The ox cart moved slowly at first due to the large crowd ahead. Eventually, it was completely blocked and had to stop.
Many people lined the roadside, their eyes glinting as they stared at their ox cart. Su Minghui immediately ordered all the men to arm themselves with various makeshift weapons and stand guard by the ox cart, ready for anything.
Meanwhile, on Xu Fu's side, Old San and the others had also disembarked from their ox carts, drawing their weapons. Since only the two ox carts behind their formation had covered carriages, they became the most conspicuous.
As Old San and his group drew their long sabers, the previously restless crowd saw that they were dealing with genuine weaponry. Furthermore, the aura of those who had truly faced bloodshed was entirely different from their own, who were driven by a desperate need to survive and commit wrongdoing. Realizing this group was not to be trifled with, they instantly retreated.
Su Muqing casually braided her hair into two pigtails and then got out of the cart. She saw a large gathering of refugees not far away. A gaunt middle-aged man, dressed in fine clothes, stood atop a tall stack of grain sacks.
Below him stood over a dozen bare-chested, burly men, each with fierce and menacing expressions. They stood with their arms crossed, protecting the middle-aged man.
The middle-aged man stroked his handlebar mustache, his face displaying a lewd expression. His beady, rat-like eyes darted around constantly. His voice was thin, shrill, and grating, marking him as someone of ill repute.
The man glared fiercely at the crowd below before speaking again. "You beggars, shut your mouths and listen to me. If you have unmarried daughters between the ages of twelve and seventeen, leave your names and ages on the left side, press your handprints, and then come get a dou of coarse grain. Those between eight and twelve, leave your names and ages on the right side, press your handprints, and then come over here to collect 8 jin of coarse grain."
Unknowingly, Su Muqing felt drawn to something and walked into the middle of the crowd. She overheard what they were saying.
As the man’s words fell, the refugees went wild, pushing forward with their children as if possessed, afraid they would miss out on the grain.
The middle-aged man stroked his beard, observing the frenzied scene. He exchanged a knowing glance with his bodyguards. "We should get quite a haul today, shouldn't we?" He had already spotted a few promising candidates with a quick glance.
"Mine, mine! My daughter is thirteen and very beautiful!"
"I have one, my daughter is also thirteen!"
"Sir, sir, look at my daughter. Look at her hips! Clearly capable of bearing sons!"
"Get lost! Your daughter isn't destined to bear sons, is she? Didn't your wife just give birth to five or six daughters for you? Take a look at mine instead!"
Crying, shouting, terrified, fighting, cursing, haggling, smiling, reveling, greedily plundering. People from all walks of life were enacting the most hideous scenes of humanity.
In a short while, the middle-aged man's hand held a small stack of papers, filled with names, ages, and handprints, ready to be completed later.
Those who received the grain left without a backward glance, not even a look at their children.
The little girls had their hands and feet bound with ropes and stood in a line, their cries ripping through the air. Tears streamed down their faces as they watched their loved ones depart. They were truly abandoned…
Some girls in the crowd refused to move forward. The more heartless would kick and beat them into compliance. "How dare you disobey me? I'll beat you to death! You'll only be a burden, wasting food. Your brother is the one who will carry on the family lineage. You're just a girl, and you can exchange yourself for some grain, yet you dare refuse!"
Those with slightly softer hearts tried to coax them. "Child, listen to your father. Look, that gentleman is wearing silk clothes. He must come from a family that doesn't lack food. This way, you can preserve your life, and the exchanged grain can save your brother's life."
What Su Muqing found most unimaginable was yet to come. Families whose children were too young or not attractive enough to be sold, or families who felt a dou of coarse grain was too little a return. Even though they were girls, they were still flesh and blood.
So, they gathered in small groups, openly discussing exchanging their children and then… cooking them… to eat?
They might not be able to bring themselves to harm their own children, but perhaps when truly starved, they could harden their hearts towards other people's children.
At first, Su Muqing thought she had misheard, but the more she listened, the more horrified she became. She stared with disbelief, covering her mouth, hearing them casually discuss chilling matters. The people around her seemed unfazed, as if it were commonplace.
"Look at mine, this girl is only six years old. Her skin is tender and her flesh is fine."
"Yours is six? What tender flesh is that? Look at my daughter. She's just over three years old. She’s the tender one."
"How much can your three-year-old weigh? My six-year-old will be heavier than yours, so it'll last a few more bites!"
There were even people offering advice from experience to those exchanging children, suggesting what age was best for consumption…
"Listen to me, children this age, around three years old, should be cleaned and roasted. Not too fat, not too lean, that's the best flavor."
On the analysis panel in her mind, dense dots flickered and changed constantly.
A black evil value of up to 75% had appeared next to the dot of the man who had just spoken. It seemed he had indeed treated innocent children in such a manner before.
Su Muqing clenched her fists tightly, looking at the man who was worse than a beast. Her emotions surged, and fine currents of electricity began to gather in her palms. Electric currents also flowed through her pupils.
Directly above her head, where the sky had been clear, dark clouds had now gathered. Lightning flashed within the clouds, as if constrained, struggling to break free.
Meanwhile, near the Su family's ox cart in Houxi Village, preparations for a drum and opera performance were underway.
Old Madam Chen, her wrinkled face contorted into a scowl, sat arrogantly on the ox cart. She said sarcastically, "Eldest daughter-in-law, you've been married to my Mingfu for nearly twenty years. You haven't even given birth to a single male heir. Have I ever blamed you or made things difficult for you?"
Su Ding Shi thought, *Haven't you? Haven't you made things difficult for me for the past decade? You torment me more than ten times a day. And is it my fault?*
*My third pregnancy was with a male child. But when I was six months pregnant, that old hag abused me, and I lost the baby. I haven't been pregnant since. Can you blame me for that? And now you have the nerve to blame me?*
Although Ding Shi cursed Old Madam Chen a thousand times in her heart, she replied verbally, "No, thank you for your magnanimity, Mother-in-law."
The other two daughters-in-law of Old Madam Chen cast disdainful glances at Ding Shi in unison.
*Only a useless lump like that would say such a thing. Like mud that won't stick to a wall! Serves her right for being bullied for over a decade. She practically asks for it!*