Chapter 695: On the Road to Escape

ing for their swords at their waists. However, upon entering the hall, they had removed their weapons.Meanwhile, the maids behind them, quick-witted and agile, returned swords to their masters' hands....After a chaotic night, Zhangjia Village’s remaining food supplies were completely depleted. There were cries of despair everywhere, and no household was spared. Although these refugees fought over the scarce food, they didn't harm each other. While some villagers who resisted were injured, thankfully no one died. This was a blessing in disguise amidst such misfortune.

The village head, seeing the villagers with faces pale with fear, could only call on everyone to prepare for a hurried departure, joining the fleeing caravan. Their destination was the same as that of the Zhang family.

The villagers didn't want to leave, but they had no choice. They were attacked once, and all their visible food was stolen. The hidden food wouldn't last long either. Leaving here meant they could still eat, but staying would mean waiting to die. They couldn't withstand a second raid. While they still had the strength, it was best to leave as soon as possible.

This time, the villagers of Zhangjiacun were much faster. They packed up all their belongings in just two days and, led by the village head, left Zhangjiacun.

And soon after, Songjiacun also suffered the same fate as other villages, ravaged by refugees. Old Song, because he had a stockpile of food, managed to save most of their supplies.

Only then did they realize the severity of the situation. They sent Song Dahai to find their second son, intending for Song Dachuan to escape with them. With two strong men around, they could at least protect themselves.

They had food in their hands and could even boss the entire Big Chuan family around, but when the news came, it was that Song Big Chuan had already left. Now the whole Zhangjia Village was deserted. This time, they were truly dumbfounded.

On the other side, Zhang's family and Song Daguang's family of over twenty people because they left early, avoided the first wave of major disaster refugees. The first day's journey went relatively smoothly.

During the few days before leaving Zhangjia Village, Lianyi specially told Old Zhang that at least everyone should be well-fed these days, otherwise they wouldn't have the energy to travel. They carried too many things and would attract attention. Food in their stomachs was theirs.

Lao Zhangtou was a seasoned veteran. After Lian Yi's reminder, he immediately realized this, so in the five days leading up to their escape, his family ate two meals a day, and they were all able to eat until seven points full. Their complexions visibly improved, and they had the energy to go on. On the first day, they covered fifteen kilometers.

On the road, they only stopped to relieve themselves and for a midday meal of dry rations and water. The rest of the time was spent traveling as quickly as possible.

Lianshui pushed the handcart loaded with their belongings, allowing Huiniang and Huzizi to sit comfortably on top. She steadily moved them forward, while Song Dachu walked beside her, holding a stick in one hand and a short knife concealed in his other. This was a necessary display of force to deter any potential threats from desperate refugees.

On the road, Song Dachuan and his daughter would take turns driving, but most of the time it was Lian Yi who drove. Hui Niang felt sorry for her daughter, so she would get out of the car and walk for a while, and only get back in when she couldn't keep up.

All members of the Zhang family have bicycles. The elderly couple takes turns riding different bicycles to ensure they don't fall behind. Everyone except the driver can ride for a while and then rest, so it’s not overly tiring.

And Zhang Shi's cart always pulled Liu, who was heavily pregnant. After all, she was about to give birth soon, and no one dared to let her walk too much for fear that she would have an accident halfway through.

They kept walking until the sky was completely dark. The family finally stopped under a crooked tree. Song Dachuan checked the surroundings and decided to rest there for the night. Luckily, even though it was autumn, because of the drought, the weather was still hot, so sleeping outdoors at night wouldn't be cold.

The Zhang family huddled behind the crooked neck tree, using planks to form a semicircle. The space between the planks and the tree was where they would sleep for the night.

At this time, the bedding at home came in handy. After laying down the bedding, the whole family started a fire and cooked a pot of dried vegetable congee. Then they soaked the flatbread and ate a warm meal. With something in their stomachs, they finally lay down to rest.

Lao Zhang knew that sleeping outside at night meant someone had to be on guard duty, otherwise they might get robbed and not even know how it happened. Since this was common knowledge, she decided to take the first shift. Zhang's side had Zhang Zhong and his eldest son Zhang Fengliang guarding the upper half of the night, while Zhang Jun and his eldest son Zhang Fengyong took over the lower half.

After nightfall, those who had their eyes on Lao Zhang's family finally moved. They waited until everyone was asleep and the guard started to doze off before slowly approaching. They wanted to grab all the members of the Zhang family in the middle of the night, killing the strong men outright and selling the women and children to human traffickers. These people also had food supplies on them, which in their eyes made them a flock of fat sheep.

And ripples of being tracked had long been noticed, at this time his eyes were already open, taking out the sinister dagger from the space, a wisp of black evil energy floated towards these people, making the eyes of this group of insane people instantly turn red, and then they started to kill each other.

Only then did the ripples subside, rousing Uncle Zhang and Zhang Fengliang. As the commotion of the group tearing into each other, slashing and killing grew louder, all the members of the Zhang family were awakened.

"Shito and Daguai stayed behind to protect the women and children. The eldest, the second, and the third, you take a few of the boys with you to see what's going on. Take your weapons with you."

Although Old Zhang was also nervous, as the head of the household, he had to stay calm. So, he immediately made arrangements, and everyone followed his orders. Holding their clubs, kitchen knives, and axes, they slowly approached the small hillock where the sound was coming from.

Ripple knew there was no danger, so she didn't go over. Instead, she stayed at the campsite.

Several little girls were frightened, but none of them screamed. Instead, they huddled in their mothers' arms, their eyes fixed on the small hillock in the distance.

Liu was also startled, the child in her belly seemed to be moving restlessly, unhappy to have been woken up, so it stirred. This caused Liu's face to pale. Zhang Shi held his wife's hand and slowly helped her regulate her breathing.

Ripple touched her nose, forgetting there was still a pregnant woman. Her movements were a bit loud, but she also used this opportunity to remind everyone that the journey ahead was fraught with danger and they had to stay vigilant at all times. Otherwise, before they reached Huangzhou, they would be scattered.

Twenty minutes later, Zhang Zhong returned with a few children, his face looking grim.

"Father, those people behind the small mound seem to have bad intentions. They seem to want to rob us, but they're somehow bewitched and are killing each other there. Everyone is going all out, and four or five of them have already died."

Zhang Zhong wiped his face after finishing, Zhang Fengliang and Zhang Fengyong and the other male children turned pale, apparently they had never seen a dead person before, so they were sent back by their father and uncles.

Is there anyone else around

"That's it!"

"Come, take me there. You guys stay here, don't go any further."

Old Zhang was very bold and immediately stood up and said.

"Okay, Father, be careful!"

Zhang Zhong immediately reached out to help his own father up.

"Old man, be careful!"

Old Zhang immediately instructed.

"I know you're safe here, waiting."

After Lao Zhang's departure, the camp fell silent again. After a while, Liu weakly said:

"Mother, I... I think I'm going to give birth!"e to become your disciple and cultivate my body, would I also become as strong as you in the end"The ripples were intentionally asked, after all, the original body was only sixteen years old, naturall...