A winding path made of earthen embankment.
An Old Bull was pulling a dilapidated wooden cart, creaking and groaning as it headed north.
The speed is not fast, not even much faster than a person walking.
A middle-aged man with a square face Straight Moustache sat on the front shaft of the cart.
He was leisurely swaying the gourd in his hand, taking a sip now and then, and then smacking his lips with a satisfied look.
He then grabbed a slice of meat from the wooden box beside him, dipped it in some sauce, and put it in his mouth.
"Mmm, this is enjoyable, so comfortable. The seasoning the young master provided is truly extraordinary!"
"Following the young master was the right move; otherwise, my grandson and I would probably be nothing more than withered bones by the roadside, destined to be fertilizer for the dead next year!"
The middle-aged man's name was Zhou Xing.
It was the innkeeper that Ling Yi saved in Red Maple Town.
I am forty-six years old this year.
She has excellent cooking skills.
Inside the carriage were Ling Yi and Little Ling'er.
Little Ling'er, whose full name is Zhou Ling, is Zhou Xing's granddaughter.
Ling Yi this year, but my birthday is a little older than Ling Yi's.
At this moment, Ling Yi and his group of three had been away from Red Maple Town for three days.
It's just that this Old Bull is pulling a slow cart.
In three days, they had only traveled less than a hundred miles.
The main reason is that Ling Yi isn't in a hurry.
However, the journey was not peaceful.
In the past three days, Ling Yi and his group have been robbed by more than a dozen groups of people.
More than a hundred people have died at Ling Yi's hands.
Many of these bandits were composed of transient disaster victims.
Ling Yi and his group only had one oxcart.
The amount of supplies inside the carriage was also not readily apparent.
But oxen and oxcarts were the best resources in this year of famine.
Did Ling Yi hold back?
I held back at the beginning.
The first group to rob Ling Yi and his group consisted of only a dozen or so starving refugees.
These people blocked the road begging for food.
Ling Yi didn't show up at the time; he just wanted to see how Zhou Xing and his grandson would handle the situation.
The result left Ling Yi very dissatisfied.
Seeing their pitiful state, Zhou Xing actually took out some food and shared it with these disaster victims.
In his previous life, Ling Yi spent some time in the East Coast war zone in order to kill a foreign warlord.
One thing is very clear.
When people are threatened with hunger and death, civilization and morality become cheap.
Most of them are driven by the instinct to Qiusheng.
This group of disaster victims clearly wants more.
But what happened next was completely unexpected by Ling Yi.
Zhou Xing, an ordinary person with no martial arts skills whatsoever, actually knows how to use a bow and arrow.
The moment these disaster victims turned their backs, I followed suit.
Three arrows were fired in quick succession, killing all three men with pinpoint accuracy.
When Zhou Xing pulled back the fourth arrow, the rest of the men scattered like birds and beasts.
Ling Yi never expected that this Old Zhou was not a saint; on the contrary, he was quite ruthless.
Old Zhou's explanation was: to put his mind at ease.
There must be a reason for taking action.
A reason I gave myself to convince myself.
As for Old Zhou's archery skills, he was originally a hunter.
They also made their fortune through their Hunting skills.
When they encountered more disaster victims, Ling Yi first had Zhou Xing deal with them.
Ling Yi will only intervene if he truly cannot handle the situation.
But along the way, Ling Yi actually only made two moves.
Zhou Xing's bow was made of genuine cowhide.
Moreover, Ling Yi was very satisfied with Zhou Xing's principles of doing things.
Although he may seem saintly, he is ruthless when it comes to taking action.
"Ha!" Ling Yi yawned and stepped out of the carriage.
He walked directly to Zhou Xing's side, grabbed a slice of meat from the wooden box, and put it in his mouth.
He then slowly spoke, "Didn't we encounter a single group of refugees today?"
"Yes, young master." Zhou Xing nodded.
