After the locusts passed through, the earth turned yellow and withered, completely losing its former half-dead vitality.
The sun was still scorching, the ground was still cracked, and without horses to pull the carts, the exiles were exhausted and out of breath after only walking for an hour or two.
In order to return to Beijing as soon as possible, Gao Hongbin did not give anyone a chance to rest.
Due to high-intensity exercise and dehydration, I collapsed two more times near noon.
Gao Hongbin was not surprised by this and asked the family to put the person on the cart.
If you don't want it anymore, you can just kill the person and cut off his nose and ears.
At two o'clock in the afternoon, Gao Hongbin finally showed mercy and let everyone rest under the shade of the rocks.
A group of people were scrambling like crazy to grab the small piece of shade, fearing that they would not be able to get it and would be melted by the sun.
There were trees around, but the leaves had been eaten away by locusts, and the sparsely populated branches couldn't block out much of the sunlight.
Chi Xingyue slumped down on a relatively flat stone, feeling as if his butt was about to be burned.
But she didn't want to move, and she couldn't move, because if she moved, she would lose this place.
No one lit a fire because it was too hot. We took out some dried meat, but it was starting to smell.
However, no one disliked it and kept chewing it. The meat was dry and hard, which was really hard on the teeth.
After eating, I picked up the water bag and was surprised to find that there was not much water left.
All the horses have been slaughtered, and now there is no blood to replenish them.
"What should we do? There's no water here. How are we going to get to Yingtian?"
Gao Hongbin sent people out to find water, but without horses, how far could they go?
What's more, my feet hurt and I can't walk at all.
Chi Xingyue also felt a headache.
Although there is still a lot of water in the space, the problem is not the lack of water but the uneven distribution of water. It is not possible that others have no water to drink while the Ling family is not affected at all.
She didn't want to keep up with everyone else's pace. The existence of space was to make her life better.
So I muttered, "Just drink urine. I can't die of thirst."
The voice was very low, but it was heard by the Ling family members sitting nearby.
Everyone looked at her in horror, only Ling Jiheng seriously told Gao Hongbin about this suggestion.
Then, he became the target of everyone's condemnation.
"This is just a suggestion, and I don't mean to force anyone. We are now about seven days away from Yingtian. Without water, people can only survive for three days."
Ling Jiheng's expression was indifferent: "How to choose? You can figure it out for yourselves!"
There was silence at the scene, and after a moment, someone really left with a water bag.
When he came back, he was found with his clothes slightly wet and an unspeakable foul smell on his body.
Ling Weicheng shook the water bag with only a few drops of water in it and decided to listen to his son and replenish water for himself and his wife.
Before he could even stand up, Ling Jiheng snatched the water bag away and threw it full to his chest.
Ling Jiheng called Ling Jiyi and Ling Jihao to go to the toilet together. After walking a long way, he took out the water bag hidden in his clothes and gave most of it to the two of them.
"I don't have much left, so drink sparingly."
The two cousins were moved to tears, nodded, and put the lid back on.
Ling Jihao, the silly boy, even asked, "Second brother, do we still need to save our urine now?"
Ling Jiheng rolled his eyes at him: "You really want to drink?"
After saying that, he left without looking back.
Ling Jihao was completely confused by him, and it was only after Ling Jiyi reminded him that he realized what he meant.
Her face couldn't help but turn red, but she admired her second cousin even more in her heart.
When the three of them came back, Chi Xingyue expressed high approval of Ling Jiheng's water bag and directly unscrewed it and took a few sips.
The first and third wives of the Ling family both looked a little strange. Faced with their son's enthusiasm, they showed unprecedented resistance.
Only after the old man and the old lady drank their excrement without changing their expressions did the first and third wives pinch their noses and bring the water bags to their lips to moisten their mouths.
Then, I was surprised to find that there was no urine in it at all!
After asking the two younger generations with their eyes, I realized that it was the second branch that took out their stored water and divided it up.
Except for Gu Youlian, everyone in the first and third wives was grateful to Ling Jiheng.
However, now is not the time to talk about this, I can only keep my thoughts deep in my heart.
The actions of the Ling family were criticized by others.
"Look at them. They're the richest men in Jiangnan, but they even drink urine. How shameless."
The expressions of everyone in the Ling family changed again and again, but no one said a word.
Ling Jiheng gave the other person a cold look, wondering when he would be in trouble.
Time passed little by little, and after a short rest of half an hour, the group set off again.
Chi Xingyue covered herself with her clothes and filled her water bag with watermelon juice. She took a sip every time she walked. In the eyes of others, she was lazy and greedy.
"Mu Yun, you can't spoil your daughter-in-law like this!"
Shu Muyun rolled his eyes at Madam Chen and said, "Don't worry about my family's affairs. If you have the energy, you should pay more attention to your own daughter!"
Chen Jintao and Chen Yinxiu were bitten by grasshoppers, and their faces were not only bumpy but also red and swollen.
However, Madam Chen acted as if she could not see it and was determined to cause trouble for the second branch of the Ling family.
He was choked and his face turned black.
Chi Xingyue used the same trick again and sprinkled several drops of honey on Madam Chen.
Unfortunately, it was useless this time. The weather was too hot and the ants were deep underground. Otherwise, they would be roasted by the surface temperature.
Time passed little by little, and suddenly, Ling Jiheng smelled a burnt smell.
Unfortunately, the smell was too faint and he couldn't tell where it came from.
My heart was pounding and I always felt like something was going to happen.
He looked at Chi Xingyue and asked her in a low voice: "Do you smell the burning smell?"
Chi Xingyue shook his head, his expression extremely serious. "I've heard that high temperatures and droughts can easily cause wildfires. There was a locust plague a few days ago. Perhaps the refugees are roasting locusts to eat."
Wildfires...
They are in the mountains and cannot escape in a short time. If there is a forest fire, won’t these people become barbecued meat?
But now, he has no evidence, and not only will no one believe him if he tells it, he will also be accused of spreading rumors and misleading the public.
"It's okay. Maybe I'm just too tired and have an illusion."
Seeing Chi Xingyue's pale face, Ling Jiheng smiled and tried to comfort her. However, his words were powerless.
At the foot of the mountain, a group of young boys faced the rising flames and had a disagreement for the first time.
Tietou angrily questioned Maodan: "What are you doing? Don't you know there are people on the mountain?"
Maodan didn't care: "I set the fire because there were people there!"
Tietou slapped Maodan on the shoulder, almost pushing him down: "Are you crazy?"
"I'm not crazy. They killed Erhuzi, and I want them to pay for his life!"
Tietou's anger subsided a little, but he still emphasized: "The one who killed Erhuzi was that guy surnamed Chen. When you set the fire, didn't you force all of them into a desperate situation?
There, there is Erhuzi's benefactor!"
"Benefactor? Ha! If they were truly kindhearted, would they watch Chen Gou beat Er Huzi to death?"
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