On the outskirts of the city, early spring brought a lingering chill. Young leaves and nascent flowers were just peeking through, and the trickling streams had only recently thawed. It was the perfect season for poets to venture out and enjoy the scenery.
However, as far as their eyes could see, not a single face wore a trace of ease or joy.
Spring, for the high officials and powerful nobles, signified the beginning of the year, an ideal time for poetic inspiration to flourish.
For the common folk, having survived the deadly winter, spring meant a reduced chance of starvation.
Even though it was still a time of scarcity between harvests, at the very least, if hunger became unbearable, they could pluck tender shoots or dig up grass roots. At worst, they could strip the tender bark from trees, boil it at home, and use it to stave off hunger.
After all, spring bark had some moisture, unlike the dry, hard, and unpalatable bark of winter.
Under the wise leadership of the Xi Ren family, with their focus on recuperation and military readiness, the people in this region had gradually achieved a life where every household had surplus grain. While not necessarily rich, it was enough to provide sustenance for the entire family, preventing them from resorting to the unpleasant taste of bark and roots.
Yet, the shadow of war had caused many refugees to appear outside the city.
Some were heading west, towards the heartland of the Xi Ren family.
Others were moving east, into the territory of the Zhi Huo family.
Once war broke out, everyone knew that the city would be the safest place.
But no one went to the city, because everyone knew that Jing Xian City was on the border, the front line, the first defensive barrier against the Zhi Huo family's assault.
If they remained in the city, they would inevitably be conscripted as porters to transport supplies, becoming the cheapest labor.
They would be forced to surrender grain to feed the army.
They would be compelled to man the city walls and assist in its defense.
Worse still, if the city were besieged and supplies ran out, they might even be designated as rations for the defending soldiers.
After all, everyone knew that in wartime, human lives were the cheapest commodity, less valuable than the trees by the roadside.
Everyone knew that life was singular; once lost, it was gone, and their families would be left to fend for themselves.
They hadn't eaten the Xi Ren family's food; instead, they paid taxes and tribute grain to them every year, so they had no obligation to risk their lives for the Xi Ren family.
The Xi Ren family had been on the defensive for many years. Even though peace had prevailed somewhat in recent times, they still instinctively felt they would be on the receiving end of an attack once war broke out.
After all, not everyone understood that cavalry was not for defense but for offense.
The ominous clouds of war caused every refugee forced to leave their homes in search of survival to frown, their eyes filled with resentment and a dull numbness.
They scolded their children, led their old oxen and mules, laden with their meager remaining provisions or carrying them on their backs, and with their families in tow, they went their separate ways.
To say that the oxen and mules were their lives would be an exaggeration, but they were indispensable labor for farming.
Grain, however, was truly life.
As they walked, they occasionally looked back.
They looked at their homes and villages, at the fertile land they had cultivated for decades.
A sigh escaped them.
Alas,
This year, the land would lie fallow again.
For a farmer without land, it was like a soldier without a sword; even if alive, it felt as though they were already dead.
Wan Lei and the other two walked eastward, encountering many refugees along the way. The lives of borderland people were always harder than those elsewhere.
The trio looked at the refugees with a degree of pity, but only a degree.
They weren't foolishly compassionate enough to believe they could save everyone.
Moreover, war hadn't even begun; it was merely a time of panic. When the fighting truly commenced, with mountains of corpses and wails filling the air, whom would they pity?
They were all seasoned veterans of countless battles and skirmishes.
They were not sentimental individuals who, while lying at home, would lament autumn's arrival over the fall of a single leaf.
Upon seeing Wan Lei and the other two, some refugees merely glanced at them and hurried on their way. A few, harboring envy towards the wealthy, cast hostile glances, but most looked at them with immense admiration.
Those who could still travel leisurely at this time were undoubtedly the young masters and ladies of wealthy and influential families.
Looking at their clothing, their unhurried demeanor, and the ease with which they traveled without the burden of family, any of these aspects was enough to evoke envy.
Wan Lei and Fang Xiao Yu, having calmed their minds, no longer hurried. They watched the people passing by and admired the beautiful spring scenery, finding great joy in it.
Furthermore, the old man was quite talkative, making the journey lively and avoiding loneliness.
Heading east meant entering the territory of the Zhi Huo family.
The Xi Ren family had not only mobilized troops towards Jing Xian City but had also gathered heavy forces at various border cities. Such a large-scale movement could not be concealed from the Zhi Huo family.
Consequently, the Zhi Huo family had also amassed significant troops on the border, though many had not yet arrived due to the suddenness of the events.
Three days later, Wan Lei and his companions finally crossed the border and arrived at a small town within the Zhi Huo family's territory.
The town had an inn.
It was on this very day that the Xi Ren family declared war on the Zhi Huo family.
The stated reason for the declaration was that the Zhi Huo family had maliciously ambushed and brutally killed the Xi Ren family's second-in-command, Xi Ren Jun, and taken his corpse.
Within the inn, people speculated about the incident.
Some claimed it was the Xi Ren family's ambition, intending to conquer the Zhi Huo family's territory.
Others asserted that it was merely an excuse fabricated by the Xi Ren family, a way to exact revenge for past defeats.
A few individuals, claiming to possess insider knowledge, would gleefully take a sip of wine, their eyes on the eager faces around them, and leisurely recount that the Zhi Huo family's second-in-command, Zhi Huo Qing Wu, had gone to the Xi Ren family's territory to seduce Xi Ren Jun. However, Xi Ren Jun did not fall for her charms and instead engaged in a battle with Zhi Huo Qing Wu.
That battle, they said, was earth-shattering and sky-splitting, with a conflagration that raged for three days and three nights. In the end, Xi Ren Jun succumbed to Zhi Huo Qing Wu's allure and became her paramour. Unable to accept this humiliation, the Xi Ren family could only falsely announce Xi Ren Jun's death to the outside world.
Discerning individuals could immediately tell this was false. If a battle had lasted three days and three nights on Xi Ren family territory, wouldn't Xi Ren Jun have called for reinforcements?
Thus, some immediately countered, arguing that the Zhi Huo family intended to abduct Xi Ren Jun to use him as leverage against the Xi Ren family. Furthermore, they claimed the battle lasted less than an hour, affecting an area of only a dozen miles in radius.
This version was considered more plausible.
Wan Lei and the other two, the instigators of the event, merely sneered upon hearing the reason for the declaration of war.
They recalled that after killing Xi Ren Jun, they had only exchanged a few words before immediately teleporting outside Jing Xian City, where they had already spotted the cavalry corps.
Unless the Xi Ren family possessed foresight and knew Xi Ren Jun was destined to die, why didn't they directly protect him?
There was only one truth: the Xi Ren family had already prepared to attack the Zhi Huo family, and Xi Ren Jun's death was merely an excuse.