Chapter 160: The Draft (Siege, Oppression, Brutality - Readers may choose to purchase or skip this chapter.)

Wei Qinghe felt a chilling numbness, having always known the cruelty of war but only as a distant concept. Now, it was a harsh reality crashing down before him.

His brother-in-law's help had allowed him to escape to the mountains, but his parents, sister, nephews, and brother-in-law were all trapped in the chaos.

His family was far away, and his brother-in-law only ten miles distant. Yet, despite the proximity, hearing the news rendered him helpless.

For the first time, Wei Qinghe experienced the torment of being unable to act while his heart was on fire with anxiety, plunging into despair.

Shen Lie and Chen Dashan frowned, their military background making them immediately think of a scorched earth policy upon hearing of villagers being forced into the county and witnessing the devastated lands.

Those who struggled to survive in the mountains, relying on their rugged environment, were now trapped in the city. Could they even survive?

Chen Dashan turned to Shen Lie, “What do we do now?”

The situation outside was clear, but Shen Jin's younger siblings and Shopkeeper Xu were likely trapped in the city.

“What to do now?” This question momentarily pulled Wei Qinghe from his despair. Yet, with only three of them, how could they overcome a thousand bandits to rescue others?

Indeed, Shen Lie shook his head.

“There's no way. The bandits have besieged the city for days without breaking through, indicating that the city's defenses are not weak, at least equivalent to the bandits outside. Breaking through a blockade of two or three thousand to save people is beyond our capability.”

With an ongoing siege, every part of the city walls was guarded, making even the thought of using ropes to scale the walls impossible.

Knowing deep down that this would be the outcome, yet when Shen Lie also expressed helplessness, Wei Qinghe's last shred of hope was completely extinguished.

Without daring to harbor any other thoughts, he could only ask, "If the city falls, what are the chances for the people inside to survive?"

Shen Lie shook his head, "It's uncertain. It depends on the actions of the attacking bandits. Rape and plunder are almost certain to occur. Most of these rebels actually harbor deep-seated hatred towards officials and the wealthy. Once oppressed, they've now turned hostile in warfare, where human life might be no different from weeds and ants in their eyes. It's all up to fate."

The first to be targeted upon a city's fall are the wealthy. Unlucky ones, even if not rich and unknown to the attackers, might just lose their lives with a random swing of the sword.

The most terrifying aspect of a city's fall is the amplification of evil intentions in the midst of slaughter. Those who kill without reason, blinded by bloodlust, are not few in such times.

"The gravest danger now is not the city falling," said Shen Lie. "If the city falls but is not subjected to complete slaughter, some will survive. The greater fear is if the city remains under siege."

Wei Qinghe didn't quite understand, so Chen Dashan explained, "Too many villagers have been driven into the city. With heavy taxation in recent years and crops yet to be harvested, they almost have no food. Qi Yang city doesn't have the luxury of foraging in the mountains like the outside. If the siege lasts too long, the situation inside might lead to cannibalism."

Cannibalism.

Wei Qinghe's knees buckled, and he was quickly supported by Zhou Lai Zi who noticed his distress.

Zhou Lai Zi also realized that this unfamiliar young man likely had relatives trapped in the city.

Shen Lie glanced at Wei Qinghe, "There is still a glimmer of hope, though I'm not sure if Shopkeeper Xu has seized it."

Grasping at straws, Wei Qinghe urgently grabbed Shen Lie, "What hope?"

Shen Lie responded, "The shelter that Dashan and I set up for Shopkeeper Xu last time we were out. If he was quick enough to flee and hide there, he should be safe. If he didn't manage to escape, and if he can find a spot near the city wall to dig a tunnel for escape, as long as he gets out and reaches the shelter, there's still a slim chance of survival."

Hearing Shen Lie's words, Wei Qinghe felt a surge of warmth in his heart.

His brother-in-law was always sharp and decisive. Having seen the shelters dug by Shen Lie and Chen Dashan, he surely must have thought of digging a tunnel to escape, right?

"But what if he emerges right into the encircling bandits?" he asked.

Shen Lie nodded, "It's possible, but if there are only a thousand or so bandits outside, with their focus on the city gates, the surrounding woods might have patrols but not constantly. With caution and a bit of luck, it’s possible to avoid them."

Shen Lie then turned to Chen Dashan, "Should we try to detour and check the shelter?"

Directly rescuing people from the city was unrealistic. Digging from the outside is different from the inside, with the dense population inside, the likelihood of remaining undetected was slim.

But if Shopkeeper Xu had already escaped, they could at least provide assistance and bring him back to Yun Valley. Otherwise, if bandits took over the city, whether hiding in the shelter or seeking another escape, the situation would be dire.

Chen Dashan agreed, "We can do that."

They were not strangers but deeply intertwined. Saving someone, if possible, was only natural for them. Taking a detour through the mountains posed minimal risk for them.

Moreover, Shen Lie's nephews were likely trapped in the city. Regardless of Shen San and Li Shi's shortcomings, the children were innocent. Chen Dashan pondered the likelihood of their rescue, especially if Shen San and Li Shi were present, as it increased the risk.

