Qin Fang had expected the men from the Iron Tiger Gang to come looking for trouble the very next day, but the result was a bit unexpected...
For several days in a row, it was as if Wang Long and his men had forgotten all about him. They didn't even show their faces.
After a moment of shock, Qin Fang began to understand...
'Could it be because of the refugee uprising?'
'Did the refugee uprising delay them?'
Qin Fang couldn't be sure.
But this was undoubtedly good news.
It allowed Qin Fang to relax and recuperate in peace.
Every evening, Old Wu would come to check his wounds and apply fresh ointment.
Old Wu's ointment was astonishingly effective. In just three or four days, the wounds on his waist and left shoulder had completely scabbed over. Although a full recovery was still a long way off, at least they were no longer getting worse.
With his wounds properly treated, Qin Fang's fever broke, and his Spirit improved with each passing day.
Everything was looking up.
Except...
"The refugees have rebelled!"
A few days later, the more straightforward of the two youths who brought him his daily meals came with news.
The youth's name was Zhang Hao, a simple-natured boy. At first, he had been full of dislike and wariness toward Qin Fang.
However, Qin Fang made a point of striking up a conversation with him whenever he delivered his meals. Over time, Zhang Hao slowly let down his guard and his dislike faded.
'This guy is actually pretty polite. He doesn't seem like a bad person.'
Gradually, he became willing to chat with him a little more.
And so, from this youth, Qin Fang learned a piece of news that left him secretly alarmed...
The refugees had rebelled.
He immediately thought of the group of fake refugees he had encountered before.
'It was most likely them making a move.'
'But it was strange. True Martial County had already opened its gates and let the refugees in. Under these circumstances, now that they have a chance to survive, why would they still rebel?'
When he asked for more details, Qin Fang learned something else...
"The disaster relief grain was actually burned a few days ago. We at Huichun Hall even went to help put out the fire. But at the same time, some mysterious people were causing chaos, killing people indiscriminately. We worked all night, but we couldn't save the grain. We just had to watch helplessly as it all burned."
"You're pretty lucky you got in on the first day. The grain they handed out that day wasn't actually the relief grain from the Court. It was what the County Magistrate pleaded for from the major factions in True Martial County."
"But the major factions only have so much grain. The refugees just keep pouring in—I heard there are over a hundred thousand of them now! A hundred thousand! That's a hundred thousand mouths waiting to be fed! Even the major factions don't have that much in storage... They need to eat, too!"
"Once they couldn't hand out any more grain, the refugees naturally wouldn't stand for it... and so they rebelled."
At this, Zhang Hao gritted his teeth. "Those refugees are real scum! It's not like we have the grain and are refusing to give it to them... We don't have any left either! They just resort to robbing us? They're nothing but a pack of ungrateful wolves!"
Hearing this, Qin Fang finally understood everything.
'The relief grain was destroyed before they even arrived?'
He then recalled the question he'd heard that day...
'Where did the grain come from?'
'At the time, he had thought it was strange. Why would they suddenly ask that?'
'Now it all made sense...'
'It must have been that group. They burned the grain to force the refugees to rebel.'
'That's why, upon learning that True Martial was opening its gates to distribute porridge, they had blurted out, "Where did the grain come from?"'
'But they continued with their plan, obviously knowing that True Martial County's grain couldn't solve the underlying problem.'
'With a hundred thousand shi of relief grain burned, even if True Martial County had the will to provide aid, how could it possibly conjure more grain out of thin air?'
'As more refugees gathered, the grain shortage would only grow wider.'
'Seeing this, the major factions in True Martial County would certainly stop opening their granaries to hand out food...'
'...because it was a bottomless pit.'
'Besides, while these major factions might lend a hand when it's within their means—if only to give face to the Government Office—'
'—if they were truly expected to risk their entire fortunes...'
'...who would agree?'
'Even a Celestial Venerable of charity and morals doesn't act like that!'
Qin Fang finally had a general understanding of the whole situation, and his expression shifted uncertainly.
This affair would obviously affect him as well. After all, he was one of the refugees.
With the refugees attacking True Martial and causing massive destruction, the people of True Martial County would surely grow to hate all refugees.
He would be caught in the crossfire.
However, it wasn't entirely without its benefits...
The men from the Iron Tiger Gang had clearly been tied up by this incident, which had allowed him a few days of peace.
'...Or maybe they'd already died in the refugee uprising?'
'If so, that would solve a big problem for me.'
"This refugee rebellion... it won't cause any trouble for the hall, will it?"
Qin Fang asked the question that concerned him most.
'Whether the refugees rebelled or not had nothing to do with him.'
'But the safety of Huichun Hall was a matter of his own survival!'
'If the refugees broke into Huichun Hall, he highly doubted they would spare him just because he was also a refugee.'
'...Refugees driven mad by hunger are no longer human.'
'Those lost in a blood-crazed frenzy... can't be considered human either.'
'He knew all too well from his own flight how much terrifying, negative emotion was pent up inside those refugees.'
'Those emotions had to be vented.'
'Once the string of reason snapped, there was no telling what the rebelling refugees were capable of.'
"You don't need to worry about that. Most of the rebels are the ones who haven't even entered the city. The group of refugees that was causing trouble inside the city a while back has already been broken up. Some were killed, the rest fled. They're not much of a threat anymore."
"The city gates are shut tight now, and the True Martial Guard has them blocked outside the walls. That mob of refugees has been officially branded as rebels. They don't have any siege equipment, so they can't get in. They'll probably leave before long."
You couldn't possibly kill them all. With tens of thousands of refugees, it would take hours to cut them down even if they just stood there.
True Martial County wasn't some major city with a large army to protect it.
It only had a single garrison of a little over a thousand men.
But if a thousand armored elites were simply defending the walls, the number of refugees didn't matter.
A breach was impossible.
As long as the defenders held out, the refugees would eventually leave on their own...
They wouldn't waste their energy trying to gnaw on a bone they couldn't break.
After all, True Martial County wasn't the only county around. There were other towns... and even smaller villages and marketplaces.
"It's just... if that refugee army attacks the countryside, I'm afraid it'll be another catastrophe..."
Zhang Hao's expression turned grave as he spoke, and he gritted his teeth again.
The villages had no gates to hide behind.
One could only imagine the horrific tragedy that would unfold if those refugees were to descend upon the countryside...
Qin Fang fell silent.
But there was nothing he could do about it.
He himself was a refugee, and his safety in Huichun Hall was only temporary. He still had no idea what he would do next...
Several more days passed in this state of unease.
Zhang Hao brought more news.
"Just as you'd expect, the refugees retreated."
He let out a long breath, his eyes a complex mix of fear, shock, excitement, and awe. "I heard they tried to storm the city several times, but the True Martial Guard fought them off each time... I just went to the city gate to take a look. Tsk, tsk... what a brutal scene. Bodies everywhere... They even tried to set the gate on fire, but they were shot down before they even got close. In the end, a whole bunch of them were burned to death by their own fires..."
The horrific reality of the battlefield left the young man both shaken and awestruck.
At the same time, however, he seemed to feel a perverse sort of excitement.
Qin Fang didn't know what to say.
Still, the refugees' retreat was to be expected. For everyone currently in True Martial County, it was undeniably fantastic news.
That, of course, included him.
After a soft sigh, however, Qin Fang asked, "Brother Hao, do you know about the Iron Tiger Gang?"
Lost in his complex emotions, Zhang Hao was taken aback by the question. He looked at Qin Fang in confusion. "The Iron Tiger Gang? Why would you suddenly ask about them out of the blue?"