Lin Youcai also showed no mercy: "Tiezhu is, after all, an educated man and has helped us. Now we’re the ones begging Lao San to take us along. If you still have this foul temper and love to gossip and slander Lao San’s family, why not stay with those who refuse to go to Lingnan? Don’t drag us down, or else Tiezhu’s mother might stop treating the villagers."
Some things Lin Youcai couldn’t say outright.
Usually, when Lin Lao San was at home, he was treated like a beast of burden, and the whole family bullied the third branch for being honest and mild-tempered. But even a clay figure has its limits—if pushed too far, they would surely rebel.
Now, if they wanted to survive, they had to beg the Lin Shucheng family.
Tiezhu was educated and could analyze the situation, and Tiezhu’s mother knew a bit of medicine. More importantly, they recognized medicinal herbs and could exchange them for food.
On the road of famine, if they could beg Lin Lao San’s family to take them along, their chances of survival would be much higher.
Yet Lin Youliang was putting on airs here. Before they could say anything, Lin Lao San had already stormed off in anger.
Lin Youcai didn’t want to be dragged down by them, but they were all from the same village, and they were even cousins. At this point, he couldn’t just abandon them and leave.
Hearing the village chief’s persuasion, Lin Youliang snorted coldly but didn’t argue further.
Lin Lao San was usually a quiet man, saying nothing and doing whatever he was told.
But now he dared to pick up a knife and threaten to cut them down.
Lin Youliang couldn’t accept this change and was especially displeased—after all, he was his own father!
What kind of son would be so rebellious?
He was still his own son, after all. Surely, it was that troublesome wife of his who had driven a wedge between father and son. Lin Youliang watched as the villagers split into two groups—one heading north, and the other deciding to beg Lin Lao San’s family tomorrow.
He thought to himself, they were all family, bound by blood. If he spoke properly to Lao San later, Lao San would surely stand by his side.
Lin Youliang clutched his stomach, dizzy with hunger. Seeing that others still had coarse grain cakes in their hands, he began to scheme: Lao San had given away so many cakes to the villagers—he must still have plenty of good things on him.
After all, he was Lin Lao San’s own father. How could a son ignore his father?
That would be something to be scorned for!
Lin Jinyue didn’t care whether people would gossip behind her back. At that moment, she was at the city gate, exchanging for two leaky oil-paper umbrellas.
It was then that she heard the System’s sharp alarm.
[System: Beep—beep—Alert, alert. Prince Jing’s army will arrive in half an hour. Please evacuate to a safe location as soon as possible.]
[System: Beep—beep—Please evacuate immediately.]
Lin Jinyue was so startled that she dropped the oil-paper umbrella in her hand.
Jiang Yun worriedly asked, "What’s wrong, daughter?"
Lin Jinyue’s heart skipped a beat as she heard the System’s alarm again. "Mother, Prince Jing’s army is about to arrive. We need to run."
Lin Shucheng, who was nearby exchanging goods, cursed under his breath, "What terrible luck."
Why did it have to happen now, of all times?
Seeing the villagers of Lin Village still dawdling at the city gate, Lin Shucheng quickly shouted, "Village Chief, Brother Fugui, get up! Everyone in the city is saying Prince Jing is about to attack. You should leave quickly too."
Hearing this, the villagers stopped their arguments. The village chief grabbed his bundle and hurried in the direction Lin Jinyue’s family had fled.
Prince Jing was ruthless.
Three years of severe drought had left food scarce everywhere. If Prince Jing's troops ran out of provisions, they would resort to cannibalism, even referring to these captives as "two-legged sheep" and categorizing them into different grades. Elderly men were considered poor in meat quality, while young women and children were prized for their tender flesh, usually reserved for the soldiers.
Who would dare linger now?
Only Lin Youliang's family grumbled, "Who knows if you're telling the truth? Don't you try to trick us."
But no one paid them any attention, everyone too busy fleeing in a panic.
Seeing the villagers abandon them, Lin Youliang flew into a rage, cursing loudly.
Originally, he had intended to oppose Lin Jinyue, but he never expected so many people from the city to come pouring out.
In an instant, panic set in, and they hurriedly tried to catch up with Lin Shucheng's family.
Soon, Nan'an County descended into chaos.
They had struggled to reach Nan'an County, seeing a glimmer of hope there. This place was already outside Prince Jing's territory, and it seemed that with a little more endurance, they could make it to the capital.
Who would have thought Prince Jing would advance so quickly?
Hearing Lin Shucheng's shout, the people around them panicked, scrambling to flee. Some even took advantage of the chaos to loot others' food and supplies.
Outside the city, the chaos was overwhelming. Several children from the Lin family were even trampled and injured.
How could Lin Youliang's family have ever witnessed such a scene?
Even though they were dizzy with hunger, the whole family ran for their lives.
However, they instinctively followed the direction the villagers from Lin Family Village had taken—heading south.
In the distance, they could see Prince Jing leading his troops toward them.
Lin Youliang's vision went dark, and he nearly fainted on the spot.
Lin Lao Da hurriedly said, "Father, let's hide first. The dust kicked up by the horses over there is thick—they might not spot us. There's a cave…"
The whole family scrambled in disarray, and Lin Youliang even lost a shoe in the rush.
On the other side.
Lin Jinyue was also caught in the chaos, running southward as fast as she could.
Halfway there, she remembered they might encounter Prince Jing's army.
Lin Jinyue decided to hide in the woods, planning to take a detour later to avoid Prince Jing's men.
Behind them, the villagers from Lin Family Village followed closely.
Lin Jinyue hadn't expected them to come along. Before she could say anything, Village Chief Lin Youcai grabbed her wrist: "Er Ya, hurry, come hide with us. If we take the main road, we'll be captured sooner or later. A few days ago, we discovered a very well-hidden cave around here."
Someone nearby added, "That place definitely won't be found. There's clean water there, and maybe even the medicinal herbs you need."
Hearing there might be medicinal herbs, Lin Jinyue decided to go with them.
In these times, medicinal herbs were more precious than anything else—money couldn't buy them.
They followed the village chief, winding through the paths for quite a while before reaching a hidden cave entrance.
The entrance was small, only wide enough for two people to pass through. A massive tree outside blocked half of it, and with vines and shrubs surrounding it, you wouldn't notice the cave unless you looked carefully.
The village chief led their family inside and reassured them, "Don't worry, no one will find this place. Plus, if you climb the tree, you can see Nan'an County in the distance. If there are troops on the road, we can spot them. We'll have Fugui keep watch."
Inside, the cave was quite spacious, easily accommodating the forty or so people from their village.
After running until their legs nearly gave out, everyone finally relaxed. Lin Jinyue collapsed on the ground, not wanting to move a muscle.
The others weren't much better off.
Only the village chief, who had been holding back for so long, finally had the chance to speak his mind.
Lin Youcai sighed, "Third Brother, we just want a way to survive. Tiezhu is right—the current emperor is unreliable. Prince Jing has already attacked Nan'an County. After much consideration, we fear Lingnan might be the best destination. All of us here want to go to Lingnan. Why not travel together? It would be easier to look out for each other on the road."