But Li Yi still underestimated the government official's desire for promotion. He looked at Li Yi with a smile and said:

"In emergency situations, you can only use extraordinary means. I am going to let you resettle two thousand refugees. Although the number of people is large, far exceeding the number of households in one mile, the land in Anxin is fertile. I will also resettle some homeless people nearby.

I will leave all the land for cultivation to you, and I believe you will never let me down."

Li Wensheng didn't even want to lose his face now. No one would think of such a way to treat human life as trivial. In peacetime, Anxin was enough to feed ten thousand people, but now there are thieves everywhere.

With constant natural disasters, there is no way to engage in production with peace of mind.

And even if they start farming, it will be difficult to feed so many people due to frequent government labor and heavy taxes. Li Yi can imagine that this Li Wensheng just wants them to settle down first, creating the illusion that he has resettled the refugees, and then takes the opportunity to claim credit.

After this incident is over, I am afraid that the refugees in Anxin will no longer have a stable life at all and will have no choice but to become refugees or tenants.

This is a method that can only be thought up by an extremely insidious person. This is to use thousands of lives to pave the way for his official career. Although there is no blood, Li Yi has already seen scenes littered with corpses.

"The common people should abide by the arrangements of the governor. However, the common people are not from Baoding Prefecture. Now they are cultivating fields here, which can be regarded as a settlement. But the fields they are planting are not their own. I am afraid that everyone will feel uneasy. The common people petition

Your Excellency will make a land deed for the allocated land so that we can have peace of mind. There will also be daily rations. I hope you will be considerate so that I will not starve to death. Thousands of refugees like me will set up an immortal memorial arch for the Lord.

Worship it day and night and pray for blessings from heaven."

Li Yi's eye circles became redder and redder as he spoke, and his words were choked with sobs. In the end, he almost broke down in tears and started sobbing bitterly.

Under such incitement, even the hard-hearted people present could not help but show expressions of intolerance.

Magistrate Li glanced at the officials and gentry present and saw them nodding in agreement, so he spoke: "In that case, I will ask the officials to write the contract now. The rest of the things I promised you will be delivered to you later. You can collect them later."

Proclaim the contract to your companions and ask them to understand my difficulties. Retreat."

"Thank you, Master Fu." Seeing that the play was over, Li Yi hurriedly said goodbye, led the old patriarch and Li Si out in a hurry, and went back to figure out how to deal with the rest of the matter.

After the sergeant exited, Magistrate Li said: "The serious problem of the refugees has finally been solved, and we can live a peaceful life in the mansion. This is also thanks to your help. You are willing to hand over the Anxin land to the refugees for reclamation. It is really a kindness."

ah."

"Haha, Mr. Miao Zan. Thieves are rampant there and it has become a wasteland. It is of no use to us. But can these people really resettle the refugees?" A squire laughed and asked.

"This is not difficult. As long as they have a bowl of gruel, these refugees will be much more honest. I hope you will support me with some food when the time comes. After this is completed, I will definitely report it to the emperor so that your name of benevolence and righteousness can be spread throughout the world.

The world."

Everyone handed over their hands, saying that they should do their best, but in their hearts they began to think about how the land reclaimed by the refugees should be distributed.

They are not good people. They are not good people. How can they spit out the meat in their mouths without any benefit?

As for the life and death of the refugees and the widespread mourning, these tragic events are the affairs of the government and have nothing to do with themselves.

A group of three people walked out of the hall. The old patriarch's face was full of worry, Zhang Mingde was more angry, and Li Yi was more sad.

He originally thought that when he arrived at Baoding Prefecture, he would be able to get government care and everyone could barely survive.

But after what Li Wensheng said just now, Li Yi completely understood that these powerful officials and gentry did not regard them as human beings at all.

Officials want to use them to create political achievements, and big families want to resettle them to avoid becoming bandits. Both of them have such intentions, but they insist on high-sounding reasons. Under mutual praise, the only ones who are sacrificed are themselves, the refugees.

Li Yi could imagine that if this group of refugees entered Anxin, the bandits in Baiyangdian nearby would soon know that they would invade one after another, rob and kill people. This was not a way to survive, but a way to death.

