Chapter 1380: Half Savage, Half Law-Abiding Citizen

Leaving at dawn, braving the summer heat, he walked south for three days, then turned west.

The journey was filled with sleeping in the open, with few stops for lodging.

The further west he went, the more desolate it became.

Sometimes he would walk for half a day without seeing a single village.

At his pace, half a day could cover several hundred miles.

Could it be that he had already reached the Great Wilderness?

He decisively stopped and walked into a small market town, a very small town with only one street and a few dozen households.

Perhaps he had arrived at just the right time; the town was very lively. A huge caravan, with hundreds of people and hundreds of livestock and horses, packed the small town full.

The town's only two restaurants were completely filled with people from the caravan.

Chen Guanlou walked into the slightly higher-end restaurant.

The waiter was very enthusiastic. "Guest, there are no seats inside. If you don't mind, you can set up a table outside the door. What do you think?"

"Fine, set up a table for me. Bring me a portion of all your delicious food."

"Alright! Please wait a moment, guest."

The table was set up, and the food was served.

Chen Guanlou sat on the street eating and drinking.

He curiously looked at the caravan members; everyone was dusty and exhausted, looking like they had been traveling for a long time. He called the waiter over and asked casually, "Where is the caravan from, and do you know where they are going?"

"In this direction, they can only be from the Great Wilderness. They must be going to Jiangnan to sell goods."

Chen Guanlou was surprised. "Traveling so far, can they make money? What goods does the Great Wilderness have that are worth selling in Jiangnan?"

"Guest, you are joking. The Great Wilderness has no goods, but there are many goods worth selling along the way."

"You mean they buy and sell goods while traveling to Jiangnan."

"Exactly! Don't look at them as coming from the Great Wilderness; a trip is very profitable. They buy and sell all the way. Look at them, everyone is strong and sturdy with good martial arts, and they are such a large scale. Even if they encounter mountain bandits, the bandits have to give way. Maybe they can even take the opportunity to rob the bandits. Very profitable. Every year, several caravans come out of the Great Wilderness, and we are their necessary stop, so they always stop here for supplies."

Chen Guanlou took a bite of beef and handed a cup of wine to the waiter, inviting him to have a drink.

The waiter was extremely excited. "Many thanks, guest! If there is anything you want to know, just ask me."

"Is this considered the Great Wilderness?"

"Guest, you are joking. We are still at least half a month's journey from the Great Wilderness border; it's far."

"There are quite few people here too. I walked for half a day without seeing a single village."

"You must have come from the southeast, guest. That side is dry and lacks water, so no one lives there. If you continue west, you will see some villages, and water is very convenient. If you walk forward for three days, there is a basin where the water and grass are lush, and you can even grow rice; it's very good."

"In that case, this side is not completely barren."

"That's right! Otherwise, so many people wouldn't live here."

"Is the Great Wilderness the same as here?"

"Different, very different!"

The waiter pointed outside the town. "Guest, please look. Although our conditions here are not good, the terrain is relatively flat, right?"

Chen Guanlou nodded. Although there were ups and downs in the mountains, overall, it was relatively flat. As long as there was water, it could be reclaimed and planted with grain. As long as the government was not harsh, the local people could be self-sufficient, and food and clothing would be guaranteed.

"That place, the Great Wilderness, is far worse than here. Not only is it dry, but it's also mountainous! The Great Wilderness is all mountains, mountains that you can't walk out of for ten days or half a month, one after another, all big mountains, and you can't see the top of the mountain at a glance. Those with weak bodies, especially women, can't walk out at all. Many kidnappers like to sell women inside. Any woman sold into it by a kidnapper can never walk out."

Chen Guanlou nodded in understanding.

Poor mountains and bad waters, lacking everything, especially women!

Yet there is no shortage of men!

If they gave birth normally, logically, the gender ratio should be balanced.

It is estimated that the Great Wilderness also has the situation of killing baby girls. Artificial interference has caused a gender imbalance. Otherwise, it cannot explain why there are so many bachelors.

"Have you been to the Great Wilderness?"

The waiter shook his head. "No, no. I will never go to the Great Wilderness in this life." The tone was filled with urgency and panic.

"Why? You are a man, is it also dangerous?"

"Very dangerous!" The waiter lowered his voice, looked around, and whispered: "Inside the Great Wilderness, they want both men and women. Women give birth to children, and men go to reclaim wasteland and mine."

"Are there mines inside?" Chen Guanlou was very curious; Pure Yang Zhenren had never mentioned this.

"They are all very small mines, with very little quantity. But they are especially dangerous. I heard people say that those who mine basically die seven or eight out of ten. Those who barely survive are ruined and can't do anything."

When the waiter spoke of mining in the Great Wilderness, his tone was filled with fear. He looked down on the Great Wilderness, but at the same time, he feared the people there. Before, when he greeted the caravan members, he looked enthusiastic, but in fact, it was also filled with caution.

Chen Guanlou smiled in understanding.

He understood.

People from the Great Wilderness give people the feeling that everyone is a villain. In fact, it is indeed so.

No wonder Pure Yang Zhenren emphasized again and again that in the Great Wilderness, you shouldn't believe anyone, including children.

He glanced at the caravan members casually; none of them were good people, and it is estimated that everyone had blood on their hands. This is not a caravan at all, but a group of bandits wandering on the official road. It's just that most of the time, they appear as law-abiding citizens. When they encounter a suitable opportunity, they will transform into bandits and rob!

It's no wonder such a caravan makes money.

He suddenly could understand Pure Yang Zhenren's mood of not wanting to return to the Great Wilderness.

Once he returns to the Great Wilderness, he is no longer a polite, high-and-mighty, respected Daoist.

But a savage who is ready to turn into a villain at any time.

To protect his wealth, he is ready to kill or be killed at any time!

The Great Wilderness is worthy of being a cruel hunting ground.

The imperial court is kind!

Even for exile, they don't choose the Great Wilderness, but Xizhou. They gave the exiled personnel a way to live.

It is also possible that the imperial court's control over the Great Wilderness is too weak. Nominally there is a government and officials, but it is only nominal. The Great Wilderness is still an unmasked, unadorned, completely jungle society without Confucian education.

People in the Great Wilderness are half savage in a jungle society and half law-abiding citizens in a civilized society.

Identities switch at any time!

Interesting.

What's more interesting is that Zhang Daohe actually opened a branch in such a desolate and savage place.

The imperial court does not educate the people of the Great Wilderness, but he came to educate them.

With him stirring things up like this, Chen Guanlou is very curious about what the Great Wilderness will look like in ten, twenty, or even a hundred years.

Will everyone become Bai Lian?

Or will the Bai Lian have a conflict with the local people, leading to war? ===== CHAPTER 1381 =====