Seeking Truth with a Sword-Chapter 511 - 462: Handing Out Money
Upon hearing the name Li Ang, the common people looked at each other doubtfully, falling into hesitation.
Over the years, the deeds of Li Ang had been ingrained in the hearts of the people, and his credibility was indeed stronger than that of the Taiyuan Government.
If Mr. Li had come to Taiyuan City, the situation should quickly improve...
Even with mental preparation, when Li Ang actually arrived at Taiyuan Prefecture, he was still shocked and appalled by the terrible situation.
On the streets, only one or two out of every ten pedestrians wore masks. Coughing was incessant. Some people coughed up phlegm, casually spat it onto the ground, and then smeared it with their foot as if that cleaned it up.
The stores along the street were still operating normally. Many shop owners even attended to customers while coughing.
What Li Ang found even more unacceptable was Taiyuan’s attitude toward the rat plague.
On the wooden planks by the street, there were notices about the rat infestation.
Several Government Officials wearing masks stood lethargically at the street corners. At their feet were bamboo cages, crammed with struggling, squealing rats.
"Excuse me," Li Ang approached them. Without revealing his identity, he asked sternly, "What are these bamboo cages for?"
The Government Officials, whose idle chatter had been interrupted, looked over, annoyed.
Seeing that Li Ang was followed by a retinue, which included beautiful girls (Qiu Feng, Ouyang Shi), as well as guards (Yan Yundang and Yan Mansion’s Martial Master), they assumed Li Ang was the progeny of some powerful family in the city and said disdainfully, "They’re for holding rats. A notice went out in the city half a month ago, encouraging the common people to exterminate rats. Catching small rats was rewarded with a few Copper Coins, and big ones with over ten Copper Coins. These are today’s results."
Before he even finished speaking, several snot-nosed children ran over, laughing and playing. They held rats by the tail, swinging them around like meteor hammers.
One of the older boys, who appeared to have the most success, had tied several rat tails together with a string and hung them on a stick, carrying the gruesome spectacle on his shoulder with an air of immense pride.
"Uncle Sun, these are the rats I caught today." The boy handed over the rats, boasting, "Thirteen altogether, four large and nine small."
"Don’t call me uncle. Call me Brother Sun." The Government Official known as Sun Er pursed his lips, took out scissors, snipped off all the rat tails from the stick, threw the rats into the bamboo cage, and casually asked, "How come these rats are so bloody? Zhuo Sanlang, did you cut them with a knife?"
"No." The boy known as Zhuo Sanlang chuckled. "I came up with a method. When I catch a rat, I don’t hurry to kill it. Instead, I stuff a couple of Sichuan pepper grains into its rear and then sew up the rat’s backside. Then I throw the rat back into its nest. The pain makes the rat go mad, and it starts to fight with the other rats in the nest, leading to a murderous rampage where they don’t even spare their own offspring. So, when you catch them, you have to catch the biggest one. It fights the hardest, and that means more of them will die."
"Smart kid." Sun Er looked at the boy in surprise. While taking Copper Coins out of his bag, he said, "You’re just giving away your method. Aren’t you afraid someone else will learn it and steal your business?"
"I’m not worried." Zhuo San grinned. "I’ve already written to the newspapers of Taiyuan Prefecture, sharing the method with them. The governor said that anyone who offers valid suggestions and ideas to combat the plague will receive a reward. It might be as little as ten strings of coins, or as much as a hundred or even a thousand strings."
"Wow, you’re going to be rich, kid."
"Haha, not at all. I still have to thank Brother Sun Er for his care..."
The two were talking to each other, but Li Ang looked at those bloodied rats in the bamboo cages and the children who played with the rats as toys, feeling the utter absurdity and confusion.
"Excuse me." Qiu Feng, who had rushed to Taiyuan Prefecture with Li Ang, couldn’t help but step forward and ask, "The court allocated funds half a month ago to purchase rat poison, advising all State Mansions to use rodenticides to eliminate rats. Why aren’t you using rat poison to exterminate them?"
"Rat poison?" The Government Officials laughed as if they had heard something hilarious. An old Government Official shook his head. "Miss, you’re thinking too simply.
"Folk remedies for rats might include poisonous grass, Aconite, tongzi oil, or arsenic and arsenic stone. These rat poisons have strong odors, and rats won’t consume much. Even if they do, if too many rats die, they won’t eat bait that contains poison again.
"As for phosphorized zinc and Warfarin—the new rodenticides invented by Mr. Li and distributed by the government—they are indeed effective. However, they are limited in quantity and expensive.
"After all calculations, it’s still quicker and more convenient for us to exterminate the rats ourselves."
(Phosphorized zinc is an inorganic compound rodenticide obtained by reacting red phosphorus with zinc powder and heating at high temperatures. Warfarin, on the other hand, is a derivative of coumarin, produced from moldy sweet clover hay. It causes rats to die from internal bleeding.)
"That’s right." The youth surnamed Zhuo nodded, asserting as a matter of course, "Besides, if we use poison, we can’t tell who killed which rats. How would we distribute the money then?"
Ouyang Shi, both anxious and angry, cried out, "Distribute the money?! Your lives are at stake!"
They had fought against the plague in Shuo Province for so long, and several of their colleagues from the Imperial Medical Bureau had died from it. Yet the common people of Taiyuan Prefecture were still thinking about how to save money, and even how to profit from the rat plague. They remained numb and ignorant of the risks of the plague.
How absurd, laughable, and tragic.
"Alright." Li Ang, exhausted, lifted his hand to stop Ouyang Shi from continuing. He took a deep breath and said to the baffled youths, "From now on, do not catch rats with your hands. As per the plague strategy, you must wear masks and gloves, and use tools like clamps, shovels, and hoes. And after eliminating the rats, clean the tools promptly."
He turned to the Government Officials, stating, "From now on, if the public delivers rats and they are not wearing masks, do not distribute any money. Moreover, after catching rats, they must be burned immediately. They cannot be kept in cages on display in the streets."
The youth surnamed Zhuo and the children were perplexed, thinking Li Ang was being inexplicably bossy. Who is he to issue orders here?
The Government Officials, who were familiar with the ways of the streets and skilled in reading people, all changed their expressions. Li Ang’s tone carried an unquestionable command, not like the offspring of a large family from within the city, but like a proper court official.
Could it be...
The Government Officials all stood up straight, no longer daring to take him lightly. Sun Er swallowed and cautiously asked, "Could young master be..."
Li Ang did not explain. He waved his hand. "Take me to the Governor Mansion."
