Refugees from the South?
Zhao Hongming knew that many counties in the south of Wei State had experienced corruption after wars and severe droughts. Unexpectedly, they had already affected the eastern part of Wei State.
A group of people rode forward.
Looking around, the masses of refugees in front of us look like a giant lying on the ground, almost dead, moving his huge body forward little by little.
After they approached this wave of refugees, Wu Qi, who was following Zhao Hongming, subconsciously walked in front of Zhao Hongming and made a gesture of protection.
Many imperial guards understood this.
Wu Qi didn't need to say anything, he formed a defensive formation, guarding Zhao Hongming inside, like a finger and an arm.
The surrounding refugees saw Zhao Hongming and his party, all dressed in gorgeous clothes and riding horses. They knew that their status was unusual, so they subconsciously stayed away and made way for them.
Some skinny children, with confused faces, were violently dragged aside by their parents at home.
No sign of care was seen.
Zhao Hongming rode a horse and walked among the many refugees. His eyes swept over these refugees, his expression neither happy nor sad.
If you observe carefully, you will find that most of these refugees are men, and children are rarely seen.
Most of them had dull eyes and numb expressions. When they saw Zhao Hongming and others, their eyes were evasive and fearful.
Zhao Hongming turned a blind eye to these looks and asked in a calm tone: "Gao Yanshi, why do they all go to Ying County?"
Gao Yanshi cupped his hands and replied: "I asked about it. They said that there is a Shangxian Gate in Ying County that specially takes in them and gives them porridge every day. As long as they go to Ying County, they will have a way to survive. The county governor of Ying County does not set up checkpoints like other counties. , it’s also very convenient for them to go to Ying County.”
Hearing Gao Yanshi's answer, Zhao Hongming felt very strange.
Refugees have neither livelihood nor property, which poses great instability.
Wherever refugees pass through, there is often crime and unrest.
If you don't pay attention for a moment, it is very likely to cause a civil uprising, so most local officials avoid the refugees like snakes and scorpions.
It's really strange that the magistrate of Ying County is willing to accept refugees with such a wide open door.
But now he has too little information to draw a conclusion. He can only wait until Yingjun before making any decisions.
Zhao Hongming ordered: "We are too conspicuous among these people, so we should take a detour."
"yes!"
After receiving the order, Wu Qi and others took Zhao Hongming away from the homeless group and left quickly.
Zhao Hongming, who was sitting on the horse, was moved.
The muscles on his face still squirmed, and he soon turned into another mature man.
Now the area is full of refugees, and there are so many people there.
If some interested people recognize him as King Wu of the Wei Kingdom, it is not ruled out that someone might want to use his head to submit a certificate of surrender to the Zhao Kingdom.
So it's better to be careful.
Among the refugees.
When a burly man in coarse cloth saw Zhao Hongming and others, his eyes were full of greed, and he couldn't help but attract his companions.
"Do you think our brothers can take down that noble?"
"The person next to that nobleman is wearing armor, and the horse's hair is shiny. He must be a big nobleman. These people's martial arts skills are not low. We brothers have not had enough to eat for a long time. How can we catch up? Even if we catch up. Can you defeat so many of them?"
"I just wanted to share the meat with you, why did I lose the strength so quickly?"
"Brother, the last time I ate meat was three days ago."
Hearing this, the burly man had no choice but to give up unwillingly and watched Zhao Hongming and others leave.
He turned to cheer and said: "Let the brothers be patient for a little longer. As long as we walk for two more days, we will almost be able to reach Ying County. By then, depending on the cultivation of our brothers and those who have joined some of the martial arts forces, we will definitely have a lot of success." A way to survive.”
At this moment, there was a commotion in front of the team.
The burly man asked curiously: "What's wrong? What happened?"
Someone around me went to inquire about it, and after a while he said happily: "A Taoist priest from Shangxianmen is here to help us, and each of us is given half a catty of wheat bran. I saw that the Taoist priest and the others only brought ten carts, so we have to Hurry up and get there, if you’re late, you’ll be gone.”
"Then what are you waiting for? Hurry up and grab it. It will be gone later."
The burly man rushed to the front with a few brothers behind him.
He is tall, but most of these refugees are malnourished and very thin, so there is no way they can stop him.
He quickly squeezed to the front, causing others to curse.
"I'm sorry, fellow villagers. I only brought ten bags this time. I've already distributed all of them. I'll pick up some more when I go back." A young-looking old Taoist with gray hair bowed his head and said.
When the burly man heard the news, a wave of anger rushed to his forehead.
He grabbed the lapel of Lao Dao's clothes and cursed angrily: "We brothers ran here with great difficulty. We spent so much effort, but you told me that we were gone?"
The old Taoist was frightened and said hurriedly: "Don't worry, strong man. We are going to the Immortal Sect and worship the ancient immortal way. The Infinite Immortal Lord is compassionate to the world. There is still a lot of food in the temple. Why don't this strong man come with us? In the past, could you bring more food down and distribute it to the villagers?"
Hearing this, the burly man said happily: "Okay, I'm a wise man. But I have to ask all my brothers to come with me."
The old Taoist priest said: "If this is the case, strong man, take a few of your brothers with you so that the villagers will not complain. If this is the case, why not arrange for a hundred villagers to come with me."
"Taoist Master Renyi!"
"Taoist Master Renyi!"
As soon as these words came out, praises came one after another.
The old Taoist sighed helplessly: "Then, folks, just follow me there?"
Under Lao Dao's call, some refugees took the initiative to follow Lao Dao to move grain.
A brother and sister among the refugees watched eagerly as everyone left.
The little girl was only eight or nine years old, with no flesh on her cheeks. She was too thin and her eyes were particularly big. When she saw these people leaving with the old man, she curiously asked: "Brother, where are they going?"
"I heard that we were going to get food."
A boy of thirteen or fourteen said enviously.
He held a "stick" in his hand and led the little girl to walk staggeringly.
If you look carefully, you can see that the stick in his hand is a long sword wrapped in rags.
"Brother, won't you come with us?"
"Don't go!"
"It's okay, Nannan is no longer a three-year-old child, she can take care of herself."
"After the Taoist leader comes down the mountain to distribute the food, my brother will go grab it. There is no rush now."
"Um."
The young man gritted his teeth and continued to follow.
The old Taoist led a group of refugees to a Taoist temple.
His eyes narrowed to slits, and he said with a smile: "Everyone, this is the dojo where we go to the Immortal Sect. I asked other senior brothers to bring a lot of food and store it in it. The hardworking folks will move down with us."
As soon as he finished speaking, the refugees who were already hungry couldn't bear it for a moment and rushed in directly.
(End of chapter)
