Fan Jihuai and a group of yamen runners were trapped halfway up the mountain, shivering in fear.
When Qiao Xin's fleet found the people, they had not eaten a single grain of rice for the whole day.
The mountain road was muddy, and the people, who were dragging their families with them, had no food or water and were depressed, saw the sudden appearance of the big ship, which was like a divine army descending from the sky.
"Auntie, why are you here?"
If Fan Jihuai hadn't taken his own status and the subordinates around him into consideration, he would have wanted to hug Qiao Xin's legs and cry.
God knows what kind of mood he was in that day. He thought he would die here, but he didn't expect to meet Qiao Xin.
This old lady is truly their benefactor. She has saved them countless times.
"Master Fan, why are you here?" Qiao Xin was also surprised to see Fan Jihuai, who was covered in mud. This county magistrate was too conscientious to come and evacuate the villagers in person.
"I'm sorry to have embarrassed you, but it's my duty. It's just that I'm trapped here due to bad luck."
Qiao Xin glanced at the crowd behind her. It was obvious that there were mostly young adults, children, women and children. She couldn't help but ask, "Are all the villagers here?"
Fan Jihuai's throat rolled and his voice became hoarse. It took him a long time to utter a word, "Yes!"
Qiao Xin remained silent and did not ask any further questions.
The grief on those people's faces said it all. To bring it up again would only be like stabbing someone in the wound.
She took off the water bag and handed it over, and changed the subject in time.
"Drink some water, eat something, and take a break. When I came here, I asked Shunzi to go back and notify the people in the town to bring a boat over.
I can't guarantee anything for others, but at least the Qiao family's boats will arrive soon. We'll transfer you to a safe place first, then lower the bamboo raft to look for anyone alive.
Fan Jihuai nodded and said "hmm", took the water bag, took a few gulps and passed it to the subordinate beside him.
"How's it up there?"
"The dam of nearly 100 meters is completely destroyed. There is a mountain ridge below that blocks the water level. The water level cannot be discharged and can only keep rising. You must move out as soon as possible. Hunshui Village is already at the bottom of the lake. It is completely uninhabitable here."
As soon as Qiao Xin finished speaking, there was a burst of crying from the back.
"Ahh!!! Dad, Mom is done!"
Qiao Xin's voice was as cold as ice: "Why are you crying? Hold back your tears. Is this the time to wail? Can't you see the water level is still rising? It won't be more than midnight before this place is flooded. Why are you crying if you don't find a way to leave quickly?"
The sad mother-in-law retorted without caring, "It's not your family that's in trouble, so of course you shouldn't be sad. My father and mother-in-law are both gone, and you can't even cry a little. Why do you care about us?"
"Okay, whoever is ready first will have their child board if there is extra space on the boat. No one who cries will be allowed to board."
Well......
As soon as Qiao Xin said this, the scene became quiet!
The people in Hunshui Village are not stupid. All the elderly are gone, that is a fact. If their children lose the chance to escape because of their crying, their family members will tear them to pieces.
Normally, if you make a scene and cry in front of your tribe members, you might be able to gain some advantage, but the people in front of you have no relationship with them and they will not indulge you.
Seeing that these troublesome old women had stopped making trouble, Fan Jihuai pulled out a middle-aged man with a sad face from the crowd.
He said to Qiao Xin: "This is the second group of people that the village head and clan leader of Hunshui Village originally planned to evacuate, but unexpectedly something unexpected happened. This is the clan leader's son Shuichi, and these people are currently under his charge."
Having witnessed his relatives being engulfed by the flood, Shuichi was in a state of confusion and pain.
Why would someone push this out?
"Don't worry about what we're doing. Hurry up and gather all the children under the age of 16 in the village onto the boat. For the first batch of 30 people, send two elders from your village to follow and leave with the government officials first. As for the adults..."
Silence is better than words at this moment, just like a rope strangling your neck.
"What are you standing there for? Go get ready."
The water in the pool rushed out in a flash. We must not let the old lady find a reason to change her mind.
The boat is so small and can only carry a limited number of people. Whoever's child is sent out first will have a better chance of survival.
No one knows when the next ship will come in. There is water all around, and this place could be flooded at any time. Who doesn't want their children to survive?
Qiao Xin took out paper and charcoal pencils from her messenger bag and began to write. She asked Fan Jihuai to randomly find a few women in the crowd and find out how many children each family had, who were the first to escape, and who did not escape.
By the time Shui Chi led thirty young men to stand in front of Qiao Xin, waiting for her nod, Qiao Xin had already figured out the situation at the scene.
"Are you sure? Remember the name first!"
The ten or eight people who were originally hiding in the back, and then the villagers in groups of three or five, gathered around immediately when they heard Qiao Xin was about to call out their names.
Shuichi felt a little guilty and asked helplessly, "We are all from the same village, so there is no need to call out names, right?"
Fan Jihuai immediately saw the problem and said, "Why are there no girls? Are you alone in the family?"
"This... one family at a time. Everyone decided to let the boys go out first, and the girls wait."
Qiao Xin was too lazy to argue with him and ordered directly: "I'll give you one more chance, half male and half female, one from each family. If you still can't make a decision within one stick of incense, then don't leave."
When Shui Chi saw that Qiao Xin had exposed the villagers' little thoughts, his face turned red.
He said that doing so would be cheating and would definitely not pass, but some grandparents and even parents in the village were unwilling to let the girl get on the boat first.
Fan Jihuai's eyes turned red, and he shouted angrily: "What do you think you are doing? You are running for your lives, and it's a matter of life and death, but you are still thinking about your own plans. Wasn't yesterday's lesson enough? Will you be satisfied only if I sacrifice all the remaining people?"
Qiao Xin said coldly: "In my opinion, no boy is more precious than You girl. The boat is mine, and the rules must be followed according to my words. I am only taking you out for the sake of Lord Fan. If anyone does not want to leave, they can just stand up, and we will not force anyone."
Among more than thirty children, there is not even a place for girls. You can see what kind of people they are.
Although people in this era generally favor sons over daughters, some people would rather give the quota to their nephews than to their own daughters. This is too ridiculous.
There was no need for her to spend too much energy on them; she just saved people out of her own conscience.
As soon as Qiao Xin's boat entered the river, it encountered a rescue fleet.
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