Chapter 45: The Suffering Common People

  Xiao Chen, Liu Lan, and the newly followed Yue Chan, Xi Yu sisters were rushing to Jia Yuan County. They had to find Deputy General Ding as soon as possible and let him tell them where Huayang Sect was located. They also had to rush to Huayang Sect and explain everything to the people there, no matter how they would be treated, as long as they didn't implicate the innocent villagers of Pingquan Village.

  Looking at Xiao Chen, who was rushing to the county town of Jia Yuan with anxiety, Liu Lan wanted to speak up several times, but the words were swallowed back. The temperament of Huayang Sect's people is arrogant and strange, and their actions are eccentric and stubborn. She had already told Xiao Chen more than once. But this couldn't change Xiao Chen's mind at all. For the sake of the villagers in Pingquan Village, Xiao Chen had already disregarded his own safety, completely ignoring how those ungrateful bastards treated him.

  The so-called benevolent person, the humble gentleman, is concerned with being open and aboveboard, and repaying kindness with resentment. He never begrudges others, nor does he complain about them. In his dealings with people, he always thinks of others first, not seeking to be rewarded with a peach for throwing a plum, but only seeking to have no regrets in his heart. In the past, when Liu Lan heard such words, her first reaction was usually to burst out laughing: "Come on, are you kidding me? Is there really someone so naive and foolish in this world?"

  Now, Liu Lan believed that in this world there really are people like that, and he is absolutely not a pedantic person. He is a humble gentleman, the best of all good men, and also a benevolent man!

  Xiao Chen, don't worry, no matter what happens in the future. I will always be by your side. Even if we face stormy weather, I will firmly stand by your side and never leave you.

  Compared to Xiao Chen and Liu Lan, who were both weighed down by their own concerns, Xiang Yulan looked much more cheerful. She was thrilled to see her sister again, to leave the dull and lifeless Pingquan Village behind, and never have to see those ungrateful people again. The little girl's heart was bursting with joy.

  All along the way, the little girl was jumping and singing happily. She is indeed a child who knows no sorrow!

  In the distance, a group of people were walking unsteadily towards us, with as many as fifty or sixty people. Among them, there were old and young, men and women. However, it was extremely strange that these people all had yellowish complexions, were emaciated, wore tattered clothes, and their faces were filled with an unmistakable look of terror.

  "What...what's going on? Just as Xiao Chen and the others were shocked, this group of people had already slowly approached them. But just then, a cloud of dust rose in the distance, and more than ten men dressed in official military attire, riding high-headed horses, rushed towards here. In an instant, they caught up with these hobbling weaklings."

  "You wretched people, you dare to escape? You dare to escape?" Along with a barrage of curses, the dark horse whip came crashing down on these people. Instantly, there was a chorus of mournful cries.

  "Sir, please spare our lives!"

  "Spare you? You dare not pay the official taxes, and you still want to run away! You these cheap people, how big is your nerve!" A whip landed right on a man's cheek, instantly bleeding profusely, wailing incessantly.

  "Old fellow, you're almost in the grave, yet you still have the energy to run away? How dare you! You run, go ahead and run!" A soldier directly whipped a white-haired old man to the ground with one lash.

  "Bastards! How can these people do this?" Watching the government troops bully a large group of old, weak women and children, Xiao Chen's indignation was overwhelming, and he immediately wanted to rush out. But he was pulled back by Liu Lan's grasp on his sleeve.

  Liu Lan's face turned pale, "Xiao Chen, don't interfere in other people's business! They are the official army of Great Yan Country! To resist them is equivalent to treason and rebellion, that's a crime punishable by extermination of nine clans!"

  Due to Liu Lan's pulling, Xiao Chen's feverish brain began to calm down. After all, the consequences of the conflict between civilians and officials made him think thrice. However, just as this happened, another thing occurred - a thin young woman, due to being too frightened, accidentally dropped the infant she was tightly holding in her arms onto the ground.

  One of the soldiers saw this, gave a cruel laugh, and pulled on the reins. The fine horse beneath him could not bear the pain, its front hooves rising straight up, and it trampled the infant who was wailing on the ground.

  "My child!" The young woman's face turned pale.

  "Danger!" Xiao Chen's head 'peng' exploded. A figure rushed out and picked up the baby. Almost at the same time, horseshoes heavily fell down.

  "Great! Fortunately nothing happened!" Looking at the baby in her arms, Xiao Chen finally let out a sigh of relief.

  "Bastard!" Someone actually dared to ruin his good thing, the soldier was furious and swung a whip at Xiao Chen. 'Crack' sounded, followed by a sharp pain on his back.

  "You damned guy, how dare you ruin my good deed? Are you tired of living?" the soldier cursed loudly.

  "As officials and soldiers of the imperial court, you have actually done such a thing to oppress good people. Do you still have any shame?" Suppressing his innermost indignation, Xiao Chen handed the baby in his arms to his mother and turned to glare at the soldiers with anger.

  The soldier was furious and whipped again. But could Xiao Chen, who had already been on guard, let him have his way? Xiao Chen stretched out one of his hands and grabbed the whip, no matter how hard the other side pulled, he didn't budge.

