Probably because they didn’t expect that the so-called punishment would be such an understatement, the hunter siblings didn’t react for a moment after hearing Gawain’s words. It wasn’t until Gawain repeated his question that Red-Nosed Tom was stunned. He nodded blankly: "Yes... my sister and I can find other settlements."
Homeless refugees will wander around the territories, and usually their movement routes are irregular. It can be said that they walk in unknown places and die in unknown places, but in general, the area where they can stay is within a certain range.
These ranges are usually in the uninhabited barren mountains and ridges between various noble territories, and this large piece of land in the north of Baishui River, east of Tanzanite Mine, and south of Kande Territory is this Plant a place.
A large number of refugees from the Vulture Territory, the Carol Territory and many scattered villages and towns in the northwest wandered into this area along the rivers and mountains and forests. They could have migrated to the slightly richer central region. , but in the past two years, the poor harvests in the central and southern regions of the kingdom have led to insufficient grain reserves in various places. Although many places have slowed down this year, the nobles in various places are still strictly guarding against immigrants from outside. The nobles in the central region are even closer to Look at thieves and robbers in the same way as hungry people from the "poor south". Therefore, for these homeless people, all roads to the central region have been blocked, and they can only wander into the mountains and forests in the south. .
According to rough information, there are currently as many as thousands of hungry homeless people living scattered in this mountain forest and wilderness, and because most of the refugees have traveled along the same road Migrating along routes (even from the same place), the settlements formed by these homeless people have maintained a certain degree of contact - although this connection is extremely loose, it is like a network. As long as one of the nodes is mastered, then If you follow the thread and search for it, you can grasp the entire net in your hands.
It has been more than half a month since Knight Byron spread news in the southern region through his underground channels. Some of the information about the Cecil leader recruiting refugees must have reached the ears of these homeless people. But these poor people have already lost confidence in the nobles - before the frost moon comes, mercenary slave-catching teams sent by the nobles will come to rob them almost every few days, so it is so easy for these people to believe that there are still people in the world. It is almost impossible for a noble family to be willing to accept and protect them kindly.
But if there can be a group of refugees, a group of refugees who have escaped with them and have lived in the wilderness like them for several months or even one or two years, running between the various settlements to deliver news, then recruiting It's much easier for the homeless.
Gao Wen plans to select a group of people who are more flexible, courageous and trustworthy among the dozens of refugees in front of him as guides and messengers, relying on their persuasiveness to attract homeless people. Those who could return settled in Cecil Territory.
The Frost Moon is coming to an end, and winter will officially enter after the Foggy Moon begins.Complete as many settlements as possible before more people die of cold and starvation.
Although the boy with a red nose in front of me (perhaps an adult? But he is too thin) is a bit reckless, he is not timid, and his eyes are not completely numb like most poor people, so he can serve as Such a messenger.
"The Cecil family is reshaping order in this land. Before this year's cold moon comes, all the homeless people wandering in this mountain forest and nearby wilderness can Report to the Cecil family and become a permanent and legal citizen of this land," Gawain looked at the young man in front of him, and at the same time told everyone around him, he deliberately emphasized that all this must be done in the "cold" It will only be effective until the "Bitter Moon" comes, but it is not really to set this limit, but to make this matter more credible and create a sense of pressure and urgency in the people in front of you, "in order to let all those who need help Everyone can receive the message in time. I want you and other capable people to find the refugees who are hiding. I will send soldiers to escort you to ensure that you can complete these tasks alive."
Tom. Listening to all this with his eyes wide open, Gawain turned around and turned to the refugees from the southern border who were haggard and whose expressions were only tense and numb: "I know that you are all honest people who abide by the law and work hard. people, but your lord has abandoned you, and all the nobles in the entire southern region have abandoned you. No family or any piece of land allows you to establish and survive. You can only wander in the wilderness, relying on grass roots, bark and even moss. and rats to fill their stomachs, but even so, the minions of those nobles are still plundering you, maiming you, and even chasing you here! But, from today on, you stand on the land of the Cecil family, from today on! I am your lord! You can live freely and safely in the land of the Cecil family, and you must tell the people you know who suffer in the wilderness together that there is a place to settle here! ”
A little bit of brilliance finally emerged from those pair of cloudy and numb eyes.
After all, they are still human beings and they still have intentions.
Gawain did not expect these dull hungry people to cheer in response to him. After he finished what he wanted to say, he took a half step back. Seeing that Wright had released holy light treatment for all the wounded, he Turning to look at Knight Philip: "Give some of the extra food to these people - otherwise, with their condition, it may be difficult to walk to the territory. In addition, send a soldier on a fast horse back to tell Hetty the news. , get her ready.”
