He is now almost certain that the plague three years later in history was caused by the severe drought in Shaanxi and the war between the rebels of Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong.
The specific process may be that despite the severe drought, the court still increased the salary by three, the people gathered in crowds to revolt, and the peasant army and the court army fought, countless people died, and the society was in turmoil.
Grain production has been reduced due to severe drought, and if war continues to reduce production, the people will have nothing to eat.
At this time, rats that ate rotten corpses or corpse water appeared, which excited the hungry people.
Even if it's a mouse, it's still meat, just fill your stomach.
So an unlucky guy was infected by the virus in the mouse, and then began to spread from person to person.
The war left the people homeless, and they followed the rebels northward, and then spread to Beijing and other parts of North China.
"That's wrong!"
Chongzhen suddenly realized a huge loophole.
"If the plague was so powerful and caused the death of a large number of people, why could the Ming army and the rebel armies of Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong still fight for so many years?
Moreover, Li Zicheng's Dashun army fought against Jiannu in Shanhaiguan, and 180,000 elite troops were destroyed, which also confirmed the combat effectiveness of Li Zicheng's army.
If the plague was so severe, Li Zicheng's Dashun Army, Zhang Xianzhong's Daxi Army, the imperial army, and the Jiannu Army,
The armies of the four directions were in the middle position, and they definitely suffered a huge impact, but there is no record.
Could it be said that the plague is not that powerful? The more than 10 million people who died from the plague were probably the result of war, drought, and plague, and the plague may only account for 30 to 50%? "
“The most confusing thing is why did the plague disappear after the slaves entered the country?
Did a cure appear, or did the history of slavery delete this episode? "
Chongzhen frowned, there was a huge contradiction in this matter.
"No, even if it is only 30%, that will still cause the death of three to four million people. This will still destabilize the Ming Dynasty and must not be ignored."
"It is now certain that the plague was caused by severe drought and war. Now it has been clarified in the Ming Dynasty that war is basically impossible.
A severe drought is a natural disaster. I can't change God's will, but I can save myself.
By promoting sweet potatoes, potatoes, and corn, we can still get some harvest even if there is a severe drought. With my other set of combos, we should be able to get through it.
The four things we need to do now are to cut off the source of infection, and the second is to closely monitor drought-stricken areas.
Third, study the medical records left over from past dynasties and find feasible solutions.
Fourth, reserve medicinal materials. Only by combining the four can fewer people die. "
After thinking of this, Chongzhen raised his head and looked at Zhang Jingyue and the others, and sighed deeply: "Four dear friends, I have been worrying about something for a while and I can't sleep at night!"
The four people immediately stood up, bowed towards Chongzhen, and said in unison: "I am willing to share your worries for Your Majesty!"
"Everyone, sit down!"
Chongzhen waved his hand and then whispered: "It is said that after a major disaster there will be a plague. This has basically become a rule.
But plagues will also occur during peacetime. Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty by Taizu, there have been 63 plagues, with an average of about one every four years. The only difference is the size and severity of the impact.
Nowadays, there is a severe drought in Hannan, Shaanxi. From the seventh year of Tianqi to this year, it has become more severe every year and its scope continues to expand.
Although I have promoted sweet potatoes and dug many reservoirs to store water, it is hard to say whether we can survive.
And the disaster is still ongoing, so I have to beware of the resulting plague.
What I mean is that your Qihuang Research Institute has assigned a group of people to study the medical records left by the past dynasties, especially the methods of solving the plague recorded over the years, summarize them, and study them in detail.
At the same time, we will make a more standardized and effective disposal process!
Since Wu Aiqing specializes in plague research, I will leave this matter to you.
In addition to the detailed files of royal family members, you can access the archives of the palace medical library and library at will! "
"I obey the decree!"
"Secondly, since it is a solution, there must be a large amount of medicinal materials.
Li Aiqing, you are familiar with the characteristics and cultivation of various herbal medicines. I will leave the cultivation and storage of medicinal materials to you. You can prepare a memorial and submit the required silver and land. "
"I obey the decree!"
"Third, I..."
Speaking of this, Chongzhen paused, his eyes full of thinking.
After a while, he continued: "Everyone, you can see that this method is effective when the Medical Saint used cotton cloth to cover his mouth and nose when traveling through the epidemic area without being infected by the plague.
Based on this, I have two suggestions:
First, although this method is feasible, there are still gaps between the cotton cloths, which cannot effectively block the plague that can spread through the air.
But we now have physiological saline and medical alcohol. You can study it.
Use two layers of cotton cloth sandwiched between a layer of cotton soaked with medical alcohol, medicinal materials, smoked atractylodes or other fillers to see the effect;
Second, in the future, when you go to the public for free clinics, you'd better bring this kind of thing. The wise saying is not to be afraid of 10,000, but to be afraid of just in case.
Although doctors can show medical ethics, it is relative. Only if you ensure your own safety can you treat more people! "
Huh……
Everyone's eyes suddenly lit up. They had not thought deeply about the method proposed by the emperor, but at present it was definitely feasible, no matter how far it could be achieved.
But it must be much better than simply using cotton cloth. What's the point of wasting some at a critical moment of life and death?
Zhang Jingyue's eyes were full of joy and he said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, please give this thing a name!"
"Since this object covers the mouth and nose and blocks foreign objects, then it is called a mask!"
Chongzhen applied it directly without any hesitation.
Then he looked at Zhang Jingyue: "Zhang Aiqing, the plague issue must be a key task of your Qihuang Research Institute. You must pay attention to it and coordinate it, but don't make a big deal out of it, so as not to affect the public sentiment;
If you have any major discoveries or ideas, you can report them to me at any time! "
"I obey the decree!"
Zhang Jingyue responded immediately, and then said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, I think we can arrange for people to go to areas where plague has occurred to collect some folk remedies and stories.
Those who survived the plague may have used some indigenous methods that we don't know about.
But no matter what the method is, as long as the plague can be cured, that is enough!
After the collection is collected, our Qihuang Research Institute will screen it to find out what is right and what is the best! "
"What Zhang Aiqing said makes sense, I will arrange for someone to do it! I'll be here today, and you can go back and prepare!"
"Your Majesty, please leave!"
The four of them bowed and left. Chongzhen tapped his fingers on the table gently, staring at the three questions on the paper and the answers from Zhang Jingyue and others, thinking slowly.
The prevention and treatment of problems in this era are no different from those in later generations, they are all isolation.
The slight difference is that the isolation in later generations is waiting for rescue, while the isolation now is waiting for death.
