Family Cultivation: My entire family are Villains-Chapter 579 - 269, Hexi changes

New Yu Era 1325, March 8th

Hexi, Longxiang County City

Early spring was the busiest time on the streets. The streets of the prefectural city were bustling with people, the noise of the crowd like the boiling of a pot. Compared to the apprehensive atmosphere to the east in Hedong, here in Hexi things were much more peaceful. The scars of the war three years ago were nowhere to be found.

It was hard to believe that just three years ago, Longxiang County was under the jurisdiction of Xuzhou.

Crack...

"Xuanting Bureau on official duty, unrelated bystanders, clear the way immediately!"

With this stern shout and the crisp sound of a horsewhip cutting through the air, the lively East Street of the city fell silent in an instant. A troop of about a hundred black-clad cavalrymen came galloping from the city center. Pedestrians, recognizing the dual-colored lotus symbol on the sleeves of the black-clad riders, scrambled to the sides of the road, quickly making way.

"They’re from the Xuanting Bureau, at least twenty martial artists in the Gang Qi Realm!"

"The weakest among them have reached the Open Body Ten Layers Peak. They’re from the Hou Clan."

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"The whole Xuanting Bureau in Longxiang doesn’t have more than a hundred people, right? Have they all been deployed?"

"Not just the Xuanting Bureau. See those two in front? The one in the dark red warrior attire is Fourth Master Hou Yujie, and the one in the white Confucian robe is Fifth Master Hou Yuduan. And the elder following them, if I’m not wrong, should be Commander Bai Yunfan of the Xuanting Bureau!"

"Aren’t the Fourth and Fifth Masters always stationed in Tongling? Why have they come to Longxiang?"

"They’re heading east. Could it be something’s happened in Hedong?"

"That’s possible. I heard that the fighting in Hedong already started last month."

"Didn’t the Holy Church’s army retreat? Why is there still fighting?"

"The Holy Church’s army might have retreated, but Great Jin’s is still there."

"Could be just that!"

......

With Hou Yuduan’s current strength, even the faintest whispers of the bystanders could not escape his ears. Given the current standing of the Hou Clan, his and Hou Yujie’s simultaneous appearance, combined with the presence of the Xuanting Bureau’s Commander Bai Yunfan, it was no wonder their arrival caused such a commotion—it was only to be expected.

As per their previous promise, the Holy Church only retained the Shengxin Residence as an institution within the four counties. The Hou Clan managed all other affairs, indicative of their status.

Following the series of reforms personally initiated by him, and the Hou Clan’s expansion of its family institutions to nine, their control and supervision over the four counties were comprehensive in every respect. Frankly speaking, the daily affairs of more than ten million people across the four counties were well within the grasp of the Hou Clan.

The official designation of Hexi Prefecture was still pending, but in the eyes of the people of the four counties, it was no secret at all because of the Hou Clan. Although the prefectural city was not yet clearly defined, some clues could be gleaned from the change in population across the four counties.

Two years have passed since the four counties came under the governance of the Hou Clan. Due to the conflicts in the north, a continuous influx of refugees poured into Hexi, and the population of the four counties was rapidly recovering, but the increase was fastest in Tongling.

At first, Hou Yuduan thought it might be because Tongling was the furthest from Hedong among the four counties, possibly making people feel it was the safest.

But he gradually realized this was not the case. People were flocking to Tongling to settle down, indeed because of the war in Hedong, but more importantly due to the Hou Clan. Many saw that the Hou Clan’s main base remained in Tongling and speculated that the future site of Hexi Prefecture would most certainly be in Tongling as well. Therefore, they aimed to seize the prime real estate and lay down their foundations early. Once the prefectural city was established, they could make a fortune.

Even the commoners could be shrewd!

Hou Yuduan’s sigh was not unwarranted. Apart from serving as the commander of the clan’s Mansion Treasury Administration, he also doubled as the commander of the Thousand Cities Bureau. He had jurisdiction over the city lords of nineteen cities outside of the four counties. He had a thorough understanding of the population movements within the four counties.

As of the end of February, the population of the four counties was as follows: Longxiang County 3.52 million, Yangping County 2.91 million, Wanyang County 3.28 million, and Tongling, an astonishing 5.82 million...

During the peak of the demons’ chaos, Tongling’s population had dwindled to less than half a million. In just over three years, it had become a megacity with a population of over five million. Such a remarkable transformation had many factors contributing to it.

The most significant reason was the influx of people from outside. After all, a skilled cook can’t cook without rice. Without people coming in, it was impossible for the local populace to increase so dramatically in such a short amount of time.

In the midst of the chaos in the north, refugees were coming in almost constantly. In fact, many of them originally intended to go towards Hedong. However, due to the ongoing battles there, they ended up having no choice but to head west to Hexi.

Of course, the role played by the Hou Clan was also crucial.

Under Hou Yuduan’s guidance, the initial significant changes were made by the Hou Clan itself. They aggressively absorbed the refugees, especially those among them with martial arts skills, or the young, as long as their background was clear. They could join the Hou Clan with virtually no conditions. This was akin to securing a job for life in Hexi, naturally attracting many.

Apart from the Hou Clan, other emerging powers were not foolish either. The signs of trouble across The World were becoming quite evident. If they did not recruit and arm themselves now, there would be no chance for regret when disaster struck. Therefore, these refugees had another option besides the Hou Clan.

At the same time, with the Hou Clan now in charge of nineteen counties in addition to the four counties, they needed not only martial artists but also a great many ordinary people to assist them, that is, non-family personnel of the clan. This was another way for refugees to make a living, especially as the Hou Clan’s territory continued to expand. This gap would become bigger and bigger, and the number of people it could accommodate would also become more and more.