Chapter 286 He once cared deeply for the world
Cheng Wanwan and Grandma Zhao rushed back to Dahe Village.
Upon arriving in the village, she put down various things and went straight to the village head's house.
The village head's house was bustling with activity. The village head was sitting at the entrance of the kitchen, smoking his pipe. The weather was getting colder and colder. When he wasn't working, a chill would rise straight up from the soles of his feet, making him shiver. Sitting at the entrance of the kitchen, he could warm himself by the fire and feel more comfortable.
Seeing Cheng Wanwan approach, he quickly stood up: "Auntie Dashan, what happened?"
In the past, when Aunt Dashan came to see him, she always had a smiling face, but today she looked serious, so something big must have happened.
The village head's wife brought out a low stool and placed it next to the stove for Cheng Wanwan to sit on.
After Cheng Wanwan sat down, she recounted everything she had seen and heard in the city.
The village head's expression immediately turned serious: "When my father was still alive, there were refugees visiting Dahe Village. More than a hundred refugees entered the village like bandits, sweeping up all the grain in everyone's house. That night, sixty or seventy people died in the village... If it weren't for that incident, there would be even more people in our Dahe Village... Let's not talk about the past. In short, to me, refugees and bandits are the same. They all come to steal grain. In the past, more than a hundred refugees could kill people. This time there are several hundred. We must be on guard."
Cheng Wanwan nodded: "Whatever decision Uncle Lizheng makes, I will cooperate."
The village head stood up: "Let's first gather some of the old folks in the village for a meeting, discuss a plan, and then implement it."
The old folks in the village are farmers in their sixties and seventies, plus clan heads from various surnames, totaling more than twenty people.
Since they were all villagers with limited knowledge and experience, the village head sent Zhao Tiezhu to invite Master Yu and He Xiao over as well. One was a typical scholar, and the other was a martial arts instructor for the villagers. Each had their own strengths and could think of many things that the villagers couldn't.
Cheng Wanwan's identity is unusual, so she naturally has to participate in the village's core meetings.
A large group of people sat down in the main room of the village head's house. The village head's wife brought in two braziers and then quietly left.
The village head was the first to speak: "Anyone who came to the city today should have heard about the refugees. The refugees are a disaster, and one day they will all migrate to our Dahe Village. Nowadays, every household in the village has surplus grain, and everyone's life is getting better and better. Every now and then, we can even buy some pork cracklings from Aunt Dashan's house to take back for a treat. If such a good life is taken away by the refugees, would we be willing to accept it?"
"The reason I called everyone here today is to discuss a plan to deal with the refugees." The village head paused and continued, "Any method that can stop the refugees from entering the village can be proposed."
Old Mrs. Zhu said in a trembling voice, "Actually, it would be good if each household could chip in some grain to give to the refugees..."
"Grandma Zhu, your idea won't work," an old woman said sternly. "The villagers help the Zhu family because we're all from the same village, and we should help each other out. Moreover, it should be the majority helping the minority, with each household contributing just a little bit. Didn't the village head just say that there are hundreds or even thousands of refugees? Even if we took all the grain from our village, it wouldn't be enough."
Old Mrs. Zhu sighed.
She had experienced hunger and rain, and she also wanted to hold an umbrella for others.
However, she knew she didn't have that ability, so she could only think about it and give up.
Cheng Wanwan patted Old Lady Zhu's arm and looked at everyone, saying, "Dahe Village has two main roads leading in and out, as well as countless mountain paths and trails. Special personnel are stationed along the main roads, and a ring of roadblocks is set up along the village to block all the trails and prevent refugees from sneaking in."
Master Zhao said, "The river in our village has risen, and there might be refugees making bamboo rafts to swim over. We'll need to arrange for people to be on the river."
Chief Xu said, "We should encourage every household to dig more cellars and store the grain separately, so that in case... I mean in case of an invasion by refugees, there will still be a way out."
Chief Wang said, "The patrol team is still too lax. We must strengthen the patrols and keep them going for twelve hours a day."
He Xiao said slowly, "Leave the roadblocks to me. I'll take the martial arts practitioners to prepare them every morning, and it should be completed in about three days. In addition, all patrol members will practice for an extra half hour every day..."
Master Yu paused and said, "Actually, what Granny Zhu said is not without reason. Shouldn't those starving refugees be given a way to survive, in addition to being kept out of the village?"
Cheng Wanwan looked at him: "Master Yu means... work relief?"
Master Yu was somewhat surprised, not expecting that a village woman would know about work relief. But then he thought it made sense, since she was the Lady of Sui, personally appointed by the Emperor. Her knowledge must be much better than others, otherwise she wouldn't have been able to discover ratooning rice.
"Most of the work-for-relief programs are just theoretical. They're easy to talk about on paper, but very difficult to implement in practice. The biggest challenge is that there's no surplus food," Cheng Wanwan said methodically. "If there are tasks for these refugees to do, but no corresponding compensation is given, what's the point of the work-for-relief program? Furthermore, these refugees appeared in the summer and have been wandering in the south for three or four months, struggling on the edge of life and death for so long. Perhaps, there have already been incidents of cannibalism... Nobody knows whether these people are weak or wicked. If we use work-for-relief programs on wicked people, the consequences are unpredictable."
These words silenced Master Yu.
Most of the newly arrived migrants still retained basic conscience and moral principles.
But this group of refugees had been wandering for far too long. To survive for several months without food, they must have some skills.
The wicked villagers are comparable to bandits; letting bandits into the village to work is tantamount to inviting wolves into the house.
Thinking of this, Master Yu gave a wry smile.
He once cared deeply for the world and was willing to worry before enjoying himself, but in the end, he withdrew from the court in despair.
He's already fallen to this state, so why is he still thinking about how to resettle the displaced people for the imperial court?
What do these refugees have to do with him?
What does the rise and fall of the nation have to do with him?
Cheng Wanwan had no idea he had thought so much. She turned to the crowd and said, "We don't know if the refugees will come to Dahe Village, nor do we know if they are good or evil. I'm saying this to tell everyone that kindness is precious, but showing kindness to evil people will kill the whole village. What I mean is that before we understand these refugees, everyone in the village must restrain their kindness, remain indifferent, and not have any private contact with any refugees."
Although she needed people to dig ponds and refine crude glycerin, she dared not let her guard down. She had to make sure that these refugees were harmless before she dared to selectively let some of them work for her.
Moreover, the entire village must be on high alert to prevent a repeat of the disaster of displaced people.
“Grandma, I understand what you mean.” Old Mrs. Zhu said with deep emotion, “I can’t let my momentary soft heart harm everyone.”
The village head said, "Master He, I'll leave the task of setting up the roadblocks to you. Please have Master Yu write a notice to inform the whole village about the refugees. Chief Wang, have all the patrol team leaders come to me. The patrol arrangements need to be rearranged."
The village head was busy with preparations, and the villagers quickly received the news.
Aside from being more vigilant and avoiding contact with unfamiliar outsiders, the village's daily routine remains unchanged. After all, one shouldn't let something that hasn't happened yet affect their current life.
The next day, a horse-drawn carriage arrived at the village entrance; it belonged to the Cao family.
Following the horse-drawn carriage were many mule carts, all loaded with saplings, mostly mulberry trees. These trees are suitable for planting in winter, as they will sprout and grow leaves the following spring, and become lush and leafy in summer, perfect for raising silkworms.
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