What to do if you find out that you are a cannon fodder in a cultivation novel?

It was almost 6PM at the end of the shopping spree. I was already tired but I still needed to find a servant before going back to rest. I asked the coachman to take me to the outskirts of the mundane stores district where the emergency shelter was located. Those in there were refugees from Huo city. That city pretty much disappeared from the map after a beast horde attack a few months ago. As our city lord was a friend of the deceased lord of Huo city - who died protecting his citizens - , he decided to temporarily shelter the survivors until spring. It was now the beginning of fall. 

Those survivors would be allowed to be residents if they bought a house, a business or if they could find a job within the city walls. Those with high cultivation or with a lot of money either found a job, already bought real estate or moved to other cities. Only the unlucky poor ones with low to no cultivation were still in the shelter. Their kids did not have the right to go to the city school until full residency. Most of them were widows, orphans, elderly and some very low level cultivators. 

Our city lord was coordinating and building a village for them but the funds were lacking so the work was done slowly and was expected to be finished by next summer. 

What no one knew yet was that this winter was going to be a pretty cold one. So cold that a lot of non-cultivators and even some low level ones would die either from freezing or the cold sickness. AnNan city lord would be criticized because the emergency funds and the city shelters were previously used for the Huo city's survivors instead of the villagers associated with our city.

The highest voices against the city lord would be the rich and powerful families who did not donate money or help to save people. Some of their own servants would die because they were not clothed and fed properly…

The shelter was built for emergencies such as flooding and other extreme weather but space was limited as it was made for short term refuge and right now it was already overcrowded. 

Some of these people would die due to lack of food, freezing cold, sickness or being beaten up by angry villagers who lost relatives to the deadly winter. The city prosperity and safety I was thinking about only 2 hours earlier did not apply to non-citizens. 

First, let’s try to save at least one of them. I need to think hard for a way to help more if I could. Worst case, I could buy food, coal and clothes to anonymously distribute during winter time… Maybe also buy fire pills against the cold sickness... Mmm …I need to think more about it.

I went directly to the information center of the shelter.

“Hi young master, how can I help you?” Said a nice looking lady that would have been in her mid thirties if she was a non-cultivator but her cultivation base was higher than me so I could not figure out her real age or strength  

“Hi sister” From my 2nd life, I learned to always butter up whomever could give me information I needed

“I need to replace a nanny. They need to wake me up on time because I love sleeping in but need to go to school. If they know how to cook tasty snacks they will get a bonus. The pay is negotiable, food and shelter included. It does not matter if they are male or female” I said trying to muster a CEO vibe

The lady was trying to not smile. This was novel for me as I always met people trying to force a smile in this world.

“I see you already know what you want…and I have many people who meet your requirements. To narrow it down, could I ask a few questions?” she asked

“Go ahead” I said while nodding 

“I need your name, age, family situation, who would pay the wages, where you plan to shelter your servant and if you accept the family of the servant in the place of work” fired the lady very quickly so I replied with the same pace

“My name is Bai YuShin, 10 years old tomorrow, my parents left me at the care of patriarch of the Yu Family from the north side of the city, I would pay the wages from my own pocket…I mean pouch” I took a breath trying to remember the rest of her questions 

“...I was assigned my own courtyard in the Yu family. It has a room dedicated for servants. I think it is big enough to house 2 or 3 people. If for some reason I leave the Yu family, I have enough money to buy a house big enough to shelter more servants and their families. In that case I would hire more” damn, I said more than what I wanted. This is why I preferred to not socialize. Luckily she did not ask me why I would leave the Yu family

 “Young master Bai, do you know that in this shelter there are refugees from Huo city and they are not citizens of our city?”

“I do and that after they found a job here they could be citizen after 1 year of employment”

“Good, do you have any requirement for the strength and age of the servant?”

I though few a few seconds and responded by “Not really” then though again and added “But if they have kids I don’t mind as long as they are nice and not too sticky” not like my effing cousins “... and don’t bother me every time I have to study or cultivate”

This time the lady smiled “Younger or older kids?”

“It does not matter”

“Good, I have 2 candidates in mind that can start working today; one is a woman and her 2 grandsons. She worked as a nanny in a good family and knows how to cook and clean including laundry if necessary. Her 2 grandsons are 9 and 12 years old. The younger one has been very quiet and calm since he arrived at the shelter. The 12 year old is a protector and has a good heart. He is known to always protect bullied kids and his little brother”

The first choice was already a good one and the 12 year old could bring me lunch to the school if I had enough of cafeteria’s food

“The 2nd choice is a man with his wife and a 5 year old daughter. He was a housekeeper in a rich family, he can clean, good at reading and writing and his wife is a good cook - she is currently helping the cook at the shelter - they are ready to get only 1 paycheck for both their work. Their daughter is a cute and innocent child and can be a good little sister”

If the wife is cooking for the shelter then she already has a job. If I had my own house and more space I would pick both choices but right now what I needed most was a nanny to block my aunt temporarily.  

“Can I talk to the grandmother and her 2 grandsons?” I asked

“I was sure you would pick them first” said the lady then flicked her hand “Please wait a few minutes”

What is with the hand flick similar to the city lord? Just use your mental spiritual power to call them if you already know where they are…