hame upon themselves; more importantly, it would leave a bad impression on those powerful figures. After all, it would make it much harder to pass the martial arts examination in the future. Serious...The first to speak up and beg for food was a woman holding a child. She was thin and frail, her face covered with something that obscured her features. All you could see were her eyes, filled with desperation.

The child in her arms was listless and pale, possibly sick or hungry. There were a few slightly older ones around her, their faces turned up with blank expressions, yet hiding a thread of anticipation.

Xu Huaiyi tightened the reins of his horse and spoke politely, "Sister-in-law, we don't have any food ourselves. I apologize, but you should try asking someone else..."

The other party clearly didn't believe her. With a mule cart, he couldn't be an ordinary peasant. Even though Xu Huaiyi's clothes had patches on them, she assumed he might be a cart driver and pleaded again, "Sir, please have mercy, spare us, the orphans and widowed mother..."

“As she spoke, she knelt down holding the child, her face full of despair, ‘There’s no food left, my little son won’t be able to survive. Please, sir, consider this an act of kindness… ”

Xu Huaiyi wavered, his hand touching the bundle beside him. Before going out, he had brought some steamed buns and pickled vegetables from home to eat on the way. However, looking at more and more people gathering around, he forced himself to calm down in an instant.

"I'm sorry, we have no food. If you go a few more steps forward, to Qingzhou, there will be people giving out porridge..."

However, these words were not enough to persuade them.

At this time, Village Head Xu was helped down from the carriage by his eldest son and bowed to the people around him. “Fellow villagers, I am the village head of this nearby village. To be frank, we are here to inquire about the situation and also to prepare to bring our villagers to Qingzhou to beg for food. It hasn’t rained in our place since the beginning of the year, both harvests have been poor, and we've been starving for a long time. This mule is the only livestock in our village. We are not wealthy at all, and even we don’t have enough to eat. If you don't believe me, just take a look inside the carriage...”

When he said that, some people actually went into the carriage to check. Sure enough, there were only a few people inside, and it was completely empty, with nothing else. That's when they believed him.

"Uncle Gao also stepped forward, bowing with his fists clasped, "Please make way for me..."

Some people walked away in disappointment, continuing their journey, while others remained on the sidelines watching. Some even grumbled resentfully, "There's no food! You big guys, could you at least give us a few coins"

If you can afford a horse-drawn cart, your family must be quite well-off.

When one person started shouting like that, others chimed in.

"Yeah, no food here. Money works too."

"Let's not ask for too much, just a few coins will do."

"Gentlemen, please..."

Seeing this, Village Chief Xu's face turned pale. This expression, this posture, could it be that he was about to spend a fortune to avoid disaster

Xu Changsong was even more frightened, his body trembling. He instinctively took a step back, leaning against the carriage wall, pointing at the people surrounding him, his voice trembling with fear and urgency, "You, you..."

Is this a robbery

The people surrounding me didn't lay a hand on me, but they just wouldn't leave. This kind of soft-edged pressure, it hurts just as much, and it leaves you feeling helpless.

We can't just turn our backs on each other, can we

They want to turn against us, and even if they had the guts, they wouldn't stand a chance.

When two powers are balanced, choose the lighter one. As Village Chief Xu was about to reach into his sleeve, Xu Huaiyi suddenly shouted loudly, "Uncle Village Chief, Uncle Gao, please get in the car."

"...With righteousness..."

Xu Zhuang also wanted to say something more, but was stopped by Gao Ershu, "Listen to Huaiyi."

As soon as they entered the carriage and hadn't even sat down, a whooshing sound echoed through the air. Everyone in the carriage felt a shiver run down their spines—it was the sound of a drawn sword!

Next came Xu Huaiyi's cold shout, "They are all poor people begging for food. You guys are so aggressive. Don't blame me for being impolite! I'll count to three. If you don't want to die, get out of my way! Otherwise, you'll be responsible for the consequences!"

At this moment, his demeanor changed drastically.

People around instinctively tensed up.

He started counting expressionlessly, "One, two, three, drive..."

As the last word fell, the car suddenly surged forward. Shrieks and gasps erupted around them. Passengers inside gripped the handrails, their faces pale with terror.

Not until he had run a considerable distance, and saw that no one was pursuing him, did he breathe freely.

Xu Changsong said in a trembling voice, "Just now, if we hadn't rushed out, they...would they have really dared to snatch it In broad daylight, how could they..."

"With a hungry man, reason gets you nowhere," Gao'er Shu said with a stoic face.

Liu Daboz wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and said with lingering fear, "It was too scary. I thought this time I had to empty my pockets to save my life..."

Xu, the village chief, was the most composed. With a complex expression, he said, “Thanks to Huaiyi…”

Thanks to his quick thinking and courage, he managed to escape those refugees who would have otherwise harassed him relentlessly. He definitely wouldn't have gotten away unscathed.

Xu Maoyuan then timidly asked, "When we rushed past just now, did the mule trample anyone"

"Hmph," the second uncle said angrily, "They deserved it for stepping on it."

Xu Mao yuan sighed and skipped over the topic, turning instead to ask, "Us... are we still going towards Qingzhou City"

Upon hearing this, the others all turned to look at Village Head Xu, waiting for him to make a decision.

Xu Chang's expression was contemplative for a moment. He opened the car window slightly, leaned out, and asked, "Huaiyi, do you think we still need to continue moving forward"

Xu Huaiyi had already heard their conversation. Upon hearing this, he calmly said, "We've finally come here after so much effort, why not just go take a look."

The experiences on the road are just a glimpse, even if I have only gone through those things.

Children, their stimulation isn't deep enough. Perhaps when they reach the city gate, that will be the last straw that breaks them.

Two hours later, Qingzhou City arrived.

Qingzhou City is one of the most important cities in the north. It has been prosperous and thriving since ancient times. The city walls are tall and majestic. From afar, they appear imposing; up close, their heavy weight presses down on you.

At this moment, the majestic city gate stands firmly closed.

Not far from the city gate, several makeshift sheds had been erected. At this moment, they were empty inside, but outside, a sea of people had already gathered, black and dense, enough to give anyone goosebumps.

Old and young, male and female, everyone held a bowl in their hands.

They all looked listless, waiting to receive alms.

In the distance, there were still people, some seemingly out of energy, sitting against walls or lying directly on the ground, their fates unknown. Their belongings, battered and broken, lay scattered around them, ignored by all.

Now that it's summer, if it were winter...

Such a scene would only be more tragic.

Without any support or reliance, they can only passively wait for rescue. If one day no one offers them alms again, their fate is self-evident. However, these people are clearly unwilling to think about it too much right now.

One day of work, one day's pay.

The sun was blazing, cicadas were shrieking, and Xu Huaiyi's heart felt cold.

Such a scene, in the past, was a shot in a movie, a few lines in a book. But now, it was vividly real. A stone sat heavy on his chest, and his eyes brimmed with compassion.

"Huáiyì, let's..."

"Village head, you guys go take a look. I'll be here guarding the donkey cart…"

Xu, the village head, nodded heavily.

Several people dared not separate, keeping each other company. They also encouraged each other to walk towards the refugee-heavy areas. After looking and asking, they could only resign themselves to their fate. (The End)t I'm not tall enough to stand. My birth is there. It takes time and effort to climb up. It's better to be honest."Upon hearing this, Li Yunting fell silent for a moment before saying, "I think even i...