Chapter 247: Resettlement of Refugees

Chapter 247: Settling the Displaced

An hour later, on the plaza of Base 011.

Chen Jian stood before Jiang Yu, his expression astonished, and asked:

“So you’re saying you led over two hundred people, spent three days trekking 150 kilometers to the main trade road, then secured a steam locomotive, shuttled your people over in batches, finally left the main road and took a side path to the Jinling Ruins?”

“Yes, we have essentially exchanged every commodity we could for anything.”

Jiang Yu’s demeanor remained calm as she continued:

“We kept only the most basic necessities; even our tools were all traded away.”

“Therefore, if you require us to work, sir, perhaps you’ll need to provide us with tools.”

“That’s no problem at all.”

Chen Jian nodded and turned his question:

“But the issue is, were you really in such a hurry?”

“I’m not saying you were wrong; I just don’t understand, your decisions seem a bit…”

“Too arbitrary?”

Jiang Yu replied, probing.

Chen Jian shook his head.

In truth, Jiang Yu’s series of decisions could not be called arbitrary.

Beast‑tide incidents grew ever more frequent, and the safety around the Jinling Ruins deteriorated day by day; for a migrating caravan, reaching the destination at any cost was the most rational choice.

Yet such a choice is only justifiable when one possesses most of the information, fully comprehends the beast‑tide, and can precisely calculate the cost‑benefit ratio.

What about her?

She lacked Fuxi as a decision‑making reference, and evidently no looming catastrophe forced her onward—on what grounds could she make such a call?

By intuition?

To be frank, if it were pure gut feeling, once a relatively safe route was identified, the most intuitive move would be to slow the march and bring every soul across, wouldn’t it?

She did not act that way.

During the forced march of over four days, her group even suffered considerable losses.

In the end, barely over two hundred actually reached Base 011.

With that in mind, Chen Jian asked:

“You could have taken it slower—why push so fast?”

“Because if we slowed, people who shouldn’t be here would also be dragged in.”

Jiang Yu’s expression remained as still as water, even chilling.

After a brief pause, she continued:

“In fact, those who fell behind were not abandoned by us.”

“They simply weren’t suited to this place, so when we passed other towns they chose to stay behind of their own accord.”

“They weren’t ready to start anew, nor had they broken free from the comforting illusion of stability.”

“Such people can survive, but I truly cannot carry them.”

Cannot carry?

Chen Jian felt a stir within.

That was indeed a very reasonable explanation.

After all, in this wasteland not everyone is entitled—or even capable—to live on.

As Jiang Yu said, some people have never prepared themselves for a fresh start.

Decades of comfortable life had taught them to rely on their own experience, on the faith they had already forged.

Bring them to Base 011, and the only thing they would bring is instability that outweighs any labor gain.

Tsk.

Chen Jian’s gaze toward Jiang Yu now bore a hint of scrutiny.

So what had this child endured to view these matters with such clarity?

Chen Jian wanted to ask, but he adhered to his usual principle: unless necessary, refrain from probing a newcomer’s past.

So he simply gave a modest nod, indicating he had no objection to Jiang Yu’s assessment.

Then he spoke:

“First, settle the people you’ve brought.”

“We haven’t prepared housing for you in advance, so you must erect overnight shelters before nightfall this evening.”

“Understood, sir.”

Jiang Yu answered immediately, then asked:

“May we begin now?”

“Go ahead.”

Jiang Yu bowed to Chen Jian and turned away.

A few minutes later, the displaced from Qiandao Lake Town, who had been gathered on the clearing, sprang into action.

Under Jiang Yu’s lead, they first scouted a relatively level, clean patch of ground, then swiftly divided tasks: women, children, and elders cleared the surface, while sturdy young men selected suitable timber from the stockpile.

Most of that timber had been felled by Fuxi during earlier reclamation efforts; after a period of air‑drying the branches were brittle, and with the simple tools dispatched by the ant‑swarm robots, handling them proved easy.

In less than two hours, the clearing bore the skeletal frames of several large shacks.

Jiang Yu seemed inclined to roof them temporarily with branches and leaves, but noticing her motion, Chen Jian generously handed her a spare three‑colored waterproof canvas.

