Fairy, please let me explain

Chapter 733 New City
Haze rolled in the clouds, the sky and the earth were gray, the bitter cold of the Far North passed through the uninhabited snowy desert, crossed the devastated three northern continents, and arrived at the inconspicuous border on the northern edge of the capital, and the pure white snow fell to the world in twos and threes.

It's snowing again.

A middle-aged man with an untidy beard raised his eyes and looked at the damn God, then slowly walked out of the forest and headed towards the plain in front, dragging a few mountain beasts behind him.

There, there stood a not-too-big city.

Huizhou,

A destroyed county town that was once famous throughout Da Yan—in the form of a place where the prime minister’s third son was assassinated.

Of course, the common people in the city who died in the assassination also caused outrage in the court, but after the anger died down, it was just passed over.

How ridiculous and lamentable that the common people in the city are not as good as that one nobleman.

Recalling these past events that suddenly popped up in his mind, Luo Yuanqi wrapped himself in animal fur and sighed softly unconsciously.

He used to be an official in the Ministry of War, not a high-ranking one. He retired because he took the blame for his superior in the war in the northern border. He did not stay in Beijing to wait for reinstatement, but was transferred to the northern border directly with his courage and determination, intending to serve his country by killing enemies as a soldier.

But the real battlefield is different from the memorials in the capital after all. The passion accumulated since childhood was instantly cooled down the moment he went to the battlefield.

Not to mention killing the enemy, he was frightened to death by the sight of blood and flesh flying everywhere and the mountains of corpses filling the sea.

He ran away and became a deserter.

This behavior is not an isolated case. Except for a few elite military towns in the northern border, there are a lot of deserters. Some of them sneak away during the chaos of the charge. The battle is chaotic and the inspectorate barracks can't keep up. So they gather dozens of people and hide in the mountains, and become bandits directly.

Although Luo Yuanqi was afraid of the battlefield, he was able to give up his duties in the capital and be transferred to the northern border. He still had some backbone and was unwilling to associate with bandits, so he took a few soldiers of similar age to himself, and gathered many refugees who were displaced by blizzards, natural disasters and wars along the way. He went south, bought rice, flour and cloth with his salary in the capital, and lived in seclusion in the mountains on the border of the capital a few months ago.

The bitter cold from the Far North has subsided a lot. In previous years at this time of year, the ground would have been covered with snow by about a foot. I think this blizzard disaster should be over in a few years, but the war seems to have become even worse.

Over the past few months, their small village has taken in hundreds of refugees heading south. These poor people told them that the barbarians in the three northern continents had already been defeated, and the disaster that caused them to flee south was actually an epidemic.

It is spread through saliva and blood. Those infected become crazy and insane, as if possessed by a hysterical demon. They cannot recognize their relatives and are bloodthirsty.

Those who said this were all still frightened, but Luo Yuanqi didn't care much. As a former official in the Ministry of War, he was very clear about the combat capabilities of those major military towns, not to mention the immortal sects that were scattered across the three continents.

Once the barbarian war ends, it will only be a matter of time before the three northern continents get back on track. So compared to the epidemic, he is more concerned about how his village will survive the winter.

Most of the people in the village are unregistered criminals. They dare not use slash-and-burn farming to open up new farmland. Moreover, with so many new people being taken in, the rice and flour bought on the way south is almost gone. The village can only rely on hunting by the village warriors. I am afraid that the hundreds of people in the village will die this winter.

He discussed this matter with a few close men. As they were all soldiers and refugees, he thought they wouldn't have any useful suggestions. However, the village man from the northernmost part of the country turned out to be his confidant and gave him the answer.

"eat human."

"It starts with the elderly over fifty, then the girls, boys, and the sick."

". First, coax a group of old men out of the village and kill them together. At first, see if you can survive. You can lie to them and tell others that they left on their own initiative and said that they hunted deer."

".The snow is heavy and the weather is cold, so the meat won't go bad, and the animals outside can't eat it either. But it needs to be marked, otherwise it will be buried and you won't be able to find it."

At that time, Luo Yuanqi and several others looked at him as if he were a monster, but the man said numbly:
"Don't look at me like that. I was the same as you back then, but when winter came and I was starving, I always did it."

"."

"."

He forced himself to suppress the words he said that day. Luo Yuanqi knew that the man was telling the truth. He had read the memorial about cannibalism in the Northern Territory, so he was prepared, but he couldn't do it.

The snowstorm is almost over, and so is the war.

According to his understanding of the prime minister in the court, the law of pacifying the people has probably been passed now, and disaster relief has probably begun. As long as they can survive this winter, these stateless refugees will be settled in accordance with the law of pacifying the people, and then everything will be fine. Therefore, this bottom line must not be crossed again.

