August.
The harvest season, which should have been full of golden glory, was instead a scene of devastation in Yongzhou.
However, starting half a month ago, the limited power of the county government was completely insufficient to maintain order outside the city.
Some people have already begun to flee to other places, ignoring the threat of the epidemic.
It seemed as if as long as they could walk far enough, they would be able to get enough food.
Those who chose to stay began to search for food all over the mountains.
The first things to be eaten up were all living things except humans.
Rabbits, snakes, deer, birds, mice...
Then there are the various insects.
The corpses of spiders, centipedes, leeches, locusts...
Finally, the roots, stems, skins, and leaves of various plants...
Don't worry about what it tastes like or whether it's poisonous or not.
People who are extremely hungry will not care about these things.
They only care about one thing - whether they can swallow it.
As long as I can swallow it, no matter what it is, it can dispel the maddening hunger.
A corner of the west city.
A simple low shed made of branches leaning against a boulder.
The women sat inside, facing the corner.
Her clothes were open and she was feeding her baby.
The baby kept crying and refused to cooperate.
A half-grown child leaned weakly on the side, his eyes dull, ignoring the baby's distress and the woman's coaxing.
"Big boy, bring some water."
The woman said weakly.
The boy slowly moved his body, climbed out of the shed, and dragged in a broken clay jar.
It's not that he wanted to go so slowly, but he really didn't have the extra strength to support him to go a little faster.
He hasn't eaten anything for three days.
The woman leaned slightly to the side and took the jar. She first took a sip herself and then held another sip in her mouth.
When the water warmed up, he bent down and fed the baby drop by drop.
The baby's crying finally subsided a little.
But his slightly furrowed brows showed that he really didn't like this kind of 'food'.
"Mother."
After a while, the young man leaning against the side called out, his voice extremely hoarse.
"Um?"
The woman tilted her head slightly.
"Can Daddy get me something to eat?"
The boy asked.
A glimmer of hope emerged in those lifeless eyes.
“…”
The woman's back stiffened slightly.
When natural disasters struck, if she were a weak woman alone, there would be no way she could have survived to this day with two children, one big and one small.
Her real support is still the man who is the head of the family.
However, the head of the family, who used to go out to look for food and would return within the same day regardless of whether he found any, did not return for two full days this time.
Two days...
Are you still alive?
The woman hoped to be alive.
But hope is just hope.
If nothing unexpected happens, the head of the family is already dead.
They either starved to death outside, or were beaten to death while fighting for food.
This is the biggest possibility.
So, when faced with her eldest son's questions, the woman had no idea how to answer.
"Will Daddy...Will he...not come back..."
The boy spoke again, his voice growing weaker and weaker.
“…No.”
The woman's voice trembled a little. "Your father...your father is the head of the family. In order to find food for us, he went to a farther place. When he comes back, he will definitely bring a lot of food."
The boy tried to cheer himself up.
"Are there any pancakes?"
"some."
“Are there any steamed buns?”
"some."
"That's good, that's good..."
The young man raised his lips slowly, "With steamed buns and pancakes, mom can eat her fill. If mom is full, brother can eat his fill too... Really... Really good..."
The woman bit her lips tightly, tears dripping down her cheeks. The baby in her arms pursed his lips, and his frown relaxed a little.
Outside the shed, the man gritted his teeth, seemed to have made a decision, and left quietly into the distance.
Not long after, a muffled groan was heard, which was suppressed to the extreme and lasted for a whole stick of incense.
Another half hour later, the man limped back.
"I'm back."
“…”
The woman turned around suddenly, her eyes reddened instantly: "I'm glad you're back, I'm glad you're back..."
"Here, look what I got."
The man looked a little pale, but he raised his hand with a smile.
"This is...meat?!"
The woman was a little bit unbelievable.
"I found this buffalo thirty miles away. I put in a lot of effort to get this little bit."
The man sat down, breathing heavily.
"Okay, okay...you hold the baby, I'll go make a fire."
The woman handed the swaddling clothes to the man and took the meat from the man's hand.
When I was about to get up, I suddenly saw a lot of blood stains on the man's trouser legs.
“…Are you hurt?!”
The woman shuddered and reached out to open her trouser legs.
The man waved the woman's hand away and said nonchalantly, "I fell while fighting for the meat. It's no big deal."
"real?"
The woman was a little suspicious.
"Don't worry. If the injury was really serious, how could I run past them and bring back the meat?"
The man's eyes were steady, and although his face was a little pale, it was normal as he hadn't eaten for a long time.
So the woman didn't ask any more questions and walked out of the shed with her body hunched.
Not far away , two people stood there with expressionless faces.
Jiang Zhihong and Xu Chong.
The two men witnessed with their own eyes the man using the rusty knife hidden at his waist to cut off the calf flesh bit by bit, and then tearing off a piece of his stained sleeve to bandage the calf bit by bit.
This process took one stick of incense to complete.
It also took a stick of incense to get back to the shed, a distance of only a few dozen feet.
Although it was cruel, it was the most heartwarming scene they had seen today.
After all, in the face of death, only a very small number of people can hold on to the last bit.
More people have gradually given up on morality and ethics.
For a leaf, a son can knock his old father to the ground.
For a piece of bark, a wife could push her husband into a ditch.
"It turns out we were all wrong."
Jiang Zhihong sighed quietly, "Back then, it wasn't a political enemy who made things difficult for Lou Youzhi... it was the imperial court, or rather, the late emperor."
Lou Youzhi alone would never be able to suppress public opinion at home and abroad and sit idly by and watch the tragic situation in Yongzhou.
In other words, no one can do this.
Except the royal family, except His Majesty.
The same logic can be applied to the drought in Bingzhou that year.
"In a few days, when there is no food left, cannibalism will occur."
