Confiscated my property and exiled me, I emptied the emperor's old nest to escape famine

As soon as he went out, Wang Zhi met the county magistrate Chen Zhiyuan and Ye Fei's family in the yard.

"You guys are the ones who walked into the trap... uh... voluntarily reported as fugitives?"

Wang Zhi almost said something bluntly when he opened his mouth.

Ye Fei couldn't help but roll his eyes.

Fortunately, at this moment Wang Zhi and Chen Zhiyuan's attention was not on Ye Fei but on Ye Qingyun.

Ye Qingyun recounted his family's experiences again, but this time he described it in more detail.

Wang Zhi frowned as he heard this: "The Ye family in Beijing..."

"I remember that there are more than just you guys in the Ye family, right?"

"So many people, all scattered?"

"If I remember correctly, there are thousands of people exiled to Zhuhai County this time."

Wang Zhi looked at Chen Zhiyuan.

Chen Zhiyuan nodded and continued, "Your Excellency remembers correctly."

“There are indeed thousands of people who will be exiled to Zhuhai County.”

"Considering the disaster situation, I thought the exiles would arrive in Zhuhai County later."

"I didn't expect these people to arrive ahead of time. And from what they said, many of the other exiles died or got lost."

Wang Zhi frowned even deeper: "I felt something was wrong before."

"News about the exiles has always been delivered regularly, but there has been no news recently."

"I thought it was because of the disasters in various places that delayed the delivery of the letter."

“It seems that the situation is very pessimistic.”

Ye Fei listened to their conversation calmly.

It's not just pessimistic, they are basically all dead.

The officers escorting the fugitives did not spare a single one.

"Sir, how should we place them now?"

Chen Zhiyuan spoke up to remind him.

Wang Zhi looked at Ye Qingyun.

Ye Qingyun smiled at the right moment and said, "Please have mercy on me, sir, and give me a better place to stay."

"You are in charge of arranging this matter." Wang Zhi finally threw the hot potato to Chen Zhiyuan.

Resettling exiles is never an easy task.

Wang Zhi, the county magistrate, knew it very well.

Especially for the high-ranking officials who were exiled from the capital, although they were already exiles, who knew whether they could turn things around.

If it’s not handled properly, you won’t even know how the person died.

As the deputy of the county government, Chen Zhiyuan had no choice but to take over.

He waved to a yamen runner and said, "First, take them to handle the household registration documents, and then place them...place them in Ling Village."

When they came out of the county government office, Ye Fei asked Ye Qingyun with some confusion: "Doesn't exile require being imprisoned in one place?"

In Ye Fei's concept, exile means sending people to some bitter and cold places to be detained and forced to do hard labor.

Ye Qingyun explained quietly: "It may be because Zhuhai County is located in a remote area and the population is sparse."

“The people exiled here are themselves a way to replenish the population.”

"But there should be certain restrictions. You can't just leave casually."

The yamen runner beside them listened to the mumblings of Ye Fei and his daughter and reminded them: "If there is anything you don't understand, you will know it when you get there."

"The rule in Zhuhai County is that people exiled here must not leave the county."

Ye Fei and Ye Qingyun's eyes suddenly lit up.

Is there such a good thing?

As if sensing Ye Fei and the others' emotions, the yamen runner suddenly changed the subject: "But..."

Damn, Ye Fei’s face turned dark.

She knew that there was no such thing as a free lunch.

"But what? Please give me more advice, sir."

Ye Qingyun bowed solemnly to the bailiff.

The yamen runner knew the status of Ye Fei's family in the capital. When he was considering whether to do Ye Qingyun a favor, the thin cat who was waiting outside the county government office rushed over.

He raised his hand and stuffed a silver ingot into the yamen runner's pocket: "Sir, sir, please be kind."

"Please remind me if there is anything I need to pay attention to."

After receiving the silver, the yamen runner stopped hesitating.

He began to introduce the situation of Ling Village: "The people of Ling Village were exiled here just like you, or their ancestors were exiled here."

"Some people have been in Ling Village for a long time, and gradually they have formed a certain force."

"When you go to Ling Village, you must keep a low profile and don't cause trouble."

"Although you only need to stay within the boundaries of Zhuhai County, the prerequisite is that you must complete the tasks assigned to you."

"If you have a certain amount of money, it would be best to take care of the leaders there, so that the tasks assigned to you will not be too heavy."

"The situation in Ling Village is the same as other places of exile. There are bound to be conflicts and fights, but as long as nothing serious happens, the higher-ups will turn a blind eye."

Ye Fei could already fully imagine what the situation was like in the gathering place for the fugitives.

Just as she was about to speak, Thin Cat asked for her: "Is there any way to prevent them from doing hard labor?"

The yamen runner looked at the thin cat with some surprise, but still nodded and said, "Yes, it requires a certain amount of money."

"They were minor figures to begin with, and they could be exempted from hard labor by paying a certain amount of money."

"You can even buy land and a house here and settle down like other people."

"But those who were exiled had all their property confiscated, so they wouldn't have any extra money on them."

The yamen runner stopped talking and looked at the thin cat: "What is your relationship with them?"

"It sounds like you're going to spend this money for them?"

The thin cat nodded: "They are indebted to me, I will find a way to raise the money."

After hearing this, the bailiff looked somewhat puzzled.

All the way to Ling Village, the thin cat followed Ye Fei's family, and the yamen runners did not drive him away.

Along the way, Ye Fei saw many fugitives.

Most of them are in a state of numbness and despair.

The yamen runner suddenly took the initiative to talk about something he didn't know what he was thinking of:

"People tend to seek benefits and avoid harm. After most people are exiled here, basically no relatives or friends will come to visit them, let alone offer financial help."

"They can only survive by doing hard labor and then settle down here."

Ye Fei couldn't help but imagine the experiences of the exiles:

In remote exile areas, the convicts were forced to leave their familiar homes and begin a hard life.

Perhaps they had hope at the beginning, but time slowly eroded this expectation. Their hearts were gradually filled with fear and confusion about the future, and they finally turned into walking corpses.

Just like now.

Under the scorching sun, the convicts were exhausted but still worked hard mechanically.

However, Ye Fei discovered that the conditions of some fugitives were no different from those of ordinary people.

These people are probably the descendants of exiles.

Through generation after generation, they have regarded the land of exile as their home and their roots.

They have a sense of belonging and no longer reject fear.

"Hey, sir, there's a newcomer."

A bearded man took the initiative to greet Ye Fei's family when he saw the yamen runner leading them over.

"Hu Laosan, I'll leave them to you."

"Take good care of them and don't mess with them."

After the yamen runner finished speaking, he turned to Ye Qingyun and said, "From now on, your whole family will follow Hu Lao San."

"He is already considered the most righteous person in Ling Village."