In the seventh year of Chongzhen, there was a severe drought in Henan.
Lu Weiqi, the former Minister of War of Nanjing who lived in Luoyang, wrote to the imperial court: Over the past few years, my hometown has been suffering from shortages every year, and I have been fighting hard every year, and I have cried for defeat...There is no green grass in the fields, nine out of ten houses are empty, and there are no barking dogs in the village. Still knocking on the door to urge recruitment.
There are cuckoos singing in the trees, spilling the blood of whips; the ground is yellow and red, and the villages are almost deserted; the bones are white and green, and every night it feels like the pain of hearing ghosts.
If you want to prevent the poor people from turning into thieves, you can't get it!
——
In the wilderness, a group of hungry people were wandering in the wilderness. Most of them had sallow faces and thin eyes, and their eyes were dull. They only occasionally looked up and looked into the distance, revealing a glimmer of hope.
That is the direction of Luoyang. I heard that there were officials and gentry setting up a porridge factory to provide relief.
At this time, a skinny woman in the crowd suddenly fell down. She tried to stand up again with her dry and black hands, but after struggling for a few times, she stopped moving.
Someone went over to take a look, and soon shook his head and left, leaving only a seven or eight-year-old girl with the same sallow complexion, skinny skin, and hungry skin, crying and calling her mother...
Rhodes, who was not far away, sighed softly when he saw this scene.
He had seen the same scene many times along the way, and it had even happened to his family several times.
Since his hometown suffered from drought for several consecutive years and even the bark of the trees was eaten away, he had to take his family on the road to escape like others.
However, if you don't run away, you will die, and if you run away, it will be difficult to live!
A month ago, his old father died of illness on the road.
Half a month ago, his married wife starved to the point of being reduced to skin and bones and died.
Eight days ago, the eldest son, who had been smart since he was a child and was expected to get a good name, found some wild vegetables. As a result, other hungry people robbed them. During the fight, someone stabbed him in the abdomen with a sharp spear and died.
In the following days, they were unable to find anything to eat. The five-year-old girl also starved to death. That day, he held the girl's body and howled for a long time...
But now, Rhodes looked at the last remaining relative around him: his second son Luo Zhixue.
Now his second son's situation is not optimistic either. Like himself, he is already skin and bones from hunger. If he doesn't eat, he will really starve to death in a few days.
"Don't worry, Xue'er, we will get to Luoyang soon. There is a porridge factory there. As long as we get there, we can survive!"
Luo Zhixue, who was already fifteen years old, nodded: "My child knows."
At this time, Rhodes looked back at the wailing girl lying on the deceased woman's body, hesitated for a while and then walked over.
Rhodes dragged the deceased woman into a shallow pit and simply dug up some soil to bury it.
After a brief burial, Rhodes looked at the sallow-looking girl in front of him, sighed and said, "Let's go with our father and son!"
This girl's entire family has died. If no one protects her, she may not survive tomorrow!
Not starvation, but another more desperate way to die!
The girl raised her head, revealing her dirty and thin face. She looked at Rod before saying anything. After a while, she nodded, and then followed behind Rod and his son.
The hungry people wandered forward slowly, eating up everything edible or inedible they met on the road, whether it was wild vegetables, grass, leaves or bark.
From time to time, people fell down in the crowd. Some of these fallen people could be hastily buried, but most of them were left directly on the road!
The hungry people fled all the way, dying of hunger and bones along the way. Looking around, it was a tragedy in the world!
Luo Cai, his second son Luo Zhixue, and the girl slowly moved forward with the crowd.
Rhodes just asked the girl's name. Her surname was Lin. She didn't have a given name, only a nickname called "Yu'er" by a family member.
Luo Cai and the others were quite lucky. In the evening, they took their second son and girl Lin Yu'er away from the crowd and found some wild vegetables in the forest on the side of the road. They also found a bird's nest and took out five eggs.
Luo Cai asked his second son Luo Zhixue to eat three of the eggs raw directly into his stomach on the spot, so as not to attract the prying eyes of others.
Not long ago, his eldest son was killed just because he found some wild vegetables, which caused others to fight over them, let alone these bird eggs!
