The weak scholar in the end of ancient times

Chapter 58 Who is in Charge?

Shiqiao Village.

The gray-haired patriarch sat there with a look of pain on his face.

He was surrounded by people, chattering non-stop, making his head spin.

The few people who brought water to exchange for food ate and listened to the news, and then came back with a fierce attack.

Everyone was stunned after hearing this, and then they were in an uproar.

"Chief, we must make a choice! If we continue like this, we will either commit suicide or rob!"

"That's it!"

"Why don't we flee to the Zhao clan too? Maybe we can farm there. I want to farm and raise chickens and live a stable life."

"That's it!"

"Even if I can sell my labor in exchange for food, I'm starving!"

"At once……"

"Enough!" the patriarch roared.

The surroundings were quiet, and everyone stared at the patriarch.

But the patriarch looked confused and remained silent.

The coaxing continued, even louder than before.

"How about we send a few people out to explore the way? This is dangerous. I'll go first!"

"Count me in too!"

"You just went to eat porridge, it's my turn now!"

Since staying here means waiting to die anyway, it is better to escape with the refugees to seek a way to survive and reduce the burden on the family.

Watching the teams passing by in the south, they had actually thought about it a long time ago, but they were timid and afraid.

Leaving home is not an easy thing for them.

Because of the lack of information, I don’t know what’s going on outside, so I’m even more afraid to go out.

If they were not forced into a corner, they would not have shown up when they saw Wen Gu and his group.

The patriarch of Shiqiao Village touched his increasingly thinning hair, and his face looked even more haggard.

"Shut up!!"

The patriarch roared again.

When things quieted down, without waiting for anyone else to speak, he pointed at a few of them and asked questions.

They were the ones who brought the water to exchange. They chatted with Xiao Liu and others for a long time and learned a lot of things.

"How many people from that team survived along the way?" asked the patriarch.

"Some were attacked in the wild, some fell ill, and some came across other large cities along the way and stayed there. Out of ten, maybe seven or eight can still survive."

"Live this long?"

The patriarch thought about the stories passed down from generation to generation.

They fled on their own. Of the two hundred people in the village, if they fled closer, maybe fifty or sixty would be left. If they ran farther, maybe only twenty or thirty would survive. This was still a good situation. If the situation was worse, it was possible that no one would survive.

You don't have to worry about being attacked by evil spirits when you go out in winter, but it's very cold in the north in winter and people can freeze to death if they go out.

I'm not afraid of the cold when the weather is warm, but the monsters outside are more terrifying.

Because they knew that the choice was very difficult, they couldn't make up their minds. Everyone in the village was the same.

When there is food, they are unwilling to leave home and live day by day. As long as they are not forced to do so, they are unwilling to leave their hometown and live one day at a time.

such a pity……

In the past, land was life, but now this "life" is long gone.

Too many people were eaten by monsters during farming because they were reluctant to leave their fields.

If they were to flee on their own, with no one to shelter them, they would have to rely on the kindness of the nobles to give them some alms. But in today's world, they really couldn't count on the help of the powerful.

Now, the people in the team outside the village said that if they went there, there would be someone to help them settle down, and they were very tempted.

As long as their energy can be exchanged for food, they are willing to do it!
It would be even better if they could farm there. As long as there is military protection, they will be willing to farm the land, and it doesn't matter if they collect more rent.

If they can sell their labor in exchange for food, they will be grateful. But the most frightening thing in this world is that after selling their labor, they will be gone and have nothing to buy in return.

"Then, let's have some people follow and see for ourselves first. We don't have to follow them all the way to Xinzhou City. We can stay if we come across a suitable place along the way..."

Before the patriarch finished speaking, there was another commotion around and people almost fought over the quota.

Eventually, a few people turned into dozens, and they clamored to increase their numbers. Of the two hundred people in the village, half squeezed out, totaling over one hundred and ten people, both men and women, mostly young and strong, and with plenty to eat.

But if you want to leave, you can't leave home immediately. You still have to make some preparations at home.

So, the chief of Shiqiao Village went to negotiate with Wen Gu in person, and vacated some houses and courtyards for Wen Gu and his group to stay for two days.

Their ancestors have lived here for generations and have built quite a lot of houses. Although many of them are now just stone and earth walls and the grass and trees have been pulled up and used as firewood, they are still okay for temporary residence.

I took out the coarse cloth I had stored along the way and built a shed. Now that there is little rain, there is no need to worry about getting wet.

Wen Gu agreed to stay for two more days. In addition to waiting for the people from Shiqiao Village, he also wanted to let his team rest.

Winter in the north is cold and dry.

Most of the people in the team are from the south and are not adapted to the autumn and winter seasons in the north.

We have been traveling continuously since leaving Jinwu City, and now we are here, so we stop and relax.

The medicinal herbs they originally brought with them had long been used up. Well, what was stored in the carriage now were the goods picked up from the deceased teams while "touching corpses" along the way.

