Chapter 5: Tide of Famine

Early the next morning, under the escort of guards, three carriages and one ox cart silently departed from Xiaofu Village.

Nanny Hu, Hongwei, and the rest of the group truly never expected that while they had sat comfortably in carriages on the way there, they would have to squeeze into an ox cart on the return journey, enduring the biting cold wind all the way back.

Hongwei huddled close to the Nanny, her teeth chattering uncontrollably from the cold. "Why must they take all that junk—all those pots and pans? They filled two whole carts with it and took up our seats!"

"As... as expected of a daughter raised in the wild, coarse and unrefined. To... to treat us so poorly, she is truly... unseemly."

Once they returned, she would surely lodge a severe complaint to ensure that this wretched girl would find it impossible to take a single step within the Prefect's manor!

In truth, sitting in the ox cart in the cold wind was not the most stifling part. What Nanny Hu and the others found most unbearable was being sandwiched among a crowd of stinking refugees; while enduring various foul odors, they were also forced to endure the diverse, strange gazes cast upon them from the surroundings.

Hongwei subconsciously tightened her grip on the bundle in her arms, feeling as though the gazes of those disheveled, starving people were piercingly sharp.

"Stop your nonsense and keep a close eye on your belongings," Nanny Hu snapped irritably, her mind in turmoil.

When the guards had reported early that morning that Mother Fang and her son had disappeared, she had already sensed something was amiss.

The people had been locked securely in the woodshed; how could they suddenly vanish right before departure?

And that legitimate daughter had even made pointed, snide remarks, making it seem as if she were the one who had secretly released them!

She felt utterly wronged.

"Big... Big sister, please, have some mercy and give us a little food."

Suddenly, someone reached out. Hongwei let out a startled scream and pushed them away. "Get away! No, there's nothing, nothing at all!"

"Please, just a little bit, my child is starving to death. Just a little! Anything edible will do!"

Hongwei screamed at the top of her lungs, "Get away! Get away now! Don't touch me with those filthy hands. I'm warning you, this is a government road, don't you dare act out!"

Several accompanying guards rode up on horseback to drive the hungry crowd back. As the guards raised their sabers, the crowd tactfully retreated time and again.

Seeing their fear of the guards' blades, Hongwei couldn't help but sneer, her body trembling along with them. "You thought you could rob us? You'll be beaten to death. A bunch of stinking beggars with no self-awareness. Get lost!"

"Be quiet," Nanny Hu said, her heart skipping a beat as she gripped Hongwei's arm forcefully.

She prayed this wretched girl wouldn't truly provoke these refugees; if she did, even a large number of guards might struggle to handle the situation.

"What is there to fear, Nanny?" Hongwei lifted her chin and scoffed. "They're just starving peasants with lives as thin as paper. How dare they come and offend us?"

With that, she pulled out a handkerchief-wrapped pastry from her bundle and unfurled it to show off. "See this? We have plenty of food, but you stinking beggars don't deserve to enjoy it!"

"Are you insane!" Nanny Hu yanked her back violently, her eyelids twitching uncontrollably, her face contorted with rage.

How could this old woman have brought such a brainless piece of trash on this journey?

Just as Nanny Hu's heart screamed that things were going wrong, the surrounding refugees, their faces flushed red from the cold, lunged forward like madmen.

"They really have so much food!"

"Give it to me! Give it to me!"

Hongwei turned pale with terror. Caught off guard, she was dragged and tackled from the ox cart, her back slamming heavily into the dusty ground. She let out a piercing wail.

"Guard Chen, help me! Help me!"

Several guards drew their blades, but even more refugees swarmed from behind, grabbing at their waists and pinning down their legs.

Guard Chen was struck with horror; the sword in his hand was snatched away, and in the chaos, he took a blade to the shoulder, blood instantly gushing out like a spring.

"Ahhh!" Hongwei shrieked desolately.

She was dragged to the ground, and in the chaos, she was trampled by countless feet, the pain causing her to curl into a ball.

To make matters worse, one of the swords snatched from the guards fell and struck her right in the face, immediately slicing open a bloody wound.

The refugees had gone mad. Many filthy hands tore at her clothes and grabbed at her bundle, ripping it out to fight amongst themselves.

Hongwei screamed, trying to sit up, but her face was stepped on, causing the wound to burst wide open. Thick, sticky blood flowed down her chin.

Yet no one cared whether she lived or died. The refugees fought over the snatched bundles, stuffing whatever food they found into their mouths in massive handfuls.

The woman who had previously asked for food cried out as she tried to snatch pastries from a burly man. "Leave some for my child! I beg you, I beg you!"

"Get lost!" The man flung the woman aside, throwing her and the child in her arms away with a heavy thud.

The scene was utterly chaotic and spiraling out of control.

Yu Linlang's carriage was not the only one on the government road. Seeing the refugee riot, the passengers in the other carriages and donkey carts turned pale with fear, dreading being caught in the crossfire.

As one person robbed another, the refugees madly leaped onto Yu Linlang's carriage, though several were struck down by Jiu Jin with a fire poker.

Yu Linlang's face was as cold as frost as she reached out to lift the carriage curtain.

Jiu Jin leaped out, standing atop the carriage roof with a cold sneer. "I advise you not to touch those two carts. There is no food in them, only poisonous flowers and weeds. If you aren't afraid of being poisoned, go ahead and eat, but don't blame anyone else when you die."

"Don't waste words with them! Search the carts!" The red-eyed refugees raised their blades high, heedless of his warning.

"I'll see who dares to offend my lady!!" Jiu Jin's eyes bulged with fury, ready to strike.

*Swish!* An arrow flew swiftly, knocking the blade from the hand of the leading refugee.

With a loud *clang*, the refugees turned pale with fright.

Following closely behind was the thunderous sound of galloping hooves, accompanied by a swirling wind of sand.

The crowd looked back in terror to see a young general clad in black armor galloping toward them. He held up a command token high and spoke with rapid-fire urgency, "The Relief Commissioner has received imperial orders to travel to Weizhou City for disaster relief; all relief grain is already on the way. During this time, any refugees who cause chaos, refuse to obey authority, or engage in wanton looting and provocation shall be dealt with strictly according to the laws of Great Qi. Bandits shall be executed without mercy!"

The chaotic refugees scrambled backward, unable to even hold onto the blades they had stolen, which clattered to the ground.

Two paths opened up in the silence as the soldiers stepped aside, making way for an unremarkable carriage in the center.

Yu Linlang cast a casual glance and happened to see the thick cloth curtain on the opposite carriage slowly descend.

In that fleeting glimpse, Yu Linlang caught a sight of half a face, as cold and pure as snow, as a few strands of silver hair brushed past the curtain.

"Miss, what are you looking at?" Jiu Jin jumped down from the roof, looking curious.

Yu Linlang stared at the lowered curtain and said softly, "Mhm, what a pity. So young, yet her life is nearly at its end."

"Huh?" Jiu Jin turned back to look and scratched his head. "Who are you talking about?"

Suddenly, a bloodied woman rushed out from the crowd, clutching a child and crying for help.

"Doctor! Is there a doctor? Help! Officers, please, save my child! Save him!"

The woman, lost in despair, shook the unconscious child in her arms and threw herself before the young general, weeping bitterly.

"Is there a doctor here?" the young general asked, looking around.

"If you keep shaking him like that, he'll be crippled even if he doesn't die."

Yu Linlang leaned halfway out, using Jiu Jin's hand to step slowly down from the carriage.