Biting his dry and chapped lips, Luo Yuanqi dragged the frozen mountain beasts and stopped a hundred feet away from the new city.

Almost at the same time,

"Whoosh-"

A black feather arrow shot from the top of the city wall and accurately hit him one foot in front of him as a warning.

really
Looking at the trembling tail feathers, Luo Yuanqi was a little dazed. He subconsciously tightened the hemp rope on his shoulders, and he couldn't suppress the sadness in his heart.

All the way south, he did not approach any city in Dayan except Zhoufu, and this was the reason why he had not come to this city to seek protection.

In the face of natural disasters, how can any egg remain intact?
It’s not that the court didn’t issue disaster relief decrees to the counties in the northern border, nor is it that these officials dared to disobey the court, but that the court only issued decrees and did not allocate silver and grain!

Except for the prefectures that would provide long-term disaster relief, the counties and prefectures below were not doing well. They could only take care of the people in their own cities. When encountering refugees begging for food, the kinder officials would distribute some porridge and then order people to disperse the refugees. The more hard-hearted officials would kill them directly to prevent the hungry refugees from gathering and howling in the city. The displaced people were kicked back and forth by the counties and prefectures like wild dogs.

But he walked over a hundred miles here not to beg for food, but just wanted to exchange mountain animals and medicinal herbs for some coarse grains and millet to stave off hunger.
The sky and the earth are vast and snow is falling heavily.

Luo Yuanqi's throat rolled up and down and he was at a loss for a moment.

Going back?
Go back to the village and spend the winter eating cannibalism as the farmer said?
If people can eat it, will they be able to survive until the beginning of next spring?
"Whoosh-"

Another arrow shot from the top of the city wall, and this time it hit directly at his feet. The trembling of the arrow made him subconsciously take a step back.

At this moment, Luo Yuanqi felt a little regretful.

I regret why I resigned from my official position in the capital, why I came to these shitty places, why I had to see with my own eyes the suffering of the common people in the world, and yet I always felt powerless to return.

He took a deep breath, and the white mist exhaled from his lips dissipated with the wind.

He couldn't die here yet.

If he dies here, the village will be in chaos, and if it is in chaos, there will be nothing left.

Taking a last look at the towering city wall, Luo Yuanqi was about to turn back, but he saw a basket being lowered from the city wall at this moment.

Is this to let him enter the city?

After climbing the city wall, several soldiers immediately looked over with vigilance. Luo Yuanqi was an official who had seen the world. He took off the hemp rope tied to the wild beast and the medicinal materials in the snakeskin bag, and directly explained his purpose:

"My fellow soldiers, I have hunted some mountain products and would like to come to the city to exchange them for some coarse grains to eat during the winter."

After all,

Although his expression remained unchanged, he inevitably began to get nervous in his heart.

These mountain products and medicinal herbs are not expensive, but if these soldiers want to rob them, they can just kill them and no one can hold them accountable.

The leading soldier glanced at him from head to toe, and said without replying:

"Put your things down and follow me. I need you for something."

"Yes, Master Bing."

Lowering his head, Luo Yuanqi replied with a smile, but he was a little confused in his heart.

It’s so difficult to pronounce, what dialect is this?

Being a court official requires vision and insight.

Luo Yuanqi had been an official in Beijing for twenty years and understood dialects from all over the country. Even if the other party spoke Mandarin, he could always tell the general origin of the person. But he could not tell the difference between this soldier and the other party.

As he walked on the city wall, he, who had worked in the Ministry of War, noticed something was wrong. The armored soldiers on the city wall seemed to be from the same clan.

The skin is too white, as white as a dead person.

At first glance, if these soldiers were not breathing hot air like him, he would have suspected that he had entered the underworld.

But why are all the people in this new city from the same clan?

and,

Although there are many residential houses in this new city, why does it look more and more like a military fortress?

But it’s not far to the north. Aren’t there two important towns, Qinlongai and Jingbeifu, guarding the northern gate of the capital?

Which dynasty proposed to renovate Huizhou before?

Thinking of this, Luo Yuanqi's pupils suddenly shrank, and a chill ran directly from the soles of his feet to his spine.

The war was far from over.

This new city looks like a thief.
boom!
"Squeaky-"

The door was pushed open and the wind and snow outside blew in.

A woman in lightly dressed, off-shoulder clothes, walked in through the snow and casually threw a memorial on the desk in the room.

The fire crackled in the room.

Behind the desk, a short-haired man wearing armor who was not in line with Yanli's etiquette was calmly browsing some documents. He did not even look at the person who came and asked casually:
"how?"

