Xiao Ling followed the person downhill. The man moved swiftly, but within her range of following. Even though the road was slippery from the rain, the man walked as if on flat ground, revealing him to be a master of internal arts.
"Are you the elder sister's bodyguard?"
"Yes."
"The elder sister's entourage is truly filled with capable people." Xiao Ling felt a chill run down her spine. Xiao Man had such a powerful person beside her, yet she was completely unaware. No wonder Jiu Yu Lou had repeatedly suffered losses at her hands. If the elder sister had been serious with her, she would likely have been reduced to dust long ago.
At the foot of the mountain, a carriage awaited. The man stopped beside it. "Clean clothes, food, and water have been prepared in the carriage. There are also some silver fragments and banknotes, and a driver has been assigned for the third young lady."
Xiao Ling looked at the items in the carriage, a flicker of surprise in her eyes. "Thank you."
"Furthermore, third young lady, please take this with you." The man handed Xiao Ling a token. "If you encounter trouble outside and urgently need assistance, go to a shop with the exact same marking as this token, and someone will help you."
Xiao Ling took it, thanked him, and climbed into the carriage. She desperately needed to find an inn, take a hot bath, and get a good night's sleep. For the past month, she hadn't had a single decent sleep!
"Also, a reminder for the third young lady." The man's voice sounded from outside the carriage. "Due to continuous heavy rain, disasters are frequent everywhere. Jiang Zhou and Jiang Zuo areas are the most severely affected. Third young lady may wish to avoid these two regions."
"Thank you for the reminder."
The carriage carrying Xiao Ling disappeared into the rain. The man leaped into the air and quickly departed, taking a different path. Another carriage waited by the roadside.
"Master."
"Has the person left?"
"She has left. Your subordinate has already reminded her to avoid Jiang Zhou and Jiang Zuo."
Moments later, a voice came from within the carriage, "Let's go, to Jiang Zhou."
The heavy rain had lasted for over half a month and finally cleared. As far as the eye could see, houses were washed away by floods, and the farmland was filled with mud and stones. A few tenacious seedlings, with their muddy heads, swayed in the wind.
Homeless people, dragging their families, covered in dirt, sat or lay around, all suffering from hunger and cold, their faces sallow and thin. They had lost the strength to continue walking, their eyes filled with despair as they looked at their former homes turned into ruins. Families were broken, with some dead and others missing. Despair shrouded the land.
When a carriage passed, refugees swarmed forward, extending their dirty hands, begging for food. A single flatbread was thrown from the carriage, and it caused these refugees to fight amongst themselves.
"Look at these lowly peasants, fighting over a flatbread as if it were worth dying for." A mocking voice came from inside the carriage. However, the people outside paid no mind, only wanting to snatch that life-saving rice cake.
Xiao Man watched this scene, her brow furrowed. Such tragic sights were usually only seen at the border. Now, a natural disaster had turned Jiang Zhou, a land of fish and rice, into a living hell.
The struggle ahead finally ended. A slightly sturdier man snatched the flatbread and stuffed it into his mouth in a few bites. However, he choked because he ate too quickly, patting his chest repeatedly as if trying to swallow the flatbread lodged in his throat, his eyes rolling in desperation.
Xiao Man sighed. A pebble flew out, striking an acupuncture point on the man, causing him to cough up the choked flatbread. However, the man, who had just regained his breath, quickly grabbed the spit-out flatbread, mixed with dirt, and ate it again.
Xiao Man could bear to watch no longer. "Has the Jiang Zhou yamen taken any action to rescue these disaster-stricken people?"
"Young Master, the Jiang Zhou yamen is now too preoccupied to help itself," Qin Xue said softly. "Even before the disaster, Jiang Zhou was a piece of fat meat that everyone wanted a bite of. Once disaster struck, Jiang Zhou became a hot potato, burning anyone who touched it." Su Dan Novel Network.
"It seems the situation is even more dire than I anticipated," Xiao Man sighed. During last autumn's harvest, they had purchased a large quantity of grain, and most of it came from Jiang Zhou. It was almost certain that Jiang Zhou's three major granaries were completely empty.
As they traveled, they saw refugees everywhere, without food or medicine. Many had died of illness. If not controlled, the outbreak of plague could make it difficult for Jiang Zhou to regain its former prosperity as a land of fish and rice in a short period.
"Where is A Jin?"
"A Jin has already reached Jiang Zuo," Qin Xue replied. "Your subordinate feels that Young Master should not come to Jiang Zhou. It is not a good place right now."
"Who says it's not a good place? We cannot negate its inherent advantages just because of a natural disaster," Xiao Man said slowly. "By the way, who is in charge of disaster relief in Jiang Zhou this time?"
"It is an old acquaintance of yours, Censorate Official, Lord Xiao Wen."
"Mo Han." Xiao Man was somewhat surprised. "Why is he here in Jiang Zhou?"
"The Emperor asked who could be sent for disaster relief, and those old officials, being as shrewd as they are, all avoided accepting this hot potato. Yet, Lord Wen, like a newborn calf unafraid of a tiger, unhesitatingly took on this mess."
Xiao Man smiled upon hearing this. "That is something he would do."
"Lord Wen is truly foolish. This task is clearly thankless and arduous, yet he still came."
"So many people have been affected by this disaster. If everyone is afraid and unwilling to come forward, then the world is not far from ruin. How long until the relief team arrives in Jiang Zhou?"
"Barring any unforeseen circumstances, they should arrive in two days. Lord Wen has not delayed at all and has been rushing here at full speed."
Xiao Man walked slowly forward. Seeing Xiao Man and her companion dressed cleanly and appearing wealthy, the refugees swarmed towards them.
"Young Master, please give us some food."
Qin Xue immediately drew her sword. "Do not come any closer."
"The imperial court's disaster relief officials will arrive soon, you just need to endure a little longer."
"The imperial court doesn't care about our lives!" someone immediately retorted angrily. "Those officials eat and drink well, even their guard dogs eat meat, yet we people only eat tree bark and grass roots."
"The official coming for disaster relief this time is a good official. He will definitely look out for you. Please wait patiently; he should arrive in two days." Xiao Man said gently.
"If the young master does not wish to give charity, why lie?"
Xiao Man did not argue and quickly walked away with Qin Xue. At that moment, a boy, about seven or eight years old, fell by the roadside. Yet, he carefully avoided spilling the water in his hands. He struggled to get up and fed it to a woman sitting against a tree. The woman's head drooped, and it was unclear if she was alive or dead.
"Mother, drink some water. Drink some water and you won't be hungry." The boy tried to feed the woman water, but her lips were tightly closed. The water flowed down her chin and onto her clothes, leaving a wet stain.