Chapter 3: Coping

On November 26, the Zhongjiang Municipal Government held an emergency meeting on rat damage prevention and control. The meeting was chaired by Mayor Jiang. The participants included Deputy Mayor Li, Police Director Gao Fei, Forestry Bureau Director Chen, Environmental Protection Bureau Director Zhou, Health Bureau Director Yang, Professor Lin Yusen and Dr. Song Qinghe. In addition, the 45th Division of the Southwest Military Region stationed in Zhongjiang sent a major staff officer as an observer to attend the meeting.

At the beginning of the meeting, Mayor Jiang stood up and said sincerely to Lin Yusen: "Professor Lin, although you reminded us last year to pay attention to the explosive reproduction of rats and causing disasters, I did not pay enough attention to it, and now it has caused 10 deaths. I express my deep apology for this." Mayor Jiang bowed deeply to Lin Yusen after saying that.

The seat was full of emotion.

Lin Yusen said lightly: "Mayor Jiang doesn't have to do this. After all, I am not the family of the deceased."

Mayor Jiang's face suddenly turned red. Deputy Mayor Li coughed lightly and said, "The municipal government is studying the pension matter for the family of the victims. I believe that a clear conclusion will be made recently." Secretary Wan also quickly added: "After the news in the mountainous area came, Mayor Jiang was very guilty and sad. Not only did he immediately instruct the General Office of the Municipal Government to take out the pension policy, he also decided to donate all his three-month salary to the families of the victims in his personal name. Yesterday, Mayor Jiang instructed me to try to arrange time to attend the memorial service of the deceased..."

Mayor Jiang waved his hand: "Okay, don't talk about these things anymore. The responsibility I should bear, as the mayor, will not be owed. Today's meeting theme is to study how to eliminate rats. Professor Lin, we have invited you to Zhongjiang from afar to listen to your suggestions. I promise that we will consider your suggestions seriously. You see, we even contacted the garrison and asked the army to send observers. If necessary, the army will also consider dispatching troops to assist our work. In short, this time we made the greatest determination to eliminate rats in the mountains at all costs!"

Eliminate rats in the mountainous areas? Lin Yusen smiled bitterly: "It's too late! Half a year has passed since the flowers bloom in the mountainous areas. Now the number of rats has grown to an astonishing number. It's too unrealistic to eliminate rats in the mountainous areas with the power of Zhongjiang City."

Mayor Jiang frowned, but Deputy Mayor Li snorted: "If Professor Lin feels that Zhongjiang City is not strong enough, we can apply to our superiors and ask the governor or even the leaders of the State Council to preside over the rat-killing work! The key now is to come up with an actionable method, otherwise, what should we apply to our superiors?"

Director Chen of the Forestry Bureau carefully interjected: "Ask the leaders of the State Council to preside over the rat-killing work - this is too exaggerated. What's so great about rats in mountainous areas? Just ask me to see if you just need to put rat-killing agents. Didn't we easily eliminate rats with rat killing agents last year? Now we can increase the number of mice at most..."

Song Qinghe sneered: "Director Chen is such a big tone - 'Just kill rats and put rat killing agents'! Okay, let me ask you, how many rats were killed by the Forestry Bureau last year? Less than 100,000 rats. There are more than 1 billion rats in the mountainous areas now! How many tons of rat killing agents should be put? 1 million tons or 10 million tons?! Do you have so many rat killing agents? Even if you have them, do you dare to put them into the mountainous areas?"

Director Chen opened his mouth wide: ".......................................... This is too exaggerated."

"Exaggeration?" Song Qinghe didn't want to leave any affection for the bureaucrat in front of him. The anger that had accumulated for more than a year was vented at this moment: "The bamboo seeds produced by the blossoming of 1 hectare of bamboo forest are enough to feed 60 mice! The area of ​​bamboo forests in the western mountainous areas is tens of millions of hectares! In this way, more than 1 billion mice are still conservatively estimated. Why? Director Chen still needs me to do some mathematical calculations for you?"

"Mayor Jiang," Director Chen looked at Mayor Jiang pitifully: "You won't believe that there are more than 1 billion mice in the mountains, right?"

