Chapter 1165

Thousands of lit torches lit up the plain for several miles.

Causing countless refugees scattered on the plain to gather toward Liu Bei's location.

As time passed, more and more refugees gathered around Liu Bei.

But most were women, children, and the elderly.

Refugees, young and strong, carrying their families.

The remaining young and strong mostly walked fast, and under the leadership of various commanders, they had already taken a step ahead toward the direction of Linyi City.

Liu Bei was currently riding on his horse.

Beside him was Zhang Fei, holding a serpent spear and with a leopard-like head and round eyes.

"Brother, these are all women, children, and the elderly; with them, we can't walk fast," Zhang Fei said, following Liu Bei's side.

Liu Bei did not answer Zhang Fei, but looked at the dense crowd all around.

Pairs of numb, dazed eyes gathered toward Liu Bei's direction.

"Fathers and fellow villagers!"

Liu Bei shouted loudly toward the crowd.

Under the night, the surrounding crowd had stopped moving; although it couldn't be called silent, Liu Bei's voice still carried very far.

"Fathers and fellow villagers, I am the Chancellor of Langya State, a descendant of Prince Jing of Zhongshan, Liu Bei, courtesy name Xuande!"

Zhang Fei looked at Liu Bei curiously, not knowing what Liu Bei wanted to say.

All the surrounding commoners were the same; what a Chancellor of Langya State was, how big an official it was, most of the surrounding commoners had no concept.

In the lives of most Qingzhou refugees, the biggest they could come into contact with were the three elders in the village, or the patrol officers.

As for the County Magistrate or Assistant County Magistrate, perhaps they had seen them, but they had never had any interaction.

Let alone any Commandery Governor or Chancellor.

But most refugees knew the meaning of the four words 'Prince Jing of Zhongshan.'

But the more they knew, the more afraid they were.

They were refugees, and Liu Bei claimed to be a relative of the Han imperial family.

They were rebelling; wasn't that rebelling against the Liu family's empire?

So, when Liu Bei's voice fell, the surrounding crowd began to stir.

"Don't be afraid!"

"I am not here to suppress you!"

"On the contrary, I am here to save you."

"I came to give you a home!"

"To let you have a place to settle down and live!"

Liu Bei, while speaking, reached out and pointed toward the direction behind him: "There, that is Langya State, that is my seat of government!"

"As long as you reach Langya State, you will be safe."

"You will multiply there, and you will continue to live a stable life there!"

Zhang Fei was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but puff out his chest, and his eyes became proud, like a savior looking down from above.

The stirring crowd soon gradually calmed down under Liu Bei's comforting words.

Although those in the distance couldn't hear Liu Bei's words very clearly.

But emotions are contagious.

And those who heard Liu Bei's words gradually passed on what Liu Bei said to those around them.

Seeing the crowd quiet down.

Liu Bei took a deep breath.

"There are pursuers behind us now, those people who want to kill you."

"But don't worry, I will try my best to deal with them, and as long as you follow me and walk in the direction I point, you will be safe."

"From here, keep following this river downstream."

Liu Bei pointed to the Wushui River not far from his left hand.

Although it couldn't be seen clearly at night, the sound of rushing water could still be heard faintly.

"Tell your friends, tell your relatives, as long as you follow me, I will take you to a safe place."

"Remember my words, my name is Liu Bei!"

The surrounding refugees were silent for a while, and then voices gradually sounded.

"Governor Liu!"

"Governor Liu!"

"We follow Governor Liu!"

"Governor Liu is benevolent and righteous, we follow Governor Liu!"

"Governor Liu!"

"Governor Liu!"

The calls among the refugees became louder and louder.

Plus there were Zhang Fei and more than two thousand Han soldiers, the sound became louder and louder.

Liu Bei, riding on his horse, straightened his back.

"Mother, what is benevolence and righteousness?"

Among the refugee crowd, a thin little girl of six or seven years old looked up at the woman holding her shoulders.

The woman had a layer of earthy grey on her face, wore coarse cloth clothes sewn with broken hemp, and carried a bundle on her back.

Although her appearance couldn't be seen clearly, the deeply sunken eye sockets, the high cheekbones, and the eyes full of despair for the world all spoke of the suffering she had experienced.

The woman lowered her head and simply tidied up the few messy strands of hair in front of her daughter.

Then she showed a bitter smile.

Benevolence and righteousness?

"Benevolence and righteousness..."

The woman thought for a while and said: "For example, if Yu'er is hungry, and someone gives Yu'er a bite to eat at this time, and asks for nothing in return, this is called benevolence and righteousness."

"Mother, isn't that charity?"

"Mother took Yu'er to beg at the house of the wealthy Liu, and the guard of the wealthy Liu gave us food, saying it was charity to us."

The woman was stunned.

The wealthy Liu was the three elders in their village.

Two years ago, there was a severe drought, and there was no harvest in the fields. There was no way, so her family sold the land to the wealthy Liu.

And her family also became tenant farmers for the wealthy Liu.

She thought this could still be maintained.

But good times didn't last long; her man got sick, had no money to see a doctor, and finally died in that simple thatched cottage, and the two of them, mother and daughter, were swept out of the house by the wealthy Liu.

The year was not good, there were starving people everywhere, let alone how a pair of mother and daughter could live.

Perhaps, for the charity of those wealthy and powerful families, it is called benevolence and righteousness.

The woman didn't know how to answer this question.

And just at this time, the woman felt the ground under her feet trembling slightly.

The woman, who suddenly came back to her senses, changed her face and hugged her daughter.

And Liu Bei, riding on his horse, also looked toward the distance.

A piece of crimson firelight was rushing toward their direction rapidly.

Cavalry!

A large number of cavalry!

"Brother, you take the refugees and go first, I will block them here!"

Zhang Fei lifted the serpent spear in his hand.

Liu Bei looked at the pursuers coming from afar, and then nodded.

"Don't fight with them, just block them; it's dark now, even if the Yanzhou army catches up, they won't dare to act recklessly for a while. As long as you lead the troops to retreat after dawn, you don't need to worry about them," Liu Bei instructed.

Zhang Fei nodded: "Don't worry, Brother, I know."

Subsequently, Zhang Fei and Liu Bei split into two paths; Zhang Fei led the troops to block the pursuers, while Liu Bei led the refugees to retreat rapidly. ===== CHAPTER 1167 =====