Chapter 7: Could it be worse?
While the fighting was going on outside, there was no movement in Feidong Society. There were many of them, but only a few guns, and they didn't even dare to go out and take a look at what was happening at their doorstep.
It was not until Patel contacted Neri through their secret channel and confirmed that he was not a disguised person and had not defected to the enemy that he opened the door and let him in.
So they let him go alone.
At first, he was worried that the governor would be dissatisfied, but he was not. Gu Hang generously let him go in first and explain the situation. The governor's troops would stay outside Feidong Society for two days, waiting for his news.
As for what news they were waiting for, Gu Hang did not say it clearly, but Patel probably understood.
The Governor has completed the rescue he promised, and now it is time for Feidong Society to show sincerity.
Patel doesn't feel bad about this.
Feidong Society completely obeys the Governor. What's wrong with that?
Entering through the doorway, he returned to his hometown.
Familiar faces appeared before his eyes.
Their faces are both pale and black. They are pale because they live underground all year round and never see the sun; they are black because the sweat from their labor is stuck together with the coal dust, and they have no conditions to wash themselves regularly.
He is the leader of Feidong Society. There are more than 900 people in the cave, and he knows every face.
People rushed to ask him:
“Patel, are we saved?”
"Have all those damned bandits been killed?"
“Who saved us?”
Faced with so many of these questions, Patel initially responded one by one as he walked. Later on, he could no longer answer everyone's questions one by one, so he could only give unified answers loudly while trying to move through the crowd.
"Yes, we are saved."
"All those bandits have been killed."
"It was the Governor who saved us."
People who heard the answer cried with joy.
After finally getting through the crowd, he turned around and looked at his compatriots' malnourished and definitely not good-looking faces. He felt both proud and worried.
The pride came from the fact that he brought in reinforcements and saved everyone.
Worrying means not knowing what the future will be like.
Sighing slightly, he turned around and saw his uncle, Old Butch.
Butch's hand was broken when a cart loaded with ore overturned, and the wound became infected and had to be amputated. He almost died. During that time, Patel was promoted.
After Old Butch recovered, he did not try to seize power - what was there to seize? In the environment of the abandoned cave community, there was no room for exploitation and oppression. The leader was elected. The entire settlement was too poor. Even as a leader, his working and living conditions were not much different from those of others.
Due to his disability, Butch could no longer do any heavy work. But he still made use of his remaining energy and devoted himself to assisting Patel, his junior.
Old Butch patted his shoulder with his remaining hand and said, "Thank you for your hard work."
“That’s what I should do,” Patel responded.
The two of them went into a small room, and Patel told Old Butch the whole story of how he went for help.
Old Butch sighed and said, "It's a disaster, not a blessing."
The old comrade's attitude seemed somewhat pessimistic.
Patel disagreed with him, "What is a blessing in disguise? I don't think there is a place for disaster. This is definitely our chance. The Governor-General said that he will not only save our lives, but will save them to the end. He is here to build the entire world, and our Feidong Society is the first stop."
Patel sighed, "How can we trust the words of those big shots? In their eyes, we are like rats and bugs in the gutter. When have they ever regarded us as human beings? When they want to use us, they say a few nice words to us, as if they value us very much. But when they are no longer useful, they will be ruthlessly abandoned."
Patel said: "I don't think the Governor is that kind of person."
Old Butch sneered: "You are just a young boy, what do you know? You have only known him for a few days?"
"What can we do?" Patel asked, skipping the question of trust. "Can our situation get any worse? More than 900 people work hard in this mine. No one dares to be lazy. Those who are lazy starve to death. But even so, we still don't have enough food or warm clothes. We are often injured or killed on the job, and people freeze to death every winter."
"We don't have extra property to buy guns and cannons to arm ourselves. When we encounter any danger, we can only lock ourselves in the cave and pray that the danger will pass by itself. We didn't die before because we were too poor, and the robbers didn't want to spend too much effort to pry open the turtle shell, so they couldn't get more than two bites of meat. This time we encountered the most greedy ones, who were determined to attack us and sell living people for food. As a result, we can only sit and wait for death."
"I absolutely don't want my compatriots to continue living like this."
"Besides, what do we have to lose?"
This silenced Old Butch. After a long while, he finally said, "We will lose our freedom."
"Hahaha! Freedom!" Patel laughed so loudly that it almost reached the outside of the door. People who didn't know him would think he was really happy. "Can freedom be eaten? This time I also went to Renaissance City, the capital of the alliance, and I saw slaves. The lives of slaves are much better than ours. We don't even live as well as cattle and horses! If giving freedom can prevent our people from starving to death, freezing to death, or being eaten as food, then I am willing to give up my freedom."
Old Butch finally couldn't say anything else. He could only sigh again: "I don't object to any of your decisions. I just hope that we won't regret it."
“We will never regret it.”
…
"I believe you won't regret it."
That day, Gu Hang saw Patel coming back, bringing with him several influential people from Feidong Society, who expressed their complete submission to him.
It was completely within Gu Hang's expectations.
The people of Feidong Society had no choice.
Patel said humbly, "Governor, there are 907 people in Feidong Society, waiting for your first order."
"Let's go into the cave and take a look."
"What? You want to go into the cave?"
"Not welcome?"
"No...but...the conditions there are very poor, you..."
He really didn't want Gu Hang to enter the mine, not for any other reason, but because the conditions in the mine were too bad.
More than 900 people lived in a narrow cave. Even though there was a vent, the smell inside was definitely not pleasant. The living conditions were poor, and feces and urine were everywhere...
Patel was afraid that the situation in the mine would dirty the Governor's gorgeous clothes, and even more afraid that it would dirty the Governor's heart.
Gu Hang waved his hand and said, "I have to see what your situation is before I can decide what to do next."
(End of this chapter)
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