Xu Chong said expressionlessly, "As long as one incident happens, it will cause a chain reaction...by then, everyone's morality will be completely destroyed."
"No, it has already happened, in other places in Yongzhou."
Jiang Zhihong said woodenly, "I went out yesterday and saw with my own eyes what it means to eat each other."
"Eat the old and weak first, then the women and children."
"The first time they eat it, they will vomit. The second time, they get used to it."
" There are even people who have become addicted to the taste of human flesh and are obsessed with killing people for their flesh..."
Jiang Zhihong remembered what Xu Chong had said, "You are right. The victims of the disaster are no longer human beings."
Xu Chong was silent.
He saw everything Jiang Zhihong saw, and even saw it earlier than Jiang Zhihong.
To be honest, it was not nearly as cruel as the inner demons he had experienced.
But this is reality after all.
"Someone brought me a message, telling me to hold on for another month. The court is urgently preparing supplies, which will be delivered in a month."
Jiang Zhihong said with disdain, "One month? After one month, how many people in Yongzhou will be able to survive?"
"It seems that my guess was correct."
Xu Chong nodded slowly, "The court is controlling the number of deaths."
"I guessed that, but I still don't understand."
Jiang Zhihong narrowed his eyes. "If you want to kill people, why do you have to use this method? If the army is approaching, and they are accused of treason, they can kill a million people in a day. Even if they slaughter the entire Yongzhou, how much effort will it take?"
" possible ."
Xu Chong shrugged, "Simply slaughtering people won't bring any benefits."
"Must he die from a natural disaster? This seems to be the only explanation."
Jiang Zhihong slowly exhaled a breath of foul air.
"I will protect those people in Canglong County."
Xu Chong suddenly said, "Please forgive me for not being able to do anything more."
With the Hua family's background, can they protect the entire Yongzhou?
Xu Chong didn’t know.
But even if it is possible, it will inevitably empty the Hua family.
The Hua family has no reason to do this, and they would never do this.
But if there are only 10,000 people in Canglong County, the Hua family should not refuse.
This is what Xu Chong planned.
However.
"No need."
Jiang Zhihong waved his hand, his eyes suddenly became stern: "In Bingzhou, there was Lou and Zhi, and this time, there is me!"
"what you up to?"
Xu Chong's expression changed slightly.
Jiang Zhihong did not answer, but turned around and started walking. "Yesterday I contacted a few people who are still willing to help me. They will secretly transport food to the border of Yongzhou at night... You help me take care of Canglong these few days, and I will go to receive this batch of food."
Off-field assistance?
Xu Chong sighed secretly and said nothing more.
Indeed, Jiang Zhihong had been an official for so many years and even sat in the position of Left Censor-in-Chief, so he must have had several friends who were willing to risk their lives for him.
Even if there is off-field assistance, how much can it be?
For Yongzhou's population of more than 10 million, it is just a drop in the bucket.
Just like that, Jiang Zhihong left.
Xu Chong did not stay in the county government office, but climbed to the top of the city wall and strolled on it.
He didn't have the patience to deal with the rowdy residents in the city.
The city gates of Fenggu County have been blocked since half a month ago.
This was done deliberately by Jiang Zhihong.
One is to lock up the people in the city and not let them go out.
The second was to create the illusion for people outside the city that there was still food in the city, thus keeping most people within Fenggu County.
Whether crying, begging, or cursing, Jiang Zhihong turned a deaf ear.
Because he knew that there would be nothing to eat if he left Fenggu County.
The existence of the epidemic makes other places much more dangerous than Fenggu County.
So this is the scene that was created.
People in the city tried desperately to get out of the city, and people outside the city tried desperately to get in.
If the city gates were not strong enough and the walls were not high enough, there would have been chaos long ago.
What Xu Chong needed to do was to stabilize the situation inside and outside the city during Jiang Zhihong's absence and prevent large-scale riots.
Just like that, three days passed quietly.
After three days, the number of people left outside the city decreased again.
Some died, some left.
Those who didn't leave were not holding out hope; on the contrary, they were completely desperate.
Only the Canglong people were much more stable than others, even though they had not eaten for several days.
It was not until the evening of the third day that vehicles loaded with goods appeared at the end of the road.
One after another.
Surrounding the convoy was a large group of refugees.
A crowd of people.
Even standing on the top of the city wall, Xu Chong couldn't see the end with his eyesight.
He only recognized the man at the head of the convoy.
The magistrate of Fenggu County was Jiang Zhihong.
"Food! That's food!"
I don’t know who shouted first, but then a chain reaction started.
Those refugees who had stayed outside the city began to rush towards the convoy like crazy.
"--presumptuous!"
A roar like the roar of heaven.
The huge sound echoed and shook everyone's heart.
"This county magistrate has already brought in food, enough for you to survive!"
"Starting immediately, we will set up a porridge stall and provide the same ration to everyone."
"But if there are looters, regardless of gender or status, they will be driven out of the wind drum and their life or death will be left to fate!"
Then, to shock everyone, Jiang Zhihong spoke repeatedly.
After a while, the riot that was about to break out was finally suppressed and the convoy continued to move forward.
The relief work is being carried out in full swing.
When the lid of the first pot of porridge was opened, hot steam rose up and the refugees knelt down in groups.
"Thank you, Master Qingtian! Thank you, Master Qingtian!"
"You old man can't tell right from wrong, and you called me a dog official. You deserve to die, you deserve to die !"
"I will repay your life-saving grace by working like a slave!"
“…”
In the west of the city, a knowing smile finally appeared on the man's face. He knelt down tremblingly and put his forehead on the ground.
The woman holding the child beside him and her eldest son also knelt down.
However, after kneeling, the man could never stand up again.