Chapter 2385

In March 1639, the freezing cold still did not dissipate from the Shandong Peninsula. The harm caused by the low temperature to the fleeing people was no less than hunger. Wherever tens of thousands of refugees passed by, they were like locusts passing through.

Even the bark of grass roots and trees has been stripped clean, and the trees near the road often have only a bare pole left, and the branches are all used by the refugees as fuel for heating at night.

The villages, towns, and counties along the way were naturally unable to bear the survival pressure brought about by this sudden population increase. Some small villages were quickly swallowed up by the surging flow of refugees. All supplies were snatched up by the refugees, and the villagers also

They will be forced to join the refugee flow because they have lost their survival supplies.

The governments along the way are basically the same as Zhaoyuan County. They have no ability to organize self-rescue for refugees, and they are unable to resettle refugees on the spot. They can only try to drive the refugees to continue moving forward, not to stay locally, so that they can at least ensure their own safety.

There will be no major chaos within the jurisdiction.

Without the arrival of the Haihan Army, the situation in Zhaoyuan County would probably not be much better than in those places in the west. The rapid influx of refugees would soon turn all places outside the county into wasteland, disrupting local material circulation and social development.

Order was completely broken down.

Although the troops led by Sun Zhen were not large in strength, they effectively promoted the outflow of refugees after arriving in Zhaoyuan County, which relieved the pressure on Zhaoyuan County to a certain extent. However, such measures would have a negative impact on the large number of refugees that were to come in the future.

Whether it is equally effective remains to be tested by time.

Zhaoyuan County Government provided the first batch of one thousand kilograms of grain as promised, and sent two large trucks to transport it to the Haihan Army station outside the city after nightfall. However, only half of it was rice, and the rest was various miscellaneous grains.

The quantity was overpriced, and the quality was quite poor. You could tell at a glance that it was several years old. But in the current environment, Sun Zhen couldn't argue with the county government about these trivial issues, so he could only accept it first.

On the other hand, Gong Shiqi was quite indignant after inspecting the food delivered: "This guy named Gu brought all these things here to send beggars! I will definitely talk to him about it the next time I go to the city!"

Sun Zhen advised calmly: "In extraordinary times, it's good to be able to get food. Besides, it's not inedible after it's cooked. It's better than nothing."

Gong Shiqi saw that Sun Zhen didn't want to care about it, so he didn't want to take the initiative to cause trouble at the moment, but he still secretly wrote down this account, and he would always find an excuse to teach Nagu Magistrate a lesson in the future.

Gong Shiqi's men have all returned to Fushan County, so he can only put aside the gold mine matter now and fully assist Sun Zhen in handling the refugee affairs.

Since the beginning of March, the number of refugees in Zhaoyuan County has shown a linear upward trend. The official road in the south of the county is full of people, all of whom have fled from Laizhou.

These people soon discovered that the county town gate was closed and they would not be allowed to enter the city to seek help. They could only find a place to rest outside the city and inquire about the local situation from the refugees who had arrived here earlier. Of course, the situation here would not make anyone feel uncomfortable.

Satisfied, there is no food, medical care, or shelter. The government does not care about the life and death of the refugees. If you want to survive, you can only rely on yourself. But near the county seat, there are basically no survival resources available. Even the small river next to the county seat every day

They have been fished out many times by hungry refugees, and now there are probably no river shrimps left.

Wherever food can be obtained, whether it is catching fish in the river or hunting birds in the mountains, hundreds of refugees will try it every day, including many fishermen and hunters who have fled with hunting tools. But these methods can only

The food they received was only a drop in the bucket for the growing number of refugees. It was increasingly difficult for latecomers to find food near the county seat.

Relying on the little gruel given out by the county every day or the food obtained from nearby areas can no longer meet the survival needs of the vast majority of refugees. For them, there are basically two directions, one is to go north to the seaside, and then

Follow the coastline to Dengzhou City. At least you can get something to eat during the high and low tides on the beach. You can slowly get to Dengzhou City before making plans. The other way is to follow the instructions of the Hai'an people and continue eastward.

March to Fushan County, where it is said that all refugees will be properly resettled and will no longer have to worry about basic survival issues such as food and housing.

But these two options are not perfect, and each has certain risks. The temperature at the seaside is lower than that in Zhaoyuan, surrounded by mountains. For the refugees who lack food and clothing, it will be difficult to survive the cold night.

