Chapter 1231 Hidden Food Danger
Thousands of miles south of the Yangtze River, Cheng Zeguo, half of the people are victims of the disaster. The people who survived the flood not only had to bear the pain of losing their loved ones, but also faced a severe survival crisis, being displaced, hungry and cold, and crying endlessly.
The people of Jingnan are luckier than most of the victims. At least they don’t have to bear the pain of losing their loved ones.
“Our current top priority is to resettle the people and victims of the disaster, and build more temporary houses in the flood refuge areas, including thatched houses. Having a shelter from the wind and rain will give the people more peace of mind. A sense of security. If the people do not receive help, there will be potential instability under the instigation of some well-intentioned people. There are countless examples of disaster victims rioting in history. The final analysis is that the rescue was not timely. "
Zhu Ping'an summoned all the subordinate officials in the county government, organized them into several groups, and arranged them to be responsible for resettlement and rescue of different refugees. For civilian victims in the flood areas, the purpose and significance of rescuing the people was emphasized to them before leaving.
"Don't worry, your Majesty, this is a critical period. We will do our best to complete the tasks assigned by the County Majesty."
Zhang Tongsheng, Liu Fuzi and other subordinate officials accepted their orders one after another. They also knew full well that they would rescue the people after the disaster. importance. In addition, they are also natives of Jingnan, so they are naturally very concerned about resettling the villagers.
“There is another point that must be paid special attention to. As the saying goes, there will be a great epidemic after a major disaster. After a flood, houses, ditches, livestock pens, etc. are all submerged, and all kinds of filth, stolen goods, etc. are spread everywhere. The proliferation of rats and mosquitoes can easily breed various epidemic diseases and spread among the people. At the same time, epidemic prevention must be carried out. First, toilets should be planned in flood avoidance areas, and people and victims must be strictly prohibited from urinating anywhere. They must use the planned toilets; second, the water source should be wells drilled from deep veins. Water comes first, well water seeping from rivers comes second, and ditches come last. Drinking raw water is strictly prohibited and must be It can be drunk only after boiling; third, the people and disaster victims must be kept clean and hygienic, change clothes frequently, and take a bath once every two days. Herbal medicines such as Perrin for preventing plague can be mixed into the bath water; fourth, if common people or disaster victims are found Those who have fever, dysentery and other symptoms must be isolated. Fifth, disaster. If there are those who cause trouble and cause trouble among the people, they will be severely punished. Well, that’s all I can think of for now. If you have any good measures and suggestions in practice, please report them to me in time.”
As a modern person, Zhu Ping’an deeply understands. Knowing the importance of epidemic prevention after disasters, modern epidemic prevention experience was instilled in them.
“As you command.”
Zhang Tongsheng and others accepted the order one after another. They didn't think so much, and they couldn't help but be more impressed by Zhu Pingan.
"Your Majesty, to help the people, food and grass are indispensable. The autumn harvest grains in the people's homes have been basically soaked by the floods. The rations they carry with them during emergency evacuation are limited, and they are basically all used up now. If food and grass If the supply is insufficient, the people will be hungry. In order to fill their stomachs, there may be changes. .
Master Liu handed over his hand and said that he was more worried about the food problem. In history, people often rebelled because they had no food to eat, could not survive, and were desperate. For example, the Yellow Turban Uprising during the Three Kingdoms period. >
"Yes, Lord County, this is the same as marching forward before troops and horses use food and grass. ”
When Master Liu mentioned the food problem, everyone else felt the same way and were also worried about the food problem.
The reason why they are so worried about the food problem is because they all know that in order to cash the bounty for the young men who defended the city, Zhu Ping'an, the county magistrate, not only emptied his own personal pockets, but also stored grain in the county government warehouse of 12,000 stones. All were converted into silver taels and the bounty was cashed in for everyone. This matter was well known to everyone in Jingnan. Everyone praised the county minister and said that he was true to his words and praised the county minister full of praise.
The county minister is indeed worthy of praise for doing this! But clinker thought, what if it’s flooded now? ! In years of famine, food is very important. The county magistrate converted the grain stored in the warehouse into silver taels and gave it to everyone to cash in the reward. Then wouldn't the grain in the warehouse be gone? ! Now is the time to use food. How can we not worry?
