Under the sky

Chapter 164 Smell the wind

It turns out that hunger has a smell, and Li Siliang can smell it clearly.Not only him, but the residents of Pingyuan Town can smell it.It was a strange smell. He didn't know how to describe it. The smell came from himself, from everyone's mouth and body.He didn't know when the smell appeared. He was shocked until two days ago. He asked his wife and father, and they smelled it and found that there was indeed a strange smell.Li Siliang knew it was not a problem with his nose, so he felt relieved. He thought the smell had been there for a while, but no one noticed it.

But his father looked frightened. That was not something he had experienced. It was a story his father's grandfather told him, from his grandfather's grandfather.Before the Kunlun Council, the world was in chaos and people were dying of hunger everywhere. They said that people who were about to starve to death smelled like starving ghosts.The hungry ghost will alternately scratch it and use its claws to empty out the intestines. When the intestines are rotten, the smell will come out of the mouth and spread out from the pores.

Li Siliang asked his father not to scare his daughter-in-law. Such nonsense was nonsense. Maybe he had eaten too much wild fruit tree bark in the past few days, which caused the problem.Although he comforted his wife, he felt uneasy and couldn't help but smell her body before going out.

It wasn't exactly a bad smell, but it was unpleasant to smell, especially when it was mixed with the aroma of food. He felt an uncomfortable sourness in his stomach.

The dozen or so big pots were set up outside the Liao Mansion at midnight. The steam in the pots was so steaming that people nearby had already avoided it. They were too greedy and hungry due to the smell.When the porridge was about to be cooked, someone brought out three large vats of pickles and a large vat of marinated meat from Liao Mansion.There are more than 600 households in Pingyuan Town, and each person can only get a bowl of gruel, a small plate of pickles and minced meat for two meals a day.

Li Siliang led the punishment hall disciples to maintain order. When more than a thousand people started to make a fuss, they couldn't stop it. Of course, they had to prevent these disciples from stealing food.The disciples of the execution hall were the last to receive the porridge, and the portions were the same as those of the common people. The diet of more than a thousand people could not be just right, and there would always be some leftovers left over, which were all moved into the Liao Mansion.Liao Ming said that this was not enough for his family of nine and the dozen or so bodyguards and disciples, but as the local leader, he had to set an example and be more tolerant than the townspeople.

This is the truth, but the food is all hidden in the Liao Mansion. Even if a small stove is opened inside, no one outside will know about it.Of course Li Siliang didn't dare to ask. He usually waited for the other disciples to finish receiving the porridge, and he was the last one to receive the porridge. He held the plate in both hands, a total of three bowls, and carried it home carefully, as it would take some time.

It had only been three months since his wife had given birth and her health was not well maintained. Li Siliang walked six alleys home and had dinner with his family.Usually the daughter-in-law eats more and he eats less. The father will try his best to share the porridge with his daughter-in-law, for fear that the mother's milk supply will be insufficient and the grandson will starve.

He was so hungry that his stomach ached, but who wouldn't?He also has to do some strenuous work, which will make him even hungrier.

Just bear with it, the branch leader said, the Tieling Gang will send food in a few days, as long as you bear with it for a few more days.

So when he heard the news, he was shocked.

It was not long after he returned home. As soon as he poured a bowl of gruel into his stomach, there was a knock on the door. The door was not closed. The out-of-town guest Wang Meng stood outside the door. He first glanced at his wife, and then invited him to come to the inn. We gathered together and said that his young master had something to say to him.Li Siliang was naturally suspicious, but Wang Meng was just vague in his words. He became suspicious. After noon, he found two disciples to accompany him, and then went to see Li Jingfeng.

"Liao Fenduo wanted to escape," Li Jingfeng said. "He packed all the treasures into boxes and put them on the car. I could see clearly."

Li Siliang and the two disciples' expressions changed.He first didn't believe it, then became suspicious, and then got angry, but he still didn't want to believe it. Li Jingfeng invited him to go to Liao Mansion tonight to check it out, and he would know after one look.

What should we do?Li Siliang asked, what should we do if this is true?

The scholar named Li Jingfeng said that Liao Ming only had about twenty cronies, but there were hundreds of disciples in the sect. As long as they united, they could get food back.

"Why did you tell me?" Li Siliang asked.

"Yesterday, all the disciples were grabbing food, but you were the only one who didn't move." The scholar named Li Jingfeng replied, "You are a good and loyal person."

