Jinting Han people

The turbulent political situation in Luoyang would undoubtedly affect the political landscape of China as a whole. But for the people of Guanzhong, these events seemed too far away, as distant as the Pure Land that the monks preached. Right now, the only thing on their minds was how to survive.

Since Qi Wannian launched his rebellion, famine has not been a rare occurrence in Guanzhong.

After all, wars are fought for food, and soldiers need to eat. Therefore, wherever rebels march, they will likely plunder any food they can find. This includes both government treasuries and the homes of ordinary people. Without food, ordinary people naturally become beggars, either digging for wild vegetables in the mountains or peeling tree bark to eke out a living.

But after so many years, the people in Guanzhong are not fools. Since the Haosan Hedong Rebellion, many shrewd farmers have discovered that something is not right. Having experienced the Tufa Shuji Rebellion, they know that they cannot trust the court at this time and still have to use their own wisdom.

So they dug cellars in the wilderness to store food. These cellars were either hidden in thorns, disguised as snake holes, or even dug next to graves. Ordinary people would never imagine that there was food hidden inside.

Then the peasants banded together, fashioned bows and arrows, and set traps. If isolated rebels or government troops came to forage for food, they would ambush them, kill them, and seize their armor, food, and weapons. Since the two armies were locked in a stalemate, it was impossible to devote military strength to such a minor matter. Gradually, small bandit groups spontaneously formed among the people.

Besides this, the peasants had various other ways to survive: catching field mice, frying grasshoppers, stealing food from the aristocratic forts, disguising themselves as foreigners to trick the rebels into taking a detour...

In short, thanks to the cunning of the people in Guanzhong, quite a few people survived the first winter after Qi Wannian's rebellion. Even though there was some famine, it had not yet developed to the point where everyone was at a loss.

But in August of the seventh year of Yuankang, the famine had developed to an uncontrollable point.

No matter how hard the civilians tried to survive, the chaos of war made it impossible to farm properly, and there was always a limit to how much food they could store. Most people managed to survive for a whole year, which was already considered wise enough. But even the wisest cook cannot cook without rice.

As a locust plague spread across Guanzhong, the defenses of the people were finally shattered. Unable to hold out in their homes, they began to flee and die, leaving their villages in ruins. The already significant influx of refugees escalated into a major upheaval that spread throughout Guanzhong.

Hundreds of thousands of people fled in all directions, some to Qinzhou, some to Hedong, some to Hongnong, some to Hanzhong, and some even fled to Shuofang, which was famous for its poverty...

But sadly, there is no way out in almost every direction.

After the Battle of Niyang, both Qi Wannian and the Jin army in Guanzhong almost unanimously abandoned the battle and entered a period of rest and recuperation. They were all well aware that such a large number of refugees would become a source of chaos no matter where they were, and only food could completely solve the problem. However, the most urgent need for both sides was food.

The Jin army in Chang'an relied entirely on food transported from Hanzhong, leaving them with no surplus. Meanwhile, after a year of campaigning, Qi Wannian had also depleted the food supply in Qinzhou, and they also needed to prepare for future battles. Consequently, both sides acted without hesitation to disperse the refugees.

Logically speaking, Luo Shang, the governor of Liangzhou in Hanzhong, should be able to accept some refugees, but with such a large number of refugees, he was also afraid that there might be rebels mixed in. If the rebels took advantage of the chaos and lost Hanzhong and then entered Shu, he would not be able to bear the responsibility. Therefore, Luo Shang also blocked the road and refused refugees to enter.

The people of Hedong had just suffered a disaster two years ago. How could they possibly provide assistance to so many refugees?

The famine arrived. Nine out of ten houses in Yongzhou's counties were empty, and walking through them was a complete wasteland. Foxes and jackals could often be seen among the ruins. The refugees resorted to eating tree bark and grass roots, but countless people starved to death. Corpses lay piled high and low along the official roads. Rumors of cannibalism were widespread, but difficult to verify. All that could be seen was the barked mulberry, willow, and pear trees, lying silently beneath the withered autumn grass.

