Longzang

Chapter 2 Natural Disasters or Man-Made Calamities?
In the sixth year of the Longwu reign, at the Wei residence.

Suddenly, a commotion erupted in the courtyard as a small figure darted through the halls and around the pillars, running at breakneck speed. The steward chased after him, calling out repeatedly, "Slow down, slow down! Young master, my little darling! If you trip and fall, it'll be the death of me!"

The boy was Wei Yuan. Although he was only three years old this year, he was unusually tall. Children from farming families in the mountains are generally thin and small, so he looked taller than many seven or eight-year-old children in the town.

At this moment, the aroma of food wafted from the main hall, and Xiao Weiyuan, who was running, was caught in mid-air as if he had been caught by a fishing line, and immediately turned in a different direction.

In the main room, Wei Dashan and his two wives sat at the table, where the food was already laid out. On the table were two earthenware bowls; one held several flatbreads and brown multigrain steamed buns, while the other contained yellow multigrain porridge. On the table were four dishes: pickled beans, salted radishes, stir-fried radish shreds, and a small dish of pickled pheasant.

This is lunch at the home of Wei Dashan, a wealthy family in the county.

Little Wei Yuan was starving. He broke open a steamed bun almost as big as his head, stuffed it with chicken, and then buried his head in it, finishing it in no time. One bun wasn't enough, though; he also ate two flatbreads and a bowl of porridge before he was full. After finishing, he jumped off the stool, bowed to Wei Dashan and his two wives, and then dashed out the door.

The benevolent Wei and his two wives barely touched their food until little Wei Yuan finished eating and left the room. The third wife remarked, "Yuan'er is growing so fast! His appetite is already like an adult's, and he's so well-mannered. He's just not very talkative. If only Fourth Sister were still here..."

The second wife quickly tugged at her sleeve, and the third wife immediately realized what was happening and shut up.

Wei Yuan paused for a moment outside, then ran towards the front yard as if he hadn't heard anything. Along the way, the old women, maids, and servants he encountered all gave way and bowed to him, but from a distance, the whispers of the servants reached Wei Yuan's ears.

"The young master is growing up so fast, he eats more than an adult, it's just a pity he lost his mother."

"Keep your voice down! The master said the young master must not know about this."

"What's the big deal? Everyone knows that the Fourth Madam ran off with someone not long after giving birth to the young master. The master only said that the madam was dead, and even went through the motions of erecting a grave. But who can be fooled by that?"

Xiao Weiyuan walked without stopping, leaving the inner courtyard and arriving at the front yard. The front yard was quite noisy, with farmhands, kitchen workers, and servants coming and going.

He walked into an open space in the front yard, where some stone weights, spears, and clubs were laid out; this was usually where the guards practiced. As soon as he entered the open space, he heard whispers again.

"The young master is indeed handsome, but he doesn't look much like the master."

"Do you think it could be an illegitimate child born from the Fourth Madam and an outsider..."

"Keep your voice down!"

"What's there to be afraid of? There's no one around, who would hear us?"

Wei Yuan tried to banish the sounds from his mind, but he could hear them clearly no matter what he did. The whispering was coming from two guards ten feet away. They were far apart, and they were speaking softly, so normally no one else would have heard them, but Wei Yuan could hear them perfectly well. In fact, no matter where he stood, Wei Yuan could hear the commotion in most of the mansion.

In Wei Yuan's memory, at a certain moment when he was very young, he suddenly heard these voices, and after hearing them many times, he soon understood the meaning of most of them.

In the countryside, where people are often considered uncouth, the servants' private gossip about their masters is naturally not pleasant to hear.

Since he could understand, Wei Yuan has become increasingly silent. Although he can understand what others are saying, he doesn't understand why they say it that way.

Wei Yuan came to the stone lock as usual and picked up the ten-pound lock he often played with. But after only a few lifts, he felt an itch in his body. This itch, which seemed to seep into his bones, could only be relieved when running or carrying heavy loads. But the light stone lock in his hand was no longer enough to relieve it.

