Chapter 72: The Happiness of Refugees

  PS: Thank you to "Traffic Exhausted" and "Lonely Night Wanderer" for the 1888 starting coin reward, thank you to "Amber Summer" and "Middle Before" for the 100 starting coin reward! The brothers' kindness is deeply appreciated by Sugar Man. For now, I dare not update too much because there's no recommendation next week, so let's slowly accumulate popularity, brothers please forgive me!

  ...These refugees who have once again felt the taste of being human, suddenly transformed from a state of homelessness to their current neat and tidy appearance, as if they were dreaming. Looking at themselves wearing clean clothes, they couldn't believe it, some even pinched themselves to see if they were dreaming. It was too unbelievable, they couldn't believe that there were people willing to provide for them, these refugees who were worse off than dogs.

  The thick porridge with salt and meat was something they had never tasted before, let alone the fact that someone had actually put in effort to prepare it for them. Many people hadn't even touched meat their whole lives, yet here they were, tasting the flavor of meat as refugees!

  Of course, they wouldn't suspect the great immortal master Zhang Xu's intentions, not even a little bit. Who are they? They're just vagrants who are shunned by everyone, no noble wants them because accepting them would require giving up food, and in this world, food has become the most precious resource!

  For them, Zhang Xuxian was their savior, and they were willing to do anything for him. As long as they could eat a full meal, even if it meant dying immediately, everyone would be extremely satisfied, not to mention experiencing the taste of being human. Having food to eat and wearing clean clothes was already an immense pleasure for these refugees, and it could even be considered luxurious. This is what the chaotic world was like - cruel and merciless!

  "Long live Master Xianshi!"

  One by one, the refugees were overcome with emotion, each person's excitement coming from the heart. Otherwise, they wouldn't have transformed from non-believers to ordinary followers of Zhang Xu in an instant. This was a great promotion, and although being an ordinary follower seemed insignificant, it was actually the backbone of the army of believers. In this chaotic world, it was easy to rise through the ranks, but if placed in his previous life, who knows what price they would have had to pay? Batch after batch of refugees emerged from the clean pool, changed into clean clothes that had undergone a series of disinfection procedures, symbolizing their rebirth. As soon as one batch of refugees came out, they were overwhelmed with gratitude towards Zhang Xu's great kindness and became ordinary followers, or even loyal followers. They were immediately accepted by the military and began new work assignments based on their physical condition, which further deepened their sense of gratitude!

  Those who have not experienced the turmoil of war cannot imagine what it's like to be treated as worthless as grass. In times of chaos, people are often worse off than dogs. Now, they have new jobs, although not the farming work that most people do for a lifetime, but at least they have work and food on the table, which is their greatest satisfaction!

  The entire Donglai County needs a lot of manpower, and all the strong men are busy opening up new farmland. There is a shortage of oxen, so they have to rely on human power to make up for it. Fortunately, Zhang Xiang has been focusing on the manufacture of farm tools, and the rewards for the devout craftsmen are very generous, which has accelerated the development of this technology. At least every person is making an all-out effort to improve the plowing technique and other supporting technologies. As a result, two strong men can operate a plow, and even with the help of two people working together, they can plow about 10 mu of land in one day. With the help of the elderly and children in sowing seeds, each household can cultivate about 10 mu of land per day. Therefore, all these refugees have been arranged properly.

  The newly arrived refugees who are extremely weak are responsible for cooking, washing clothes, and other tasks that require less physical effort but still need to be done by humans. After a period of recuperation, they can help transport materials for road construction, and then become road workers. This is the longest part of the process because only when they reach a certain level can they switch from lighter road work to heavier work, and after passing the test, they can be organized into households with the right to cultivate land.

  In the next ten days, although the number of refugees arriving increased, due to their increasing familiarity with this process, things became more and more smooth, despite occasional chaos. In this process, a large number of devout followers emerged, possessing initial management skills.

  Things are extremely busy, and everyone's hands are moving at high speed. In the entire Donglai County under Zhang Xu's command, it can be said that there is not a single idle person. From Zhang Xu to the high-level management personnel such as the three vice principals, Zhang Yao, Zhang Tie, and the two great children, as well as those in charge and the children, down to the most ordinary newly arrived refugees in Zhang Xu's territory, everyone is working with all their might.

  Because of Zhang Xu's iron-fisted methods, the army has eliminated a large number of local tyrants and evil gentry during this process. For a time, it has made the hearts of the people throughout Donglai County completely solidify. Everyone is willing to dedicate their lives to the homeland advocated by Zhang Xu.

  They know that as long as they work hard, the great Zhang Xu Xiansheng will never be unkind to them. Each person is assigned a different level based on their work and faith, with various levels of distribution. This makes everyone have a sense of struggle and fairness, as those who do more get more, and those who do less get less.

  The devout belief in Zhang Xu naturally allows people to receive more things. This distribution method makes everyone extremely satisfied. Therefore, whether it is the new refugees or the people from other counties in Donglai County who have just surrendered to Zhang Xu, their fighting spirit and enthusiasm are always high, and their faith in Zhang Xu is becoming increasingly strong!

  Every day, everyone is extremely fulfilling, they are all moving towards the goal of being able to live independently. After all, only by establishing a household registration can they truly be considered as Zhang Xuan's subjects, with the right to allocate land for farming and the priority to get work during slack periods. This is something that every individual is eager to have, especially for those former refugees who were struggling to survive from day to day. Even Zhang Xuan's own followers had to work hard to repay their master's kindness and earn more contributions. After all, under Zhang Xuan, contribution was the most important means of comparing one's status with others. Those with high contribution levels would allegedly have bonuses when it came to military service in the future, being able to serve as soldiers to protect Zhang Xuan and his home. This was truly too attractive for him!