Chapter 289

Chapter 289

Can a strategist not ascend the throne? Volume 9: The Calamity of Drought and Locusts, Flying Troops to Liaodong Chapter 289: Man Can Overcome Heaven

The southern regions already feel this way, let alone the north.

Since March, with no rain falling, even Yuan Shao couldn’t help but become alert.

In January, when Qiao Yan and Chunyu Jia argued over whether to send troops, Yuan Shao watched the Chang’an court with amusement.

Although Qiao Yan’s decision ultimately prevailed, and Chunyu Jia took sick leave after fainting in public, only returning to court a month later, Yuan Shao still felt that Qiao Yan’s actions were undignified.

He couldn’t help but wonder if last year’s public opinion attacks had some effect, making Qiao Yan’s decision to delay sending troops seem like an attempt to cover up.

But now things are different.

Qiao Yan might have indeed made that decision based on the weather!

For the north, March’s spring rain, if it falls, is as precious as oil, as it’s not uncommon for spring to be dry.

But considering the lack of rain in autumn and winter, Ju Shou’s earlier concerns about the weather, and Qiao Yan’s actions, Yuan Shao is also feeling uneasy.

Currently, it’s not yet a drought, but Yuan Shao thinks it’s better to trust his opponent’s judgment, as he has made some progress by learning from Qiao Yan’s methods.

He asked Ju Shou, “Is it still possible for us to build canals and store water now?”

Ju Shou’s silence answered Yuan Shao’s question.

It’s a bit late to start this during the spring planting season.

But Yuan Shao can’t be entirely blamed.

Even Ju Shou noticed something unusual about the weather, but from mid-last year to the end of the year, they were busy causing trouble for Chang’an and thought these setbacks might not stop Qiao Yan from sending troops this year.

As a result, Ji Province and Qingzhou focused on military drills during their free time from farming, neglecting some infrastructure that could have been built.

Starting now is probably too late.

The only solution is to ensure agriculture doesn’t suffer from water shortages while monitoring the weather.

They should also follow Qiao Yan’s example of building Dragon Bone Waterwheels in Leping to address critical areas.

“Dragon Bone Waterwheels are emergency measures for small-scale, not severe disasters, but if prepared early, they can be used for long-term purposes,” Qiao Yan commented upon receiving news from Ye City.

To Cheng Yu and Guo Jia, Qiao Yan’s words didn’t sound sarcastic.

After all, droughts, while a significant factor in the power struggle, ultimately harm the people.

If the drought continues into summer and autumn, like in the sixth year of Guanghe, it could lead to widespread unrest, similar to the Yellow Turban Rebellion.

“Droughts shouldn’t be seen just as droughts. Have all other arrangements been made?” Qiao Yan asked.

More than the drought, Qiao Yan is wary of the accompanying locust plague.

With spring temperatures rising, it’s time for locust eggs to hatch naturally.

If the drought favors locust reproduction, they will multiply at an astonishing rate.

Spring droughts often lead to the first wave of locust reproduction in summer, causing a locust plague in early autumn. If the drought persists, a second wave will follow two months later, until temperatures no longer support locust egg hatching.

Without organic phosphorus pesticides to kill locusts directly, they can only focus on two aspects: preventing locust eggs from hatching and ensuring hatched locusts are eaten by their natural predators.

“Everything has been arranged,” Cheng Yu replied. “I now understand the importance of the Leping Monthly Report, established when conditions weren’t as harsh, and how much it can help now.”

During the Guangxi era, the Leping Monthly Report spread from Bingzhou to Liangzhou. By the Jian’an era, with Liu Yu’s ascension, it became an official publication, gaining wider circulation.

With the production of inexpensive bamboo paper from Hanzhong, the report’s price dropped further.

The establishment of a painting academy in Chang’an enriched the illustrations, making it more accessible to illiterate people.

Buying a copy each month, they felt closer to the upper class.

This habit made them unaware of the sudden increase in the March issue’s circulation, only noticing the lower price.

Some sharp-eyed people compared their copies with neighbors, finding the usual differences in illustrations gone, but they were soon engrossed in the content.

Unlike previous issues with six sections, the March issue focused entirely on drought and locust plagues.

Chang Lin, as usual, explained the report to the people in Shangdang.

