Once one person spoke, the others naturally followed suit, and the previously quiet crowd instantly became bustling.

"Give me something to eat, I'm old and eat very little."

"Sir, do you need any servants? I just need a bite to eat, and I'll serve you like a beast of burden for the rest of my life..."

Everyone was enthusiastically promoting themselves, and the circle surrounding the carriages grew smaller and smaller.

Li Yanping huddled inside the carriage, not daring to move an inch, his teeth chattering with nervousness.

If he had known it would turn out like this, he would have been better off staying in the northern desert!

Although Prefect Wen and Prefect Qi are annoying, they won't kill him!

Li Yanping felt more and more regretful, but no matter how much he regretted it, he was now in Jiangzhou, being begged by refugees for a bite to eat.

He almost cried...

His confidant was also terrified, but there was no way to retreat at this point. He could only force himself to calm down, pound his trembling legs, slowly open the carriage door, and bow to the refugees outside.

"Fellow villagers, we also came from Jiangzhou. Besides this carriage, we have no extra provisions. Please, fellow villagers, have mercy on us and let us go for now. Our master knows people in Jiangzhou. As long as we enter the city tomorrow, he will definitely find a way to bring you some food."

Making empty promises costs nothing. He could promise the entire Li's Trading Company if he wanted them to enter the city; they would stay there and never come out again.

The confidant had a beautiful plan, but unfortunately, not all the refugees were fools.

They knew, of course, that once the carriage entered the city, it would never come out again.

The refugees looked at each other, and then one of the men said, "Who are you trying to fool! Do you think there wouldn't be any food in such a big carriage?"

"That's right! We don't need much, just a bite to eat will do!"

Amid the complaints, one person raised his voice and said, "We're starving to death, and you're just standing by and watching. You're truly heartless rich people!"

These words instantly ignited the refugees' anger.

Ordinary people would fawn over and flatter the rich in normal times, but now that they are being forced to the brink of starvation, they only feel that the rich are being treated unfairly.

On what grounds?

Why?!

One of them roared, "Fellow villagers, these people say they have no food, then kill those horses, and we'll each have enough meat to eat!"

"Kill the horse!"

Once the refugees' anger was ignited, it was almost impossible to suppress it. Seeing that things were getting out of control, the guards raised their swords and slashed at one of them, wanting to make an example of him.

But failing to kill the chicken only enraged the monkey!

The refugees charged forward, shouting, and soon engaged the guards in a fierce battle. The bloodshed thoroughly roused them.

The carriage jolted and the horses were startled, neighing in terror. Their hooves flew as they rammed into the refugees in front of them, eventually stopping at the city gate.

Li Yanping could no longer sit still. He jumped off the carriage and pounded on the city gate, shouting at the top of his lungs, "Open the gate! I am Li Yanping, the manager of Li's Trading Company. Open the gate and let me in! There's a refugee riot!"

As soon as the word "riot" was uttered, the city walls were instantly filled with guards, each holding a bow and arrow, their eyes blazing as they watched the refugees surging forward.

The garrison commander, standing on the city wall, shouted: "Everyone back off, or you will be killed without mercy!"

Manager Li and his confidants managed to escape to the city gate, but the guards protecting them were intercepted by the refugees, and in the ensuing conflict, almost none of them survived.

The refugees were so enraged that they couldn't hear the guards' voices, and even Manager Li's desperate pleas for help were drowned out.

The garrison commander dared not order the firing of arrows at will, for once the arrows were fired, the floods in the Jiangnan region would be completely exposed!

The garrison commander ordered his trusted men to quickly inform His Highness the King of Chu, while simultaneously instructing the garrison to fire arrows at the open ground below. In any case, the first priority was to intimidate these refugees!

Li Yanping leaned against the heavy city gate, feeling that the refugees' eyes were glowing red, and each one of them looked like a terrifying man-eating rat.

His legs trembled uncontrollably. He rummaged through his clothes for a long time before finally finding the signal flare. He released it into the air, and the red flare exploded instantly. The guard's eyes sharpened, and he leaned halfway out to look down at the city gate.

This signal flare was something only the King of Chu's confidants possessed. Even if the garrison commander didn't want to open the city gates, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and open them!

To the defenders' surprise, firing arrows did not deter the refugees; instead, it fueled their inner violence.

Why don't these rich people give them a bite to eat?

Why wouldn't the garrison let them into the city?

Why order the arrows to be fired? Why not give them a way out?

The refugees were pushing forward like madmen, and Li Yanping was almost scared to death.

The next instant, the heavy gate behind him opened, and Li Yanping was dragged inside. The city gate quickly closed before the refugees could rush in.

Without Li Yanping, the garrison had no more scruples and immediately ordered the arrows to be fired, and cries of agony echoed through the night.

Only then did the refugees retreat in droves, looking at the people who had fallen in front of them with lingering fear; the deaths of those around them had shocked the remaining people.

The garrison commander waved his hand, the city gate opened, and the soldiers piled the dead together. In front of the remaining refugees, they threw several torches onto the pile of corpses.

A raging fire lit up a patch of sky, and the garrison commander looked at the remaining refugees and sneered, "The archers on the city wall are not just for show. Think twice before you cause trouble."

The refugees huddled together for warmth, shivering in the cold.

The garrison commander led his soldiers back to the city gate. One of the soldiers said casually, "What's the use of all these people fleeing to Jiangzhou? His Highness has already gone north."

Another person chimed in, "Yes, Jiangzhou is also a disaster-stricken area, and the people in the city are also suffering greatly. They should go further north."

The two men's conversation grew quieter and then disappeared completely. The refugees looked at each other, unsure whether the man was telling the truth or not.

"That soldier said, 'The King of Chu is going north.' Does that mean he's going to the capital? Will the Emperor find out soon?"

Another person trembled and asked, "When will the King of Chu return? Should we continue to guard Jiangzhou?"

Will this relentless, day-and-night vigil really yield results?

The refugees remained silent for a long time until a strange fragrance wafted through the air, and everyone's gaze was drawn to the still-burning corpse.

This smells like roasted meat...

One of them swallowed hard, forcibly averting his gaze: "Should we head north too? The weather in Jiangzhou isn't good either; it might keep raining..."

"Where to the north?"

Yes, where should they go?

The refugees endured a test of humanity, and for a moment they felt a deep sadness, realizing that there was nowhere for them to go in the world.

After a while, someone said, "Didn't the King of Chu go to the capital? Why don't we go to the capital too!"