Distributing food after an inspiring speech is always the most effective approach, especially in this day and age.
When the "lord" orders people to take out the food, these people will truly feel that they have returned to "human society" and are convinced that their new "lord" will indeed let them fill the food. If their bellies are full, they themselves will obey orders and maintain theirMaintain the most basic loyalty. The thinking of civilians in this era is so simple and direct. This can be said to be the only kindness Gawain feels in this world full of malice.
At this time, the black-haired girl who had just received Wright's treatment suddenly came over. She was holding on to her clothes awkwardly and nervously, as if she had something to say. Gawain saw this and took the initiative to speak. : "What do you want from me?"
"Yes...yes, Lord...Lord," the black-haired girl seemed to stumble a little when she said the word "Lord", but she still He said it smoothly, "Is what you just said true?"
"Of course it is true," Gawain laughed, "Do I need to lie to you?"
< p>But what noble gentlemen say is never true.Qiong only dared to think about this in her heart, but what she said was: "Can I go find other settlements with my brother? He has limited legs and feet and needs someone to take care of him."
p>"If necessary, I will arrange a horse or a car for him." Gawain had just noticed the problem with the young man's legs and feet, but he still nodded, "Of course, you can still come with him. Action."
The girl lowered her head deeply: "Thank you very much for your kindness."
One day later, Gawain and Amber led half of the soldiers and escorted him alive. The two mercenaries returned to the territory first.
And Knight Philip took the remaining half of the soldiers to escort the dozens of "new people" behind. Since the refugees were weak and many had chronic diseases, Wright also stayed behind. Take care of the things in the back.
The holy light priest can also match the fighting power of the berserker...
Gawain is in a very happy mood, although he only brought back dozens of them from this trip. The new population was not even as large as the population of a slave ship coming from Tanzania Town. However, he successfully established contact with the refugees in the wilderness north of the White Water River, and his initial trust was built among these dozens of people. Based on the basic development, he was extremely happy when he thought about how much labor the territory desperately needed gathered in this vast barren land.
Not to mention that most of these refugees are free people with some skills or at least some knowledge. Their basic quality is higher than that of the bought slaves, which will be used in later education. Reduce a lot of costs.
It is difficult for serfs to become refugees - because they are tied to the land. When a famine comes, the local nobles will gather their serfs and feed them at the lowest cost until the famine is over. Production would be resumed, and serfs who tried to escape would be captured and executed. On the contrary, freedmen with a slightly higher status would lose all their support in this case and have to flee their homes.
So sometimes people joke like this - in some noble lands, the price of freedom is higher than becoming a serf.
However, Heti, who was in charge of the internal affairs of the territory, seemed a little worried. She found Gawain: "Ancestor, youDo you really plan to gather all the homeless in the wilderness on the north bank of the Whitewater River before the cold moon arrives? "
Gawain had already expected that Hetty would come to him, and he smiled: "Are you under pressure for food? "
"Indeed - if the intelligence is true, the entire wilderness is now filled with refugees, and we will have to support about four thousand people through this winter. After this period of population expansion in the territory, the population is only 2,000. We are equivalent to supporting more than twice our current population of refugees at once. And this is just a minor issue. After all, food can be bought with money. Tanzania Town is rich and willing to sell food to us at low prices. This aspect can be easily solved. The real trouble is how to maintain the increase of so many people at once. Order - We have finally digested and absorbed the purchased serfs and slave laborers into territorial citizens who understand the rules and abide by the law. At this time, if four thousand people come here rashly, I am very worried that the results of previous efforts will be destroyed. ——Even if those refugees did not intentionally cause damage. "
"We increased the number of people from eight hundred to two thousand. The population has more than doubled, but the order has not collapsed." Gawain smiled and looked at Hetty, "So there is nothing to worry about. Woolen cloth? ”
“That’s because the previously increased population all arrived before the Frost Moon—the weather is warm and there are plenty of jobs for those people. They can follow the territorial people to open up wasteland, log wood, and build construction. According to your statement, houses will be renovated if there is labor. Sufficient jobs will be the best way to absorb the new population. However, it is already the second half of the Frost Moon, and it will soon enter the foggy moon with falling snow, and then the In the cold moon where dripping water turns into ice, we will have no jobs at this time..."
"Who said there won't be any? Gawain smiled even more happily, "Why can't we work in winter, but we can only stay at home and consume food?" In fact, it's quite the opposite... I still have piles of engineering projects waiting for people to complete them. ”