In the eighth year of the Qiyuan era of the Dasheng Dynasty, an unprecedented year without a Xia dynasty occurred.
Temperatures plummeted in May, followed by a sudden blizzard in June, which continues into August. The cold wave has swept across the country, obscuring the sun.
Famine broke out, and the dead lay piled up on the roads.
In the dilapidated temple, which was exposed to the wind and snow, a pot of thick millet porridge was being boiled over a pile of firewood and was immediately divided up into four bowls.
Holding their bowls, they sat down against the wall, trembling as they gulped down a small mouthful. White sweat immediately broke out on their bodies, and only then did the four of them sigh with satisfaction.
"Plop..."
The woman in front of him held the bowl, swallowed hard, and pleaded, "Father, Mother, Grandmother, and Second Uncle are all too weak from hunger. Please, give us some porridge!"
"Look for yourselves, our pots are all empty, where would we get any extra to give you!" Qin Shi didn't even lift her eyelids.
"father…"
Yun Zhourong turned to look at Yun Hongshen, her eyes full of pleading.
"The Earl's family was punished and its property confiscated because he privately lent money in the capital, which angered the Emperor. How can a criminal like him have the face to be in charge of the household!"
As a result, Qin sneered first, "Besides, the price of grain has now risen to three taels of silver per dou, which is ten times the normal price. We can no longer afford to support idle people."
Yun Hongshen paused, then lowered his head and murmured, "Girl, you've already been adopted by the second branch of the family. From now on, you must address them as your aunt and uncle. Don't try to establish any more kinship."
These seemingly helpless but actually heartless words made Yun Zhourong feel as if she had fallen into an ice cellar.
It's true, once you have a stepmother, you'll have a stepfather!
It's not that they can't make decisions; it's that they don't want to!
That's all...
I've completely given up!
"Today I bid farewell to my father and mother. From this day forward, I have no further connection with the eldest son's family!"
Yun Zhourong forced back her tears, knelt on the ground and kowtowed three times, then resolutely turned and walked out of the dilapidated temple.
Now, if I want to survive, I can only rely on myself!
The eldest branch of the family completely ignored Yun Zhourong's words.
Qin looked up at Yun Zhourong, who was blending into the wind and snow, a dark glint flashing in her eyes, before lowering her head to continue leisurely drinking her porridge.
It was still snowing heavily outside. As soon as I stepped out of the dilapidated temple, the biting cold wind instantly blew away all the warmth from my body.
Yun Zhourong couldn't help but tremble violently, feeling as if her breath had stopped.
She tried to hunch her neck and hug her arms tightly to minimize heat loss, and walked forward with difficulty.
Finally, she saw the house and ran up to it with joy, only to find that the doors were all open and the house was empty.
Undeterred, they searched house to house until they finally found one with the door closed.
Overjoyed, she ran over, only to find that the door was ajar when she got closer.
After a pause, he still tried to push the door open and go inside.
When I saw the scene inside, tears blurred my vision.
The broken window let in wind and snow, and the mother and child huddled together on the bed, but they were already dead.
The room was ransacked, clearly indicating that someone had been there and taken everything, including all the warm clothing.
Yun Zhourong suddenly felt very cold. She staggered two steps and leaned against the wall, tears streaming down her face.
In this world, where is there any way to survive...?
Despair overwhelmed her, almost drowning her.
"Tap tap tap..."
Just then, the sound of horses' hooves rang out outside.
Then came the man's excited voice, "Boss, there are fresh footprints here, there must be living people!"
"Hahaha…"
Soon, a gruff male laugh rang out, "Good, good, good, we must find it! It's been a long time since we've had mutton, let's have a feast today!"
"They're bandits... two-legged sheep... they eat people..."
Upon hearing these words, Yun Zhourong turned pale with fright and quickly searched the room for a place to hide.
But no…
The room was empty; even the bed was made of planks and stone slabs, and everything was laid out before you.
She could only try to hide as far inside as possible, but the approaching footsteps still made her heart leap into her throat.
"Bang..."
Just then, the half-closed door was kicked open, and four men wielding long knives walked in.
“Boss, the footsteps stopped here, the person must be inside!” one of the short, thin men said, looking around.
"There are two dead people here."
Another tall, thin man walked to the bedside and suddenly raised his long knife, plunging it into the woman's stomach.
"Pfft..."
The knife pierced through instantly, but not a drop of blood flowed out.
Then, he stabbed the child again before saying, "They've all been dead for a long time, not the living person from before."
Upon seeing this, Yun Zhourong, who was hiding in the pile of firewood, covered her mouth tightly, tears welling up in her eyes, but dared not move at all, as if every breath she took could attract attention.
She had considered faking her death, but thankfully she chose to hide in the woodpile; otherwise, she would surely be dead by now!
These bandits are incredibly ruthless!
Just then, the tall man at the head of the group said something that made her tremble with fear: "That means the person is definitely still in this room. Keep looking!"
Then, the four men began to wield their long knives and carefully search the house.
Yun Zhourong stared intently at the bandits, his heart pounding, his inner shirt soaked with sweat; every moment of waiting was agonizing.
As the bandits drew ever closer, she kept glancing at the gate, determined not to sit idly by and wait for her doom.
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