Chapter 102

They grow very quickly after eating grass, much faster than the livestock of ordinary households.

Shi Wen this, Shi Wen hatched several more batches of geese.

Their goose eggs are all home-produced, and they have an automatic incubator, so hatching them is not troublesome at all.

There are still a batch of goslings in the incubator that haven't hatched yet. Once they hatch, the number of geese at home will exceed six hundred.

Shi Wen assumed the other party was just asking casually.

Unexpectedly, Baoye A Sai looked thoughtful. "Are you aware of the locust plague in our area?"

Shi Wen, "I think I've heard about it; I saw it in a news report. Has the situation been resolved now?"

Baoye A Sai: "Most of the locusts have been dealt with, but there's still a small swarm left, which is quite a headache for us. They specifically target tender pasture and bite livestock, so we can't use pesticides; we have to catch them manually."

Shi Wen, "Isn't there any other way?"

Baoye A Sai: "Usually they use pesticides to kill them. Some people also take chickens and ducks to eat them; there are poultry farms in our area that specifically lend out their chickens and ducks to feed on locusts."

Shi Wen understood. "You saw our goose and want to borrow it from me, right?"

Baoye A Sai: "It would be best if we could borrow them. I just took a look, and your geese are big and fierce; they'd definitely be a good match for locusts."

This is not a big deal, especially since Shi Wen still remembers the favor he did for sending the horse.

Shi Wen, "If you need them, find a vehicle to transport them over; just make sure they don't get lost."

Baoye A Sai: "They won't get lost. My ranch is also a closed-off area; I'll definitely be able to keep them safe."

Shi Wen Wenxiao said, "Then find a vehicle to transport them there. I also have Bress chickens on my ranch; they're great at eating insects. Do you want to transport them there too?"

"That would be best if you had some," Baoye A Sai inquired. "How many chickens do you have here?"

Shi Wen, "Not many, only fifty. Don't let their small number fool you, they're incredibly good at eating insects. Their little sharp beaks can catch an insect in one swift peck, never missing a single one."

Baoye A Sai: "Fifty is quite a lot. I'll call a truck to transport them all over. We'll bring them back to you when the locusts on the ranch have eaten most of them."

Shi Wen, "Okay, as long as you bring it back to me, that's fine."

Baoye A Sai: "Of course not, we can't be greedy for your chickens and geese."

Baoye A Sai was incredibly efficient; he called a truck over that very afternoon.

Shi Wen's chickens and geese were still grazing outside, and it wasn't time for them to go back to the shed yet. Shi Wen could only let them stay at home a little longer until it got dark and the chickens and geese went back to the shed, then they would be loaded onto the truck and transported to his ranch.

Baoye A Sai was happy to mingle with the horses and readily agreed to the suggestion.

In the evening, Yan Kexing returned and prepared a big meal to entertain them.

After finishing her meal, Baoye A Sai didn't want to go back at all. "Your ranch is so comfortable, the livestock are raised so well, and the food is delicious."

Shi Wen laughed and said, "Come again next time."

Baoye A Sai reluctantly said goodbye to them and followed the car back.

Shi Wen, seeing that he had returned, asked Yan Kexing, "Was the locust plague severe over there?"

Yan Kexing: "It's alright. This year it's not too serious. In previous years, when it got really bad, the locusts would devour everything in the grasslands. This year it's just a small swarm of locusts."

Shi Wen, "Do locusts fly along specific routes? We rarely see them around here."

Yan Kexing: "We're closer to the inland, so locust plagues are usually controlled before they even reach here. When the Abnormal Affairs Bureau chose the ranch for you, they must have specifically selected the location."

Shi Wen also sensed it; his ranch enjoyed favorable weather and rarely suffered from disasters, and couldn't help but sigh, "I'll have to thank Brother Zhu and the others another day."

Chapter 102

Ever since learning about the locust plague in Baoye A Sai's area, Shi Wen has been paying close attention to the matter.

The locust plague has already been dealt with once.

The locusts currently in Baoye A Sai's area are second- or third-generation locusts, mainly East Asian migratory locusts, which are still in a scattered state.

Borrowing chickens and geese was also to keep the locusts scattered and prevent them from swarming together.

If they remain scattered, with so many chickens and geese going over, the locusts can be gradually cleared out without the need for pesticides or other methods.

Shi Wen remembered something. "Are they poisonous if they fly together?"

Yan Kexing: "Yes, when they start to condense and fly, they release phenylacetonitrile, which can be used to synthesize highly toxic gas."

"Why?" Shi Wen asked incredulously. "Aren't they all just that locust? How can they transform after swarming together?"

Yan Kexing: "That's certainly possible. After swarming, locusts produce phenylacetonitrile synthase within their bodies. In locusts in a solitary state, this synthase loses its activity."

Seeing that Shi Wen still had a puzzled look on his face, Yan Kexing went to find the paper and brought it back for him to see.

There have been locust plagues here for a long time, in large and small swarms, which basically affect humans every year. The local research on locust plagues is quite thorough, with dozens of papers on the subject.

Yan Kexing found several papers that provided a comprehensive overview of locust plagues and showed them to Shi Wen.

Shi Wen it, Shi Wen still found it unbelievable.

These tiny locusts can release highly toxic substances when they swarm, yet they are completely non-toxic when living alone. How do they manage to do this?

It's almost like magic.

Shi Wen reading the paper, Shi Wen became extremely curious about locusts. In addition, since his chickens and geese were on Baoye A Sai's ranch, he wanted to go and see how they were doing.

So the two greeted Baoye A Sai and planned to visit Yan Kexing's ranch when he was off work on Saturday.

Baoye A Sai warmly welcomed them. Hearing that they had come specifically to see the locusts, he smiled and said to them, "Come quickly, I'll treat you to fried locusts when you arrive."

Shi Wen asked skeptically, "Can you eat locusts?"