Even in a famine, there's no panic; the eldest sister has stockpiled plenty of money and grain.

Upon entering the courtyard, a handsome young man with a jade-like face, dressed in a loose blue robe, leaned back in a recliner, sipping wine from a small cup in his hand.

The stench of blood had not completely dissipated from the room, but the young master seemed oblivious, drinking his wine as if nothing was amiss, while a beautiful maidservant stood beside him, obsequiously fanning him.

Master Chen glanced at it and quickly lowered his head.

"This old man greets you, young master."

"Ah."

Wang Shaoyang nodded slightly, asking without even looking up, "Did you mess things up?"

"Please forgive me, young master. The magistrate dared not speak plainly, but his men had already hinted at it to the people of Jiangjia Village. I did not expect them to fail to understand."

"idiot."

Wang Shaoyang gave a light rebuke.

"If they can't even handle such a small matter, what use are they?"

He slammed the wine cup down, and Master Chen's plump body trembled, his already bent back bending even lower.

He thought to himself, "It's just that the person in front of me said things should be done discreetly and normally, so as not to arouse suspicion."

If it weren't for this, there wouldn't be such a complicated situation now.

"Can you still work on that young lady's elders?"

Master Chen looked bitter and said, "I've had people try to find me indirectly several times, but it didn't work."

"That family must be possessed by some evil spirit. When it comes to their affairs, it's like they've seen a plague. Her uncle was sold into slavery by her and has been working for her family these days."

"Young master, how about we ask the two gentlemen to take action, tie him up, and then retrieve the household registration documents to sign the contract?"

Master Chen asked cautiously.

It's really too difficult to do this without anyone knowing.

Wang Shaoyang was also troubled. He had been in Nan'an County for more than a month, but apart from Song Shi, he had made no progress at all.

"Young master, there is a secret message."

Just as he was worrying, a guard walked in, carrying a carrier pigeon in his hands.

He took out the secret message from the bamboo tube on the pigeon's leg and respectfully handed it to Wang Shaoyang.

Wang Shaoyang took the secret letter, read its contents, and his expression darkened.

"Sir?"

Master Chen carefully observed his expression, secretly speculating about the contents of the letter.

"Is that matchmaker from last time still around?"

"Yes, yes."

Knowing he was referring to Chen Qiaojuan, Master Chen nodded hurriedly.

"Just deal with it!"

He spoke casually, crumpling the letter in his hand, his eyes filled with suppressed anger.

Slightly startled, Master Chen quickly nodded in agreement and then asked, "What about Jiangjia Village?"

"Stop now, and wait until this period is over."

Wang Shaoyang waved his hand, and although Master Chen was puzzled, he dared not stay any longer.

After Master Chen left, Wang Shaoyang summoned the guard, leaned down and whispered something in his ear. The guard nodded solemnly and turned to leave.

"Ming Yu".

Looking at the sky, his eyes were deep and bloodthirsty, and he said slowly with a slight smile, "I can't touch you in the capital, but once we get to Xuchuan, don't go back."

His voice was so low that even the maidservant who served him closely couldn't hear it.

Jiangjia Village.

After the grain was delivered, everyone got busy again, but rumors gradually began to circulate among the disaster victims.

Every now and then you could see a few disaster victims gathered together, seemingly discussing something.

The clan chief's family would occasionally summon the heads of each household to discuss matters, and what was discussed was not to be told to the family members.

The village's water supply was dwindling, and the clan chief organized people to go into the mountains to search for a water source, but there was no progress for a long time, and the villagers were becoming restless.

Ten days passed in the blink of an eye. The good news was that it rained one night, but the bad news was that the rain only lasted for fifteen minutes and then stopped. It was also late at night, and apart from Jiang Bai who heard the noise and got up to collect some water, the other villagers didn't even know that it had rained.

When I woke up in the morning, the ground was dry.

Ten days later, many of the able-bodied men in the village were emaciated and pale from hunger. After putting on the clothes they had specially exchanged with the disaster victims, they really looked like the disaster victims themselves.

"Why are you getting involved, you little brat?"

The clan chief glared at Jiang Bai, who was mixed in with the crowd, his eyes filled with anger.

“Grandpa, you know what our family situation is like. If we don’t take a chance, we won’t be able to support our siblings and me.”

"That's not your turn."

Dozens of able-bodied men in the village were gathered together and dressed in the clothes of disaster victims. Jiang Bai's small frame was hardly noticeable among them.

"I'll just follow behind and see what happens. If anything happens, I'll definitely run away."

"Grandpa, please let her go! I'll keep an eye on her."

The clan chief still disagreed, but Ji Yanwen stepped forward and persuaded him a couple of times before he reluctantly agreed.

"If what we're doing today is discovered, it'll cost you your heads. You're all heads of your own families. If you're caught by the authorities while you're doing this, don't ask anyone. Just end it yourselves. Don't cause trouble for your families or the village. Do you understand?"

Looking at the dozens of people below, the clan leader felt worried, yet also a surge of passion.

"Listen clearly."

Those who come here are people who have thought things through carefully, and whose families have not enough grain left over after paying their grain taxes to the state for six months.

Let alone this risking their lives, even if they didn't do it, judging from the disaster in Luzhou, if the drought continued, they would eventually suffer the same fate. They might as well take a gamble; if they were lucky, their whole family wouldn't have to worry about food for the rest of the year.

"Alright, everyone go your separate ways! Find a way to blend in with the disaster victims and see how much food you can carry."

The clan chief raised his hand, signaling the crowd to disperse.

The disguised young men then dispersed to the outskirts of the village.

"The news has already spread?"

Jiang Bai asked Ji Yanwen.

Ji Yanwen nodded and said, "The grain tax will be collected from the city tomorrow, and it is expected to reach that mountain valley the day after tomorrow. There are about a thousand disaster victims who have already gone there."

"Okay, let's go then!"

Jiang Bai and Ji Yanwen set off together, disguised as a disaster-stricken couple, their faces painted a waxy yellow.

Both of them were already thin, and because they were in mourning, they hadn't eaten any meat.

Dressed like this, he really does look like someone who fled from Luzhou.

We rushed as fast as we could and finally arrived at the mountain valley ahead of schedule, where a few disaster victims were scattered about.

Along both sides of the official road, the disaster victims walked towards the capital, taking one step and resting three. If you looked closely, you could see their eyes frequently glancing towards Nan'an County, their eyes filled with greedy longing.

"Will this work?"

Jiang Bai lay on the hillside, watching the disaster victims' desire to rob food written all over their faces, and couldn't help but feel annoyed.

"Don't worry, it'll be fine."

Ji Yanwen nodded confidently, looking at the disaster victims below with a dark and unfathomable expression.

The real disaster victims should be like this: when they see a team transporting food, they should be greedy, eager, and even... rushing in to grab it like crazy.

A person driven mad by hunger is devoid of reason.

The more they do this, the less likely they are to arouse suspicion from officers and soldiers.

"coming."

Jiang Bai slightly opened his eyes and looked towards the official road in Nan'an County. A long grain transport team was coming from Nan'an County, with about two hundred well-equipped soldiers following on both sides of the grain carts. Their sharp eyes were warily staring at the disaster victims on both sides of the official road.