Yi Kui shook her head and asked:
"Isn't it a bit inappropriate for you to let him into the city?"

Qin Yuan slowly raised his eyes, his dark eyes were expressionless:

"Some time ago, the prince borrowed troops to leave the city, which made a lot of noise. There were no refugees gathered within a hundred miles of the new city. It's strange that this person suddenly appeared here. If we ignore him, it might cause trouble for the young master. His cultivation is not high, so it's better to let him enter the city and then detain him."

Yi Kui pulled out a chair and sat down, saying softly:

"That's right, he said he was a refugee."

Qin Yuan frowned slightly:

"Refugees can't tell the difference between a military town and a civilian city."

Yi Kui's expression also became slightly serious, but he didn't keep the secret:
"So after being tortured, he changed his story again, saying that he used to be an official in the imperial capital, and volunteered to go to the northern border to participate in the war, but he became a deserter out of fear, so he has some experience."

Speaking of which,
Yi Kui glanced at the armor on the other party and said jokingly:

"General Qin, how should we deal with this person?"

Qin Yuan lowered his eyes to look at the military schedule and said casually:
"killed."

Yi Kui was prepared for this and stood up before his butt even got comfortable.

The construction of this new city had been carried out in secret. In normal times, such a large-scale construction could not be concealed. But now the three northern continents were ravaged by war, and the ruins were everywhere for reconstruction. Naturally, their new city was no longer noticeable.

Now that it has been discovered that it is a military town, we naturally cannot stay here.

But after thinking about it, Yi Kui added:

"Oh, by the way, that man said he knew he was doomed, and begged us to go to the mountains in the west to save his village."

Qin Yuan paused and called out to Yi Kui who was about to leave:

"Keep it for now and send someone to the west to check."

Yi Kui looked back in confusion and asked strangely:

"why?"

"See for yourself."

Qin Yuan threw the document in his hand to Yi Kui, and while he was reading it, he said calmly:
"The time is almost up. The Prime Minister went on a hunting expedition with the Emperor last night. The young master has just submitted a petition to the court. There may be a big change in the capital of Dayan soon. We may receive an order to move our camp north to seize the pass at any time to prevent the Northern Sealing Army from moving south. At this time, nothing can go wrong. Let's go to the place mentioned by this person to investigate first. Well, you go in person."

Yi Kui listened without complaining, waiting for more detailed arrangements.

Qin Yuan pondered for a moment and continued:

"If what this person said is true, we will send some food to the refugees. If it is not true, we will kill any spies who may be involved, and call in the Black Scale Guards to interrogate the person."

Yi Kui blinked her beautiful eyes, frowned, and raised an objection:

"A winter of food for hundreds of people is not a small amount. Wouldn't it be easier to just kill all those refugees?"

The survivors of the underground palace were extremely xenophobic, but the Prime Minister's Office did not force them to undergo ideological transformation at this juncture. After the city was built, they only deployed some Black Scale Guards and technical bureaucrats to monitor it. Basically, all matters in the city were decided by the two priests.

Qin Yuan is in charge of military and political affairs, and Yi Kui is in charge of finance.

As a priestess who came out of the underground palace, Yi Kui was licentious but never excessive.

I was so poor in the underground palace before that I wanted to break every grain of rice into two halves before eating. Even though I have a good life now, I still live frugally.

Now ask her to transfer money and food to outsiders?

What a joke!
The survivors of the underground palace have always believed in the survival of the fittest. In order to save supplies, they can be cold-blooded and ruthless to their own people, not to mention other refugees. Now, in order to prevent the news from leaking, Yi Kui believes that the best way is to directly massacre the village.

Qin Yuan knew what the other party was thinking. He hesitated for a moment and suddenly asked:

"Yikui, you must have seen the Black Scale Army general named Yuan Hao during the migration to the south. What do you think will be his fate in the future?"

"."

Yi Kui was puzzled and didn't understand why the other party suddenly mentioned the madman.

Qin Yuan took a deep breath and said slowly:

"Yuan Hao is the same as us, he is also the sword of the young master, but he is different from us. He doesn't care about being too hard and easy to break, nor does he care about his own life and death, but we need to care about the life and death of these 400,000 gods and people.

"Yikui, our current situation is actually very difficult. Although Siming has become the young master's close friend, the ministers in the prime minister's mansion are all afraid of and dislike us. If we don't want to end up like Yuan Hao, we must learn to adapt to this Da Yan and be cautious in everything we do."

Yi Kui listened carefully, pondered for a while, and then reluctantly whispered:

".That depends on the minimum ration."

"can."

Qin Yuan nodded in agreement.

As a priest from the underground palace, he is also stingy.

(End of this chapter)