After Qiao Zhiqing got out of the car, the crowd gathered one after another.Especially children, climbing up and down around the train, parents can't stop them."
Fellow, what kind of place is this" Qiao Zhiqing asked an old man in the crowd, his beard was white, his head was wrapped in a white scarf, and he still had braids behind his back.It seemed that he was the most senior here, standing at the front of the crowd, and the young people were consciously standing behind him."
Official, this place belongs to Hong County, Hebi Prefecture, where are you from?"
the old man replied politely, and the wrinkles on his face were slightly stretched.He hugged his fists and saluted Qiao Zhiqing, and his every move was very stylish, not like a peasant.Qiao Zhiqing is dressed in a gray Chinese suit, and his shiny leather shoes are unusually conspicuous in the sun, which is also the standard dress of current officials.The carriages of the train were even more heavily guarded, and soldiers in camouflage uniforms were staring at the train with guns.In some places, there were sacks, and machine guns were mounted on them.The eyes of these peasants were straight, and when they saw Qiao Zhiqing, they had an extraordinary background, and everyone's faces were extremely nervous.But fortunately, the world has been peaceful for two years, and everyone has not run away when they see the soldier as before.Everyone has seen the camouflage uniforms of the Huaxing Army, and they have used good military discipline to win the trust of all the people."
We came from Beijing, and we came to you to inspect the drought," Qiao Zhiqing replied with a smile, and led everyone to find a shade in the field and stopped."
It's a big official from Beijing, folks, hurry up, kowtow to the official" The old man's eyes widened in surprise, and he said that he was going to take everyone to kneel down for Qiao Zhiqing."
Uncle, what are you doing, don't kneel, get up now that everyone is equal, don't you kneel when you see someone" Qiao Zhiqing frowned, hurriedly helped the old man's body, and waved his hand to let everyone stand up.His accent unconsciously adjusted to the Henan dialect, and Wei Ziyou smiled with his mouth covered.Before the crossing, he had a comrade-in-arms who was from Henan, and he chatted with this comrade-in-arms about Henan dialect when he was fine, but now he said it in a good way."
Okay, good, don't worry, if you don't kneel, you won't kneel" The old man saw that Qiao Zhiqing's face changed, and he hurriedly straightened up, so that the peasants behind him also quickly got up."
That's right, don't kneel down to anyone in the future.We're all in the new era, and our waists are a little straighter.Whoever asks everyone to kneel, everyone knocks down whom" Qiao Zhiqing smiled happily at this time, asked Wei Ziyou to take some herbal tea down, and poured a bowl for each of the farmers.The peasants smiled innocently, followed Qiao Zhiqing to squat down in the shade of the tree, picked up the tea bowl and hurriedly tasted it.Wei Ziyou specially added some sugar to the tea, which tasted sweet, which made everyone addicted, and the things that the officials of the secret people drank were different."
Uncle, I've come all the way, there are no grains along the way, I see that your situation here is still a little bit, is this year's wheat harvest enough to eat" After some small talk, everyone relaxed, and Qiao Zhiqing also went straight to the point."
Official, it's definitely enough to eat.We all have land now, and we only have to pay 20% of the tax to the state, and the rest is our own.After the wheat is harvested, we will plant corn again, and God will be able to harvest some grain in the autumn with a little rain.However, it is not good in several nearby counties, the land is dry and cracked, and all the grains are not harvested. ”The old man took out his cigarette pouch and lit a pot, his face was not nervous, and he seemed very satisfied with his current life."
That's right, sir.In the past few years, we didn't have land, and we all worked as long-term workers for the landlord's family.In a dry year, the stomach is half full.I can't even eat fine grains, I eat coarse grains and wild vegetables together, and it's a bitter one.Now life is already beautiful, even if this year's harvest is not good, you can still eat fine grains.Let's mix some coarse grains, and there will definitely be no problem in filling our stomachs," the middle-aged man behind the old man also said, and everyone laughed with satisfaction."
That's good, step by step, life will always be more and more beautiful" Qiao Zhiqing relaxed slightly, it seems that the drought in this place is not serious.The current population is only 300 million or 400 million, and the contradiction with land is not serious.Therefore, each peasant has at least 10 acres of land, and as long as he has a little harvest a year, he can also manage his stomach.Once the country is stable, it is the period of population explosion.Qiao Zhiqing is planning to implement a family planning system, and each family will have to have only two children.In this way, the population will not reach uncontrollable proportions.Even in disaster years, it is easier for the state to provide relief.Everyone chatted for a while, and Qiao Zhiqing led people to continue southward by train.But the good mood didn't last long, and after traveling less than a dozen kilometers to the south, it completely changed into a different look.Under the scorching sun, there was not a single crop in the field.Until the train arrived in Xinxiang City, it was like this all the way, and the dry land was cracked two or three centimeters.After running on the road for more than ten days, everyone got out of the car and quickly moved their muscles and bones.The Xinxiang City Government had already learned that Qiao Zhiqing was coming to inspect the city, and as soon as the president's special train arrived, the station immediately reported to the city government.Not only the mayor came to greet him, but Henan Provincial Governor Yuan Baoheng also rushed over from Luoyang and personally accompanied Qiao Zhiqing to inspect."