Xiao Weiyuan walked to the large stone lock not far away. This stone lock weighed fifty jin (about 25 kg) and was the heaviest stone lock that the servants used for training. Xiao Weiyuan grabbed it with both hands, and with a strong pull, the stone lock was slightly lifted off the ground.

Suddenly, Wei Youcai's voice rang out from afar: "Put it down, put it down quickly!"

Xiao Weiyuan turned his head and saw Wei Dashanren running over, saying repeatedly, "How dare you move such a big stone lock? What if you hurt your bones? I know you like playing with this, so I had someone specially make a good one for you."

As he spoke, Wei Youcai took out a small stone lock made of white marble, exquisite and weighing about a pound.

Xiao Weiyuan reluctantly accepted the jade lock.

Although the object was almost weightless in his hand, Xiao Weiyuan could feel his father's concern. So, though reluctant, he left the stone lock and pretended to play with the small jade lock.

Wei Youcai wiped Wei Yuan's sweat again; after all that fuss, he himself was drenched in sweat. He squinted and looked up at the sky, where there wasn't a cloud in the sky, and the blazing sun hung high in the air, casting its fiery heat upon the earth.

Wei Youcai told Xiao Weiyuan to go play by himself, then called the steward to his side and asked, "Is today the Beginning of Summer?"

"Master, yesterday was the beginning of summer."

Wei Dashan frowned and asked, "Is it already the Beginning of Summer? How are things in the fields?"

The steward, with a bitter face, said, "The crops were just about to ripen, but there was only one rain in the past two months, so they can't survive! Now the fields near the mountain have all failed, while those near the river are a little better off. But drawing water from the river is a life-threatening job; two people have already died from exhaustion in the village down below!"

"Prepare the donkey, let's go check out the village."

A moment later, Wei the Benevolent, accompanied by his steward and a servant, headed towards the valley entrance. It was only eight li from Wei's residence to the valley entrance; beyond that was Xiahe Village, bordering the Tong River and boasting the best farmland in the entire county. If it didn't rain soon, Xiahe Village would likely be the only village in the entire Ye County to have a harvest.

Stepping out of the house, a bright yellow expanse immediately comes into view.

The fields are yellow, the roads are yellow, the trees are yellow, the mountains are yellow, even the wind is yellow.

Looking around, only the ancient tree behind the Wei family's courtyard remained lush and green, becoming the only patch of green in this place. In fact, if it weren't for the servants guarding it day and night, this big tree would have been bare long ago: the bark could be peeled off in just one night.

Suddenly a gust of wind came, stirring up a hazy yellow dust that covered Wei Youcai's face.

Wei Youcai spat several times before he could clear the dirt from his mouth. He wiped his face, jumped off the donkey, walked to the fields on both sides of the road, and dug hard in the fields. All he dug out was dry soil, and the rice seedlings on the ridges had all withered.

Wei Youcai supported himself on his knees and struggled to his feet. The butler quickly came over to help him up.

Wei Youcai took a few breaths and asked, "How are things at the tenants' homes?"

"Master, the year before last it was just a bit hot, but last year there was hardly any rain, the harvest was poor, and the court didn't reduce taxes. Every household not only ate all their stored grain, but also owed us some. This year it looks like there will most likely be no harvest at all, but our family's stored grain is also running low, and I'm afraid people will die..."

Wei Youcai's face was grim. He said, "If we don't provide disaster relief now, it will be too late. Is there any news from the county?"

The steward said, "A few days ago, I went to the county government to see Clerk Zhao. He said there was no news of disaster relief from above, and that several taxes would be added this year. They seem to be called something like the Infantry Tax, the Barbarian Expedition Tax, and the Cattle Tax."

"What, a cattle tax?" Wei Dashanren picked at his ear.

"Cattle tax." The second steward nodded. He had confirmed it with the clerk several times before.

Wei Youcai asked in surprise, "Have you ever had cattle in our county?"

The second steward said, "I haven't heard of any cattle for at least the past few decades."

