Armed with a machete and a gun, armed with a system, they fled the famine.

Yang Sanlang felt slightly disappointed, but he was not discouraged.

There is ample time.

He will definitely win his wife's heart.

Yuan Gang and Yang Sanlang quickly set up two tents, while Zhao Yan and her daughter Tian Xiu'e busied themselves preparing dinner for everyone.

Meanwhile, Zhao Xiaomi, Yuan Tianbao, and several other children were being looked after by Yuan Yutang and Chen An, waiting around the fire for the sweet potatoes to roast.

While everyone here was enjoying themselves, on the hillside opposite the grove, a group of disheveled refugees lay in ambush behind the bushes, their eyes gleaming as they watched the plump horses below.

I haven't had normal meat in a long time, I really miss that taste.

There were about twenty of them, all refugees who had traveled from the south, mostly adult men and teenagers, with only three women.

The leader was a man with a frail appearance and wearing a cloth turban, named He Wenchang.

He stared at the other side for a full quarter of an hour. Just when the others were about to lose patience, he looked away and slowly said to them, "The two men on the other side are agile and skilled. They look like they've been trained in martial arts. We can't just take them by force; we'll have to outsmart them."

Someone whispered, "Brother Chang, whatever you say, we'll do."

Others echoed.

"Yes, yes, we'll do whatever you tell us to do."

"I'll do anything you ask, as long as I can have enough to eat."

He Wenchang glanced at the remaining people from Hejia Village and felt a sense of gloom.

The entire Hejia Village fled north from their hometown, hoping that the local government in Qingzhou would be willing to accept them, these refugees from the south.

Little did anyone expect that after two or three years of drought, Qingzhou would suddenly experience ten days of torrential rain, causing some dikes to breach and resulting in floods.

The local people of Qingzhou were unable to make ends meet and faced the same fate of fleeing.

The local government not only refused to accept these refugees from the south, but also kept the city gates closed, forbidding them from entering the city.

Unable to enter the city, they had no choice but to continue north along the official road.

When passing through Fan County, north of Qingzhou, a severe earthquake occurred, killing most of the county's population. Many people also died in the earthquake in Hejia Village.

Later, a terrible plague broke out in Fan County, just as terrible as the plague in the south.

The remaining villagers of Hejia Village hastily buried their loved ones and continued their journey towards Yizhou with heavy steps.

On the way, the villagers of Hejia Village were robbed and killed by other refugees, and many more died.

No one, including the elderly and children, survived; they all died on the way to escape the famine.

They starved to death, died of disease, were killed by refugees, and some girls were even handed over to other refugees by their own relatives... They even resorted to cannibalism.

They endured such cruel realities in order to survive.

Working day and night, they barely escaped with their lives before finally reaching Wei County in Yizhou.

What's infuriating is that the magistrate of Wei County was just as despicable.

Although he did not prohibit refugees from entering the city, he heavily guarded the city gates.

Do you want to go into the city?

Yes, but you'll need to pay a five-tael silver entrance fee first.

Five taels per person, so more than twenty people would be more than one hundred taels.

Even if they added up all their money, they still wouldn't have enough for ten taels of silver.

He Wenchang raised his hand to signal the villagers to be quiet, and then lowered his voice to instruct them: "I'll take two people down to scout out their strength first. Don't act rashly unless absolutely necessary. They have women and children on their side, so they might take pity on us and give us some food."

However, the next second, he suddenly narrowed his eyes, his gaze turning ruthless and merciless.

"If the other party doesn't cooperate, just watch my hand gestures."

"Women, children, and food—we want them all."

They had no other way to survive.

Everyone else wore sinister smiles.

"Okay, we'll wait for your news."

He Wenchang selected two quick-witted teenagers, concealed his gloomy aura, and led them towards the grove across the street.

While talking to Tian Xiue, Zhao Yan added some firewood to the stone stove.

Suddenly, she felt an unfriendly aura surrounding her.

Before she could figure out what was going on, Yang Sanlang had already drawn his knife and stood in front of her, shouting sternly at the other side, "Come out!"

Yuan Yutang hurriedly pushed the children into the carriage, and he and Chen An stood guard on either side of the carriage.

"Sister Tian, ​​you should go and stay in the carriage too."

Zhao Yan whispered something to Tian Xiue, took out a machete from her basket, and stood behind Yang Sanlang.

"Okay, be careful."

Knowing that this was not the time for Tian Xiu'e to show off, she obediently climbed into the carriage and squeezed herself inside as well.

At this moment, He Wenchang walked over from the opposite side with two teenagers.

"Everyone, I'm so sorry, we have no choice. We haven't eaten for several days. Could you please give us some food? If not, we can buy it with our own money."

He was dressed in patched clothes, his lips were dry and brittle, his cheeks were thin, and his eyes were timid, as if he really had only come to beg for a bite to eat.

The two boys behind him suddenly knelt down with a "plop" and kept kowtowing to Zhao Yan and the others.

"Please, please give us some food, please..."

"We only need a little bit, really just a little bit."

His exposed skin was so thin and bony that it was clear he hadn't eaten properly in a long time.

However, Yang Sanlang and Zhao Yan remained wary and unmoved.

Yang Sanlang stared intently at the slender man two meters away with his dark eyes, his voice cold and rational.

"We don't eat much either, we're sorry we can't help you, please leave."

"We can buy it, just a little bit."

With a pleading look in his eyes, He Wenchang hurriedly took out a piece of silver from his chest and handed it to Yang Sanlang.

"I only have this much silver, you can give me whatever you think is appropriate."

The other two boys exchanged a glance, got up from the ground, took out all the copper coins they had, and handed them to Zhao Yan and Yuan Gang with both hands.

"Money, here's your money, please sell us some food, we're starving..."

Zhao Yan disliked being touched by strangers, and with a cold expression, she took two steps back.

"No need, we have no food. Please leave immediately."

A fierce glint flashed in the eyes of the boy on the right, but he quickly lowered his gaze to conceal it.

Zhao Yan witnessed this scene.

A cold glint instantly appeared in her eyes, and the dagger, sharp enough to cut through iron like mud, suddenly appeared in her left palm.

Having been refused time and again, under normal circumstances, He Wenchang would have already ordered the villagers to rush up and rob him like thugs.

However, he was now wary of the person in front of him's strength and dared not make any rash moves.

His face showed a miserable and helpless expression. He hesitantly withdrew his arm, and his tone also became low.

"...Okay, since there isn't one, then I won't bother you any longer."

He clasped his hands in greeting to Yang Sanlang and the others, then gave a wink to the two teenagers. The three of them, with their hunched backs, staggered away.