In the early morning, a solitary tree with its skin peeled off stood in the morning breeze. The Toad Taoist priest, wrapped in a small cotton-padded jacket, shook his calves at the hem of his robe, and the human body stretched out. Lu Liangsheng woke up from his coma, and the magic power that had been emptied in his body returned a little.
The soil all around him in the morning light was still barren, and the bare mountains looked like huge graves, making him feel desolate.
The Taoist also came out from the cracks in the rocks, stretched himself, and followed the scholar's gaze to look at the huge crowd of refugees below.
“When will this end?”
Lu Liangsheng didn't say anything and woke up his master who was drowsy in winter. The Toad Taoist yawned, rubbed his blurry eyes, and watched the scholar pack up everything and lead the old donkey over.
"Go a little further."
Lu Liangsheng no longer has the ability to help here. The final solution to the Northwest refugees still depends on the court. But what he has seen in the past few days has made him a little disappointed...
When they were leading the old donkey and the Taoist priest down the hill, someone outside the city in the distance saw a figure in white clothes on the hill. They shouted, and the dark crowd around them raised their faces and stood up together like waves. The soldiers on the city wall were so scared that they clenched their weapons, thinking that the victims were going to attack the city.
On the hill, the scholar leading the old donkey stopped and looked over there.
"They..." The Taoist couldn't help but murmur, "... They're not going to rush over, are they? I told you not to be so kind, but now... "
Before he could finish his words, a figure suddenly knelt down in front of the crowd in the distance.
Then, one after another, they knelt down in a black mass.
"God in white, please save us." "I don't want to die..."
“… Don’t leave. Please ask God to give us some rain.”
"My son is dying. Please save him. He is still young and has never seen anything..."
"Don't go, Fairy in White, don't go..."
…
Countless tiny pleas came like snowflakes. Lu Liangsheng closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and exhaled.
"I really wish I were a god... Let's go."
After leaving the city, Lu Liangsheng was still not calm. On the road to the north, there were still many fleeing teams. Seeing that the scholar and the Taoist were clean, they came to beg for food.
As they traveled, they often saw looting and massacres. In years of famine, the bandits in the mountains were not spared. The "fat sheep" had all left, and they had no choice but to follow them. They killed people, looted goods, robbed women on the way, and then ran into the mountains.
Lu Liangsheng would help whenever he could when he saw someone doing this, but most of the time, what he found were bodies that had been abused.
"I've never even held a woman's hand... These people deserve to be killed!"
Sun Yingxian shouted angrily, and soon he met another group. He rushed over alone and used Taoist magic to restrain several bandits. However, before he could vent his anger, the bandits were chopped into pieces alive by the surrounding victims.
From south to north, there are incredible scenes everywhere.
As Lu Liangsheng walked along the way, the principle of natural selection and survival of the fittest described in previous books brought this corner of the world to life before him.
The setting sun hangs on the bare hilltop, and another day is about to pass.
Away from the crowded road with disaster victims, on a small path deep in the mountains, Lu Liangsheng passed by here temporarily with his old donkey. He probably couldn't bear to watch the heartbreaking scene outside any longer, so he had to choose this remote path to move forward. Fortunately, there were very few disaster victims passing by here.
In the dim light, after turning the corner ahead, several houses stood behind the dead trees and old forest, connected together like an inn.
"There's an inn in this shabby place?"
The Taoist went over to check, and soon came back, shaking his head: "No one is there, probably killed by passing bandits."
"Then let's rest inside tonight."
Lu Liangsheng said this softly, and led the old donkey towards the inn. Although his magic power had been restored, he was exhausted from the journey.
The sign with a corner burned swayed in the wind. Amid the creaking sounds, Lu Liangsheng walked past the collapsed door. Most of the furnishings inside had been smashed and scattered all over the floor. The counter was stained with blood, and the wine jar on it was broken and tilted to one side.
Since there was no one there, he used the broken tables and chairs as fuel to build a bonfire in the hall. The two intact long tables were perfect for making temporary beds.
