Chapter 7, can it be worse?
While there was a lively fight outside, there was no movement at all in the Feidong Club. There were many of them, but they only had a few guns, and they didn't even dare to go out and take a look at what was happening in front of their house.
It wasn't until Patel contacted Neri through their secret channel and confirmed that he was not disguising or betraying the enemy that he opened the door and let him in.
Just let him go.
At first, he was worried that the governor would be dissatisfied, but he was not. Gu Hang graciously let him go in first and explained the situation clearly. The governor's troops would stay outside the waste cave for two days, waiting for news from him.
As for what news he was waiting for, Gu Hang didn't say clearly, but Patel probably understood.
The Governor has completed the rescue he promised, and now it is time for the Wasted Dong Society to show its sincerity.
Patel doesn't feel bad about this.
The Wasted Dong Society completely obeys the orders of the Governor, what's wrong with that?
Entering through the doorway, he returned to his hometown.
Familiar faces appeared in front of him.
Their faces were both pale and black. They are pale because they live underground all year round and are not exposed to sunlight; they are dark because the sweat from labor is sticky with mine ash, and they are unable to wash themselves regularly.
He is the leader of the Wasted Cave Society. There are more than 900 people in the cave, and he knows every face.
People rushed to ask him:
"Patel, are we saved?"
"Have all those damn robbers been killed?"
"Who saved us?"
Faced with many of these questions, Patel initially responded sentence by sentence as he walked. Later, he really couldn't answer everyone's questions one by one. He could only give a unified answer loudly while working hard to walk through the crowd. .
"Yes, we are saved."
"All those robbers have been killed."
"It was the Governor who saved us."
People who heard the answer cried with joy.
After finally getting through the crowd, he turned back and looked at the malnourished and definitely not pretty faces of his compatriots. He was both proud and worried.
The pride comes from the fact that he brought in reinforcements and saved everyone.
Worry means not knowing what the future will bring.
Sighing slightly, he turned his head and saw his uncle, Old Butch.
Old Butch's hand was damaged when a cart full of ore overturned. The wound became infected and was later amputated. He almost didn't make it through. During that time, Patel was promoted.
After Old Butch recovered, he did not try to seize power - there was nothing to seize, and in the environment of the Wasted Dong Society, there was no room for exploitation or oppression. The leader is elected, and the entire settlement is too poor. Even as a leader, the working and living conditions are not much different from others.
Due to his disability, Old Butch could not do any heavy work. But he is still using his remaining energy and doing his best to assist the younger generation, Patel.
Old Butch patted him on the shoulder with his remaining one hand: "Thank you for your hard work."
"That's what I should do," Patel responded.
The two of them entered a small room, and Patel told Old Butch the whole story of how he went to seek help. Old Butch sighed: "It's a disaster, not a blessing."
The attitude of the old comrades seemed a bit pessimistic.
Patel disagreed with him: "What is a misfortune and not a blessing? I don't think there is a misfortune. This is definitely our opportunity. The Governor said that he will not only save our lives, but also save us to the end. He We are here to build the whole world, and our waste cave society is the first stop.”
Patel sighed, "How can those big shots just believe what they say? In their eyes, we people are like rats and bedbugs in the gutter. When did they ever think of us as human beings? Want to use If you say a few nice words when you are talking, it seems that you are valued, but if it is no longer useful, you will be ruthlessly abandoned.”
Patel said: "I don't think the Governor is like that kind of person."
Old Butch sneered: "You little boy, what do you know? Have you only known him for a few days?"
"Then what can be done?" Patel ignored the question of trust and asked, "Can our situation get worse? More than 900 people are exhausted below this mine. No one dares to live without diligence, and those who are not diligent will starve to death. But even so, we still don’t have enough food and clothing, and there are casualties due to work from time to time, and people freeze to death every winter.”
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"We don't have any extra property to buy guns or cannons to arm ourselves. Whenever we encounter any danger, we can only lock ourselves in a hole and pray that the danger will pass by itself. In the past, we were not finished because we were too poor and the robbers did not want to spend money. We tried too hard to pry open the turtle's shell and ended up not being able to eat even two bites of the meat. This time we encountered the most greedy one who was determined to break in and sell the living people for food. As a result, we had no choice but to sit back and wait for death."
“I definitely don’t want my compatriots to continue to live like this.”
"What's more, what else do we have to lose?"
These words silenced Old Butch. After a while, he finally said: "We will lose our freedom."
"Hahahaha! Freedom!" Patel's laughter was so loud that it almost reached the door. Those who didn't know thought he was really happy. "Can freedom be a meal? I also went to the alliance this time. I have seen slaves living in Fuxing City, the capital city of Guangdong Province. The life of slaves is much better than that of us. We are not even as good as cattle and horses! If we pay for our freedom, our people will no longer starve to death, freeze to death, and be treated like slaves. If I eat the rations, I am willing to pay for my freedom.”
Old Butch finally couldn't say anything else. He could only sigh again: "I don't object to any of your decisions. I just hope that we won't regret it."
"We will never regret it."
……
"I believe you will not regret it."
On the same day, Gu Hang saw that Patel had returned, bringing with him several people who could speak to him in the Wasted Dong Society, and they all expressed their complete surrender to him.
It was completely within Gu Hang's expectation.
The people of the Wasted Dong Society have no choice.
Patel said humbly: "Your Majesty the Governor, there are a total of 907 people in the waste cave society, waiting for your first order."
"Let's go into the cave and have a look."
"What? Are you going into the cave?"
"Not welcome?"
"No...but...the conditions there are very poor, you..."
He really didn't want Gu Hang to enter the mine, not for any other reason but because the conditions in the mine were too poor.
More than 900 people live in a narrow cave. Even if there is a vent, the smell inside is definitely not good. The living conditions are shabby, with excrement and urine everywhere...
Patel was very afraid that the situation in the mine would stain the governor's gorgeous clothes, and even more afraid that the governor's heart would be stained.
Gu Hang waved his hand and said, "I always want to see what your situation is before I can decide what to do next."
(End of chapter)