Chapter 706: Chapter 700, Chapter 701: Cangzhou Lu’an County

"Finally, we’ve reached Cangzhou. I heard people say that Lu’an County has previously faced a disaster, and many people died, making it difficult to investigate. Let’s settle down in Lu’an County," whispered the leader of the group, Dai Ling.

This group of over a hundred people had fled to the South during the chaos in the North, and now, having heard that the North was somewhat stable again, they were hastily returning with their families.

After all, no matter how good the South was, it couldn’t compare to the home where their ancestors had lived.

"Zhaodi, hurry up. It’s wise to reach Lu’an County before the sun gets too strong. If we wait until it rises high, we will be scorched alive," Dai Ling urged Huang Zhaodi, who was carrying her son on her back.

"Zhaodi, let me carry him for a while. You hardly got any sleep last night while taking care of the child," Father Huang said, taking off his backpack and handing it to Mrs. Huang, before trying to take the child from Huang Zhaodi.

Dai Ling’s wife, Wang Clan, nudged her fourteen-year-old son with her elbow, prompting him to assist.

"Grandma, let me help you with the luggage," said Dai Ling’s son, Dai Qi, as he stepped up to assist Mrs. Huang.

Seizing the chance, Wang Clan asked, "Zhaodi, has Hu’Er’s fever gone down?"

Hu’Er was the nickname of Huang Zhaodi’s son.

"It has," Huang Zhaodi replied, handing her son to Father Huang, feeling significantly relieved, she wiped the sweat from her forehead and managed a smile, "Aunt, this whole journey wouldn’t have been possible without your and Uncle Ling’s help. If not... I don’t know what I would’ve done. Once we reunite with Dai Tu, I’ll definitely have him properly thank you both."

The hardships and encounters throughout this journey brought Huang Zhaodi close to tears just thinking about them.

Passing through the Huai, Lin, Yu, and Qing Four States, the journey was peaceful, the roads were smooth, there were relay stations—it was exceptionally smooth.

But everything changed upon reaching Gaozhou.

The roads were difficult to traverse, and they had to be wary of the roadside "bandits."

Luckily, when encountering "bandits," it wasn’t too bad. These people were the populace from the North who couldn’t survive there, lower-class citizens, and they would only demand some food and money without taking everything, leaving something behind.

However, encountering real bandits was a different story.

It was a mix of bad luck and fortune.

Dai Ling, Huang Zhaodi, and their companions once encountered bandits, who nearly wiped out all their possessions and food. Were it not for Dai Ling and Father Huang, seasoned travelers who hid some broken silver and gold leaf in their anus and shoe soles, they wouldn’t have made it to Cangzhou.

Fortunately, the bandits didn’t take their lives.

Later, they encountered a group of human traffickers dealing in women and children. Thankfully, Dai Ling and Huang Zhaodi’s son was old enough, and the traffickers merely issued a few warnings before parting ways.

Then there were malicious boatmen.

Sinister inns lining the roadsides.

If not for Dai Ling’s extensive travel experience and foresight, they would have been ensnared.

It was owing to Dai Ling’s knowledge that the group safely reached Cangzhou.

Upon arriving in Cangzhou, they couldn’t figure out if it was due to bad food or something else, but Huang Zhaodi’s son suddenly fell ill with a persistent high fever.

The most critical issue was being strangers in a new place; they had no idea where to find a doctor.

Ultimately, finding themselves out of options, Dai Ling used his extensive experience to gather some herbs and concoct a rudimentary remedy for Huang Zhaodi’s son.

In retrospect, it seemed to have worked.

...

Before the sun reached its height, Dai Ling and the group hurriedly arrived at Lu’an County.

They and other returning refugees from the South rushed to the Government Office immediately.

Previously, when Chen Mo repelled the Jin Xia Barbarians and returned, he made preliminary arrangements for the North.

After gaining control of the Court, Chen Mo prompted the Emperor to issue several stabilizing policies for the North.

Among them, there was a policy stating that anyone coming to the North to settle would be given land.

