Heavenly Blessed Baby: Fleeing Famine, Busy to Prosper!-Chapter 201: Discussion

Qi Ercai rolled his eyes dramatically in his heart, but said seriously on the surface, "Old Lump, Second Brother doesn’t treat you like a kid anymore. But look, our family still has so much land to tend to. Your Fourth Brother and I are busy with other things now, so shouldn’t you and the other brothers take more care of the fields?"

"You’re an adult now, so you need to act like one and take good care of our family’s matters. Otherwise, how are you different from the kids at home?"

These words left Qi Quanli feeling dazed.

It seemed... that’s how it should be.

Taking advantage of this moment, Qi Ercai immediately walked over to Qi Quanjin and Yi Meng, and the three of them didn’t stick around to chat under the sun. Instead, they went directly to find Qi Zheng.

Once the three had gone far, Qi Quanyin gave Qi Quanli a disgruntled kick in the butt, "You idiotic fool, you’ve been fooled by Second Brother again!"

"Huh?"

Qi Quanli staggered a bit.

It wasn’t painful, just infuriating: "What’s the use of saying that about me? You got fooled just the same!"

Having said so, Qi Quanli walked directly towards his elder brother.

Second Brother said he should help take care of the family affairs with the other brothers, and it made a lot of sense to him.

He’s not going to hang out with Fifth Brother, who’s such an idiot!

Qi Quanyin rolled his eyes too, and followed over.

Zhou Family.

As soon as Qi Zheng arrived, Mr. Zhou Sr. smiled and offered him a seat to drink water. Unexpectedly, Qi Zheng said to the little grandson beside Mr. Zhou Sr., "Go call your Grandpa Sun and Grandpa Wang over."

"Okay!"

The kid replied and sprinted off, not minding the hot weather.

Noticing Qi Zheng’s gloomy expression, Mr. Zhou Sr. felt a pang in his heart and quickly asked, "What’s happened?"

"Let’s wait until everyone arrives to talk!"

Qi Zheng said and let out a sigh.

He thought about taking a puff of his pipe but hesitated, eventually putting it down and taking a big sip from the water bowl in front of him.

The fourth daughter-in-law mentioned locust disasters, saying it was a tip from the little granddaughter, so this matter was probably real.

The wild land they had was not fully cleared, but crops were already planted on the cleared parts.

The lush green seedlings were a joy to behold.

If a locust plague truly hits, not only the seedlings but even the forest on the hillside might be devastated.

By then, they would have no stored grain; how are they going to survive the upcoming winter?

Seeing him sighing, Mr. Zhou Sr. also felt his heart leap to his throat.

But he didn’t probe further, instead waiting quietly with him for the other two old fellows to arrive.

Once the four elders sat down, Qi Zheng said, "Remember the troubles we faced on our journey last year?"

As Qi Zheng spoke, the other three looked at each other but remained silent.

Qi Zheng didn’t wait for all of them to speak before continuing, "Last year, the places we passed were all in drought; we were rationing our water along the way."

Mentioning the drought, Mr. Zhou Sr. recalled something and asked, "Brother Qi, are you worried it’ll be dry this year too?"

Spring had brought only a few rains, and even those were light, otherwise they couldn’t have built all these houses.

"I’m worried about more than just drought problems."

Qi Zheng eventually couldn’t resist pulling out his smoking pipe, packing it with tobacco while speaking, "Remember those years back home when we also experienced drought?"

The three old men nodded in unison.

That drought occurred when they were kids; without the village’s deep well providing water, they might’ve died from thirst or been taken by their families seeking refuge elsewhere.

Qi Zheng continued, "After that drought, there was a locust plague; do you remember it?"

Upon mentioning the locust plague, the old men’s expressions turned pale with fear.

Drought was awful, but a locust plague was even worse.

When locusts swept through, not just the crops but even the green leaves in forests were completely devoured.

That year, their whole village resorted to digging up grass roots for food, resulting in many deaths from starvation.

"Brother Qi, do you mean there might be a locust plague here?"

Mr. Sun Sr. asked uncertainly.

He deeply hoped Qi Zheng would give a negative answer.

But Qi Zheng sighed and said, "Considering the circumstances, it seems possible."

Upon hearing this, the old men’s faces went pale.

"Brother Qi, our planted crops have sprouted. If a locust plague does hit, we might genuinely have nothing to eat,"

Mr. Wang Sr.’s voice carried a hint of sobbing.

They had just settled in and feared facing another major disaster.

At that moment, Qi Quanjin and his companions arrived.

"Dad, uncles."

The three greeted and, without waiting for the elders’ invitation, found themselves seats on stools or stones.

On the way over, Yi Meng had briefly explained the potential locust plague to Qi Quanjin and Qi Ercai, so the brothers immediately knew the elders were discussing the matter upon seeing their expressions.

Qi Zheng puffed on his pipe and asked Qi Quanjin, "Old Fourth, did you hear about the locust plague?"

"Yes, my wife mentioned it."

Qi Quanjin nodded, "Dad, uncles, what do you think about this situation?"

Ultimately, it’s not certain it will happen, just speculation, leaving them unsure of what to do.

"Alas, we’ve been discussing it too. Locusts are indeed life-threatening creatures. If they really come, there’s not much we can spare now. But if crops in other areas are affected, we truly wouldn’t be able to buy grain."

Qi Zheng was concerned about the family’s limited land, but ultimately, the quantity wasn’t enormous.

At any rate, the family still had Silver; if necessary, they could purchase grain.

But if Concord City and nearby regions suffered, could the city’s grain stores still sell food?

The price isn’t the point; the main concern is unavailability!

Qi Quanjin frowned, contemplating awhile before speaking, "Dad, should I bring this issue to the government? If the government intervenes, and villages prepare, the losses might not be too severe even if locusts come."

Qi Ercai shook his head at this, "You mean well, but how will you explain it if asked? If the locust plague truly comes, gratitude doesn’t matter. But if it doesn’t happen, wouldn’t that be considered..."

"False military report."

Yi Meng interjected from the side.

Qi Ercai nodded rapidly, "Right, that’s the term. Would it be considered a false report?"

This definitely wouldn’t be classified as a military report.

But issues concerning the people’s grain supply are no trivial matter.

Qi Quanjin fell into silence again. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Qi Zheng took two puffs from his pipe, then said, "Whether or not it’s a false military report is another matter. But the government needs to be informed. Regardless of their response, we should act with a clear conscience."

Yi Meng understood upon hearing these words but still asked anxiously, "Dad, we can have a clear conscience, but if someone asks how we knew, what should we say?"