Everyone stood up: "Let's go. Mu Wanting said before she left that her next destination would be Green Water Village, so that we could go there to find them if we couldn't make a living there."
When they arrived, they found that the food there was excellent, with delicious mushrooms and wild vegetables. They were incredibly envious.
Mu Wanting was quite hospitable to them, and had someone serve them food.
"Madam Mu has a conscience, so everyone should follow her and not fall behind again. If you do it too many times, she might not accept you anymore."
Everyone naturally understood, and dared not mention anything about not following Mu Wanting again. They picked up their bowls and wolfed down their food.
They set off early the next morning, followed at a distance by a group of not-so-friendly refugees who kept trying to steal their food.
If they only had a group of two or three hundred people in exile, then it wouldn't matter if the refugees robbed them.
But now, there was a force of over two thousand people, while their small group of refugees numbered less than a thousand. How could they dare to confront them head-on?
Even at night, strong refugees would spontaneously guard the grain, and if anyone attacked, they would fight harder than anyone else.
They repelled wave after wave of grain thieves.
Mu Wanting gave some grain as a reward to the strong men, which further boosted their morale.
Some families also happily followed Mu Wanting, as there was really nowhere else to go.
Along the way, even the tree roots were eaten clean, and countless people died from poisoning, overeating, or choking because they were so hungry that they ate whatever they could find.
People like them, who can still have a bowl of porridge, occasionally eat rice, and be able to eat their fill, are extremely rare.
Along the way, they encountered several more groups of bandits who tried to rob them. The group was incredibly brave and not only drove the bandits away, but Mu Wanting also seized their grain.
Those who were injured received excellent treatment from Mu Wanting and were back to their old selves in just a few days.
They passed through village after village, and went further and further away.
The next village they encountered was in the mountains. When they saw these people, the villagers were very welcoming and had warm expressions.
Mu Wanting felt something was off. Shen Xinglan secretly wrote the word "Be careful" in her palm.
When everyone was led into the village, Mu Wanting glanced at Murong Rong and noticed that her face was pale, and she even looked like she wanted to vomit when the people brought out meat to serve her.
Mu Wanting had a guess in her mind, and quickly whispered to everyone not to eat the meat.
Although the refugees were puzzled, after spending so much time with her, they knew that every order Mu Wanting gave had a deeper meaning.
The chieftain hesitated, "Is there something you're unhappy about?"
Mu Wanting said, "We just ate before we came, so we're not hungry right now. Thank you for your kindness, Chief."
The chieftain was a kind man and was not angry when he heard this.
“Then our distinguished guests must be tired. We have some empty houses in our village where you can rest for a while.”
Everyone followed, and after the group left, Mu Wanting gathered everyone together.
"Everyone must be more vigilant when they go to sleep tonight."
A burly man named Li Dali looked at Mu Wanting.
"Madam Mu, is something the matter?"
"Mu Wanting said."
"This might be the legendary den of cannibals. Everyone be careful."
Ma Dazhuang frowned: "How do you know?"
Mu Wanting spoke up: "Along the way, everyone has avoided refugees like the plague, but this village not only welcomes them but also offers them fine wine and meat. Don't you find that strange?"
The moment those words were spoken, everyone's expression changed, and their previous ease vanished.
Several women were so frightened that they cried.
Mu Wanting stopped her, saying, "Don't give yourself away. We outnumber them, and it's not certain who will win."
"If anyone needs help, please do so as much as you can."
After explaining these things, he told everyone to go and rest.
They dared not sleep, but the place was strange; once their heads touched the pillow, they immediately drifted off to sleep.
Mu Wanting didn't want to sleep, but her mind was hazy. At the last second, she flashed into the space, and only then did her hazy brain clear up.
She knew it was probably because of the bed and pillows.
Otherwise, it would be impossible to invite them into the room to sleep when they refuse to eat.
Mu Wanting emerged from the space again, holding several bottles of antidote. She let Shen Xinglan smell them, and then let the rest of the third branch of the family smell them. Everyone immediately snapped out of their daze and dared not touch the bed again.
Mu Wanting rolled up the blankets to make it look like someone was asleep, and then led everyone to let the refugees smell the antidote.
As they went from room to room, everyone woke up, turned off the lights, and waited quietly for the bandits to arrive.
Soon, voices could be heard coming from outside.
"I have to say, there are a lot of people this time."
"Exactly, we can't eat that much at once, what if it goes bad?"
The chieftain sneered, "Send them to the back mountain to mine. Anyway, we can't leave here. Since these people have come to us, we don't need to be polite."
What was originally a gentle voice now sounded sinister.
As they opened the door to come in, Mu Wanting placed medicinal powder on the door, and the people in the village were quickly drugged.
Even those who didn't collapse found it difficult to stand up after smelling that odor, and lost their strength.
The refugees swarmed forward and subdued the bandits.
While Mu Wanting was working hard, Shen Xinglan also reported good news. Some of the lucky bandits were also captured and tied up by Shen Xinglan.
Mu Wanting questioned them, and everyone kept glancing at the chieftain, who was furious.
After Mu Wanting administered a dose of truth-revealing medicine, the chieftain's pupils dilated, and he finally spoke in a daze.
"We have no choice. If we don't eat people, we have no way to survive. Where can we find food now? The imperial court doesn't care about us. What else can we do but let us fend for ourselves?"
Mu Wanting sensed something was wrong and glanced over instinctively, only to find that there was still a trace of clarity in the chieftain's eyes.
After three more doses of the truth serum, the chieftain quickly became dizzy and started drooling.
They revealed their true identities.
“We are not ordinary refugees, we are the Third Prince’s people. We cannot leave, we have to help the Third Prince guard his things.”
Mu Wanting said, "What is it? Take me to see it quickly."
The chieftain's legs were so weak he couldn't walk, so Mu Wanting had the strong man pull him along.
Murong Rong followed behind, her face full of curiosity.
In their previous lives, they simply fled this place and didn't even know there were mines here.
Mu Wanting gave Shen Yujiao a wink, stopping Murong Rong.
Further inside, Mu Wanting didn't have anyone follow her, but Shen Xinglan, feeling uneasy, went in with her.
Before the two even entered, they saw that the mine was pitch black, and it seemed as if countless eyes were staring at them.
That lifeless gaze sent chills down one's spine for no apparent reason.
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