Transmigrated into a seven-year-old child, my fate is in my own hands, not in the heavens.

The dark mass of people, all covered in dust and dressed in rags, made it impossible to tell who was who.

The officers and soldiers shouted loudly, "Move aside! Everyone, put your hands on your heads and squat down. We're checking household registrations!"

When everyone heard the soldier speak, they all squatted down, including Zhao Lian.

Zhao Lian looked up, trying to find Zhao Di and see where they were, but everyone was squatting on the ground, and all she could see was a dark mass of heads; she couldn't tell who was who!

At this moment, the soldiers noticed Zhao Lian raising her head and shouted menacingly, "Don't move! Anyone who doesn't want to get stabbed, just stay put!"

It's better to avoid trouble, so given the current situation, Zhao Lian could only shrink back.

One of the soldiers, a tall and burly man with a full beard, looked like a minor leader. He stared sharply at the crowd squatting on the ground and rode his tall horse around a few times.

He began to shout loudly: "This is the territory of Pingba County, Huangyang Prefecture. I am Zhao, the head constable of Pingba County. Who are you people and where do you come from? Quickly show me your household registration records."

The crowd began to stir, with many people taking out their bags and searching for their household registration certificates.

"Big brother, what should we do?"

A man squatting next to Zhao Lian spoke quietly to another man.

The man lowered his voice: "Let's wait for our chance, and if things don't look right, we'd better run!"

Zhao Lian's heart skipped a beat. How could these people not have household registration? Were they unregistered residents or had they committed a crime?

Thinking of this, Zhao Lian unconsciously moved to the side, trying to stay as far away from them as possible.

They said they were going to escape, so they would definitely have to find a place to run away later. Zhao Lian looked behind her and saw that there was a small empty space, which was the best escape route.

If she guessed correctly, these people would choose to escape here later. Zhao Lian was worried that in their panic, they might accidentally step on her.

The two men were retreating, looking for a suitable spot to escape, afraid of being discovered by the soldiers, but not daring to move too obviously.

A dozen or so of these officers and soldiers rode on tall horses, patrolling the area to prevent anyone from escaping.

The remaining dozen or so soldiers dismounted and began to check the household registrations separately. When they were about to reach Zhao Lian, she quickly searched for her own household registration.

Just then, a soldier shouted sternly, "You two, stop right there! Don't run! Grab them!"

Everyone immediately turned around and saw that it was the two men next to Zhao Lian who were running away in a panic.

Because there were many people squatting on the ground with their heads in their hands not far from them, blocking their way, the two men did not hesitate at all and stepped directly on these people squatting on the ground.

"what……"

Screams erupted immediately.

The soldiers' attention was immediately drawn to this, and several of them chased after them, brandishing their knives.

"No, run away!"

Seeing that things were going badly, the two men immediately ran away as fast as they could. Those who were crouching on the ground, fearing that they would be trampled, began to stand up and scatter.

"You two, stop right there, or I'll get rough!" Officer Zhao shouted.

The two men didn't stop; instead, they ran even faster.

Seeing that his shouts had no effect, Officer Zhao's face darkened, and he waved to the other officers and soldiers: "You lot, chase after them immediately and kill them without mercy!"

The soldiers responded in unison, "Yes, sir!" Then they spurred their horses and chased after the two men, brandishing their whips.

At the same time, seeing that the officers and soldiers had their attention drawn to this place, some of them also stood up and ran away.

"Oh no, someone else has escaped!" a soldier shouted, causing another commotion at the scene.

The two men who had run away earlier were caught up with by the soldiers. Without saying a word, the soldiers raised their knives, and with a swift stroke, blood spurted out, and a head rolled to the side.

"what!!!"

Everyone was shocked and terrified, gasping for breath.

The officer used his knife to lift the head, raised it high, opened his eyes wide, and shouted, "Anyone who dares to escape will suffer the same fate!!!"

Many people were so frightened that they stood frozen in place, and no one dared to move an inch.

"Ah~"

A series of shrill screams came from not far away. Some people were killed with a single blow while trying to escape, while others were slashed several times by the pursuing soldiers.

"Wow wow wow~"

Many children were so frightened that they started crying, and the adults accompanying them quickly covered their mouths, afraid that the soldiers would vent their anger on them later.

The people at the scene were stunned and dared not move.

Officer Zhao stared at the crowd, his voice stern: "Everyone, don't move. We are just checking household registrations according to the law. If anyone tries to escape, this is what will happen to them."

"Everyone, don't waste my time. My patience has its limits. Quickly bring out your household registration documents and place them on your heads."

The scene fell silent as everyone bowed their heads and placed their household registration documents above their heads.

Suddenly, a pair of official boots appeared in front of her. Zhao Lian felt someone standing in front of her. This person was covered in blood and a few drops of blood were dripping down from time to time.

It seemed that the soldiers must have killed someone just now. The stench of blood filled Zhao Lian's nostrils, and she held her breath, trying to suppress the urge to vomit.

Feeling that someone had taken the household registration book from her hand, Zhao Lian lowered her head and did not look up to check.

"You're from Lianzhou?" the voice asked, full of questions.

“That’s right! Lianzhou is experiencing a severe drought, and the imperial court has ordered us to go to Hengnan Prefecture. Sir, how far is Hengnan Prefecture from here?”

"It's still a long way! More than a thousand miles away. Take your household registration and don't linger here. Get on your way as soon as possible!" After saying that, the soldier handed the household registration back to Zhao Lian.

"Thank you, sir!"

Suddenly, another commotion arose ahead, followed by shouts: "Where did you come from? Show us your household registration! Can't you? Come with us!"

All that could be heard was someone pleading, "Official, we used to have household registration, but we accidentally lost it."

"Stop arguing! Come with us back to the county government office!"

After a half-hour delay, the inspection was finally completed. Some refugees who could not produce household registration were taken back, while others went the wrong way. The soldiers promptly pointed them in the right direction, and the rest continued on their way.

Hearing that they were allowed to pass, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, fearing that the officers and soldiers might change their minds, and began to rush off.

"Second sister, Zhaodi, where are you?"

Zhao Lian tried to find Zhao Di and Yan Guihua by calling out to them, but found it was all in vain.

The scene was chaotic and noisy. Many people were in a hurry to get on their way and no one paid any attention to her. Her own voice was also drowned out.

With so many people, she couldn't see anything. All she could see was the dark mass of people surging forward wave after wave, pushing her forward with them.

Zhao Lian was pushed along by the crowd until she arrived at the east suburbs city gate. From a distance, she could see a huge, dark mass of people gathered at the city gate.