Chapter 97: Refugee Rebellion
Fortunately, in the end, perhaps because the other side had more people and more power, they did not dare to act rashly, and they had already gone far away during the hesitation.
Xu Qingying felt uneasy and asked Mr. Fang again. He said that they had entered the hinterland of the southwest, and this section of the road might be not too far from the flooded Jinzhou Prefecture. The refugees abandoned their fields and fled in all directions. They could not walk far on foot, so they met them.
This is a dangerous signal.
Xu Qingying had never seen refugees, but she knew that under extreme circumstances, humans were no different from wild animals. The only difference was that they would weigh the difference in combat power before deciding whether to attack.
Xu Qingying discussed with Zhao Bantou that in order to prevent the refugees from burning, killing, looting and atrocities, they should adjust the formation during this section of the mountain road.
Zhao Bantou also agreed, so he called everyone together: "The road we have been walking these days is very close to Jinzhou Prefecture, which has been hit by a flood, so we may encounter refugees fleeing. For everyone's safety, from now on, all carriages must be vacated for children and the elderly. Young and middle-aged people will walk in the front and back, and women will walk in the middle. There must be someone on duty at night. Everyone, please be alert and scream to warn people if you encounter any situation! Everyone, please check your luggage to see if there are any weapons. If not, go to the woods and find a stick to sharpen, which can also be used to stab people. Don't say I didn't remind you, the mountains are now closed due to heavy snow, and the refugees have been fleeing in the mountains for several months. I'm afraid they are so hungry that they dare to eat human flesh! I'm saying this in advance. If you disobey and want to die, I won't stop you——"
Everyone was talking about it, some looked scared, some didn't care, and some were indifferent.
"Captain, we've only encountered two or three waves of refugees along the way, and they weren't a significant group. With a team of over a hundred people, how could we possibly be afraid of a few small groups of refugees?"
"Yes, and what's more, we are an exile group. You are all officers with swords. Who would dare to rush into your swords?"
Xu Qingying said, "Have you heard of the story of cannibalism? Do you think people who kill their own kind are still human? Humans have conscience, warmth, and fear, but what about them? They are just a group of starving beasts. They can even eat their own sons and daughters. What do you think will happen to us, the elderly, the weak, women, and children, if we fall into their hands? If you don't want to be dismembered and cooked, do as Zhao Bantou says!"
"You're just exaggerating! Talking about cannibalism and dismembering corpses and cooking them? It's not like we haven't seen refugees in Bianjing before. They're just like beggars. If you really run into one, can't you just give them a few pieces of silver and send them off?" Xu Lezhi said, looking at Xu Qingying with some pride. "Besides, you're not broke."
Fang Ruyu also said, "The refugees are fleeing disasters at home. They've sold their children and daughters along the way, and haven't had enough to eat. It's already very difficult for them to survive. Those of us who are able should naturally help, but how can we instead treat them as a scourge? Miss Xu Liu, Le Zhi has some truth in what he said. You've made a lot of money from your soap business, could you donate some? They say saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. If you can, we can even go into the city to buy some food and clothing. I felt really sorry for the woman holding the child earlier. It was winter, and she only had a single layer of clothing on her. The child in her arms was as thin as a kitten, and even her cries were stammering. I'm really worried they won't survive this winter."
Xu Qingying could understand the thoughts of someone like Fang Ruyu, who had been raised in seclusion and had never seen the wickedness of human nature. She also knew that she was a pessimist who always tended to assume the worst. She suppressed her temper and said, "Money is certainly not a problem, but the heavy snow has blocked the roads. It will take at least ten days to walk from here to the nearest county town. They are already starving. If you give them money, they still have to brave the snow and wind to get to the city. If they actually get there, they will starve to death."
Xu Lezhi sang the opposite tune as usual, "You said so much, aren't you just reluctant to part with the money?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Fang Xun stood up and shouted at Xu Lezhi mercilessly, "Miss Xu Qi, you are such a harsh woman. Miss Xu Liu has been making soap for everyone along the way and distributing dry food to the poorest families. She has also generously provided medicine to any sick elderly or children. How come you keep talking about money?"