The material was far lighter than the ubiquitous oil‑felt cloth of this world, and the builders quickly grasped its use, sealing the roofs in a few swift motions.

After a quick survey, Jiang Yu ordered the crew to prop the centre of the canvas with wooden poles, lest rainwater pool and collapse the shelters.

All preparations complete, the ground was essentially cleared.

The settlers’ belongings were laid out one by one, partitioned into dozens of zones by family.

Even achieving this step alone earned Jiang Yu a thumbs‑up.

Yet her work was far from finished.

She roughly gauged the prevailing wind, then chose two distant spots downwind to erect a makeshift kitchen and latrine; as dusk deepened, a fire sprang to life in the kitchen.

“Efficient.”

Chen Jian murmured appreciatively.

“More than efficient—there’s something oddly familiar about her methods.”

“It’s as if I could recognize her sect at a glance.”

Beside them, Lei Jie clicked his tongue and said:

“The organization is highly disciplined, the efficiency equally impressive; the camp’s functionality may not be robust, yet it suffices for everyday needs.”

“Captain, she’s a real talent—nurture her well, and perhaps she could one day oversee the management of the displaced.”

“At present, the displaced are still overseen jointly by Xie Liu and Ji Xing, with Huang Yu lending a hand now and then, but their abilities are scarcely applied here, a bit of a waste.”

“Let’s keep observing the situation for now.”

Chen Jian exhaled softly, then continued:

“For their first meal, give them something fine, a proper banquet. And ready the projection gear—just like in Huangshi City—so we can give them an onboarding training.”

“No problem.”

Lei Jie beamed and replied, then added:

“Tell me, how do you think they’ll react when they see the video?”

“They’re not like the residents of Huangshi City; most of their minds are still shackled by the dogma of the Mechanical Cult’s theocratic creed.”

“If we give them a grand spectacle, might anyone defect outright?”

“I suspect some will.”

Chen Jian mused:

“But that’s fine. On the way here, Jiang Yu already performed the first screening for us; now we merely conduct the second.”

“Screening always exacts a price, doesn’t it?”

“Indeed.”

Lei Jie cast a final glance at Jiang Yu, who stood among the crowd delivering a speech to the displaced from Qiandao Lake Town, then strode toward the main passage of the works to ready the projection equipment. By then, it was past six in the evening, and the sky had finally sunk into complete darkness.

In an instant, the lights flared on.

Everyone who had just arrived at Base 011 instinctively lifted their heads, staring in disbelief at the towering lamps that illuminated everything.

“Stop staring, it’s just a light!”

Jiang Yu shouted:

“Rest well tonight; from tomorrow we will labor for a new life.”

“You’ll witness even more astonishing things—these are the masterpieces of the senior officers of the Huaxia Army.”

“This place is unlike any other on Earth; it could be heaven, but we must devote ourselves wholly to it.”

“All right, let’s start cooking. Hand over all the food you brought, and we’ll share it together.”

“No need to cook tonight.”

Chen Jian suddenly appeared behind Jiang Yu and said:

“Although we haven’t prepared lodging for you, the food supplies are ample.”

“Come, sit on the open ground over there.”

“Tonight we’ll dine together, and we have something to show you as well.”

“Yes, sir!”

Jiang Yu nodded immediately, and under her command more than two hundred people gathered on the clearing in a formation that, though loose, bore a hint of order.

The crowd looked around bewildered, while the residents of Base 011, already bearing their utensils, headed toward the kitchen that had been expanded repeatedly.

The evening meal was not as lavish as a victory banquet, but at least it broke the monotony of the previous plain meat porridge.

Steamed white rice, chicken simmered with vegetables and potatoes, pan‑fried luncheon meat, and a modest sprinkling of seasoning.

Not extravagant, but plentiful enough to satisfy hunger.

“Take your own utensils and serve yourselves—small portions, many times, waste not.”

As Chen Jian’s words faded, the displaced from Qiandao Lake Town hesitated before stirring.

Perhaps the phrase “small portions, many times” frightened them; newly arrived, confronting the overwhelming might of the Huaxia Army for the first time, they were restrained, scooping only a piece or two of chicken and a modest bowl of rice, even daring not to take the unfamiliar yet popular luncheon meat.

Jiang Yu, on the contrary, wore an unabashed grin.

