Chapter Thirty-Four: The Robbers

"Everyone, hand over your valuables at once!"

A group of ragged bandits stood at the entrance of the inn, brandishing makeshift weapons like clubs and staves. Though they postured with menacing intent, their sallow, gaunt faces betrayed a state of chronic malnutrition. These were no hardened criminals; they were merely desperate refugees with nowhere else to turn.

Er Niu frowned, his hand instinctively moving toward his back. The two dozen guards nearby shifted their weight forward, ready to strike at a moment's notice. To these men under Liu Xie’s command, dealing with such refugees would take but a blink of an eye.

Liu Xie raised a hand to stop him, giving a slight shake of his head. Er Niu relented, though he stepped closer to Liu Xie, positioning himself to shield him from any potential harm.

The refugees surged into the inn, surrounding Liu Xie’s party with their crude tools and weapons. The inn’s staff had long since vanished. Liu Xie cast a brief glance around, estimating nearly a hundred people in the mob, all seemingly between the ages of twenty and forty—the primary labor force of their families.

Liu Xie noticed their leader: a man in his thirties with thick brows, wide eyes, and a full beard. It was he who had shouted the demand at the door. As the refugees shoved against the guards, the soldiers held their ground, refusing to draw weapons against the starving crowd without Liu Xie’s order. The ground floor descended into chaos.

Liu Xie observed the refugees. While they did their best to appear ferocious, the panic and unease in their eyes were plain to him.

The commotion caught the attention of Xu Fugui, who had been upstairs preparing rooms for Liu Xie’s party. Hearing the crash and the ensuing uproar, he knew something was wrong and hurried down, shouting, "Stop! Stop!"

At the sound of his voice, the noisy floor fell into sudden silence.

"Zhou Yi, what are you doing? Why have you come to rob my inn again!"

Upon hearing Xu Fugui’s frantic, indignant voice, the bearded man went quiet. He looked at the approaching innkeeper with a flicker of evasion in his eyes. This piqued Liu Xie’s curiosity.

Could they be acquainted?

Xu Fugui marched up to the bearded man, jabbing a finger at him. "Didn't you come here just half a month ago? How have you already finished the grain I gave you?"

Zhou Yi, the man being pointed at, looked embarrassed. He gritted his teeth and spoke with a bitter expression. "Every household has children, and we can barely survive. The grain you gave us was indeed enough for a month..."

"But many of our fellow villagers have fallen ill with fever. We had to trade most of that grain for medicine just to keep them alive."

As he spoke, the eyes of this grown man turned red. "We don't want to do such low, despicable things. But we have no other choice... so many have already died. Even Xiao Jiu and the others are sick... if we don't save them..."

Zhou Yi choked out, "If we don't save them... I fear they won't last the night!"

A deathly silence fell over the room. The refugees clenched their jaws, their eyes filled with grief and despair. If they could not find a doctor, death was imminent.

"Has the local government not sent aid?" Liu Xie finally asked.

"Hmph, the government?" Zhou Yi sneered, his eyes filled with hatred and disgust as he looked at Liu Xie. "The officials and you wealthy elites have swallowed eight or nine tenths of the disaster relief supplies! How much actually reaches us? You have no sympathy for the common people! To you, we are nothing but tools to hoard wealth. After every disaster, it is the corrupt officials and local tyrants who grow fat, while you care nothing for the lives lost!"

"Damn the government! This empire is doomed to fall!"

Er Niu was shocked by these treasonous words and moved to discipline the man, but Liu Xie pressed a hand down on his shoulder.

"Master, he..." Er Niu began, anxious, but Liu Xie remained calm.

"Shut your mouth! Do you want to lose your head?" Xu Fugui scolded, then turned to offer a nervous, ingratiating smile to Liu Xie, only for Liu Xie to cut him off.

"Where is your village? Can you take me to see it?" Liu Xie asked, looking at Zhou Yi with sincerity.

Zhou Yi grew wary. "What do you want? You will not learn our location!"

Liu Xie spread his hands, making himself look as amiable as possible. "You don't need to be afraid. I can help you! I can provide disaster relief and hire doctors for you."

"If you don't believe me, there is nothing I can do, but if I don't help, you will only die."

Zhou Yi frowned at Liu Xie’s words. The surrounding refugees turned their gazes toward him, clearly deferring to his lead. Zhou Yi gritted his teeth and said, "Fine, follow me. But if you try any tricks, we’ll drag you down to the grave with us!"

Liu Xie nodded. "Rest assured. Lead the way."

Led by Zhou Yi, the massive group set off toward the east side of the inn. Throughout the journey, Liu Xie kept the carriage curtains open, watching the road. Along the highway, groups of sallow-faced refugees wandered aimlessly, their eyes hollow and lifeless, moving like the walking dead.

Liu Xie’s expression grew increasingly grim.

Zhou Yi, leading the party, had long grown accustomed to the sight; for the past two years, refugees were all he ever saw. Yuzhang Commandery was filled with them.

"Why are there so many refugees in Yuzhang? Has the local government not reported this to the Imperial Court?" Liu Xie asked, suppressing the rage in his heart.

Er Niu, riding alongside the carriage, hesitated before replying, "The Prefect of Yuzhang reported it to the Court long ago, but back then Dong Zhuo held the reins of power, and memorials from many regions were simply shelved."

"As for these refugees," he added, "Yuzhang has been under a severe drought for two years."

In the year 188 AD, a great drought struck Yuzhang Commandery, leaving countless dead and the countryside strewn with the starving.