Fang Xun's rebuttal left Xu Lezhi stunned.
She stared at Fang Xun in disbelief, her teeth chattering with anger. "How...how could you...talk to me like this for her?"
Fang Xun frowned. He really didn't understand the mind of the Seventh Miss Xu. He believed that there was nothing wrong with his behavior, but Seventh Miss Xu acted as if they had a close relationship and often came to talk to him. Fang Xun avoided her and usually tolerated her many times, but when it came to Sixth Miss Xu, Fang Xun felt that he could no longer tolerate it and had to say something fair.
Why does Xu Qi look like he is a heartless man?
Fang Xun naturally didn't know that it was precisely because of his lack of understanding that he gave Xu Lezhi a surprise punch.
If this happened now, he would definitely be a straight man.
Xu Qingying saw the tears in Xu Lezhi's eyes and felt happy and relieved. It was great that she didn't have to do it herself, and there were passers-by fans who helped her beat up the black fans.
Xu Qingying did not fail to notice Xu Lezhi's attentiveness in asking the other party.
Therefore, Fang Xun's defense for her made Xu Lezhi even more furious.
Xu Qingying was also very surprised. Fang Xun was very young and usually very quiet. He would blush if he spoke a few more words to a girl.
Xu Qingying thought he was an innocent boy, but this time he was shot dead, Xu Qingying realized that he was not an innocent boy at all, but a foolish young man with no sense of justice!
By this time, Xu Lezhi was probably biting his silver teeth to pieces.
"I'm not speaking for anyone, but I've noticed that Miss Xu Qi is being a bit harsh in her words and actions, so I have to warn you a few words."
Fang Xun finished speaking, ignoring Xu Lezhi's wide-open eyes, and turned to Xu Qingying, saying, "Sixth Miss Xu, I agree with you. I also think refugees are a hidden danger. This place is too close to Jinzhou. We've been lucky these past few days, only encountering scattered groups of refugees. But if we continue forward, there's no guarantee we won't encounter large groups. We have money and food, so we're like walking pieces of fat meat!"
Xu Qingying was amused by this adjective, and seeing Xu Lezhi's tears, she felt even happier.
Sometimes Xu Qingying felt that she was very childish. She was obviously thirty years old mentally, but she was still fighting fiercely with a thirteen-year-old girl.
Honestly... these mosquitoes aren't very lethal, but they are annoying.
Xu Qingying suppressed her smile and said with a deliberately stern face, "Mr. Fang is right. We are now a piece of fat meat. If we encounter a large number of refugees, there is no guarantee that we will not be robbed. If our supplies are robbed and we are trapped in the mountains, we may become refugees too. Looting is secondary. If we encounter cruel people, we will not even be able to save our lives. So, just in case, we will follow the instructions of Zhao Bantou for the next few days. The young and strong men will be in the front and back of the team, the women will be in the middle, and the elderly and children will sit in the carriages. Everyone, find a weapon that you can use. If any refugees ask you for something, you must not give it to them! Those who don't want to die, move now! "
Xu Qingying has always enjoyed prestige in the team. Once she gave the order, no matter whether everyone believed it or not, they had to take action.
There were bamboos and branches everywhere in the forest. Xu Qingying picked one up casually and asked Zhao Bantou to sharpen them for her with a knife. After practicing a few times, she found it quite easy to do.
Miao and Huang also got out of the car to look for weapons, and finally came to Xu Qingying to have them identified. It seemed that they had to wait for Xu Qingying to say it was okay before they could feel at ease. Seeing their worried and frightened faces, Xu Qingying could only comfort them, "Grandma, Mother, it's not certain yet. I'm just saying that there is this possibility. We should make every possible preparation."
