Misty Rain of the Old Times

Turning her gaze away, the little princess said with a hint of self-deprecation, "It was a year of drought and famine, and the people were suffering terribly. A few strokes of the pen have captured the full extent of human hardship. Alas, I have never personally experienced the suffering of the people, so what right do I have to express my feelings? I hope my husband will forgive my sentiments."

“My dear wife, there’s no need for that. We are both ordinary people. Although we don’t have the grand ambition to save the world, as long as we don’t rub salt into the wound, that’s enough. Try to be happy behind closed doors. Thinking too much is exhausting. Think more about the baby in your belly,” Chen Xuan gently embraced her and comforted her.

She forced a smile, nodded slightly, and stopped looking at the empty, lifeless village.

A long silence followed. The carriage traveled slowly along the bumpy dirt road until the village disappeared from sight, at which point the little princess gradually calmed down.

She thought to herself that the stories she had written in the past were too far-fetched and completely detached from reality. Upon closer examination, they lacked any soul. She needed to make up for this in the future and knew she should travel more.

At noon, they traveled overland for dozens of miles, passing through several villages, almost all of which were deserted and empty, until a small town appeared ahead.

The carriage gradually came to a stop, and Xia Mei reported from outside: "Master, the road ahead is blocked."

Upon hearing this, Chen Xuan got up, lifted the carriage curtain, and went outside. Standing at the front of the carriage, he glanced around, pursed his lips, and said, "Didn't we say to stay as far away from towns as possible?"

The town ahead was filled with refugees, a massive crowd of tens of thousands, blocking the road into the town.

The refugees were all kept outside the town. It was hard to find any shelters to keep out the wind and rain. With no rain for a long time, they probably wouldn't need them anyway. People didn't have the energy to build shelters. Under the scorching sun, they sat on the ground in groups of three or five, their faces sallow and thin, their eyes numb and lifeless. Few people spoke, unwilling to waste their precious energy. The scene was depressing to watch.

Government officials would walk among the refugees to inspect them. If they found someone dead, they would have them loaded onto an oxcart. The cart would be piled high with corpses, and once it was full, it would be taken directly to a mass grave. It is estimated that they would not be buried but simply dumped.

Upon seeing this, Chen Xuan thought to himself, "No wonder the villages along the way were all empty; they had all gathered in the towns seeking a chance to survive."

"Please forgive me, sir," Xia Mei quickly bowed her head and apologized, without making any excuses for herself. If things were not done well, it was dereliction of duty, and any excuse was because she had not done a good job.

They understood that she had definitely tried her best to avoid towns, but this was an unavoidable route, otherwise they would have no way to travel through the wilderness. They had several carriages, were they supposed to carry them all? Although they didn't have Chen Xuan's skills, it wasn't impossible, it was just a bit troublesome.

Chen Xuan waved his hand dismissively, saying, "It's alright, Aunt Mei, there's no need for that. We'll just go around it."

Seeing that he wasn't angry, Xia Mei felt annoyed that she hadn't handled things well. She hesitated for a moment and then asked, "Master, it's lunchtime. Shall we go into town to get something to eat?"

The refugees blocked the way, but it wasn't that they couldn't get in; it just made things a little more complicated.

Shaking his head, Chen Xuan looked around and said, "No need, let's go around this way. We can cook over this town and start a fire in the wild. We all have ingredients and cooking utensils with us anyway. I'll lead the way."

Although Chen Xuan didn't consider himself a good person, the area outside the town was full of starving refugees, and he worried that he wouldn't be able to eat in the town. So he decided to bury his head in the sand and pretend that nothing had happened since he hadn't seen them.

Just as they were about to get started and lead everyone around the town, a gong suddenly sounded, and they instinctively looked in the direction of the sound.

Just then, the town gate slowly opened, and coffins escorted cart after cart of large wooden barrels out. From a distance, Chen Xuan could tell that the barrels contained food, but it was definitely not anything delicious.

Just as he expected, when the gong rang, the disaster victims, who had seemed numb and waiting to die, seemed to hear heavenly music. One by one, they staggered to their feet and gathered at the gate. Chen Xuan used an inappropriate metaphor to describe the scene: they looked like a group of zombies, or a pack of hungry wolves smelling blood.

