The people looked up at the sky pitifully, crying out in hoarse voices,
"God, please save us..."
"Please give us some food..."
"The gods have appeared and blessed the world. We are saved. Woo woo..."
"Thank God, please be kind and save us..."
........
Looking at the immortal's mount that was coming closer and closer to them, and then seeing the immortal wearing windproof glasses and a mask on the mount, the refugees' eyes brightened even more.
It turns out that the gods are different from those worshipped in temples. They look full of spirit, and the immortal objects they see are things they have never seen before. Seeing them makes people's eyes light up and they are instantly filled with hope.
The immortal must have heard their prayers, so he came down to earth to save them.
Lin Yiran, who was sleeping soundly in the car seat, heard a sobbing cry from afar.
She shook her eyelids, opened her eyes and climbed up.
Lin Yiran looked in the direction where the crying sound came from and saw ragged refugees kneeling densely on the official road.
Listening to the refugees' prayers and cries, she thought of the severe drought in the book when people had to eat their own children. The scene was horrific and a drought turned the world into hell.
She had never suffered any hardship in her life, let alone hunger. The most difficult days in her life were the days when she and the Xiao family were just exiled.
Compared with these common people, that little bit of suffering was nothing. She sneaked in some food every day and was not hungry. It was just that the resting environment was poor.
Looking at the emaciated people lying all over the ground, she truly experienced what suffering was and felt very uncomfortable.
Xiao Yunzhan's eyesight and hearing were not bad. When he saw the refugees from afar, he slowed down.
In the first half of the year, Xiliang Kingdom suffered from drought, and now Daliang Kingdom seems to be suffering from drought as well.
It hasn't rained in the area around the capital for almost two months. In Brahma City, which is close to Xiliang State, it hasn't rained for more than three months. The drought is more serious than in the capital.
Judging from the direction these refugees came from, nine out of ten were residents of Shiquan City and Pinghe City.
They were about to reach Wuyi City, and to reach Brahma City they would pass through Wuyi City - Shiquan City - Pinghe City - Pingliang City - Brahma City.
Brahma City is a long way from here, and the people must have walked just as far.
As we got closer to the refugees, their cries became clearer.
The women sitting in the carriage also heard the crying and turned to look over.
Madam Xiao frowned.
"The drought is so severe, hasn't the government opened its granaries to release grain yet?"
It hasn't rained for several months. Logically, the government should open the granaries to release food and appease the people. Why are there refugees appearing so early?
Old Madam Xiao had no idea that all the grain collected from various cities, as well as the old grain from previous years, had been collected by the Ministry of Revenue.
At this time, not only the national treasury was empty, but the local granaries were also empty. How could they care about the local people?
In some places, officials and businessmen colluded to hoard grain and raised prices, making survival even more difficult for the people.
The eldest sister-in-law sighed, her eyes full of doubts.
"It's said that a drought of at least six months would cause a large number of refugees to flee. How come there are so many refugees in just over two months?"
Natural disasters have happened before.
More than ten years ago, heavy rains lasted for half a month in the south, causing a large-scale flood.
The flood destroyed a large number of farmlands and drowned countless people.
After the late emperor learned of the disaster, he immediately issued a series of measures to comfort the affected people.
The plague caused by the flood was also brought under control in a timely manner.
When Emperor Wu of Liang was still a prince, he also participated in the whole process.
How come when he took office there was a drought and he didn't take any measures, but refugees were actually fleeing to the south.
The second sister-in-law snorted coldly, "Why else? It's because Emperor Wu of Liang committed a sin. Heaven will not tolerate a tyrant. A disaster has been sent down from heaven. He..."
Before the second sister-in-law could finish her words, the three-wheeled motorcycle made two slow thuds and stopped one meter away from the refugees.
The refugees looked at the huge monster and the strangely dressed fairies in front of them with tears in their eyes. After pausing for a moment, they kowtowed and begged.
One of them knelt in the front row, looked at the educated old man, raised his head slightly and said in a hoarse voice,
"Please, immortal, please save us all. I am Zhu Changshou, the head of Zhujia Village in Pinghe City."
Zhu Changshou saw that the immortal did not interrupt him, licked the blood on his dry lips, and continued in a hoarse voice,
"In the past four months in Heihe City, there was only a drizzle three months ago, and there hasn't been a drop of rain since then."
"First, the shallow wells in the village ran dry, then the deep wells, and finally even the deepest river in the village dried up."
"Later, the drought became more severe, triggering a locust plague. The locusts devoured the unharvested crops, leaving the village's farmland completely barren..."
"Under the onslaught of drought and locusts, countless people have starved to death. Yet, at this very moment, the government is collecting taxes. Those without food must pay silver..."
"The crops have failed, and those without food have to pay silver. Even if we empty our family savings, it's still not enough. The government doesn't care about the lives of the people at all, they only want taxes... ah, ah..."
Zhu Changshou couldn't help crying when he thought of the villagers who were beaten to death by the government because they couldn't pay taxes.
“Wuwuwu…”
When talking about the government's forced collection of taxes, the refugees couldn't help but bow their heads and sob.
If the government had not left them no chance to live, they would not have run away from home and fled to the south.
Many villagers starved to death along the way. They all felt that they would die of starvation and thirst at any time, and they followed the large army south like zombies.
"Stupid ruler!" Second Sister-in-law cursed angrily, "The drought is so severe, yet he refuses to allow the government to open the granaries to provide relief, and yet he's still thinking about collecting taxes. He's simply the most stupid ruler in the world."
"So many wealthy merchants in the cities have hoarded so much grain, yet the government doesn't ask them for donations to help with the disaster. Instead, it's obsessed with the little food the common people have. What a jerk! What a jerk!"
Madam Xiao frowned, "Is Emperor Wu of Liang possessed by a ghost? How could he become so foolish and ruthless? The national treasury and granary have so much silver and grain. Why would he keep them here instead of using them during this natural disaster? Is it infested with insects?"
In the past few years, the weather was good and the granaries in the national treasury were full. Every year, the old grain was sent to the army and new grain was put in.
Because there was too much grain, the Ministry of Revenue's granary had to be expanded several times. The grain inside could at least provide relief to the people across the country for half a year.
The black-hearted Emperor Wu of Liang not only refused to open the granaries to provide disaster relief, but he was also thinking about collecting taxes at this time. He was not afraid of being struck by lightning.
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