In September, the imperial court followed Zhang Hua's plan and recruited a group of wealthy merchants from various states in Guandong. They set up a human market in front of Tongguan and openly encouraged the merchants to trade grain for slaves. When the refugees in Guanzhong heard about it, they immediately flocked to the market.

The front of the market was filled with grain shipped from Guandong, looking like small mountains from afar. However, those wealthy merchants were not there to do charity. The government specially sent thousands of soldiers to maintain normal order in the market and prevent refugees from taking advantage of the situation to steal food.

Protected by swords, wealthy merchants sifted through the crowd, buying children from their starving parents and then handing them a bag of grain. Those parents who successfully sold their children, holding the grain in their hands, barely had time to glance at their children before they began to survey their surroundings warily, trying to find a way to preserve this hard-earned food.

Merchants paid extremely low prices for slaves, yet they still found them a waste of food. Unless they were attractive and healthy, they wouldn't buy them. Even if they did buy them, they didn't bother to care for them, relying instead on the leftovers from their livestock. As a result, the children's mouths were filled with blood, and they became ill. Countless others died along the way.

Even though the conditions are so bad, only a few people can get food from this human market.

For those parents who were rejected and failed to sell their children, they were first in disbelief, then furious, constantly beating and scolding their children, venting their hatred for the world. But after a night, they no longer had the energy to beat or scold, their expressions numb, even unable to shed tears of sadness. They just silently washed their children and put them in the pot, waiting for the sun to rise.

When winter arrived, a snowstorm descended from the sky, completely burying countless lives struggling between life and death in a blanket of white. Looking out, the vast expanse of land was endless, with no more bones or corpses to be seen. Perhaps this was the best possible outcome for this tragedy.

Liu Xian had been deeply tormented over the past six months. As soon as Qi Wannian left, he had recaptured the entire Niyang County, recruiting refugees from the surrounding area and organizing the people to help themselves. To gather food, Liu Xian had tried every possible means, not only organizing the people to cultivate land and plant vegetables, and to hunt in the mountains. All the Niyang officials had also followed suit, living frugally, subsisting on a simple diet of vegetable porridge.

The soldiers joined in the farming, searching for whatever edible food they could find. They harvested all the camellia buds, dandelions, plantains, and alfalfa sprouts. Even the wild barnyard grass (dogtail grass), which no one would normally even glance at, was ground into flour and steamed buns along with locusts and other insects. Whether edible or not, they did everything they could to survive.

But the consequences were ultimately cruel. Human power is finite, and no matter how hard one tries, some people still go hungry. After prolonged periods of starvation, even some grassroots officials experienced swelling of the skin, leaving a dent when pressed with a finger, which took a long time to heal. Massive deaths were unavoidable, and Liu Xian could only do his utmost to prevent the horrific sight of cannibalism in his domain, ensuring that the starving people could endure the end of their lives in a more respectable manner.

This feeling was very unpleasant. Liu Xian knew that no one wanted to face death. Among the tens of thousands of people gathered in Beidi County, many of them gathered here because they had heard of Liu Xian's reputation and believed in his character, but Liu Xian had to disappoint their hopes in the end.

Originally, Liu Xian was disgusted by the court's behavior of organizing a human market in Tongguan, but when he saw with his own eyes that the famine had expanded to an uncontrollable level, Liu Xian sometimes had to fantasize in his mind: How great it would be if there was also a human market in the north, at least he wouldn't have to worry about it or be responsible for anyone.

But Liu Xian knew this was just self-deception, a way to evade responsibility. If he did nothing, nothing would change. Saving everyone might be an impossible task, but even doing one more thing could save one more person, so he had to persevere. If even he gave up, who else could the people rely on?
The eyes of the world are sharp. Only those who never give up and fight all the time can win their respect.

Liu Xian approached disaster relief with this awareness in mind. He simply brought Lu Zhu and Liu Lang to Niyang to demonstrate his determination to share the hardships of the people. Even in the bitter cold of winter, he personally led the county soldiers to suppress local bandits or hunt in the mountains. Any corrupt officials, regardless of their background, were severely punished by Liu Xian.

But this also made this winter extremely long, and every day made Liu Xian feel like a year. He devoted himself to his career with unprecedented passion, but also felt unprecedented frustration.

