Ang Lee had lived in the Tang Dynasty for many years, so he had a better understanding of the temperament of the common people of this era. In the hearts of the poor people, dry food that had been bitten by rats could continue to be eaten. At most, they just had to break off the bitten part. However, this was obviously a very wrong practice. Once the food had been touched by rats, it was better to throw it all away for their own safety. However, the poor people would always have a fluke mentality, thinking that they would not be so unlucky as to accidentally contract the plague and continue to eat contaminated food.
Tragedies often occurred when people held onto a fluke mentality. When people felt that they were fine, it was usually when something bad was about to happen. If one person was careless and got infected with the plague, it could affect many people and cause many innocent people to lose their lives.
Although the plague was terrible, what was more terrible was the ignorance of the people. Ignorance was more terrible than the plague itself. For many years, people had been infected with the plague and many people had died. However, the common people did not understand what the plague was and did not think that it was caused by eating food that had been crawled by rats. Therefore, even if the plague had passed, the next plague would appear again and many people would die.
Of course, not all the ancients were ignorant. After many summaries, there were still some people who discovered the danger of rats and resisted eating rat meat. However, this could only convince some people. Some people believed that rats would cause the plague, while others did not believe it. Some people did not want to believe it because they were poor. There were also people who already believed it, but because they were unwilling to spoil the food, they were unwilling to throw away the food contaminated by rats.
"This rat is really terrible. Eating rat meat is also very dangerous. Eating food that has been touched by rats is also very dangerous. This official advises you not to try to taste rat meat, and also not to eat food that has been touched by rats. All the food that has been eaten by rats must be thrown away. Otherwise, you will regret it. You must remember this."
Although these Zhan clansmen might not be able to listen to him, Ang Lee still wanted to emphasize again. Although they also felt that eating rats was not good, they were still reluctant to throw away food that had been touched by rats. They felt that it was still edible, which was quite dangerous.
"Rats are really so terrible that we can't eat food that has been crawled on, but we are fine after eating food that has been crawled on by rats!"
A Zhan clansman asked doubtfully.
Obviously, they had experience in this area. They had eaten food that rats had crawled over, but there was no danger. Therefore, they did not feel that food that had been crawled over by rats was dangerous. Otherwise, why would they be fine?
This was obviously a matter of probability. Eating food that had been crawled over by rats could cause one to get infected with the plague, but that did not necessarily mean that one would be infected. There was also a chance that one would not be infected. This was indeed a matter of luck. If one was lucky, one would not be infected. If one was unlucky, one might be infected. No one could predict this.
"You're just lucky. If you're unlucky, you'll get infected. It's better to put the food in a place where the rats can't touch it."
Ang Lee opened his mouth and said.
In fact, it was quite difficult to completely eliminate contact with rats. For example, many people's granaries had a lot of food, but no matter how sturdy the granary was, there would still be rats that would sneak in. Once the rats sneaked in, they would contaminate a lot of food. The amount of food in the granary was huge. If all the food in the granary was thrown away because of one rat, the loss would be too great. It was not something that anyone could afford. Therefore, no one could store food, and all the food could be thrown away. Therefore, one could not be too extreme in doing things. Food that had been contaminated by rats was indeed very dangerous, but if it was unprocessed food, one only needed to throw away the severely damaged ones. There was no need to throw away all the food. As for how much to throw away, it depended on the specific situation.
In addition, processed food, such as simple cakes, once contaminated by rats, it was best not to eat it. The danger of eating such food was too great.
"Assistant Minister Li, why can't we eat food that has been crawled over by rats? Is there an epidemic disease on the rats' bodies, or in their mouths?"
A member of the Zhan Clan asked.
Obviously, the members of the Zhan Clan knew almost nothing about the epidemic situation, but deep down, they were very eager to know. They had the spirit of asking shamelessly, which made Ang Lee very satisfied.
Ang Lee naturally knew how the plague spread. What Ang Lee said about not eating food contaminated by rats was only one of the ways to avoid being infected. For the spread of the plague, there were many more ways to spread it. Some of them were really difficult to prevent, and one could only rely on luck.
For example, the spread of fleas was very deadly. There was a flea called the rat flea that frequently came into contact with rats. At the same time, it would also come into contact with humans. In this way, the rat flea would carry the plague virus from the rats to the human body, causing people to be infected with the plague, and then cause a large-scale epidemic.
This way of prevention was very difficult. In ancient times, people's production and living were relatively backward. People's hygiene habits were also not very good. It was common to have many fleas in the house, so it was easy for this kind of indirect infection to occur. It seemed unrealistic to completely eliminate fleas. Just like mosquitoes and flies, there was no way to eliminate them in the future, let alone the backward Tang dynasty era. It was basically impossible to eliminate fleas.
Of course, people also had resistance. People with good health could resist the invasion of the plague virus. Moreover, antibodies would be formed in the body, so as to prevent re-infection in the future.
Ang Lee didn't explain too much. After all, the level of the Zhan Clan was there. These guys wouldn't understand if he explained too much. He only needed to tell them that rats were very dirty. It was best not to come into contact with rats, or to eliminate rats as much as possible, especially the rats near the house. They had to be eliminated as much as possible.
"Well, when this official leaves this sinkhole, I will teach you how to make a cage to catch rats. This kind of cage is very magical. In places with many rats, it can catch dozens of rats at once. If you put a few more at home, there won't be rats at home in the future. Of course, you can also raise a few more cats at home. Rats are most afraid of cats. If every family raises a cat, rats basically won't dare to appear."
Ang Lee said.
The most effective way to deter rats was naturally to raise more natural enemies of rats. The best way to raise rats in the field was to raise cats. Owls could also catch rats, but owls were not so easy to raise. Moreover, the sound of cats was not so unpleasant, but the sound of owls was too unpleasant. Therefore, people in ancient times didn't dare to raise owls. In order to deter rats, they raised cats.
