The Imperial Censor Yi Youwei was so angry that he stomped his feet on the spot.
As the Imperial Censor, he was responsible for investigating all officials. Naturally, he was the first to stand up and criticize such a treacherous official in the court.
The other ministers were even more furious and began to attack Sun Jian.
Wei Xian also chimed in, adding fuel to the fire: "This man is not only incredibly foolish, but his words are utterly disrespectful to the emperor, spreading heresy and inciting chaos!!"
Minister of Personnel Li Kui chimed in, "Indeed! That's utter nonsense! If locusts were edible, how could dynasties have suffered from locust plagues for centuries?"
"Your Majesty, what Doctor Yi, Lord Li, and Lord Wei said is true. What this young boy said is truly absurd and unheard of. He is obviously talking nonsense and has committed the crime of deceiving the emperor. I hope Your Majesty will punish him."
The powerful minister Lin Xuanfu bowed to Emperor Ganwu and said.
Sun Jian stared speechlessly at the group, feeling nothing but contempt for them.
Why can't we eat locusts anymore?
Locusts, also known as grasshoppers, are not carrying any viruses in this era. They feed on vegetation and are full of protein. After being deep-fried, they taste like fresh shrimp and are incredibly crispy.
There are so many refugees and displaced people now, with corpses of the starving everywhere and people even exchanging their own children to eat.
If these trillions of grasshoppers could be used as food, they could not only save countless lives and bring order to the country, but could even reverse the decline of the Great Depression instantly.
These ignorant fools are so short-sighted!
You guys have no ideas, and you won't even let me come up with a solution?
Whatever, I'm not putting up with this anymore! Let the locust plague come, let the country perish if it's a major disaster.
Sun Jian originally wanted to speak up and tell His Majesty that his medical skills were indeed recorded. If the ministers did not believe him, they would have to find another way. However, before he could speak, Yao Tianzheng spoke first.
"Your Majesty, I have heard a little about Mr. Sun's method."
"oh?"
Emperor Ganwu narrowed his eyes, a glint of shrewdness flashing within them.
Everyone was shocked once again when Yao Tianzheng said this.
It should be noted that the Yao family is a family of doctors with generations of medical expertise. Every generation of Yao family members has unparalleled medical skills and are known as being comparable to immortals.
Moreover, Yao Tianzheng himself possesses the medical skill to revive the dead and heal the wounded, and he is highly respected in Daqian and wields considerable influence.
People may not believe what Sun Jian said, but Yao Tianzheng stood up and said that he had also heard about it, so it was probably not just empty talk.
Sun Jian was also very surprised, but he immediately understood that Lord Yao was helping him cover up the lie and deceive the emperor, not for any other reason than trust.
Yao Tianzheng's willingness to do this shows that he had tied his life to Sun Jian's, and Sun Jian was deeply moved at that moment.
Yao Tianzheng said earnestly, "The 'Compendium of Materia Medica' that Mr. Sun mentioned is quite similar to the 'Compendium of Materia Medica' that has been passed down in my family for generations. Mr. Sun's previous remarks were quite familiar to me. After thinking about it carefully, I suddenly realized what he meant, as if I had been enlightened."
"One chapter in the Compendium of Materia Medica discusses the medicinal value of locusts. Although it does not mention eating them, the book states that locusts can be dried, ground into powder, and used alone or in combination to treat various diseases, such as infantile convulsions and whooping cough."
"I was just thinking, since locusts can be ground into medicinal ingredients, wouldn't frying them, as Mr. Sun mentioned, have a similar effect?"
No sooner had Yao Tianzheng finished speaking than Li Gancheng pressed on, saying, "Father, what the teacher said is correct! Although the processing methods differ, the medicinal value of locusts is exactly the same, even though they are consumed at the same time. This is indeed the case according to medical principles!"
These remarks caused everyone to fall into deep thought.
Wang De, the chief eunuch of the Imperial Household Department, glanced around a few times and then bowed and chimed in, "Your Majesty, although this old servant does not know medicine or disaster relief, according to what His Highness the Crown Prince and Lord Yao said, it seems that these locusts are indeed edible. In that case, the locust plague is not a natural disaster, but rather an auspicious sign."
"hiss……"
Emperor Ganwu gasped and frowned in thought.
As the teacher of both the Crown Prince and Sun Jian, Zhuang Qishi naturally sided with Sun Jian.
Seeing the situation change rapidly, he added, "Your Majesty, my hometown is Xuchang County in Yuzhou. Although Yuzhou is currently embroiled in war and constantly at war with the Great Zhou, I grew up there in my youth. I heard from my ancestors that in the past, when locust plagues came, people would use pink starlings to kill the locusts."
"The pink starling is the natural enemy of locusts. It feeds on locusts from a young age, which is common knowledge among the people of Yuzhou. There are even many people who raise pink starlings for a living. When I was young, I also ate a lot of starling meat, which was quite delicious!"
"If birds can be eaten without being poisonous, and both Lord Yao and Lord Sun have a family history of medical knowledge, then locusts can indeed be eaten!"
Xing Kang, the Minister of Works who had not spoken until now, stepped forward with Mr. Zhuang: "Your Majesty, Lord Yao comes from a family of physicians and is also one of my most trusted ministers. I believe that what Lord Yao and Lord Sun said is true. The principle that locusts are edible should also be true. I second that proposal."
After listening to everyone's analysis and opinions, Emperor Ganwu nodded with a deep expression, seemingly accepting the idea.
The moment Yao Tianzheng spoke, the situation changed drastically, taking a one-sided turn.
The ministers who opposed the movement felt as if they had been slapped in the face, especially Wei Xian, Li Kui, and Yi Youwei, who had been the loudest just moments before. They felt a burning pain on their cheeks.
They had just been angrily denouncing Sun Jian for deceiving the emperor and calling the idea of eating locusts a ridiculous and absurd claim by a child, but now everyone was starting to believe and accept it. How could they possibly justify this?
Sun Jian finally understood.
The current situation can be divided into two camps.
One faction that sided with him included Yao Tianzheng, Li Gancheng, and Mr. Zhuang.
There was also Xing Kang, the Minister of Works, and Wang De, the chief eunuch of the Imperial Household Department.
The other faction is trying to discredit him and drag him down with them.
The powerful minister Lin Xuanfu, the Minister of Personnel Li Kui, and that idiot Wei Xian.
As for the Minister of Revenue, Mi Zhu, and the Grand Censor, Yi Youwei, it seems that neither of them takes sides, and their statements are based entirely on their own understanding, thus they are neutral.
"What are the opinions of the other ministers?"
Emperor Ganwu returned to his throne, his gaze sweeping over the assembled officials before settling on those who had just criticized Sun Jian's views.
"this……"
Yi Youwei looked embarrassed, but he didn't know how to start the conversation.
He had indeed just joined Wei Xian and Li Kui in criticizing Sun Jian, but that was because he thought Sun Jian was making things up. Now he felt extremely embarrassed to have to change his opinion immediately.
Yi Youwei could only turn his gaze to Mi Zhu, the Minister of Revenue, who was closer to him.
Mi Zhu was speechless for a moment, and felt like killing someone.
If you want to say something, just say it. Why are you looking at me like that?
Lao Tzu only talked about transporting grain from Sizhou, but he never mentioned eating locusts, right?
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