The soldier shouted as he walked back, showing not the slightest concern for the man lying unconscious.

A soldier whose injured foot kept him from standing turned, leaned down, and checked the fallen man’s breath.

Under everyone’s gaze, he shook his head, eyes brimming with tears.

“He’s gone. He’s gone.”

Someone had died, and the very people who had brought them here to carry out this task didn’t care in the slightest.

Watching events unfold so differently from what they’d hoped, the more timid among them began to weep quietly.

As with the situation in the villages inside the city, the refugees here were mostly the elderly, women, and children, along with a few men who had fled to avoid conscription.

Those with means among them had already gone to live among the city’s residents.

Those without means could only stay in the inns or villages assigned to them.

Pay a certain fee, and one could still eat and stay warm; those short on money could only eat one meal and go hungry the next.

When the northwest city fell, General Feng Rui had gone straight in and rounded up this particular group of people.

Framed as “defending the city,” in truth Feng Rui never regarded these people’s lives as worth anything at all.

Some of the common folk were beginning to see the truth, but aside from continuing to wait, there was nothing they could do.

A small child didn’t understand any of it — he only knew he was starving.

“Mama, I’m hungry.”

A boy of four or five looked up at the woman holding him tightly.

The woman lowered her eyes to look at him, then let her gaze settle on the man beside her.

The man wore a soldier’s uniform, his arm wounded but bandaged well enough.

“His father, what exactly is going on right now?”

The woman asked, her voice trembling faintly.

“A full day and night, and why hasn’t the general given us any food yet?

Didn’t the general say we’d done well?”

The person who had just died lay close to this family of three, who had only just managed to reunite.

Though the couple couldn’t fully make out what had happened over there, they could guess enough.

Someone had died, and received not the least bit of pity — the soldier had even left cursing under his breath.

The man looked at his wife and child and finally couldn’t bear it any longer.

He glanced around at everyone, met the eyes of his fellow soldiers one by one, and asked, “Are we really just going to sit here and wait to die?”

“When they needed us, they dragged us out here by force. Now, anyone who’s wounded just gets tossed aside here.”

The man held his wife close and let out a soft sigh.

“It doesn’t matter if we suffer — but why do the innocent people who fled here for their lives have to end up like this too?”

The cold wind howled, carrying with it bursts of weeping.

“Father, what’s wrong with you?

Somebody help! My father’s passed out!”

“Help! My child has a fever, can someone save us?”

“Mother, I’m really hungry, and thirsty.”

“Waaah…… Mama, where are you?

I’m so hungry, I’m so scared!”

“……” Until now, many had been too afraid of General Feng Rui’s authority to voice what was in their hearts.

But at this point, more and more people, unable to withstand the bitter cold and hunger any longer, began to cry out, and everyone else soon followed suit.

The pitiful wailing of the common people went on for a long while without receiving any response at all.

The wounded soldiers finally couldn’t hold back any longer — those who could still stand rose to their feet, one after another.

Together, they moved toward the outer edge of the crowd, hoping to get some kind of answer.

Before long, the men in charge outside noticed something was wrong and stood up as well.

“What’s going on?

Get back! Who said you could leave?”

“Everyone, keep shouting! The moment the Third Prince comes out, our task is done!”

“Quick! This is General Feng Rui’s order. We’re all subjects of the Feng Clan — we shouldn’t be disobeying orders!”