Live and Die Together
Feng Ji and his group moved very quickly. Almost as soon as Sang Ying finished arranging the abandonment of the city, the entire Jimo Residence was surrounded by Evil Cultivator.
The Evil Cultivator ignored the remaining cultivators and mortals in the city who had not been rescued by Sang Ying and her group, allowing them to quietly escape from Rizhao City.
Not only that, they openly proclaimed in the city that as long as the people of the city did not oppose them, they would not harm anyone.
They came here with only one purpose—to break into Jimo Residence and capture the Jimo Clan alive!
The commotion in the city quickly reached Sang Ying's ears. Upon hearing Feng Ji's group's plans, Fu Yinqiu and the others' expressions immediately turned ugly.
"Feng Ji is clearly trying to isolate and leave our Jimo Household helpless!" Fu Yinqiu saw through the other party's conspiracy at a glance.
The Evil Cultivator no longer target innocent cultivators and mortals, and even allow them to leave Rizhao City at will. They have turned their attention to the Jimo Household, which means that as long as those Rogue Cultivators and mortals do not oppose the Evil Cultivator, they can live peacefully.
Given this situation, who among them would be willing to stay and resist the Evil Cultivator in order to save their own lives?
Fu Yinqiu didn't want to think so negatively about people, but with a crisis looming, she dared not gamble on the kindness of others.
The housekeeper shared the same thought; in this world, people are often swayed by self-interest.
Thinking this through, he composed himself and said, "Since Feng Ji's target is Madam and Miss, and innocent people in the city will not be implicated, why don't you take Miss and leave by flying boat?"
Every Aristocratic Clan family would leave itself an escape route, and the "flying boat" mentioned by the steward was just such a case.
That small flying boat was the work of a master craftsman who had devoted half his life to it. It could only carry a dozen or twenty people, but once the flying boat took off, even Soul Leaving Stage cultivator could not shoot it down.
However, this meant that only a dozen or so members of the entire Jimo Household would survive.
Fu Yinqiu opened her mouth, knowing full well that this was the safest option at the moment, but she still couldn't agree.
Giving up Rizhao City was a result she had no choice but to accept, but she still couldn't bring herself to abandon the people in the city.
The people inside were still struggling with their decision, but outside, chaos had already broken out.
Feng Ji was truly adept at understanding people's hearts; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to so easily deceive the Jimo Renjie and their mother into working for him.
Once the rumor spread that "only the Jimo clan will be arrested, and the innocent will not be harmed," many people indeed had other ideas and even tried to persuade those around them to leave with them.
Their reasoning sounded perfectly reasonable, "Anyway, our manpower is limited, and staying here would only cause trouble for the Jimo Household. It's better to leave sooner rather than later, which would also lighten the burden on the young lady and the others!"
After hearing such words repeatedly, some ordinary people were indeed stirred up and became eager to try leaving.
Seeing this Chen Liu, who was hiding in the crowd, couldn't sit still any longer. "Do you really think those Evil Cultivators will let you go? If it weren't for the young lady leading people to rescue you, you would all be dead at the hands of those Evil Cultivators by now!"
"They're Evil Cultivator, how much of what they say is true? They say they don't want to be a burden to the young lady, then why didn't you come back when she went to save you!"
Chen Liu's words were like a sharp sword, tearing away the fig leaf of those people without any regard for the consequences.
Enraged, they saw that Chen Liu was merely a mortal and immediately retorted sarcastically, "You speak so sweetly, as if you're always thinking of the young lady's best interests. But you're just a mortal; what good can you possibly do for her by staying here?"
Chen Liu clenched her fists and bit her cheeks tightly. "I am indeed just a mortal with little use, but when I was captured by the Evil Cultivator and taken to the mine, it was Miss who saved me. Now she has saved me and my mother when the Evil Cultivator attacked. Even if I have no ability, as long as Miss doesn't mind, I will risk my life to help Miss protect Jimo Residence!"
"Yes!" Several voices suddenly rang out in agreement.
Several gaunt figures suddenly stepped out from the crowd, including cultivators and mortals. They looked different, but their resolute expressions were identical.
"Young lady saved our lives; we'll repay her with our own!"
With these people taking the lead, more and more people stepped forward.
Some of them were ordinary business families in Rizhao City, some were Rogue Cultivator who had only stayed in Rizhao City for a few years, and there were even young children as young as five or six.
"These Evil Cultivator are cunning; how can we trust their words? Rizhao City is our home; why should we hand it over to outsiders?!"
"The Jimo Clan has treated us well. We are just ordinary mortals. If we leave here, where will we find a place to stay?"
As if ignited, the crowd, which had been like a stagnant pool, instantly became lively.
Seeing this, the few people who had previously spoken up about leaving dared not argue with them anymore, and silently shrank back, hoping that everyone would forget about them soon.
But Chen Liu and the others naturally wouldn't forget their previous attitude, and they directly reported the matter to the guards. Before long, the guards drove those people out of the mansion on the grounds of disturbing the peace.
Without the protection of guards and the Jimo Residence, they dared not provoke the guards. They quickly left the area and disappeared, their whereabouts unknown.
So, before Sang Ying and Fu Yinqiu could come up with a solution, the guards knocked on their door.
"Madam, Miss, they have something they want to say to you." The guard said this with a somewhat hesitant expression.
Sang Ying and the others were unaware of what had happened, but they still followed the crowd's lead and went outside.
Outside the door stood a densely packed group of cultivators and mortals, all staring intently at Sang Ying and her companions. Then, they suddenly cried out in unison, "Madam, Eldest Miss, we are willing to live and die with Rizhao City!"
"We are willing to live and die with Rizhao City!"
Their voices were so loud that it was impossible for Fu Yinqiu not to hear them.
At that moment, Sang Ying clearly felt Fu Yinqiu's grip on her hand slowly tighten, and the pounding of her heart revealed her excitement.
In that instant, Fu Yinqiu suddenly understood why the Jimo Household loved this city so much.
Encouraged by Sang Ying's gaze, Fu Yinqiu walked step by step to the front of the crowd. "In that case, today, as the matriarch of the Jimo Household, I would like to express my gratitude for your great kindness!"
"We, the Jimo Household, are willing to live and die with Rizhao City!"
Shouts, growing louder and louder, echoed throughout the entire Rizhao City; even Feng Ji, far away, could hear the powerful cry of "To live or die together!"
Looking at the exquisite mansion belonging to the Jimo Household, he gave a sarcastic smile, "What a bunch of fools."
"In that case, ignore them and launch a full-scale attack!"