A few bird eggs at this time are a chance to survive!
Luo Zhixue still wanted to refuse and let his father eat, but Luo Zhixue glared back at him with one look: "The book has been read into the dog's belly? The elder dare not say goodbye!"
Luo Zhixue still wanted to argue: "My child..."
However, Luo Cai snorted coldly, and Luo Zhixue ate the three eggs while crying.
Rhodes thought about the remaining two eggs and gave one to the girl Lin Yu'er.
Although Lin Yu'er kept swallowing her saliva when she saw the egg, she didn't pick it up immediately. It was Rhode who stuffed it directly before she ate it.
By digging wild vegetables, eating leaves and even bark, Luo Cai finally took his second son Luo Zhixue and the girl Lin Yu'er to the outside of Luoyang City.
Sure enough, there were officials and gentry setting up factories outside Luoyang to provide porridge.
But when I went there, I discovered that although there were officials and gentry giving porridge outside Luoyang City, the number was extremely limited.
There are thousands of hungry people outside Luoyang City, but the daily porridge is only a drop in the bucket, and the city gates are closed, preventing the hungry people from entering the city to seek a way out.
The hungry people outside the city frequently fight over getting porridge, and the officers and soldiers on the side don't care. As long as the hungry people don't directly rob the porridge factory, they have no intention of intervening in the fights of the hungry people outside. Sometimes they even watch the hungry people. They laughed while trying to grab porridge and water.
Rod Cai tried to queue up to get the porridge several times but failed. This made Rod Cai unable to help but feel sad and angry: What the hell is going on in this God?
On the third day after arriving in Luoyang, Luo Cai, his second son, and Lin Yu'er queued up early to serve porridge before dawn.
But after the officers and soldiers came out of the city, they had just been serving porridge for a while, and then they rushed to escape into the city one by one.
Looking further into the distance, I saw a group of cavalry of more than a hundred people. These people were dressed in a mess, and they were all armed with spears, swords and bows.
"The thieves are coming, run away!"
The arrival of the bandits outside the city instantly caused the crowd in the porridge factory to panic, and many people fled around.
But after Rhodes looked around, instead of running, he quickly walked towards the porridge factory not far ahead.
There was also porridge there that the officers and soldiers had moved out before and had not had time to distribute it.
The bandit army is certainly terrifying, but starving to death is equally terrifying!
There were many people who had the same idea as him, so although many people were fleeing at this time, there were also many people who were pushing towards the porridge factory, trying to snatch the remaining porridge.
Rhode did not go directly to the wooden barrels filled with porridge like the others. There were so many people there that it was impossible to squeeze in. He went to the wooden barrel next to him and was kicked by someone, leaving only a little porridge. bucket.
There was not much porridge left in the porridge bowl, and there was a circle of people surrounding it, so Rhodes took out a chipped clay pot and dug directly into the porridge bowl.
After hurriedly picking up half a can of porridge and water, Rhodes hurriedly protected the clay pot with both hands and walked out.
At this time, several people who had not been able to grab the porridge saw Luo Cai, and one of them rushed over: "Give me the porridge, my mother is starving to death..."
Luo Cai naturally protected the wrinkled clay pot with all his strength. This was the life-saving porridge he had finally snatched in the chaos. How could he give it to others.
The man suddenly became anxious when he couldn't grab it. He took out a pair of rusty scissors and stabbed it into Rhodes. At the same time, he screamed: "Give me the porridge, give it to me, that's my porridge..."
Rhodes couldn't avoid it and was immediately stabbed with a big hole in his neck.
Instantly, blood spurted out from his neck, and some even spurted into the clay pot he was holding tightly.
The man didn't care about Luo Cai, who was staggering and about to fall. He grabbed the pot and poured it into his mouth. He didn't care that several people came up to punch and kick him.
Blood-red porridge flowed down the corners of his mouth, so that his chest was dyed red.
Someone shouted while beating: "Please, give me the porridge, I haven't eaten for several days."
Others continued to rush up: "Put it down for me. I'm waiting for Porridge to save my son's life. Get out of my way, otherwise I'm going to kill someone..."
