0p0 Chapter 180 Good News
Chapter 180 Good News
Meng Bochang was so angry he almost laughed. He had thought that money in the southern region was like stones thrown in without making a sound, but it turned out that the inn where they stayed in Qingzhou City was being ripped off without them even realizing it.
Especially the first room we stayed in, the innkeeper was a coward but still didn't forget to rip us off.
This is the worst kind of sucker.
After a period of chaos and turmoil, everyone was able to rest, but Meng Fuqing gathered with Du Zhong and others for a meeting.
Du Zhong spoke in a low voice about what he had learned from Zhou Tou that day.
Jing'an Prefecture does not refuse refugees. It is not difficult to settle down without spending money, and there are even options: one is to serve as a corvée laborer or to serve as a soldier in the prefecture.
Forced laborers had their faces tattooed, and they risked their lives to build city walls, suppress rivers, and fill in the sea.
The Fubing were better off; they farmed in peacetime and went to war in times of war, but they had to be selected by someone, and if they weren't selected, they couldn't become soldiers.
Moreover, given the current situation, who knows when the barbarians might attack again? If we're unlucky, the outcome will still be death.
After hearing this, Meng Fuqing felt that both options meant going to jail, one just meant a heavy sentence and the other a suspended sentence.
Meng Bochang couldn't help but ponder the matter, and the more he thought about it, the uglier his expression became.
The people of Mengjia Village were all law-abiding citizens, belonging to the traditional social hierarchy of scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants. If they couldn't pay the registration fee, they would be even lower than merchants and their descendants would suffer the consequences.
Before he could speak, Du Chongxian asked, "Why do I keep feeling uneasy? Will that Qiao family, the Prefectural Commandant, be able to let us settle down in Jing'an Prefecture smoothly?"
"We can only wait and see," Meng Fuqing said. "Did that official mention how much silver we need to pay to enter the city?"
At this point, Du Zhong raised his hand and wiped his face haphazardly, "One hundred taels per person."
"Huh?" Meng Bochang was so shocked that he stood up abruptly. "One hundred taels?!"
Xie Jin spoke up at this moment, "I'm afraid they set up a threshold to prevent too many refugees from settling down."
Meng Bochang had a lot to say, but he couldn't get it out.
Even if each household could receive some money and grain from the public coffers, it was still uncertain whether they could scrape together enough for one hundred taels of silver.
After a moment's thought, Meng Fuqing considered the resources and connections they currently had. The Qiao family was in the open, and the Pei family was in the shadows. If that wasn't enough, they would simply increase their resources further.
She dipped her finger into the water in the glass in front of her and wrote two words on the table.
First, there is the emperor; second, there is the plague.
Then she spoke up, “The reason why Jing’an Prefecture no longer takes in refugees is nothing more than these two things. Taking in refugees is seen as a good deed by the world, but in the eyes of the emperor it may be a way to win people’s hearts. Right now he may not have time to settle accounts, but who knows when he will remember this matter when things are peaceful.”
The epidemic is easy to understand. The lives of refugees are lives, and the lives of ordinary people are lives too. It's understandable that Jing'an Prefecture chose to save the lives of the people. We can't control the Emperor's mind, but perhaps we can think of a solution from this perspective.
She circled the character for 'epidemic' with her fingertip.
"It's very simple to prove that our method works; just look at our numbers."
These people encountered two epidemics along the way, but they were only affected at the very end, and the disease was quickly brought under control.
It can be said that it has both theoretical knowledge and practical experience.
After listening to Meng Fuqing's words, Meng Bochang finally felt more at ease, though he felt inexplicably ashamed.
Du Zhong felt the same way. "The Qiao family's connections were made by Miss Meng's White Wolf, and the method to prevent and control the epidemic was also devised by you and Doctor Zheng. We can't always rely on you, Miss Meng. This method should not be used unless absolutely necessary."
Meng Bochang nodded in agreement: "It is indeed good for preventing and controlling epidemics. You might as well take it to the government office to sell for silver. Perhaps you can even get on the good side of the government."
Everyone in the convoy knew how to prevent and control the disease. Meng Bochang was the first to have this idea, and then a second and a third followed.
Meng Fuqing did not believe that everyone could think like Meng Bochang and Du Zhong.
"It's just a precaution," she said.
After discussing the matter, everyone went back to rest.
Meng Fuqing then walked out of the inn when no one was paying attention.
She used the vines to find the wolves' tracks, and after getting close, she gave a whistle, and the white wolf led the gray wolves to rush towards Meng Fuqing.
She added, "Watch your little brothers, don't let them ruin the crops I've grown."
Regardless of whether it understood or not, with a flick of its wrist, it put the white wolf into its spatial storage. The remaining gray wolves quickly went in to keep the white wolf company.
The next day, after traveling for half a day, when they were less than ten miles from Jing'an Prefecture, they suddenly saw a man riding a fine horse at high speed on the official road.
Meng Fuqing, riding his horse, heard the commotion and immediately looked over; it was Mu Feng.
Beside her, Yan He also noticed. She hadn't known what Mu Feng had been doing before, and now she muttered, "So he came to Jing'an Prefecture first?"
"Does the man surnamed Xie know someone in Jing'an Prefecture?" she asked Meng Fuqing.
Meng Fuqing: "Perhaps, after all, he is a merchant."
Yan He gave Meng Fuqing a resentful look, "It's really hard to get information out of you."
Watching Mu Feng ride his horse to Xie Jin's carriage and whisper something, Meng Fuqing looked away. "One hundred taels per person for settling down. Are you prepared to bleed a lot?"
Upon hearing this, Yan He's face turned green.
Meng Fuqing soon learned of the news Mu Feng had brought back.
Although the Pei family were merchants, they had been operating in Jing'an Prefecture for many years and had dealings with many officials. Regarding the matter of settling down, the Pei family still needed to make contact with those families.
Mu Feng had been waiting for the results for the past few days since he arrived, and today he finally received good news. He was eager to rush back when he unexpectedly ran into the convoy.
The good news is that when the Pei family approached the Qiao family head, the Qiao family head, who had initially hesitated because he was unsure of Meng Fuqing's group's background, agreed after hearing the Pei family head's detailed explanation.
The original rule of 100 taels per person was reduced to 100 taels per household to be eligible for residency in Jing'an Prefecture. Moreover, with so many people, the amount couldn't be shared.
Yan He, who was standing next to Meng Fuqing, heard everything clearly. He was initially heartbroken, but now he was furious.
"What's the difference between one hundred taels for one person and one household and one hundred taels for one person and one household?"
Meng Ranran, who was sitting in the carriage behind them, heard this and kindly told her, "Sister He, there is no difference."
Yan He's face turned green again.
Meng Fuqing lowered his head and pondered for a moment, then said to Ling Jiu, who had come to deliver the message, "Miss Ling Jiu, go ahead and inform Chief Du."
Soon everyone knew that each household had to pay one hundred taels of silver to register their household in Jing'an Prefecture.
Many people became dejected and couldn't help but ask, "It's so expensive, fine, but why can't they put us all together?"
After learning that these people were able to land in Jing'an Prefecture, Zhou Tou knew that it was true that they recognized Lord Qiao.
His eyes darted around, and he said to Du Zhong, "Brother Lu, it's not impossible for you two to be assigned to the same place."
Du Zhong immediately asked, "Does Your Excellency have any good ideas?"
"Reclaim wasteland."