Chapter 234: So Horrible
Thanks to the efforts of Yang Shaohu, Huang Mingxiao and Fang Dashan, all 500,000 refugees were resettled in just three days.
The Zhongzhou Governor's Office was greatly surprised, and Wang Boan specially sent three officials to inspect the resettlement situation.
Yang Shaohu personally received them and took them to the resettlement site.
The three Zhongzhou officials took a look and saw neatly arranged tents stretching from the foot of the mountain to the invisible distance.
A large number of young staff members were shuttling between the tents. Most of them wore silver anchor badges. Some were distributing food, some were distributing cold-proof supplies, some were distributing clean water, and some were cleaning up garbage on the ground.
The ground at the resettlement site is basically flat, and obvious drainage ditches can be seen between the tents.
Some medical staff in white coats were treating sick refugees. Further away, you could see a group of young girls taking care of refugees with mobility difficulties, and also taking care of the tired staff.
This orderly scene made the Zhongzhou officials, who were used to the chaotic and tragic refugee camps that were like hell, burst into tears.
One official wiped away tears and said, "You, you are much stronger than we thought. County Chief Lin is truly a hero, and his subordinates are all heroes too. Woohoo, that's great."
Another person who has experience in managing refugee camps felt it even more deeply.
"We had nothing. A thousand people, crammed into thirty tents. Everyone was starving. I kept telling them the food was coming, but it never came."
"But they didn't blame me. An eight-year-old child took my hand and said, 'Uncle, I'm not hungry. I can still survive for another month. When my family was starving, they called me the expert in enduring hunger!'"
"You know what? I, wow, I really believed what he said at the time. I thought he could really starve for a month, but within an hour, he was dead after holding my hand..."
He cried so hard that he couldn't utter a word. He tried to hold back his tears but failed.
Everyone was silent for a moment. After a while, an official sighed and said, "People are all made of flesh and blood. The people of Zezhou are the most simple farmers in the empire. Seeing so many people die tragically, no one would not be heartbroken."
"This scene before our eyes is the embodiment of goodness on earth," another official said firmly. "You are the representatives of justice and kindness. Don't think my words are corny. Those who have never seen hell cannot imagine how horrific the human world can be."
An official suddenly grabbed Yang Shaohu's hand and said, "You must hurry! You must hurry! There are still so many people in Zhongzhou! There are still so many refugees suffering in hell! They are dying every moment, hurry! You must save them quickly!"
Yang Shaohu's heart was filled with feelings he had never experienced before in the review meeting. For the umpteenth time, he was thankful that he had come out of that abyss.
It’s really great to be able to come to Changshan County and meet County Mayor Lin.
He shook the official's hand and said solemnly, "Of course!"
Yang Shaohu immediately reported to his superiors that he wanted to continue accepting refugees, and Lin Wen quickly approved it.
The three officials quickly returned to Zhongzhou, and the report they submitted to the Governor's Office caused a sensation. Wang Bo'an asked about all the details again and still found it unbelievable.
"It hasn't been that long, has it? How come Changshan County has such strong organizational capabilities?"
"Yes, although they don't have the pressure of war, resettling 500,000 refugees is no small matter."
"500,000 shouldn't be that difficult, right?" an official from the imperial headquarters questioned.
But his words received strong backlash.
"What do you mean it's not that difficult? You'd be exhausted if you took 30 kids on an outing! If you can organize and settle 100 people, you're already an outstanding person among ordinary people. If you can organize 1,000 people, you're a talent. If you can organize 10,000 people, you can be called a sage!"
"With just one word from your headquarters, tens of thousands of people are mobilized. That's not because you're powerful, it's the empire's organizational structure at work."
"That's right. Once the gears of an organization start turning, all the other parts will follow suit. The Council is the dregs in the gears!"
"Refugees have no organization. There are only a handful of regions that can properly accommodate 500,000 refugees!"
"alright!"
Wang Boan stopped them from criticizing the officials and said, "You've seen the issue with supplies. The Council has completely disregarded the safety of the empire. I hope Lord Liao can report this to the higher authorities."
After being fiercely criticized for a while, Lord Liao's face turned blue and red. He snorted coldly: "Let me take another look." Then he turned away.
Wang Boan ignored him and asked, "How does Changshan County supply refugees?"
An official replied, "They treat us very well. In the morning, the refugees have a bowl of vegetable porridge. It's not just water like ours, but real porridge with at least two taels of rice. Plus three cabbage leaves."
"At noon, I have a bowl of porridge and a piece of bread, a piece of meat the size of a thumb, 300 grams of cabbage or rapeseed, and some shredded radish."
"In the evening, I have a bowl of porridge, half a bread, 100 grams of spinach and 100 grams of cabbage, and sometimes a little coriander."
Wang Boan was slightly puzzled: "With this kind of treatment, how much does the daily food cost?"
A logistics officer nearby calculated, "Depending on the price of the vegetables, between 12 and 20 yuan."
