Drive a RV and go farming in ancient times.

Xu Huaiyi wiped his hair and came out of the bathroom, casually wrapped in a bathrobe. He asked anxiously, "It's a mess? What's the mess? Didn't we recruit soldiers in Qingzhou a few years ago? Why can't we do it this time?"

"How can they be the same?" Gu Huanxi rolled her eyes at him. "That time you were allowed to use silver instead, but this time you must send people."

"It seems that the troops are really insufficient..." Xu Huaiyi walked to the refrigerator, took out a can of beer, gulped down a few mouthfuls, suppressed his annoyance, and complained, "These soldiers who were forcibly conscripted, unwillingly, and untrained, how much combat effectiveness can they have when they go into battle? They are just cannon fodder. Not only do they cause casualties, but don't they have to pay pensions after their death? Their families are sad and upset, and without labor, they also increase the burden on the Ministry of Households. What's the point?"

"Gather some men, otherwise, what will you do? Battles where a small force defeated a large one are all in history books. How many of them can be found in reality?" Gu Huanxi smiled helplessly. "It's better than nothing. At least it's a little psychological comfort."

Xu Huaiyi cursed a few times and then changed the subject to, "Do the villagers not want to go and are shirking the responsibility?"

Gu Huanxi nodded, "It's human nature, it's normal. We all know that the war situation in the south and the north is not optimistic. Even the suppression of rebellions in various places is not going smoothly. It's difficult everywhere. Who is willing to die? They will avoid it if they can. If they can't avoid it, they will think of ways to deal with it. The court is urging them, so they dare not delay."

Xu Huaiyi frowned and asked, "How do you think of a solution?"

Gu Huanxi said in a complicated tone, "Some people draw lots and rely on luck to decide who goes to the battlefield. Others spend a lot of money to buy people, but this route is not feasible for many families because the shortage is large and it is difficult to buy. The price has skyrocketed. In the past, you could buy one for five taels of silver, but now it has increased almost tenfold. Not everyone is willing to do that. The human traffickers have run out of supply, so some people are planning to target last year's disaster victims..."

Xu Huaiyi's eyes turned cold, "Did you go to brainwash the disaster victims?"

Gu Huanxi shook his head, "It can't be considered brainwashing, right? You also know that although the disaster victims have settled down, their lives are still difficult, especially now they are hit by a snowstorm. Eating, drinking and keeping warm are all problems. Even if there are porridge vendors at the city gate, they are only for emergencies and not for the poor. It can't change anything. But if you are willing to sacrifice one person, you can get fifty taels of silver. Then this family will have hope. If you save money, you won't have to worry for three to five years. So, it should be a matter of willingness."

"Fifty taels? Not everyone in the village is willing to give that much, right?"

"Well, some are reluctant to part with their money, and some really don't have any. That's why I say it's a mess. Many families are in turmoil, and there's shouting and crying all day long. The business of the workshops has been affected."

"Uncle and the village chief's uncle's family must have paid to buy people, right?"

"Yes, and also the family of Village Chief Hu, Second Uncle Gao, and Uncle Liu's family, they are the ones who are most willing to take money."

"Where is Meng Erzhu's family?"

"His family... naturally refused to pay, saying they didn't have any money. His parents urged him to go, saying that you were in the military camp and had been appointed as a lieutenant. If Meng Erzhu could join the army, you might be able to promote him and give him a future that would be much more promising than working in a workshop."

Hearing this, Xu Huaiyi laughed angrily, "That's a nice thought. What right do I have to arrange Meng Erzhu to my own lieutenant camp? His parents are so biased that they are fooling a fool."

Gu Huanxi said meaningfully, "Meng Erzhu seems to be quite interested and even asked Hu Yingjie about it privately."

Xu Huaiyi couldn't help but glare, "What did Yingjie say?"

Gu Huanxi came out of the kitchen with a bowl of chicken noodle soup in her hand, pushed it in front of him, and took the beer can from his hand, "Don't worry, Hu Yingjie is not stupid, how can you give him hope? What she said was very harsh, completely extinguishing his idea of ​​joining the army. She advised him to find a way to buy people as soon as possible. If he doesn't have enough money, he can borrow it. Anyway, don't put yourself in danger. Okay, eat the noodles first, don't frown, no one worries more than you, you are not his parents, and he is not a child, how can you control him?"

Xu Huaiyi lowered his head to eat noodles and said incoherently, "I'm afraid he won't be able to figure it out and will die in vain..."

