"I will arrange for them well. If you are willing to make a career in the house, that's fine. Then let them obey your orders." Li Xingchen couldn't help but squeeze Xiao Xiang's hand. The girl's hand was a little cold, "Let's go, then."
The wind will pick up soon."
This sentence was meant for Xiao Xiang, and also for the poor woman who did not hesitate to sell her children in the hope that they could survive. When she heard Li Xingchen's words, the woman relaxed a long time.
He breathed a sigh of relief and fainted in the blink of an eye.
Raising his head to meet Li Xingchen's gaze, Xiao Xiang smiled softly: "Okay, I will follow your husband's orders."
Li Xingchen was the first to jump on the carriage, and then stretched out his hand to pull Xiao Xiang up, but the smile was no longer on his face: "Li Ping!"
"Here!" Li Ping shuddered, but his general's tone was a bit cold.
"Inform Xiao Shilian, Tang Zhengliang, Dai Cai, etc. are waiting for them at the government office!"
"No!" Li Ping responded first, and then asked in surprise, "General, now?"
"Now!" Li Xingchen said coldly.
Xiao Xiang glanced at Li Xinchen in surprise, but in the end he didn't say anything, but held Li Xinchen's hand more tightly.
Obviously, what happened to these three people also reminded her of herself shivering among the rioters in Ji Nancheng not long ago. If she hadn't met Li Xingchen, would her fate have been worse than those of these three people who might have frozen to death on the streets?
——————————————————-
Although Xiao Shilian was stationed outside the city, he was the first to arrive.
Holding a riding whip in his hand, Xiao Shilian strode into the meeting hall excitedly and shouted excitedly: "Shizhong, is there going to be a war? I'm waiting..."
However, when he saw Li Xingchen sitting in the hall with a gloomy face, Xiao Shilian still felt a little in his heart and hurriedly closed his mouth. Li Xingchen's expression was not right, and it was definitely not a good thing to call him over in the middle of the night. Could it be that he had lost the battle?
Or is there a reply from the court, but it's just not satisfactory?
Not only Xiao Shilian, but Dai Cai and Tang Zhengliang, who walked quickly into the meeting hall at this time, also had the same doubts. The two of them almost subconsciously slowed down their steps.
Li Xingchen snorted and looked at Xiao Shilian first: "Where is Lian'er?"
Xiao Shilian immediately scratched his head in embarrassment: "First... go to bed first."
Li Xingchen's face became even darker. It seemed that his brother-in-law wanted to have the child before he got married. But thinking about it, Li Lian'er and Xiao Shilian were not conservative people by nature. When they saw each other in the military camp, it was like thunder.
It is reasonable to stir up the earth's fire. Regardless of this matter, Li Xingchen's eyes immediately fell on Tang Zhengliang behind him:
"Today, a certain person rescued a mother and her son by the river. They were almost unable to hold on because of hunger and cold."
Tang Zhengliang and Dai Cai were both startled, while Xiao Shilian's face also sank slightly.
Li Xingchen slammed the table, and his voice became colder: "If I don't care, three bodies will starve to death on the street tomorrow?! Mr. Tang, Dai Zidong, I have entrusted the official affairs of Ba County to you two, and you are
Did you do this?!"
"I am guilty!" Tang Zhengliang and Dai Cai shuddered. This was the first time they saw Li Xingchen so angry, and they immediately bowed at the same time.
Li Xingchen looked at Tang Zhengliang and Dai Cai coldly, waiting for these two guys to give him an explanation. Li Xingchen could understand the existence of beggars on the street. After all, even in the prosperous times, the existence of beggars on the streets was understandable.
But as soon as I go out, I will encounter people who are selling their money, selling their children, and selling their children. Who knows how many people like this are begging for a way out in every corner of this city?
Tang Zhengliang took a step forward and said in a deep voice: "The general may not know something. Many places in Badi have had poor harvests this year. In addition, Zhou Guo's Fifth Northern Expedition required a large amount of food. Therefore, the local government did not reduce the collection of food.
, so many families are separated from their wives and families. In recent days, many refugees have been found outside the city, and those the general met must have come from Shu."
Li Xingchen nodded slightly. He had already asked the mother and son before, and they were from Shu County. Of course, they didn't know how many people were following him. Now after listening to Tang Zhengliang's words, Li Xingchen realized the seriousness of the matter.
sex.
Throughout the ages, refugees have been a thorny issue for the court. If handled properly, it would mean that the court would have to pay a lot of money and food. If not handled well, it might even cause a large-scale refugee uprising, directly threatening the rule of the court.
The people of China have always been famous for their simplicity and generosity, but when they are unable to satisfy their needs for food and clothing, they will not hesitate to express their anger.
"The refugees coming to us are putting a burden on us." Xiao Shilian also frowned.
Many of these refugees should be women, children, the elderly and weak. Their bodies and bones are already weaker than those of normal men. In such a bad harvest year, they can only live on their old age. Now the Northern Zhou Dynasty is anxious to collect food to make up for the previous consumption and impact.
It is reasonable that refugees will appear in the upcoming war.
What's more important is that there are few young and strong laborers among these refugees, which is naturally more of a burden than a help to Li Xingchen.
Slowly sitting down, Li Xingchen said in a deep voice: "Why didn't you tell me about this earlier?"
"The news was only confirmed today, but there has been no countermeasure. I originally hoped to discuss it with the general and Brother Dai tomorrow, but the general noticed the clues first." Tang Zhengliang said hurriedly, "General, it is better to disperse the people than to stay.
This matter needs to be considered and discussed.”
Li Xingchen gently rubbed his chin: "Then according to your opinion, these refugees should be transported back to Zhou Kingdom?"
"This is impossible," Dai Cai said in a deep voice, "Since the Zhou State did not prevent these refugees from entering Bajun, they must have wanted to take the opportunity to drag us down. Why would they let them go back at this time?"
Li Xingchen took a deep breath, stood up and said in a deep voice: "Since we can't get rid of these refugees, we can only stay."
"But..." Tang Zhengliang and Dai Cai both had hesitant looks on their faces. They also knew that there was no other way to deal with it, but how could it be so easy for the refugees to stay?
"The top priority is not how to resettle the refugees, but how to save these people's lives first." Li Xingchen frowned, "Boqing, Zidong!"
"Here!" Xiao Shilian and Dai Cai hurriedly stood up.
"You should take your troops to the streets immediately, especially along the streets in Waiguo. If you find any refugees, gather them first." Li Xingchen paced back and forth, "Tang Zhengliang!"
"Here!" Tang Zhengliang also trembled.
"Now mobilize the government officials to prepare meals, and confiscate all the temples in the city to resettle the refugees first!" Li Xingchen immediately ordered.
Tang Zhengliang looked over in surprise: "Temple?"
There are quite a few temples in Bajun, and there are even a few magnificent ones, but none of them are abandoned. Tang Zhengliang was surprised by Li Xingchen's order.
"Can you find any other place?" Li Xingchen snorted.