In years of famine and drought, their village even rejected fatty meat.

Chapter 227 Solve the doubts

Taiping County, outside the North Gate.

The shantytowns here are as chaotic as ever, with simple shantyhouses arranged haphazardly outside the city, offering no aesthetic appeal whatsoever.

but……

Although the shantytown was still as chaotic as ever, the lives of the homeless people living there had finally improved somewhat.

Under the government's arrangement, the refugees here were able to eat two meals a day, each meal about 70% full, and all they had to do was put in some effort and help the government cultivate farmland every day.

Now that the refugees had enough to eat, they were no longer ashen-faced as they had been before, and of course...

Their clothes were still similar to those of beggars; everyone was filthy, as if they hadn't bathed for a month.

Of course, these refugees had indeed not bathed for a month, and some for even longer, two or three or four months.

As for the reason why they don't bathe...

It's not that I don't care about cleanliness, it's just that the weather is too cold these days. Not to mention whether I can find water, even if I do, I can't take a cold shower in this weather, so I can only let myself get dirty.

At this moment, outside the North Gate, government officials had set up a large pot, cooking food inside. Steam rose continuously from the pot, and the aroma of the food warmed the hearts of the displaced people queuing up, dispelling much of their chill.

"This grain smells so good!"

"Of course! The magistrate of Taiping County is truly a good official. We are able to fill our stomachs entirely thanks to him!"

"Yes! This Magistrate Xu is completely different from the corrupt officials in our hometown."

"Magistrate Xu is truly a good official!"

"..."

The refugees lined up and kept praising Xu Zhiwen. They must have thought that Xu Zhiwen, the magistrate of Taiping County, was a good official and a living bodhisattva. If it weren't for Xu Zhiwen, how could they have the good life of eating two meals a day?

While the refugees were praising Xu Zhiwen, Wang Ling, amidst the crowd, was lost in thought, reminiscing about his friend Liu Qiaoshou!

"I wonder how Qiaoshou is doing now!"

Although he hadn't known Liu Qiaoshou for long, Wang Ling had already considered her a true friend. After having a full meal, he was constantly worried about Liu Qiaoshou.

"Look, isn't that the little boy surnamed Chen who took those craftsmen away before?"

Just then, a voice interrupted Wang Ling's thoughts. Everyone looked in the direction of the speaker and saw a donkey cart slowly approaching the north gate.

The man driving the cart was tall and strong, clearly an extraordinary person, while on the frame of the donkey cart was a handsome young man, none other than Chen Dao, whom the refugees had seen twice before!

"It's him! This little boy is very handsome, I've always remembered him!"

"I remember too!"

"This young Chen has come to the city, but where are those craftsmen surnamed Liu?"

"Perhaps they were placed elsewhere?"

"..."

As Chen Dao gradually came into view, the refugees were puzzled, but they did not approach him to ask questions. To put it bluntly, they were not familiar with Chen Dao, and his status as an equal to that of the county magistrate made them afraid to get close.

"Old Wang."

Wang Ling's wife patted him on the back and said, "Aren't you always worried about Qiaoshou and her family? Why don't you go and ask that Chen Xiaowa?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Ling was slightly tempted. He was indeed very worried about Liu Qiaoshou, but... he was quite hesitant to ask Chen Dao for advice!

Although the child looked inexperienced, he was someone who could chat and laugh with the county magistrate, far beyond the reach of a commoner like Wang Ling. Therefore, Wang Ling hesitated.

Just as Wang Ling hesitated, Xu Zhiwen and Zhang He appeared outside the North Gate.

"Young friend Chen!"

Xu Zhiwen greeted Chen Dao with a smile, saying, "I'm a little late, I hope you won't mind?"

Xu Zhiwen had intended to leave the city early to welcome Chen Dao, but unfortunately, Chen Dao arrived a little earlier. Xu Zhiwen had just left the city gate when Chen Dao arrived ahead of him.

"It doesn't matter!"

Chen Dao waved his hand. He wasn't one to care about such formalities, so he naturally didn't mind: "Your Excellency, shall we set off now?"

"Of course!"

Xu Zhiwen nodded and led Chen Dao into the city, arriving at the county government office.

But then they saw a horse-drawn carriage lying quietly in front of the county government office in the open space outside the gate; it was Xu Zhiwen's means of transportation.

Chen Dao's lips twitched when he saw the horse-drawn carriage. Other people used horse-drawn carriages to travel, but he could only use a donkey cart...

Although there's nothing wrong with donkey carts, and they even have better endurance than horses, they're still somewhat low-class.

What's more...

The other people's carriages had carriages, while the donkey carts only had an open frame. In terms of comfort, Xu Zhiwen's carriage was definitely countless times better than the donkey carts.

"Young friend Chen, get in the car!"

Xu Zhiwen pointed to the carriage and said, "For long journeys, a carriage is much better. As for your donkey cart..."

Xu Zhiwen thought for a moment and said to Zhang He, "Zhang He, have someone arrange for Chen Xiaoyou's donkey cart to be returned to him when we return."

"Yes."

Zhang He immediately summoned a constable from the county government and had the donkey cart moved aside and placed there.

Then, Xu Zhiwen, Chen Dao, and Chen Cheng boarded the carriage, while Zhang He sat in the driver's seat and started the carriage, heading towards the south gate.

"Does Young Friend Chen know anything about Ding'an County?"

Sitting in the carriage, Xu Zhiwen suddenly spoke.

"no!"

Chen Dao shook his head. He had only been in this world for a little over two months, and his geographical knowledge was limited to Taiping County. He knew very little about other places.

"Please enlighten me, Your Excellency."

"Very well, I will then clear up your doubts, young friend Chen!"

Xu Zhiwen smiled and said, "Young friend, you should know that Taiping County is located at the northernmost part of Taicang County, bordering Liangshan County of Liangzhou. Ding'an County is located to the south of Taiping County, and the county seat is more than a hundred miles away from Taiping County. Further south of Ding'an County is Dingxing County, which was designated as the county seat of Taicang County!"

At this point, Xu Zhiwen paused, then continued, "In the past, because of its proximity to the county seat, Ding'an County was wealthier than Taiping County, and the people there lived better lives. However..."

With the arrival of the cold disaster, even in relatively wealthy places like Ding'an County, life has become increasingly difficult for the people. As far as I know, although Ding'an County doesn't suffer from a large number of displaced people, there are still many bandits, highwaymen, and robbers outside the county town. Ordinary people dare not leave the county town or their villages. Only some merchant caravans and escort agencies with sufficient armed protection dare to travel on the official roads outside the city.