Chapter 150: The Development of Gao Family Village
After leaving Gao Family Village, Xing Honglang and her group traveled east, passing through Heyang County. They clandestinely crossed the Yellow River at a private ferry, entering Shanxi Province, and then pressed eastward. Before long, they arrived in Pingyang Prefecture.
Pingyang Prefecture, now known as Linfen County, governed six smaller prefectures and twenty-eight counties. It was strategically located, bordering Shangdang to the east, the Yellow River to the west, with routes south to Bian and Luo, and blocking the path to Jinyang in the north.
It was a frequent battleground.
Pingyang Prefecture was bustling, frequented by countless merchants and travelers. While it couldn't compare to Xi'an, it was still an excellent place to sell goods.
Naturally, Xing Honglang intended to make a big score here. She immediately put the quality goods sourced from Gao Family Village up for sale, and in no time, everything sold out completely, leaving her pockets overflowing with gold, silver, and copper coins.
And so, it was time to restock from Gao Family Village again.
Xing Honglang, with thirty to forty of her men, left Pingyang Prefecture, intending to return to Gao Family Village. After crossing the Yellow River back into Shaanxi and passing through Heyang County, they came upon a small village. Suddenly, on the mountain path ahead, several common folk came scrambling towards them in disarray.
One person, still running, cried out, "Run! Bandits are here! So many bandits! Run!"
The villagers immediately scurried back into their homes, bolting their doors.
Xing Honglang muttered, "Well, isn't this great? We're a conspicuous target now."
She hadn't even finished her self-deprecating remark when hundreds of bandit soldiers thundered out from ahead. They were dressed in a motley fashion, clearly a hastily assembled mob. Their leader was a burly man, his face a mass of scarred flesh, radiating menace.
The burly leader's eyes immediately landed on Xing Honglang and her conspicuously visible group.
A woman on horseback, followed by thirty to forty sturdy men, all not poorly dressed—they clearly looked like people of means.
The burly man grinned broadly. "Brothers, charge! This is definitely a big score!"
Xing Honglang scoffed, "You audacious bastards! You dare try to rob me?"
One of her subordinates, with a wry grimace, muttered, "Boss, the gender's a bit off there."
Xing Honglang shot him a furious glare.
With a swift motion, the salt smugglers drew their sabers.
Xing Honglang pulled out her own saber and roared with laughter. "I've roamed north and south for years, and this is the first time I've met a bunch who just charge in to rob without a single word! The outlaw world has no true heroes left; they're all just a bunch of damn unruly brigands! Men, charge!"
The salt smugglers let out a furious roar and charged forward, blades flashing.
With a clang and clatter, the two sides engaged in battle.
The salt smugglers' combat prowess could hardly compare to a hastily assembled mob of rioters. Although outnumbered, Xing Honglang's group quickly gained the upper hand. Before long, they had soundly defeated the rebels, sending them fleeing in disarray.
"Tch, what a bunch of trash," Xing Honglang scoffed, making a dismissive gesture at the fleeing rebels' backs. Suddenly, she noticed her right sleeve was completely stained red, blood dripping steadily from it.
"Huh? Injured? When did that happen?"
Mid-January, the first year of Chongzhen's reign.
The population of Gao Family Village had expanded significantly once again.
More and more refugees were arriving at Gao Family Village, seeking sustenance.
Liang Shixian, the Magistrate of Chengcheng County, was naturally aware of this, but he did not intervene.
When Li Daoxuan had first promised him relief grain, San Shier and Liang Shixian's chief aide had held a detailed discussion about disaster relief. During their talks about establishing porridge distribution points in various locations, it was agreed that one would be set up in Gao Family Village.
Eager to save the populace, Liang Shixian naturally wouldn't obstruct such an act of benevolence.
So, when throngs of refugees spread the word in the county town that Old Master Li's household in Gao Family Village distributed more porridge than the county itself—enough to truly fill one's belly—Liang Shixian, far from being angered by the news, was quite relieved.
For months now, Liang Shixian had been exhausted and overwhelmed dealing with these refugees. Now that they were voluntarily going to Gao Family Village for food, it saved him some effort. Why wouldn't he be pleased?
Under these circumstances, it would have been strange if the population of Gao Family Village hadn't boomed.
The Short-term Workers Village, in particular, saw its population swell rapidly.
Li Daoxuan continuously set down more plastic houses.
Eventually, there was no longer room at the edge of the bamboo grove to the southwest, so Li Daoxuan had to place a cluster of houses alongside the official road to the southwest. In the blink of an eye, even that area became too crowded...
Unbeknownst to the villagers, a network of "satellite villages" had formed around Gaojia Fortress. The original Gao Family Village, once home to only 42 miniature figures, had now transformed into a large town boasting over a thousand people.
Li Daoxuan's field of view had expanded considerably without him noticing. Zhong Guangdao's village, "Zhongjia Village," where he had launched his rebellion, now appeared on the exterior of the diorama box. Several other unfamiliar names like Zhangjia Village and Lijia Village also showed up.
With the burgeoning population came a greater need for job opportunities. This, however, was proving to be a rather troublesome matter.
Li Daoxuan didn't have that many jobs to offer them. After much deliberation, only one solution remained: "Build roads! All surplus labor will go to road construction."
Centered around Gao Family Village, cement roads began to spread outwards to all the surrounding settlements. The road to Zhengjia Village, the first one, was already complete, and the road leading to Wangjia Village was almost ready for traffic. Cement roads to Zhongjia Village, Zhangjia Village, Lijia Village, and other villages all began construction simultaneously.
Within a radius of over ten li around Gao Family Village, bustling construction sites sprang up everywhere.
Only then did Li Daoxuan understand why that highway downstairs from his own apartment was always under repair: migrant workers needed jobs.
The amount of cement needed was now considerable, and Li Daoxuan couldn't very well keep scrounging from construction sites. So, he paid out of his own pocket for a large bag of cement to take home. As for sand, he didn't need to worry about it; the miniature figures could dig river sand themselves.
He made sure to let the miniature figures do whatever they were capable of themselves; this also served as a way to address the employment issue.
As the occupied area grew, so did the places beyond Li Daoxuan's view. His perspective was largely fixed above Gaojia Fortress, only occasionally making a round of inspection elsewhere or switching to other villages' farmlands to make it rain. Aside from these moments, he preferred to keep his gaze locked on Gao Family Village.
If something happened in an unseen area, he was unable to attend to it.
Sometimes, he couldn't help but sigh, realizing that even deities had people they couldn't protect, let alone himself, a mere mortal.
Under these circumstances, the militia's importance grew even further. The militia assembled by Cheng Xu now exceeded one hundred members, with the sixty newest recruits all coming from the Short-term Workers Village.
After young, able-bodied men had stayed in Gao Family Village for a sufficient period and their character was trusted, they would catch Cheng Xu's eye and be recruited into the militia. Once in the militia, they no longer needed to work odd jobs; they not only ate well but also received generous wages.
However... the daily training was quite arduous; most people couldn't endure such hardship. After training, they also had to report to the Saintess, where she would teach them principles of conduct, making them recite a hundred times: "You are the children of the common folk; you must not take even a needle or a thread from them."
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