"Bang!" Mayor Jiang slapped the table heavily and pointed at Director Chen's nose and roared: "Chen Mingguang! The causal relationship between bamboo blossoms in mountainous areas and rat groups - I don't understand, negligence is a dereliction of duty; you are dereliction of duty! It is a crime! It's been a whole year, whether bamboo blossoms in mountainous areas or explosive reproduction of rats - have you reported these situations to the municipal government? Indulging in mice causes disasters, which directly leads to the death of 10 people. I think you, the Forestry Director, have you been the end of the year! Now, I don't want you to resign from the municipal government on your own initiative, just wait for your dismissal to investigate!"

Director Chen was completely paralyzed. All the participants looked at Lin Yusen and Song Qinghe with complicated expressions.

Deputy Mayor Li coughed gently and said, "Professor Lin, can you predict the future dynamics of the rat group from a biological perspective?"

Lin Yusen nodded and said, "Rats are creatures born for eating and eating. Intake of food is their instinct to survive. It has been half a year since bamboo blooms in the mountainous area, and it is estimated that they have consumed almost all the bamboo seeds. Now the only place in the mountainous area that can provide them with food is the only village where humans live. Therefore, the rat group in the mountainous area will soon launch an attack on the village."

"Bang!" A teacup fell to the ground and made a crisp sound. Director Zhou smiled awkwardly and picked up the teacup from the ground.

Deputy Mayor Li looked at Mayor Jiang, and Mayor Jiang's face looked ugly.

"What are the countermeasures? What countermeasures should we take now?" Deputy Mayor Li's voice was very dull.

Lin Yusen shook his head helplessly: "There is no countermeasure. Only forced mountain residents to take refuge."

"Forcing mountain residents to take refuge?" Deputy Mayor Li smiled bitterly at Mayor Jiang: "This...is probably not realistic. There are hundreds of villages in the mountainous areas, hundreds of thousands of residents, and forced hundreds of thousands of people to take refuge - how much power does this need to be mobilized? Not to mention Zhongjiang City, even the entire Yizhou Province does not have this ability."

Lin Yusen sighed softly, and Song Qinghe interjected: "Then report to the State Council and ask the Prime Minister to make a decision."

Deputy Mayor Li's face changed slightly and said coldly: "Even if you report to the State Council, the Premier can easily make this decision - to move hundreds of thousands of people out of the mountainous areas? Hundreds of thousands of people! How to move? Where to resettle? How to solve life in the future? Eat, drink, take care of children to go to school - which problem can be easily solved?"

"If there is no forced refuge, an unprecedented tragedy will occur in the mountainous areas!" Song Qinghe's tone was as iced.

The conference room suddenly became silent, and even Deputy Mayor Li pursed his lips.

Mayor Jiang let out a difficult sigh, looked at Lin Yusen and asked with great difficulty: "Professor Lin, is there any other way? Force mountain residents to take refuge... This is indeed difficult, very difficult."

Lin Yusen smiled bitterly.

Gao Fei, who had been silent all the time, suddenly said: "Mayor Jiang, I think this can be done. On the one hand, we can report Professor Lin's suggestions to the provincial government as a reference for the governor's decision. On the other hand, we should immediately notify all villages in the mountainous areas to prepare for rat prevention - including that the personnel should not stay away from the village, the houses should be reinforced, etc. Finally, we must set up an emergency rescue organization to deal with emergencies."

Mayor Jiang stretched his eyebrows and nodded with relief: "Okay! Director Gao's proposal is very comprehensive and safe. I think the work after the meeting can be deployed according to this idea. Well, Staff Tang——"

The young major staff officer stood up straight: "Mayor Jiang, please give me instructions."

"I dare not take the instructions," Mayor Jiang said with a smile: "You will report to Commander Zhao after you go back. We have a suggestion. I hope the garrison can send a force to cooperate with our emergency rescue work."

"Yes." Staff Chief Tang sat down.

"Deputy Mayor Li, immediately purchase rat killing agents from the whole country." Mayor Jiang instructed again.

"What about the quantity?" Deputy Mayor Li asked with a pen in his hand: "What is the approximate quantity of acquisitions? You should be very clear about the basic foundation of our city's finances. If the quantity is too large, the finances will be unable to bear it."

Mayor Jiang looked at Lin Yusen and gritted his teeth: "Purchase 1,000 tons first."

"Rat killing agents must be products that are harmless to birds and beasts in the mountains." Lin Yusen added.

Mayor Jiang nodded: "Professor Lin's opinion is very important. The rat killer that is applied cannot destroy the ecological balance of the mountainous areas again."

Ecological balance? Song Qinghe sneered in his heart. Is there still an ecological balance in the mountainous areas?
Chapter completed!