Seeing this scene, Chen Xuan managed a forced smile, a rare occurrence. It seemed that the Rongguo government wasn't entirely inactive; at least they hadn't turned a blind eye and let all the disaster victims starve to death. He just wondered what was happening in other places and how long they could keep in check.

The disaster victims surged forward, and the officials shouted and cursed, their whips lashing out loudly, forcing people to line up obediently. However, the whips rarely actually struck the victims; otherwise, some of the starving victims, barely clinging to life, might never have been able to get up again.

"Sir, please have mercy! Give us some more food. My grandson is not even a month old yet, and my daughter-in-law has no breast milk. Please, sir, have mercy!"

"My turn, my turn! Grandpa, don't let my dark appearance fool you, I'm quite handsome after a wash. Just give me a bite to eat, and I'll be yours, I'll do anything for you."

"Does your household need any servants? My daughter and son are both very clever; take as much as you need, just one liter of grain."

"..."

"Go away, go away! One bowl for everyone. Nobody has any extra. We're barely making ends meet at home, where would we get extra food to feed our mouths? Hurry up and take your bowls, or I'll stab you in the back if you delay the distribution of porridge."

Amid the noise, hundreds of wooden buckets the size of tables were lined up, and refugees held their containers, some in bowls, some in bamboo tubes, some made of leaves, and some simply held them in their hands.

Someone was keeping a close eye on the refugees to prevent them from queuing up again and trying to slip through the cracks.

Chen Xuan glanced at the food in the wooden buckets from afar. It was called porridge, but it was hard to see any rice grains. It was not the kind of porridge that could be seen clearly. Instead, it was very sticky and looked mushy. The color was really not flattering.

In those porridges, Chen Xuan saw powder made from grass roots, tree bark, and leaves, with grain making up less than 10%, which is why it looked thick. But it was indeed edible, though whether it was hard to swallow was another matter. The disaster victims were in such a state that they didn't care about that; they were wolfing it down, almost gnawing on the bowls.

On the low city wall, several officials stood there witnessing the disaster relief scene. The leader had a smile on his face, very satisfied with the scene, as if he had done a great deed. In fact, the disaster victims who received the food all looked in their direction and thanked them profusely.

However, a young official standing nearby seemed to have a hard time. He was clearly a serious student, the kind who was very bookish. He looked at the disaster victims, opened his mouth, and then looked at the leading official, saying, "Sir, this is not right. There is still plenty of relief grain from the imperial court in the warehouse, but you are feeding them this. It is probably just powder made from tree bark and leaves. Isn't this treating human lives like dirt?"

He ultimately didn't dare to voice his true feelings, suspecting that his superior was corrupt and embezzling funds, refusing to provide food to the disaster victims despite having it. It's hard for anyone not to think in that direction.

However, his supposedly righteous and outspoken words were met with a barrage of angry words from Shangguan. Not only did Shangguan kick him hard, but he also pointed at his nose and glared at him, saying, "You brat, what do you know? You've only been to school for a few days and you already don't know who you are? If it weren't for your good relationship with your father, who begged me to give you a job, you wouldn't even be able to eat shit while it's still warm, and now you're lecturing me?"

The young man, probably inexperienced in the harsh realities of life, was too proud to admit his mistake and stubbornly retorted, "Am I wrong?"

The result was a few more kicks in return, and even after being kicked to the ground, he still looked defiant.

The leading official didn't even bother to look at him, and sneered, "You son of a bitch, you don't understand and you still won't admit it? Get the hell away from me! This is a law explicitly stipulated by the imperial court. It's an astonishing wisdom that came from the Jing Kingdom. Don't you understand that disaster victims aren't human? As long as they don't die from hunger and are just clinging to life, that's considered effective disaster relief. Otherwise, how could more grain be enough to eat? Otherwise, why do you think there haven't been large-scale starvation deaths since last year's drought? It's all because of this astonishing wisdom. Think about it yourself, in the history books, in every drought like this, nine out of ten households died. But now, at least most people are still alive!"

