Natural disasters and man-made calamities.
In the Old era, a devastating earthquake once struck somewhere in the northwest. The recorded dead and injured numbered in the hundreds of thousands, while the missing were impossible to count.
Dozens of county towns were destroyed in an instant, and aftershocks continued for three years.
It was a time when the land was torn apart.
Society was in turmoil.
The area failed to receive effective relief, allowing cold, famine, and epidemics to claim countless more lives.
Tragic.
Tragic.
Tragic.
Back then, whenever Jiang Qiao looked through the detailed records, he would often feel depressed and remain troubled for a long time.
However.
Beyond the orthodox historical records and scientific articles.
He noticed some scattered, strange bits of information mixed into various materials. Most of them were folk rumors and tales from the countryside.
No one knew whether they were true.
But after reading enough of them, even he found that they cast a mysterious veil over the earthquake.
For example.
According to the local county annals, some unusual natural phenomena had appeared before the earthquake. Animals were often seen fleeing in panic, while the water in wells rippled without any wind.
The strangest thing was—
Although it was already the twelfth month of winter, the fruit trees had inexplicably blossomed and borne fruit out of season.
It was also around that time
that a mad Daoist of unknown origin suddenly appeared in the city.
He carried peaches and dates that should not have existed in that season. As he walked through the streets, he shouted, "Dates! Peaches!"
His behavior was bizarre.
It attracted quite a few onlookers.
Yet no one realized at the time that the mad Daoist was actually shouting, "Flee early!"
There was also a rumor that before the earthquake, a children's