Everyone was confused by Zhen Caixue's words. What chaos? Why run away?
Chief Li, holding his breath and fearing he might have misheard, hurriedly sought confirmation from Zhencai.
"You're saying the Prince of Yang has rebelled? He's joined forces with foreign enemies, breached the border, and is now heading straight for us?"
Without even bothering to moisten her lips, Zhen Caixue hurriedly said with her mouth full of blisters, "That's right, the wealthy families in the provincial capital found out a few days ago and have already fled."
"We need to hurry and leave now, and try to get protection by walking behind the wealthy families in town!"
Zhen Wanwan was truly shocked. How could she have encountered war so soon after transmigrating? Was this any way to survive?
"Wanwan, how are you? Is your stomach still hurting?" A pretty face approached Zhen Wanwan.
"Second brother, what exactly happened? Why did Father say something about whether the king is rebelling or not?"
Zhen Wanwan still wanted to verify it, after all, this was ancient times, and war was no joke; it could kill a lot of people.
"Yeah, second brother, weren't you guys supposed to be scavenging for food and water in the mountains? What's going on with this news!"
With a trembling voice and eyes filled with terror, Old Lady Li looked at her son who had just returned from town and asked him.
Looking at her elderly mother's white hair, sallow complexion, and expectant eyes, Zhenfu felt reluctant to tell her the cruel truth.
“Mother, we crossed several mountains, hoping to try our luck, but we saw many horse-drawn carriages on the official road, carrying a lot of luggage. They seemed to be in a hurry, and they didn’t even stop to pick up things they had dropped. We found that very strange.”
Zhen Fuyu took the water that Zhen Wanwan handed him and drank it without questioning where it came from.
"My father, my elder brother, and I ran to the main road to ask. After waiting for a long time, someone finally stopped. They said that the Prince of Yang had rebelled and was joining forces with foreign enemies to invade our Xinyang Prefecture. They said that he would probably reach our county within a week!"
What!
Grandma Li suddenly slipped and was about to faint, but fortunately Zhen Wanwan caught her in time.
"God! Are you trying to kill us all? Two years of drought and no harvest, and now there's going to be war. How are we, the common people, supposed to survive? Waaah..."
Grandma Li's tears streamed down her face in large drops, completely disregarding her image. She slapped her thigh as she cried, a sight that broke the hearts of onlookers.
Not only was Old Lady Li like this, but the onlookers were also terrified and began to cry and shout. Other families in Li Village had also heard the news and rushed to the village chief's house.
When Chief Li heard the news, he had already gone home to think of a solution. Zhang Ergou's mother also took Zhang Ergou home early. They really got off easy!
Zhen Wanwan was also thinking. She knew she would have to escape if there was war, but where should she escape to?
Moreover, Xinyang Prefecture has been suffering from drought for the past two years, with almost no harvest. The people of Lijia Village have already eaten up their stored grain and rely on the two catties of rice given by the government each month to make porridge. Some families only eat once every two or three days. How could they possibly be able to escape the famine?
This is a dead end!
If there were still some grain left, everyone might have been able to escape for their lives, but Li Family Village was out of grain and could only receive a small amount of coarse rice from the government each month.
Not only Zhen Wanwan figured these things out, but as the village chief and clan head of Lijia Village, Clan Chief Li was even more clear about the situation of Lijia Village. The people of Lijia Village couldn't escape!
If they didn't run, they might die at the hands of the rebels; if they did run, they would starve to death on the way, dying far from home. Ancient people valued returning to their roots and naturally didn't want to leave their homeland easily.
After thinking things through, Chief Li convened a meeting of the entire village and explained his conclusions to the villagers one by one.
"If you have any questions, please ask. We don't have much time left." Chief Li, who was already quite old, looked even older, with his brows furrowed so deeply they could trap a mosquito.
"I won't leave. I'd rather die in Lijia Village." An elderly man's resolute answer jolted everyone present awake.
Everyone had a different expression on their face, silently calculating in their minds. No matter what, everyone wanted to survive.
Zhen Caixue remained silent, looking at everyone present and thinking of her children at home. She had made up her mind.
"Village chief, our Zhen family wants to leave!"
Chief Li was not surprised by his decision. The Zhen family members were not originally from Li Family Village, so they naturally did not have much attachment to this land.
Ignoring the stares of others, Chief Li nodded and turned to look at the others below.
"If anyone still wants to leave, hurry up and go. I've already asked Yu Shun to go to town to get the travel permits. Those who want to leave, stay and get your own travel permits!"
Chief Li's back bent even more, and he sighed deeply, "Those who don't want to leave, go home, pack your things, and take your mothers and children to the cave to take refuge!"
Chief Li waved his hand, turned away, and stopped looking at the people below. He felt uneasy.
This is the place where he grew up, and it is about to be trampled flat by iron cavalry. The children he watched grow up may perish under the swords of the rebels. How could he not be sad and worried?
Zhen Wanwan was also worried. Her mother didn't want to leave, and neither did her sister-in-law. Staying here would only lead to certain death!
Old Mrs. Li was worried about having no food and also about leaving her homeland. She just couldn't bring herself to do it, since her parents were still buried on the hillside in Lijia Village!
Her sister-in-law, Wang Juhua, was from the neighboring Wangjia Village. Although once married, she belonged to another family, how could she bear to watch her parents be killed by the rebels?
Zhen Wanwan found their thoughts reasonable, but in chaotic times, the most dangerous thing is to have such ideas!
If you're dead, how can you care about others?
She wasn't a saint. Since she had taken over the original body, she would bear her responsibilities. She couldn't and didn't want to care about others. As long as the Zhen family could behave themselves and leave together, she was prepared to treat herself as the real Zhen Wanwan.
Seeing the two of them wallowing in self-pity, Zhen Wanwan disregarded everything and said directly, "Mother, even if you don't think about yourself, don't you think about us at all?"
When Zhen Wanwan saw that Old Lady Li was slightly stunned, she knew that she was listening to her attentively. So she described the rebels and enemy invaders in an even more terrifying way, so that they could realize what it was like to be in the hands of the enemy.
"You probably haven't heard of this, but these enemy bandits like to drink human blood, eat raw meat, and also have a fondness for young women. If we really fall into their hands, we'll suffer a fate worse than death."
Hearing this, Old Lady Li was indeed frightened. She had been born in the mountains and had never seen any officials, except for the soldiers who came to collect taxes every year. She had never heard of any enemy invaders.
For farmers who rely on the fields for a living, the most important thing is grain yield.
"Sister, is what you're saying true?" Wang Cuihua asked, her eyes red and her voice trembling slightly.
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