The conditions are limited, there are not enough medicinal materials and no professional doctors. If you get sick and can't take the medicine, you will die here.

This kind of situation has happened along the way.

The good thing is that the most dangerous time has passed. As we are about to reach our destination, everyone is in a different spirit, has a better mentality, and has a strong will to survive.

After staying for two days, Wen Gu also asked the villagers of Shiqiao Village if there were any other survivors nearby. If possible, he would invite everyone to come along.

The villagers of Shiqiao Village are really happy to invite more people.

When there are fewer people, people get bullied.

This is their deep-rooted thinking.

Having more fellow villagers means you're braver, but if you encounter monsters, there's someone to take the blame!

In this era, the mobility of people is very low, and ordinary people do not have the courage to leave their homes.

But the situation forces us to do so. As long as there is someone taking the lead, we will follow the herd mentality and have courage when we have someone to rely on.

One to three, one Shiqiao Village dragged out three villages.

However, there are not many survivors in those three villages. The number of people who came out of the three villages combined is not as many as that of Shiqiao Village.

"Actually, there are still some."

A villager told Wen Gu that he knew of several villages where there should be people alive. He had encountered them while chopping wood before, but they were far away and it was inconvenient for them to look for them.

Wen Gu immediately took out a pen and paper and drew a simple map based on the information provided by the villagers.

"It's okay, let's just take a short detour, it's not far."

It has to be said that the timing of Wen Gu and his companions' arrival in the North was very clever.

These villages are close to Xinzhou, so there are no robbers. If they were really arrogant, they would have been cut down long ago.

If you dare to rob the troops heading north, the Autumn Hunting Army will not only kill the evil creatures. Anyone coming from the south, whether it is people or property, belongs to the Zhao family, and whoever robs will be killed!

The people in the remaining villages with survivors are relatively timid. They had some food reserves and have been hiding at home.

We are currently out of food and want to find another way to survive. As long as someone throws out bait, we will follow them.

As a result, the number of Wen Gu and his group, which had originally been less than a hundred after the reduction, suddenly increased to nearly three hundred.

There are survivors from other villages behind this one, and the number will definitely increase.

With a group of armed tough guys from the escort agency keeping them in check, these villagers didn't dare to do anything out of line for the time being. They just helped the team push carts, chop wood, and do odd jobs in exchange for porridge, which already made them very satisfied.

It means that they are almost at their destination, with only a few days left, so Wen Gu dared to accept so many people at once.

The villagers were extremely envious of the cattle, horses, donkeys and mules in the team.

Some people missed their donkeys that were eaten by a monster, and some people recalled someone's cow that was attacked by a monster while plowing the land, and neither the man nor the cow could come back.

I also wondered if I could find land to farm in Xinzhou.

Our ancestors have relied on the land for their livelihoods for generations, and without farming, their hearts would always wander. In the carriage, Wen Gu looked at the drawn map, and the destination was getting closer and closer.

My dear aunt and uncle, are they really what I guessed?

After taking a detour, we gathered some more villagers.

The surrounding scenery is bleak and barren as far as the eye can see.

"Look at how the surroundings have been chopped down. The tree roots have been pulled out. There's a town nearby."

"The closest place here should be Shuocheng!"

Wen Gu looked up and looked into the distance.

Shuocheng is also in Xinzhou!
"It's finally here!"

The closer you are to the finish line, the more you cannot let your guard down.

Zhou Shan and his men were on guard all around. Wen Gu's uncle didn't know what position he held within the Zhao clan, or whether he had any enemies. If so, given the chaotic world, he could cause trouble without anyone noticing.

"The soldiers are coming!"

Lin Biaotou reminded.

There were more than twenty people on horseback in front, and dozens of armed soldiers behind them.

Where there are many warriors, Zhou Shan and Lin Biaotou have to go and communicate.

The two men rode forward and took people to protect Wen Gu behind them.

The soldiers who came over were also very surprised.

At first glance, seeing so many people, I thought they were some wealthy family from the south. There were still two or three hundred people here, so when they set out, there must have been more than a thousand people!

They were also wondering why this large group arrived earlier this year than in previous years?
The hunting army has just set out.

The more people there are, the slower they move. Could it be that this group of people set out in early autumn?
It's still hot in the south in early autumn, how dare you set off?

When I got closer, I realized something was wrong.

It doesn't look like it.

There weren't enough carriages, supplies, or soldiers. The crew didn't look like those of a wealthy family; most of them looked like ordinary villagers or refugees.

Lin Biaotou and Zhou Xianwei stepped forward to talk to each other.

It was learned that these soldiers were the city defense force of Shuocheng. Unlike the hunting army, they did not need to run far and only had to patrol near Shuocheng and collect refugees.

The little leader who was speaking fixed his gaze on the horse spear of Lin Biaotou.

