The Year of Lihua: She Was Reborn

The food carts moved slowly forward, getting closer and closer to where the refugees gathered.

As the distance got closer, the people who had been hiding in the dilapidated and shabby huts seemed to be attracted by an invisible force and poured out from all directions, pouring towards the grain-carrying horse team like a tide.

These people were dressed in rags, their faces haggard, their eyes revealing endless longing and expectation. Among all these gazes, the most heartbreaking ones were those of the children.

Their thin bodies were squeezed in the crowd, their heads raised, gazing at the carts of food with innocent yet pitiful eyes.

Some children even couldn't help drooling, which made people feel pity.

They subconsciously covered their already shriveled stomachs with their hands, as if this could relieve the unbearable hunger.

At the same time, there was a rapid swallowing sound in the throat, as if trying to swallow all the air into the stomach to fill the emptiness.

In the extremely noisy and bustling environment, there was a pungent and unpleasant stench. Hua Ye couldn't stand the smell. She sat up straight suddenly and quickly opened her eyes to look around.

The scene before her was even more horrifying than what she had seen from afar before, and it also made people feel more sad and compassionate, so Hua Ye got off the carriage without hesitation, and Xu Zhi followed her silently.

Afterwards, Hua Ye followed the garrison troops who were transporting food to a temporary place where food was stored.

At this time, the head chef was cooking a pot of wild vegetable and tree root soup that was so thin that you could almost see your reflection in it.

When the chef saw the food trucks arriving, his frown finally relaxed...

He walked forward with a smile on his face and said, "You're finally here! If you were any later, I don't know how many more innocent people would have starved to death."

After saying this, the chef's eyes were filled with tears, and he was so excited that tears fell involuntarily. His face, which had been cracked and peeling due to long-term exposure to wind and sun, now looked even more old.

After calming down a little, the head chef raised his hand to wipe away the tears from the corners of his eyes, then grabbed a few handfuls of rice grains directly from the bag and threw them all into the pot without even sifting them.

When Hua Ye saw the scene in front of him, he couldn't help but feel a strong sense of nausea and vomiting.

She wondered to herself: What's wrong with this world? Wars rage, famines, and droughts rage. Can't we leave these poor people a way out? And how many of those officials actually make a difference?

She folded her arms helplessly across her chest, looked up at the sky, and rolled her eyes several times.

Only after she saw all the food safely inside the shed did her anxious heart finally settle down a little.

Hua Ye's gloomy and changeable eyes suddenly brightened up, as if she had found the meaning of continuing to live in this new life and was no longer depressed and worried about the man.

"Master, we should go! With these two brothers here, there shouldn't be any trouble."

She put her arm around Xuzhi and turned to leave, but ran into Zuo Nian who had just finished giving orders and was about to come over to ask for a drink of water.

"Master, do you have any water? Give me a bowl!"

The head cook looked at the large water vats that had dried up to the point where not a drop of water remained. He hesitated for a long time, his eyes red as he managed to utter one sentence: "There's no more water. This water is really..."

Hua Ye pulled off the water bag he was carrying from his waist and threw it to Zuo Nian, saying, "Major General Zuo, if you don't mind, just have a sip."

Xu Zhi's calm face turned dark at a speed visible to the naked eye, and he looked at Zuo Nian angrily with his cold almond-shaped eyes.

"Thank you so much, Miss Hua. I'm really thirsty!"

Zuo Nian didn't think twice and naturally opened the cork and started drinking, but the muscle memory in his body had not yet faded.

The anger burning in Xuzhi's eyes was getting more and more intense, and he muttered to himself: You dare to drink what she has drunk.

Hua Ye pulled Xu Zhi's arm several times, but he still didn't move. Following his gaze, she shouted softly with a guilty conscience.

"Master, Master, Master Xuzhi, it's time for us to leave..."

Seeing her calling him Xuzhi so gently, the fire in the furnace was extinguished a lot. Xuzhi nodded and said, "Let's go!"

Xuzhi stretched out his left hand, clasped her right hand with his ten fingers, pulled her into his arms, and walked out shoulder to shoulder with her, jumping over Zuo Nian.

Zuo Nian was left with an innocent look on his face, looking up and down at their departing backs, muttering to himself: This man is a little too jealous!