Huang shook her head. "Sixth girl, I know you're trying to comfort me. You haven't seen those refugees. They're not human anymore. They're starving, and they're capable of anything. I saw the first two waves of refugees firsthand. They were so skinny, they couldn't even walk steadily. They were obviously starving. If it weren't for Zhao Bantou and the others carrying knives, I'm afraid the first wave would have rushed forward fearlessly. Oh, how did the world become like this?"
Miao was timid and had been frightened by them for a long time. Even at this moment, she did not forget to protect Xu Qingying, "Ying'er, if there are refugees who really want to steal things, we can give them the things. We have money, there is no need to fight with them for a bite of food..."
Xu Meixiao hid beside Xu Qingying. She had become much more taciturn in the past few days. Children are easily frightened and she seemed to know that the situation was not good. Even her enthusiasm for learning had decreased a lot.
Xu Qingying hugged Xu Meixiao and wiped her bruised face, "Don't be afraid, Meizi, your sister is here."
Xu Meixiao pouted and clung to Xu Qingying, refusing to let go. Xu Qingying thought she was scared, but the little girl burst into tears, "Sister, they're so pitiful! It's so cold, and that little girl is sleeping naked on the side of the road, her face frozen white. I poked her, but she didn't cry. Can we pick her up and raise her?"
Xu Qingying was still puzzled, "Sleeping naked? How old is your little sister?"
Xu Meixiao gestured and said, "It's about this size."
Oh, about two or three years old.
Miao and Huang's expressions changed slightly. Grandmother held Xu Meixiao in her arms, her face almost turning pale. "Don't be afraid, little Meixiao. Grandma is here. That little girl's parents must have gone out to find food. If you dream of her tonight, remember to tell her that her parents are waiting for her. Tell her to go back quickly and don't keep them waiting for too long."
Xu Meixiao wiped her tears in Huang's arms and said crisply, "Grandma, I understand."
Seeing Xu Qingying's bewildered expression, Miao said with some pity, "That child... is most likely dead. I don't know where her parents went, but they left her body in the wilderness. Who knows, the body might have been taken away by a wolf at night... Alas, this poor child..."
Xu Qingying understood instantly after hearing this.
Her heart sank.
She suddenly felt cold in her hands and feet and had difficulty breathing.
Sure enough, good things don’t work, but bad things do.
The group had not walked far when they encountered a large group of refugees from afar, at least one or two hundred of them.
They were probably from the same village, dragging their families along with them, walking unsteadily.
It had snowed a few days ago. In such cold weather, most of them were skinny and only wore thin clothes. Their skin was pale, their hands were covered with blisters and ulcers, and they walked unsteadily.
One or two hundred people may not sound like a large number, but they were spread across both sides of the official road, as densely packed as a swarm of locusts. When they heard the noise, they all looked towards the exile team.
There were carriages and supplies, and the old, women, and children were all wearing thick clothes. The refugees looked at them with envy, but some seemed to have evil intentions, staring at them with a pair of bloodshot eyes.
Xu Qingying felt a little uneasy as she saw the refugees getting closer and closer, almost forming an angle around them.
Especially the few people leading the refugee group were looking at them and whispering, as if they were evaluating the fighting strength of both sides.
Only then did everyone in the exile team realize the seriousness of the situation. Regardless of gender, age or status, they all clenched their weapons and glared at each other fiercely.
Zhao Bantou was patrolling around on horseback, and the escorts didn't say much. They all mounted their horses and held their swords, refusing to show any fear.
Ming Xiaoshuang rode his horse around Xu Qingying.
Feng'er and Qian Zhenniang were standing in a circle outside the carriage. They were both extremely nervous. If Qian Zhenniang hadn't leaned against Feng'er, she would have fallen to the ground with her legs weak.
The situation is on the verge of breaking out.
Suddenly, a frail woman approached, holding a child in one hand and grabbing a little girl in the group with the other. She begged in a hoarse voice, "Miss, please, give us something to eat. My child is not even four months old and is crying out of hunger. His voice has become hoarse... We are honest farmers living in Jinzhou County. Our fields and house were washed away by the flood. The child's father is dead, and his grandmother starved to death to save food for us. It's so difficult for me to flee with my child alone... Please, give us a little food to keep us, an orphan and a widow, alive..."