——

“True enough—she even dared to ask for a to‑go box on our first meeting; a simple meal doesn’t scare her.”

Yet under her lead, the crowd gradually relaxed.

After finishing a bowl of rice and dishes, none of the weary travelers, exhausted from the long trek, felt truly sated.

When the first person rose to refill the pot without being stopped, everyone loosened their limbs.

The pot emptied swiftly, but before awkwardness could settle, a second cauldron of stew was already being carried out.

That was Chen Jian’s design.

What great matters can life hold?

Birth, aging, illness, death; clothing, food, shelter, travel.

First fill their bellies, let them remember a place where they can eat their fill; thereafter, ideological instruction becomes far easier.

Watching the crowd eat more slowly, Chen Jian waved his hand, signaling Lei Jie to take the stage.

When the giant projection screen lit up, those seated on the clearing stirred into a sudden buzz.

Even Jiang Yu was startled by the sudden images.

Yet promptly, the base residents embedded among the crowd spoke at the right moment, explaining the situation to the newcomers beside them.

Then sound and picture intertwined.

The “Huaxia Army propaganda film” flickered onto the screen once more.

The breathtaking scenes stirred even the Huangshi City residents, who had seen them before, into a surge of emotion; the Qiandao Lake newcomers were even more moved.

When the screening ended, the plaza fell into a profound silence.

Clearly, they were entering a period of introspection after the overwhelming shock.

Chen Jian’s plan was not yet complete; he seized the momentum to unveil a host of devices.

Combat robots, drones, trucks, artillery.

Nothing shocks a person more than tangible elements of the “environment” materializing before their eyes.

After this barrage, Chen Jian could not claim that every newcomer’s mind had been fully cleansed, but without doubt their old values and worldviews had been shattered to dust.

If a house is built crooked, the best remedy is not repair but demolition.

Break it, rebuild anew!

Chen Jian stood before the crowd, satisfied as he watched their bewildered, questioning, yet hopeful expressions, then, without further ado, he raised his hand to dismiss them.

A sudden halt of emotion provokes the deepest contemplation.

Chen Jian was certain that that night, the vast majority of the displaced would find sleep impossible.

And that, precisely, was the outcome he desired.

——

But he had not anticipated that Jiang Yu, who seemed unflappable, had also not fallen asleep.

At dawn the next day, when he opened the gate of the main passage and stepped out of Facility 011, Jiang Yu—eyes rimmed with blood vessels—was already waiting there.

"Sir."

Jiang Yu bowed slightly, then lifted her head to look at Chen Jian.

The cold morning air made her voice tremble just a little.

"Is everything we saw yesterday true?"

"Of course; you will see more in time."

Chen Jian offered no further explanation, and he did not utter a single idle word.

And perhaps that answer was precisely the one Jiang Yu truly sought.

She exhaled a long breath, and her expression instantly relaxed.

"I hope I may witness that day. Sir, perhaps you ought to assign us today's duties."

"Find Ji Xing."

Chen Jian pointed at Ji Xing, who happened to be walking over, and continued:

"She will first select a group among you to assist in constructing the arms factory and assembling firearms."

"The remaining people, you must seek a comrade named Huang Fei; she will assign you tasks in agricultural production."

"If there are still surplus hands, you may allocate them as you see fit."

"The nearby Xuanwu Lake is vast; if you can restore fishery production here, it will be a worthy contribution to the base."

"Yes, Sir."

Jiang Yu nodded immediately, and Chen Jian waved his hand, saying:

"From now on you may no longer be called Sir; call me Captain, comrade."

"Understood, Captain."

Chen Jian said no more; he walked toward the kitchen, already alight with fire, intending to prepare a modest breakfast, when suddenly a voice crackled through his headset.

"Commander, an emergency has arisen."

"A unit led by Commander Shen Yue has reported several monsters forty kilometers to the south, assessed as a small-scale beast tide."

"The monsters are moving swiftly and are now closing in on our forces."

"I have issued a warning to Commander Shen Yue; they are asking whether to continue the combat mission."

It came so quickly?

Chen Jian stared in surprise, then ordered:

"Let Shen Yue act according to the situation."

"After all, they are out there training; if they can fight, let them seize the chance and give the monsters a good beating!"

(End of Chapter)