“Land and houses will definitely be provided for us, otherwise we’ll have to start all over again. I don’t want to go through the process of starting from scratch again.” Li Mingliang’s family has elderly parents and young children to support. After all the troubles they’ve gone through, they saw that this place could provide them with fertile land to cultivate, so they decided to take the opportunity.

Liu Gao: "It's good enough that we can give you a piece of land. You still want to ask for a house? Why don't you say we'll also provide you with a wife?"

Liu Gao's words struck a nerve with Li Mingliang. His wife had been bitten by a poisonous snake on her way here, and in order not to be a burden to them, she jumped into a deep pit when they weren't looking.

He had already made up his mind to spend the rest of his life with his elderly parents and children. Now that Liu Gao was casually bringing up his wife, he couldn't stand it anymore and stood up to beat him up.

Fortunately, his son reacted quickly and hugged his waist, saying, "Dad, calm down."

After saying this, Liu Gao already regretted it a little. They had all fled together, and he knew about the other person's situation. He knew that his words had hit a sore spot.

Without any hesitation, he apologized directly, "Brother Mingliang, I really misspoke just now. I didn't mean anything by it. I just said the wrong thing in a moment of carelessness. Please forgive me this time."

With everyone's reassurance, Li Mingliang calmed down and remained silent after hearing these words, simply sitting quietly to one side.

"Leaving aside housing, at least we should be provided with farm tools, otherwise we're supposed to dig the ground with our bare hands?" They had suffered from not having farm tools before. Even after the drought, they still used kitchen knives or sharp stones to dig the ground, which was not only inefficient but also extremely tiring.

“If we can’t provide any of these, we might as well go back to our hometown. At least we still have some of our own resources there, and it will be easier to get started.” Lei Hanqing had a clear plan and had even prepared for both possibilities.

"Actually, it's not that difficult to get back. This time, the base not only sent Captain Xiao to escort us, but also specially found the strongest village, Pinghe Village, to come along. As long as we don't do anything reckless along the way, we'll definitely be able to get back to our hometown safely." Liu Gao hadn't been idle these past few days, and had found out everything he needed to know.

Lei Hanqing: "I'd heard before that Village Chief Si, who was leading the team, was very powerful. Even Captain Xiao seemed very obedient in front of him, but we haven't seen him make a move along the way. Is it an exaggeration?"

Lei Hanqing said that because whenever any animals or other dangers appeared, the people of Pinghe Village would take care of them first, and Sicheng would never have a chance to make a move.

Seeing that his words were being questioned by Lei Hanqing, Liu Gao was also unhappy. "You can ask around yourself. When there was a riot in the city, it was this Village Chief Si who led his villagers to help a lot. And why do you think our place is so peaceful? It's because they had already wiped out those tribes in the mountains."

Lei Hanqing said, "Since he's as good as you all say, why do you want to go back? Isn't it safer to stay here?"

Liu Gao rolled his eyes at him, "Do you think I can just do whatever I want? We only have a few small plots of land there. Are we supposed to live off picking wild vegetables every day? Besides, the elders in the family always want to return to their roots and can't bear to leave their belongings. With all these reasons combined, we have no choice but to rush back home."

Lei Hanqing: "Then why are you still here discussing what conditions they're offering? Do you really think you'll change your minds and stay here?"

Liu Gao said, "We're just chatting because we have nothing else to do. If we were here, I'd rather my family go back to live at the base. Even though the harvest would be less, at least it would be more stable."

When Li Mingliang heard them talking about this, he glanced thoughtfully at his family.

"Dad, what should we do?" Li Mingliang's eldest son, Li Litu, is already fifteen years old. After such a long period of hardship, he has become as sensible as an adult.

“Let’s go and find out more,” Li Mingliang gritted his teeth. “If Village Chief Si is really as capable as they say, and also has an upright character, then we’re not afraid of becoming a burden and being abandoned.”

Li Mingliang had considered staying because his family had been having constant problems along the way, and he had been worried about being abandoned.

When they were fleeing all the way here, many families were abandoned by the group because of some problems.

His wife, bitten by a snake, feared being a burden on the family and being abandoned, so she chose to jump into the pit.

He was scared. Although he wanted to protect his parents and children, if the same thing happened to his wife, the family would really fall apart.

Many people around were hesitant, wanting to return to their hometowns but also unwilling to endure the hardship of the journey. For a moment, everyone was discussing the matter.

Captain Xiao was also troubled. Many people were surrounding him, wanting him to go into the city to help them find out what was going on. Of course, it would be even better if he could take them in to see for themselves.

Captain Xiao turned his gaze toward Si Cheng, but to his surprise, the man only had eyes for his wife and didn't even glance at him.

Remembering what Village Chief Si had said earlier, they guessed that the other party would definitely not stand up for them, and this matter would fall on their own shoulders.

Captain Xiao had no choice but to bite the bullet and approach Ning Zhiyuan, "Could you take us in to see the land over there? These people aren't very comfortable until they see the actual property."

Ning Zhiyuan said, "This might not be very convenient. Not only is it getting dark soon, but they are not in the same place and are scattered. Even if they are assigned, they can only be scattered to different villages."

As soon as Captain Xiao heard that the plot was to be dispersed to various villages, he knew it was unlikely to succeed. "Didn't you say there were many fertile fields? Why can't they be concentrated in one place?"

Ning Zhiyuan said, "There's no other way. Although some people are missing, the land is still quite scattered, so we have to relocate them to different villages."

Captain Xiao was more direct: "Are you afraid they'll cause trouble if they get together?"

Ning Zhiyuan sat there silently without saying a word, but Captain Xiao already knew from his attitude that he was right.

Captain Xiao said, "If you are so wary of them, then there is no need for them to stay. They have already suffered too much hardship of leaving their hometown and too much hardship of being ostracized by the locals."

Ning Zhiyuan said, "To be honest, we do have this concern. Spreading them out is actually beneficial for everyone. With the fertile fields of each village scattered, as long as they can adapt to life in the villages, I believe the villagers will not ostracize them."

Captain Xiao looked at him with a half-smile, "Do you believe that? Even in our own base, we wouldn't dare make such a promise. Otherwise, we wouldn't have made this trip."