"However, this is normal. The refugees generally head south because there is a war going on in the north, and the Northern Frontier King will soon invade North Leaf Province."
"Furthermore, the entire North Leaf Province is suffering from famine; the only way out is southward."
As he spoke, Old Zhou pointed southwest.
"It is estimated that most of the disaster victims are currently heading towards Yang City. Wang Nan Yang City, there is a valley that is the narrowest point in the entire North Ridge Mountains."
"And beyond the North Ridge Mountains lies North Leaf Province."
"In everyone's mind, there is no way to survive except outside of North Leaf Province."
Ling Yi asked, "Then do you really think there's a way to survive once we leave North Leaf Province?"
"Heh, under normal circumstances, perhaps, but now the court is corrupt and no longer cares about the lives of the people."
Local officials made their fortunes by hoarding and selling grain. Even with grain available, ordinary people couldn't afford it and couldn't afford to eat it, so they still starved to death.
After a pause, Old Zhou continued, "In fact, the grain reserves in North Leaf Province should be sufficient to cope with even three years of drought, let alone one year."
"You should know that North Leaf Province is known as the granary of Great Qian."
"It's not that North Leaf Province lacks grain, but rather that the grain is in the hands of those clan grain merchants and stewards in the grain capital."
"These people would rather store grain until it molds and rots than give it to the people."
At this point, Old Zhou sighed, a murderous glint flashing in his eyes.
He took another big gulp of wine.
Ling Yi never expected things to turn out this way.
In reality, the Great Qian was not poor.
However, land consolidation was rampant, and powerful families had long since used various means to gather the land and grain from the common people into their own hands.
Even in years of abundant harvest, a significant number of people still starved to death.
Especially in a year of great disaster.
When land annexation reaches a certain level within a dynasty, it is time for the dynasty to change.
History often unfolds in this way.
Just then, the sound of horses' hooves came from afar.
The sound of horses' hooves was rapid and fast, approaching from afar.
Soon, a dozen or so cavalrymen dressed in leather armor and carrying weapons appeared from the end of the mountain path in the distance.
Almost in the blink of an eye, they appeared in front of Ling Yi and his group.
Judging from their clothing and the weapons they carried.
They should be a regular army.
Moreover, they were not simply regular troops.
Cavalry, regardless of the dynasty, was a relatively valuable military force.
Horses were also extremely important strategic resources.
The imperial court even had laws strictly prohibiting ordinary people from privately buying and selling horses.
Otherwise, once discovered, it will be considered treason, and the entire family will be wiped out.
If you see someone riding a horse by.
Most people would simply avoid it.
Anyone who rides a horse is either a member of the imperial court or a ruthless person Ignore the court.
These people were incredibly fast, speeding right past Ling Yi and his oxcart.
A cloud of dust rose up.
Neither Ling Yi nor Zhou Xing paid any attention.
During this period, there were also quite a few cavalrymen traveling on the official roads.
Sometimes there are three or five riders, sometimes more than ten.
With the Northern Frontier King about to head south, the officials of North Leaf Province naturally wouldn't remain indifferent.
The choice is between fighting and surrendering.
Officials in various places are also actively making preparations.
After all, even if you surrender, you need to have some resources.
However, what Ling Yi and Zhou Xing did not expect was...
These cavalrymen, who had already run several hundred meters ahead, turned back.
They immediately surrounded Ling Yi and his group.
"Your oxcart has been requisitioned." The leader drew his long sword and pointed it at Ling Yi and his companions.
Before Zhou Xing and Ling Yi could say anything, the pupils of one of the people next to this man shrank slightly.
" Captain, wait, something's wrong!"
"What's wrong?"
" Captain, oxcart, square-faced middle-aged man, five-year-old child—don't you think these people look familiar?"
Upon hearing this, the Captain frowned immediately.
Then something occurred to me.
When they looked at Ling Yi and the others again, their eyes were filled with apprehension.
"Are you that young Master?" the Captain asked, looking at Ling Yi.