But there is no other way. The purpose of the government is to resettle the refugees and gain political achievements. Once the resettlement is completed, the documents claiming credit will naturally be submitted. After that, whether the refugees starve to death or are killed by bandits, it will be a matter of the future.

If a group of insignificant refugees died, wouldn't it be enough to just bury them?

The entire officialdom has reached such a dark level. No wonder the Ming Dynasty was like a paper tiger and was quickly destroyed by the peasant army.

At this time, the old patriarch sighed and stopped.

Li Yi and Li Si couldn't help but feel sad. They looked sad and didn't know what to say.

What kind of world is this? Is it impossible for people to live?

The old patriarch's face was dark and he didn't say a word. He pinched the broken wood with his long nails and his eyes were in a daze. Seeing him like this, Li Si didn't dare to speak. Li Yi originally wanted to say a few words of persuasion, but he couldn't.

When it came to my mouth, I couldn't say anything.

At this time, what else can these beggar-like refugees do? What else can they do to make the officials in the hall show kindness and give them a way to survive?

Li Si couldn't bear it anymore and said in a playful manner: "Let's go back and kowtow to the adults. Please, please, maybe they won't let us live in the den of thieves."

At this time, he could only think of the way to beg.

As soon as he said these words, the old patriarch became angry.

"Come back, you don't think we are embarrassed enough." The old patriarch stamped his feet, making a wooden stick bang on the ground, without looking at others, and said: "People no longer regard us as human beings, but we can't really treat us as human beings."

Become a dog yourself."

"Grandpa Patriarch, we don't ask for help. We can still live well without asking for help." Li Yi said softly.

The old patriarch turned to look at Li Yi, and his expression softened. He didn't really blame Li Si, but he couldn't stand it when things like this happened. Everything made him despair and couldn't see the future.

Fortunately, there is still a good young man like Li Yi. On the one hand, he resents God for not giving them a way to survive, but on the other hand, he is grateful to God for allowing Li Yi to appear beside them. As long as God can see his life and death, he will express his feelings from the bottom of his heart.

I am happy, and with outstanding young people, there is still hope for everything. There is no future if everything rests on the shoulders of the elderly.

The old patriarch likes young people like Li Yi from the bottom of his heart, but because of his love, he wants all these children to be sensible and grow up strong.

This is the whole meaning of his life and the whole value of his life.

But no matter how hard he tried and how persistent he was, a group of people came all the way from the north to Baoding, but God refused to give them a chance to survive. He still couldn't give these children a chance to survive.

The old patriarch walked out of the door uncomfortably and stood in the open space outside, constantly stroking the stick used as a crutch. His tall body was hunched and he looked absently in the direction where the refugees were waiting outside the city. He was already old.

Even more incompetent...

"Shitou, you'd better take your mother and leave." After a long silence, the old patriarch said: "Don't follow the big guys to Anxin. It will be a dead end when you get there. You kid has skills, grandpa, I can see it.

, Big guys can only hold you back. You will get better than anyone else if you leave us. Grandpa only hopes that you can take Xiaoyu away and let her live a good life."

As he spoke, the old patriarch could no longer bear it, so he squatted on the ground, lowered his head with white hair, and wiped away his tears.

The old patriarch's words made Li Yi cry.

Xiaoyu is the fate of the old patriarch. He asked himself to take Xiaoyu away because he wanted to die. There is no old man in the world who doesn’t want to see his children and grandchildren Chenghuan, but the world does not allow it. The government and big families are taking them away.

So desperate.

Li Yi held back his tears and said to the old patriarch: "Grandfather, I know your heart. But no matter what, I will never leave. I swore to the villagers."

The old patriarch wiped away the tears on his face with rough palms and said: "You have to think about it. The government has no good intentions. If you go to Anxin, you don't know whether you will live or die. You don't want to think about yourself, but you also have to think about your mother."

.”

When it comes to his mother, Li Yi hesitates. He can accompany the villagers into danger without hesitation, but he doesn't want his mother to make any mistakes. This woman has become his biggest concern.

But no matter what, Li Yi didn't have that hard heart to take his mother away and abandon the old patriarch and all the villagers.

He said to the old patriarch: "My mother is the most reasonable. She has been taken care of by her aunts before when she was injured. She will understand me. Moreover, in my opinion, we are not at the end of our rope."