"A cage to catch rats can catch dozens of rats in one night. How is that possible? Our rats here are very smart. We also have people who can make a cage to catch rats, but it's basically difficult to catch rats. At most, we can only catch one or two. When the rats outside see the rats inside fall into the trap, they are unwilling to be fooled. How can a cage catch so many rats in one night? This is really unbelievable. "
A member of the Zhan Clan said.
As for the cage to catch rats, there were people who could make it since ancient times. However, they were limited by the materials and wisdom. The cage made in ancient times and the cage made by Ang Lee were very different. They were not at the same level at all. Just like cooking, a dish could be prepared with hundreds of ingredients. It could also be prepared with a few simple ingredients. How could the taste of the dishes be the same? The difference in taste could be imagined.
Also, the ancient handcart only had a few parts. It was naturally quite easy to make, but what about the cars of later generations? The complexity could be imagined. So, how could the performance be the same? The difference in running speed could be imagined.
By the same logic, the complexity of the rat cage that Li An made was naturally not something that the aborigines could imagine. He had fully considered the vigilance of the rats and how to lure them into the cage willingly. As long as the quality of the cage was up to standard, he would be able to achieve his goal.
To put it simply, a qualified rat trap had to consider the problem from the perspective of the rat. It had to give the rat a sense of security and also make the rat profitable. That was enough. Just like humans, who would not agree if they could make a lot of money without any risk? Anyone would agree.
"Hahaha! You all can rest assured. Would I lie to you? If I say it can, then it can. Alright, let's not talk about this. "
Ang Lee was eating barbecued meat. He kept talking about rats, making it seem as if he was eating rat meat. He felt quite disgusted.
"Right, the reason why there are so many beautiful stones here is entirely because this is a lime mine. I just don't know how big the lime mine is. If there are enough lime mines, that would be great."
Ang Lee said. When they first passed by the Jiang tribe, there were lime mines there. If the Zhan tribe also had lime mines here, that would be even better. Lime mines were the raw materials for making cement. This would be very beneficial for paving roads in the future.
"Lime mine? What is a lime mine?"
The Zhan tribe people seemed to have never heard of it.
Li An had no choice but to open his mouth and explain what this mineral was. He wanted to let these guys know what a lime mine was and what they could do with it.
After resting for a while, everyone got up and continued to explore. It was not easy to come in, so of course, they could not just go back like this. Who knows what treasures there might be inside this cave? Most importantly, Ang Lee wanted to know how long this cave was, where it led to, and how many beautiful stones there were.
There were no flammable objects in the cave, so there was no need to worry about a fire. When everyone set out, they directly left the bonfire behind and let it burn for as long as it could.
It was also because the cave was wide and tall enough that the outside air kept flowing in. Therefore, the bonfire could burn as much as it wanted. If the cave was too small, there would not be enough oxygen inside, and it would not be long before it went out. In that case, the people who entered the cave would be in danger.
The more they went in, the more shocked Ang Lee was. Because along the way, there were all kinds of stalactites, stone grapes, stone lychees, and other valuable stones everywhere. This seemed to be sufficient to prove that there were a lot of lime mines here. It was completely in line with mining standards. This was because the location of the lime mine was too bad. It was not easy to mine, which meant that the mining cost was relatively high. At least, the mining cost here was very high.
After continuing for a few hundred meters, everyone seemed to hear a more terrifying sound. This sound was like the cry of a ghost. Some timid people could not help but shiver.
"Assistant Minister Li, I'm afraid there is danger in here. Let's go back!"
Chen Long was not afraid. He was just worried that Ang Lee would be in danger. His responsibility was to protect Ang Lee. If something happened to Ang Lee, he could not bear the responsibility.
"Yes! Assistant Minister Li, this sound is too scary. I'm afraid there is a ghost! "
"It's dark inside. Who knows what is inside?"
A few of the Zhan clansmen were also a little scared. The cave was already very cold, and at this moment, they heard a very terrifying sound. Naturally, they felt even colder. Many of them had goosebumps, and their hearts were also a little scared.
At this time, everyone was a little scared. They all felt that there would be something more dangerous inside. Even if it was not a ghost, it would at least be a poisonous snake or a fierce beast.
However, Ang Lee was not worried at all. This was because Ang Lee did not believe in ghosts and gods. At the same time, Ang Lee had a better understanding of geology. He understood that this sound was a natural phenomenon and was not dangerous at all.
"Assistant Minister Li, this rustling sound is very similar to the sound of a poisonous snake rubbing against its head! Could there be a poisonous snake inside?! "
"Ah! This can't be a snake cave, right? Such a big cave, the snake inside must be very big. Could it be a python? "
"The deeper we go, the louder the sound seems to be. Let's go back!"
Several guards were a little scared and had thoughts of retreating.
Ang Lee said with a smile, "You don't have to be so suspicious. I don't think there will be any danger. Besides, even if you encounter a python, so what? Are the weapons in your hands just for decoration? Don't scare yourself. Keep going. "
After saying that, he urged everyone to continue moving forward.
Although everyone was very scared, since Ang Lee said so, then no matter how scared they were, they could only brace themselves and continue moving forward. Fortunately, there were many of them. With so many people gathered together, they could embolden each other.
The deeper they went, the louder the rustling sound was. This made many people look around in fear. Ang Lee seemed to feel something and could not help but smile.
"Eyes, monster eyes."
"Glowing eyes, it's a monster. Run."
After turning a corner, the few people in front saw two dazzling lights in the distance. The distance between the two lights was not too big nor too small, and they were circular in shape. It was easy to associate them with the eyes of a monster.
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