He just heard another person call this "Lin Biaotou".

Lin Biaotou?
The name is quite novel.

The city defense army suggested that they go to Shuocheng. Lin Biaotou and Zhou Shan only said that they would discuss it with the people in the team.

The city defense troops were not in a hurry and watched them turn their horses back.

"The one holding the horse spear just now is their leader, right? His name is Lin Biaotou."

"Maybe it's the southern way of calling it. It sounds weird."

"Perhaps the man is called Lin Biao, and he is the leader, so that's why he is called that."

They talked and laughed.

I was on patrol today and was lucky enough to encounter such a large group. I can even get credit for bringing them back.

Xinzhou was also in chaos at first, with too many people dying.

A lot of it was consumed over the past year.

We have experience now, but we don’t have enough manpower. There is still a lot to do and we are short of people everywhere.

On the other side, Lin Biaotou and Zhou Shan returned to the team and told Wen Gu the news they had just heard.

"This winter, all the towns in Xinzhou have to build defensive fortifications and there is a shortage of laborers. In addition to this, there will be a shortage of people in the future, whether it is farming or serving in the military," said Zhou Shan.

"Where is Xinzhou City?" Wen Gu asked.

"Xinzhou City is expanding and needs more people."

"It seems that there is still some food stored." Wen Gu thought thoughtfully.

The total population has been drastically reduced, but the major granaries are still there. The wealthy farmers from the south are constantly replenishing their supplies, and they will bring a lot of goods this winter.

Now the six major clans in the north are snatching people and supplies.

Zhou Shan and his friends also asked about the locations of Shuocheng and Xinzhou City.

They could have gone to Shuocheng, the southernmost city of Xinzhou, but they took a detour to pick up more surviving villagers.

"There is no need to go around Shuocheng now, let's go directly to Xinzhou City!" Wen Gu said.

"However, compared to Xinzhou City, Shuocheng is indeed closer. Let's see if anyone in the team wants to go to Shuocheng."

Some people in the team were indeed moved.

I hadn't left home in years, and this time I was forced to leave, trembling with fear along the way. Now that I had a place to stay, I didn't want to take any more risks. Knowing that I could follow these soldiers to the nearby county town, I was tempted.

Zhou Shan counted them and found that there were about seventy people.

Although the patrolling city defense troops were somewhat disappointed, they were still happy to see that there were still more than seventy people.

They didn't dare to force the teams coming from the south. Those who could come here were brave and not to be trifled with.

In the end, it all belongs to their Zhao family anyway!
They were in a good mood, and Lin Biaotou and Zhou Shan asked some more questions about Shuocheng. As long as it was not confidential, they were willing to talk more.

Shuocheng, like Jinwu City, is divided into inner and outer cities. The defensive fortifications to be built this winter are all in the outer city.

As for Xinzhou City?
It’s not clear, but Xinzhou City is expanding and is in urgent need of manpower.

After some communication, the two sides separated.

Looking at the retreating troops, the people on horseback from the city defense army said:

"The city guard asked us to keep an eye out for a scholar named Wen in the northward migration team. I forgot to ask."

"The city guard also said to focus on small groups of a few dozen people. Do you think the one that just passed by looks like one?"

"It certainly doesn't look like it."

"A scholar named Wen? Who is he? Is he a relative of the city lord? Or a relative of some important figure?"

"Who knows."

They rode back to the city and took the seventy-odd villagers back to Shuocheng to register.

The patrolmen chatted with them nearby.

At first, the villagers were afraid to speak, but as they gradually became more familiar with each other and saw Shuocheng's shadow, they started chatting.

"Why didn't you follow the leader named Lin?" someone asked.

The villagers were bewildered. "What leader is surnamed Lin?"

"That's the strong man on horseback holding a lance."

"Oh, you're asking about Lin Biaotou. He's not the leader of the team."

"No? Is that the one with the knife?"

"Not really, that's Zhou something, I heard he's a powerful figure!"

"Then who is the boss of your team?"

"He's a scholar!"

Although Immortal Qingyi is quite powerful, in their minds, this kind of immortal generally does not care about worldly things.

Therefore, they tacitly assumed that the leader of the team was the scholar riding in the carriage.

The city defense leader's heart skipped a beat: "Scholar? What's the scholar's last name?"

"Last name: Wen."

When I turned back to look for him, he had already run away.

On that day, the mayor of Shuocheng received a report from his subordinates and immediately went back to write.

First came a short message from a slave:

Young Master! Your cousin named Wen seems to have gone straight through!

He wrote another detailed letter and asked the courier to take it to Xinzhou City:

Young Master, it's not that I'm not doing my job well. It's really like what you said before, that before our cousin encountered danger, there were only about a hundred people with him. I specifically focused on the small team of dozens of people. Who knew that he would bring hundreds of people with him!
(End of this chapter)