But now, the crowd held their own copies, unlike when Tian Feng saw them.

Upon receiving the new issue, someone exclaimed, “Ah, locusts!”

The cover featured a detailed locust illustration, labeling its organs.

Once revered as a god, locusts’ destructive power was now exposed.

Below was a picture of a field filled with locust eggs.

Beside it was a clear message: in extreme cases, a square zhang of land suitable for locust reproduction can contain 40,000 locust egg clusters.

But this doesn’t mean 40,000 locusts, as each cluster can contain over 50 eggs.

“How… how can there be so many?” The crowd was skeptical.

But the Leping Monthly Report has never exaggerated, so why would it lie about locust data to cause panic?

Moreover, this was the most extreme scenario, unlikely in most cases.

The next section explained that loosening the soil and burning straw could reduce the number to a tenth.

They sighed in relief.

Chang Lin, observing their expressions, wanted to say that even a tenth, from two million to 200,000, is still terrifying.

Cai Zhaoji cleverly used numbers to make the information more memorable.

The next page vividly explained one condition favoring locust hatching: locusts prefer dry, compact soil.

Experiments at Leping Academy showed that soil with 10% moisture is ideal for locust hatching, so people should measure their soil’s moisture content.

Of course, soil moisture should vary with crops, but avoid 10% moisture.

Major canal projects in the three provinces were marked on the map to support distant fields.

But some areas still need self-inspection.

Eliminating this condition reduces potential locust numbers by another tenth.





“Then there are still twenty thousand left,” a child beside Chang Lin calculated.

This number is still not low, but compared to before, it gives people a sense of hope.

The third page mentions that at this time, the locusts have not yet gathered into swarms, and they do not even exist in their adult form. It is still possible to use the habits of locusts to control them.

From a plant perspective, legumes, alfalfa, and trees can all hinder the reproduction of locusts.

Leaving trees aside, legumes and alfalfa are currently marketable. Reducing the planting of millet and wheat this year and switching to these two crops would not result in much loss.

At the end of May two years ago, Qiao Yan summoned the noble families affected by the alcohol restriction order to Chang’an and provided them with the recipe for soy sauce. By the end of the year, soy sauce had become a hit in various regions.

As the harvest in the fields improved, people’s desire for good food increased. Spending a little money to buy soy sauce and improve their meals was a no-brainer.

The soy sauce production shops that tasted the sweetness inevitably began to purchase soybeans externally.

After all, having farmers plant some soybeans in between their fields was much cheaper than having them use large plots of land for this purpose.

Soybeans clearly have a market, but what about alfalfa?

It also has a market.

The sweat-blooded horses brought back from the Silk Road years ago, bred with the fine horses from Bingzhou and Liangzhou, are now thriving. Alfalfa is an essential part of their feed.

Therefore, the state government often collects alfalfa externally, preferring those of excellent quality.

This is also not a losing business.

“These two crops can be planted, and for disaster prevention, we can plant more. Last year’s stored grain is enough for this year, so ensuring this year’s harvest is the priority,” someone concluded after calculating.

These farmers are not much slower than seasoned accountants when it comes to calculating profits from planting.

However, in Chang Lin’s view, their easy acceptance of planting legumes and alfalfa is due to the credibility Qiao Yan has built since she took office as the governor.

Thinking back to when he came to Bingzhou to escape the Prefect of Henei, Wang Kuang, Chang Lin feels as if it was a lifetime ago.

It was indeed a hasty decision, but now it seems like a very correct one.

“Officer Chang, with this planting method, the locusts won’t get enough food, and competition will reduce their numbers by half. How many are left now?”

The child beside him tugged at his sleeve, interrupting Chang Lin’s thoughts.

He quickly replied, “About four thousand.”

Four thousand is still not a small number.

Fortunately, these locust eggs and larvae have natural predators.

For example, the chickens and ducks that were useful during the Bingzhou locust plague, and the frogs and swallows depicted in the newspaper.

According to the newspaper, these animals will be temporarily protected by state regulations to ensure they can eliminate the locusts before they reach adulthood.

Take the swallow, for example. Experiments at Leping Academy showed that a pair of adult swallows and their nestlings can eat over fifteen thousand locusts in a month.

Chickens and ducks are also excellent at eliminating locusts.

