Chapter 409 - 403 Clash of Ideas
At first, they issued commands to the soldiers and posted notices about work in exchange for relief, then people started signing up to participate, and they began using people from Wu Castle.
There were many signing up, but even more were hesitant, until those who went to work not only truly got to eat three meals a day but also received wages.
The hesitant ones couldn’t hold back any longer, and rushed up to surround those who had received their wages and come out, "How come there’s also wages? Wasn’t it just supposed to cover food and lodging?"
The person tightly clenched the Copper Coins in his hand but said proudly, "The Inspector said that there are few who are all alone in this world, most have families. We who come out to work can naturally eat and drink to our fill, but what about the weak at home? So, the Inspector decided to give us wages. As long as the work is good, we can earn between five cents to ten cents per day."
He said happily, "The Inspector also set up a grain shop in the wooden shed near the county government, the price is not high, as long as one presents the work voucher, everyone can buy a dou of grain every ten days."
A dou of grain was enough for his wife and children for ten days, saving some could even leave quite a lot.
Someone immediately pushed out of the crowd upon hearing this and raced toward the recruitment shed, others reacted quickly too, seeing people running ahead, they followed suit.
At twilight, the recruitment shed crew, who had decided to pack up, paused as they saw so many people running towards them.
Nearby patrolling soldiers immediately approached with their blades drawn, shouting before the crowd could get closer, "What are you doing, trespassing the camp is a serious crime!"
Because the nearby area was their military camp.
The refugees stopped running but continued walking forward, shouting loudly, "We’re here to sign up!"
"Yes, yes, we also want to sign up to build our new county town."
Upon hearing this, the soldiers relaxed their tense expressions and looked back at Zhao Kuan and others who were still sitting in the shed.
Zhao Kuan nodded slightly, and only then did the soldiers allow people through, though they still barked fiercely, "Stay in line, no pushing. Anyone who disobeys will be taken to do hard labor!"
Immediately, no one dared to push forward, and those who wanted to shove their way through obediently stood still.
From a distance, Zhao Hanzhang nodded slightly, turned to Ting He, and said, "You know characters, you go help too, have people light the torches; since people are here, we shall receive them all."
"Yes!"
Zhao Hanzhang smiled faintly, realizing that with so many refugees plus their army, building a county town is merely a matter of time.
The county town planning was already completed, and the next day, the newly recruited refugees, along with the army, headed out into the field.
The county town would be built on this vast land, which was left uncultivated due to the Xiongnu invasion since July, and now they have withdrawn.
In the past four to five months, the wild grass in the fields had grown higher than calves, with some being yellowed by the incoming winter.
Zhao Kuan and others divided the people into teams, each team consisting of one hundred people, managed by the team leader assigned individually, below which were squads led by ten people each, completely following the military management style.
A group of ten teams formed a battalion, as stipulated by Zhao Hanzhang, thus separating them from the units in the army.
Each battalion’s commander was appointed by Zhao Hanzhang, and Fan Ying also commanded a battalion, so her team included more women.
They selected capable deputy commanders from among them, and after their departure, the deputies managed people.
Above them all was Chen County’s County Magistrate, Chen Yin.
Chen Yin couldn’t believe that a newly appointed seventh-grade County Magistrate would suddenly leap to become the sixth-grade deputy General and the sixth-grade Inspector’s chief.
Oh, although temporarily, he still felt a bit dizzy, having a sense of standing in the air without ground.
Zhao Hanzhang appeared as an idle shopkeeper, but she had plenty of matters to attend to daily; news from Chen County and other places continually being delivered.
She spent most of her day handling official business, issuing orders to various prefectures and subordinate counties to relieve and appease the people and accommodate wandering refugees everywhere.
Meanwhile, she also issued orders to the prefectures currently controlled by Gou Xi, asking their Prefectural Governors to spare time to come to Chen County to report to her, and if a meeting was not possible, they must still relieve and console the people.
She was uncertain whether she could reclaim those five prefectures, but she had to try. If unsuccessful, she did not want to have a conflict with Gou Xi at this moment, it was merely a probe.
A probe into the attitude of the five prefectures, and Gou Xi’s attitude.
Such matters were very exhausting mentally, making Zhao Hanzhang somewhat tired, but every time she walked out of her camp and saw the lively construction outside, she felt uplifted, her spirit relaxed, ready to happily face the external disputes.
New Song City was being built rapidly, with four battalions, nearly four thousand people working simultaneously; two battalions responsible for the foundation’s construction and two for preparing and transporting materials, divided into several groups to fell suitable trees on the mountain and collect stones.
Due to excessive demand for bricks and stones, Zhao Ze even targeted Old Song City.
The young boy who became a camp leader for a battalion was reported in front of Zhao Hanzhang, but facing her, he argued boldly: "Since there’s already a new county town, what’s the point of keeping the old county town?"
He said, "It’s just a land of sorrow now, keeping it is useless; instead, utilizing it can save us considerable human and material resources, why not take advantage of it?"
Chen Yin, being sentimental, said: "That’s a homeland for many Song people, even I cannot bear to see Song City become a genuine wasteland; I earnestly request the Inspector to preserve Old Song City."
Zhao Kuan also said: "Yesterday’s mistakes are today’s teachings. Keeping Old Song City not only gives the exiled travelers a spiritual home but also lets future generations learn from today’s lessons to prevent further barbarian invasions."
Zhao Ze felt they didn’t understand the intricacies of living costs, "You only dig foundations in the base, yet you don’t know how arduous it is for us outside; mining requires trips to distant places and transportation; Old Song City isn’t far, and its bricks and stones are easiest to extract, digging from there can save two-thirds of our manpower and resources, why go far then?"
He said: "Anyway, Old Song City is already a wasteland, so does it matter if it’s hollow or not?"
Chen Yin couldn’t articulate his reasoning, yet felt something was amiss, he helplessly looked at Zhao Hanzhang.
Zhao Kuan said: "You have died, but your tattered clothing remains; now if I strip the remaining cloth too cleanly, do you think your family would hate me to death, wanting to devour me?"
Zhao Ze said solemnly: "Brother Kuan, my death was caused by barbarians, but you are my kin; if stripping my tattered clothes could save your life, naturally I wouldn’t blame you, I believe my parents would be pleased too; dying yet saving you could be my merit, no?"
Zhao Kuan: . . .
Zhao Hanzhang pondered carefully and said: "Zhao Ze’s argument is valid, but Zhao Kuan and Chen Yin’s idea is acceptable; we shouldn’t leave people without a homeland, but the living are more significant."
Zhao Hanzhang decided to erect a tablet in the old county town.