bullyxtreme Chapter 80 What?! The locusts I ate were poisonous!
Chapter 80 What?! The locusts I ate were poisonous!
Chapter 80 What?! The locusts I ate were poisonous!
He pointed to the sky.
"If it really becomes a plague, with thousands upon thousands of them gathering together, their bodies will turn red and black because they have accumulated toxins in their bodies. That's volatile phenacetin, which turns into hydrocyanic acid when heated. Don't understand? Simply put, it's slightly toxic."
Li Shimin and Wei Zheng's expressions changed, and they subconsciously touched their stomachs.
"poison?"
Wei Zheng's voice even changed tone.
No one will die.
Su Mu glanced at him, "But it must be blanched in boiling water first to kill the poison at high temperature, and then fried in oil over high heat to remove the toxins and make it safe for people to eat."
Li Shimin breathed a sigh of relief: "That's alright, it's just one more step, we can just scald it with boiling water."
"An extra step?"
Su Mu threw the strainer back into the pot with a loud bang.
He looked at Li Shimin with a hint of mockery in his eyes, the kind of look one would give a wealthy man who was oblivious to the hardships of life.
"Uncle, do you know what the situation is like in Henan Province right now?"
Su Mu pointed to the still-smoking oil pan.
"This half-pot of oil is pure soybean oil, which sells for thirty coins a pound in Chang'an. How much oil would it take to fry these insects thoroughly, until they're crispy and non-toxic enough to eat?"
Li Shimin was stunned.
Su Mu took a step forward, staring intently at the Tang emperor.
"The disaster victims over there have eaten everything, even tree bark and grass roots, and even stuffed themselves with clay. They have to conserve every drop of water; where are they supposed to find enough oil to fry locusts?"
"There's no oil in it. This thing is just a hard, fishy, smelly, poisonous, and thorny shell. If you swallow it raw, it will not only scratch your throat but also give you diarrhea. People with weak constitutions will die instantly."
The courtyard was deathly silent.
The initial excitement and enthusiasm vanished instantly.
Only the embers at the bottom of the pot were still crackling.
Li Shimin's mouth was agape, and the idiom "Why don't they eat meat porridge?" felt like a slap across his face.
Yes.
Oil!
These days, oil is more precious than meat.
Ordinary people only get a little oil during the Lunar New Year, while disaster victims can't even afford to eat. Where would they get the oil to make such a delicacy?
The so-called deep-fried flying shrimp was simply an impossible joke for the disaster victims in Henan at that time.
"this----"
Wei Zheng was speechless; his earlier enthusiasm for the delicious food had turned into embarrassment.
Before the rosy glow on Li Shimin's face had faded, Su Mu's cold water had poured over him.
But he has a problem: the more he encounters a wall, the more he wants to smash his head through it.
He stared at the pot, his brow furrowed tightly, and the bamboo skewers in his hand creaked as he gripped them.
"Out of oil————"
Li Shimin chewed on those two words, then suddenly looked up, two flames shooting up in his eyes, "If we don't have oil, we won't use oil! The common people may be poor, but they never lack withered branches and rotten leaves."
String these insects together and roast them over a fire!
Since you said it can only be eaten after being deep-fried in water, presumably as long as it's cooked over high heat, it's still meat, and the toxins will be removed, so it can still fill your stomach, right?
Upon hearing this, Wei Zheng's previously ashen face brightened somewhat.
As expected of His Majesty, his mind works very quickly.
Although roasted locusts aren't as fragrant as deep-fried ones, at least they're edible, which is better than gnawing on clay.
"Su Mu, is this method feasible?"
Li Shimin took a step forward, his tone filled with eager hope.
Su Mu threw the strainer in his hand into the basin of water, splashing up a few water droplets.
"Your Majesty, you still don't understand."
Su Mu dusted off his hands. "What do you think a locust plague is? A few bugs hopping around in your backyard?"
He pointed to the square of sky above, framed by the courtyard wall.
"A real locust plague involves hundreds of billions of locusts. They blot out the sky, and when they take flight, they can completely block out the sun, making you feel like you've entered the gates of hell in broad daylight!"
The noise was like thunder, a continuous, deafening boom.
Su Mu's voice was flat and even, but it sent a chill down Li Shimin's spine.
"When those insects get really hungry, they'll gnaw on anything, not just crops and tree bark, but also door panels, straw mats, and even baby swaddling clothes!"
You're asking those starving disaster victims, too weak to even walk, to fight for food against this overwhelming swarm of insects?
Su Mu scoffed, his eyes full of mockery. "At that time, whether people will eat insects or insects will eat people, that's really not certain."
Insects eat people?!
Li Lizhi covered her mouth in fright, and the excitement she had just felt from catching the insects instantly turned into a chill.
Little Sizi shrank back, secretly hiding the half-eaten shrimp behind her back, her face pale.
"Then... then we'll just stand by and watch?"
Li Shimin's face turned pale, and he swayed, only managing to stand up by holding onto the stove.
He seemed to see that hellish scene before his eyes: emaciated people lay on the roadside, covered by countless ferocious locusts, gnawing away at their last bit of life.
That feeling of powerlessness was even more overwhelming than the great disaster of the second year of the Zhenguan era!
"Is there really no other way?"
Wei Zheng's voice was dry, as if he had swallowed a handful of sand. "Do we really have to do what the common people say, set up an altar to worship Heaven, and beg the Heavenly Emperor to open his eyes?"
"It's better to rely on yourself than on Heaven."
Su Mu turned around, took a clean rag from the shelf next to him, and slowly wiped the grease stains on the stove. "Now that this fire has started, it's a pipe dream to put it out all at once. But we should suppress it as much as we can."
Li Shimin suddenly looked up, staring intently at Su Mu's retreating figure, his breathing quickening: "You have a way?"
"Treat the symptoms or the root cause? Which do you want to hear about?"
"Listen to me! Even if it can only save one person, I—I will listen!"
Li Shimin didn't care about status at this moment. He picked up Xiao Zhouzi from the broken stool by the stove, sat down on it, and pretended to be all ears.
Su Mu threw the rag aside, leaned against the woodpile, and casually folded a dry blade of grass, putting it in his mouth.
"Curing the root cause is a slow and gradual process; it will take at least ten years to see any results. We need to plant trees and reforest, transform those barren beaches and fields that are prone to insect infestation, increase humidity, and destroy their egg-laying grounds."
However, for Henan Province at present, this is a case of "a distant solution cannot quench an immediate thirst."
Li Shimin nodded vigorously.
Indeed, what we need now is an urgent remedy to save lives.
"Right now, we'll take two steps."
Su Mu held up two fingers.
"First, food. Don't expect these insects to be eaten as a meal; they're just a snack. The court needs to transport the stale grain over there to keep people alive. As long as people are alive, there's no fear of running out of firewood."
This statement is essentially meaningless, but it is the most honest and straightforward truth.
Li Shimin secretly calculated the Ministry of Revenue's assets, his brows furrowing even more.
"The second one."
Su Mu paused, his gaze falling on Xiao Sizi, who was lying on Li Shimin's lap, secretly glancing at the plate of fried locusts. "Girl, I have a question for you."
Little Sizi was feeling guilty when he was suddenly called upon. Startled, he quickly wiped his greasy little hands on Li Shimin's expensive brocade robe: "What does my lord want?"
What do you usually feed your favorite ducklings?
'