The short man spotted her immediately and excitedly called out to Wang Zhuzi, "Brother Zhuzi, Miss Jiang is here!"
Upon hearing this, Wang Zhuzi immediately came out of the thatched hut and said to Jiang Yimian with a smile, "Miss Jiang, you've finally arrived. If you hadn't come, I was planning to go down the mountain."
I was thinking of going to look for someone in the deep mountains later when this person arrived.
Jiang Yimian was taken aback, and asked curiously, "How is the situation down the mountain?"
Wang Zhuzi just smiled and said, "You guessed right, the situation in the town has improved a lot. Most of the people who fled famine have returned, and most of them have gone back to their own villages, but some are still gathered in various villages and towns."
Every day, government officials distributed porridge in the woods outside the town and set up shelters for displaced people. Everyone said the new county magistrate was a good official.
If they hadn't been thinking of waiting for Jiang Yimian, they probably would have already gone down the mountain.
A few days ago, Xiao Liu and a few other refugees returned from town and said that the town was no longer in chaos, and that government officials were patrolling and distributing porridge, which made everyone very happy. Some people even went down the mountain overnight.
Jiang Yimian was also delighted and quickly asked, "So how do the government plan to resettle the refugees?"
Before Wang Zhuzi could speak, the short man next to him quickly said, "I heard from those soldiers that refugees can take seeds and grain back to their hometowns, or the government can arrange for them to reclaim wasteland and cultivate land in various villages."
With government guarantees, these displaced people were able to settle down in the village.
Without government officials, they would be forced to wander aimlessly, as the villages would never allow them in.
Jiang Yimian raised an eyebrow, quite satisfied with the arrangement; the imperial court had done a very good job.
It seems that the newly appointed magistrate of Qingshui County is indeed a good official.
Wang Zhuzi continued, "Xiao Liu is right. Would Miss Jiang like to come to town with us?"
Although the town is no longer in chaos, no refugees have returned from the nearby villages. It's said they know about the bandits down the mountain and are all gathered in town, afraid to go back to their villages.
With these bandits around, the nearby villages would probably have been plundered long ago. Not to mention people, there probably wouldn't even be a single bird or other living creature left.
Needless to say, Xinghua Village has already been used as a base by bandits, and the people of Xinghua Village cannot move in anytime soon. If you go to the town with them, the government may arrange for them to go to other villages.
Wang Xiaoliu nodded quickly, "Miss Jiang, why don't you bring your family and come down the mountain with us? I reckon it won't be long before the magistrate makes arrangements for us refugees."
Jiang Yimian glanced at the two of them and waved her hand. Their lives in the small depression were much better than they had been in the village before, so naturally they couldn't just leave like that.
Moreover, since Xinghua Village was occupied, if the villagers were relocated to other villages by the county magistrate, they would have no homesteads or farmland.
For farmers, the most important things are their houses and fields. If they don't even have these, how can they survive? As for reclaiming wasteland, they might as well stay in the low-lying area.
Having both land and a house is much better than living under someone else's roof.
Moreover, she wanted to see how the new magistrate planned to suppress the bandits—whether he would be scared away by the size of the stronghold and the continuous deep mountains, or something else entirely.
Seeing that she refused, Wang Xiaoliu was about to say something more when Wang Zhuzi waved his hand, so he had no choice but to shut up.
Seeing that Jiang Yimian had her own plans, Wang Zhuzi didn't try to persuade her any further. He just smiled and said, "Miss Jiang and her family should be careful on the mountain. Recently, the bandits seem to have robbed a lot of things from passing caravans. It's been quite lively every night. If they want to come up the mountain to look for someone, there are still risks on the mountain."
Jiang Yimian simply smiled and thanked him, "Thank you for your concern, Brother Zhu. When are you planning to leave?"
Seeing that the other party showed no sign of worry, Wang Zhuzi understood.
Speaking of which, although he took quite a few people to the deep mountains last time, he didn't seem to know where Miss Jiang and her group were staying.
They were just being led by the nose by Jiang Yimian and her group. Thinking of this, he stopped trying to persuade them to go down the mountain.
Jiang Yimian and her group must have some skills to have been able to live under the noses of the bandits for more than half a year, and their place of residence must have been very secluded.
He thought for a moment before saying, "I'll go down the mountain and leave in a bit."
The bandits aren't paying attention to them right now, so the sooner they leave, the safer they'll be.
Jiang Yimian responded and was about to go check on the situation in the mountain stronghold when she was stopped by a little boy with big, blinking eyes.
The little boy was thin and frail, but his eyes were full of spirit, showing no signs of fatigue or numbness from months of fleeing famine.
She had seen many refugees on the mountain, and their eyes, besides being weary, mostly showed numbness. But this little boy was full of energy, as if he was full of hope for everything.
He looked at Jiang Yimian, handed her a bamboo tube full of walnut kernels, and whispered, "Thank you for taking care of me, sister. My mother, father, and I are going down the mountain now."
Jiang Yimian paused, then looked at Wang Zhuzi and a pale, thin woman.
Although the young woman still seemed listless, she looked much better than when I had visited her before, and there was a light in her eyes.
The young woman simply smiled and said, "Daqiang heard that a woman saved everyone, and he's been thinking of thanking you ever since, so he peeled some walnuts for you. Please accept them, Miss Jiang."
These walnuts are the best they can offer right now.
They usually couldn't bear to eat them, but when they heard Daqiang say that he was going to give them to Jiang Yimian, they gave Daqiang the walnuts that they had finally found.
The little guy carefully peeled the bamboo tube for many days before he had collected enough to fill it completely.
Jiang Yimian's lips unconsciously curved into a smile. She took the bamboo tube, reached out and patted Daqiang's head before saying gently, "Thank you, Daqiang. You must be a good boy and listen to your father and mother from now on."
Daqiang nodded happily and said with a smile, "I want to help others like my sister in the future."
Jiang Yimian was taken aback, but simply smiled and nodded.
She didn't initially intend to help these refugees; she only wanted peace and quiet in the small depression.
The last time she treated everyone, it wasn't just to save them.
However, hearing these words now, she felt it was all worthwhile.
Wang Zhuzi reached out and rubbed Daqiang's head. Seeing that everyone had almost finished getting ready, he smiled and said, "Thank you so much, Miss Jiang, for these past few days."
After saying that, he led the group deeper into the woods.
Seeing the once bustling hilltop suddenly empty, Jiang Yimian was actually happy.
With no more refugees on the mountain and the town below slowly improving, it proves that the situation in the village will also gradually improve.
Jiang Yimian carefully placed the bamboo tube into her basket before heading towards the mountainside.
This time, she only glanced at the situation in the mountain village from afar and did not approach it.
The mountain stronghold was bustling with activity. The gates were wide open, and every bandit was cheering, brandishing their knives.
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