Since Lu Ming appointed Ma Jun, Ma Jun brought some Mohist disciples to help.
After returning to Longxi, Jia Xu followed Lu Ming's instructions, stabilizing the situation, developing technology, and establishing agricultural settlements.
With Jia Xu's intelligence, he could maintain the situation even without soldiers.
Moreover, with Zhou Tai as his bodyguard and five thousand local militia recruited and trained as soldiers, defense was more than sufficient.
The Mohist disciples had unique channels of communication. In the past six months, the number of Mohist disciples in Longxi had increased from twenty or thirty to three or four hundred, which was already the limit.
The entire Mohist school had very few descendants left; some were still observing, or in remote areas like Jingzhou, Jiaozhou, and Jiangdong.
Their reputation hadn't spread far enough to attract more talent.
This was enough, because they could be taught. As long as the population was large, other issues weren't a problem. Succession required teaching, not recruiting existing members.
Ma Jun brought two hundred people this time, precisely to respond to Lu Ming's call. For someone so passionate about woodworking, to receive praise and be given a position of importance despite his taciturn nature was already a stroke of good fortune.
His elder brother wanted him to move back home; the memory of being kicked out by his sister-in-law still lingered in his mind.
"Gather all the ducks in the neighborhood, and organize the displaced people. Let them start cultivating the land. Trees must be planted nearby; only by planting trees can desertification be prevented. With fertilizer, two harvests a year shouldn't be a problem. Release the ducks near the river and farmland; they can eat insects, ensuring the harvest won't suffer."
Lu Ming imparted his experience bit by bit. Ducks required specific culinary skills to cook well, but the poor families didn't mind.
Compared to domestic chickens, ducks always had a slightly gamey, unpleasant smell.
However, the ducks were primarily for biological control, not for consumption.
The initially disdainful Mohist disciples began to listen attentively. The Agricultural School had perished and been absorbed into the Mohist School, so the Mohists also studied agriculture. Hearing Lu Ming's words, they found them very reasonable.
"Our task this time is to quell the plague spreading in Anding County. Everyone must remember one thing: wash your hands frequently. Drink only boiled water; do not drink uncooked water. Ma Jun, you must assign people to dig ditches and keep them clear. I will allocate five thousand men and corresponding supplies to you. There must be no standing water; reducing mosquito bites will effectively stop the spread."
"The plague is not terrible. As long as you eat and drink well and pay attention to hygiene, you will be fine. You have done well this time. Once the plague subsides, I will open an academy and have you serve as teachers to instruct students. In the future, we can hold lectures and revive the Mohist school of thought. That depends on you." Lu Ming continued to offer promises, a benefit that all the Mohist disciples could not refuse.
Before Emperor Wu of Han, the Huang-Lao school, Legalism, Mohism, the School of Diplomacy, and even the Agricultural School all had poor relations with Confucianism.
In the struggle for discourse power, Confucianism and the other schools of thought were already locked in fierce battles among the common people.
Therefore, when Confucianism later gained dominance, it naturally and ruthlessly expelled the other schools of thought from the court, relegating them all to the opposition!
The teachings of the Huang-Lao school were controlled by nobles and ministers. Representatives of the Huang-Lao school, such as Xiao He, Cao Can, Chen Ping, and Zhou Bo, all enjoyed fiefdoms of tens of thousands of households.
After Liu Bang's death, Legalism began to gain a foothold in the political arena and continuously expanded its power. After Chao Cuo's death, Zhi Du succeeded him, followed by Ning Cheng. Confucianism, too, was eager to make its mark.
Future renowned ministers like Dou Ying, Tian Fen, Zhao Wan, Wang Zang, Zhuang Zhu, and Gongsun Hong were mostly either Confucianists or of Confucian origin.
In contrast, the Huang-Lao school suffered a significant talent gap.
Apart from Ji An, who could be considered a future pillar of the Huang-Lao school, the rest achieved little, mostly clinging to outdated practices. At that time, the Huang-Lao school was truly a corrupt and conservative political force, devoid of brilliant political figures like Xiao He and Cao Can.
Therefore, after the Jianyuan era, the Huang-Lao school gradually withdrew from the political center.
The void it left was filled by Confucianism and Legalism.
Only then did the policy of "dismissing all other schools of thought and exclusively honoring Confucianism" emerge. Otherwise, if the court had remained as it is now, with four or five of the Nine Ministers being Huang-Laoists, even if Liu Che were the emperor, he could not have truly promoted the policy of "dismissing all other schools of thought and exclusively honoring Confucianism."
Each school of thought has its own pursuits: spreading literature and enhancing its influence.
Reclaiming its voice in the court is paramount.
Don't the Mohists want to be officials?
Yes!
Very much!
Extremely much!
But unfortunately, they've never had the opportunity, and no one dares to employ them.
If it weren't for the fact that Mohist doctrines and techniques are practical and supported by economic resources, their lineage would likely have died out long ago!
In this era, besides money, one needs opportunity to study.
Because knowledge is held by a very small number of people, most have no chance to access it.
Therefore, being able to spread their doctrines, and potentially becoming a leader of Mohist thought in the future, is a great opportunity!
Mobilizing the enthusiasm of his Mohist followers, Lu Ming immediately began supervising the construction of the hospital. At the same time, he gathered nearby physicians and placed them in the hospital to treat the displaced people.
This time, he chose an irresistible strategy: free medical treatment for the displaced, no need to sell their children, and free food and lodging.
They only needed to be under his care, cultivating land, planting trees, doing farm work, developing industry, or building roads, etc.
Debt was repaid through labor.
As long as they lived long enough, they could live without pressure, marry, and have children—completely free.
If they behaved well, their children could receive free education, food, and lodging, and even become minor officials or village heads in the future.
In short, he used a postmodern approach, promising the disaster victims a rosy picture. As long as the basic needs of food, drink, and shelter were met, other arrangements were easily resolved.
As for the plague, it wasn't that serious.
The most obvious characteristics of a plague are its contagiousness and epidemicity.
In densely populated cities or military bases, the disease would erupt like a raging flood; without effective control, the death toll would be unimaginable.
Due to the scarcity of medical resources and the backwardness of thought in ancient times, people often attributed plagues to divine punishment or divine intervention.
Therefore, before the availability of medicinal treatments, people relied solely on sacrificial rites or rituals to ward off disease.