She raised her hand and slapped her son hard, pulling them forward with all her might, shouting frantically, "You'll obey me! You have to live, don't you understand? You can survive here! If you stay with your mother, you'll starve to death!"
The two boys cried even harder, and for a while, the bridgehead was in an uproar.
The village chief and the others frowned deeply, feeling uneasy. After all, they had all gone through the same experience and knew how painful it was.
But they couldn't agree to take in the family just because they felt sorry for them.
Firstly, the situation at Suijintan is currently precarious, and its future is uncertain.
Perhaps they were destined to perish at any moment, otherwise they wouldn't have sent all the children away.
Secondly, these people fled from the south, and there are definitely many more behind them. If word gets out that Suijintan is taking in refugees, they will probably all flock here immediately.
It's easy to support a dozen people in Suijintan, but supporting thousands or even tens of thousands of people is just a joke!
Old Zhao tugged at the village chief, and the group stepped back to discuss the matter.
"Brother, this is a big deal. We can't make the decision ourselves. We should ask the master."
“I think so too. The refugees will be arriving in Xindu soon, and our family needs to make preparations early. After all, our place is too conspicuous, too obvious, and I'm afraid that anyone with ulterior motives will come here.”
The village chief had the same idea, so he said, "Find two cars, and I'll take some people into the city. Let them fend for themselves; we absolutely cannot take them in. Then, mobilize all our manpower, increase patrols, and protect Broken Gold Beach."
"I'll go to the Earl's mansion right now. I definitely won't be able to see the master during the day, but I'll surely be able to see him tonight. I'll send a message back tomorrow morning."
Everyone nodded and quickly got to work.
Soon, the two carriages were ready.
When this family of refugees heard that Suijintan would not take them in, they cried bitterly and wanted to beg again, at which point the village chief spoke up.
"Fellow villagers, it's not that we're heartless, it's just that this place is the fiefdom of a noble person. Since the noble person isn't here, we are all servants and dare not take the liberty of taking you in."
"I will send you to the new capital. The new capital is inhabited by nobles. It will not be difficult for you to survive. If any noble family is short of servants, you can stay here."
After saying that, he gestured for Xiao Cui and the others to come forward.
Xiao Cui and the other women had already found some old clothes and packed some leftover cakes and steamed buns from home into baskets.
This family was only trying to survive, and seeing this, they stopped insisting.
Wherever you are, you're still alive!
Moreover, the new capital is not only inhabited by nobles, but also by the emperor!
They are citizens of Tianwu; it's right for them to go to the Emperor if they can't survive!
The two carriages then set off one after the other along the path, heading towards the new capital.
The carriages of Suijintan were no different from those of other families, but the wooden sign hanging high in front of the carriage, with "Suijintan" engraved on one side and the character "Li" on the other, was enough for everyone to distinguish them.
The soldiers guarding the city gates may not be good at fighting, but they have excellent eyesight.
Upon seeing the Li family's carriage, they immediately made way without even checking it.
Some soldiers, who were even fond of joking, greeted the village chief, "Uncle, are the fruits on the mountain ripe and being sent to the palace as tribute again?"
The village chief waved his hand, smiling broadly, "No, it's just a little thing that happened at home. I was free, so I came over. The fruit won't ripen for another month! I'll bring you a basket when it's ripe, so you can enjoy it fresh."
The soldiers naturally agreed with beaming smiles, and at the end, they even told the village chief which road in the city was under martial law.
Once the carriage entered the city, it meandered along the way until it found a quiet alley where it unloaded the family of refugees.
"Brother, this is the south of the city, where most of the wealthy families live. You can make a living here."
The village chief waved to the family and then left with his carriage.
The family of refugees had no desire to even return the gift, let alone chase after the carriage.
The prosperity before their eyes made them feel like mice that had fallen into a rice jar, overjoyed and bewildered.
The alley is paved with bluestone, and the courtyards with blue bricks and gray tiles on both sides are neat and tidy.
Even along the courtyard wall, there were lush green willow trees, and under the trees, several mischievous children in jackets, holding snacks in their hands, were curiously observing them...
Even in a good year, let alone a year like this, the county where this family lives doesn't have such peace and prosperity.
They've really fallen into a lucky hole; abandoning their families and fleeing famine was definitely the right decision.
They will definitely survive here!
Not to mention how these refugees went from house to house begging for food and supplies, trying to find a place to stay.
The village chief arrived at the Earl's mansion, and sure enough, no one from the household was there.
The old lady and the princess, the prince, Mr. Wen, and Jia'an are all in the palace mourning.
Fortunately, fearing something might happen at home, the Earl kept Zheng He behind so that no one could send a message.
Zheng He guessed something was wrong as soon as he received the village chief, so he quickly asked, "Grandpa Village Chief, is something wrong? Should I go and inform the Earl?"
The village chief waved his hand and explained what had just happened. He then added, "Xiao He, I don't know how the Lord is doing in the palace. This matter shouldn't be in a hurry, but it can't be delayed for too long."
Zheng He often followed the old man around and was more astute about current affairs than the village chief.
He quickly said, "No, Grandpa Village Chief. We need to tell Uncle about this as soon as possible. We definitely need to make arrangements at home. The situation is particularly bad lately; even a small matter could cause chaos in the world."
After saying that, he stood up and said, "I will go and find a way to send a message to the Lord. You should rest and not leave tonight. In case the Lord asks, I will have to say a few words."
"Okay, okay, you go ahead and get busy, I'll wait at home." The village chief quickly waved his hand and watched Zheng He hurriedly leave.
Li Lao Er received the news from home during lunchtime.
The eunuch who delivered the message was one of Eunuch Feng's adopted sons.
When Zhilan Palace was sealed off, he was among those who were there.
During that time, Jiayin devised many delicious dishes, and everyone from Eunuch Feng to the young eunuchs benefited from them.
Moreover, with Jiayin by her side, the Third Princess never lost her temper and was not afraid of being beaten or scolded.
Occasionally, when the master is in a good mood, a large group of people will play games.
It can be said that those few days were the happiest and most blissful of all the years the young eunuch had been in the palace.
Therefore, even though Jiayin did all this without expecting anything in return, the little eunuch was still happy to do a favor for the Li family.
He was ordered by the Crown Prince to escort a sick old minister out of the palace. When he encountered Zheng He, who was carrying a message into the palace, he offered to help him.
Refugees have entered the city!
Seeing those five words written on the note Zheng He had brought, I was momentarily stunned, but then I wasn't surprised anymore.
Previously, he had asked people to pay attention to the local conditions in various places.
But so many things have happened in Xindu recently that we simply can't attend to them anymore.
Unexpectedly, the refugees "killed" them.
Logically speaking, after several months without rain since spring, every region should have suffered a complete crop failure, resulting in widespread famine and refugees – a result even a fool could predict.
But the emperor was busy with his "death struggle" and making arrangements for his funeral, and had no time to pay attention to these things.
The entire court was currying favor with the new crown prince, trying every means to send their daughters into the palace to secure power for their families.
Two updates today!
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