The old patriarch was a little surprised when he heard this and asked: "We are not at the end of our rope yet? Do you have any solution?"

Li Yi thought for a while and said: "There are advantages and disadvantages to joining Anxin. What the patriarch was worried about before was food and bandits."

The old patriarch nodded and said: "That's true. I'm worried that when the time comes for me to farm, the government won't distribute food, leaving me to starve to death. Moreover, Anxin is close to Baiyangdian, which is a den of thieves. Once they come to rob and kill people,

Set fire, how can we resist?"

These two points are the biggest difficulties. If neither can be solved, thousands of refugees will die without a burial place.

Li Yi thought for a while and said: "What the patriarch said is absolutely true. But I just heard that Li Wensheng is going to resettle the refugees to Anxin. In my opinion, at least he will not interrupt us until the next batch of refugees arrive."

In this way, we can have enough food for at least half a month, which is enough to turn over. As for the banditry problem, in my opinion, the trained guards still have some fighting strength. If the remaining young men can be trained more by then, they can resist the bandits.

It's not a problem for bandits to be afraid, so the old patriarch doesn't need to worry too much."

"As long as there is food to last until the autumn harvest and soldiers to stop the bandits, we can take root in Anxin. By then, all the fertile land in Anxin will be our farmland. We can cultivate it distributedly and harvest the harvest to support our family, and we will be able to live a stable life.

.So, settling in Anxin is not as scary as the patriarch thought."

After hearing Li Yi's introduction, the old patriarch felt that it was very reasonable, and his face suddenly became less worried.

"When you go back today, everyone will obey you. If anyone dares to disobey, the old man will be the first to smash his head." The old patriarch felt angry, and he even spoke with anger.

Li Yi laughed, supported the old patriarch and was about to leave.

At this time, a person suddenly walked out of the hall and stopped the three of them.

Li Yi saw that it was Wang Zhixian who had just spoken for him and others many times in the hall.

When meeting an official, you have to kneel down and bow down. Just as the three of them were about to do so, they were supported by Magistrate Wang.

"Old man, I can't stop it. I know in my heart that you are going to have a hard time, but I am so soft-spoken and can't help you. I feel so ashamed." Wang Zhixian said with red eyes as he looked at the three men in ragged clothes, who looked like beggars.

Li Yi and the three of them all knew that he was a good official. Seeing him being so emotional, the old patriarch burst into tears and said bitterly: "The villain knows, and everyone sees it. Your Excellency is a good official, and we all can."

Thank you for your kindness, sir."

Wang Zhixian calmed down and took the old patriarch's hand and said: "Don't worry, the household registration will be completed soon. The first batch of grain will be collected by the county government warehouse in person. But I must understand that it is not easy for the government now.

Nowadays, natural disasters occur frequently, and there is no extra food in the government. Unless we don’t want to save the people, we really don’t have the money or food to save the people.”

A county magistrate asked the victims to share their sufferings. This seemed very strange, but Li Yi understood that this method was really superb.

What Li Wensheng did just now is really sad. He barely regards the refugees as human beings. How can this not make people feel chilling and angry? If he goes to Anxin with this anger and encounters the government's deception, I am afraid it will turn into overwhelming hatred and lead to people's hatred.

If there is chaos, the refugees will become bandits and trouble will happen again in Baoding Prefecture.

The purpose of Wang Zhixian's visit was to appease the three of them, not to let their anger spread, and not to let Baoding Mansion suffer any more troubles.

Although Li Yi saw through it, he did not say it out loud. He knew that Wangzhi County was also thinking about the overall situation. Moreover, by doing this, it would also make the refugees feel better.

"You go to Anxin first. I will definitely come to see you when the arrangements are made." Wang Zhixian let go of the old patriarch and sent the three of them away.

The old patriarch thanked him profusely and left with tears streaming down his face.

The officials and the people each have their own sorrows, but no one can help the other. What can we do with this feeling of powerlessness?

Li Yi stepped forward to support the old patriarch and couldn't help but sigh slightly as he watched him look back at the government office in two steps.

When the people suffered a disaster, all their hopes were pinned on the government. Even if officials like Li Wensheng failed to live up to their expectations and treated them like pigs or dogs, as long as there were officials like Wang Zhixian, the people were still willing to trust the government and look forward to it.

The government has improved.
Chapter completed!