Upon seeing the village head wave, the group exchanged glances and whispered amongst themselves as they returned home.
As for what they were really thinking? Naturally, they felt that the village head had agreed with their suggestion. Some even thought that no matter how powerful Scarface and Madam Qin were, could they possibly handle all seventy or eighty strong men in the village?
They were too far away to hear what they were saying, but seeing the situation here, Qin San Niang frowned. What was bound to happen would happen, so she decided to deal with it as it came.
"Hey, there are more and more homeless people on the roadside." Liu and Wu Chunhua peered out through a corner of the open curtain.
The number of ragged, disheveled refugees had increased significantly compared to previous days. Most of them had lifeless eyes and were too weak to walk due to hunger. Some were digging for clay and a few grass roots on the roadside mounds. The weak cries of children could be heard everywhere, and some women were even exchanging babies.
"Auntie, why are these people swapping babies?" Fatty asked in surprise.
"Exchanging children to eat!"
"Huh?...What does that mean?"
"It's about switching the babies and then eating them!" the eldest child explained, recalling what his mother had told him.
Fatty's eyes widened; she felt this was absolutely terrifying! Her hands, which were holding the reins, were trembling slightly. Qin San Niang quickly helped her adjust the direction of the carriage.
"Hurry up and leave, or we'll be watched too!" He patted the chubby girl's hand. This child was kind-hearted; otherwise, she wouldn't have insisted on leaving her family with her mother. She couldn't understand this kind of behavior of exchanging children for food and showing no regard for family ties, no matter how hard she tried!
Seeing the surrounding scene, Qin Sanniang was genuinely worried. These refugees were clearly different from the previous ones. They had been driven to desperation and were even starving. Yet, her family still had mule carts and horse carts, indicating that they had food. Even the livestock were considered a rare delicacy by them.
Before Qin San Niang could think further, Pang Ya suddenly stopped the carriage. Looking down, she saw a woman dressed in a blue cloth robe blocking their carriage. She had a baby on her back, who looked listless and lifeless, and was holding the hand of a five- or six-year-old boy. The baby was kneeling in front of the carriage.
"Kind lady, please give me some rice porridge! My child is starving! Please have mercy!"
The woman who stopped the cart had dirty clothes, but no patches, and her hands were long and neat, so she didn't look like someone who did farm work for a long time. The little boy beside her saw his mother kowtowing, so he followed suit, his eyes blank, looking so pitiful!
Qin San Niang sighed, "Sister-in-law, we are also fleeing from disaster, and we don't have much food left. I'm afraid we can't help you!"
It wasn't that she was unwilling to help, but there were many people watching! Those who weren't looking this way were also listening intently, and it was obvious what they were up to!
Helping one person is possible, but helping thousands is beyond her capabilities. Besides, if it causes looting and stampedes, that would be even more disastrous! Even with a horse, she might not be able to break through.
The woman looked at her with despair, but there was nothing she could do; she seemed to be used to being rejected! Besides, Gu Qingshan had already turned around and was now sitting on the cart with a bow and arrows on his back and a machete in his hand. The surrounding refugees dared not move when they saw this; this strong man looked like someone who would kill! Although they were very hungry, they could still survive for a few more days by eating grass roots and gnawing on tree bark; it wasn't time to fight to the death yet.
Although she didn't get the life-saving rice porridge, the woman still bowed to her and then turned to take her eldest son's hand. Qin San Niang saw tears welling up in the corners of her eyes.
"Sister-in-law, wait a minute! I see the child is a bit dehydrated. We have some water here, please give him some to drink!"
"No need, madam, I still have some water in this gourd." Seeing the bamboo tube of water handed over by Qin San Niang, the woman couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. They no longer lacked water, but they lacked food!
When the refugees saw that Qin San Niang had only given the woman a bucket of water, they all lowered their heads, their eyes regaining their indifference. What was so special about water? There were plenty in the puddles by the roadside; they could drink whenever they wanted! Why act like suckers when they had no food? They were truly heartless rich people! They then lowered their heads again to search for grass roots, hoping to find some wild vegetables or something—that would be even better!
Someone in the distance exclaimed, probably having found something to eat! A group of refugees rushed over, a scene that sent chills down Liu's spine. The eldest daughter was right not to give the woman any food!
"Mother, I want some water!" the boy beside the woman said timidly. He really wanted to drink the water that Qin San Niang handed him, because their own water was very murky.
The woman, carrying a baby on her back, didn't have much strength and couldn't possibly go to a distant stream to fetch water. The water in the bamboo tube was all drawn from roadside puddles; how could it possibly be clean and taste good?!
The woman shook her bamboo tube; there wasn't much water left. She then reached out and took the water from Qin San Niang's hand.
"Madam, thank you. I'll get you another one after you finish this."
"No need, even a little child can drink it." With that, he turned and helped the woman up.
The woman was startled, feeling a sudden weight on her basket. She then saw the other woman subtly give her a wink. In that instant, Qin San Niang's carriage had already driven away. The woman, holding her child's hand, bowed to the departing carriage.
The older refugees thought the woman was simply a fool.
"Scholar's wife, are you blinded by greed? That carriage driver only gave you a bucket of water, why are you bowing to him like that! Do you think he'd give you a few steamed buns? Forget it, hurry up and dig some vegetables! Your scholar is starving!"
The woman, known as the scholar's wife, nodded to the old woman and walked away with heavy steps. However, once she reached a secluded spot, she quickly took off her basket.
She was shocked when she saw it and quickly pulled her son to find her husband.
Their family had fled from the north. They originally had some food, but they used up a lot of their stored grain to help their clansmen. Then they encountered bandits and got separated from their clansmen. As for the food and money? They disappeared without a trace.
Her husband had caught a cold the day before and was seriously ill. Normally, a cold is just a minor ailment that can be cured by drinking more water, but now it's a different story. They haven't eaten for days. Not to mention her husband, even she felt she couldn't go on. If it weren't for their two children, she might have already taken her own life!
"Husband, husband, look what this is?!"
Under the shade of the tree, the man the woman called her husband looked up and saw his wife and child returning. His son, following closely behind his mother, was stumbling and unsteady on his feet. He struggled to his feet, but he simply had no strength left!
"Hongying, slow down, don't rush."
Hongying pulled her son down, squatted down, and looked around to make sure no one was there before placing the basket in front of her.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com