There was no food or drink, and no relief came from the imperial court. Finally, chaos broke out.

A large number of refugees began to flee, taking food and their only water resources with them, and fled towards the state capital.

However, this drought affected a large area, and distant water could not quench immediate thirst. A large number of refugees fell down on the way to escape and never got up again.

The chaos that Hu Yunxiao had worried about appeared soon after. Some people blocked the road to rob people, some people exchanged their children for food, and some people...

Bai Chi withdrew his mental power after seeing this. It was already autumn and it hadn't rained for more than five months. Even if the court had made preparations in advance, it would not be so easy to provide disaster relief due to the inconvenience of transportation.

The food is not bad, there is a granary in the prefecture.

But the most important thing is water.

Several large rivers have dried up, and the water from far away has almost evaporated before it can be delivered. What's more, there are only tools such as water tanks and buckets, and transportation can only be done by cattle and horses, especially cattle and horses, because people need water to drink.

Qinghe Village had been looted by several groups of ragged bandits, but Bai Chi discovered from their behavior that they seemed to be from a military camp.

No wonder Hu Yunxiao stayed away from the crowd as soon as he heard about the drought.

Under the natural disaster, people's hearts have changed and all their ugly faces are exposed. Even Hu Yunxiao is probably not sure if he can protect himself in such a situation, so he decided to escape with Bai Chi.

Of course, for Hu Yunxiao, following the animals into the mountains is actually a very risky thing, but it is obviously much safer than staying where he is.

In fact, if it weren't for Bai Chi's overt and covert guidance, they might not even be able to find their current place.

This is the place carefully selected by Bai Chi, and there is a deep underground river underneath.

Apart from here, there is almost no such water source within a radius of 100 miles.

Not only that, the nearby mountains have also dried up.

Bai Chi felt a tap on his shoulder and turned around to see Mr. Lin holding a book and looking him up and down.

"Xiao Chi, what are you thinking about? I see you've been in a daze these past few days."

Bai Chi yawned: "It's nothing, I just feel sleepy now that autumn has arrived."

They have been living here for several months, and the clothes they brought with them are all patched up - Mr. Lin is really virtuous, and in comparison, Bai Chi feels that he is too lazy.

Lin Xiucai looked worried. "I don't know what's going on outside. It's autumn now, and most of the animals in the mountains are going into hibernation. Now we have only dried meat and vegetables. I don't know how long we can hold out."

They opened a small vegetable garden next to the cave and planted some coarse grains nearby, so they lived a pretty good life.

But humans are social animals after all, and there have been only four of them for the past few months, so it is indeed easy for them to feel depressed.

Bai Chi thought of the corpses floating all over the ground he had just seen and shook his head.

"Let's wait until the New Year. I always feel that peace is not so easy to come out of here."

Except for Bai Chi, no one else had any idea of ​​what was happening outside.

But Bai Chi said this, and no one refuted it.

As time passed, the winter was dry and windy, but there was not a drop of rain, let alone snow. Even the century-old trees on the mountains near them began to show signs of large-scale withering.

There was no grass growing on the ground, not even a trace of moisture.

Fortunately, their water source was still bubbling out water continuously. Although the amount of water had decreased after the temperature dropped, as long as they kept collecting it in bamboo tubes, it was at least enough for the daily needs of the four of them.

Bai Chi still asked Xiao Hei to pay attention to the situation of everyone in Qinghe Village.

Some of them defended Qinghe Village to the death and eventually died of thirst at home. Some fled with others, even exchanging their wives and children for food. Some collapsed on the road after having their last water taken away from them.

None of them had a good ending.

There's no need for Bai Chi to do anything, they'll destroy themselves.