Hello president", "The president has worked hard all the way", "The door of the train opened, and as soon as Qiao Zhiqing appeared, all the officials greeted him under the leadership of Yuan Baoheng."
Okay, the time is urgent, don't say much politely, go back to the city government for a meeting immediately" Qiao Zhiqing and the officials waved their hands briefly, and got into the carriage after leaving the station under the guidance of Yuan Baoheng."
Brother Baoheng, you look haggard than last year" Among the officials, Qiao Zhiqing had only met Yuan Baoheng a few times.This time, Yuan Baoheng is obviously a little old, and his sideburns have already shown gray hair, and he doesn't know if he is in a hurry.The horse-drawn carriage traveled quickly on the main road of Xinxiang City, and the houses on both sides were still the same as before, and the whole city was still the same as the original, but the streets were slightly widened, and the development speed was far less than that of Jiangnan."
President, don't mention it.Since the beginning of spring, I haven't slept a day peacefully, and I'm about to get sick in my heart" Yuan Bao tightened his eyebrows, waved his hand to Qiao Zhiqing, and patted his chest with sorrow."
I'm comforted that you, the provincial governor, are under such pressure.But the soldiers will block the water and cover the earth, you still have to take care of your body.It's okay to be drought, but don't be intimidated by drought" Qiao Zhiqing patted his shoulder and relieved him, in fact, his heart was still more worried than Yuan Baoheng.Yuan Baoheng only thinks about Henan Province, but he thinks about the whole country, and the drought is all over the provinces and cities in Jiangbei."
What the president said is very much, with the president's words, it is worth it no matter how hard and tired we are" The wrinkles on Yuan Baoheng's forehead finally relaxed, and he felt some comfort in his heart.He was a subordinate of the Qing court, lest he not be reused by Qiao Zhiqing.Now it seems that Qiao Zhiqing really chose his talents and did not neglect him in any way.The Xinxiang City Government was rebuilt from the original government office, and the main hall in front was changed to a council room, and the original prefect was promoted here to decide the case.The prefect's house at the back has now been converted into a government family compound, where all government officials live.Qiao Zhiqing's room had been cleaned up, but he didn't rest, and went directly into the council room to let the officials hold a meeting.In the middle of the council room is a long table that can accommodate more than 20 people.There are also neat chairs arranged around it, which can accommodate more than 100 people at the same time.After a while, the officials entered the room and took their seats.Qiao Zhiqing sat in the main seat in the middle, and Wei Ziyou sat on his right, responsible for the minutes of the meeting."
The president, the mayors of seventeen cities in Henan Province are here.Sitting at the table are all cities with severe drought, affecting a total of 10 cities. ”Yuan Baoheng sat first on Qiao Zhiqing's left, got up and gave Qiao Zhiqing a brief introduction.After receiving the news of Qiao Zhiqing's southern tour, he notified the mayors of all cities to greet him in Xinxiang City.The mayors of some remote cities only rushed over today."
Got it, let's start the meeting, Brother Baoheng, you can introduce the current situation first" Qiao Zhiqing nodded, looked around at the officials, took a sip of tea and moistened his throat.Originally, in this era, everyone still has a word and a number.But Qiao Zhiqing was troublesome, so he directly abolished this title in the officialdom, and called him by name when he met as in later generations."
President, Mayors.This year is another year of great drought in Henan Province, and it is also the first major drought since the founding of New China.The drought affected 10 cities and counties in western Henan, northern Henan, and eastern Henan, but only southern Henan had no problem.Henan Province has a population of more than 20 million, and nearly half of the people are about to run out of food.Our grain reserves last year will only last until this winter.After the beginning of spring next year, there will be the first wave of food shortages, and the situation is not optimistic" Yuan Baoheng got up and briefly introduced the specific situation, his voice was full of sorrow.The mayors also knew the situation in their respective territories, and they all sighed and hung their heads, and all of them whispered and talked about each other."
President, the people of Henan are suffering, can the state help us a little" "President, we have thought of all the methods.All government units have halved their salaries and are coping with the drought.But the gap is still very large, and we really need help."
I don't know who complained first, and the other mayors followed suit.Qiao Zhiqing put down the tea bowl, waved his hand to the officials with his eyebrows locked, signaled everyone to be quiet, and then said in a deep voice, "What Governor Yuan Baoheng said, I also saw it all the way.The drought is severe, and it is truly shocking.Not only Henan, but also all provinces in Hebei have experienced drought.Today I am not here to listen to your grievances to me, I want to ask the mayors here, what solution do you come up with now?"
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