Chapter 694: No One Has a Way

The people from the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Works set off forward quickly with the Laborers; they did not care that the Laborers had just stepped off the Boat and felt dizzy, thinking that walking for a while would make it better. Although the Laborers were not Slaves, they did not receive such good treatment; after all, from the moment they stepped onto the Huaxia shore, their wages had already begun to be calculated.

For three thousand people, the food that needed to be paid for every day was not a small amount. Letting them delay their journey by one more day meant Huaxia would lose one day's worth of food. Moreover, making them hurry on their way now could not be considered abuse; it was just walking, and they would be able to eat when they reached the destination.

The Laborers were herded by the group of Huaxia people in the middle of the procession. The Soldiers did not strictly guard them, but on the way, they called out to them: "Everyone, listen up. We are going to a relatively far place to work. We will provide you with two meals a day, one at noon and one in the evening. Furthermore, after eating at noon, you will be able to rest for a while."

As for the working hours in a day, they are from after the sun rises in the morning until the sun is about to set. Unless there are special circumstances, we will not make you work at night.

After it becomes Summer, we will start working earlier in the morning and also work later in the evening, but correspondingly, you can rest a bit more during the hottest time at noon.

You can rest assured that you are not our Slaves. We will not abuse you; you will be treated normally. If you have any problems, you can report them to the management in time.

You do not need to worry about food and lodging; everything will be arranged. We will also guarantee your safety. If you are killed by a wild beast, we will provide you with compensation.

However, we also have a requirement, which is that you must not run around. On the way forward, if you want to leave the procession temporarily to take a shit or pee, you must say so first, and we will leave someone to wait. Otherwise, it is very dangerous if you encounter wild beasts or fail to keep up with the procession.

Furthermore, fighting among yourselves is prohibited. Whether it is between you and us Huaxia people, or among yourselves, it is the same. Try your best not to cause conflicts. If there are disputes, we will come to mediate and will not be biased toward anyone.

It is also not allowed to steal other people's things. You are not allowed to hide or steal the tools issued to you. If they are lost, you must report it in time to look for them. If they cannot be found, we will demand compensation from your Xuanyuan Tribe. Alright, that is all I have to tell you for now. If you have questions, just ask."

Afterward, the Soldier rode his ox and slowly accelerated, walking to the very front of the procession.

The Laborers were also very happy to hear this work arrangement; it did not sound very strenuous. They were afraid of doing that back-breaking work. As long as they could rest for enough time each day, they would still be able to hold on. It was just that there seemed to be only men in this whole procession, which was not very good.

The people from the Ministry of Works naturally considered this problem. They themselves could endure it; occasionally taking turns going back with the Zhizhongdui was also possible. Moreover, they all had wives—that is, a fixed woman—and also had enough offspring, so they were not that desperate regarding matters between men and women. If they wanted to know the situation at home, they could also write letters back.

However, the situation of the Xuanyuan Tribe and Huaxia was completely different. These people, in all likelihood, did not have fixed women, and perhaps they did not even know whose children were whose, so their demand for reproduction was relatively urgent. After all, the more children a woman gave birth to, the greater the possibility that they were their own children.

The Ministry of Works used this as a reason. Plus, with so many people, cooking and preparing meals every day was also a big problem. Their number of cooks was relatively small; if they had to cook for so many people, it was simply an impossible task. Originally, they thought about following the set of rules for training Slaves and letting them do it themselves, but if they could hire some women at a lower price, the cooking problem could be solved, and it could also make the probability of these men causing trouble smaller.

It just so happened that Dahong also wanted to discuss some matters with Huaxia, so the matter of hiring female workers could be discussed together. If it was discussed well, within a month, the women of the Xuanyuan Tribe could arrive in Huaxia and be sent to the construction site along with the Zhizhongdui.

Dahong rested very well in the prosperous Huaxia. He felt he had never slept so comfortably before. In the morning, under the service of a Slave, he dressed and washed, and even went to take a bath. The dirt of the entire Winter was washed off, and Dahong also felt relaxed all over.

After finishing breakfast, Dahong met with Baifeng in the office. Because the two envoys of the Xuanyuan Tribe were the plenipotentiary representatives of Xuanyuan and explicitly stated that they had questions they needed to ask Baifeng, Baifeng also received them personally, accompanied by officials from the Ministry of Works and the Ministry of Revenue.

Dahong first told Baifeng about what happened in the Xuanyuan Tribe and asked Baifeng what kind of situation this was. The Xuanyuan Tribe was also unwilling to believe that this was caused by Huaxia, and even less dared to believe it; after all, this kind of thing was too outrageous.

Baifeng did not even need to think to know that this was an Ice Jam, so he replied to Dahong seriously and also explained the principle of how it happened. He added: "Ice Jams do not happen every year, but as long as the Dahe has had one, it means this river possesses the conditions to produce an Ice Jam. It might happen again in the future—perhaps next year, perhaps many years later; I cannot say for sure either.

However, if it really happens, all we can do is stay away. Huaxia also has no way to deal with an Ice Jam. Think about it, even the riverbank can be easily destroyed; what can humans do?"

Dahong asked in doubt: "Does your Huaxia have no way? Don't you have Bombs? Even stones can be blown open; ice should definitely not be a problem."

Baifeng shook his head slightly: "You have seen how big and how long the icebergs in the river are. Even if we used all of Huaxia's Bombs to blow up the ice, there might not be any effect. If an Ice Jam passed through here, I certainly would not waste those Bombs. And let alone blowing it up, just the process of putting the Bombs on the ice—I don't know how many Soldiers would have to die."

Unless the Ice Jam is coming directly for Huaxia City and the Dahe is changing course to destroy our Huaxia City, then I will see if we will risk our lives to give it a try. Otherwise, we can only let it be. As long as no one dies, the loss is already the smallest."

Dahong did not know whether he should be happy or worried; so it turned out Huaxia also had no ability to solve this problem. Afterward, he asked Baifeng to see if he could hire people from Huaxia to build a Matou for them—a Matou that could withstand an Ice Jam. He even used the word "hire."