If you don't consummate the marriage for three years and then marry a successful educated youth

Jiang Lie shook his head, his expression somewhat solemn, looking at the hopping brown thing: "I found this in the riverbed. It was dried up before, so I'll go take a look around there."

"I saw this stuff everywhere in the cracks of the riverbed. It was so dense it made my scalp tingle. I've never seen so many before. I showed it to my dad."

"He went to the older members of the brigade, who examined them and said they were locust larvae. If they appeared in large numbers on the surrounding riverbeds, it would be terrible once they molted several times and grew wings."

A sudden thought flashed through Wen Yao's mind: "You mean... a locust plague!!"

Jiang Lie nodded: "My father is also worried about this. He experienced the Great Famine. There was a locust plague during the escape route. He heard from the older generation that this is the sign of a locust plague."

"Under suitable conditions, a large number of locusts will lay eggs and hatch, constantly eating whatever is edible around them. After they molt and can fly, the crops will suffer wherever they go."

"I just checked the situation on the riverbed. According to my dad's calculations, these things will probably grow wings and cause a small locust plague in about a month and a half."

"It would take two months to harvest the grain, which means that if a locust plague comes, the grain will be completely wasted."

Harvesting too early reduces production, while not harvesting may lead to locust plagues. Once they arrive, it will be too late to harvest, and the locusts will eat the grain, causing countless deaths in winter.

Wen Yao pondered the method she had read in the book. Killing them with medicine would be difficult; the larvae hid in the crevices of the riverbed, making it impossible to inject medicine, and the hatching speed was too fast.

As for physical control, locusts are, after all, insects, and insects are birds, which chickens, ducks, and geese all like to eat. So, could we try physical control?

Jiang Lie sighed, "Wife, you're well-read. My father asked me to ask you if you've read any books on how to handle this. Regardless of whether the locust plague will eventually materialize, it's always good to be cautious."

"My father said that during the great famine, the locusts covered the sky and left no grass growing where they went. It was difficult for them to even eat grass at that time, and they barely managed to survive."

"I don't even want to think about what it would be like if there were another locust plague. My dad wants to make some preparations in advance."

Wen Yao thought for a moment and said, "I read in a book that physical control is more effective. If you use pesticides, the larvae hide in the crevices of the riverbed, making them too difficult to kill."

"All things in the world are mutually reinforcing and mutually restraining. Locusts are also insects. Since they are insects, let's find their nemesis, such as... chickens and ducks, which eat insects, and drive them to the riverbed."

"Let them eat insects. First, it will solve the insect problem and prevent it from becoming a locust plague. Second, eating insects will also make the chickens and ducks fatter, saving grain. It's a win-win situation."

Jiang Lie was somewhat bewildered: "Ah, weren't we supposed to kill the insects? Why are we being told to eat them? How many chickens and ducks would it take to finish them all? Honey, didn't you see? There are swarms of insects everywhere."

Wen Yao nodded: "I know, this is the simplest and easiest method, and it won't cost too much. If you want to make medicine to kill the insects, it will cost a lot of money and the effect will not be good."

"Okay, I'll tell Dad what you're thinking and see what he says. I'll also ask some knowledgeable elders to see if there are any other better solutions."

"Well, I've only read about it in books. I haven't done much research on this. It's better to ask the older generation for advice and consider things comprehensively so we can come up with a prevention and control method sooner rather than later. We can't afford to delay."

Jiang Lie strode away, found his father arranging work for people on the ridge of the field, pulled him to a big tree, and briefly told him what his wife had said: "Dad, do you think using chickens and ducks to control the disease will work?"

"The older generation says they've seen locust plagues and know how they form, whether they can intervene in advance, and whether to use pesticides or other methods."

The captain looked somewhat grave. After thinking for a moment, he said, "I've never heard of your wife's method before, but there are many books in the city, so someone will probably research this area."

"Chickens and ducks love to eat insects, but the riverbed is several kilometers long and is densely packed with locust larvae. Even if you drive the whole flock of chickens and ducks in to eat them, you still can't finish eating so many insects."

"Father, I know. What we need to determine now is whether the method of eating insects to prevent infection will work. If it does, our brigade doesn't have enough chickens and ducks. Can't we ask other brigades for help?"

Jiang Lie calmly said, "Father, think about it. The riverbed is so long. If so many locusts become a plague, they won't discriminate and will only destroy our brigade's grain. We'll have to eat whatever we can find along the way."

"Which brigade can guarantee that its own grain will not be eaten? It may take a month and a half for them to become a plague, and two months for the grain harvest to be completed."

"Harvest early to reduce production, or don't harvest at all and gamble on luck. Will the locusts eat the grain from other brigades? If we lose the gamble, how many people will starve to death in winter? Ask them if they dare to take the gamble."

The captain looked at his son, his expression relaxing slightly.

"Yes, you're right. I've only ever seen adult locusts with wings. Those things are terrifying. They fly over and in the blink of an eye, the crops in the fields are gone, and the leaves are all eaten up."

"During our escape, we considered eating locusts to stave off hunger, but they were poisonous and inedible. It was terrifying to watch them leave nothing but desolation in their wake."

"I'll go find people from other brigades to check out the riverbed and make them take it more seriously. If they don't take it seriously, I'll bring it up at the commune meeting next week. And I'll take pictures too."

Only when the evidence is presented clearly can people take it seriously.

Jiang Lie nodded and said, "Okay, I'll contact someone to come and take pictures and develop them. Dad, you can take them to the commune and show them to the other brigades at the meeting. Let them see if there are any bugs in their riverbeds."

"That river passes by several production brigades. I don't believe they really couldn't see it at all. When more people pay attention, we can be more at ease with the autumn harvest."

After discussing it, the father and son went their separate ways to handle their respective matters.

Jiang Lie arrived at the town's photo studio, briefly explained his requirements, and the studio owner nodded, instructing his apprentice to take the camera to the countryside to take pictures, adding, "Xiao Ding, be careful in the countryside, don't bump into my camera."

The apprentice nodded repeatedly: "Yes, Master, I will be careful, don't worry."

The two rode their bikes to the upper reaches of the river and stopped. The apprentice asked in confusion, "Brother, didn't you want me to take pictures? Shouldn't you have gone to the village to find someone to take pictures with? Why did you bring me here?"

Jiang Lie looked at him and said, "I don't want you to take pictures of people. I want you to take pictures of insects in the riverbed. Park your bicycle and come with me to the riverbed to take a look."

"Huh, filming riverbed worms??"

No, this was the first time he'd ever heard such an outrageous request. Hiring someone to take photos in the countryside was much more expensive than going to a photo studio. Why not just send someone to photograph some insects?