This man is definitely not a scholar. Which scholar would be in such troubled waters?He is not a merchant, he is the notorious wanted criminal Li Jingfeng, and he still has a wanted warrant from Huashan!
But so what?Even if he is caught, in this chaotic situation, do you still expect Huashan to send a bounty?What's more, Huashan was Dian Cang's ally, and now he was considered an enemy.

Besides, he didn't have the strength to arrest him. He was a murderer who could assassinate the deputy head of Songshan. Wasn't he beaten in vain?

When Li Siliang returned home, his child couldn't stop crying. He was irritable and yelled and cursed a few words, but his father nagged him instead.When his wife saw something wrong on his face, she asked him what happened, but he hesitated and said it was okay.

He looked at the sallow appearance of his father and his wife, who had not had a full meal this month. If he did not have to comfort the crying child, his wife would find a place to sit, almost motionless like his father.

The less you move, the less hungry you will be.

He was in a state of confusion when his father saw him sitting at home and asked feebly: "Aren't you going out today?"

The woods next to the town have been hollowed out for anything edible, and you have to walk a long way to find a wild mouse, but this is no reason not to go out.He is worried about his wife's milk and his father's health.

There were many townspeople going to the woods. Each one of them had a sallow complexion and no color at all. His chapped lips could not be moistened no matter how much water he drank. The smell of hunger lingered in his nose. When he opened his mouth, the smell became stronger. It was really like What the old man said is that a starving ghost is looking for someone else to seduce his own intestines?

What to do if there is no food?
Another question occurred to him.

Even if what Li Jingfeng said is true, it has been a month since the Dian Cang Tribulation Food was launched. This month, the townspeople have had nothing to eat. How much food does the Liao family still have?
He only dug up a few earthworms today.A few days ago he had been able to find a wild rat, but now he was looking deeper.

He looked up and saw the townspeople stumbling forward.

He decided to go home. He had something to do in the evening and he had to save some energy.

He didn't have much strength left.

In the afternoon, he came outside Liao Mansion to maintain order as usual.The door opened and Liao Ming walked out. He took a few steps forward by saluting, saying hello and sniffing hard at the same time.

When the disciples in the courtyard poured the rice into the pot, he sniffed it vigorously. Although he was distracted by the fragrance of the rice, those disciples were the same as the sub-ruler.

They don't smell of hunger.

He gave half a bowl of porridge to his wife, and said he was going out on night patrol just after the first watch.He was hungry and went to see Li Jingfeng. This man was very skilled in martial arts. The two of them jumped up to the roof together. They were so agile that there was almost no sound when they landed. They lay on the eaves and watched from a distance.

What Li Jingfeng said is true.

"What do you want me to do?" he asked Li Jingfeng.

"I am a foreigner, and no one believes what I say. You are a disciple of the local execution hall, and no one believes what you say. Contact other disciples to expose Liao Ming, seize the compound, and return food to the townspeople."

"Liao Ming is the sub-rudder, and his martial arts are not bad. They are well fed, and we are so hungry that we have no strength. This must be a good killing." Li Siliang felt a little uneasy in his heart.

"I will help you." Li Jingfeng said, "Gather the people together, I will help you deal with a few, and the rest will not be difficult to deal with. Even if you don't have the strength, as long as you don't help Liao Ming, I will save a lot of effort, and even more Avoid harming innocent people.”

"What do you want?" Li Siliang asked, "Do you want Liao Ming's belongings?"

"I don't want anything." Li Jingfeng shook his head, "I'll leave as soon as the matter is done."

Li Siliang hesitated...

Are there really such kind people?A wanted criminal?
He returned home and thought about it.The house was dark, and lighting a lamp was a luxury, but Li Siliang still lit an oil lamp and stared at it in a daze.

What to do next?Even if Liao Ming is exposed, responds to a call, seizes the remaining grain and distributes it to more than 1000 people, will he be able to keep enough food for three days?The nearby villages and towns have long been looted. Even if they go north, they will end up starving in other villages and towns. What should they do?
He was annoyed, why didn't he find out earlier?But what if it’s discovered?Liao Ming is the sub-ruler, he is just the captain of the execution hall, what can he do?It was considered good luck that he didn't get killed or asked to join in the evil deeds.

Congruent?

The surplus food of Liao Ming's family is indeed not enough for more than a thousand people, but if there are only three members of his family, that is not a problem.As long as he hints to Liao Ming that he knows something, Liao Ming will not kill him at this critical moment, but will give him enough food.He doesn't bother to share the wealth, but he can take his family far away... He has always been an upright person, at least he works hard to be upright.He was named Li Siliang, which comes from a saying his father loved to say when he was young: "There is still four liang of tofu even if there is no meat."

