Captain Xiao quickly caught up with Si Cheng. "Village Chief Si, I'm really sorry, there are always some clueless people causing trouble."
Si Cheng said, "It's nothing, it just delayed everyone's journey. It doesn't matter if we're a little earlier or later."
Captain Xiao, "..."
With such an indifferent tone, Captain Xiao didn't know how to respond and looked to Yun Qi for help.
Yunqi said, "We've seen this kind of thing many times, and people will get used to it. Time will teach them how to behave, so we really don't care."
Yunqi knew that the other party's purpose in saying this was simply to prevent them from abandoning the situation, but he was really overthinking it.
Captain Xiao forced a smile, but he was really on the verge of a mental breakdown from all these little incidents. Moreover, many of these incidents were aimed at Pinghe Village, and he was genuinely afraid that they would abandon the village, in which case he really wasn't confident he could send these people back.
Looking at Captain Xiao, who was so timid, Yun Qi was a little worried. When they arrived at their destination, would this person be able to control so many people under him?
Actually, she really misunderstood. Captain Xiao is not timid at all. His personality is more inclined to seek stability, otherwise the base would not have assigned him there.
There were many such minor incidents along the way; some people deliberately caused trouble, while others had accidents.
They were either bitten by snakes while foraging for wild vegetables, or collapsed from heatstroke after days of traveling. In short, all sorts of problems kept arising. Although they would delay their journey, everyone gritted their teeth and persevered in order to return to their hometown.
After walking for nearly half a month, we finally saw a tall wall.
This kind of wall is not even in the same league as the walls of the villages we used to encounter. Although it is not as good as the walls of the base, it is only slightly worse.
"What city is this?" Si Cheng asked Liu Liuxing, who was leading the way.
Liu Liuxing looked at the scene with a complicated expression. "This was the original T City, but back then they refused entry to everyone. Anyone who dared to force their way in was shot without mercy."
It was precisely because these places were so tough on them that they insisted on staying at the base, because they were afraid that if they went any further, other cities would treat them the same way.
Si Cheng understood when he heard him say that. In their previous life, they had encountered many similar situations. In more chaotic places, people would be taken in to work for free, given only enough food to keep them from starving. Even if they managed to escape, their bodies would be completely ruined.
"Let's not rest here. These people are not easy to deal with." Liu Liuxing saw Si Cheng deep in thought and was afraid that he would become curious about the place and cause trouble.
Si Cheng didn't want to get into trouble, so he led the team to continue moving forward.
"Wait a minute." A voice called from the wall, and everyone stopped and looked at the wall.
Several men were standing on the wall, waving enthusiastically at them.
This was completely contrary to what Liu Liuxing had said; on their faces, one could see warmth and kindness.
Seeing such a drastically different attitude, Liu Liuxing also had some doubts in his heart; the contrast between before and after was too great.
Because of Liu Liuxing's previous warning, Si Cheng became wary upon seeing the other party's attitude.
Captain Xiao, as the person in charge of the entire team, walked over and greeted them, "We're just passing by. Is there anything I can help you with?"
"It's nothing, I was just curious because there are so many of you. Are you all planning to go back to your hometown?" one of the men asked.
Captain Xiao: "Yes, the climate has recovered now, and returning to our hometown is also a way out."
"Why bother going back and forth like that? We have plenty of land here. If all else fails, you can settle down here." Ning Zhiyuan, the man who led the conversation, smiled as he looked at the people below the city wall.
Captain Xiao replied, "I can't make that decision. We have no objection if they want to stay."
Liu Liuxing was stunned by these completely different attitudes.
His mind was in turmoil as he wondered if his memory was playing tricks on him, that he was now actually inviting them to stay and settle down here.
Someone in the group couldn't help but ask, "What kind of land can you provide? Do we have to clear the land ourselves?"
Ning Zhiyuan said, "No need. These are all fertile fields. They can be cultivated with a little preparation. Anyway, you'll rely on these to make a living when you go back. Why go to such lengths and travel so far?"
"With such a good place, why doesn't anyone go and cultivate it?" someone asked.
Ning Zhiyuan was not surprised that someone would ask this question. "It's mainly because of the drought and animal plagues that happened some time ago, which caused many people to give up, so a lot of our fields are now empty."
“Captain,” Gu Qing, who was standing behind him, said softly, “we don’t have many empty plots of fertile land, but we can’t accommodate so many people.”
Ning Zhiyuan made a gesture behind his back, and Gu Nian wisely said nothing more.
"But you didn't say that when we passed by before. Back then, some of our companions were injured because of it," Liu Liuxing asked, regaining his senses.
Ning Zhiyuan touched his nose. "You all know the situation back then. There were so many refugees, we couldn't possibly resettle them all."
Captain Xiao, "So, can you accommodate so many people right now?"
Hearing this, some people in the team became anxious. "Captain Xiao, we still need to go back to our hometown. We can't settle down here."
At this moment, they were afraid that Captain Xiao would settle them here in order to complete the mission as soon as possible, which would go against their original intention of returning home. If they could not go back this time, then their hopes would be very slim.
The whole group suddenly became chaotic. Everyone gathered around, chattering and trying to persuade Captain Xiao to continue on his way.
“See? We might want to take them in, but we have to see if anyone is willing to stay,” Ning Zhiyuan said, turning to Gu Nian.
"Then what should we do?" Gu Nian asked. "The conditions we're offering are pretty good; it's better than them having to go back to their hometowns and start all over again."
Ning Zhiyuan sighed, "If only I had left a group of people here before. Now the population is decreasing, and if it continues to decline, our resistance will decrease, and eventually we will all become food for those animals."
Ning Zhiyuan didn't mention another important reason, which was that their population would decrease. Besides the drought and beast plagues mentioned earlier, the most important reason was internal strife. Everyone was constantly clashing for their own interests, which led to a continuous decline in the population.
Once everything was restored, they realized that their remaining strength was insufficient to resist the wild animals on the mountain, which is why they wanted to keep such a large group of people when they saw them passing by.
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