The little girl who was being pulled was obviously frightened and ran to her grandmother. The grandmother was very old and just drove her away with a cold face: "Go away, go away! Don't go out to beg for food. We are all exiled prisoners. We don't have a penny on us, let alone food!"
"Auntie, please give me a mouthful! I just gave birth to a child and I don't have any milk. My child is still so young... He can't survive without his parents..." The woman cried bitterly and simply knelt on the ground, kowtowed continuously until her head was covered in blood.
The old man of the Fang family's weak voice came from behind the curtain inside the carriage, "The city of Jinzhou is just ahead, and there are many towns nearby. There's relief food in the city. Why don't you go in and get some?"
"Huh, relief food? We can't even get through the city gates! Ever since the flood in September, the area around Jinzhou has been filled with refugees, and those bastard officials simply shut the city gates!"
"Now the price of grain in Jinzhou has risen to five coins of silver per bushel. What we are eating is not grain, but our blood and flesh!"
"That's right, not to mention the roaming refugees and bandits who rob anyone they see, and when they're really hungry they even eat people—"
Old Fang was shocked. He lifted the curtain of the carriage and asked with a sad heart, "What about the grain sent by the court? Jinzhou has allocated 200,000 taels of silver for disaster relief this year. Where is the silver and the grain?"
"Why would the imperial court care about our lives? I'm afraid some corrupt official has taken advantage of us again."
"Nonsense!" Old Fang was furious. "Who has the guts to do that?"
"But we just can't get any food! Master, please be kind and give us something to eat!"
Xu Qingying was so cruel, but she knew that once this gap was opened, the group of refugees who were watching them eagerly would definitely pounce on them like a hungry tiger.
She had no way of saving so many people.
Seeing the refugees gradually moving towards the middle group, Xu Qingying felt a pang of heartache, yet she was extremely cold and could only shout in a cold voice: "Grandma Ma, hurry up! Don't delay the trip!"
"Wait!" someone in the team shouted. Fang Ruyu's face was covered with tears. She waved to the woman through the carriage curtain and said to Xu Qingying, "Xu Liu, saving a life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. This mother and daughter are almost starving to death before your eyes. How can you just turn a blind eye?"
Xu Qingying cursed in her heart, "What a fool!"
The old lady of the Fang family was also confused. Before she could stop him, Fang Ruyu had already handed over a small bag of dry food. She wiped her tears and said, "I don't have much left. Take this food into the city. You might be able to find a job—"
Before Fang Ruyu finished speaking, the woman snatched the bag of dry food and turned and ran away, "Ah!——"
Fang Ruyu wanted to say a few more words, but suddenly there was a commotion. The refugees who had just gathered around the team suddenly rushed forward and chased after the woman.
The woman was thin and frail. She stumbled and fell to the ground after running only a few steps. Dozens of people ran up to her and started pushing and shoving each other.
The woman shouted hoarsely, "This is my food! This is my food!!!"
Soon the sound was drowned out.
Everyone watched helplessly as the woman was trampled to death by the crowd. The situation became chaotic, and the group of refugees who had just been ready to go seemed to become restless and ran towards their group.
The situation became chaotic and everyone was at a loss.
In the valley, hundreds of people suddenly moved!
Suddenly, someone shouted, "They have food! Grab it!"
Seeing the situation was not good, Xu Qingying quickly leaned out of the carriage and shouted, "Everyone! Full speed ahead! Whoever dares to charge us will be killed! Zhao Bantou, lead the way! Ming Xiaoshuang and Liu Dazhuang, the last two wings of the team! Young and strong men on both sides, protect the carriages, horses, women and children, and kill them!"
Everyone was extremely nervous. After hearing Xu Qingying's sudden shout, they all raised their weapons and stared at the newcomer!
The one or two hundred people were so aggressive and murderous that they instantly made the refugees who were preparing to launch a sneak attack retreat. During this period of hesitation, Zhao Bantou had already raised his knife and chopped down several people without hesitation.