Who has no ability and self-esteem?
But this self-esteem may have harmed his family.He worked in Qinglongmen for more than ten years. He was too lazy to flatter his superiors, so he became the captain of the torture hall, and he didn't even become the leader of a small local hall.They say that if the water is clear, there will be no fish, but he is not the kind of upright and strict person.He wanted to be a good person, but he didn't have the courage to speak out about other people's faults. His men looted Li Jingfeng's food. He was powerless to stop him, but he really wanted to sneak in and rob. He had self-respect and didn't want to be embarrassed.

The idea of ​​being complicit made him excited, but if he betrayed his village, betrayed the innocent townspeople, and let them starve to death, could he still live with self-respect in this life?He couldn't imagine if he really ran away like this, would he dare to return to Pingyuan Town many years later, would he dare to know how many living people there were in this town...

What to do... what to do...

Seeing that he was worried, his wife held the child and asked, "What's wrong?" Li Siliang said that it was okay and hugged the child, which woke the child up and started crying.The child cried all the time, almost all the time when he was not asleep. He held the child in his arms distressedly.

He smelled something on the child.

It's the smell of hunger.

■

It was nearly midnight when Li Jingfeng returned to the inn. He saw Wang Meng standing in front of the carriage panting. Li Jingfeng asked in confusion: "Brother Wang, what happened? Why don't you stay in the room?"

"Damn it!" Wang Meng scolded, "Not long after you left, a dozen thieves came and tried to steal the horse. Fortunately, I behaved well and drove them away with shouts and beatings!"

Li Jingfeng asked hurriedly: "Is Brother Wang injured?"

Wang Meng shook his head: "We came late last night. These people don't know what is true and what is true. They gathered here today to use this horse as good food to feed dozens of people. If it weren't for your brother's ability, the other party is probably from a good family." People are so hungry that they can't help but beat me. I can't even protect them." He added, "When people are extremely hungry, even their parents can sell them. No wonder Liao Ming releases grain regularly and makes the townspeople sigh. But I can't help but look at it. It’s over, if it’s a few days later, the rules will definitely be messed up.”

Li Jingfeng was very worried. He suddenly noticed someone. He quickly ran to the corner of the room and pulled out a child at the corner. Wasn't it Amao?Just listen to the child yelling: "Let me go! You bitch, let go!"

Li Jingfeng let him go and asked, "What are you doing here? Want to steal food again?"

Amao snorted and asked, "Where are you from? I hear your voice sounds like you are from Sichuan?"

Li Jingfeng said in surprise: "Can you still hear the accent?"

Amao said: "I've heard Sichuan people speak like you, Yiyi oh oh, as if the tongue is hidden in the nose."

Li Jingfeng ignored his sarcasm and said with a smile: "I'm not from Sichuan, but it's almost the same."

"Bah, you idiot!" Li Jingfeng didn't know what Amao was proud of, so he just heard him say, "Have you been to Liao Gouzi's house? Did you see any clues?"

Li Jingfeng frowned and said, "Liao Ming wants to steal the townspeople's belongings."

"Did you see it?" Amao said, "I'll give you an idea."

"What's the idea?" Li Jingfeng asked.Wang Meng said hurriedly: "Brother Li, don't listen to him, this little thief is very evil!"

"Knock on the door of Liao's house and tell him plainly that you know what he did." Amao said, "One of you goes and the other waits. Ask Liao Gouzi to share some of the treasure with you, or else we will fight to the death." Liao Gouzi is afraid of trouble, so he will give you a share of the money. If you ask for some food from him, you will also give me a share as a thank you gift. If you want to take it all for yourself, I will take the blame and you will get into trouble before you can reach the entrance of the town."

Li Jingfeng thought that at such a young age, this child was familiar with blackmail and fraud, so he said: "That's really unnecessary. I told the disciples of the execution hall about this matter. Liao Ming only has about twenty helpers, so he can't compete with him." There are so many people.”

Amao was stunned for a moment, then asked: "Who did you tell me?"

"Li Siliang, the captain of the execution hall team, and two of his men."

"You idiot!" Amao stamped out, "If you hand over the money to others, they will definitely inform you, share the stolen goods with Liao Ming, and send someone to arrest you!"

Li Jingfeng was about to reply when he suddenly saw a bright fire and said, "Someone is coming!"

