Heavenly Blessed Baby: Fleeing Famine, Busy to Prosper!-Chapter 137: Everyone Fell Silent

"They currently have no money or resources, even eating is a problem. Although we don’t have any money either, we do have some food. Not a lot, but it’s enough so that no one would starve."

"So I was thinking, maybe we could have them sign a document. It’s not a contract of servitude, just like hiring long-term workers!"

"We could provide them with grain, let them take it back to eat, but they would have to work to repay the debt."

Yi Meng paused and looked at everyone.

Qi Quanjin was the first to respond, "Wife, you mean hiring them as long-term workers, but we’re just humble farmers, how can we afford to hire long-term workers?"

Yin Cheng, for once, spoke calmly, "We have no official titles or land, we’re not wealthy. If word gets out that we’re hiring workers, it might not look good."

Others nodded in agreement.

Goodness, they almost ended up becoming long-term workers for wealthier families, and now they’re considering hiring workers themselves.

This change is even more thrilling than fleeing a famine!

Yi Meng hadn’t really thought of it that way, but after some consideration, she said, "We don’t have to call it long-term work, let’s just say... hiring people, with some wages paid in advance. As for the reason to hire, it’s easy to explain. If we really build a new village, we would need people to build houses, right?"

"Moreover, when living in the same village, helping each other wouldn’t really be considered hiring long-term workers."

In the past life, advance payment and debt repayment through work weren’t new concepts.

It’s just that applying it in this era requires additional planning.

Everyone remained silent after hearing this.

They found it a bit difficult to follow.

In the end, it was Qi Zheng who made the decision, "I think this method proposed by my fourth sister-in-law is feasible. Now it depends on whether those people are willing or not. If they are, it will be easy; if not, we’ll think of another way."

They listened to Qi Quanjin because he was capable.

Their trust in Qi Zheng, besides the fact that he’s calculating, mainly comes from him being the oldest among them.

In this era, there’s a mysterious trust towards the elderly.

Qi Quanjin wasted no time and went to the next group of thirteen people to convey their decision.

Everyone was quite surprised upon hearing.

Long-term workers?

They had considered this option before, but never expected those hiring them would be fellow escapees like themselves.

In the end, it was the old junior scholar who first expressed his stance, "Agreed! This plan is truly good. As long as you don’t mind us being old and young, we’ll do it!"

The young man who reported the small intelligence earlier, and seemingly the healthiest among the thirteen, looked to be in his thirties nearing forties.

But given the hardships along the escape route, he’s likely younger than he appears.

After contemplating for a while, he finally spoke, "Benefactor, for so many of us to survive the winter, without food, drink, or a place to stay, even if we agree to this, what do we do afterward? We can’t always depend on the food you have."

"That, we’ll discuss when the time comes. Since you agree, let’s proceed like this for now."

Qi Quanjin understands that building a new village is no easy feat, "Building houses and such will indeed be tough, but think about it: if we get assigned to existing villages, would there be houses for us to live in? Kind-hearted villages might offer sheds to block the wind, but what if they refuse to take in outsiders? Should we kneel at their doors asking for a place to stay?"

These words left everyone silent.

No household would willingly take in a stranger out of nowhere.

If a woman with children, it might be okay, but if it’s an adult man, with women in the home, could they just fit in?

Everyone accepted the arrangement brought by Qi Quanjin.

After the decision was made, Qi Quanjin came to deliver the news, and no one was stingy anymore.

They didn’t have much more, but offering some coarse rice for those people to have hot porridge and fill their bellies was manageable.

For thirteen people, less than a pound of coarse rice was given, making porridge that was more water than rice.

Yet even so, it brought tears to the eyes of all thirteen of them.

If it weren’t so cold that getting up would lose the warmth in their bodies, they’d want to kneel down and express their gratitude.

"That pound of coarse rice is like testing the waters. Whether it works or not, it’s just a matter of making the attempt."

Qi Zheng habitually wanted to take a few puffs of smoke, but without any tobacco leaves, he only took in a few cold breaths. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

The aroma of rice porridge is easily detectable to those who are hungry.

But the wind was strong, and by the time it reached people on the other side, it had dispersed to nothing.

The two parties managed to spend a peaceful night.

Daylight broke, the snowstorm continued, but the city gate still opened.

The soldiers at the gate had thicker cloaks, with their faces wrapped tightly, leaving only their eyes visible.

Despite the cold, the inspection procedures were not lessened; if anything, they were more thorough.

The other group wanted to seize the front position, but after a frozen night, they moved like zombies, taking a long time to get up.

In contrast, the Qi family’s group had it much easier.

To be safe, Qi Ercai, alongside Qi Dalang, accompanied Yin Cheng, taking the ginseng for inspection.

The rest still kept warm by the fire.

Breakfast was again coarse rice porridge, but slightly thicker than what was given to the thirteen.

Yi Meng accompanied Qi Quanjin to feed the five horses with fodder.

The fodder was dried grass collected earlier, with Yi Meng discreetly adding fresh vegetable leaves.

So these five wild horses had the best relationship with Yi Meng, behaving as if raised by her since they were young whenever they saw her.

While feeding the horses, Yi Meng said to Qi Quanjin, "We have quite a bit of chestnuts, grain, and jerky, but if the city gate checks them all, it might draw more attention."

"Brother Jin, I want to be the last one to enter the city, so when others aren’t paying attention, I can store some food in the space. What do you think?"

Yi Meng had thought of doing this last night.

But with everyone awake, any movement would draw attention, so she waited until now.

Qi Quanjin nodded, "I’ll inform everyone, and we can follow at the back. Also, move the food onto the cart; this way it’s covered, and any difference wouldn’t draw too much attention."