The few people at the back of the team were dispersed by the formation.
"Damn it! These guys dared to steal my things. I'll chop them all up!"
"What are you afraid of? Miss Xu said, kill them all!"
Everyone in the team was terrified. They had never seen such a scene before. The girls kept screaming and shouting.
Blood splattered, covering the faces of the leading refugees. Looking at the fallen bodies, they finally realized the disparity in combat power between the two sides. With fear on their faces, they exclaimed, "They have knives! Boss, should we rob them?!"
Xu Qingying stood on the carriage, holding a weapon made of branches in her hand, her fierce eyes showing no fear. She was thin, but standing among the crowd on the carriage, she inexplicably had an aura of one man blocking the way for ten thousand.
Xu Qingying's voice was clear and sharp, echoing throughout the valley: "Who dares to take a step forward?!"
The refugee leader saw that they were not easy to deal with, and that the dozen or so escorts were holding real weapons, so he wanted to retreat. When he was hesitating whether to continue to rob supplies, those people had already gone far away.
They ran incredibly fast, covering a great distance, yet everyone was too terrified to stop. Only when everyone was exhausted and the sounds of fighting faded away did Xu Qingying order the team to rest.
Everyone was terrified and still held their weapons in their hands, not daring to let go.
Especially Fang Ruyu, who came to her senses this time and broke down crying: "I hurt her, I hurt her!"
Xu Qingying jumped off the carriage, walked up to Fang Ruyu in a menacing manner, and then slapped her with a loud "slap". The sound was so crisp that everyone looked at her in shock.
Xu Lezhi was so frightened that she almost jumped up. For a moment, looking at Xu Qingying like this, she was too scared to speak for the first time.
At this moment, Xu Qingying looked like a wild wolf.
His eyes glowed red, and he could bite off the head with just one bite.
Fang Ruyu was stunned by the sudden slap and looked at her in disbelief.
"Not only did you harm her, you almost harmed all of us!" Xu Qingying had never been so angry. She looked down at Fang Ruyu, her eyes filled with coldness. "Oh, and there's also her child. The child is only four months old. Because of you, she could have starved to death, been trampled to death, or even been cut up and eaten! You say how could I have done this? I want to ask you, how could you have done this too!"
Fang Ningmo hugged Fang Ruyu, who looked a little dazed, tears streaming down her face. "Xu Liu, please stop hitting me. My sister didn't mean it! She doesn't know. She meant well. She feels really guilty now. Please don't force her!"
Old Madam Fang's eyelids twitched and she frowned at her.
The Fang family members all stood up and stared at Xu Qingying with different expressions.
The one being beaten was the eldest daughter of the Fang family, who might be the future consort of the second prince and the last respectable person in the entire Fang family.
This slap not only hit Fang Ruyu's face, but also hit everyone in the Fang family's face.
Mr. Fang smoothed things over, "We finally escaped death, everyone calm down."
He glanced at the frightened Fang Ruyu again, but ultimately did not say any words of blame.
Xu Qingying clenched her teeth and let the anger surge in.
She watched helplessly as the woman was trampled to death because of a bag of grain, and watched helplessly as she fled for her life, leaving the baby in the woman's arms behind. Even though she knew that Fang Ruyu was just a fuse, Xu Qingying still couldn't get rid of the heavy feeling of powerlessness.
Xu Qingying looked around at the people who were still trembling with fear. "I urge everyone to be less compassionate. If there are still those who refuse to listen and seek death, I, Xu Qingying, will not care about them anymore!"
Someone immediately expressed their opinion: "Miss Xu, we listen to you!"
"Yes! These refugees are too scary. No, they are not even human beings."
"I saw that woman being trampled to death. It was so cruel! I want to live, even if I have to be exiled to Qianzhou. I don't want to die!"
"Miss Xu Liu is doing this for our own good! If anyone else in the team acts with reckless kindness and causes trouble, we will show no mercy!"
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