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Chapter 616 - Refugees
Niu San squatted down in the middle of the crowd to slurp up the congee in his bowl.
The congee was watery, but there were wild vegetables, radish leaves, and sweet potatoes inside of it.
Niu San was crying as he ate. The congee tasted delicious—it was so delicious that he could swear that he had never eaten something as delicious as this before.
He licked the bowl clean and walked out from the crowd to make his way toward the food tent.
Niu San was skinny, but his tall figure attracted the militia’s attention.
“What are you doing? Stand there!” a few militia members shouted at Niu San while pointing their spears at him.
“Good sirs, didn’t they say that we can have two bowls to eat? Can I have another?” Niu San asked gingerly.
They gave him another serving of congee. Niu San bowed and thanked them before returning back to the crowd to eat.
Niu San used to have a decent position in the military, but he was more than ready to lower his ego just to eat something.
He licked the bowl clean again. It was a good meal overall.
Having eaten his fill, Niu San's mind cleared up, and he swept his gaze across Cowheart Village.
The village was pristine and brimming with life. It was a fresh scene compared to the scenes of destruction that the Natural Disaster had left in its wake.
Niu San found it strange. As far as he could remember, less than ten percent of the Qi Kingdom's population survived the Natural Disaster.
There was no way everyone could have escaped the Natural Disaster, so how come Cowheart Village seemed unscathed? That’s strange. Is there someone strong protecting this place?
Just then, he saw a strange "crack" appearing out of nowhere in the middle of the fields.
A man in a red Daoist robe popped out of the "crack," and Niu San became certain of his suspicions at the sight.
The Daoist glanced at them before entering the fenced-up village. The Daoist then started talking to a young man with vitiligo.
The bizarre-looking young man then walked toward him and pointed at the few people around him, “You, you, you, and you. Come here!”
The bizarre-looking young man pointed at four people with bigger figures than the average people, including Niu San.
“Listen here, Senior Li is a magnanimous man, and he hates seeing people who are suffering! That is the reason he decided to feed you here for free! But there are too many of you for us to manage, so he told me to choose four people from your group to help supervise everyone in your group! The four of you better manage your people properly! If you need to use the toilet, go to the woods and do your business there! You better not harm anyone, too! If anyone disagrees with you, pull them to the side, and we'll reduce their congee ration by half!”
“Yes!” the four people exclaimed at once.
Puppy was overjoyed by their obedience. He nodded to dismiss them, and the four returned to their group.
Puppy then looked at Li Huowang and said, “Senior Li, we're committing good deeds here, and we don't have a shortage of food, but can we really sustain this? More and more people are coming here.”
Li Huowang looked at the refugees and whispered, “There aren't going to be that many of them. The majority of the Qi Kingdom's population has already perished."
Li Huowang knew, as he had gone into the Qi Kingdom and noticed only a few survivors in a ten Li radius.
Just then, the sound of horse hooves came from a distance. Li Huowang turned and saw Chun Xiaoman with several other people on horseback. She was holding the reins with her remaining arm, and she jumped down the horse upon spotting Li Huowang. “Senior Li, you're right. We've also seen refugees in the other villages and counties.”
“Did you see anyone wearing a white cloth on their head?”
“Yes, but there aren't that many of them. I think there are only about five of them.”
Li Huowang’s heart sank. It was not a coincidence that the Qi Kingdom's people had appeared here. Gao Zhijian was the Emperor of the Qi Kingdom, after all, but he was now connected to the Dragon Vein of the Liang Kingdom.
The Qi Kingdom's past had disappeared, but its people still found their way into the Liang Kingdom
Zhuge Yuan’s method saved the lives of the Qi Kingdom's people, but Li Huowang didn't expect that they would be saved like this.
It would have been great if only the civilians were transported here, but people with supernatural powers were transported as well. Li Huowang knew that he had to inform Gao Zhijian of these changes as soon as possible.
Li Huowang pondered over his next course of action. After a while, he nodded and took out a letter. “Take this to Shangjing. Give it to either Gao Zhijian or the Surveillance Bureau.”
“Understood,” Chun Xiaoman said. She put away the letter and disappeared into the woods.
Li Huowang sighed. The majority of the Qi Kingdom's population had died, so the Dharma Sect from the other side had to have suffered a similar fate. Otherwise, they'd become a plague for the Liang Kingdom.
Regardless, the fact that there were survivors from the Qi Kingdom's Dharma Sect was problematic. After all, they could become a massive headache later down the road.
“Senior Li, are you thinking about dealing with them?” Bai Lingmiao asked softly as she walked up to Li Huowang.
Li Huowang crossed his arms in front of his chest and swept his gaze across the refugees. “Yes. Even though there aren't that many of them, they're desperate and hungry. These survivors are fit and powerful as well, so if we let them be, the Liang Kingdom might fall into chaos once again. After all, these refugees will most likely start committing crimes to survive, or they might join the Dharma Sect of the Liang Kingdom.”
Bai Lingmiao bit her fingernails as she thought. Moments later, she suggested, “Senior Li, what do you think about this? I have some authority in the White Lotus Sect. I can absorb some of the refugees into the White Lotus Sect. What do you think?”
Li Huowang was surprised. “White Lotus Sect? Is that your own idea, or is it the idea of your higher ups in the White Lotus Sect?”
“Senior Li, I’m the Saintess of the White Lotus Sect. I'm the higher-up.”
Li Huowang stared deeply at Bai Lingmiao and concluded that it was about time they discussed the White Lotus Sect.
Bai Lingmiao's suggestion was a great idea. The White Lotus Sect was much more amiable than the Dharma Sect, which tried to summon God Yu'er.
“All right, but tell your people to work double time. I think the Dharma Sect is already trying to recruit these refugees.”
“Okay!” Bai Lingmiao nodded and ran into the village.
After a while, she returned to the entrance, but Li Huowang was nowhere to be found. In the end, she decided to return to the Bai Family Estate.
Upon entering the estate, she immediately saw Li Huowang sitting on a bench. It seemed that he had been waiting for her.
“Sit, let’s talk.” Li Huowang patted the empty space next to him.
Bai Lingmiao sat down and leaned her head on his shoulder.
“Tell me honestly. Are you hiding anything concerning the White Lotus Sect from me?"