"You son of a bitch, aren't you supposed to be a scholar? Did you really waste your time studying? Haven't you heard about the astonishing remarks made by last year's top scholar from Jing Kingdom during the imperial examination? Because his brilliant strategies led to disaster relief that saved countless lives, His Majesty has already appointed him as Vice Minister of Revenue and even enshrined his name in the Confucian Temple. If that top scholar were willing to join our Rong Kingdom, he could immediately take office, and it wouldn't be impossible for him to become Minister of Revenue. As the saying goes, 'A thousand soldiers are easy to find, but a general is hard to come by.' That's the kind of great talent His Majesty needs to govern the world. Unfortunately, he's from Jing Kingdom, unlike you, you dog, who dares to spout nonsense and criticize me. What the hell are you studying?"

The official grew angrier as he spoke, and kicked the young man several more times. Fortunately, he was pulled away, otherwise he would have wanted to kick him to death. He was probably also feeling disappointed in the young man.

Chen Xuan, who saw this scene from afar, couldn't help but be stunned for a moment, and smiled to himself, realizing that Xiao Gao was involved.

Unexpectedly, Rongguo actually learned his disaster relief method from the imperial examination, and the effect seems to be quite good. He even took it upon himself to appoint a high-ranking official, though he couldn't actually implement it. Tsk tsk, Vice Minister of Revenue, is that a second or third rank? He even has a chance to become Minister of Revenue in Rongguo. How old is Xiao Gao now? Just over twenty. So, for capable people, age is really not a problem.

It seems Rongguo didn't learn everything, like the work-for-relief program? Well, given the current situation, there's probably no room for it.

So what exactly constitutes a great talent? Someone like Xiao Gao is one. Those so-called "Eight Great Talents" sound impressive, right? Their famous works are praised to the skies, but how many of them actually get promoted? Take Ning Guiliang, for example, the old philanderer. He was once one of the Eight Great Talents of Jing Kingdom, but now he seems to have gone to Shuangyue Kingdom to work as a junior diplomat.

Believe it or not, that guy might actually be involved in diplomacy.

In short, truly talented people don't have that much time for romance and poetry. Xiao Gao is probably already incredibly busy these days. Chen Xuan wondered if he should take some time to lock him up in a dark room and squeeze out his talent as a family heirloom.

It seems like it has a lot of potential.

Then, when Rongguo learned Xiaogao's idea, did he pay the copyright fee? No, this idea seems to be something I casually boasted about to him when I was a kid, so it's all mine. It's a huge loss for me.

Who cares? It's like I've indirectly done a good deed.

With these thoughts flashing through his mind, Chen Xuan's previously less-than-ideal mood brightened considerably. He didn't intend to enter the town or disturb the people there. Instead, he used a few tricks to lead several carriages around the town from the wilderness.

These days, there are hardly any tall plants around towns; they've all been cut down for firewood. Chen Xuan and his group traveled dozens of miles around the town before finally spotting a small grove of trees. They stopped there, and Chen Xuan glanced in the direction of the town, saying, "Let's make do with a fire and cook a meal here."

Soon, Du Juan and the others got busy. They were used to picnicking, so they brought cooking utensils and ingredients, as well as tables, chairs, and benches. Among the ingredients were fresh meat and vegetables. As for keeping them fresh, they could solve the problem with their true qi. For a master of innate qi, condensing ice was too easy.

Helping the little princess out of the carriage, Chen Xuan asked with concern, "My lady, you must have been bored in the carriage. Would you like to walk around a bit?"

"Hmm, it's good to collect some leaves. According to my husband, the climate in Rong Kingdom is different from our Jing Kingdom. There are many plants that we've never seen before. It's a pity that the vegetation has withered due to the long drought, but collecting some leaves is still no problem," the little princess said with great interest as she looked around, like an innocent and carefree little girl.

Her hobby of collecting leaves continues. Those poignant scenes are no longer in her mind, so she doesn't think about them anymore, and her mood improves as a result.

As he accompanied her to collect leaves around the area, Chen Xuan pondered to himself that Rongguo seemed to have a specialty plant called Golden Branches and Jade Leaves. As its name suggests, the tree's branches were like gold, exceptionally tough, and its leaves were like beautiful jade. They could make a pleasant sound when the wind blew. It was usually given as a national gift. He wondered if he would be lucky enough to find a wild one to transplant back. Then he thought of the white cloud tree branches he had propagated last year. Whether it was good luck or the plant's tenacious vitality, he had actually managed to keep two seedlings alive. Well, the little girl's careful care was largely to his credit.

