I've been bullied and humiliated for thirteen years; when I wake up, I'll be bloodthirsty.

Chapter 953 Extra: A Young Man's Journey 6

In that instant, Wenren Jing sensed something was wrong.

They had already reached the outskirts of Liangzhou City, but there was no time to wait for the city's reinforcements; chaos erupted outside the city in an instant.

Someone in the crowd shouted that the imperial relief grain had arrived, and tens of thousands of refugees swarmed toward the grain transport team like locusts.

The conflict quickly drowned out the calls for disaster relief. No matter how Zong Huai tried to explain to the refugees that as long as they entered the city, disaster relief food would be distributed to everyone, the refugees had no interest in listening and only focused on the grain transport trucks.

They brought a thousand soldiers to transport grain, but they couldn't stop the densely packed refugees.

"Brother, there's no use in explaining anymore. We have to fight our way out to get into the city!" Zong Lin shouted at Zong Huai in dissatisfaction as the situation spiraled out of control.

Zong Huai shook his head: "No, they are all people from Liangzhou who have fallen to this state because of the flood. If we attack them, how will we carry out disaster relief in the future? We came here for disaster relief in the first place, how can we put the cart before the horse!"

Zong Huai ordered his guards: "Immediately find a way to send a message to the city, so that the prefect of Liangzhou can find a way to provide support. Hold them off for now, and once the reinforcements arrive, we will enter the city immediately!"

Wenren Jing was also very anxious as he watched this scene.

She had only read such texts in movies, TV dramas, and history books before, but having been born and raised in a peaceful era, this was the first time she had faced such a devastating scene. Her reason told her that Zong Lin was actually right, but she couldn't bring herself to persuade Zong Huai. Faced with those pairs of desperate eyes, she simply couldn't bring herself to do it.

But reality won't wait for them to hesitate.

The starving refugees, who no longer trusted anyone, were fearless and quickly scattered the relief team. At the critical moment, Zong Lin led a small group of men and decisively ordered them to kill the refugees. He then led Yan Chengyue and fought his way out.

But when they finally broke through the encirclement, only the two of them remained.

By this time, they were already quite far from Liangzhou City.

It was already dark, and traveling at night was even more dangerous, so Zong Lin had no choice but to take Yan Chengyue to a place with higher ground and build a fire.

Liangzhou City had just suffered a flood. Although the floodwaters had receded, water still remained everywhere, with various ruins and even rotting corpses floating in the water.

The road was so difficult that it was impossible to move an inch.

Their journey on the official road was somewhat better, but the area around Liangzhou City was far from safe. Floods had breached the low hills, causing landslides everywhere, and it remains unsafe to this day.

Yan Chengyue came from a military family and knew a little martial arts, so the journey wasn't too difficult for her. However, her clothes were already covered in blood and mud from the pulling and tugging, and they clung to her body, making her shiver when the cool night breeze blew.

However, she couldn't care less about that at the moment, and said worriedly, "I wonder how my brother and A-Jing are doing."

Zong Lin was only a seventeen or eighteen-year-old boy at the time. Hearing this, he sneered, "If he had been decisive and killed the refugees back then, he would not have ended up like this! If he were to be so merciful on the battlefield in the future, he probably wouldn't even be able to wait for rescue!"

"Second..." Yan Chengyue swallowed back the "Second Prince" that was about to slip out, and said helplessly, "Ah Lin, you are right. If it were on the battlefield, any hesitation would have led to our deaths. But this is not a battlefield. Those people are still the subjects of Da Zhao. As the crown prince, if he cannot love his people, how can he bear the responsibility for the world in the future?"

Zong Lin glared angrily at Yan Chengyue, who was still speaking up for Zong Huai at this moment: "If he hadn't hesitated, you would have almost died, and you still have the nerve to care about them!"

Seeing that he wouldn't listen, and knowing that he was only thinking of their safety today, and that they were now alone in this desolate wilderness, she couldn't just let him stay angry. After thinking for a moment, she moved closer and shook his arm: "Don't be angry. Everyone has their own perspective. Right and wrong aren't always about your own safety. My brother is a good person and will be a wise ruler in the future. We came here for disaster relief, and we're bound to encounter many unpredictable accidents. How can we blame him? Let's find a sheltered place to rest for the night and figure out how to get back to the city at dawn."

In the glow of the campfire, Yan Chengyue's face appeared exceptionally gentle, her eyebrows and eyes curved, much like the moon hanging in the night sky.

At this moment, Zong Lin, in his despicable state, wanted to embrace the moon.

He pinched his fingertips so hard that his palms ached, barely managing to suppress the urge to hold her hand, to embrace her, to devour the moon.

His deep gaze burned Yan Chengyue's heart, making her somewhat flustered and even wanting to look away.

Fortunately, Zong Lin managed to restrain the beast within him and nodded gently: "Okay, let's dry our clothes first, then we'll find a place."

He took out a paper package from his pocket, opened it, and found two dry biscuits inside. He broke one of them in half and handed it to Yan Chengyue: "This is all the food we have left. Eat some first, and we'll go back as soon as it gets light."

If they can't get back anytime soon, this is all the food they have left, so they have to eat it sparingly.

They came for disaster relief, so they naturally had no opportunity or mood for extravagance along the way. They were extra careful with their food and supplies, especially after approaching Liangzhou, where there were refugees everywhere. They didn't even prepare many dry biscuits. Throwing out a biscuit might not save a life, but kill someone.

On their way out during the day, many of their belongings had been stolen in the fight. These two dried biscuits were carefully hidden by Zong Lin when he realized the situation was not right. Fortunately, he was skilled in martial arts and managed to keep them until now.

Even the water pouch was taken from Yan Chengyue.

Yan Chengyue looked at the small half-eaten biscuit, took it, and looked at him: "You eat some too."

Zong Lin shook his head: "I'm not hungry right now, I'll eat later."

As he spoke, he handed her the only water pouch he had on him.