In years of famine and drought, their village even rejected fatty meat.

Chapter 552 Yearning and Longing

Yang Erlang was quite surprised. The armor worn by the guards of the Qingwang Mansion was the highest quality armor, with extremely strong protective capabilities. Even a seventh-rank martial artist would not find it easy to break through the armor's defenses.

The strange beast Yuan Wu spoke of... could tear apart armor with a single claw, and at the same time, disembowel the royal guards protected by the armor. This was truly astonishing.

"The world's great wonders."

Yang Zheng spoke, his expression remaining calm.

But soon, his calm demeanor crumbled.

"Besides its extreme speed and sharp claws, that beast can also breathe fire!"

Yuan Wu added, "The flames that the beast spewed were extremely fierce. With a single breath of flame, anything that came into contact with the flames would be instantly burned to ashes. I personally witnessed the beast annihilate nearly thirty royal guards with a single burst of flames."

"what?"

Upon hearing Yuan Wu's words, even Yang Zheng couldn't help but widen his eyes, feeling that it was somewhat beyond his comprehension.

As a peasant rebel, Yang Zheng's knowledge and understanding of the world were far inferior to those of the scions of aristocratic families. At the very least, he had never heard of a creature that could breathe fire...

Not to mention it's a creature that can wipe out dozens of martial artists with a single burst of flame.

At this moment, Yang Zheng felt as if he were listening to a storybook, and even began to doubt whether the strange beast was something Yuan Wu had made up.

"Extremely fast, with incredibly sharp claws, and capable of breathing fire—how can such a creature exist in this world?"

"Even the demonic beasts in those desolate mountains aren't this powerful, are they?"

"Are you trying to trick us? How could such a strange beast exist in this world?"

"..."

Yang Erlang and the others stared at each other, finding it hard to believe what Yuan Wu had said. There was no way around it; a beast that breathed fire was somewhat beyond their comprehension.

Yuan Wu didn't know how to explain this, so he continued, "With the help of such a strange beast, the young man naturally gained the ability to compete with the Green King's Mansion..."

As Yuan Wu recounted his story, Yang Zheng and the others grew increasingly shocked.

A young boy, accompanied by a bodyguard and a strange beast, dared to attack the Qingwang Mansion, and even managed to kill Xia Yuanying right in front of the mansion's gates...

This story is just as exciting as Yang Zheng's experience of starting a rebellion!

"This young man is truly a hero!"

Yang Erlang couldn't help but exclaim, "To single-handedly destroy such an evil king as the Green King is truly gratifying!"

"Indeed! That young man, like the general, is definitely a rare hero in this world."

"At less than twenty years old, he dared to defy the world and kill Xia Yuanying. He is truly a young hero."

"Heroes have emerged from among the young since ancient times. Such heroes who rid the people of evil are truly admirable."

"..."

Those present also expressed their admiration one after another. Having been farmers themselves and suffered greatly from exploitation, they had no idea how serious the harm that a wicked king like Xia Yuanying had caused to the people could be.

That is why they felt a great liking for the young man who killed Xia Yuanying, and even wished they could befriend him.

Yang Zheng looked dazed, as if he saw his former self in that boy.

Unlike the generally apathetic people of this era, Yang Zheng, who came from a humble background and was just a cowherd, loved to think from a young age.

Whenever Yang Zheng lay on the grass after herding cattle, he couldn't help but think: Why did he and his parents work so hard herding cattle for the landlord, only to receive enough grain to barely fill their stomachs?

Meanwhile, the landlord and his family, who clearly did nothing, could have endless meat to eat every day, live in luxury, and have countless wives and concubines.

This question lingered with Yang Zheng for a very long time, until... the tax increase incident occurred a year ago.

Due to the impact of the cold disaster, the people of Liangzhou were even worse off than those of Qingzhou. Many farmers' fields yielded no harvest at all, and families had to resort to eating tree bark and clay to survive, until they starved to death in their homes...

Because Yang Zheng and his family worked as cattle herders for landlords, the cold disaster did not affect them. They were still able to get enough to eat, although most of their food consisted of rice and wheat bran.

Even now, Yang Zheng still remembers how dizzy and weak he was from hunger every day. His parents had tried their best to allocate more food rations to him, but unfortunately... Yang Zheng, who was in his early thirties, ate too much. Rice and wheat bran were not very filling, so although he could eat, Yang Zheng was always hungry.

Anyone who has experienced hunger knows how painful it is to feel the burning desire of hunger.

However... even Yang Zheng, who was starving every day, was the envy of many people in Liangzhou. At least Yang Zheng wouldn't starve to death, while those people who had no harvest and no food stored at home were in danger of starving to death at any time.

When Yang Zheng was herding cattle, he witnessed an old man starve to death right in front of him. Even after the old man died, his body was not allowed to rest. Soon, starving people came and devoured the old man's flesh and blood.

Upon witnessing this scene, Yang Zheng began to gag violently. The sight of people eating each other was terrifying; anyone with a weaker constitution would likely faint from fright.

Although Yang Zheng didn't faint from fright, he was still feeling unwell and dry heaved for a good half day.

As night fell, Yang Zheng lay in bed, using the thin blanket to ward off the cold wind that kept blowing in through the cracks in the wall, and fell into deep thought.

He didn't understand why the world had become like this.

They were clearly living, breathing people, so why did they become like vengeful ghosts, not even sparing the corpses of their own kind?

Of course, Yang Zheng was not blaming the cannibalistic people, but rather expressing extreme dissatisfaction with this despicable world.

The people of Liangzhou are so hardworking and diligent, so why can't they even fill their own stomachs?

Yang Zheng pondered this question for several days and nights without finding an answer.

One day, while herding cattle past a landlord's house, he saw the house decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations.

When the people of Liangzhou suffered from poor harvests and crop failures, and most of them were starving and had to eat tree bark and clay, or even starve to death, the landlords still lived a very luxurious life.

The manor was set up with a full 100 tables simply because the landlord wanted to take a tenth concubine.

Through the gap in the door, Yang Zheng saw the exquisite dishes inside the manor and smelled the enticing aroma wafting from within...

At that moment, Yang Zheng felt as if every cell in his body was sending him hunger signals, as if urging him to enter the manor as soon as possible and enjoy the various delicacies laid out on the table.