Others are fleeing famine, but I am a salted fish

Only with a sharp edge can one cut through metal; only with unity can one reach the state capital; and the women can hold up half the sky if they are ruthless.

They acted right away. Some of the women were quick to take the water bags filled with liquor from the men and put them around their waists.

In this way, the group walked at full speed, risking their lives to hurry on the journey, and finally arrived at the provincial capital at noon on the second day after leaving the mountain.

Yongzhou City, three large characters written in a flamboyant style are hung high on the city wall and can be seen from a long distance.

Looking at the tall and majestic city wall, Lin Xiaoyue's eyebrows slightly curved. Although she had been to the town after traveling here, it was really incomparable to the provincial capital in front of her.

There were many refugees here, and they were no different from those seen on the road, all of them were ragged, skinny, and hungry.

But compared to the unscrupulous mobs that they encountered along the way, who were smashing, looting and killing, the refugees who were able to reach the state capital had restrained their actions and no longer showed any signs of aggressiveness.

There were huge crowds of people in front of Yongzhou City. There were countless refugees pouring in from all directions, but they were all in good order. After all, there were a large number of officers and soldiers holding weapons and on guard, and no one dared to act rashly in front of the city.

Lin Xiaoyue stood among the crowd, silently observing the situation around her.

The area in front of the state capital is basically divided into two areas.

On one side, where there were more people, there were rows of endless official tents set up like a marching formation. At the front end of the tents, near the base of the city wall, there were dozens of large pots placed in a row, with steam bubbling out of the pots.

Under the maintenance of officers and soldiers, the refugees were lined up in two long columns.

A group of refugees, starving to the point of being skin and bones and looking as scary as skeletons, were holding the official bamboo sticks for collecting food, as well as their own tattered bowls and chopsticks. They seemed to be queuing up for porridge.

Another team lined up in front of three tents lined up side by side. In each tent, there were five tables lined up side by side. Behind each table sat a doctor and a medicine boy, with two other soldiers guarding. It was not known whether this was to prevent the refugees from suddenly rising up and injuring the doctors, or to suppress the doctors.

There was a bulletin board on the other side. No one knew what was posted on it, but many refugees stopped to watch.

Going forward, there were several tables and chairs placed at the city gate, with two or three public officials sitting behind the tables, responsible for clerical work such as registration.

There was also a long queue there. Unlike the queues for porridge and medical treatment, every refugee in the queue was carrying large and small bags. From time to time, the people at the back stretched their necks to see the progress of the team, with anxious looks on their faces. However, no matter how anxious they were, they dared not jump and shout in front of the mighty officers and soldiers.

As the patriarch of the team, the village head stepped forward and spoke to the officer and soldier who was in charge of guiding the team on the roadside, "Sir, we are fleeing here and want to enter the city. We have our household registration but no travel permit. May I ask if you can allow us into the city?" As he spoke, the village head grabbed the officer's sleeve and quietly handed him a silver coin.

After all, the officers and soldiers who led the army were only slightly better off than the common people. In a disaster, it was not easy for anyone to feed their family. So, when the village head came to question him, his face was ugly, but after his fingertips touched the silver, his impatience faded a lot.

Looking at the group of people behind the head of the village, although their faces were black and miserable, and both men and women had blisters in their mouths, they were full of energy and spirit, and did not look like they were sick at all.

Moreover, this group of people actually brought animals with them, and the animals were carrying a lot of supplies on their backs. It was obvious that they were the refugees who were living relatively well. Such people were either extremely vicious and had relied on plundering and harming others along the way, or they had considerable abilities.

I come into contact with countless refugees of all kinds from all over the world every day, so I have some ability to judge people.

"Over there, see? It's clearly written on the notice board." The soldier's tone was not good, but he still gave them some advice after receiving money. He immediately pointed in the direction of the notice board and said to them, "Yongzhou City will not drive away refugees, but basically, people who come here cannot just enter the city. They have to meet certain conditions."

Everyone pricked up their ears and listened carefully to the officers and soldiers leading them and the requirements for entering the city. In short, there were three points:

First, regardless of whether you have a household registration or a travel permit, you must first go to the doctor to queue up for treatment. After the doctor feels your pulse and confirms that you are not infected with the epidemic, the doctor will give you a bamboo stick.

Second, after the pulse is taken, those who are healthy can use bamboo sticks to find an empty tent to live in first. Each tent can accommodate about ten people. If there are relatives, they can negotiate with others, but conflicts are not allowed. Otherwise, the officers and soldiers will take people away for conscription or forced labor without asking the reason.

The bamboo sticks could not be lost, otherwise there would be no porridge. Of course, in order to prevent the refugees from being dishonest and collecting more sticks to get more food, once they were found, they would be taken to the army or forced labor without asking for the reason.

Third, to enter the city, everyone is treated equally regardless of whether they have a household registration or a travel permit, and the government gives refugees five options.

Considering that in addition to the severe drought since the beginning of spring, various natural disasters occurred frequently, mobs were rampant, and bandits were rampant, resulting in countless casualties in various places. People may not bring their household registration when they flee, and it is even more impossible to prepare travel permits in advance.

Therefore, the governor reported to the court, requesting that the garrisons in various places suppress the bandits and encourage refugees to return home and rebuild their homes. This was the first option.

Undoubtedly, compared to leaving their hometown and being displaced, people feel more at ease with a home and land. Therefore, the government will appease people's hearts as soon as possible and let refugees who are drifting around and have no place to live choose to return home on their own, which can also be regarded as one of the projects to stabilize people's hearts.

The second option is to be conscripted into the army and register as a soldier. In simple terms, you can stay on your own military farm on weekdays, but you cannot walk around. At the same time, you must be ready to fight on the battlefield at any time during war.

The third option is basically for those who have committed crimes, have tattoos on their faces and do forced labor, such as building bridges and roads, filling ditches, building dams, and mining. It is equivalent to being a slave, with no autonomy in life, and you have to do whatever the government tells you to do.

The fourth type of land reclamation was to reclaim the wasteland between two states. The land was remote and in urgent need of development, so the court provided corresponding policy support. Each household and person willing to reclaim wasteland could receive two taels of silver and half a month's food in the state capital, and the reclaimed wasteland would be owned by the individual, and no taxes would be collected within five years.

The last one is settling down.

Although the guiding soldiers did not say it explicitly, everyone could understand it. There is a lot of flexibility in the maneuverability. That is to say, if others think you can stay, you can stay. If they say you cannot stay, you cannot stay even if you want to. It all depends on how the officials guarding the city judge.