Chapter 43 The First Conscription
The Wang family, who had been enjoying a bright future, was brought back to reality. They were no longer wealthy and noble families with abundant resources, and they had no money and resources to use.
Now they are penniless and have nothing, and they have to start all over again.
Everyone's mood was a little low because of Feng Shiyun's truth, but when they thought about the opportunity to realize this vision, everyone's mood became high again.
The drizzle had been falling for nearly half a month, and the tree house was almost covered with moss, and then the bad news came.
The government issued a conscription order, requiring all adult convicts to serve on the banks of the West River. When Baixiang Village received this conscription order, there was an inexplicable sense of relief.
It’s here, it’s finally here. It’s been hanging in my mind for three whole months, and now it’s finally here.
There were only a hundred or so children left in Baixiang Village, as well as the uncontrollable Li Feifei and Feng Niu, the stupid son of the Feng family.
"My God, I never knew there were so many fugitives in Lingnan!"
Jian Xiaocheng looked at the dark crowd. Most of them were wearing short-sleeved shirts, most of which were patched and looked very worn. Everyone's face showed numbness and deep fear.
fear?
Why do I feel fear? Is the place I’m going to this time very dangerous?
The people of Baixiang Village had already inquired with Feng Shiyun about the situation. Isn't it just a little bit of hardship? Why did they look like that?
Could it be that Mr. Feng is hiding something?
Or does he want to take over the fruits of Baixiang Village's labor and plan to kill everyone?
The people in Baixiang Village were like lambs among a pack of wolves, panic-stricken and unable to help but have wild thoughts.
Because of the rain, the originally wet road became muddy after being trampled by everyone. Because of the urging of the officials, the people behind couldn't help but slip, and one of them fell down, like dominoes, and everyone fell to the ground with their limbs spread out.
"You don't want to build the dam? It's really interesting. You think you can avoid it by falling?
Even if I break my legs today, I have to crawl out. Even if I die, I have to be thrown into the river. You are a bunch of exiled lowlifes who don’t understand their place and yet you still want to waste my words.”
"Hurry up and get up! If you delay the construction, I will make you suffer."
“Pah.”
The barbed whip hit everyone mercilessly, and for a moment the wailing drowned out the sound of the falling rain.
"What bad luck! How could we be so unlucky to be the one to escort you, a bunch of untouchables, and now we have to accompany you in the rain."
"Hurry up and get up. Are you waiting for me to help you?"
Screams, screams, and complaints filled the sky.
The people in Baixiang Village were quite agile. When they heard the sound of whips, they stood up reflexively, supporting each other.
Therefore, although everyone rolled around in the mud, no one was whipped. Lin Yue, who was hiding behind the crowd, also breathed a sigh of relief.
However, I didn't expect that the local officials in Lingnan would be much more ruthless. I am afraid that my service in the future will not be easy. But with so many people around, it is not a good idea for me to get too close.
They walked and stopped, fell and banged their heads, and screamed all the way through the mud for almost eight hours before the officials finally announced that they had arrived.
What kind of place is this?
The river, more than five meters wide, was surging with water. Various branches and clothes were mixed in the water, and even the grass on the shore was almost submerged.
It looked very dangerous. If they were to work in such an environment, they would probably be in great danger. The people in Baixiang Village had a bit of a bad premonition.
"As you can see, the river is about to overflow. Your task is very simple. From here ten miles up and ten miles down, you must build dams to prevent the river from overflowing. As for how to build them and how many meters they should be, these are all your business. I just want to see the results.
The government office will provide a meal at noon every day, and you can arrange your own time for the rest of the time, but you must be here from the morning to the evening. The village chiefs should count the number of people in your village. If one person is missing, you don't want to know the consequences. "
The leading officer was the man who was arm in arm with Yang Dajun when he first came to Lingnan, but now his expression was fierce and murderous, which was a far cry from his previous gentle image.
"Sir, do you have any tools?"
An old man emerged timidly from the crowd, and he was obviously the head of the village.
"Old Zhu, is this your first time serving? And you're asking if there are any tools? Lingnan is so big, and you're the only one who gets to take your turn when there are tools. You're really being shameless."
The leading officer glanced at the trembling old man with a mocking tone.
"No, I don't want to be here. I'm going to die. I'm going to die."
In the originally quiet team, a hunchbacked middle-aged woman was muttering to herself and in a trance, and was about to rush back the way she came. In her haste, she even bumped into several people who were blocking her way.
"Catch her, don't let her get away."
However, the woman seemed to have gone mad. She desperately tried to break free from the force wrapped around her and ran forward. She didn't even care when the police started to draw their swords.
"ah!"
There was a scream, and the person who was close was sprayed with blood on his face. The person who was originally running now lay on the ground without a sound.
The sudden change made the originally somewhat chaotic team fall silent. Obviously, everyone was frightened by the behavior of killing people over a disagreement.
"You are exiled prisoners from the imperial court, and you really think you are still the officials with a lot of followers! Now that you are here, who cares who you are?
"When you get to my territory, you'll be coiled like a dragon, crouched like a tiger, and if you're truly all-powerful, then climb up there and show off to me. This is the fate of those who disobey."
Everyone looked at the corpses on the ground silently, their eyes empty and numb. The people of Baixiang Village were heartbroken. These three months had almost made them forget that they were still in hell, with their lives in the hands of others.
"Mr. Feng, why didn't you tell me? These officers are so arrogant. They kill people like they're slaughtering animals without any explanation at all!"
As the village chief who was pushed out, Lin Hongyuan was very angry that he did not get this information in advance. What's more, he boasted that there was nothing in Lingnan that he didn't know. What is the situation now?
Feng Shiyun also looked embarrassed. He didn't expect that the fugitives from Baixiang Village were so unlucky that they encountered the river embankment construction project with the highest mortality rate at the very beginning.
He had been conscripted twenty times over the years, but had never done this kind of work. Most of the time he was called up to do mining. He also felt that he was unlucky because of the people in Baixiang Village.
"Oh, they don't usually do this. Maybe it's raining and the officials are in a bad mood. Besides, I've never been to the river to build a levee before.
Brother Lin, let's blend in with the crowd and stay low. We should just do what others do, so we won't be noticed by the police."
But Lin Hongyuan did not do nothing in the past three months. While purchasing supplies, he took the opportunity to find out about the situation in Lingnan in recent years. This river was originally built by the exiles, and Lingnan was often flooded in the past.
The situation has only gradually improved with the construction of several rivers in recent years, but the county town is built in a low-lying area, and as long as it rains heavily, the river water will spread to the county town.
Once the sun comes out, it dries quickly, but the odor left behind lingers for a long time.
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