Looking at the group of villagers in front of him, only one-tenth of them were able-bodied men, while the rest were all elderly, weak, women and children. If this group of people had lived in his previous life, they might have been able to live a good life.

But at the current northern border, they are nothing more than a burden.

Fortunately, young women made up half of the workforce, and the labor power of one woman was equivalent to that of half a strong man.

This is acceptable, since as long as these widows are given a husband, wouldn't that attract many able-bodied men?

Lu Tu looked at everyone and said, "From today onwards, you are all under my jurisdiction, understand?"

"Understood." As expected, Lü Tu received a lifeless reply.

Lu Tu threw out a bombshell: "Since you are under my jurisdiction, you can no longer just sit idly by like this!"

Upon hearing this, many women and children at the scene burst into tears.

"Sir, our men are either dead or arrested, what use are we women to you?"

"Yes, sir, what can we, an orphan and a widow, do?"

Nie Yun shouted sternly, "Quiet down, wait for the magistrate to finish speaking!" He understood Lu Tu's style of doing things; he was definitely not the kind of person who would leave no way for the people to survive.

Lu Tu said with a stern face, "From now on, each family will send one person, regardless of gender, to help me with the work. In addition to meals, men will be paid one jin of millet per day, and women will be paid seven liang!"

"What!?" Upon hearing this, the villagers present gaped in disbelief, not caring that the sand and dust were blowing into their mouths.

The most shocked were the siblings Ban Wei and Ban Yingying. They were the first villagers to come into contact with Lü Tu, and they had made a boastful promise while they were in the tunnel.

They assured the villagers that as long as Lu Tu arrived, their good days would begin. The villagers, obviously less knowledgeable than the two men, naturally did not believe that there would be an official in the world who cared about the people.

When Lü Tu spoke, the villagers from both villages burst into tears, both men and women with tears in their eyes.

Even Liu Hong and the other military slaves who had come with him couldn't believe their ears. They scratched their heads and whispered to their companions, "What did the captain just say? He's still paying wages?"

"I've never seen anything like it in my entire life. Not only do they provide meals, but they also pay extra wages."

"Yes, I even went to the Yellow River dike for disaster relief. Even though the funds allocated by the imperial court didn't include wages, we were already thankful that they didn't deduct anything from our food."

Sun Meng, standing not far from them, snorted arrogantly, then patted their shoulders and said, "You underestimate our Brother Lü, don't you? He's a great hero in our hearts, a man of his word, and has never broken his promise!"

"Sir, are you telling the truth?"

"Lord Lü, you are truly a just and upright official!" The villagers knelt on the ground, this time kneeling to Lü Tu from the bottom of their hearts.

Lu Tu waved his hand and said, "Get up first. There are still many things to do right now, this is not the time for crying!"

"People from both of your villages, you should no longer live so far apart. You should all move to Daozhuang Village. You can squeeze in for now. I will send some people over tomorrow to help you build wooden houses. The men in the village will be responsible for logging, and the women will be responsible for needlework. I will arrange for someone to come and teach you how to do it tomorrow."

"Thank you, sir!"

"Nie Yun, bring them some food later. In the next few days, build a wheel track from here directly to Songshan Village."

"Yes, sir!"

Lu Tu waved his hand and said to the crowd, "Go back!"

He then led several hundred people, including Liu Hong, back to the village, and soon returned.

Lu Tu said to Liu Hong, "You two rest in the shack for now. You don't need to continue digging for the next few days. Listen to Nie Yun first."

Upon hearing that they didn't need to continue digging, Liu Hong finally felt relieved. They had been here for three months, and if they continued digging, they might not even survive until summer.

He bowed respectfully and said, "Thank you, sir. We will certainly do our best."

"Liu Yang, prepare plenty of food for them tonight, make sure they have enough to eat!"

Upon hearing that their sons had been fed, all the military slaves, including Liu Hong, had red eyes. They had previously seen that Lu Tu treated the villagers well, but when they thought about their status as military slaves, which was much lower than that of ordinary people, they felt even more insecure.

He thought he would be lucky to get a hot meal, but he never expected to be able to eat his fill. In this chaotic world, the only person who could say that the soldiers and slaves should be fed is probably Lü Tu!

The crowd bowed deeply in gratitude, saying, "Sir, you are our second parents!"

Lu Tu glanced at the group of military slaves and couldn't help but shake his head. The struggles within the palace were truly a tragedy. Even though the generals and others at the top had lost their struggles, these soldiers at the bottom were innocent.

They might not even know who they're helping from beginning to end, and might even think they're helping the emperor.

However, after losing the political struggle, the soldiers who originally possessed combat power were demoted to coal mine slaves, who were even worse than cattle and horses, and spent their days and nights soaking in the coal ash.

On the contrary, the border troops were a bunch of useless idiots, each one a fat, gluttonous bunch, their fighting ability was practically zero.

Fortunately, after the large-scale logging in the past few days, the refugees have almost all found their own homes, which are simple but can still provide shelter from the wind and rain.

Furthermore, Lu Tu encouraged people to marry, saying it didn't matter as long as it didn't violate human ethics.

This is also an important reason why the refugees can settle down and feel at ease here, especially the hundreds of able-bodied men among them.

Chinese men become exceptionally brave once they have something to care about; this has always been the case.

After giving some instructions, Lu Tu rode his little black dog home. He sighed deeply. The number of people he had was growing, and he had to do everything himself, otherwise things would easily go wrong.

This workload was simply too enormous. In his previous life, as a special forces king, he only needed to be responsible for the orders assigned from above.

But now he has to be both a father and a mother, and also worry about domestic affairs. It's really giving him a huge headache.

No wonder Zhuge Liang in his previous life arranged the internal affairs of a country so perfectly, and was admired by so many great figures throughout history. Only those who have truly dealt with internal affairs know how much talent and effort is required to be so meticulous.

Back home, Lu Tu, who had just relaxed, was immediately overwhelmed by exhaustion.

Song Yuxi immediately brought over a bowl of hot porridge that had been prepared beforehand, along with a small dish of side dishes, and said with concern, "Husband, you must be exhausted. You work so hard every day, you must take care of your health."

After saying that, she came up behind Lü Tu and gently massaged his temples, trying to help him relieve his worries.

Nangong Huiyu was nowhere to be seen. Lu Tu asked curiously, "Where did Xiaoyu go?"

"Uh... she said she was going to see an old friend."

Lu Tu asked curiously, "Does she have any old friends here? By the way, Yu Xi, do you know anything about the Southern Imperial Guards?"

Song Yuxi's hand suddenly trembled, and she asked in surprise, "Husband, how do you know about the Southern Palace Imperial Guards?"

"I've seen them."

“The Southern Garrison was once my brother’s subordinate. When I was exiled, it was thanks to their protection that I was able to reach the border safely. But after arriving in Wuchuan, they were demoted to military slaves. Husband, can you take me to see them?”