Becoming the Villain's Discarded Wife
Chapter 452: Leaving the City

Chapter 452: Chapter 452: Leaving the City

The four major families have left Yan City and have caused many common people to waver as a result.

Even the four major families were unwilling to stay, as commoners, can they truly trust the city lord?

"Wife, wait for me, we should also pack up and follow them."

A doubtful man gritted his teeth, called his wife, and hurriedly returned to the courtyard.

"Husband, what are you trying to do?"

The woman’s face turned pale, somewhat unclear about her husband’s intentions.

"We’re also leaving! The He Family has left, it’s probably no longer safe to stay in Yan City! Quickly go back to pack, we will leave the city later!"

"But..."

"Go back quickly!"

One person took the lead and the others began to waver, unsure of whether to stay in the city.

When Shen Wenchen returned from the outskirts of the city, he saw many people with their families leaving. They kept their heads down and didn’t pay him any attention upon noticing him.

The thick accumulated snow had turned into slush and mixed with the dirt underneath, blending with the grey sky. The only thing adding some vitality to this cold, grey landscape was the silhouette of people carrying their heavy baggage on their backs.

"General."

The guard manning the gate saw Shen Wenchen returning, his face turned pale, and he trembled as he spoke.

Looking at their frost-covered brows, Shen Wenchen didn’t reprimand them, he just responded quietly.

"Hmm."

There were six large villages and seven small ones outside Yan City.

Each large village held hundreds of households, while the number of households in the small villages ranged from thirty at most to only seven at the least. Over recent days, he had been moving residents of small villages into the larger ones and specifically left fifty men in each village to help control the rat population.

Today, he visited the nearest village. Many age-old houses had collapsed, and the entire village was stained with blood from the dead rats. Combined with the stench coming from the fields, the scene was terrifying.

As for those who were bitten by the rats, some were suffering from high fever that wouldn’t subside and others were foaming at the mouth and convulsing.

"General..."

Liu Jie saw the uneasy look on Shen Wenchen’s face. He knew that the general was upset about the plight of the people in the villages. However, since he had allowed his men to open the city gates, he had to be the one to take responsibility for the consequences.

"What’s going on?"

Shen Wenchen didn’t want to prolong the conversation, but seeing the people hurrying toward the city gates, his heart filled with an indescribable bitterness.

A lord is supposed to protect all the people under his banner, but now...

Once they left Yan City, their survival was uncertain.

"General, over these days of sealing off the city, the common people have been secretly discussing that a disaster has taken place outside the city. They think we have sealed the city to keep them ignorant. They don’t trust us, they think we are hiding the truth and looking to trap them in the city. Finally, they also think that the lady is merely looking to sell that exorbitantly-priced grain at their expense. Everyone is clamoring to leave the city to find a way to survive.

Today, the He Family took the lead in demanding the gates be opened. I felt indignant. Since they don’t trust us, why should we try so hard to protect them?

Kyoto is a thousand miles away from us. Since they are determined to go there, I allowed it."

Liu Jie didn’t hide his thoughts. He genuinely felt outraged on behalf of the general and his wife.

Normally, during times of natural calamities and disasters, the funds for relief would either come from the local government, or they would wait for the imperial court to allocate funds.

But in a prosperous place like Yan City, the treasury only had a thousand taels of silver left.

The cheap grain that the city’s residents were able to buy to take home, all came from the lady’s personal pocket, yet she had to endure such suspicion.

"Liu Jie, we are officials on duty, our job is to protect the people."

Shen Wenchen sighed, looking at the departing figures outside the city.

"Well, since they want to leave so badly, let them go."

Not only has each village outside the city received the grain for winter, but soldiers have also been dispatched to keep an eye on things. As long as no other chaos ensues, there shouldn’t be any problems for the time being.

The large amount of grain and dried meat that Nannan previously sold at a low price, combined with each family’s stored food for the new year, should tide the city residents over for a period of time.

Regrettably, the merchant team that Nannan sent out has yet to return.

The elderly couple from the Lin Family feels somewhat restless at the city lord’s residence, sitting in the main hall waiting for Nanzhi to return.

Their daughter had already left an hour ago. How had she still not returned?

Now that she’s pregnant, nothing bad better have happened...

The more she thought about it, the more anxious Mother Lin became. She regretted her decision a thousand times.

Why hadn’t she accompanied her daughter just now?

"Old woman, what are you doing pacing back and forth? It’s making me dizzy." Father Lin mumbled, but there was obvious worry in his eyes.

The weather couldn’t be relied upon anymore, he just hoped the people would be alright.

Everyone in the city wanted to run away. Even if he tried to persuade them, he wouldn’t be able to convince many people to stay. Instead, it would only result in unfavorable consequences for him.

Everyone could leave if they wanted to. After all, if they run into problems later, they’d have to come back.

At that time, they’ll have to ask for his daughter and son-in-law’s help.

Lin Shougui snorted in his heart, somewhat dissatisfied.

"Our daughter has been gone for an hour and she still hasn’t come back. How can I not be worried?"

Mother Lin gave him a disdainful look. She was annoyed that the older her husband got, the more childish he seemed to become.

"In my opinion, you’re just too anxious. Our daughter is a lucky person, she’ll be fine."

Father Lin tried to comfort her.

To put it mildly, she wasn’t just lucky. In the past, acts like the ones their daughter had undertaken would have warranted kowtowing and thanking from others.

But those people remained ignorant. They would probably realize it too late to regret when they finally understood.

"You old fool."

Mother Lin stomped her foot, ignored him, and then spun around to go out.

She couldn’t put her mind at ease and decided to go out and have a look herself.

The city was currently very chaotic, and she hoped that no one would bump into her.

"Mother, are you going out?" Nanzhi ran into her mother, who looked very anxious, and thought that she was about to go out.

"Why did you come back just now? I thought something had happened."

Seeing that her daughter was safe and sound, Mother Lin finally felt relieved. She held onto Nanzhi and guided her back inside.

"You’re responsible for two lives now. You must be careful in everything you do, understand?"

Mother Lin held onto her hand. Her tone was tinged with a mixture of blame and concern.

"Just feel it, your hand is cold as ice, that isn’t good for your health."

"Mother, I’m fine." Nanzhi was somewhat helpless, but she knew her mother meant well, so she couldn’t say much more.

"The city is in chaos right now, you shouldn’t go out, got it?"

"Alright. I understand, mother."

Mother Lin finally let go of her hand, only after Nanzhi nodded and agreed.

"Come in and warm your hands."

"Mother, I’m going to bring my brother and sister-in-law into the residence."

As soon as Nanzhi sat down, she began to speak.

She had just paid a visit to the grain shop. The city was quite chaotic at the moment, and she wasn’t sure how it would turn out later. If her brother and sister-in-law moved into the residence with their children, she would feel more at ease.

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