She picked up the young prime minister while fleeing famine

Aside from these, there were a few packets of snacks and candies, which were probably for his younger siblings. Banxia wisely left them untouched.

Thinking that they would all be traveling together, Lian Chengmo would probably share some with her two younger brothers when he gave food to Ayu and Shuang'er.

Having been together for so long, Banxia had never been stingy with Lian Chengmo, and she felt that he shouldn't be so stingy.

After putting everything back, Banxia had a general idea of ​​what Lian Chengmo had brought back, and began to think about what to make for breakfast.

The old-fashioned guy has been traveling day and night on this trip, and he looks a bit thinner. He needs to eat more.

Thinking this, Banxia poured out a bowl of rice and took a yam, intending to cook some yam porridge first, since it wouldn't be good to eat too much oily food in the morning.

Once the old-fashioned guy finishes discussing things and comes back, he can have some porridge and rest first. Then, at noon, she'll give him a big meal of meat and fish to nourish him.

"Okay, let's do it this way," Banxia said, quickly starting a fire and setting up the pot.

Meanwhile, Lian Chengmo was discussing matters with Yao Lizheng and several other respected elders from Yao Li Village.

Prior to this, Yao Dahe had already told Yao Lizheng about what had happened during his trip to Qingyang County.

However, the other uncles and elders were not aware of this, so Lian Chengmo explained it again briefly.

"There are three ways to get to Qingyang County... The county magistrate has a past relationship with my grandfather, but they are not close..."

"That's the basic situation. If Uncle Village Head wants to settle down here, I will do my best to help."

"But Uncle Village Head, you should know that although I am a member of the Liancheng family, I am from a collateral branch. I don't know how much I can help." Liancheng Mo calmly recounted the matter and then expressed his opinion.

Finally, he revealed his identity, and since Yao Dahe and the others already knew about his trip to Qingyang County.

However, as soon as he finished speaking, the crowd erupted in uproar.

"How could this happen?"

"Yes, if we end up as military households again, what's the point of all this escape?"

"Does Heaven intend to destroy our Yao and Li clans?"

Several uncles chimed in, their grief and indignation gradually spreading. Yao Dahe, who had remained silent, nudged his father's arm, signaling him to look at the young master.

Lian Chengmo remained indifferent, neither comforting the crowd nor participating in their affairs. He simply looked down at the few weeds in front of him, seemingly unwilling to interfere with Yao Li Village's choice.

However, Yao Dahe felt that was not the case.

Sure enough, father and son are of one mind, and Yao Lizheng immediately asked.

"Young Master, do you have any good ideas?" Yao Lizheng looked at Lian Chengmo expectantly.

If they were to become military households again, the men who survived their escape would once again face the dilemma of being conscripted into the army.

Moreover, according to the information Yao Dahe had gathered, the situation in Vietnam was not much better than in the northern frontier, except that women and children did not have to go to the battlefield.

Therefore, they could only hope that Lian Chengmo would offer some good advice.

"Does Uncle Village Head really want to hear my opinion?" Lian Chengmo hesitated for a moment before asking.

“Young master, please speak freely. As long as you don’t make our village’s military households, anything is fine,” Yao Lizheng said through gritted teeth.

They fled to escape the war and give the men in the village more opportunities to make a living. If they end up on the battlefield everywhere they go, wouldn't all their efforts be in vain?

"In my opinion, it would be better to continue south to Yongzhou Prefecture. Prince Cheng is an ambitious man, and his current territory is in the middle, with people eyeing him from both the front and back. His army must be in dire need of manpower."

“In the territory of King Cheng, it is likely that military households will not be able to settle down. Whenever the army is short of men, they will inevitably be conscripted.”

“But the Prince of Qi in Yongzhou Prefecture is different. The Prince of Qi is benevolent. Even though the Great Xia has been in chaos for so long, he was only forced to become a king and did not send troops to neighboring areas. He just guarded his own fiefdom.”

“I’ve heard my grandfather talk about the Prince of Qi. He was very kind to the people under his rule. The taxes and corvée labor were not heavy. Although not every family had surplus grain, the people lived in peace and contentment. If you were to settle in Yongzhou Prefecture, it would be the best choice,” Lian Chengmo said earnestly.

Upon hearing his suggestion, everyone started discussing it.

“I’ve heard people say that King Qi seems to treat the common people quite well.”

“I’ve also heard that the Prince of Qi was the late emperor’s younger brother. He had been in the capital until the new emperor ascended the throne, when he went to his fiefdom of Yongzhou.”

"I heard he was a carefree prince who didn't care about court affairs. This time, Prince Cheng forced him to hand over his fiefdom, which is why he was forced to become king."

"But Yongzhou is two prefectures away from here. It's already taken us half a year to get here. Do we have to travel for another half a year?"

"Yes, it's so far. Adult men can manage, but how can children and women endure it?"

"Yes, yes, my daughter-in-law was sick once before."

"My wife is the same. She was holding back before, but after resting for a few days, all sorts of problems have come out. That's when I realized she had been enduring it all along."

My wife is the same...

"..."

The uncles discussed it amongst themselves. Some wanted to follow Lian Chengmo's advice and go to Yongzhou, while others felt the journey was too far and didn't want to go.

With such a long journey and war raging everywhere, who would want to travel so far if they could find a place to settle down?

The problem is that the nearest prefecture is under the rule of King Cheng, and to settle down there, one must become a military household, which the uncles and elders of Yaoli Village do not want to do.

Other prefectures were either governed by people similar to King Cheng, or were just as far away. In the end, the only place that could be visited was King Qi.

For a time, everyone was restless and extremely depressed.

"Everyone, please be quiet. Young Master, is there really no other way?" Yao Lizheng quickly tried to maintain order and then looked at Lian Chengmo.

This time, Lian Chengmo didn't answer immediately. He raised his hand and gently stroked his brow, thinking for a long time, and he actually came up with a solution.

“There is another way, but this method may be somewhat dangerous, and it’s hard to say what the outcome will be,” Lian Chengmo said very seriously.

That was the place he had passed through in his previous life, and that's where he died.

But it must be said that there is indeed a good place there, where you have to compete for territory with wild beasts.

"Please speak, young master," Yao Lizheng said hurriedly.

Lian Chengmo didn't keep anyone in suspense, and spoke eloquently in his clear, youthful voice.

“This place is not within the territory of the Great Xia Kingdom. I once saw a map of the Great Xia Kingdom in my hometown. There is a territory in the east of Huayang Prefecture that is not included by the Great Xia Kingdom because it is mountainous and the land is barren.”

"If you are willing to go there, you can find a mountain to hide in and wait for the war outside to subside before coming out to find a new place to settle down."

"But there are many wild beasts in the mountains, so it may not be easy to survive. Moreover, the land is barren, so farming would be difficult."

"However, I think that county town is not far from the border between Huayang Prefecture and Yongzhou Prefecture. We can hunt some game to exchange for money and then buy food."

"But there are always trade-offs. Life won't be easy, and there's still the risk of being conscripted."