Surviving in the chaos of war begins in the wilderness.

Chapter 30 Settlement in the County Town

Hearing this, Zhou Ye finally understood. Because ordinary people lived in dire straits and faced oppression from gangs, the only thing they could do was to band together for survival. They either had to rely on their clansmen or fellow villagers, or join a gang.

Therefore, the wisdom of the working people is boundless.

This led to this very abstract situation—since your gangs are going to oppress us ordinary people, then we ordinary people might as well all join the gangs.

Since they're all gang members anyway, who's afraid of whom?

In the end, a very strange balance was achieved. After the common people paid their gangs' protection money, they were at least able to survive.

Therefore, for ordinary people, becoming a member of an outlying gang is the norm. It's actually rarer to remain a member of no gang at all.

That said, the gangs would actually be willing! At least it would bring in extra income. Take the Woodcutters' Gang, for example; their monthly protection fees amount to several thousand taels of silver. As for needing the gang to intervene? That would require additional payment! And that would generate even more income.

As for wanting to join the core members? Dream on!

The core members not only didn't have to pay protection money, but they were also provided with jobs. Were there really that many jobs? So, not only did they have to be brave and daring, but they also had to withstand the long-term tests of the Woodcutter Gang.

However, the core members also need to fight for the Woodcutter's Gang; they are the real fighters. To put it more bluntly, the peripheral members don't count. The Woodcutter's Gang's true core strength lies in these 3000-plus core members!

At this moment, Zhou Ye listened with great interest, feeling as if he were studying "The Evolution of Gangs".

Putting all that aside, when we found that broker surnamed Wang, it turned out he was an official broker. That is to say, brokers registered with the government are relatively more trustworthy.

The broker asked with a smile, "Brother Zhou, would you like to live in the outer city or outside the city?"

"Um?"

Seeing Zhou Ye's bewildered expression, Wang Yaren continued, "Our prefectural city is divided into an inner city, an outer city, and the area outside the city walls. The inner city is where wealthy families live; not only are the rents very high, but one also needs a certain social status. The outer city is the area between the inner and outer city walls. There are government officials maintaining order there, so it's relatively safer. The area outside the city walls has cheaper rents, but it's relatively more chaotic."

That broker stopped short of making a move.

However, Zhou Ye hesitated slightly. It was best not to flaunt his wealth, as that wouldn't suit his identity as a "mountain barbarian." Besides, without the city walls, he had no ties. No matter how chaotic things got, wouldn't he be able to escape if anything happened?

"Then let's go outside the city."

"What are your requirements for the house?"

"The place to live doesn't have to be fancy, but the courtyard should be a bit bigger, preferably a detached house. It will be convenient to store some mountain produce in the future." After all, a larger courtyard is necessary to meet the requirements, and it will also be a place to practice martial arts in the future.

"Okay!"

It should be said that the broker was quite professional. When they arrived at the first rented house, Zhou Ye immediately took a liking to it.

The house's orientation isn't great, and the surrounding environment... well, let's not even go there. But the yard is spacious enough, and the neighbors don't bother us.

"Old Wang, this is fine!"

"Alright! If you want to rent it for a year, it'll be ten taels of silver, plus a two-tael commission. Give me your ID, and I'll help you with the contract and register it at the government office. You can pay the commission after you receive the contract."

"Body possession?" Zhou Ye suddenly heard a new term.

Wang Ya and the big dog couldn't help but exchange a glance. He asked in surprise, "So you're an unregistered resident?"

Fortunately, Big Dog explained from the side, "Old Wang, do me a favor and give me some face. From now on, he's one of our woodcutters."

Wang the broker frowned slightly: "This isn't about giving face. I can indeed help with the household registration. But this kind of thing is extremely troublesome, requiring bribes at various levels of the government. Brother Zhou, no bargaining, ten taels! Do you have that?"

At this moment, Zhou Ye was in a bind. However, the issue of being an unregistered resident needed to be resolved sooner or later. Not caring about showing off a little money, Zhou Ye said, "Old Wang, I'm really running low on cash; I need to buy a lot of things. Could you give me a discount?"

"It's really not going to be cheap. If you don't believe me, you can ask around outside. Look, every year a lot of migrants come to live in our county town, and they all have to register their household at the government office. Otherwise, they're unregistered. So the number of people outside the city is increasing. Just ask around, and this is the going rate, isn't it?"

The large dog beside him chimed in, "Brother Zhou, Old Wang is genuinely trying to help. If you're lucky, you might find some valuable herbs or wild animals; you could easily make a few trips into the mountains and come back, right?"

Zhou Ye couldn't help but smile wryly, "To be honest, I'm a coward. I only dare to chop firewood on the outskirts. I want to get rich, but I don't have the skills! Oh well, I'll just have to go into the mountains more often these days!"

Amidst laughter, Zhou Ye paid twenty taels of silver upfront. He had agreed with broker Wang that the processing of the contract, household registration, and identity documents would take approximately ten days. Therefore, he would leave them with broker Wang for the time being and retrieve them upon returning from the mountains.

In addition, Zhou Ye gave each person an ounce of silver and a pheasant as a thank-you gift. He also promised Big Dog that he would join the Woodcutter's Gang immediately.

Anyway, it's just one identity; I won't do any of the shady things that involve gangs. In the end, I'm still just an ordinary, struggling citizen.

After receiving the money, Wang the broker happily took his leave.

Big Dog was equally pleased. He then introduced Zhou Ye to a nearby butcher shop. The butcher, also an outer member of the Woodcutter's Gang, named Lao Gao, accepted the three remaining pheasants.

Because they had been kept indoors for warmth throughout the winter and were fed regularly, the pheasants had grown quite plump, each weighing over two pounds. They were eventually sold to Old Gao for 50 coins each, earning him 150 coins.

Half an hour later, Big Dog emerged from one of the Woodcutter's Halls and handed Zhou Ye a wooden plaque with a smile. On the plaque was engraved the black character "Woodcutter".

The big dog said, "Brother Zhou..."

"You're too kind. You can call me Xiao Zhou or A Ye, it's fine."

"Alright. Ah Ye. Keep the wooden plaque safe. From now on, you belong to our Qingzi Hall. Remember, our Qingzi Hall's leader is Brother Jiao. I'm also Brother Jiao's man, so you'll follow me from now on. If anything happens, just say my name, Big Dog."

"I understand, I understand."

"Also, I know that mountain people like you are all ruthless. You can't survive in the mountains if you're not ruthless. So if you perform well, I can help recommend you to Brother Jiao. Maybe you'll become a brother in the gang in the future." As he spoke, Big Dog proudly showed off a bronze badge.

It turns out that the outer gang members received wooden plaques, the core gang members received bronze plaques, and high-ranking members like Brother Jiao received silver plaques. Only the gang leader and elders received gold plaques.

However, Zhou Ye completely ignored what the big dog said.

"Definitely! Thank you so much for your help, Big Dog!"

"hehe."