Chapter 343: Birds Catching Locusts, Foxes Making Plans
However, when the foxes in the Fox Courtyard do good deeds and leave behind the name of the Queen Mother of Mount Tai, it cannot be called leaving a name behind, but rather preaching.
Promoting the goddess's kindness is a virtue for foxes.
The magic of education lies here, to make the fox agree with the right path. Although there is suspicion of clinging to the goddess, as long as it is in line with the goddess's grace and compassion, the goddess will not hesitate to bless it with her spiritual response.
Whenever Hagi walked through the villages, she would command countless birds to catch locusts.
They eat what they can, and when they are full they catch the locusts and feed them to their cubs. If the cubs can't eat anymore, they strangle the locusts to death on the spot.
Although there are many locusts now, they are not out of control, and birds are enough to kill them.
The Lanyinshan fox travels around the villages in Jinhua County, driving flocks of birds to kill locusts.
However, it would be difficult for the foxes to go any further. If something unexpected happened outside Jinhua County, Gong Mengbi might not be able to rescue them in time, which might lead to worse consequences.
From day to night.
The fox would light a lamp and direct the birds to catch insects at night when he did not reach the village community during the day.
It’s just that birds have poor eyesight at night and need bright lights.
So at night, the fox would hold the round wind lantern and light up the ridges of the fields as bright as day.
The villagers were filled with fear and gratitude when they saw this wonder. For a time, the name of the fox messenger who sat down under the Goddess of Mount Tai was spread everywhere, and the name of the locust-chasing general was also mentioned constantly.
By midnight, the birds had all sought out the nearest forest to rest, and the foxes were exhausted. Their magical powers were limited, and traveling day and night while also using magical instruments wasn't as easy as they had imagined.
In the City God Temple, smoke and clouds were already rising, indicating that the gods were gathering together.
The Jinhua City God sits on the main seat on a cloud bed, with thrones made of smoke rising into the air and located below him.
On the throne formed by clouds, the city gods sat motionless, waiting for Abbot Huiming.
The big monk entered the City God Temple first, and the Jinhua City God and the seven county City Gods looked over in the direction of the sound. The entire divine domain of the City God Temple seemed to be connected as one, and the gazes of the City Gods were integrated into one, turning into a silent oppression.
Abbot Huiming stood still, even his Zen robes did not move at all, but it seemed as if two strong winds were blowing around him, making the lights in the room falter.
Abbot Huiming was like a reef, and the city gods' show of force was like waves. The reef separated the waves and flowed to both sides. At this moment, two figures stood out from behind Abbot Huiming, one on the left and one on the right, and turned the waves on both sides into nothingness.
The Jinhua City God retracted his gaze and said with a smile, "Abbot Huiming has arrived."
He looked around and was suddenly surprised, as these two people were acquaintances.
"Master Xuanxiao, Gong Huzheng, it turns out that the Taoist friends that Abbot Huiming was talking about are you."
Taoist Xuan Xiao bowed and said, "This concerns the people, so I have no choice but to come."
The Jinhua City God cast his gaze towards Gong Mengbi, as if to ask again, "Master Xuanxiao is doing this for the people, but what do the people have to do with a fox like you? Why are you here too?"
Gong Mengbi knew what he wanted to ask and said, "I obey the command of the Goddess of Mount Tai, and extend my benevolence to you. With the locust god before us, I dare not sit idly by."
The Jinhua City God exhaled a breath from his nostrils, and without saying a word, he retracted his gaze and knocked on the cloud bed. Three clouds rose from the ground again, lifting up Abbot Huiming and the other two.
The Jinhua City God said, "I believe you have noticed recently that the locusts have increased in number and a locust plague is imminent."
The seven county gods showed some shock on their faces.
Wu Ningqu, the City God, said, "A locust plague... This year's drought is severe, and a locust plague has indeed occurred. But once a locust plague arrives, what will the people do?"
The Tangxi City God sighed bitterly, "Tangxi has been plagued by disasters year after year, either floods or droughts. Now, with the locust plague, I'm afraid nine out of ten houses will be empty."
The Yongkang City God looked at his colleagues, then at the Jinhua City God, rolled his eyes, and said, "Your Excellency summoned us here, presumably regarding the matter of the Locust God. Please advise us, Your Excellency."
The Jinhua City God said expressionlessly, "We are righteous gods appointed by the imperial court. It is our duty to protect the people. The locust god is approaching, and I am inviting you to discuss how to keep him out of the county."
The Yongkang City God was shocked and said, "The Locust God has arrived at the command of Heaven. How can we stop him? He is not to be trifled with. If we provoke him, I'm afraid we will all suffer."
Several city gods immediately began to whisper to each other, unwilling to put themselves in danger.
The Jinhua City God didn't want to put himself in danger, but since he had invited all the people, he wouldn't let them retreat. He rebuked them, "Heaven's will is before us, and human will is also blocking us. Heaven is merciful, so how can we not leave a glimmer of hope? How can we retreat so easily?"
The City God of Yongkang glanced at the City God of Jinhua, as if surprised at his change of disposition, but he did not dare to ask, so he kept silent.
Wu Ning, the City God, racked his brains and said, "The Locust God is very advanced. I'm afraid we can't stop him by force. Why not negotiate a peace agreement?"
The Jinhua City God snorted, "Talk about peace? How do you talk about peace?"
Wu Ning City God remained silent.
The Jinhua City God looked at the seven county city gods and saw that they all lowered their heads. It was obvious that they had no way to deal with the Locust God.
The Jinhua City God was feeling depressed. He looked towards Abbot Huiming and asked, "Abbot Huiming, what are your thoughts?"
Abbot Huiming chanted a Buddhist name and said, "It's impossible to negotiate peace; we can only block the way."
The Jinhua City God understood what was going on and asked, "How do we stop them?"
Abbot Huiming looked at Gong Mengbi, who suddenly felt helpless.
He didn't really want to speak on this occasion, but it was obvious that Abbot Huiming wanted to honor him.
Gong Mengbi then explained, "The Locust God arrived in response to Heaven's will. To put it bluntly, the locust plague came first, and then the Locust God appeared. To keep the Locust God out, we must first keep the locusts out. Therefore, pest control is our top priority. To do this, we must consult with the gods and the government to drive away and exterminate the locusts. We cannot take it lightly."
The Jinhua City God poured cold water on the situation, saying, "The locusts are coming from the north, so crossing rivers and mountains is no problem. When a locust plague arrives, the locust god will also arrive. There's no time to put them out."
Gong Mengbi nodded and said, "So we have to stop them. Once the locust god arrives, we must do everything we can to buy time to kill the locusts. The gods can hold a banquet for the locust god to hold him back, while the others drive the locusts away."
The Jinhua City God shook his head and said, "The Locust God is no fool. How could he be held back by my banquet?"
Gong Mengbi said, "I'll ask everyone to use their skills at the banquet to fight the locust god. If that doesn't work, there's a third trick: substitution. If the locusts want to eat, ask them to avoid the fields and feast on the wild forests. This will allow the people to survive."
The Jinhua City God had already heard the feasibility of the plan and said, "Go on. If the Locust God agrees, it's not a bad idea."
Gong Mengbi said: "If it still fails, we will only injure the enemy by a thousand and lose eight hundred of our own."
The Jinhua City God asked, "How do you say that?"
Gong Mengbi said, "Calling on autumn winds and rains, bringing early frost and snow, forcing them to leave. But doing so would require the cooperation of the water gods and destroy crops, making it difficult to save the people from the disaster."
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