's guidance, so they had a feeling that they were accustomed to it because they were too close to him.
Zhu Xiang had been away from the heartland of Qin for many years, and his deeds in Qin had become a legend. Especially in years of famine, farmers hoped that Changping Jun would come to save them.
Now that Changping Jun has arrived, they do whatever he says without hesitation.
They even wished that Changping Jun's guidance was so precise as to how deep to dig, how many buckets of water to pour, and how many seeds to plant.
Zhu Xiang could understand their anxiety, but he also kept telling them that human power was limited and they should not have too much hope in him. They could only do their best and leave the rest to fate.
A farmer asked Zhu Xiang if he could communicate with God and ask him to stop bringing disasters.
Zhu Xiang could only smile bitterly and answer them with Xunzi's words.
The way of heaven is constant and cannot be changed by human hearts.
All a wise ruler can do is to lead farmers to reduce disasters as much as possible in years of disaster, just like what the King of Qin is doing now.
Many farmers cannot accept this fact.
Zhu Xiang did not continue to persuade them.
What's the use of persuasion? Can it make the disaster year pass
cannot.
For two or three years, the weather became increasingly abnormal and life became increasingly difficult. Everyone was anxious and full of resentment.
He did not blame the farmers for their ignorance, nor did he blame them for any private complaints they might have against him.
All he did was to accept his fate and do his best.
When Zhu Xiang arrived in Yanmen County, he was welcomed by the soldiers and civilians of Yanmen County.
Zhu Xiang had never been to Yanmen County, but he was already one of the most famous people in the county.
From Li Mu to Lord Xinling, they all spared no effort to spread Zhu Xiang's reputation. The people of Yanmen County really admired Lord Changping Zhu Xiang for a long time.
Yanmen County bordered the State of Zhao and there were many people from Zhao in the county, so the county had a better understanding of the domestic situation in Zhao.
They found that there was famine everywhere in Zhao State, and the condition of their own fields was not as good as those in the hinterland of Zhao State. However, with the help of Qin State, there was no serious famine. They were glad that they had surrendered to Qin.
If he was still in Zhao, the heartland of Zhao would be in famine, and the food shipped would certainly be reduced. Yanmen County would also have to support Yunzhong County and Jiuyuan County, which were in even greater difficulty. By then, not to mention the common people and soldiers, even the generals might starve.
Life in the frontier is so hard.
After Zhu Xiang arrived in Yanmen County, he first helped adjust the planting structure, and then told them that now that the Central Plains was generally warming, the grassland would definitely have more rain, and the aquatic plants would become more lush.
Rather than being trapped in the city, the three counties might as well take the initiative to find places with abundant water and grass, snatch the cattle and sheep of the Northern Hu, and then graze them themselves.
The quality of the farmland in Yanmen, Yunzhong and Jiuyuan counties is indeed not good, but if used as pastures, they are definitely of better quality than the pastures further north.
If there is not enough food to grow, then graze. In the cities on the grassland, if there is not enough food, then they can eat meat instead.
Zhu Xiang not only knows how to farm, but also has some basic farming experience, which is enough for people in the three northern counties to farm on their own.
The three northern counties were somewhat worried. They had just surrendered to Qin not long ago, and wondered whether Qin would provide them with weapons and initial military rations.
They were also worried that if they suddenly sent troops, the King of Qin would be wary of them.
Zhu Xiang assured: "Don't worry, Li Mu and I will guarantee it. This is also an opportunity for you to show your abilities."
With Zhu Xiang's guarantee, Prince Chu of Qin gritted his teeth and provided a batch of food and fodder to the three northern counties. He also personally came to mobilize them before the war, encouraging them to walk out of the Great Wall and plunder the supplies of the northern Hu to survive the famine.
Zhu Xiang stayed in the three northern counties and taught them how to raise and process the looted cattle and sheep.
Leather weaving, wool processing and textiles, meat processing... The three northern counties showed increasing respect for Lord Changping.
They had heard rumors that Changping Jun was a very capable person, but when they saw him with their own eyes and got to know him in person, they realized that the rumors were far from the truth.
Zhu Xiang encouraged the three northern counties to plunder the northern Hu, which caused great regret in the Qin court.
They did not say that Zhu Xiang was hypocritical, but they said that this disaster was truly tragic as he had forced Changping Jun to this point.
Hopefully next year will be better.
No matter how thick the blood of the Qin State is, it cannot withstand such turmoil.
Unfortunately, things still don’t go as planned.
In 243 BC, the eighth year of Qin Prince Chu's reign, the spring in the north was warmer and the spring drought was more severe.
Zhu Xiang, who stayed in Jiuyuan, was horrified to find locust eggs in the soil while digging the ground.
Severe droughts are often followed by locust plagues.
The Qin State experienced three years of warm winters, and the locust eggs were not frozen to death for three consecutive years, and finally accumulated into a locust plague.
