"Okay, village chief, tell me what's the big deal that you called us here so late at night? I have orphans and a widow to take care of at home!" said a young man in the crowd.

As soon as he finished speaking, there was a burst of laughter from the crowd, but it soon quieted down as everyone was thinking about a question.

The village chief was a man of few words, always willing to personally handle everything. Unless something serious was imminent, he wouldn't summon a representative to discuss matters. After all, many families were running out of food, so who had the time to meddle?

"I asked you all to come here, firstly, to share some of my own views. Secondly, to let everyone talk about some of the things they have encountered recently."

"I wonder if you've noticed a problem recently: the weather is getting hotter and hotter, and it's hardly raining. The crops in the fields aren't growing well either.

I've noticed the water level in the village river has dropped. A few women washing clothes came to me to report this, and I went to check it myself. The water level has indeed dropped, though you wouldn't be able to tell unless you looked closely.

Village chief He Qiang glanced at the crowd and continued.

"After all, this is a major event that concerns the entire village, so I called everyone here to see if it is the same as my guess. But we haven't made a judgment yet, and the government has not given any instructions or issued any notice."

"And yesterday I discovered that the well at home, which has been dug for over ten years, is having trouble drawing water. Today I even hired someone to dig out some of the silt from the well to see if it's blocking it and causing the water to stop flowing.

I thought there would be a little more water, but it's only a little more. There's still not much water in the well, and it's hard to draw. That's why I called you here to see if you're in the same situation as me.

If there are more of us, we can discuss things together. Tell us one by one whether you have encountered anything unusual recently."

Village chief He Qiang took a puff of his pipe, calmed himself down, and prepared to listen to their recent experiences, to see if there were any strange phenomena.

"Village chief, let me tell you! I know some things that happened recently"!

A middle-aged man with a weather-beaten face slowly walked out from the huge crowd.

"Liu Wazi, tell me! What problem did you find?"

Village chief He Qiang nodded with satisfaction and sat on a stone pillar.

"Village chief, you know that I usually carry freshly steamed buns at the hour of Yin, ready to go to the town to sell them.

I also happened to pass by the two large cypress trees near the village entrance at that time. Every day at that time, I used to hear a lot of birds chirping! And when I came back at noon, I could still hear a lot of birds singing.

"But recently I found that no matter it is the Yin hour or the Chen hour, there is no bird singing, it feels like there is no bird at all"!

Liu Wazi thought this matter was quite strange, so he told it out.

"Yes, Village Chief, I have discovered this problem. Usually around noon, I happen to be resting under the big banyan tree, and I haven't noticed any birds singing, but there used to be a lot of them."

An old man stroking his white beard followed suit. Based on his experience, this was definitely unusual.

"Also, there are very few prey in the mountains recently, and the air feels particularly stuffy. It's a very obvious difference from before."

An old hunter stretched out his calloused hand and began to speak.

"There are indeed not many prey, and even a lot of grass is withered and yellow. I went to the town to buy some food today, and found that the price of food has increased. Those of you who don't have much food at home, but have money in hand, should make some preparations."

Yu Qingshu watched others talking to each other and began to express his own opinions.

The news of "food price hikes" brought a new buzz to the crowd, with everyone discussing these issues.

"Oh my God, how can people survive? There are fewer wild vegetables and the price of food has increased. What should we do?"

An old lady suddenly sat on the ground and started crying, feeling that she had no hope of survival. Adults might be able to hold on for a while, but what should children do?

"Someone of you, pull her up first. What's the use of sitting on the ground? I called you here to find a way to deal with it. What's the point of throwing a tantrum?"

Village chief He Qiang looked at the woman throwing a tantrum on the ground and felt a surge of embarrassment. So many people were watching. It was not a good look for her to sit there crying and shouting. She had to be careful not to corrupt the morale.

"Aunt Wang, please don't be like this. Now is not the time to make a fuss. The village chief cares so much about us. If something really happens, he will not ignore us."

A lame uncle also began to persuade the woman on the ground. The man the woman on the ground married was called Wang Sanwa, who was 38 years old this year.

Because we got married late, the oldest boy is only eleven, and the second is eight. Plus, the youngest is four. There's also my father and mother, who are fifty-six this year. There are seven people in the family, men, women, and children, so it's not a small family.

Wang Sanwa was a typical farmer who usually tended the fields at home. Aunt Wang usually washed clothes for the better-off families in the village, earning three cents for each wash.

So if this problem continues and food prices keep rising, there really won't be anything to eat. Wild vegetables are hard to find, and even the water level is dropping, with wells dwindling. Isn't that just starvation? Aunt Wang's heart grew increasingly distressed as she listened, and she began to cry uncontrollably on the ground.

"Everyone, please be quiet and let the village chief have a few words!" Some people at the scene began to take the initiative to maintain order. After all, he was the village chief and they had to give him some face.

"Yes! I understand what you said. I remember that this kind of thing has happened before. If my guess is correct, there will probably be a drought later. I don't know how long it will last. I remember my grandfather said that decades ago, they fled to Shuihe Village to escape famine and settled here.

But don't panic, the drought won't happen right away. I estimate that the well water can last for about a month. But now it is God's warning to us, and we must also prepare early.

I guess we can't rely on the imperial court. We are so remote here. It will take two or three months for the letter to reach the court, and it will take a long time for the relief food to actually arrive.

Our village, including other villages, couldn't wait until that time and many people would have starved to death. We can't just sit there and wait for death!

Village chief He Qiang looked worried as he slowly expressed his thoughts.

"And food prices are starting to rise. This is not a good sign. We'd better get together and decide to flee the famine!"