The Toad Taoist jumped out of the cubicle, stretched out his webbed feet to warm himself by the fire, and urged the Taoist to quickly take out the supplies to cook.
Hong Lian helped to clean the long table, leaving dust everywhere. When Lu Liangsheng took the small pot over, footsteps suddenly sounded outside the door. Two pairs of men and women with two children stood at the door, looking vigilantly at the scholar and Taoist priest who had arrived earlier.
"Come in, we are here to stay for a rest as well."
Lu Liangsheng invited them in and was also looking them over. They were not from a well-off family. Their clothes were old and thin. It was cold in early winter and they were shivering from the cold standing at the door. The three children next to them looked at the Toad in his small cotton-padded jacket out of curiosity.
"Mom and Dad, look, that toad..."
The parents next to them pulled the child and signaled him with stern eyes not to talk nonsense. The two families must be familiar neighbors who fled together. At this time, they took the child and nodded carefully to Lu Liangsheng and the Taoist, and went to settle down in a corner. No matter what, having a place to shelter from the wind is always better than running outside and screaming in the cold.
Following the example of the scholar and Taoist priest over there, they lit a small fire and took out the cold dry food to roast by the fire. At this time, in the other side of the hall, a small pot was set up to boil rice porridge. Several people smelled the fragrance and their stomachs rumbled, especially the children. They couldn't help but turn their heads to look over, and saw that there were pieces of meat thrown in, and they swallowed their saliva with greed.
The sun set and it got dark outside.
In the iron pot, the porridge was boiling, and pieces of snake meat were rolling on the porridge. Lu Liangsheng scooped two bowls and gave them to the two families over there.
"We still have extra. These two bowls are for the children."
The parents on both sides didn't know what to do and didn't dare to go to pick it up. Lu Liangsheng smiled and didn't get angry. He knew that in this kind of environment, he really couldn't trust others easily. He put the two bowls of meat porridge on the ground, returned to the fire, and shared a bowl with the Taoist priest to eat from.
But a moment later, a series of footsteps were heard outside, and a voice shouted outside:
"It's right here. I saw those two families go in!"
In the inn, the two men and two women who were eating dry food in the corner trembled noticeably, and the child who was drinking porridge from a bowl shrank back to his parents in fear.
Lu Liangsheng and the Taoist exchanged a glance, then stood up and turned around. The door that was originally erected to block the wind was kicked open by someone. There were six people standing outside the door, wearing leather coats and long pants, holding swords and axes, with ferocious faces. The leader had a long sword on his back. He glanced around the inn and saw the two families, as well as the scholar, the Taoist, and the old donkey who was installing the wall.
"There are two more... Looks like we can eat donkey meat tonight."
His face was covered with fat and he smiled. While speaking, he waved his hand slightly and asked his men to block the door.
"Scholars and little Taoist priests over there, it's your bad luck today. Leave everything behind and get out of here naked."
Then, he turned his head to look at the man and woman over there, "As for you, the women and children stay behind."
The two families in the corner huddled together and shivered.
The inn became quiet, with only the crackling of the campfire and the old donkey's heavy breathing, which sounded like a series of mockery.
Over there, Lu Liangsheng stretched out his hand to hold down the Taoist who was about to rush over, and took out a few ingots of silver from his sleeve.
"My clothes won't fit you. These are the only valuable things I have on me. You may take them."
"Haha... hahahaha... you are a sensible scholar."
The bandit leader came over, looked at the silver in the other person's hand, and without any suspicion, he took it directly and tossed it in his palm: "It's not light."
Then he threw it to his men behind him for safekeeping.
The Toad Taoist priest behind the scholar saw this scene and continued to drink his meat porridge calmly.
On the side, the Taoist sneered and turned around and sat back.
The man frowned and grasped the handle of the knife behind him with his backhand.
"why are you laughing?!"
"If you dare to take his things with your own hands, you're done."