  "Bastard!" The soldier's face turned red. He never thought that the slender young man in front of him would have such great strength.

  And seeing his companions' red faces, the rest of the soldiers burst out laughing. "Dog Egg, you can't even handle a little kid like that, were you too busy messing around in the women's beds last night?" A pot-bellied voice chimed in, followed by another round of thunderous laughter.

  "Damn it!" The soldier, who was already extremely embarrassed, increased his strength again. However, no matter how hard he tried, the opponent remained as stable as a rock. The laughter grew even louder.

  "Xiao Chen, let go quickly, don't be impulsive! They are the government troops!" Liu Lan hastily advised beside him.

  "Hmph!" Although his anger was burning hotter than ever, Xiao Chen knew what it meant to fight against the government troops. He reluctantly loosened his grip. But he had forgotten that the soldier on the horseback was desperately holding on. With Xiao Chen's sudden release of force, the soldier instantly fell off the horseback.

  Haha! Laughing uncontrollably.

  "Little rabbit! I'll kill you!" Dog Egg stumbled up from the ground, clenched his fists and swung at Xiao Chen's head.

  "Don't go too far!" Yes, Xiao Chen was very gentle and humble. But that didn't mean he had no temper. When the anger accumulated in his heart exceeded the limit of tolerance, it would also erupt.

  Xiao Chen kicked out with one foot, heavily hitting Dog Egg's abdomen, instantly turning him into a rolling gourd. "Son of a turtle!" A mouthful of fresh blood spurted from Dog Egg's mouth. He had no idea that the man in front of him possessed a robust heart ten times stronger than an ordinary person, which also gave this man strength ten times greater than an ordinary person.

  Gou Dan was struggling to get up, but the intense pain made him unable to complete the action. "Gou Dan!" The other soldiers couldn't laugh anymore after seeing this scene. They dismounted their horses and surrounded Xiao Chen.

  "This is his* mine, can't blame me!" Xiao Chen wanted to explain. But these arrogant and spoiled soldiers wouldn't listen. The shiny blades were waving towards Xiao Chen's body one after another.

  "Danger!" This was Liu Lan's cry of alarm.

  "Xiao Chen gege!" Little Xiuyan was also terrified.

  "You bunch of bastards!" Without inquiring into the rights and wrongs, every move is intended to put oneself in a position of certain death. Is this really what the national army, who should be protecting the people, ought to do?

  People like you don't even deserve to be called government troops, you're just bandits, you're just rebels. And for bandits and rebels, I won't be polite. Xiao Chen gritted his teeth and charged forward. Although Xiao Chen's hand-to-hand combat skills were far inferior to those of the government soldiers, his extraordinary physique gave him ten times the strength of a normal person.

  In the face of such power, so-called martial skills seem to be not that important. A familiar scene happened again, with every move of Xiao Chen's hands and feet, a soldier would fall to the ground with a scream, then roll around in agony on the ground for a long time before being able to get up.

  "What's good about this? What's good about this?" At this time, Liu Lan was stunned. Things had already reached an irretrievable point.

  "Xiao Chen gege, let's hurry up and go!" Xiangyuan little girl's black eyes sparkled with mischief as she turned around.

  "Yes, hurry up and go! Hurry up and go!" At this time, Liu Lan also reacted. She quickly went forward and pulled Xiao Chen's arm.

  "Don't go! None of you are allowed to leave!" A slightly panicked voice rang out, and immediately a dozen or so people surrounded them, apparently the same group of civilians who had just been bullied by the officials. Even the young woman who had just been rescued by Meng Xiangchen was standing at the back of the crowd, tightly hugging her child and keeping her head down, not making a sound.

  "Little kid, you'd better run away! You'd better escape!" On the ground, Dog Egg burst out laughing.

  "Kid, what's the point of being a hero for nothing? You helped them, but how did they treat you? I'm telling you, these people are all ungrateful and treacherous! They all deserve to die!"

  "You... you..." At this moment, Liu Lan was so angry that her slender body was trembling all over. She pointed at these ungrateful people with her hand. This scene was so similar to the one in Pingquan Village! Xiao Chen, how many times have I told you not to interfere in other people's business, but you never listen!

  "Sorry, sirs, we know it's shameful to do this, but what can we do? We can't afford the taxes and have already committed a great crime by sneaking away. If we let you, who are against the government, escape safely, it would be an even greater sin. What...what will become of us in the future? We all have families to support!" A burly man with a simple appearance knelt down on the ground, covering his face and sobbing uncontrollably.

  A man doesn't easily shed tears. When he does, it's always at a time of extreme sorrow and pain. And through the descriptions of these poor people, Xiao Chen finally got a general idea of what had happened. It was nothing more than the government's taxes being too heavy, these kind-hearted common people couldn't afford to pay even if they sold all their belongings, so in desperation, they could only bring their families and secretly escape under cover of night.

  Generally speaking, people have a strong attachment to their hometown. The fact that they can make ordinary people take the action of leaving their homes and villages is unimaginable, and it can be inferred that the oppression they suffered was very deep!