In fact, not only Ye County, but Fengyuan County has never had cattle since ancient times. This area is adjacent to the southern mountains, with a unique climate that makes it difficult for oxen to survive. Farming is done using a type of mule that resembles a donkey but is slightly smaller. Not to mention Fengyuan County, in the entire state of Ji, only two or three out of ten places have cattle, unlike the northern states where oxen are abundant.

"If there are no cattle, why levy a cattle tax?"

The second steward glanced at Wei Dashan's expression and whispered, "The advisor said that even without cattle, it wouldn't prevent the court from levying cattle taxes."

Wei Youcai asked with a stern face, "What exactly happened?"

"Master Zhao said that the court recently appointed a great Confucian scholar from the north, whose writings are very famous. After he arrived, he started to reform the government and proposed a method called 'equal taxation based on the number of people,' which means that taxes are levied per capita. For every fifty households, even if everyone owns a cow, they have to pay a cow tax. It is said that fishermen and boatmen also have to pay a cow tax."

Wei Youcai laughed angrily: "It's truly a bunch of demons and monsters crawling out! Can write articles? Can someone who can write articles do such a despicable thing?"

The butler added indignantly, "Maybe it's because he can write articles that he can be so unethical!"

Wei Youcai cursed a few times, then fell silent for a while before saying, "Let's go back."

"Aren't we going to Xiahe Village?"

“I’m not going. The weather is going to change soon. Go to the mountains and call Lao Liu back.”

The butler was taken aback and asked, "Should we call Sixth Master back?"

“In years of great disaster, there will definitely be refugees. Without Lao Liu, we would have to flee the famine.”

The steward's expression changed. He didn't dare to ask any more questions, and led the donkey back to the mansion under the blazing sun.

As expected, Zhao the clerk's information network was excellent. Within two days, the imperial decree to increase taxes reached the county. Ye County, being remote, received the decree last; other places received theirs half a month earlier. Immediately, public resentment boiled over everywhere, and many, seeing no way to survive, began to consider other ways to make a living.

In Yongzhou, there have never been any honest people who would willingly starve to death.

That morning, after having breakfast, Xiao Weiyuan ran towards the open space where the servants practiced. Just as he reached the edge of the open space, a pair of large hands suddenly descended from the sky and lifted him up as if he were floating on clouds.

This was a burly, bald man with a face full of scars, and a long scar on his right cheek. The man held Wei Yuan up, staring at him fiercely, his face menacing.

Xiao Weiyuan looked around and realized that his position was much higher than when he was being held by others, and he could only see the tops of everyone's heads. He was immediately overjoyed.

The bald, burly man turned Wei Yuan's small face back to face him and asked curiously, "Aren't you afraid of me?"

Xiao Weiyuan asked in confusion, "Why should I be afraid of you?" Although it was their first meeting, Weiyuan could sense that in this manor, the bald, burly man was the third person, besides Wei Youcai and the steward, who genuinely liked him. So no matter how much the bald man bared his teeth and grinned, Xiao Weiyuan only found it amusing.

The bald, burly man laughed heartily and said, "Good lad! Come on, let's go find your dad!"

The burly man carried Wei Yuan to the corner tower. Wei Youcai, now dressed in short clothes, was testing the string of a hunting bow. However, Master Wei was clearly not physically fit; he was panting heavily after only a few strokes and had to put it down.

The bald, burly man walked up to Wei Youcai and said, "Brother, I'm back!"

Wei Youcai looked up at the burly man who was a head taller than him, and then at Wei Yuan sitting quietly in the man's arms. A smile finally appeared on his tired face as he said, "Sixth Brother, it's good to see you back!"

Bald Old Six said, "On my way here, I saw a lot of refugees, all coming from the northeast. The main group is already thirty miles away, probably several thousand people, and there is a leader among them."

What is their situation now?

The bald, burly man said in a deep voice, "I sneaked in at night, and the leaders were cooking meat soup. The meat didn't taste right; it was probably human flesh."

Wei Youcai calmly said, "When people are starving, they'll eat anything. It's not surprising."