As for whether actively raising chickens and ducks to kill locusts would have adverse effects, the Bingzhou locust eradication campaign already provided an answer.

Locusts are not so divine that capturing them would bring disaster.

At that time, Qiao Yan said, “If eliminating locusts really brings divine punishment, then the state government will bear it.”

This state government can be understood as Qiao Yan acting on behalf of Zhang Yi, or as Zhang Yi himself, whom Qiao Yan shifted the blame to.

In the end, the result was the same.

There was no real divine punishment.

Qiao Yan’s rapid rise to power, now only twenty years old, is often attributed to her incredible luck, not any lack thereof.

As for Zhang Yi… To the people of Bingzhou who admire Qiao Yan, losing his position as the Governor of Bingzhou is not a disaster.

First, he experienced the hardships of being the Prefect of Guangling, even falling to the bottom as a commoner, before rising again as the Governor of Xuzhou. This is—

A transformation after trials and tribulations.

So, raising more chickens and ducks and actively eliminating locusts is not troublesome.

With this breeding and protection of locust predators, over ninety percent of the locusts can be eliminated.

“But that still leaves four hundred?” someone asked.

That’s still not a small number.

Moreover, this is just the number in a small area of land.

Calculating the number for each household’s land based on this ratio is even more terrifying.

Chang Lin shook his head, “It’s not over yet.”

For these villagers, the next page is mostly text, not as easy to understand as the previous pages with pictures. But to him, this page is far more meaningful than the previous ones.

He explained, “This says that the above calculations are based on all locust eggs successfully hatching, which is not the case. The survival rate of locust eggs is very low due to their large numbers. Without external interference, perhaps only one in ten survives.”

“With the above interference, the number of surviving locusts in a small area of land is at most a dozen. With manual extermination, this number is not enough to form a large-scale locust plague.”

“These creatures may seem terrifying with their overwhelming numbers, but they cannot compare to humans in terms of complex body structures, flexible minds, and crisis resilience. Even if they are called a natural disaster, humans can still overcome them.”

This concept proposed by Xunzi, gradually forgotten as reverence for heaven and belief in prophecies became the norm, was now written by Cai Zhaoji under Qiao Yan’s direction in this special Leping Monthly Report.

Without the previous steps to reduce the locust plague from an unsolvable divine punishment to a countable number, these four words would not have such a direct impact.

Humans can overcome heaven…

Even as they listened to Chang Lin explain the next two pages, the villagers often looked back at the page with “humans can overcome heaven,” their expressions dazed.

They may not recognize most of the characters on this page, but they will surely remember these four.

“If not for the special circumstances, saying this now could easily cause trouble.”

As soon as Chang Lin sent away the villagers who listened to his explanation of the monthly report, he heard Zhong Changtong’s voice.

Chang Lin looked at him and replied, “Someone has to do it.”

This young man, still holding a stack of papers as when Xi Zhicai first saw him, looked more mature than before.

As he told Xi Zhicai, he was only auditing at Leping Academy and did not plan to stay long.

Due to family reasons, he soon returned to Shanyang in Yanzhou.

But at the invitation of his friend Chang Lin, he returned to Bingzhou.

Here, he continued to observe the people’s livelihood and work on his theoretical writings.

In his spare time, he walked from Shangdang to Leping, often stopping to talk with the people of Bingzhou he met along the way.

The longer he stayed, the more he felt that Grand Marshal Qiao Yan’s strategies could not simply be described as bold, as they revealed transformative changes in the details.

Previously, these signs of change were carefully and gently revealed, always obscured by other things.

Only today’s “humans can overcome heaven” finally showed a clear hint!

No, it’s not just this statement that could cause trouble.

His gaze shifted from his friend to the monthly report in his hand.

It’s hard to describe the shock he felt when he saw that the adjacent pages of the newspaper, whether in text or images, were completely identical.

This impact, brought by physical objects, was greater than theoretical changes.

Before this Leping Monthly Report, all books were copied by hand, and the originals were kept by noble families, monopolizing knowledge. But now…

Now there is a completely different “production” method!

Although Zhong Changtong is young, his vision is not small.

The moment he clearly realized the change in the newspaper’s production method, he had only one thought—

He seemed to be witnessing the beginning of a new era!