There is a Li County between Lingzhou County and Xiangyang. Knowing that the situation in Lingzhou was not good, the group had lunch in Li County, prepared some dry food, and hired a guide who was familiar with Lingzhou before leaving the city before continuing on their journey.
But all that they heard and all that was written down were far less shocking than what they saw with their own eyes. After going down the official road, there was only a dilapidated road. Fortunately, they were riding horses, because if they had been in a carriage, they would probably not have been able to get in at all.
The guide was called Liu Da. He rode a mule and introduced them in half-baked Mandarin: "People from Ling Village usually go in and out from here, but they only come out a few times a year."
The Sixth Prince asked curiously, "Ling Village? Isn't it Lingzhou County?"
"We call it that here. There are only a few hundred people in total. It's not a village. Our big village has more than that number." Liu Da smiled heartily with his black teeth bared, pointing to the front and said, "It's in front."
Without him saying anything, everyone else had seen it. The black stone houses were built against the mountain, concentrated in a piece halfway up the mountain. The mountain was black, and the houses were also black. Hua Zhi couldn't imagine how depressing it would be to live there.
Someone discovered them and people came out of the house one after another. Gu Yanxi didn't want to arouse their hostility, so he reined in his horse and waited for them to come over.
Hua Zhi looked around at this place abandoned by the Daqing Dynasty. At first glance, there was no grass on the bare mountains, no fertile fields or rivers to be seen, no human voices, no birds singing. It was so quiet that it seemed as if no one lived here at all.
"Is there a government office here?"
"There used to be some, but later no one wanted to come. It was only in Li County that we knew there were still people living here. Boss Tao, it's me."
Four people came over there. They had dark skin and each held a carrying pole in his hand. The one in front nodded to Liu Da but remained alert.
Liu Da had seen them like this many times, but he didn't take it to heart. He felt very sympathetic towards them. It was not easy to survive in a place that could force people to death.
"Boss Tao, this is Shopkeeper Lu. He said he wants to do business with you. I thought it was a good thing, so I brought him here. Shopkeeper Lu, Boss Tao is the head of Ling Village. If you have anything to discuss, you can go to him."
After the introduction, Liu Da spoke a few words to Tao Lao Da in a dialect that Hua Zhi and the others couldn't understand, then he led the mule and prepared to leave, "You guys take your time to talk, I've completed my mission."
Xu Ying handed over the agreed silver and money, and Liu Da grinned, "I don't want this money, you guys should talk about the deal properly, it's really not easy for them."
"Wait." Gu Yanxi stopped him, "Do they understand Mandarin?"
Liu Da slapped his head, yes, how could he forget about this? Knowing that he was still useful, Liu Da didn't hesitate to pat Tao on the shoulder and motioned him to lead the way.
I don’t know what Liu Da’s dialect words revealed, but Boss Tao put away his hostility and led the group up the mountain.
The nearest house also requires climbing a mountain, the stairs are uneven and can only accommodate one person.
Gu Yanxi walked slowly with Hua Zhi, and they talked softly as they walked, "I'm afraid the people here are extremely xenophobic and not easy to trust."
"Not only that, I'm afraid he doesn't have a good impression of the court."
Hua Zhi looked down at the stairs that were obviously polished by herself. She didn't like it. If it were her, she wouldn't feel guilty if she did it. "Have you decided where to move them?"
"I hadn't decided before, but now I think it's a good idea for them to move to Li County. It's close and the customs are similar, so they can adapt faster."
Hua Zhi also felt the same way. As the culprit who came up with this idea, she was willing to give them some money so that they could settle down as soon as possible.
Finally stepping onto flat ground, Hua Zhi breathed a sigh of relief, "How about letting Xiaoliu go to negotiate?"
Gu Yanxi looked at Xiaoliu, and Xiaoliu met his gaze, feeling both expectant and nervous. He didn't know if he could do it, but since Sister Hua said so, he had to do it even if he couldn't!
"Can."
Hua Zhi called Xiao Liu over, patted his stained sleeves, and said softly: "You know the reason, Xiao Liu, they are your family members, you have the responsibility to let them live a better life."
The Sixth Prince suddenly felt his shoulders heavier, he pursed his lips and nodded vigorously.
Hua Zhi smiled and pushed him forward. No matter how much she said, it would not be as good as letting him know the feeling by personally participating in it.
Gu Yanxi looked at her deeply, and just when others thought he was going to step forward, he took a step back and stood side by side with Hua Zhi, leaving Xiaoliu, who had been pushed two steps forward, standing alone at the front. He didn't even have time to prepare before he met the gaze of Boss Tao who was looking back at him. His age was his disadvantage, and he raised his aura without having time to think about it. Only when he saw Boss Tao's frown relax did he feel relieved.
Boss Tao shouted a few words in dialect before entering the house. Hua Zhi saw that the heads that popped out of the rooms all retracted back. She looked at Yan Xi and had a clear understanding of Boss Tao's say in Lingzhou County. As long as they convinced Boss Tao, the matter would basically be settled.
Shaoyao didn't like the cramped house, so she took a look at the door and then went outside. Only the Sixth Prince, Gu Yanxi and Hua Zhi followed her into the house.
Liu Da looked around, sat down next to Tao Lao Da, coughed lightly, and conscientiously acted as a middleman, "I wonder what business Manager Lu wants to discuss?"
The Sixth Prince took a deep breath quietly, imagining himself wearing armor and picking up a weapon, and said loudly: "Before coming here, I asked around. Lingzhou produces a kind of stone that is exactly the kind used to build houses in Ling Village. I wonder if Boss Tao can bring a piece for me to see?"
Boss Tao and Liu Da whispered a few words, Liu Da nodded and asked, "Boss Tao asked if this kid could make the decision?"
Gu Yanxi nodded, "He is my brother, his words count."
After getting a positive answer, Boss Tao didn't waste any words and went straight to the corner of the house to move a very smoothly polished stone.
Hua Zhi couldn't help laughing when she saw Xiao Liu looking at it over and over again in a serious manner. This was a good way to make a breakthrough. The people in Ling Village were very wary. Instead of giving them benefits, it would be better to make a deal to reassure them. After this trip, Xiao Liu had indeed improved a lot and was more experienced in handling things. Berlin was afraid that he would be outdone after returning, but it was also good this way.
"Yes, that's exactly what we need." Xiao Liu put down the stone. "I want a large quantity. I wonder how Boss Tao wants to trade?"
Boss Tao and Liu Da talked for a while, and Liu Da said generously: "Boss Tao said he doesn't want money. If Manager Lu can take the children of Ling Village out, they are willing to dig stones for you."
Xiaoliu did not give in, "If I saw it right, this stone mountain where you live produces exactly this kind of stone."
Boss Tao was stunned. Could it be that this person meant... to ask them to move somewhere else
PS: I looked back at the content updated in recent days, and it's as expected, terrible. This section of content was changed temporarily. In fact, the initial setting was that after arriving in Xiangyang, there was a flood. People died in Xiangyang and the loss was quite large. Only after experiencing this kind of pain could the digging of rivers and other things be successful. But when I saw the consequences of the flood with my own eyes, I realized how terrible it was and how much pain the people suffered, and I couldn't write anymore, so I changed the content temporarily, and then because I didn't have time to polish it, it turned out to be like this... I'm ashamed.