He pondered for a moment and said, "Thirty miles away, that means they'll be here the day after tomorrow. If several thousand people can come from our remote place, it seems those counties in the Northeast are practically deserted."

The burly man said, "Brother, I've brought three capable brothers, ten sets of leather armor, and three excellent bows this time. The refugees aren't moving fast; as long as we avoid the main force, it won't be difficult for us to break through. Brother, shall we flee or defend?"

The saying "When refugees pass through, not a blade of grass grows" is no joke. The hoes in the refugees' hands can be used to till the land, or they can be used to kill people. The Wei family, numbering only a few dozen, had to contend with thousands of refugees. If their home was destroyed, their entire line would be wiped out.

But unless absolutely necessary, no one wants to leave their home and become a refugee.

Wei Youcai narrowed his long, thin eyes into slits, and after a long while, he finally said, "Guard!"

Bald Old Six perked up and grinned maliciously, "Alright!"

In the remaining two days, everyone in the manor worked with all their might, raising the courtyard wall by another half foot and adding scaffolding to the weakest points.

For the next two days, wherever Wei Youcai went, he would carry little Wei Yuan in his arms. Little Wei Yuan watched the burly man take out leather armor and a powerful bow from the leather bucket, and watched as the servants picked up their weapons and put on their leather armor. Then, on the morning of the third day, little Wei Yuan ate a hearty meal with everyone.

Not long after dawn, billowing dust could be seen at the end of the road, with countless figures vaguely visible within it. Seeing this, several servants on the courtyard wall trembled.

Wei Youcai, already dressed in a martial attire, carried Wei Yuan and leisurely ascended the corner tower. He ordered a grand chair to be placed at the top, then sat down with Wei Yuan in his arms. The steward and the bald, burly man were already standing on the tower. Seeing Wei Youcai bring Wei Yuan up, they were both taken aback. The bald, burly man asked, "Brother, isn't it inappropriate to bring a child up here? What if…?"

Wei Youcai waved his hand and said, "It's alright! Yuan'er is quick to understand things and he understands everything now. It's good for him to see blood sooner rather than later."

The butler said, "Master, it's not appropriate for you to be here!"

Wei Youcai chuckled and said, "You don't need to worry about me. If the refugees destroy my house, I'll die no matter where I hide. So today I'll just sit here and watch them destroy my home and eat my flesh!"

As they spoke, the caravan of refugees drew near. The refugees were all ragged and pale, but their faces were fierce. Some carried hoes, others held pitchforks, and many had large patches of dark grime on their bodies, clearly dried blood.

There were also some women in the group, all of whom were barely clothed. Some young women were tied together with ropes, and their bodies were almost entirely covered in cloth.

Upon seeing the Wei family mansion ahead, the refugees' eyes lit up with a gleam of hope. Among the people at the front were a few dressed in local attire, pointing and gesturing at the mansion.

The butler, with his sharp eyes, recognized the men and immediately jumped up and cursed, "Isn't that Hu San? That son of a bitch! If we hadn't given him life-saving food last year, would he still be alive today?"

The steward's scolding was useless. The refugees, who had seen the mansion from afar, could no longer contain themselves and, disregarding the distance, charged in like a swarm of bees.

The shouts of the refugees were chaotic, and from afar only the sounds of killing could be heard. But Wei Yuan could hear every word clearly. Even if dozens of people shouted at the same time, Wei Yuan could distinguish them one by one and hear each word clearly.

"There's food and women inside! Brothers, kill them!"

"We're starving to death, while they're having a great time inside!"

"Slaughter all the wealthy families!!"

Seeing the refugees swarming towards them like wild beasts, Wei Yuan suddenly turned his head and asked, "Why are they trying to kill us?"

Wei Youcai said gently, "Let's see first, and we'll find out as we watch."

