Return of the Swallow

Qin Yining had seen famine with his own eyes, so he knew better what crazy things starving people would do under hunger.

Qin Yining stood next to Pang Xiao, looking at the skinny people in front of him, looking at the twisted and angry expressions on their yellow and thin faces, looking at their hands holding up the broken bowl like dry branches, his heart felt like it was being broken. Someone hollowed out a piece and was so uncomfortable that he couldn't breathe.

These people would not have had to live like this!

The foolish emperor of Great Yan treated them badly, and now the Emperor of Great Zhou still does not regard their lives as one thing.

They have been suppressing anger and despair in their hearts, but they dare not explode because of their low status.

After experiencing all kinds of disasters, but not being regarded as a human being by the emperor, if you can continue to remain calm, wouldn't everyone become a saint?

Qin Yining felt that she couldn't not hate him at all.

What's more, we are now under the fear of famine.

"What to do, what to do." Qin Yining unconsciously grabbed Pang Xiao's hand.

Pang Xiao felt the cold touch of Qin Yining's fingers, and couldn't help but clenched her hands distressedly, using his palms to warm her.

It was really unfair for her to have to watch such a scene.

Pang Xiao rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb soothingly, and then said loudly: "Fellows and fellow villagers, please be quiet and listen to what I have to say!"

"No! We won't listen!"

"You are all corrupt officials! You have misappropriated the disaster relief food given to us by the court! You fool us every day with porridge that is clear and watery!"

"We came from Dayan's surrender, so we are not considered human beings in the eyes of you Zhou Dynasty people!"

"We want to eat! We want food!"

…

The people were talking all over the place. Normally, such a scene would have caused the crowd to get excited and roar. But the hungry people had no extra energy to shout. Even when they talked to Pang Xiao like this, they had to say a few words and then take a breath.

They are not a mere mob;

Pang Xiao couldn't bear to use violence to control violence, so he could only say loudly: "Everyone, be quiet. Everyone knows that the wars in the Great Zhou Dynasty for many years were originally caused by the new mess of the Northern Hebei Kingdom, and the original Yan The Supreme Emperor specializes in exploiting the people's wealth and anointing, and also exchanged all the taxes and grains into money and hid them.

"These people are all extremely smart people, and they are not good at running the country, but they are all masters at hiding their secrets. They hid their money so that Dazhou didn't have so much money to take!

"The Holy One is dedicated to serving the people, but everyone understands that it is difficult for a clever woman to make a meal without rice. What's more, our place is the hardest hit area. After the earth dragon turned over, the roads in and out were blocked by huge rocks rolling down from the top of the mountain, or they were cracked and damaged. The carriages It's not even close to the city to transport food.

"In order to get food for everyone, the princess had to travel all day long to get just a little bit of rice and sweet potatoes. In order to allow more people to survive and wait for the food and grass to be rescued by the Holy Spirit, we had to The limited grain was made into porridge to satisfy everyone's hunger."

Pang Xiao's deep voice should have spread far out of thin air, and the chaotic scene became quieter for a while.

"I would like to assure you that whether it is the Holy One, the king, or every court official and officer here, everyone has the same purpose, which is to allow the people in the disaster area to survive and to allow more people to survive. Go down.

"The Holy One has been thinking about this place, and the relief money and rice grains will arrive soon. I can sympathize with you all about your hunger, but no matter what, everyone should insist on living."

Having said this, Pang Xiao laughed at himself: "Everyone knows that I am a murderous devil, so I will carry this name. Now I just hope that everyone can stay rational and save energy. Wait as long as possible for the rescue from the capital to come. In order for most people to survive, I, the devil, have to be a bad person. If someone incites it again, I will never give mercy lightly."

Pang Xiao's words silenced everyone present.

At this time, everyone seemed to remember that Pang Xiao was not the kind of worm who was just as proud as a worm, but he was a serious soldier, even more committed than those in the world.

What he said should be what you get.

This thought came into the minds of the people.

But what did they get after they gave up trust and hope all at once? It's the imperial court's abandonment and betrayal!

It was like this in the previous dynasty, and it is still like this in the Zhou Dynasty. It will only use nice words to coax them. When the critical moment comes, they will still be the ones who are sacrificed.

Some of the common people began to sob and cry.

Someone shouted in anger: "You are threatening us! There are so many of us, no matter how powerful your people are, how many can you have!"

"That's it! Hand over the food, hand over the food!"

…

Unexpectedly, Pang Xiao's impassioned speech did not stop the riot, but instead tended to become more and more violent.

The victims, hungry and angry, rushed forward like a tide.

It would be fine if there were still Pang Xiao's Tiger and Ben troops present to obey the command.

