In the famine, others ate Guanyin soil, but he had space to build a farm.

This group of people came from several villages not far from Qinghe Village. The situation in their villages was similar to that of Qinghe Village. They basically survived by relying on grass roots and tree barks on the mountain. They naturally could not pay taxes today. Some people thought that they would starve to death anyway. Naturally, these villages did not receive taxes.

So all these people were arrested. A group of people were driven to the mine in the county. With the addition of another team, more and more people went to the mine.

"Have you heard that this mine is a place where people are eaten without leaving any bones!" People in the long line began to discuss.

"It's death no matter where you are!"

"Are we really going like this? We're really going to die!"

"Then what can be done?"

"Why don't we run? There's still a way to survive if we run to the mountains..."

……

In the county government office, County Magistrate Chen was very dissatisfied with the results of today's grain collection.

"How come we only collected so little food?"

County Magistrate Chen was shouting loudly in the room. Beside him was Chen Zhong, a minor official he had just promoted.

"Master Chen, the drought is so severe now that it's very difficult for people to collect all this food," Chen Zhong consoled him.

"I don't care! I don't care! You must find a way to collect the food from the two floors. Otherwise, you can just stop working!"

"Sir, this is already a very good result. If we collect all the food at once, it will cause panic and chaos!"

County Magistrate Chen: "If we fail to complete the mission, none of us can escape. You can try again and collect as many as you can!"

At this moment, there was a burst of fierce footsteps, and a yamen runner hurried in.

"Master Chen, something bad has happened!" the bailiff said, breathing heavily.

"You are so flustered! How disgraceful!" County Magistrate Chen shouted.

The yamen runner wiped the sweat off his forehead and said, "Sir, there's an accident at the mine. Not only did the people there refuse to work at the mine, they also beat up the guards!"

“What did they say?”

“They say they just don’t pay taxes!”

"What? These unruly people! This is outrageous!" County Magistrate Chen's face turned red with anger and he slammed the table hard.

"We must not let this matter go. Gather all the yamen runners immediately. We must suppress this matter." County Magistrate Chen immediately gave the order! The yamen runners hurriedly moved, and the sound of their footsteps echoed in the corridor of the county yamen, breaking the originally dull atmosphere. County Magistrate Chen's anger was like a ball of fire, quickly spreading throughout the county yamen, making everyone feel unprecedented tension.

Soon, a team of yamen runners gathered at the gate of the county government office. Holding sticks and with serious expressions on their faces, they were ready to go to the mine to suppress the "rebellious" villagers.

Chen County Magistrate stood at the gate of the county government office, his eyes swept across every yamen runner with a cold look. His voice was as cold as stone, without a trace of warmth: "Remember, our mission is to maintain order in the county. If these unruly people dare to resist, they must be severely punished. Today, I will let them know who is the master here!"

Following the order from County Magistrate Chen, the yamen runners marched towards the mine in a mighty procession. Their footsteps echoed in the open fields, accompanied by clouds of flying dust.

The situation at the mine was worse than County Magistrate Chen had imagined. The villagers who had been forcibly conscripted gathered together, their eyes full of anger and unwillingness. The yamen runners guarding the mine were beaten to pieces and were unable to stop the villagers' resistance.

Seeing this scene, County Magistrate Chen became even more furious. He shouted, "Go! Arrest all these people!"

The yamen runners rushed forward and started a fierce conflict with the villagers. For a while, shouts and fighting sounds were heard one after another in the mine.

However, the villagers did not succumb to the strong power of the yamen runners. They united as one and fought hard against the attacks of the yamen runners. In this fierce conflict, the yamen runners gradually fell into a passive position.

At this moment, a team of former miners rushed into the mine. They were wearing ragged clothes, holding mining tools, and rushed down the mine aggressively.

Seeing this team appear, Chen Xiancheng showed a look of horror on his face. He realized that this conflict was beyond his control. It was no longer the newly driven villagers. Now the original miners had joined in.

The miners quickly broke through the formation of the yamen runners and surrounded the villagers. Their eyes were cold and sharp, as if they could see through the villagers' minds.

Chen County Magistrate stood aside, watching the scene in front of him, his heart filled with helplessness and despair. He knew that this conflict was unavoidable, and all he could do was to minimize the losses.

With the intervention of the miners, the conflict in the mine gradually subsided. The villagers were in high spirits, and County Magistrate Chen returned to the county government with a group of embarrassed yamen runners.

After returning to the county government, Chen County Magistrate was in an extremely heavy mood. He knew that this conflict was just the tip of the iceberg of a series of problems caused by the drought. If measures were not taken in time to solve these problems, the situation in the future would only become more serious.

However, Chen County Magistrate also knew that he was powerless. In this era, he was just a small county magistrate, and there was only so much he could do. He could only hope that his superiors would take measures to solve the drought problem as soon as possible so that the people could live a stable life.

He dared to enter the county town and was taken to the county magistrate Li Wei.

"Tell me, what happened? Didn't you just pay taxes? How did a rebel army form?" Li Wei asked Chen Xiancheng, who was in a dishevel!

"Sir! I didn't expect them to be so bold!" said County Magistrate Chen.

“Speak clearly!”

"It's like this. Those who were sent to the mine didn't pay taxes. I originally wanted them to stay there for a few months, but I didn't expect something to happen right after I sent them there!"

Li Wei frowned and said, "So, your tax collection is not going well now?"

"Yes! If you don't believe me, you can send someone to search. There is nothing to be said about the current situation! If there are no punishment measures, no one will hand it over," said County Magistrate Chen.

Li Wei's heart moved. He felt that things were not as simple as County Magistrate Chen said.

"Then tell me what we should do now!" Li Wei asked.

"Most of those people have families! As long as we capture their family members, they will naturally surrender! Don't worry, sir, I will definitely handle this matter!" County Magistrate Chen immediately guaranteed!