After transmigrating, I became a stepmother.

As Lian'er and her companions recounted their story, a poignant tale unfolded before everyone's eyes.

In years of famine, corpses lay everywhere. Some cut off their own flesh to feed their children, while others exchanged their children to eat. Humanity was on full display at that moment!

Lian'er and her family originally lived in a relatively wealthy village. At the beginning of the famine, the local officials assured them that the imperial court would provide food relief, and that the government office also had surplus grain, which would be distributed to the disaster victims when all else failed.

Under such persuasion, no one had any doubts. Although they were eating less and less, they still obediently waited for the official rescue to arrive.

It wasn't until a clerk working in the county government accidentally discovered that the county magistrate's family hadn't gone back to visit relatives, but had instead fled with their gold, silver, and valuables that the news spread quickly.

Only then did everyone realize that the grain in the government office had long been sold by the county magistrate, who then used the money to send it to his family.

The so-called imperial relief would never materialize, because the county magistrate, for the sake of his own political achievements, simply did not report the extent of the disaster to his superiors.

The food they had been eagerly awaiting would never arrive. Looking at the empty rice jars in their homes, everyone fell into deep despair!

Soon, people went to the government office to complain. The magistrate knew he couldn't escape the blame for his poor governance, so he let the people rush into the government office and loot it. Naturally, he returned empty-handed!

The crowd was enraged, and their behavior inevitably spiraled out of control. In the chaos, someone knocked down the magistrate, and someone attacked him. By the time everyone came to their senses, the magistrate was already dead.

This really blows things up. In the chaos, nobody noticed who did it, and now nobody knows how to take responsibility!

Moreover, the most pressing issue was the lack of food; everyone was about to starve. After discussing it, the group decided to keep the matter a secret and flee.

Lian'er and her family lived nearby and had a good relationship, so they naturally traveled together.

Unfortunately, the days of fleeing were not easy. Their parents starved to death on the way because they left the little food they had left for them.

The group could only suppress their grief and bury the old man's body before continuing their escape.

When they fled here, they happened to come across a wealthy family, and the group had a wicked thought. Since they weren't exactly clean people anyway, they decided to go all the way!

Taking advantage of the family's sympathy, Lian'er successfully secured a chance to travel with them. She then drugged their food, working from the inside! Not only were the poor family robbed of all their money, but they also lost their lives!

Having tasted success, the group became unstoppable. Because the place was remote and frequented mostly long-distance travelers, it provided them with convenience.

According to their confession, Gu Liunian and his group were their thirteenth target!

Upon hearing this number, everyone felt a chill run down their spines! It meant that at least thirteen lives, or even more, had been lost at their hands!

How terrible this is!

Looking at these people again, especially the pitiful Lian'er girl who had previously appeared, her face had become ferocious. There was no longer any fear in her eyes, only ruthlessness!

"Brother Gu, thank you so much for today! Otherwise, I'm afraid I would have lost my life here! From now on, my life is yours!" Jing Xing, who had been teasing and mocking Gu Liunian earlier, solemnly promised Gu Liunian.

Before Gu Liunian could react, the others chimed in, "Yes, yes, thank you so much, Brother Gu! Otherwise, we would probably be in grave danger!"