But the twenty-odd Long Xiangjun and Pang Xiao who are present do not have such a tacit understanding at all. In addition, there are already people in the Yamen--\u003e\u003e

Even though these people were punching and kicking in the crowd, they still couldn't stop the victims.

Seeing those people running towards the Yamen one by one, Pang Xiao hurriedly pulled Qin Yining aside.

Just like passing locusts, the victims rushed into the already dilapidated government office.

Perhaps they were shocked by the tents and collapsed walls in the yard, so no one went any further.

One of the victims let out a choked cry.

"It's not right for us to do this. Li Zhixian has always shared the joys and sorrows with us. If we don't have a house, we are asked to live in the government office. If we don't have food, we eat gruel with us."

"Yes, the imperial court has no money to buy us rice. The food we eat these days is donated by Prince Zhongshun and Princess Zhongshun. They have always been with us."

"If we rush into each other like this now, who will we become?"

…

Among the victims, these voices took the lead, and soon some of them lost their hostility, and their feelings of revenge and destruction were no longer so serious.

But the rest of the people still wanted to rush in.

And after the crowd, some people shouted loudly: "They must have food, it has been hidden by Prince Zhongshun and Princess Zhongshun!"

This sound was too sudden and completely inconsistent with the previous words of the people. Qin Yining immediately sensed something was wrong.

"My lord, someone is fanning the flames behind your back!"

"I know, I've already asked someone to check."

Pang Xiao comforted Qin Yining, but his words had no real evidence to comfort the people who were about to starve to death.

With the roar just now, some people in the group of victims rushed to the government office unwillingly. Some people didn't want to go, but they were forced to go inside by the crowd. There are also those victims who have no strength and are squeezed and fall down. Under the feet of everyone, they never have a chance to stand up.

It was a chaotic and bloody scene.

The roars of adults, the cries of children and women, the victims who were trampled to death on the ground, and the victims who were smashed and rummaged through the government offices. These chaotic scenes made Qin Yining unable to continue watching.

She closed her eyes and murmured: "There is no way to continue like this. This is just the case in Yang County. Where are the other counties? And the old capital? I do suspect that someone is fanning the wind behind my back, but the most important thing is us. There is really no food left.”

Pang Xiao frowned and took Qin Yining into his arms, and whispered: "The food is all in the hands of the big families. But they are unwilling to let go. I can only continue to discuss with them."

Qin Yining moved her fingers, and then realized that her fingers were frozen with coldness.

Such a chaotic scene really frightened her.

Not to mention her, even Li Zhixian and the others behind Pang Xiao and the Long Xiang army all looked pale. No one had seen this battle before, but now they had seen it.

The people who could not find food and grass began to cry.

Li Zhixian stood on a high ground again and began to appease the people.

But at this moment, Huzi and two elite tiger guards pressed a ragged woman closer to him.

"Your Majesty, Princess, we caught a suspicious woman."

Pang Xiao glanced at the woman and found that she was a plump, fair-skinned young woman in her early twenties. Although her body was ragged and her face was smeared with black ash, it could be seen at a glance that she did not look healthy at all. They can't be disaster victims.

Pang Xiao said: "Take her to a secluded place first, and ask her carefully what happened and who instigated her to incite the people. If she refuses to tell, then use military methods to pry her mouth open."

"Yes." Huzi immediately agreed, and together with the two Jinghu Guards beside him, he pulled the woman back.

Qin Yining looked at the woman's back and said, "Why do I think that woman looks so familiar? It seems like I have seen her somewhere."

Pang Xiao said: "You think about it more carefully?"

Qin Yining frowned in thought.

She had really seen this face before, but the way he dressed and looked disturbed her memory, and she really couldn't remember it for a while.

At this moment, the victims of the disaster in the Yamen rushed out again.

A male voice who had been shouting to fight for the injustice of the people shouted: "They can't hand over the food, so they must have hidden it somewhere! Capture Prince Zhongshun and Princess Zhongshun and ask them where the food is!"

"Yes, the corrupt official must be hiding!"

"Catch them and ask them to reveal the whereabouts of the food!"

…

The people rushed towards Pang Xiao with shouts and screams.

The guards and Long Xiangjun quickly stopped him and pulled out half of his saber.

At this time, someone had sneaked into the crowd and quietly arrested the man who had just incited everyone's emotions.

Pang Xiao said with a stern face: "Save some energy. The food we have obtained so easily these days is not for you to eat until you have the strength to rebel!"

"I know everyone's fear. I can guarantee you that food will be obtained! Even if you don't believe me, you should believe in yourself. If you feel your conscience, will I not try my best to protect you all after I come?"