"Don't worry, Mr. Qian, please tell us how much grain is left in the warehouse now."
Zhu Ping'an knew what everyone was worried about, and smiled calmly, and said to the people on the side Qian Dianli said.
"Everyone, our county government warehouse currently has a total of 20,000 shi of grain." Qian Dianli was the only one among the people who was not worried about food. After Zhu Ping'an finished speaking, Qian Dianli stepped forward and said to everyone said.
"What, twenty thousand stones? Didn't the county magistrate convert all the grain stored in the warehouse into silver taels and give it to the young man who defended the city to cash in the reward?" Hearing this, everyone opened their mouths in surprise, and the surprise was beyond words.
After years of saving, the Jingnan warehouse had only accumulated twelve thousand shi of grain. They thought that there was no grain stored in the warehouse, but they didn't expect that there were 20,000 stones of grain stored in it. One stone of grain is equivalent to about 150 catties, and twenty thousand stone of rice is equivalent to 3 million catties. For a county, 20,000 shi of grain storage is a huge amount. Generally speaking, if the county government warehouse stores 10,000 shi of grain, it has reached the standard. The warehouses can store 20,000 shi of grain. The counties that can do this are all the big counties that have been famous for a long time. There are no more than fifty in the entire Ming Dynasty.
"Mr. Qian, is it true or not?"
The happiness came too suddenly. After the surprise, everyone couldn't help but feel a little doubtful and couldn't believe it.
"How can this be false? After the autumn harvest, the county official said that he would accumulate grain to prepare for shortages. Taking advantage of the abundant and cheap rice, he ordered me to buy 20,000 stones of rice in the warehouse and store it in the warehouse as the county government's grain reserve. To prepare for emergencies and take precautions in half a month. A few days ago, when the continuous rain started, the county magistrate ordered my warehouse to prepare for floods and waterlogging. We followed the county magistrate's instructions and made sufficient preparations. It is no exaggeration to say that my warehouse did not lose a single grain of rice in this flood. ." Qian Dianli said to everyone confidently.
After receiving the confirmation, all the subordinate officials relaxed. The ancients said: If you have food in your hands, you will not panic in your heart.
After all the subordinate staff left, Zhu Pingan sighed. Food. Food is a big problem.
Although after the autumn harvest, I drew on the experience of accumulating grain in previous dynasties to prepare for famine. Taking advantage of the abundant and cheap rice, I used the money confiscated from Qian’s father-in-law and the money from the confiscation of Zhang Xian Cheng and others to purchase 20,000 shi of grain and store it. Enter the warehouse to prepare for disaster.
Although twenty thousand shi of grain is 3 million catties, it seems like a lot.
However, due to this flood, for the people of Jingnan County, there is not much food.
Jingnan is a large county, with a total of more than 60,000 people including the mountain people.
Since Jingnan’s flood control measures are more effective than those in neighboring counties such as Taiping County, and flood avoidance areas have been set up, many victims who were displaced in Taiping County and other neighboring counties fled to the city after hearing the news. Flood refuge area near Jingnan. According to preliminary statistics, there are currently between five and six thousand people, and this number is still increasing. As the news spreads, the number of people fleeing to Jingnan every day may double.
Based on the calculation of six taels of grain per person per day, 20,000 shi of grain can only last for about a month.
This is still an optimistic estimate.
One month may seem like a long time, but in ancient times, the court’s response time for disaster relief was not as good as in modern times.
Of course, this is not the most important thing.
What Zhu Ping'an was most worried about was the court's inability to relieve floods in the south of the Yangtze River. In recent years, disasters have occurred frequently during the Ming Dynasty. There have been severe droughts in Shaanxi for many years. The imperial court has provided relief for many years, which has consumed a lot of money. In addition, in the first half of this year, there were floods in Zhili, drought in Jiangxi, and famine in Datong in Xuanfu. Showing embarrassment. Zhu Ping'an had inspected Taicang's treasury and knew how empty the Ming Dynasty's treasury was. Although he uncovered the Taicang deficit case and Emperor Jiajing fined him a large amount of silver, his hands were not yet warm. Just beckoned. Now, I'm afraid that the imperial court wants to provide disaster relief, but for a while it is unable to do so. (End of this chapter)