Looking at the locust eggs in the land of Jiuyuan County, Zhu Xiang knew that this year's locust plague could not be avoided.
Zhu Xiang immediately informed King Zichu of Qin that there would be a locust plague this year.
When Qin Wang Zichu heard the news, his cough had not yet healed.
When he received Zhu Xiang's letter, he felt a chill in his chest, as if something had exploded in his chest, and he coughed many times while covering his mouth.
When he lowered his hand, he found himself coughing up blood.
Qin Wang Zichu smiled bitterly: "Three consecutive years, three consecutive years."
He wiped the blood off his robe and convened a court meeting to deal with the locust plague.
He didn't know what would happen next year, so he could only respond to whatever happened. He would continue to respond in this way.
What else? Should we compromise with God
Absolutely not!
After the news of the locust plague was reported to the court, everyone in the court showed a look of despair.
People in this era don’t understand locusts. Some people say that locusts are ghosts, while others say that locusts are disaster gods sent by God to reap the harvest.
Some even say that locusts cannot be harmed, otherwise God will bring more disasters.
Zhu Xiang had long known that people in this era did not have a deep understanding of locusts, so more than ten years ago he had written down the origins of locusts and what could be done with current technology in the textbooks he provided to the academy.
While the teachers in the academy dug out the textbooks written by Zhu Xiang and were trying to discuss how to deal with the situation with the ministers in the court in the Xianyang Palace, Zhu Xiang had already sent people to turn over the soil to kill the locust eggs.
He raised chickens and ducks to eat locust eggs, thereby reducing the number of locust eggs and providing more food.
This actually has little effect.
Since there are locust eggs in Jiuyuan County, there must be some in the grasslands further north; there must be some in other places in the Central Plains.
Zhu Xiang was able to reduce the number of locust eggs in Qin's land as much as possible, but he could not control the grassland, let alone the Central Plains.
Swarms of locusts will move from place to place, eating all the leaves they can see.
Even if the locusts in Qin were prevented in advance, locusts from other places would still fly over.
But even if the effect is not great, it is better than doing nothing.
That's all they can do.
Once locusts become a disaster, there is no other way except to kill them.
Whether people or livestock eat locusts, it is just a drop in the bucket.
Especially when the locusts gather to a certain size, they will become poisonous, and people will not be able to eat them to fill their stomachs. Even cattle and sheep may get stomach upset after eating the poisonous locusts.
Locusts are fucking shit.
Even in modern society, locust plagues are still a cause for shudders.
If it were a modern country, they could send planes to spray pesticides in advance. But these things would evolve to be resistant to pesticides, and spraying too much pesticides would also affect the living conditions of the military and civilians along the way.
Therefore, modern countries can only use physical methods such as catching nets to reduce the number of locusts landing as much as possible.
There were no airplanes in this era, and there were not so many convenient insect-catching machines.
When the locusts arrived, people could only use the most primitive method of catching and burning the locusts and snatching food from their mouths.
Zhu Xiang left Jiuyuan County and taught people throughout Qin State how to reduce locust eggs in the soil.
When the farmers learned that there would be a locust plague, they cried and raged and fell into complete despair.
But what can they do if they are desperate? They can only try their best to kill the locusts and survive.
If God wants to harm them, they can't just obey God's orders and die
Survival is the instinct of living things, and staying alive is the instinct of human beings.
When a locust plague comes, we will compete with them for food.
Even if ghosts and gods came, in order to survive, they had to raise their farm tools to fight against them.
"Locusts lay their eggs in dry, hardened soil, and low-lying ponds that are about to dry out are also important places for them to lay their eggs. Whenever possible, flood the soil with water to drown the locusts."
"For fields without flooding conditions, we can only turn over the locust eggs and crush or burn them. Raising chickens and ducks can eat some of the locust eggs, reducing the labor of killing the eggs."
"The south has good water and heat conditions, so locust eggs will basically not hatch. But the locusts will move south, so the south must also be prepared to kill them."
"Locusts are just insect plagues, a natural disaster. They have nothing to do with gods or ghosts. Those who spread rumors to confuse the public will be killed!"
Zhu Xiang instructed the prevention of locust plagues while asking Qin Prince Chu for a troop of soldiers. Anyone who spread rumors and misled the people along the way would be killed without mercy, regardless of their identity!
There were consecutive years of famine and locust plagues, and many sorcerers who pretended to be gods and ghosts came out to spread rumors and confuse the people. Many villagers also protected them.
Zhu Xiang once again led his troops to destroy temples, burn statues of gods, and kill evildoers.
Along the way, many villages took up arms to fight against Zhu Xiang, and Zhu Xiang showed no mercy.
At this time, people all over the world remembered Changping Jun's reputation for cutting down mountains and destroying temples in Southern Qin, and also remembered that Changping Jun was a fierce and famous general who became famous in a battle in Guangling City.
(End of this chapter)