I saw a group of people turning around the corner of the street. Dozens of torches were lit, and they rushed forward and shouted: "Catch the fugitive! Catch the fugitive!"

Li Jingfeng was shocked and shouted: "Brother Wang, be careful!"

Wang Meng shouted: "Get on your horse and run away!"

Just as he finished speaking, there was a sound of breaking wind in the dark night. Li Jingfeng saw the hidden weapon, stretched out his hand to push Amao away, and turned sideways to avoid it.He only had time to save Amao, but Wang Meng behind him suffered a disaster. He couldn't see clearly in the dark night and couldn't dodge. He sighed: "I have been hit by a hidden weapon!"

Li Jingfeng put Amao aside and said, "Run!" Then he grabbed Wang Meng by the collar and shouted, "Get up!" Lifting his collar, he jumped up.He didn't have Qi Zigai's spiritual skills, and he could still jump while carrying people. He needed help. Wang Meng endured the pain and jumped up. The two of them stood on the eaves. They saw about 60 or [-] people in front, back, left, and right, all surrounding the inn.

Li Jingfeng was worried about Wang Meng's injury and asked, "How is Brother Wang?"

Wang Meng pulled out the short arrow from his right arm and said: "Miscalculation, miscalculation! I didn't expect that Li Siliang is really a son of a bitch! Brother, you kill first, I will break out after you!"

Li Jingfeng said sadly: "I am the one who has caused trouble for Brother Wang."

Wang Meng laughed and said: "What about getting involved? If I didn't want to accompany you to do this, I would have run away a long time ago!" As soon as he finished speaking, two disciples jumped on the roof and slashed with their swords. Beams and pillars climb up.

Li Jingfeng kicked the two of them off the roof with his left and right kicks. One by one, the disciples who climbed up were hit by Li Jingfeng with his elbows or slashed with his palms. These people were not full and were weak, so they were knocked off the roof with three punches and two kicks.However, two kicked him down and two climbed up. Li Jingfeng knew that these people were being deceived, so he couldn't bear to strike hard and just knocked them down one by one.

Suddenly a scream was heard, it was Amao who was caught by a disciple.He originally wanted to escape, but the inn had been surrounded and captured. He had a bad behavior and appeared in this embarrassing place again, and was caught as an accomplice.

Li Jingfeng shouted: "Brother Wang, come with me!" He rushed forward, pushed the two disciples off the roof with a move, pushed the window open, and jumped down.The disciple who captured Amao held a knife in his right hand, and felt that it was inappropriate to put the knife on a ten-year-old child. When he saw Li Jingfeng grabbing him, he was about to pull Amao away, but Amao bit his wrist and kicked his calf. He didn't know martial arts, but he was ferocious. The disciple didn't expect Amao to be so ferocious. As soon as he was in pain, Li Jingfeng grabbed him with his left hand and twisted his right hand, and the steel knife fell away.Li Jingfeng threw the disciple to the ground, but did not see Wang Meng follow him. When he looked up, Wang Meng was fighting fiercely with Liao Ming on the roof.

Liao Ming led several of his disciples who were good at martial arts. They were all his bodyguards and participated in sharing the spoils. They had enough to eat and drink every day and had enough strength. Wang Meng's martial arts was not good at all, so once he was surrounded, he was immediately trapped.

Just as Li Jingfeng was about to jump to the rescue, a sword struck him diagonally, and it was Li Siliang.Li Jingfeng suspected that he was informing him, and he was furious. He struck out with his left palm. Li Siliang swung his sword to counterattack, and Li Jingfeng flew up with a kick. This Li Siliang did have some skills. He raised his hand to block despite being busy, and although he was kicked he fell down. On the ground, but uninjured.The crowd surged up and surrounded Li Jingfeng. Suddenly, he heard Wang Meng scream. Li Jingfeng looked up and saw that Wang Meng was knocked down on the roof and shouted: "Brother, run away!"

Li Jingfeng saw that there were many people and he had a child to take care of, so he couldn't stay for long. He grabbed Amao's wrist with his left hand and pulled out his original intention with his right hand. He used a move of "one ride to make the wind grow stronger", and he slapped for more than ten times in a row. He screamed incessantly. Six or seven people were knocked to the ground and broke out.

Li Jingfeng did not run away. He turned around and shouted to the roof: "If you dare to hurt my brother, I will kill you to the ends of the earth! Do you have more nursing homes than the deputy chief of Songshan?" After saying this, he grabbed Ah. Mao jumped away.

(End of this chapter)