"ah!"
"I will fight with you!"
"That's what I grabbed. Wuwu, that's the porridge for my mother. You can't grab it... Wuwu, I'll fight with you..."
Curses, screams, groans, and cries began to ring out one after another around the porridge factory, and together they played the most shocking symphony in the troubled times of the late Ming Dynasty!
When the song ended and everyone dispersed, more than a dozen thief cavalry wearing short robes rode forward on their horses, their horse hooves stepping on the gaps between the corpses and moving forward slowly.
The sword that had been unsheathed was shining coldly in the sun!
Surrounded by hungry people who were fleeing, there were more than a dozen corpses and dozens of injured people fighting each other for porridge and water.
Finally, one of the cavalry leaders set his sights on Luo Zhixue, who was lying on Luo Cai's body and crying bitterly.
He looked at Luo Zhixue repeatedly, and then said: "You are wearing a long gown, can you read?"
Luo Zhixue looked up at the rebel cavalry and nodded numbly!
Immediately, the rebel cavalry took out a book from his arms and threw it out: "Read it!"
Luo Zhixue didn't move at first, and the cavalryman said again: "If you don't read it, you will die!"
Luo Zhixue then stepped forward to pick up the book on the ground, opened it and read in a low voice: "Destiny is called nature, and willfulness is called Tao..."
After Luo Zhixue read for a while, the cavalryman looked happy: "You are indeed a scholar, well, now you are my clerk!"
Luo Zhixian was young and had just experienced the pain of losing his father. Hearing these words, he couldn't bear to argue: "I am not a thief..."
The cavalry leader stared at him, his expression gradually becoming indifferent, and the steel knife in his hand shone coldly in the sun: "Are you sure?"
After Luo Zhixue heard this, he looked up at the indifferent expression of the cavalry, and his body couldn't help but tremble: "I..."
But after waiting for a long time, I didn't say a second word.
The cavalry leader looked at Luo Zhixue's appearance and immediately said with a satisfied expression: "It seems you agree!"
After saying that, the cavalry leader looked at Luo Zhixue's sallow and thin body, frowned slightly and took out a steamed bun from his bag: "Eat it, and then follow us!"
After saying that, he looked at Lin Yu'er who was hiding behind Luo Zhixue, and then took out a steamed bun: "Your sister? You can also take her with you."
Luo Zhixue looked at the two steamed buns in the hands of the cavalry leader and couldn't help but swallow his saliva. Lin Yu'er behind him also had bright eyes and couldn't help but pull Luo Zhixue's clothes with his little hands.
In the end, Luo Zhixue, who couldn't resist the temptation of two steamed buns, took two steps forward. After taking the steamed buns, Luo Zhixue said: "Thank you!"
The cavalry leader laughed and didn't take it seriously!
After Luo Zhixue handed one of the steamed buns to Lin Yu'er, he also took the steamed bun and ate it.
But maybe it was because he hadn't eaten properly for a long time. Luo Zhixue ate in a hurry. He ate in big mouthfuls and was choked for a while.
After being choked, Luo Zhixue couldn't breathe immediately. After a while, he knelt down on his knees, covering his neck with his hands, and his face turned red.
Lin Yu'er beside her didn't care about eating and hurried forward, but she was so weak that she had no choice but to cry: "Brother Xue...Brother Xue..."
The cavalry leader looked surprised at this scene, obviously not expecting this situation to happen.
"Damn it, even if you were reincarnated as a starving ghost, you could choke on this."
The cursing cavalry leader immediately dismounted and called several of his subordinate rebel cavalrymen over.
"It took a lot of effort for me to get a scholar, but don't choke to death."
Several people struggled for a long time, but to no avail. After a while, Luo Zhixue rolled his eyes and fainted.
Seeing this, the cavalry leader also became cruel and punched Luo Zhixue hard on the upper abdomen. With such a heavy punch, a ball of steamed bun dregs spurted out from Luo Zhixue's mouth.
After waiting for another long time, Luo Zhixue woke up leisurely, but the first words he said after waking up were a bit strange: "Who are you? Where am I?"