It will be even more difficult. And even if they can get to Dengzhou successfully in the end, they may not be accommodated there. It is impossible to say that they will still face the same experience as in Zhaoyuan.

The propaganda that persuades refugees to go to Fushan County is indeed more tempting. It seems that all problems can be solved there. But why should a small Fushan County boast of such a seaport? Many people are still dubious about this.

I feel that there is some unknown conspiracy involved. As for the armed men claiming to be Haihan Army who appear near the county town, a considerable number of people still keep a respectful distance. God knows if their accomplices are there.

They were waiting to rob and kill helpless refugees on the way to Fushan County.

After two days of continuous observation of several refugee settlements near the county seat, Sun Zhen and Gong Qiqi concluded that although many refugees leave here every day, the rate of refugee influx into the local area is still much higher than that of the influx into the local area.

The speed of evacuation. It has only been a few days since Sun Zhen arrived here, and the number of refugees near the county has rapidly increased from two to three thousand to ten thousand, and it is still growing at a four-digit rate every day.

"If this continues, there will probably be trouble in this place." Gong Shiqi said with a worried look: "The scale of the fights that have occurred in the past two days is getting bigger and bigger. If someone wants to take the opportunity to cause trouble, the opportunity is almost now.

Mature."

Sun Zhendao: "If someone really takes the lead in causing rebellion, then we will have no choice but to take action. General Chen has specifically warned that he does not want Shandong refugees to become peasant armies. If someone rebels, then we will have to take care of it for the Ming Dynasty."

Already."

For Haihan, the chaos in Shandong will definitely do more harm than good, and will inevitably affect various trade activities carried out by Haihan in the northern part of the Ming Dynasty. He tried his best to receive and resettle refugees in Fushan County, on the one hand, to help the Ming Dynasty stabilize the situation in Shandong, and on the other hand, to help the Ming Dynasty stabilize the situation in Shandong.

On the one hand, they also resorted to converting refugees into immigrants to recover part of the economic losses. But if someone wants to coerce the refugees to rebel, it will not only harm the Ming Dynasty, but also go against the interests of Haihan. Publicly and privately, Sun Zhen cannot sit back and watch this happen.

situation occurs.

But whatever they were afraid of came, and at noon the next day, a large-scale armed fight suddenly broke out in a refugee settlement about a mile away from the Haihan Army camp.

Sun Zhen looked through the telescope and could only see refugees fleeing from the scene of the incident in fear amid the flying dust. He could faintly hear the roar of people and the sound of gold and iron floating in the wind. It seemed that they were used.

Metal equipment.

Gong Shiqi also quickly came to watch the battle, but when he found that the view from the camp was limited and could not see clearly at all, he suggested that Sun Zhen go to a closer place to watch.

Sun Zhen thought it made sense, so he ordered a platoon of men and horses, packed their weapons and equipment, and rode to the scene of the accident to investigate.

But when they got closer, the fight seemed to have come to an end. One of the parties had clearly gained the advantage and was cleaning the battlefield unhurriedly to eliminate its opponents. The weapons in the hands of these people were nothing more than wooden sticks and kitchen knives.

, hoes, hunting forks and other instruments, but I didn't see any serious weapons.

"It's mixed but not chaotic, with a clear division of labor. This group of people is somewhat organized." Sun Zhen only looked at it for a moment before making a preliminary judgment: "Most of the people who command them have served in the military."

Gong Shiqi also nodded in agreement: "There are thugs who are responsible for fighting with weapons, and there are also followers who follow behind to collect trophies. There are also a few people who look good on the outside to provide support. These people do have some skills!"

There is a division of labor and cooperation, which shows that this group of people is not a temporary group of people, but a group of organized people. Judging from their number, there are at least seventy or eighty people. In this group of refugees who are like a loose sand,

It is natural for such a team to emerge easily.

The people who were defeated didn't seem to be the same group. Some tried to fight to the end, while others had already seen the situation was not going well and ran away. There were still others who knelt on the ground and begged, asking their opponents to let them go.

The victorious party takes food as its first goal and snatches all the food from the losers. Although the portion may not be much, it is enough to make the hungry people rejoice. As for dealing with those who are still trying to resist

, the victorious side obviously has no intention of showing any mercy, they are all trying to kill the opponent, waving the guy in their hand and hitting the opponent's head.

