Nie Changping was particularly aggrieved: "Didn't you finish your meal?"
Luo Qinghan asked back, "Can you compare with me?"
Nie Changping dared not to speak in anger: "Well, that is naturally incomparable."
Under the ruthless gaze of His Royal Highness, Nie Changping could only bite the bullet and finish the rest of the steamed buns.
All the way calm.
Ten days later, the merchant ship docked at Xin'an Ferry near Jingshou County.
Luo Qinghan and his party disembarked here.
Xin'an Ferry is close to Xin'an County, where it has not rained for four months, but because it is close to Yijiang, the people bring water back from here every day, barely able to survive.
They stayed overnight in Xin'an County, bought two carriages and five horses the next day, and entered Jingshou County along the official road.
According to the agreement, they were to meet in Gangu County in Jingshou County.
Gangu County is located in the hinterland of Jingshou County. After the tributaries are successfully excavated, the river will flow down the tributaries and converge the low-lying areas in Gangu County into lakes.
After the lake is formed, they will hold a rain-seeking ceremony by the lake.
Luo Qinghan sat in the carriage, lifted the curtains of the car, and saw that all the crops on the roadside had died from drought, and the soil had dried and cracked.
Several peasants squatted on the ridge and cried, crying in despair.
The further they went into Jingshou County, the worse they saw.
It has never rained, and there is no harvest in the fields. Many people have no choice but to leave their hometowns to seek refuge with relatives, or they can only sell their sons and daughters.
There are yellow-faced and thin-skinned refugees everywhere, and heartbreaking cries can be heard from time to time.
This was a scene that Luo Qinghan and Nie Changping had never seen before.
In the past, they could only know about the drought from the memorials they requested from the officials, but what the officials said was that a certain place was affected by the drought. How many people have been starved to death, talking about some very general things, it doesn't sound like it is particularly serious.
But now, those general digitizations have become a reality, and they are placed in front of them, so that they can see with their own eyes how crazy people can do when they are starving to the extreme.
Selling sons and daughters, smashing and looting, eating tree bark and eating Guanyin soil.
If it goes on like this, they are afraid that even people will dare to eat it.
Luo Qinghan no longer has the heart to read books.
He and Nie Changping no longer disliked the taste of steamed buns.
The carriage drove along the official road for ten days, and finally saw the gate of Gangu County.
The gates of Gangu County were closed, and many victims with yellow faces and skinny muscles gathered outside the city. These victims were all unable to live at home and wanted to enter the city to beg, but the gates were closed and they could not enter, so they could only squat outside the city.
When they saw a carriage approaching the city gate, they all swarmed over, begging for food around the carriage.
Many similar incidents have been encountered along the way. The guards are very experienced. Without saying a word, they directly pulled out the saber around their waist.
The carriage drove to the gate of the city.
The guard stepped forward and called the door.
The head of a yamen protruded from the top of the city wall, and the yamen rushed down and shouted, "Who are you?"
The guard said: "We came from the north, and we want to spend the night here. This is our road quotation."
He took out an ultimatum from his arms and raised it at the people on the tower.
After a while, the city gate opened a crack.
The yamen's hand stretched out from the crack of the door.
The guard thought he was looking for the road citation ultimatum, so he handed it over.
Unexpectedly, the yamen pushed the text away and said angrily: "What are you doing for me? What I want is the city fee, each person is ten taels of silver, hurry up and get the money!"