Finally, in the eighth year of the Yuankang reign, the snow melted, the glaciers thawed, and all things revived. The barren land sprouted green grass again, and the returning swallows flew back to their former eaves. But unfortunately, the laughter and joy of the people in Guanzhong fell into complete silence.

According to statistics, Beidi County took in more than 34,000 refugees in the seventh year of Yuankang, and about 28,000 of them survived the winter.

This was a brutal figure, but compared to the rest of the prefectures and counties, it was already a truly remarkable number. Conservative estimates put the death toll in Guanzhong at over 100,000. Considering this was only the figure for the seventh year of the Yuankang reign, if Qi Wannian hadn't been quickly eliminated, the number of deaths in the eighth or even ninth year of the Yuankang reign was still unknown.

Fortunately, it is finally time to plant some things. The spring mulberries and elm seeds can still provide for a while, enough to wait until the first batch of crops mature. Liu Xian quickly arranged for the farmers to plant beans in the fields, and at the same time plant sorghum on the hillsides, interspersed with some short-term vegetables, so they should be able to survive.

But all this is based on the premise that the future war will go smoothly.

Only then did Liu Xian finally have time to pull his attention away from government affairs and focus on the court's next plan. In August of the seventh year of the Yuankang reign, the court had already issued a notice to the Western Expedition Army, stating that a new wave of reinforcements would be officially dispatched in June of the eighth year of the Yuankang reign. The commander of these reinforcements had also been chosen: none other than Meng Guan, the Duke of Shanggu.

This news was quite encouraging to the generals in Guanzhong. They had heard that, although Meng Guan's official rank for this expedition was only General of Crossbows, he had received the title of Envoy, which gave him the authority to command the prefectures and counties west of the Guanzhong Pass. While the armies were still nominally under the command of the King of Liang and the Western Expeditionary Army, in reality, once Meng Guan entered the Pass, he would be the commander-in-chief who would make the final decisions.

After the chaos lasted for more than a year, the army finally had a decent commander.

Liu Xian was delighted when he heard this. He had almost forgotten the last time he had met Meng Guan. Being able to fight alongside Meng Guan again was a dream come true.

However, during his correspondence with A'luo, Liu Xian also learned some rumors that Meng Guan's appointment as a general was due to his open involvement with Jia Mi. No one could tell what kind of deal was involved. A'luo then wrote to Liu Xian, asking him to be more careful.

Liu Xian was skeptical. He didn't believe Meng Guan was such a man. After all, during the overthrow of Yang, Meng Guan had led the charge, bravely charging into flames to kill the enemy, earning him a well-known reputation as a warrior. Although somewhat snobbish, Meng Guan had not taken advantage of Sima Wei's misfortune and had even offered him a helping hand. In Liu Xian's eyes, Meng Guan was a man of integrity. Even if he truly joined Jia Mi's army, he likely had his reasons, and it wasn't a big deal.

Therefore, in February, Liu Xian wrote a letter directly to Meng Guan. In it, he discussed the current situation in Guanzhong, the experience of his previous battle with Qi Wannian, and his own views on future strategy, hoping that it would be helpful for Meng Guan to make further preparations before entering the Pass.

After sending the letter, Liu Xian quickly returned to his duties. He hadn't considered Meng Guan's response. After all, words written on paper are always insufficient. It would be better to wait until Meng Guan entered the customs before having a long conversation. Liu Xian had already anticipated this, believing it would be a smooth conversation. At least he wouldn't have to worry about anything and could speak freely.

March came in a blink of an eye. On this day, the spring breeze was gentle and the air was filled with the fragrance of flowers. A young man in military uniform, riding a horse with five followers, suddenly appeared in front of the Beidi County Government. He claimed to be an old friend and wanted to see Liu Xian.

At that time, Liu Xian was out inspecting farmland in the county, so the gatekeeper said he was not there and asked the young man to leave his name card and meet him when Liu Xian returned. The young man said "oh" and didn't hesitate. He took the name card from his sleeve pocket, handed it to the gatekeeper with both hands, and then went to the city to look for a guesthouse.

The name certificate read simply: The eldest son of the Duke of Shanggu, Meng Ping, courtesy name Ziheng. (End of this chapter)