Sun Zhen stepped forward on his horse, pulled out his rifle and fired a shot into the sky. The group immediately stopped what they were doing and stared at Sun Zhen, but it seemed that there was no fear in their eyes.

Sun Zhen said loudly: "Who is your leader? Please come out and see him!"

After a while, a man with a bald head and a beard slowly walked out from a short distance away. He cupped his fist at Sun Zhenyi on horseback and said, "Hulusha, do you have any advice?"

Sun Zhen raised his riding crop and pointed at the field and asked: "Are these people your subordinates?"

Nahulusa responded: "That's exactly it."

"Are you the dispersed Ming army, or are you a group of civilians?" Seeing the other party's frank admission, Sun Zhen also opened the skylight and spoke frankly.

Hulusa responded: "We are just sailors running boats on the Yellow River. When the Tatars crossed the Yellow River, all the boats hundreds of miles upstream and downstream were requisitioned by them. If we didn't run fast enough, we would probably be connected.

Let’s requisition them together! All the way from Jinan Prefecture to Dengzhou Prefecture, we can only help each other take care of each other. We happened to encounter these blind guys today who want to steal our food, so we have no choice but to take action to protect ourselves!"

Sun Zhen was dubious about what he said. Whether it was his identity or the reason for his action, there was currently a lack of more evidence to prove the authenticity of what he said. However, this was not the focus of Sun Zhen's concern. He wanted to ensure that these

People will not take advantage of this moment to make things worse and take the opportunity to rebel.

"Where are you going next?" Sun Zhen continued to ask.

Hulusha responded alertly: "What does this have to do with you?"

Sun Zhen said slowly: "Some of you have food in your hands. If you cause trouble outside, the government will be unable to do anything to you."

Hulusa said: "I have no intention of causing trouble. I just want to protect my family and my brothers in troubled times!"

Sun Zhen ignored his excuse and continued to say slowly: "I see that you guys are very skilled in cleaning the battlefield. It probably isn't the first time you have done this kind of thing. You came all the way from Jinan Mansion. You shouldn't have been able to fight like this on the way.

It’s been a while, right?”

Hu Lusha saw that the group of people on horseback were getting closer and closer, and he felt a little dangerous at the moment. He motioned for everyone on his side to step back and said: "If you want these trophies, just take them. Hu has no intention of talking to you."

Be against!"

Gong Shiqi, who had been watching silently, suddenly said: "Where are your family members? Call them out and let us see them."

Hulusa's expression changed and he said, "Do you want to hold my family and my family hostage to force us to submit?"

Gong Shiqi said coldly: "Since you claim to fight to protect your family, let us see where your family is, and then let you leave this place."

Sun Zhen smiled and said: "It seems that Brother Gong has thought of getting together with me!"

Gong Shiqi responded: "I hope we didn't make a mistake!"

They had just watched this group of people fight, and felt that their actions clearly showed traces of the military. However, Hu Lusha claimed to be a boatman on the Yellow River, which had already made Sun Zhen and Gong Shiqi suspicious. And these people were carrying live ammunition.

In front of the Haihan Army, he was not as fearful as ordinary people, which was also inconsistent with his identity as a boatman.

Under the current situation, it is naturally difficult to verify whether their identities are true, but Sun Zhen thought of a very simple way, which is to confirm whether these people have family members traveling with them. If so many of them fled, but they were not able to escape with their family members.

No, that would be really unreasonable. His identity is obviously not as simple as a refugee boatman.

Hu Lusha's face was already very ugly. He probably never expected that he would be in such a situation where his identity was inexplicably checked. Continuing the stalemate was definitely not an option, because the group of Haihan cavalry in front of him had no intention of leaving.

"What's wrong? Can't find my family?" Sun Zhen asked with a slightly mocking tone.

Hu Lusha responded with a forced smile: "No, no, you have misunderstood. In fact, the situation is like this. My family has been escorted to Fushan County by other brothers, and I will meet up with them later."

"Oh?" Sun Zhen didn't believe it even more when he heard this: "What is the situation in Fushan County? You didn't go to find out first, but you sent your family there to explore the way? Do you not care about your family, or do you

Don’t you know where these family members are?”
Chapter completed!