The drought has caused ecological imbalance, and it is difficult to see even large animals in the wilderness. Animals also need to drink water, and they cannot survive for long without water. They either migrate to places with water or die of thirst.

After searching around with the little princess for some leaves, until the cuckoo and the others asked if they could eat, they found more than a dozen kinds of leaves they had never seen before. It was a fruitful trip, and the little princess was overjoyed, as their collection had become much more diverse.

During the meal, Dujuan asked, "Master, if we continue south along the official road from here, there is a martial arts sect in Rongguo called the Divine Elephant Sect, about 500 li away. Would you like to visit it?"

Having spent so many years in the martial arts world, although she had always operated within the Jing Kingdom, she still had some understanding of the martial arts situation in the surrounding countries. Upon arriving here, she casually reminded him that if Chen Xuan was interested, it would be good to make arrangements in advance.

"The Divine Elephant Sect? Is there anything special about it?" Chen Xuan asked curiously.

Du Juan thought for a moment and said, "As far as I know, the Divine Elephant Sect is skilled in training and raising elephants. Although it is a martial arts sect, this skill is mostly done in cahoots with the government. They sell their trained elephants to the government as weapons of war. Rong Kingdom also has a very famous armored elephant army, which is invincible in attacking cities and capturing strongholds. By the way, the Divine Elephant Sect has a strange beast elephant, which is rumored to be as strong as a Grandmaster. It serves as the sect's protector. Otherwise, the Divine Elephant Sect would have a hard time keeping its coveted property. Even without a Grandmaster, with that strange beast elephant, no one would dare to make a move."

After hearing what she said, Chen Xuan said with great interest, "Since we're just wandering around anyway, let's go and see it. I've never seen an elephant before, especially a beast comparable to a Grandmaster. I hope we won't be turned away."

Curiosity aside, he didn't necessarily have to see it for himself. If they weren't welcoming, and there was no grudge between them, he couldn't just force his way in to satisfy his curiosity.

“Since the master is interested, we will send out a visiting card in advance after we get closer to the Divine Elephant Sect,” Du Juan nodded and said. It was necessary to observe etiquette; we weren’t looking for trouble.

After resting for a while after their meal, they packed up and continued their leisurely journey south.

However, after walking only a dozen miles, Du Juan coldly shouted, "What do you intend to do? If you disturb my master and mistress, you will face a life-or-death situation!"

"What happened?" the little princess asked, opening her eyes as she took a nap.

Chen Xuan frowned, signaling her to calm down, and smiled, saying, "My wife, you rest, I'll go out and take a look."

When Chen Xuan went outside, he raised an eyebrow. They had been surrounded by a group of people who had suddenly appeared from the roadside, numbering over a hundred.

These people were sallow-faced and emaciated, dressed in tattered clothes. Many of them didn't even have a decent set of clothes, so they were clearly not professional robbers. The weapons they carried were sickles, hoes, and rakes. They didn't even have two proper weapons, and half of them were even walking unsteadily.

In chaotic times, bandits roam freely; it seems we've encountered robbers.

"Don't move! We're robbing you! Leave all your valuables behind. Don't expect us to kneel down and beg. Otherwise, don't blame us for being impolite!" A fairly burly man stepped forward and stammered, looking very nervous and putting on a fierce expression.

This man was shirtless, holding a sickle with an extended handle. He was described as burly, but he was just big-boned; he was so thin you could see his ribs.

The others also mustered their courage, puffed out their chests to bolster their morale, but they were all actually terribly nervous and clearly had never seen blood before.

They were clearly a group of desperate farmers. Who would take such a risk if they had no other choice? There were even women carrying babies in the crowd.

Du Juan initially thought they were just coming to ask for some food and planned to chase them away. However, when she heard them mention robbery, her eyes instantly turned cold, and she was ready to kill them. Having been an assassin for decades, life was nothing more than grass to her. Anyone who dared to offend her master and mistress, she would kill them, no matter who they were.

