Chapter 72 Refugees Follow
The further north we went, the more refugees there were.
Sometimes there would be hundreds of people following them, which made Liang He and others more cautious.
The horse-drawn and donkey-drawn carts loaded with grain were gathered in the middle, and the rest of the people were scattered around.
He wore a sword and had a serious expression.
It looks like it gives people a feeling that it is not easy to mess with.
The refugees are all looking for ways to survive, so no one dares to attack them at the moment.
But on this day, a group of tall and strong men came from nowhere and followed them.
As many as more than fifty people.
The officers and the Luo family all felt that something was wrong.
Generally speaking, refugees fleeing famine travel in groups from the same village.
It is rare to see a team composed entirely of young and middle-aged people.
Liang He immediately became alert and urged everyone, "Everyone, wake up and hurry up."
He glanced behind him again, hoping they would leave quickly.
Even at dinner, Liang He didn't let Chang Wu cook, for fear of causing unnecessary trouble.
Beside a stream, the land is divided into two.
Zhu Mingqing and others were on the east side, and opposite them were groups of refugees.
Suddenly, the cry of a hungry child came from the other side, followed by the sound of parents beating and scolding, making the place noisy and chaotic.
Zhu Mingqing frowned and glanced over there.
The sky was dim and the figures were vague.
You can vaguely see some people holding their children and crying, and some people secretly eating the cakes in their hands, not daring to let others see.
When it was time to go to bed at night, the noise from the other side did not stop.
Zhu Mingqing was very annoyed and went straight into the space to rest.
Gradually, the voice from the other side weakened.
It was late at night and everyone was sleeping soundly.
A figure opposite suddenly moved.
Zhu Mingqing was lying not far from the grain cart, and she had already rested enough in the space.
He was also the first to discover that someone was trying to steal food.
But it was not stopped immediately.
The world is not peaceful nowadays, and the other side has a large number of people, so it is better to have less trouble than more.
And if there really isn't enough food, she will find a way to solve it.
But at this moment, Song woke up, and after seeing what the black shadow was doing, she immediately shouted:
"Someone's stealing!"
Some people around also woke up one after another and discovered the situation here.
The black shadow reacted quickly and ran away with the food in his pocket.
Zhu Mingqing: ...
Okay, don't worry about it.
She stretched out a foot and tripped the other person to the ground.
Liang He also woke up, and immediately stepped forward and stepped on the other person's back.
"Ahem..." The thin man ate a mouthful of dirt, but at this moment he couldn't resist the panic in his heart: "Master, please spare my life... I'm just too hungry."
There were thin bones under his feet, and Liang He's heart moved slightly, but he still did not let go of the other person.
If we just let him go like this, what if the people on the other side follow suit?
He shouted, "You dare to steal our things? You're looking for death!"
"Sir, please spare me, my eighty-year-old mother hasn't eaten for two days..." The man lied without blinking.
Liang He knew that in today's world, people's lives were difficult.
But we can't harm everyone because of a momentary compassion.
Moreover, he dared to come here alone, so he must have someone's support. Maybe he just wanted to test them.
So he ignored the other person's pleas for mercy, picked up the whip and hit him, but the force was very light.
"If you dare to steal food again, watch out for your life!"
The man's face was filled with pain after being beaten, and after a few more lashes, he felt that his life might be in danger.
But as soon as he moved slightly, he felt that the foot on his back seemed to have left. He immediately staggered to his feet and ran away without looking back.
Mrs. Song was furious. "Captain Liang, he came here to steal food. How could you just let him go like that?!"
She should be made an example of to scare the monkeys and see who dares to take what belongs to her!
I have never considered how to resolve the issue if a major conflict really occurs between the two sides.
Liang He gave Song a fierce look, which scared her so much that she immediately shut up, but her expression was still indignant.
What kind of person is that?
It’s a good thing she was kind enough to remind me.
…
Next, Liang He kept watch alone, allowing others to rest quickly.
He was guarding the campfire, leaning against a tree, looking at the group of people opposite, and the feeling of uneasiness in his heart grew stronger.
Sure enough, when it got light, as soon as they moved, those people also moved.
These people did not come close, but followed from a distance.
During the break, those people also found a shady place to stay.
The escort team, which had been making some noise at first, gradually became quiet.
Liang He looked behind him and saw that more and more people were gathering. He was afraid that they would gather together to cause trouble.
He frowned and immediately called Chang Wu over: "Make sure to keep an eye on the food."
Chang Wu also understood: "Don't worry, I'm always watching. Besides, they shouldn't do anything stupid."
Robbing government grain is punishable by death.
Liang He warned: "Be careful in everything!"
Nowadays, if you are very hungry, what can't you do for a bite to eat?
…
An afternoon passed and everything was calm.
Zhu Mingqing also felt that something was wrong.
Aren’t these people following them for the food?
But no matter what the reason, they finally arrived at the nearest post station before sunset that day.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
Not far from the post station was a bamboo forest, where the refugees rested.
The post station was strictly managed, but Liang He still arranged a few more people to guard the night.
In this way, the night passed peacefully.
In the early morning, the sun shines on the earth, and the refugees have already gotten up early to look for food.
As soon as they saw the gate of the post station open and the officials set off, these people followed.
An hour later, Liang He couldn't bear it any longer and took a few people to negotiate with them.
"Why are you following us?"
A skinny old man stepped forward and said, "Excuse me, gentlemen, we just want to follow you, so we can be safer. Don't worry, we will leave as soon as we reach Jizhou."
Liang He still didn't quite believe it. He looked at the young men again and asked, "Are you all from the same village?"
The old man quickly explained, "Yes. Your Excellency, you are wondering why they appeared alone. Actually, they were exploring the route, so we are waiting here to meet up with them."
Then he said that in these years of natural disasters, it was inevitable that there would be some bandits robbing people. Most of them were ordinary people and could not defeat the bandits. He hoped that the officials would allow them to follow.
After learning the reason, Liang He felt a little relieved, but he did not dare to let his guard down.
Because there are almost no towns on the road ahead, it's all mountain roads.
Only by crossing Taiming Mountain can you truly reach Jizhou.
Liang He looked at the people behind him again, his brows full of worry, and asked Zhu Mingqing: "Madam Zhu, do you think those people really have no other purpose?"
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