He could only sigh, accepting the role of fate in their survival.

The fate of Shen Jin and his siblings was now truly in the hands of destiny.

Hearing that Shen Lie and Chen Dashan were risking a trip near the city, Wei Qinghe couldn't thank them enough. The journey was fraught with danger, and while Shen Lie and Chen Dashan could probably escape, Wei Qinghe's safety was less certain.

After advising the Zhou father and son to stay hidden and careful, they left some food for Wei Qinghe, instructing him to wait in the shelter Shen Lie had previously dug for Shen Jin and the others, until they returned to regroup.

Wei Qinghe felt genuinely ashamed; he was supposed to rescue his brother-in-law, but now, it was Shen Lian and Chen Dashan who had to venture out while he was left behind in safety.

Shen Lian and Chen Dashan had made it clear: bringing him along could not guarantee his safety; in fact, he might even become a liability.

It was a hard truth to swallow.

Before parting, Wei Qinghe thanked Shen Lian and Chen Dashan profusely. Once they left, he hid himself in the shelter.

……

Meanwhile, atop the city wall of Qiyang County, Shen San watched in horror as a bandit, who had nearly succeeded in climbing the wall, split the head of a fellow worker he had just helped carry wood with. The next moment, the same bandit was beheaded by a defending soldier. One of the severed heads, by sheer coincidence, struck Shen San in the face.

Shen San screamed in terror, almost losing his soul. Frantically, he flung away the head, abandoned the wood and his bread, and scrambled down the city wall in utter panic.

Mrs. Li hadn't yet gone out to guard the bread distribution when she saw Shen San rush back, his face smeared with blood, resembling a lost soul. She grabbed a towel, soaked it with water, and started wiping his face in a frenzy. The sight of blood coming off on the towel made her shake uncontrollably.

"What happened to you?"

Barely had the question been asked when Shen San's suppressed fear found an outlet. He flung the bloodied cloth at Li Shi's face, exclaiming, "Stop risking our lives with knives and spears! I can handle a knife too. If we're going to die, we'll die together. Let someone else do the laborer's work. I'd rather starve than go up there again. If there's no food, I'll eat dirt!"

……

Shen Lian and Chen Dashan had to take a long detour. The besieging bandits, experienced from their southern campaigns, had set up sentries on all possible rear approaches, likely anticipating reinforcements or other forces trying to surround them. So, just avoiding these guards took Shen Lian and Chen Dashan two full days, finally reaching the shelter they had prepared for Xu on May 8th.

They opened the shelter to ventilate it but found no sign of life inside. Shen Lian called out for Xu, but there was no response, leaving them disheartened.

Shen Lian went inside and found plenty of food, but no one. When Chen Dashan joined him in the darkness, Shen Lian quietly said, "I'm afraid Xu never had the chance to come here."

After leaving the shelter, they stealthily moved to a dense forest from where they could observe the battle from a distance.

"The siege seems less intense now."

Chen Dashan observed, "Does it look like they're besieging the city?"

Viewing just this city gate, the bandit forces appeared to exceed a thousand. "Qiyang, being a small county, how many garrisoned troops could it have? The bandits have the upper hand in numbers and yet can't take the city by storm, so they opt for a siege, likely knowing it's their best chance of victory."

Shen Lie clenched his fist, "The city is probably running out of food."

Knowing this didn't change their inability to intervene.

Chen Dashan sighed, "Let's return and wait a few more days."

Even escaping through a tunnel would take time.

Not daring to linger, they returned to the shelter to hide and wait for the slim chance someone might escape.

……

Just as Shen Lie had guessed, Qiyang County was indeed running out of food.

The soldiers and well-off households had enough, but about ten to twenty percent of the impoverished city residents and another thirty percent of the villagers had started running out of food.

Especially the villagers, who had been subsisting on wild vegetables and a bit of bean dregs for months, were now in the city without even access to wild greens. With so many mouths to feed, how long could the limited vegetables last?

Having been in the city for nearly half a month, the poorest and those robbed of their food were gradually running out of even leaves to eat.

With no food, the county office was deserted. Begging others for food was futile, as no one dared to extend such charity. People resorted to eating tree bark, grass roots, leaves, and insects found around the city's edges.

These resources, already scarce in the city, quickly depleted under the desperate scavenging of so many, leading to people eating ground-up straw from their huts, and even dirt, as the straw wasn't filling.

The only meal Shen Jin and his siblings had that day, and their only one, was a piece of earthen cake they managed to obtain.

They carefully picked out stones from the dirt, sieved and washed it in water to obtain fine soil, then chopped rotten vegetable leaves, mixed in a bit of dried wild greens, and some crushed yellow beans along with their chaff. This mixture was combined with the soil to form earthen cakes.

Shen Jin, tears streaming, bit off a small piece, too afraid to chew, simply swallowing it down.

When one is extremely hungry, even an earthen cake can taste supremely delicious; dirt becomes edible.

Shen Jin still had tears, but the youngest, Shen Tie and Shen Tian, had lost even their sense of fear, stuffing whatever food they got into their mouths, choking and then gulping water to wash it down.

Li Shi had become numb, having exhausted every possible means to no avail in securing food.

