Don’t raise unruly people in extreme cold weather

Chapter 291 The working criminal

Most of the residents in the settlement did not have a good look at the prisoners who were sent there, and could even be said to be very wary of them.

After all, these people have had the title of "criminal prisoners" on their heads from the beginning, which is destined to treat them with discrimination, and prevention and rejection are inevitable.

The people in the settlements are just ordinary people. They cannot tell whether these prisoners are innocent people who were wrongfully thrown into prison, street gangsters, thieves, villains, or even more dangerous murderers.

Therefore, it is impossible for the people in the settlement to have a good look on these people who have been marked as "criminal prisoners".

Of course, they really don't need to look good on these criminals.

These prisoners were sent to the settlements to work, and they had no contact with the ordinary people in the settlements.

And in order to prevent them from escaping and causing unnecessary accidents, these prisoners were always wearing shackles, and they were tied together in groups of ten. Even if someone died, these shackles would not be released.

It is conceivable what kind of state these prisoners are in. Even if the people in the settlement do not dislike them as prisoners, they will stay away from them because of their poor state.

After all, from the empire's mainland to the north, they didn't have much chance to wash their hands.

Even if the crew on the freighter would wash them with sea water to avoid the plague, the smell on their bodies was indescribable.

In a sense, the smell on their bodies is no different than that of rotting corpses.

The impact of this stench is that even the most ignorant children are reluctant to get close to these criminals.

This undoubtedly saves the settlement managers a lot of trouble. At least they don't have to worry about how to keep the residents they manage away from these criminals. They themselves take the initiative to stay away from these guys who exude filth and stench.

Of course, among the managers of the settlements, there are some who are relatively benevolent, or who want to make good use of these prisoners.

At the very least, they feel that these prisoners are useful labor tools that need to be carefully maintained and cannot be used so roughly that they will be worn out in a short period of time.

So after Shay saw the "hundred" prisoners assigned to his settlement, the first order he gave them was to let them build a bathhouse for themselves and wash themselves well.

This order is good news for prisoners. After all, as long as they are not particularly weird, everyone does not want to be clean and comfortable.

As for why they were not allowed to wash directly in the river, the main reason was that there was no ready-made river near the settlement Shay chose, so the prisoners could only build a bathhouse first and then obtain water.

From a planning point of view, these prisoners will later dig canals to bring running water to the settlements.

You must know that the current water supply in settlements can rely on wells in addition to the water carried by residents every day.

Therefore, these prisoners cannot go to the river to bathe. After all, it is too far. If someone escapes, it will be a big problem.

Taking a bath in a bathhouse is relatively more controllable, and the guards at the punishment camp don't mind opening the shackles of these prisoners while they take a bath.

So after Shay gave the order, these prisoners quickly built a temporary bathhouse for themselves, and then took a happy bath.

Of course, there is no hot water. Due to the decree issued by Purficott, residents in the north cannot cut down wood arbitrarily for fuel. They can only pick up dead branches in the forest and use them as firewood, so fuel is precious.

The residents of the settlement themselves are not willing to boil hot water for bathing, let alone these prisoners?
Fortunately, it's almost early summer, and even the temperature in the north has warmed up quickly. Taking a cold shower is not unacceptable.

After taking a pleasant bath, the prisoners represented by Matthew finally found themselves in a tolerable state and were able to get back to work in a tolerable state.

Their first task was naturally to dig a canal, or should we call it a moat.

In Shay's view, to build settlements in an almost wild area like the North, it is definitely not enough to just rely on wooden walls.

You know, Shay heard that Perfectcott killed a dragon!
He didn't expect to be able to slay a dragon, but he also didn't expect that when a giant dragon or other dangerous creature attacked his settlement, all he could rely on was a wall built of wood.

Although moats are meaningless to flying animals, they are at least a hindrance to flightless animals.

And more importantly, this can provide settlements with more convenient water sources, so that residents in settlements no longer have to walk long distances to pick up water, or wait in line to get water from wells.

There is only one well drilled in Shay's settlement. Although the water quality is good and the quantity of water in the well is abundant, it is really difficult for one well to provide domestic water for hundreds of people in the entire settlement. .

As for drilling more wells, Shay had not considered it, but for various reasons there was still only one well in the settlement.

However, for now, the water problem in the settlements managed by Shea is not serious. Although carrying water will be a little tiring, it can still ensure the basic water supply of the settlements.

As for the future? With the construction of canals and the diversion of river water, this is no longer a problem.

The prisoners quickly got into work. Although Shay was a more polite person and did not treat these prisoners too harshly, they were prisoners after all.

The guards in the punishment camp are directly assigned by the imperial officials, and they are not as "merciful" as Shay.

Although Shay had told them to ensure the lives of the prisoners as much as possible so that they would not die every three days, he did not put any more restrictions on these guards.

Moreover, the reason why Shay was "merciful" to the prisoners was that he felt that the prisoners were difficult to replenish, and this free labor should not be wasted cheaply.

So when the guards used whips to improve the work efficiency and morale of these prisoners, Shay also watched with cold eyes.

As long as the guards didn't beat anyone to death, then even if they beat someone to death, it was a normal management method, and Shay would not interfere.

In fact, he didn't have the time to interfere in such matters.

Although having prisoners as a labor force can make Shay's planned projects progress faster, it also means that he has more things to do.

How to dig the water canals to be built in the plan, how long the moat should be built around the settlement, and the planning and layout of the buildings after the settlement...

Shay still has a lot to do now, and he really doesn't have the time or energy to care about the treatment of these prisoners, as long as they don't die.

(End of this chapter)