Gu Huanxi snorted, "You are in the south, so you can't do anything. You should calm down. Look at you now. You have only been away for a few months, but your face is so rough. You have aged ten years. You have wrinkles at the corners of your eyes. You still have the time to take care of others. Is it not tiring and stressful for you to fight? Or do you plan to stay in Jeju and not come back?"

Listening to her nagging, Xu Huaiyi ate the noodles more happily. He slurped down a big bowl of it, then gnawed on a chicken leg, wiped his mouth, burped contentedly, and leaned back on the sofa, finally feeling relaxed. The aftereffects of the war also began to show, and fatigue and aches all over his body surged up like a flood. He squinted his eyes, feeling drowsy.

Seeing this, Gu Huanxi quickly helped him to the bed, sprayed medicine on him and kneaded him. Looking at the blue and purple marks and swollen areas on his body, she felt heartbroken.

Xu Huaiyi kept himself conscious and gave vague instructions, "The border is in turmoil, and the prefectures are in dire straits. The capital city, although seemingly calm, is actually more dangerous than anywhere else. If you are not careful, your entire family may be executed. Emperor Jianxing was greatly provoked. He was wise in his early years and claimed to be a wise ruler, but now that he is old, the Prince of Chu's Palace has created so many troublesome things to discredit him. The invasion of the Japanese pirates and the Tartars may not be his fault, but the banditry and civil unrest in various places are definitely his fault. If he had governed properly, the private soldiers of the Prince of Chu's Palace would not have easily provoked the people to rebel. In the final analysis, it was because he did not manage well..."

"Okay, I know, go to sleep."

"That's it, I'll go back to sleep..." Xu Huaiyi was born to worry. Even though his eyelids were almost unable to open, he was still worried and reminded, "The situation in the capital is on the verge of breaking out. It all depends on who can't help but take action first. If Emperor Jianxing is more decisive and kills all the descendants of the King of Chu, then the rebels in various places will be leaderless and may be in chaos for a while, or they may flee to the south, but they can always be suppressed. Of course, the price of this is not small. For example, Emperor Jianxing's reputation will be ruined. If the Empress Dowager simply dies of anger during this period, he will have to bear the crime of being unfilial for the rest of his life, and the history books will have to record him. Afterwards, he will not be able to sit firmly on the throne. The best outcome is to abdicate and become the emperor..."

"Can he be willing?"

"So, given his personality, I'm afraid he won't be so decisive. He probably won't dare to do anything extreme. But such indecision is actually more detrimental to the current situation. If the Chu Palace is not completely crushed, they will keep jumping around. The war at the border will not stop for a long time, and the civil strife will not stop. If it continues for a few years, can you imagine what Dayong will become? Disasters continue everywhere, and the people's lives are difficult enough. The treasury is empty, and the Ministry of Revenue is powerless. In the end, who will all this pressure be passed on to?"

Gu Huanxi's heart suddenly sank.

Xu Huaiyi sighed, "When the nest is destroyed, how can all the eggs remain intact? None of us can escape. If the time comes and there is a real chaos, we won't be able to do business, and we may not even be able to store the crops we grow in our own warehouses. It's better to be a dog in peacetime than a man in troubled times..."

"But what can we do? We can't change the current situation. Whether it's Emperor Jianxing or the Prince of Chu's Palace, we can't interfere. Even the ministers in the court are all deaf and dumb and dare not say a word. Whoever shows up will be bullied. Your master even sent someone to remind me that I must behave myself during this period. I closed all our shops, leaving only the bookstore open."

"Alas, there is no good solution. You should store more food and medicinal herbs. You should also call the guards on the farm to come to the manor. With them protecting us, we will be safer. If there is nothing serious, we can just stay at home and live our lives. As for the children, if they are really not well, just suspend their classes. It is so cold, there is no need for them to go to school every day. They can study at home anyway..."

"Okay, I'll do as you say. Go to sleep."

Before Xu Huaiyi closed his eyes, he asked again, "Mr. Jiang and Doctor Jiao will arrive in Beijing soon, right?"

"Well, I estimate it will take only a few days."

Hearing this, Xu Huaiyi finally fell asleep completely.

Listening to the snoring, Gu Huanxi tucked in the quilt for him, sat on the edge, was in a daze for a while, and then lay down carefully.

The next day, the snow on the ground had not yet melted, but it began to flake off the sky again, and the entire capital was shrouded in white.

Gu Huanxi did not let the children go to class, but left them at home to read and practice calligraphy. Then he sent someone to buy food and medicinal herbs, but was told that all the grain stores in the city were closed, and only a few medicine stores were open, but they did not have all the medicinal herbs to sell, and they could only be used by emergency patients.

This situation has pushed the situation to a more tense point.

Heavy snow was raging all over the sky and every household closed their doors and windows.

