Lin Tian and Ying Zheng's actions forced many officials and powerful families to return their land to the common people.
The common people were unaware of the events transpiring above.
Because of this, when they learned that the officials intended to return their land and a portion of their money, they were stunned.
They could barely believe their ears.
Especially when they saw the servants of the previously overbearing local gentry and officials suddenly become friendly, it made them feel truly uncomfortable.
They even suspected it was a trap and didn't dare to believe it.
But when they found that land was indeed being distributed to other commoners, they had no choice but to believe it.
"These, this land is truly for us, truly being returned to us!!"
"Wonderful, if they return it to us, we can own our own land!!"
"Yes! Even if we don't know why they're returning it, owning our own land is still good, much better than not having any land!!"
Many people readily accepted the return of their land.
They could own their own land, so why refuse?
After all, that land was their wealth, and now that wealth was coming to them, they naturally wouldn't turn it away.
However, not all commoners were willing to accept their land.
A portion of the common people treated the land gifted by these officials as worthless.
"They killed my sister and now they want to appease our anger with land? Dream on!!"
"The hatred for the murder of our father can never be resolved, unless you die!!"
"We have no special relationship with them, yet they give us land? This is not normal, highly abnormal, there must be a trap!!"
The reason some people refused the land from the gentry was due to their honest and loyal nature.
They believed in the principle of "no reward without merit," and under such circumstances, they were unwilling to accept wealth from others.
Moreover, the act of these people gifting land was too strange, so strange that everyone found it unbelievable.
At this time, anyone who accepted that land might be inviting trouble.
They even wondered if they would invite death if they received this land.
Thinking of this, they immediately lost interest in the land.
Compared to their lives, this wealth was not that important, so they chose to restrain their desires and not take the land.
As for the vast majority, they held grudges against these gentry, and these were deep-seated, bloody hatreds.
Under such circumstances, they naturally would not accept the land from the gentry, nor would they believe that the gentry were being so benevolent.
This led these gentry into a situation they had never anticipated.
Although they possessed a large amount of land and wished to give it away, no one was accepting it.
They still had a large amount of land remaining in their hands, unable to be given away, which immediately made their scalps tingle.
"What do we do? What do we do now? With so much land in our hands, we are finished!!"
"Indeed, with so much land in our possession, we are in big trouble!!"
"So, where should we… where should this land go??"
For many of them, this was a vexing matter.
If they had possessed so much land before, they would have been overjoyed.
The more land they owned, the more wealth they would have.
But now, if the land they owned exceeded what they should rightfully possess, then that land became their death warrant.
Especially since the Qin soldiers were investigating the origin of this land and whether they had oppressed the common people.
This was even more fatal for them.
During this process, they had not considered resisting Great Qin.
But they discovered that their strength was no match for Great Qin.
As soon as they dared to resist the Qin soldiers, they died even faster.
Therefore, they could only honestly deal with the land in an attempt to save their lives.
However, the common people's lack of cooperation made them extremely annoyed.
Many of them were already becoming agitated.
"No, they cannot refuse our land, they *must* accept our land. Anyone who dares to refuse, kill them directly!!"
"Kill them? This… won't the commotion be too big? Once they notice, even if we give away the land, we still won't escape death!!"
"I also think killing them is very inappropriate. Once we do this, we will inevitably get into bigger trouble!!"
"Then, besides forcing it upon them, what other options do we have??"
Many of them truly could not think of any solution.
Because of this, they were extremely troubled and extremely fearful.
They didn't know when the Qin army would arrive, but they could clearly feel that the Qin army was getting closer and closer.
Under such circumstances, they became more and more anxious.
At this moment, they desperately wished for someone to think of a way to save their lives.
Otherwise, they might have to perish together with the Qin army and the Qin people.
Fortunately, someone among them did come up with a plan.
"Since we cannot give it to those who are unwilling, then let's give more to those who are willing!!"
"Since they are willing to accept, let's give them more, and tell them that it is being lent to them temporarily!"
"As long as we get through this crisis, we will take back the land we lent out later!!"
"I think, the common people should agree to such a request!!"
As these words were spoken, many people's eyes lit up.
They were actually unwilling to give away the land.
But lending out the land changed the situation entirely.
The things they lent out could be taken back.
In fact, they could not only get back what they lent out, but they could also get back more.
For example, they could get back the land they had given away.
Thinking of this, they became extremely excited.
"Yes! We can lend it out, the more we lend out, the better!!"
"Of course, the more we lend out, the safer we will be. However, we still need to remind them not to leak this matter!!"
"Yes, this matter must not be publicized, we must maintain secrecy, otherwise we will surely face a lot of trouble!!"
"Good!!"
After confirming the plan, these people immediately took action.
They distributed more land, even letting the land they held be less than what they should rightfully own.
Although some people refused during this process, under coercion and temptation, these people who were greedy for wealth had no way to refuse.