However, while policies were good, the people below didn’t act.

Initially, the people below did act.

After Chen Mo drove out the Jin Xia Barbarians and took control of the North, due to lacking local administration talents, Chen Mo temporarily retained the clerks from the original Government Offices to maintain operations until officials could be appointed.

But now, almost two years have gone by, and still, no officials have assumed office. Meanwhile, the silver that Chen Mo left in the North has dried up.

The local Government Office had no funds, leaving the officials uncertain about preserving their positions in the future. Hence, they began to contemplate alternative ideas.

The policy above indicated that settling could lead to receiving land.

Yet, getting things processed involved an intermediary," he said.

If you pay, I will process it quickly.

If you don’t pay a penny, then I will process it slowly or simply not process it at all.

When Dai Ling and his group arrived, the clerks at the Government Office outright demanded money, not even pretending otherwise.

When Dai Ling claimed they had no money, the clerks rudely told them to get lost.

Because Dai Ling and his group came to settle in Lu’an County with specific motives, they couldn’t use Dai Tu as leverage against them.

Thus, the group pooled the remaining valuables they had and handed them over to the clerks.

Only then, the clerks faced them with a grin, "Name?"

Dai Ling glanced back at Huang Zhaodi.

Huang Zhaodi took the hint and approached with her son, "This is my son, his name is... Guo Feng."

"Age?"

"Just turned nine."

"Where are you originally from?"

"We are locals of Cangzhou, but from the neighboring Man Cang County."

"Why settle in Lu’an?"

"We offended some people in Man Cang County, afraid of their retaliation, so..."

"Alright, next one."

After registering Dai Ling’s entire group, the clerk handed them two sets of keys, "This is where you will live, at Alley No. 2, Crossroad West... As for the farmland, it will be allocated uniformly, come back to the Government Office in three days, and I’ll take you to measure the land."

"Thank you, sir."

...

Three days later, the families of Dai Ling and Huang Zhaodi successfully obtained farmland, although the condition of the land wasn’t quite favorable.

Wang Clan complained, "Why do others get paddy fields while our land is so poor?"

The clerk replied coldly, "With the little money you offered, this is all you’re entitled to."

Although Wang Clan felt indignant at the response, she had no choice but to endure for now.

Dai Ling inquired, "Sir, didn’t I hear they’re distributing rice seeds?"

"Seek out whoever told you that, Lu’an County doesn’t have any," replied the clerk, departing without looking back.

The policies do claim there are rice seeds, but given the situation in the North, even landlords are experiencing shortages, so there are no seeds to distribute; manage on your own.

Luckily, Dai Ling and Father Huang weren’t destitute families, they had some money left, having not given everything to the clerks, preserving some for emergencies.

Several days later, Dai Ling and Huang Zhaodi families managed to settle down in Lu’an County.

Once "Guo Feng" recovered, Dai Ling proposed it was time to reunite with relatives.

Huang Zhaodi agreed, recognizing their current pitiful circumstances.

They mortgaged the allocated land for some money to cover travel expenses, eventually allowing Huang Zhaodi, her son "Guo Feng," "Guo Ling" (Dai Ling), to head towards Linzhou.

The troubles they encountered upon arriving in Cangzhou educated Dai Ling on potential pitfalls, leading them to detour around problematic areas on their journey to Xiangyang.

However, bandits and roadside menaces weren’t isolated.

No matter how cautious Dai Ling and his group were, they still unexpectedly encountered another gang of bandits.

Yet this group of bandits differed from the previous ones.

Not only did they want money, but they also intended to kill.

Though Dai Ling and his group were exceptionally lucky, as just when the bandits prepared to deliver fatal blows, they encountered their savior.

It was Lin Zhong, arriving to take office in Lu’an County.

Knowing about the local chaos after regaining control, Chen Mo dispatched over ten Armored Warriors to protect Lin Zhong when he left Xiangyang, enabling Lin Zhong to swiftly establish authority and operate the Government Office.