Chapter 14 Grain Grain
Li Zheng pushed the cart and continued walking south. "Sister, aren't we going to stay?" Baoger was sitting in the cart wearing a straw hat and looking at Li Zheng.
"Well, let's not stay any longer. Let's go further south."
…
"Zheng girl, you really won't keep me."
"Well, village chief, I want to go and take a look." Li Zheng was determined.
"Okay, you are a smart kid. Although you are good at martial arts, you should still be on guard against others. Keep a low profile and keep a low profile along the way. I don't have anything good to give you. Just take this straw hat and this bag of dried meat." He had seen Zheng's skills before and believed that she would not have any problems on the road. He was just worried that she was not experienced enough.
…
At noon, Li Zheng pushed the cart into the woods, set up a pot, and cooked a pot of meat porridge. After passing Jincheng, she saw no refugees on the road. She thought that they had been accepted by Jincheng, so she was so bold to cook the meat porridge.
"Brother Bao, is it delicious?" Seeing that Brother Bao was eating with relish, he took out a bowl of stewed chicken from the space, nourished himself well, and drank some spiritual spring water.
When Baoger saw the chicken, his eyes lit up and he began to eat it with a chuckle. After he had rested enough, he started on his journey again. The village chief said that if they followed this road for another half month, they should reach Nancheng Prefecture. Once they reached Nancheng Prefecture, it meant that they were not far from Taiyuan Prefecture.
"Sister, let me go with you."
"If Bao Ge'er feels bored, just stay in the car and recite the Three Character Classic. We can leave tomorrow morning when it's not too hot, okay?" It's too hot today. Don't get heatstroke. Besides, your short legs will delay your trip.
"Um."
"Man is born good..."
Listening to Baoger's reciting, she took a deep breath, gripped the handle tightly, pushed the cart and ran wildly. All she could see was a burst of floating yellow soil that dissipated and then rose and fell again.
…
"Sister, next time you run, tell Baoge'er, otherwise Baoge'er will feel very dizzy." Baoge'er lay in the car feeling dizzy.
Li Zheng looked at Bao Ge'er with a certain embarrassment. She had forgotten that while the road looked smooth, it couldn't compare to modern cement roads. "Bao Ge'er, I'll make you something delicious tonight." She actually just pulled out some previously prepared food from her space: a bowl of egg custard, stir-fried pork, and a few steamed buns. They'd been eating dry biscuits along the way, occasionally enjoying some soup.
After dinner, seeing Bao Ge'er meditating in the car, Li Zheng pulled out a sword from her space and began practicing. The spear was the best weapon, but it required two hands to practice. Swords were impressive, but not quite suitable for the current situation; a sword looked more appealing. Picking flowers and leaves was fine as a weapon, but for intimidation, a sword was better. She practiced late into the night, drenched in sweat and smelling of sour. Her hair was tangled, and if she rubbed it, it would come out in mud. Her brows furrowed in disgust, and she quickly went back into her space to take a shower.
After taking a shower, I looked at myself in the water and wondered who I was. If I wasn't wearing women's clothes, no one would be able to tell that I was a woman. My skin was tanned and yellow, and there was almost no flesh on my face sticking to my bones. I looked like a refugee. It seemed that this spiritual spring water was only effective for the body and for practicing martial arts, but had no effect on beauty and skin care.
Li Zheng was lying in the car looking at Baoger beside her. Fortunately, she had bathed Baoger before going to bed today, otherwise she would have felt a little disgusted to sleep with him.
After walking for four or five days, she saw groups of people walking along the road. At first, she was a little concerned when she saw Li Zheng and the other boys, but when she saw the large knife on Li Zheng's back, the blade black and red and gleaming with bloodthirstiness, her thoughts immediately faded. Li Zheng breathed a sigh of relief. She hadn't wasted her time smearing the knife with chicken blood. If these people weren't afraid of death and still wanted to rob her, then she could only... Ultimately, she didn't dare kill them. After all, they were just starving, so she could only frighten them for a while.
Walking further, he saw someone lying on the road. A closer look revealed they had been dead for days, their clothes stolen. More and more people fell, some starving to death, others beaten to death. Seeing this, Li quickly took two pills and swallowed them, then covered his nose with two pieces of cloth. "Brother Bao, don't take those pieces off, okay?"
It's hot now, and after these corpses rot and are exposed to the air, they are likely to get sick. If it rains again, and people eat food contaminated by water, an epidemic may break out, and the epidemic can be fatal here!
Li Zheng didn't dare to stop and could only move forward. She saw a group of people walking forward like zombies in the distance. She pushed the cart and followed the group. At noon, Li Zheng sat some distance away from the group. The current situation was not very clear, so it was better to stay away.
…
"Miss, please drink some water. It's so hot today, please drink some." A girl with double buns and wearing a green long gown, about fifteen or sixteen years old, persuaded the woman next to her who was feeling carsick.
"No, Xiaohuan, I don't want to drink. Let's talk about it after we meet up with father." The woman was wearing a blue gown with hibiscus flowers embroidered on the collar. She had her hair combed into a single bun and looked like a lady from a wealthy family.
"Please, gentlemen, give us something to eat."
"Xiao Huan, look what's going on outside? Why is it so noisy?"
"Yes, Miss." Xiaohuan first lifted the curtain and took a look outside, seeing a group of refugees kneeling on the ground. "Miss, they are all refugees, and they want to ask for some food."
"Refugees, then give some."
"Miss, but..."
"Okay, this will also help increase my father's popularity. Let's go and tell them."
"Yes." Xiaohuan glanced at the young lady and wanted to say something but stopped herself. However, she was just a maid and had to go down.
Xiao Huan walked over to Guard Wang and said, "Miss Guard Wang said to give those refugees some dry food."
"Miss, do you really mean that?" Giving dry food to the refugees might lead to collective attack.
"I also tried to persuade her, but it was the young lady..."
"Okay, I got it." Guard Wang also knew his young lady's temper, so he didn't want to implicate the little maid.
…
Li Zheng watched from a distance as the group of people knelt on the ground begging, and then saw a bag of dry food taken out from the cart and given to them, but they did not move away, but surrounded them more tightly, intending to ask for more. Seeing that the carriage was motionless, some people became anxious, and no one knew who entered the carriage first to steal the food. Everyone saw this and rushed to grab the food cart, but the man guarding the carriage was not a pushover either. He pulled out a knife and chopped people. Although he had a knife, he could not withstand the large number of people. The refugees instantly flooded the cart, and even the horses were not spared. They killed them for meat, and soon dispersed, leaving only a mess on the ground.
Li Zheng felt a chill run down her spine as she watched the refugees eat their rations, as if they were being devoured by demons. This was the first time she had grasped such a cruel reality.
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