"That's impossible!" The Finance Director of the Governor-General's Office jumped up. "For 500,000 refugees, food alone would cost 10 million a day. Where would Changshan County get that much money?"
The official shook his head and said, "Not only that, they are providing refugees with cold-weather clothing, medicine, and medical care, ensuring they have clean drinking water, and a large amount of tents and other relief supplies. This probably costs 15 million a day."
The director of the Finance Department felt like his teeth were about to fall out. Fortunately, Wang Boan's sister Wang Cuihua added:
"I remember that all the Min Party members who used to farm in Qingcheng have gone to Changshan County. These should be the vegetables they grow themselves."
"That's right," the current Qingcheng mayor said. "The previous mayor, Xiang Henian, committed crimes and acted tyrannically in Qingcheng, leading to a serious conflict with Changshan Commandery. Later, the new mayor led his troops to attack and utterly defeated him."
"No wonder, I was wondering how they could be so rich." The director of the Finance Department said sourly, "If you grow your own vegetables, you should be able to save a lot of money."
After hearing this, Wang Boan also remembered that when he was at the joint meeting of thirteen states, the council had fiercely attacked Lin Wen for this reason.
When I think about it, many memories come flooding back to my mind.
Wang Boan smiled and said, "Speaking of which, I have to thank this little guy again. It was he who drove away the lackeys of the Council. Otherwise, Qingcheng would not be mine now."
Everyone nodded, and Wang Boan continued, "It seems our friends are even more capable than we imagined. Perhaps the situation in Zhongzhou will take a turn for the better."
After everyone discussed for a while, Wang Boan called Lin Wen to discuss the subsequent refugee matters.
Although Lin Wen wanted to accept all the remaining refugees at once, the Zhongzhou Governor's Office remained cautious. Initially, Wang Bo'an only agreed to send another 500,000 refugees, but after Lin Wen's persuasive arguments, he recognized Changshan County's capabilities and agreed to send another 1 million refugees.
As a result, the Changshan County Government Office began to operate at high speed again. This time the work intensity was much greater, but some of Yang Shaohu's measures played a big role.
He organized the refugees who had recovered some health and established a refugee management committee.
The Refugee Management Committee not only assists in the resettlement of refugees, but also undertakes many daily affairs, such as cleaning, caring for the sick, distributing food, cleaning the environment, etc.
As the number of refugees increased, the refugee management committee became larger and larger, but under the management of Yang Shaohu, it was always in good order.
The refugees have gradually emerged from so many disasters and shadows, including the occupation of their homes, property loss, displacement, separation from their loved ones, hunger, and even disease.
They unite together and bring new vitality.
This organized power not only gives them the power to survive, but also gives them dignity.
Every time they help a person, they step out of the shadows a little bit and gain a little more faith and spirit to live on.
Huang Mingxiao had such an experience before. He moved out all the precious spiritual wealth left by County Governor Lin during the period of rebuilding his home.
Whenever night falls and people have finished their dinner, they can always hear loud and rhythmic singing.
These songs, which were popular during the period when disaster victims were rebuilding their homes, are being sung here again.
Whenever those tunes with strong rhythms and sincere emotions sound, the gloom in people's hearts becomes less severe. The power of unity provides them with a spiritual pillar, giving them not only the strength to live, but also the motivation to live.
As a result, Changshan County took only thirteen days to resettle one million refugees.
However, in the refugee resettlement site in Changshan County, there was no atmosphere of depression and decadence at all. As soon as the day began, after breakfast, a large group of men set out in groups. They leveled the land, dug ditches, set up tents, cleared garbage, cleaned the place, and spread lime and sulfur for disinfection.
They enjoyed their work so much that they even rushed to do some work that was not within their job scope.
The women helped take care of sick children and helped the angels in white at the resettlement site to treat the patients. The entire resettlement site was full of vitality and vigor, which was completely different from the desperate refugees who were dying a few days ago.
The power of the organization is so terrifying.
After the resettlement of one million refugees, Wang Boan saw that Changshan County had made remarkable achievements, and Lin Wen simply sent Changshan County's financial report to the Zhongzhou Governor's Office.
Faced with such high sincerity, the people in the Governor's Office were extremely passionate and upset.
Wang Bo'an gave two million refugees in one go, and Zhongzhou began to relocate a large number of refugees to Qingcheng, which was closest to Changshan County. Changshan County then transported the refugees from Qingcheng back to the resettlement site in Changshan County.
Life in the resettlement site is prosperous, with countless laborers working on the new wasteland, leveling the ground, clearing gravel, digging drainage holes, and setting up tents.
Whether they were officials from Changshan County, staff members, or imperial soldiers, they all mixed together with them, without distinction between their labor and theirs.
Just to rescue more people.
The number of refugees stranded in Zhongzhou decreased rapidly, and the pressure on Zhongzhou was greatly reduced. Wang Boan was finally able to free up his hands to deal with the invaders with all his strength.
(End of this chapter)
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