However, conscription is still going on as usual, and it is extremely urgent. The court has issued an ultimatum, that if no one is handed over within three days, they will forcibly enter the house to arrest the person, and whoever is caught will be the one to take charge.

He also gave death orders to the village heads. If they failed to complete the task, not only would they lose their positions, but they would also be punished by being beaten or imprisoned. As a result, the village heads were finally in trouble.

However, with their pressure, the conscription process was indeed much faster. After all, the village chief was the local emperor. Whoever dared not to listen would never be able to stay in the village. Those who had money to buy people would no longer be stingy with their money. Those who really had no money would decide by drawing lots. Those who refused to cooperate would be threatened with division of family and expulsion of clan. Finally, the process was barely suppressed.

The conscription work in Hutian Village was relatively easy, except for two families: Meng Erzhu and the expelled Lao Xu family. According to the government, Lao Xu's family's household registration was still in the village.

When Gu Huanxi got the news, the matter had already been settled.

Hu Yingjie said, "The Meng family split up. Village Chief Xu was the one who decided to split up. The Meng family was really making a lot of noise, dragging their feet and refusing to pay money or send people. The village chief was annoyed enough, so he just let them split up..."

Gu Huanxi asked curiously, "How is it divided?"

Hu Yingjie said, "Only Meng Erzhu was separated. The others still live together. Meng Erzhu has temporarily moved to the workshop."

"Wouldn't it be more costly to divide it this way? If it becomes two families, each family will have to contribute one person."

"Yes, but Village Chief Xu just wanted to punish the Meng family in this way. Who told them to make trouble? But Meng Erzhu was the only one bullying him, and Meng Erzhu couldn't really stand up. The village chief also forced him to draw a clear line with the Meng family."

Gu Huanxi nodded. He had to admit that although this trick was a bit cruel, it was quite effective. "It seems that all the money Meng Erzhu earned this year was given to his family, right? How did he solve the problem?"

"I borrowed it from Village Chief Xu, and it will be deducted from his monthly salary every month. As for the Meng family..." Hu Yingjie paused, and said in a cryptic way, "I still couldn't bear to pay the money, so I let Meng Erzhu's father go."

Hearing this, Gu Huanxi said in surprise, "In addition to Meng Erzhu, the Meng family has three more sons. This is really..."

Hu Yingjie said with a bit of contempt, "Everyone in the village is stabbing them in the back now. I've seen unfilial people before, but it's rare to see someone so unfilial. Meng Erzhu's father is already in his forties. What are the chances of him coming back?"

This was like watching his own father die. If the family really couldn't come up with the money, it would have been fine, but the Meng family actually had some. Meng Erzhu had earned a lot of money this year, and he gave it all to his family without leaving a single cent.

Gu Huanxi sighed, "I'm afraid Meng Erzhu's reputation isn't very good anymore..."

Hu Yingjie said, "Hmm," "He looked disappointed, but he didn't really care."

Gu Huanxi stopped talking about him and asked, "What about the Xu family? Did they pay money or send people?"

Hu Yingjie said in a complicated tone, "Someone is outstanding."

"Who?"

"Xu Huaili."

Gu Huanxi was stunned for a moment and asked in disbelief, "Him? Will he agree?"

Hu Yingjie explained, "It was Master Xu who decided. As the father and head of the family, whoever's name he reported, that's who. It's useless for Xu Huaili to disagree. The court will force him to arrest."

Gu Huanxi murmured, "It seems that the Xu family has completely given up on him. It's true that the Xu family has come to this point today mostly because of him. He is a scourge. It's a good opportunity to get rid of him without having to bear the reputation of being unkind. It's a good plan..."

Hu Yingjie added, "It seems that the Xu family has decided to return to Qingzhou in the early spring of next year. However, I heard that Xu Huailian and Xu Huaiyu are not very willing to do so. They still want to try their luck in the capital."

"Is Xu Huailian still in school?"

"After being driven away from the village, the news reached the academy and he stopped going. I heard that he wanted to return to the Qiao family as a security guard, but was rejected. After that, he found a job at an escort agency and seems to be doing OK."

"What about Xu Huaiyu? What does he rely on to stay in the capital?"

Hu Yingjie hesitated to speak.

Gu Huanxi raised an eyebrow, "Is there anything you can't say?"

Hu Yingjie cleared his throat and said, "It seems that he is also planning to marry into another family. I have asked Bingren to find one."

Gu Huanxi, "..."

Is this a dead end and a radical move?

Or was it because Xu Huaiyi was doing a good job as a son-in-law, and he was inspired by this precedent, so he was tempted?