Chen Xuan spoke up promptly, "Sister Juan, please wait."

As she turned back in confusion, Chen Xuan stepped forward and faced the man who was pretending to be fierce, asking with a fearful expression, "After you've robbed us, can you let us leave?"

Seeing the man's eyes light up, seemingly overjoyed, the man quickly nodded and said, "Of course! We only rob people, we won't hurt them. Food would be even better. In short, as long as you cooperate, we won't make things difficult for you. Otherwise, we'd be afraid of ourselves if we got too fierce."

It's obvious you were really starving to have taken such a risk. You're all down on your luck, otherwise, if you had any sense at all, you wouldn't have dared to rob us. You're not some vicious bandits.

Feeling a sense of relief, Chen Xuan said, "Then it's settled." He then turned to Juan and said, "Sister Juan, give them a bag of rice and a bag of flour, and if they don't take it, give them another ten taels of silver."

Although somewhat reluctant, Du Juan did as she was told.

With a wave of her hand, she lightly sent the food into the man's hands. He dropped his sickle and hurriedly caught it with a beaming smile. The honest, simple people didn't realize what Du Juan's move meant to them. Their attention was all on the food, and they didn't think about such things. They didn't even glance at the loose silver. In times of famine, food is the most precious thing.

Seeing this, Chen Xuan smiled and said, "Can you let us leave now?"

"Alright, alright, go ahead. Your carriage is all dusty, would you like me to wipe it clean?" the man said with a smile.

Chen Xuan shook his head and said, "Then there's no need."

"Alright, we're off then," the man said, clutching the grain tightly. Turning back, he added, "Let's go, let's go. I didn't expect to succeed on the first try. Let's go back and cook something to eat. If we're careful, it'll be enough to last us a few days. You must be starving."

Fortunately, they weren't greedy; they were just asking for food in this way.

After thinking for a moment, Chen Xuan reminded you, "Don't rob anymore. Not everyone is as easy to bully as we are. If you encounter a ruthless person, you can easily lose your life. Go to the town behind us. It's only a few dozen miles along the main road. There, the government provides porridge. At least you'll have something to eat to keep you alive. I hope you can listen to me."

Upon hearing this, the man turned around in surprise and said, "Really? No one even notified us!"

“Absolutely true,” Chen Xuan nodded, thinking to himself that only if you go will the government take action; if you don’t go, who will willingly seek trouble for themselves?
"Did you all hear that? The government is providing disaster relief. There will be food in town. Hmm, let's eat something first before we go, or we'll starve to death before we get there," the man shouted, ignoring Chen Xuan and the others, and urging everyone to scatter.

With a smile, Chen Xuan shook his head and walked towards the carriage, saying, "Let's go, let's continue."

Back in the car, the little princess asked, "Husband, what happened just now?"

Chen Xuan immediately looked annoyed and indignant, saying, "Wife, didn't you see it all? As you can see, we were robbed! In broad daylight, is there no law or justice? These locals are so inconsiderate!"

"Alright, alright, husband, don't be angry anymore. It's good that you're alright. You can't get sick from getting angry," the little princess said with a smile, stepping forward to comfort him and playing along with his act.

Chen Xuan continued to beat his chest and stamp his feet, saying, "To think that I, the dignified bandit leader Sang Biao, would ever be robbed! If word got out, my fellow bandits would laugh at me. Alas, I've lost all face! But what can I do? They outnumber us. What kind of skill is it to bully us because we're outnumbered? If they have the guts, let's fight one-on-one according to the rules of the martial world. One against one, neither of us can cheat!"

"My dear husband, you have a sharp tongue but a soft heart. Okay, okay, are you never going to stop?" The little princess rolled her eyes at him, both amused and exasperated.

But he still said with feigned seriousness, "Really, my wife, being robbed is a truly unpleasant experience. My heart is ice-cold, and I'm still terrified. Come here, let me hug you and comfort my wounded soul."

"Let's not stoop to their level, hug me, don't be angry anymore," the little princess hugged him like a child, thinking to herself that this kind of robbery would probably not be the last on the road ahead, provided the robbers didn't go too far. Her man was intolerant of injustices, but he could really swallow this kind of loss... (End of Chapter)