She could only cling to the last handful of yellow beans, a small bag of dried wild vegetables, and chaff, hoping to survive each day as it came.

If the garrison troops won, they could leave the city to find food and survive.

At times, she would ponder, what if they had fled, or if she had left Shen Jin in the dugout with the beans and dried meat. He could have snared some wild birds or rabbits, not trapped in the city eating dirt as now.

But there were no 'what-ifs' left.

If there had been 'what-ifs', not mistreating the elder family's children from the start, they wouldn't have ended up so helplessly abandoned.

Indeed, wrongdoings eventually come back to haunt you, sooner or later.

Only Shen San remained silent.

Not wanting to die, he preferred to eat vegetable and dirt cakes rather than go up to the city walls. Although prolonged consumption of dirt can be lethal, he hoped to survive each day as it came, perhaps even managing to escape.

He clung to a sliver of hope.

But his optimism was misplaced.

War is inescapable sometimes. With over six hundred casualties, the garrison couldn't hold both city gates any longer, leading to a forceful conscription of able-bodied men within the city.

When the commotion began near the school area, Shen San sensed something was amiss. Seeing the chaos, he grabbed a dirt cake and fled.

Without a specific list of villagers to conscript, the soldiers entered the Shen's shack but, finding no adult males, quickly moved to the next house. This allowed Shen San to narrowly avoid conscription.

……

On the western outskirts of the city, the Xu family had dug a lengthy tunnel close to the city walls, when suddenly the tightly shut gate was loudly banged upon.

"Open the door!"

Wei Lingzhen, who was carrying dirt outside, jumped at the sound.

Not daring to respond, she hurried back to the room where they were digging the tunnel, signaling her younger son to find the old servant Xu Shu in the tunnel. She then tiptoed to lock the room where the soil was piled, before retreating.

The person outside, growing impatient, kicked at the door: "Open up, do you hear me?!"

Wei Lingzhen, terrified, retreated further, as Xu Shu emerged, checked that no dirt was visible, signaled the mistress to hide in the tunnel, and locked the room where the tunnel was being dug. He then approached the main door, tremblingly asking, "Who's there?"

"It's the garrison, conscripting soldiers. Open up quickly!"

Xu Shu's heart sank, but he still opened the door, nodding and bowing, "Yes, sir."

The soldier, holding a list, checked it and looked up to ask, "Xu Zhong?"

Xu Zhong nodded: "Yes, yes, that's me."

The soldier peered inside: "Why did it take so long to open the door? Anyone else home?"

Xu Shu shook his head quickly, "Just me, sir. I was merely passing through Qi Yang County and got trapped here. I found this place to stay. I didn't open the door because lately, many villagers have been knocking for food. Living alone, it’s really unsafe."

His explanation matched the record on the list, so the soldier didn’t probe further, "Alright then, come with us."

Xu Shu, bowing, pretended to be troubled, "I'm too old for this, I... I can’t really defend the city."

The soldier, showing impatience, said, "We'll find something for you to do."

Xu Zhong was merely putting on a show, more concerned about the safety of the family hidden inside. He didn’t really intend to resist, so he feigned compliance, saying, "Alright, just wait a moment, sir. I'll lock the yard."

After locking the yard gate from the outside, he truly followed the soldier.

Inside the main house, the Xu family held their breath, afraid to even exhale, until the footsteps outside faded. Wei Lingzhen then whispered apprehensively, "What do we do now?"

Xu Zhang, the shopkeeper, was also uneasy, but without a better plan, he reassured his wife, "It's alright. Uncle Xu is old; they probably won't make him go to the city walls. They’ll let him rest and rotate the guards. We need to hurry up and finish the tunnel so he can escape."

Wei Lingzhen's eyes reddened, but she nodded, "Okay."

Without delay, she entered the tunnel and picked up the shovel that Uncle Xu had been using to start digging.

……

Shen San, like a dog that lost its home, scurried about in a panic for most of the day and only settled down as night fell. The little bit of dirt cake he ate in the morning couldn't stave off his hunger. With a rumbling stomach, he hid behind various huts, slowly moving back home.

As he moved, he caught a whiff of meat aroma.

Uncontrollably, his steps led him toward the scent, until he reached the hut from where the smell emanated. He stared blankly at a pot of meat bubbling away until the person inside noticed him. He struggled to tear his gaze away from the pot to look at the person in the hut.

The face looked somewhat familiar.

Upon seeing Wang Meiniang cowering in a corner of the bed, he realized, "The son-in-law of the Wang family?"

Gazing longingly at the large pot of meat soup, Shen San couldn't resist the temptation and shamelessly said, "Ah, Meiniang's husband, you're like a nephew-in-law to me, right? So, um..."

Swallowing hard, he continued, "Could I maybe have a few sips of that soup? No need for the meat, just some soup would do. I’m terribly hungry."

The three Wang brothers inside exchanged glances and chuckled, "Uncle, huh?"

They gestured towards Wang Meiniang with a nod, saying, "Give your uncle a bowl then, and add a couple of pieces of meat."

Wang Meiniang, trembling like a leaf, didn’t dare to object and shakily reached for a bowl.