Before long, the refugees had rushed over the wall and were howling as they climbed up. The wall of the Wei residence was only about ten feet high; a strong person could easily leap to the top. Those who were not strong could barely climb up with the help of those around them. The servants and servants of the Wei family stood on the wall, initially afraid, but in this life-or-death situation, they all became ferocious, screaming as they swung their knives and viciously chopped at the hands and heads sticking out of the wall. Blood splattered everywhere, and fingers and palms flew all over the place.

There were simply too many refugees. Those at the back couldn't squeeze to the front, so they picked up stones from the ground and hurled them at the top of the wall. In the blink of an eye, several servants were smashed on the head, bleeding profusely, and some even fell off the wall. But those who fell gritted their teeth and climbed back up the wall, not even bothering to wipe the blood from their heads. Everyone knew that if the wall were breached, the consequences would be worse than being hacked to pieces.

The corner tower of the Wei residence was three zhang high, and three bald men, brought back by Lao Liu, were shooting arrows down from their bows. These three were clearly skilled archers, their shots fast and powerful. The steward also stood on the corner tower, several colorful flags at his feet. He waved the flags occasionally, directing the servants while observing the targets, shouting from time to time, "That tall guy in black over there is most likely the leader, shoot him!"

Under the steward's guidance, the three archers quickly shot down seven or eight fierce refugees. However, everyone was now bloodthirsty and desperately charged into the mansion, climbing over the corpses and severed limbs of their companions.

Under the steward's command, the dozens of servants and strong women of the Wei residence helped each other and managed to hold off the onslaught of the refugees, managing to defend the top of the wall. The bald, burly man patrolled back and forth, going to defend wherever there was danger, and several times he cut down the refugees who rushed onto the wall.

Wei Yuan sat in Wei Youcai's lap, quietly watching arrows pierce through people's bodies and then plunge into the ground, spraying blood. He watched the servants beside him tremble, screaming as they threw stones down. He also watched a refugee with an arrow in his stomach roll on the ground screaming, desperately grabbing the hem of a companion's trousers, but the companion, finding him in the way, turned around and chopped a sickle into his head, then continued rushing towards the mansion without looking back.

The pungent smell of blood mixed with dust surged up in waves. A servant on the courtyard wall couldn't hold back and vomited violently while hugging the wall, but in the blink of an eye, a stone hit his head. In a daze, he was pulled and thrown over the wall by the refugees, then torn and bitten until he was a bloody mess, with screams echoing continuously.

On the corner tower, Wei Youcai sat calmly, as if what he saw was not a fierce battle, but just a few children playing around. Little Wei Yuan leaned against him, as if he were leaning against an immovable mountain.

The two sides fought fiercely for the time it takes to eat a meal in the blink of an eye. The servants were all panting and wounded, and gradually the defenses began to falter. A group of refugees finally surged onto the wall and climbed the corner tower. A chaotic battle erupted on the corner tower!
A burly vagrant kicked aside the steward and charged at Wei Youcai with a sinister grin. Wei Youcai remained unfazed, rising to draw his knife. However, accustomed to a life of luxury, he moved slowly, and before he could even raise the knife, he was kicked to the chest and knocked to the ground. The man raised his wood-chopping knife, ready to chop down Wei Youcai's head!
Just as the machete was about to fall, Xiao Weiyuan's mind went blank. He grabbed a short spear from the ground and plunged it into the refugee's abdomen!
The man hadn't paid any attention to Wei Yuan because he was just a child, but he hadn't expected the spear to be so heavy. Startled and enraged, he kicked little Wei Yuan away and forcefully pulled the spear out. Blood immediately gushed from his wound, soaking little Wei Yuan.

All the strength in the man's body suddenly drained away like water, his legs gave way, and he collapsed to the ground.

Suddenly, Xiao Weiyuan rushed forward, grabbed the short spear, and snatched it back. The strong refugee felt a force that didn't belong to a child at all, and the spear was taken from him in an instant.

Xiao Weiyuan stepped forward again and thrust his spear, piercing the chest of a refugee.

