The old man glanced at the carriage and the thirty-odd people behind Yun Zhe. He said cautiously, "There's only one stable that can hold so many people..."
Upon hearing the word "stable," Gao's expression immediately turned grim. He was about to speak when Yun Zhe stopped him.
"Does the stable have a roof?" Yun Zhe looked at the sky, which seemed to be about to rain.
The old man nodded.
"Then let's go to the stable!"
The huge stable had actually been abandoned for a long time. There were no horses inside for a long time. The roof of the stable was also damaged due to years of disrepair, but fortunately the stable itself was still quite sturdy.
Everyone was initially unhappy about living in stables. However, since Lord Yun Zhe readily agreed, they had no choice but to keep their complaints to themselves.
Yun Zhe gave the village chief some silver coins, instructing him to prepare some wine, meat, hay, blankets, and other sleeping supplies. He also arranged for Gao to lead the soldiers to cut down trees and repair the roof of the stables.
After dismissing these people, Yun Zhe stood in front of the stable, lost in thought. He and the village chief had learned some basic information about the village on their journey. The village now had about fifty households, but less than two hundred people had fled. This year, two conscriptions of able-bodied men were made for the army, and taxes were collected three times. Those who were able or had relatives elsewhere had already left; those who remained were resigned to their fate but unwilling to leave the village. The village had very little food; this year's harvest was almost nonexistent. Located in a remote area, the village was frequently targeted by bandits and thieves. The houses were dilapidated, and there were no decent industries. Therefore, the village could now be described as utterly impoverished.
Lorraine leaned closer to Yun Zhe, "I didn't expect the village to be so bad. A village like this can't possibly collect taxes. Why don't you talk to the Earl and ask him to give you a different fief? Actually, the Earl has always felt indebted to you and wanted to give you something better..."
Yun Zhe interrupted Lorraine. He looked at Lorraine with some surprise. "We came here just to collect taxes?"
Lorraine was also surprised. He looked at Yun Zhe and asked, "Why not collect taxes? Are you going to support them?"
Yun Zhe pursed his lips, looked up at the gloomy sky, and said, "Winter is coming. Let's get through this winter first."
This statement came out of nowhere, and Lorraine didn't react for a moment.
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