The sky was getting darker and darker, and the sound of locusts outside was getting louder and louder.
Grandma Su sighed, "This year's harvest is gone."
Grandpa Su put down his shoulder pole and said, "Because of the lack of water, I thought I would let the wheat grow for a few more days. But who knew that the locusts would come."
Su Nanxing thought, "Misfortunes never come singly. There's already drought and water shortage, and now there's the locust swarm."
I'm afraid the situation in the north will be even worse, and the refugees who are fleeing here will be even more difficult to deal with.
Can I continue to stay in Taohua Village?
When locusts pass through a place, no grass grows.
The back mountain, which was once lush and green, has become bare.
And in the fields in the distance, there was not a single blade of grass left. The scene was really scary.
Su Nanxing had never encountered such a thing before, and stood there in a daze.
It seemed as if in an instant, I traveled through time again and came to another world.
There were cries coming from the village, complaining that God would not give them a way to survive.
But more people choose to pick up their backpacks and hoes and go to the fields, hoping to leave something behind.
The Su family did the same. Even little Zhuzi carried a small backpack and followed the adults.
But when Su Nanxing looked around, he found that even the wheat branches had been eaten.
There were villagers all around, and the atmosphere became increasingly depressing as everyone searched for him.
After looking around the fields, Grandpa Su took everyone to the back mountain.
And the back mountain was also eaten up.
In the continuous mountain ranges, locusts are advancing and the green mountains are disappearing.
It was dark again, and the Su family returned home, feeling very depressed.
The big mountain in the town has also returned.
There are locusts in the town too, but not as many as in the village.
Dashan also brought a piece of news that the price of food in the town had doubled.
July is harvest time, but now the locusts are coming.
The surrounding villages could be said to have been completely wiped out, leaving no food at all.
How to survive in the second half of the year has become the biggest problem.
And there is an even more serious problem: if it still doesn't rain in the second half of the year.
what to do?
Everyone ate in silence during dinner. Little Bamboo was also quiet.
After the meal, Grandpa Su solemnly announced that everyone had to be prepared to leave at any time.
Locusts, drought and refugees have left Taohua Village with almost no way to survive.
Everyone nodded and took action that night.
Dashan came to measure Su Nanxing's size so that Aunt Qiuju could make him clothes and shoes suitable for long journeys.
Grandma Su was busy in the kitchen, and Su Mu and Su Nanxing were responsible for helping to light the fire.
Grandpa Su and Dashan were hammering and banging around, as if they were making something.
The family was busy until midnight before turning off the lights and going to bed.
But who knew that the next morning, we would receive another piece of bad news!
Early in the morning while we were having breakfast, Xiu Bo suddenly came to the door.
Su Nanxing looked at the other person's face and felt a pang in her heart. Could something have happened again?
This time, the other party did not avoid others.
"Grandpa Su, there's going to be a war in the north, and the conscripts will be coming down soon."
Aunt Qiuju dropped her chopsticks on the table and asked anxiously, "How many people are you recruiting? And how old are they?"
If there is a scholar in the family, two male members can be exempted from military service, including the scholar himself.
So now it depends on their age, including whether they are old men, and how many people there are in a family.
Everyone looked at Xiu Bo, who spoke with difficulty, "Three males between 15 and 50 years old per family, and they cannot be exempted from military service this time."
"Fifty! What use can a fifty-year-old old man be on the battlefield!" Grandma Su was puzzled.
Grandpa Su is just fifty this year, so it’s a good opportunity for him to go.
And not being able to be exempted from military service means that, in addition to Su Mu, the scholar, Grandpa Su, Su Shan and Su Nanxing, all have to go, exactly three people in the family.
Aunt Qiuju quickly asked, "How much does it cost to not go?"
Xiu Bo shook his head. "It is said that this time, no money is required, only people."
Aunt Qiuju burst into tears, "We just collected one tax a few months ago, and every family could still pay. Why can't we do it this time?"
Grandpa Su sighed, "It seems that we can't recruit any more people. We have been fighting for so many years, from the west to the north.
I don’t know how many men left the village and how many people died.
During the last conscription, all the villagers who could contribute gave.
If it's not forced this time, it will probably be the same."
Xiu Bai nodded, "So my grandfather decided to leave quietly and head south to the fiefdom of the King of Zhennan.
We're leaving early this morning. Villagers who want to leave should gather at the village entrance at 3 o'clock."
After Xiu Bo left, the Su family immediately packed up.
Fortunately, because of the refugee crisis, my family had prepared everything. Now it's much more convenient, we just need to load the things into the car.
Because Su Nanxing's carriage had a cover, some quilts and clothes were placed on the carriage.
It can also be used as a cushion underneath for people to lie down and rest and sleep.
The newly bought donkey cart was loaded with all kinds of grains, vegetables and daily necessities.
Fortunately, I bought a donkey cart, otherwise I would have no place to put this thing.
But the most important thing is water.
There is a shortage of water outside now, so all the water bags at home are filled with boiling water.
And that big vat also needs to be filled with water and taken away.
There was some open space behind the carriage, so the big vat was tied there.
You can also put some bundles around it to fill it up, which will make the big vat safer.
Take away all the food on the mountain that you can.
After Su Nanxing and others left, he quietly put the remaining food into the space.
The Su family also has a small cart, which was made by Grandpa Su himself.
It was filled with grain and covered with oilcloth.
Everyone had a small bag containing dry food, water bags, and silver.
It’s a small bamboo, and it also has its own small backpack.
Su Nanxing felt that this should be the ancient version of an emergency kit.
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