Chapter 147 Fire Dragon
The granary was completed faster than expected.
With the efforts of thousands of strong men almost day and night, amid the almost crazy cheers of tens of thousands of refugees, and with the setting sun just sinking behind the mountain, a simple granary was officially built.
General Sun quickly dispatched a thousand armored soldiers to the granary to escort the grain carts that had already arrived into the warehouse.
Countless torches illuminated the granary. Zhao Yushu and Fang Sanniang sat side by side on the deserted mound, watching the two groups of people confronting each other with weapons at the granary door.
The trouble that was supposed to happen finally came.
After the grain was stored in the warehouse, the soldiers began to drive away the refugees and prohibited them from approaching the granary, but the refugees refused because it was their food.
"Who knows if you will secretly transport food to the city!"
This is the most mainstream voice.
"If you want to transport it to the city, just put it in there directly. Why put it here?"
This was the reason given by the sergeants.
"You just want us to work for nothing and waste our energy! Otherwise, why don't you let us watch here!"
No one knows who came up with this illogical statement and how people believed it so quickly, but Zhao Yushu, who had read countless historical stories in his previous life, knew that when mutual trust collapsed, not to mention rumors that might actually be true, even lies that were 100% true could easily be believed.
General Sun's face turned pale and his hand holding the whip tightened and loosened again. More and more refugees gathered outside the granary, and their eyes became more and more unfriendly.
The assistant officer sent by the governor tried his best to explain the reasons to the refugees, but it was obvious that it had little effect.
Zhao Yushu stood outside the crowd and asked, "Were your people the leaders?"
Fang Sanniang shook her head: "No, but I think what everyone said is right. Since you asked us to provide manpower to build the granary, why can't you let us look after it ourselves? Will we steal our own grain?"
The refugees used up their last bit of strength here. Thousands of refugees surrounded the rough gate of the granary, and outside the simple wooden wall, more refugees clung to the wooden fence with their skinny and dark hands. As long as there was a spark, this group of people would rush forward and drown the food and the garrison troops in the sea of people.
"General, please send some more men." A deputy general had sweat on his forehead, his hands tightly gripped the hilt of his sword, and his voice trembled a little.
"What are you doing! Do you really want to force them to rebel? Put away your bows. If anyone slips, I will chop him off first!"
The standoff did not last long, as several messengers carrying flags brought the governor's orders.
The army withdrew and deployed defenses along the city gates, and the granaries were given to the refugees.
Strictly speaking, General Sun was not a subordinate of Prefect Lan, but was seconded to Prefect Lan by the imperial court. If Lan Rong's order was unreasonable, General Sun had the right to refuse, but this time General Sun hesitated and directly ordered a withdrawal.
The refugees in the granary cheered in victory and soon spontaneously organized a group of strong men who still had strength to carry out the defense.
Bags of grain that had just been stored in the warehouse were immediately pulled out, large iron pots were set up, and soon the aroma of rice filled the air.
Now that the food has arrived, even if the day for distributing it has not yet arrived, there is no reason to keep the food and let people starve to death.
Seeing the irrepressible smile on Fang Sanniang's face, Zhao Yushu sincerely admired: "You Red Lotus Sect really has some skills. Your organizational ability is not much worse than that of the government."
"No, all of us from the Red Lotus Sect have withdrawn. They did this themselves."
Zhao Yushu was shocked: "Have all your people evacuated? All of them?"
Fang Sanniang looked at Zhao Yushu and became nervous for no reason. "Well, I can't say all of them. Anyway, those who followed the master left with Aunt Mei and Uncle Shishu. Some of the newly developed locals didn't leave, but they are all ordinary people..."
Zhao Yushu slapped his thigh fiercely: "It's over!"
That night, the sky was covered with dark clouds, and there was no light in the entire south of the city except for the scattered torches in the refugee camp and the granary. At this moment, a pillar of fire shot up into the sky.
Zhao Yushu had never seen a fire start so quickly. Even if the entire granary was poured with gasoline, it would not start so quickly. In just a moment, his brain couldn't even react to what was happening. At least a quarter of the granary became the most dazzling torch in the night sky.
Fang Sanniang stood there in a daze until a gust of wind blew her hair and covered her eyes. Then she realized that it was the wind brought about by Zhao Yushu's fleeting shadow.
"Zhao Yushu!" Zhao Yushu suddenly stopped while running and turned around. Fang Sanniang was kneeling on the ground weakly, two lines of tears dripping from her cheeks, and she was screaming at the top of her lungs.
"Why is this happening!"
Zhao Yushu looked at Fang Sanniang who was crying bitterly and tried to force out a smile: "Why are you still crying, idiot? Come and help me put out the fire!"
The moment the fire dragon rose up, the entire refugee camp fell silent in an instant. The camp of tens of thousands of people became like a dead zone in an instant. After an unknown amount of time, a desperate cry broke the silence.
"The dog officials are burning our food!"
How great is human potential? In order to save her child, a mother can carry several tons of weight; in order to survive, even if she stops breathing for three minutes, her heart will still beat hard. Humans are extremely tenacious in the face of death.
The fire illuminated not only the night sky, but also tens of thousands of blood-red eyes.
General Sun felt his lips were dry and painful. The moment the fire lit up, he had only one thought in his mind: It's over.
No matter who set the fire, it is meaningless now. As long as the food is burned, the resentment and anger that have been accumulated for who knows how long will erupt in an instant. The refugees will only point their spearheads in one direction, and that direction is filled with swords and guns.
The fire was so big that one could see the soaring fire dragon under the dark clouds even in the government office. Lan Rong stood with his trembling hands behind his back, his face ashen, and then he turned around abruptly.
"Lan Rong! You are a treacherous and shameless villain!" A small house was shattered, and the old helmsman in a red robe had his hair and beard standing up, and spiritual power was surging around him, like a flaming lion.
"It's not me..." Lan Rong opened his mouth slightly, his voice was so low that he could hardly hear it. He did not distinguish, and it was too late to distinguish. Lan Rong blocked with both hands. As a great monk of the seventh level, he discovered for the first time that the angry fist of the sixth level was so difficult to receive.
A large and luxurious carriage was parked in the east of the city. The interior of the carriage was illuminated by several luminous pearls, and every detail was clearly visible. Two beautiful girls were serving him with pens and ink. Wang Shaolin was writing freely with a smile on his face.
"Mr. Qin, how do you like my painting of Red Lotus Purifying the World?"
“It’s absolutely wonderful.”
"Hahaha, it's done. I won't play with them anymore. I'll leave the rest to you. Don't forget what I said, Mr. Qin."
The carriage started moving, heading slowly eastward. Mr. Qin stood on the road, saluted with his fists clasped, and gritting his teeth as he faced the receding carriage.
"Don't worry, he will never leave Nanyang."
Zhao Yushu's speed was so fast that if it weren't for the flames all over the sky, it would be impossible to find the continuous black shadows. He would be even faster using the Shadow Step.
He did not go to put out the fire, which had now spread to nearly one-third of the city, and there were people running helplessly everywhere.
He came to the granary which had not yet caught fire, and looked at a man in front of him, a mortal, with a hideous lotus branded on his shoulder, twisting constantly in the light of the fire.