Through the troubled times and famine, I just want to farm peacefully

The villagers quickly chimed in, "He has a sister who married into the next village. Her husband's family has many sons and even fewer fields, so their life is not easy. He wants to call his sister over as well, right?"

The young man nodded and looked at Lin Fu with eyes full of anticipation.

Lin Fu looked at Lin Yiheng.

Lin Yiheng said, "Sure, you can come anytime and become a Longtan citizen."

Many villagers were moved when they heard this, but they heard the young man say, "Then I will go back and ask them to come over."

As he was about to go out, Lin Yiheng stopped him in time, "Wait a minute, I'll ask someone to go to the kitchen to get you some dry food."

Hearing that there was dry food, several young people came out immediately.

"I'm going to call my aunt, too."

"I'm going to call my uncle and others."

"I'll go bring grandma and the others over."

Finally, those villagers who had the same idea formed a team of ten people.

The secret guards got the dry food from the kitchen and Lin Yiheng handed it to them.

After knowing the address of their village, he also showed them the shortest route.

"You enter Dongshui County from the West River, and you will soon reach your village after crossing the East River."

Several young men looked at each other. None of them had ever traveled far and only remembered the way back from Nanzhou Prefecture.

At this time, an elderly man stepped forward and said, "I'll take you there. I've been to Xihe County several times when I was young. I know the way."

Following the instructions of their family, several young people followed the man and disappeared from everyone's sight.

Everyone just thought that they would definitely be able to bring their relatives with them.

What no one expected was that after they returned, they took away a total of thousands of people from the two villages.

There were also some people who heard the news in roundabout ways and sneaked over mountains and across rivers.

By the time the Zhong family in Huaizhou City discovered it, nine out of ten houses in the county under their jurisdiction had already been deserted.

On the last day, the official road in Longtan County was finally repaired.

The villagers packed up their things and prepared to return home.

With tears in their eyes, Asan and his companions said goodbye to the villagers reluctantly.

The veins on the guard leader's forehead throbbed, and he slapped Asan on the head in an effort to endure it no longer.

"Have you forgotten where you are from?"

Ah San touched his head which was hurt by the blow and said aggrievedly, "Boss, why are you so stingy? I have worked with them for a long time, so what's wrong with saying goodbye to them?"

"If you have the time, why don't you think about how to explain to the master when you get back? Who would believe your nonsense if you tell others?"

The leader of the guards glanced at him and turned his head away from his incurable stupidity.

Asan was not convinced and wanted to make a few more excuses, but several secret guards came over.

The secret guard took the key and opened the shackles of the guard leader and others, "Don't rush to leave, wait here, our city lord has something for your master."

After saying this, the secret guard led his men away.

The guard leaders looked at each other, and quickly left with Asan and his men who were squatting on the ground waiting foolishly.

You'd be a fool not to leave now!

"Didn't you say you had a big gift for the master?" Asan muttered as he was carried by the leader of the guards.

The guard leader's mouth twitched, "They can detain us for such a long time, do you trust them?"

"Be careful or you'll be detained and forced to work for them for free again!" said another guard.

Ah San took out a bunch of copper coins from his pocket and said, "Boss, they paid us wages. Look, there are five hundred coins!"

The other four nodded repeatedly. They also had it, but their work was not in vain.

The guard leader's patience with these five people, who made no distinction between friend and foe, reached its limit.

He shouted angrily, "Shut up! Hurry up and get on with your journey. We have already wasted quite a bit of time on this trip."

The boss is angry! Ah San silently put the money back into his pocket and unconsciously quickened his pace.

The group quickly disappeared into the mountains and forests.

The secret guard led his men out carrying a load but saw no one. “Hey, they’re leaving now?”

"Just leave."

"Yes, don't let it be their loss."

The three secret guards picked up their loads and went back to report.

Huaizhou City.

At this time, the head of the Zhong family was angry. He paced back and forth in the room in frustration.

"The Yu family is such a jerk. The grain we just harvested hasn't even warmed up yet, and they're sending people to collect it again."

"Dad, why should we sell our grain to them? The price they offer is 20% lower than the market price. It's simply too much. I won't sell it! I won't sell it no matter what!" Young Master Zhong was firm in his attitude.

The steward glanced at the indignant young master, his brows furrowed tightly, and he spoke carefully.

"Master, our people have learned from the people of the Yu family that most of the Yu family is now ruled by Miss Yu."

The head of the Zhong family thought quickly and soon understood what the steward meant. "You mean, is she resentful of the Zhong family for not wanting to marry her?"

"It's possible." said the manager.

Young Master Zhong looked at his father. If the Yu family was deliberately targeting them, then the Zhong family would have no good future.

"Dad, what should we do?"

The head of the Zhong family frowned, his eyes instantly filled with ruthlessness, and he slammed his palm heavily on the table.

"No! The Yu family will never buy another grain from us."

The steward obviously didn't expect him to be so bold, "But, sir, what if they are unwilling to sell salt to us?"

"Can a living person be suffocated to death by urine? At worst, we can send people to Cangwu County to buy." said the head of the Zhong family.

Just at this moment, the servant came in hurriedly to report.

"My Lord, Feng Shan is back with Ah San and the others."

The steward looked at the head of the Zhong family with a look of joy on his face.

Patriarch Zhong said, "Quick! Let them in."

After the guard leader Feng Shan and Ah San paid their respects to the Zhong family master, the steward couldn't wait to ask, "Why did you take so long? What happened?"

Feng Shan bowed and replied, "My lord, the people entrenched in Longtan County are extremely powerful. I am bringing my men..."

Feng Shan told everyone everything that happened in Longtan.

After hearing this, Patriarch Zhong looked solemn, "Are you saying that they actually rebuilt the official road leading to Changyi County?"

"They even built roads leading to Longtan County from every village," said Asan, who participated in the entire process.

The head of the Zhong family was silent. He couldn't figure out who had the courage to undertake such a large project?

Do they want to revitalize the entire Longtan?

"Have you found out where those people came from?" asked the manager.

Feng Shan said, "I heard they were fleeing from the north. The guards' master's surname is Yun, and the mayor of Longtan is actually a woman."

Several people fell into deep thought. They were not familiar with the North and could not remember which noble families they were.

Thinking of something, Feng Shan continued, "Not only that, Longtan also accepts refugees and beggars, and there are more than a thousand people who have come from Huaizhou City to Longtan for refuge."

"What?" The steward stood up in disbelief. "When did this happen?"

"The steward will know the truth once he investigates during this period of time," Feng Shan said.

The steward hurried out to call the smaller stewards from various places to inquire.

The small managers were holding the account books, each with a worried look on their face.

Without asking, the head of the Zhong family and the eldest son of the Zhong family knew that what Feng Shan said was true.

Finally, after checking one by one, it was found that the population of more than a dozen villages in remote areas had been reduced by half, and some two or three villages were almost empty except for the elderly left behind.

"Master, what should we do now?" The steward was also completely stunned.

The head of the Zhong family staggered to his feet, his face becoming increasingly gloomy.

"The Yu family harmed me!"