The refugee, in pain, gripped the spear with one hand and struggled against Xiao Weiyuan, while groping for a woodcutter's knife with the other, ready to strike Weiyuan on the head. Xiao Weiyuan didn't even glance at the knife above his head; he simply mustered all his strength and slowly pushed the short spear into the refugee's heart.

The refugee suddenly saw Wei Yuan's eyes, his pupils unfathomable, as if concealing another world. His small face was completely calm, as if he wasn't killing anyone, but merely doing something ordinary. Looking at Wei Yuan's face, the refugee felt a chill inexplicably creep into his heart. At that moment, he breathed his last, and the short spear plunged deep into his heart with a soft thud.

At this moment, the steward and the rest of the men finally cut down all the refugees on the corner tower and threw their bodies off one by one. The refugee group was thrown into chaos and their morale was shattered.

Seeing that the refugees' morale was low, the steward immediately picked up a red flag and threw it forcefully towards the center of the refugees.

The bald, burly man fighting on the wall suddenly brightened up and grinned maliciously, "The time has finally come! Brothers, follow me and kill!"

He leaped down from the wall, knocking several refugees away upon landing, and charged straight towards the direction where the red flag had fallen. Five more servants in leather armor appeared in the courtyard; surprisingly, they hadn't participated in the previous wall defense, having instead been conserving their strength. They too jumped down from the wall, following the bald, burly man as they charged into the center of the refugees.

With a roar, the bald giant unleashed a dense crimson light around him, like a crimson torch! He slashed forward with his sword, instantly cutting three refugees in two, and then with a swift, circular motion, he cleaved seven or eight more refugees around him in half at the waist!

After a crimson light appeared on his body, the bald, burly man's every move was incredibly powerful. Leading his elite team, he moved as if through empty land, instantly slaughtering hundreds of refugees and charging to the center of the formation.

The morale of the refugees finally collapsed. It was a case of defeat like a landslide. In the blink of an eye, all the refugees scattered.

The butler finally breathed a sigh of relief, immediately slumped to the ground, and muttered, "Thank goodness they were just a rabble."

As soon as he breathed a sigh of relief, the butler felt a sharp pain all over his body. It turned out that someone had slashed his back without him noticing.

In the brief battle, hundreds of corpses of refugees lay outside the Wei family mansion, many with severed limbs, still alive but lying on the ground screaming in agony. Many of the servants on the walls were ordinary farmers who had never witnessed such a scene; some vomited while leaning against the wall, while others laughed and cried at the same time.

Wei Youcai scrambled to his feet, scooped up little Wei Yuan in his arms, and checked him for injuries. Only when he saw that little Wei Yuan had no wounds and that the blood was all from the enemy did he breathe a sigh of relief, his face turning deathly pale.

Wei Youcai patted his chest, then wiped the blood off Xiao Weiyuan's face with his sleeve.

Little Wei Yuan raised his face and asked again, "Why did they want to kill us?"

Wei Youcai picked him up and walked to the corner tower. Pointing northeast, he said, "They were originally just like us, but now they are too hungry, so they want to eat our food. But there isn't enough food, so they have to eat us to survive. If we starve and can't survive, we will have to go to other places to find food and become like them."

Wei Youcai pointed southwest again and said, "Over there, beyond these mountains, there are many people who don't look like us. Let's just call them people. Whether they're hungry or not, they'll eat us."

“These are the ones who will eat us directly.” Wei Youcai waved his hand to the north again and said, “There are many large cities in these far-off directions. The people living in the center of these large cities also eat people, but they do it in a more civilized way. But when it comes to eating people, they eat the most.”

Xiao Weiyuan listened, seemingly understanding but not quite.

Wei Youcai smiled, pointed to the sky again, and said, "If we were standing there, perhaps we would see things differently. But from where we are now..."

"...This is a cannibalistic world."

Little Wei Yuan frowned, thinking hard, and said with a frown, "Why would we eat people? People don't taste good."

Wei Youcai gestured with his hand and said, "Because there's only so much land, it can't support all these people. Whether they eat, kill, or starve to death, a number of people will die. Once enough people have died, things will calm down."

(End of this chapter)