Chapter 62

At this moment, in the courtyard of the Lian Clan's chief residence,

“What!? That little bitch Jiang Xiaorou ran away?”

Upon receiving this news, Lian Chengyu directly crushed the teacup in his hand!

“Crack!”

The scalding hot tea splashed out, startling Zhao Tiezhu.

He had no idea why Lian Chengyu was so angry. In fact, Lian Chengyu was a person who was both inferior and arrogant. He felt inferior when facing the elites of the larger clans, but he would never do anything to damage his pride when facing the poor of the Lian Clan.

For example, with Jiang Xiaorou, although Lian Chengyu wanted her, he never showed it in front of his subordinates. It was like an emperor suddenly taking a fancy to a lowly palace maid; he would only indulge her, not pursue her.

How could a lowly person be worth his pursuit?

So Zhao Tiezhu had no idea what Lian Chengyu was thinking about Jiang Xiaorou. Even now, he was still confused—why was Lian Chengyu so angry that Jiang Xiaorou had run away?

“Get out!” Lian Chengyu waved his hand, his face dark. He hadn't expected this little bitch to be so stubborn, preferring to die rather than be his!

Lian Chengyu's anger stemmed from two reasons. First, Jiang Xiaorou was indeed outstanding in both temperament and appearance, making him covet her.

The second, and more crucial reason, was that Lian Chengyu lived in the resource-scarce Lian Clan. For a long time, there were too many things he wanted but couldn't get, while others squandered them freely. He had to grovel to the elites of the larger clans for a bit of leftover resources. Over time, this had instilled in him an incredibly strong desire to possess.

If something wasn't his, he wanted to make it his. If it should have been his, it was his exclusive domain, and no one could touch it.

In Lian Chengyu's view, Jiang Xiaorou belonged to the Lian Clan, and thus was his exclusive domain.

It was one thing to not be able to get something from others, but for something that belonged to the Lian Clan to slip away, there was nothing more infuriating!

“This little bitch, she might already be dead.”

A fifteen-year-old girl, running away from home into the Great Wasteland, required immense courage, as it was almost equivalent to suicide.

Sending people to search for her was almost impossible. The Great Wasteland was vast, and who knew which direction Jiang Xiaorou had taken?

Moreover, he only had a few dozen warriors in the reserve camp at his disposal. Sending them out might result in a few deaths, which would be counterproductive.

One piece of news after another came in, and soon, Lian Chengyu received the second report.

The laborers who had taken the Blood Transformation Pill had finally fallen ill! In fact, their illness had been delayed much longer than Lian Chengyu had originally predicted.

They were all weak and feeble, coughing up blood.

Each of these laborers was the mainstay of their families, and they had hoped to earn some extra food by participating in the bone refining process.

But now, their families were in ruins!

In recent days, due to the lack of food, a few people in the Lian Clan had already died of hunger and cold.

The first to die were the elderly, the sick, and the disabled.

Families with laborers could still barely manage, but now that their laborers were gone, the future was unimaginable!

The Lian Clan's leadership no longer came forward to comfort the people. They didn't distribute a single grain of food to these laborers because, in Lian Chengyu's view, these people would soon die and had lost their value.

The remaining food in the clan had to be saved to recruit more laborers for the bone refining process.

Of course, after wasting the best laborers, the second batch would likely not be of high quality, but it didn't matter. The bone refining process was almost complete.

The Lian Clan's leadership was so cold and heartless, but the people were completely in the dark. They didn't know the truth because Yi Yun was taking the blame.

Desperate families of the laborers came to the Lian Clan's chief residence to ask for food supplies and to see if they could get the Blood Transformation Pill that had "saved" their men's lives.

Of course, in the eyes of these families, it was a life-saving "miracle pill."

However, the Lian Clan's leadership ignored these requests. The Blood Transformation Pills were limited, and they only worked by depleting life potential. How could they waste them on people who were already on the brink of death?

As the spokesperson, Zhao Tiezhu stood arrogantly on a high platform, looking down on the laborers' families with disdain.

He had once been a lowly poor person, but now, Zhao Tiezhu felt he was no longer a poor person. He had transcended the boundaries of poverty and was now a different species from these lowly beings.

He was now Lian Chengyu's subordinate. When Lian Chengyu became a warrior of the Taiyi Divine Kingdom, or even a legendary "National Scholar," Zhao Tiezhu would be a servant of a National Scholar!

What did that mean? A prime minister's gatekeeper was a third-rank official. Zhao Tiezhu would have multiple wives and concubines and a bright future! How could he be lumped together with these peasants who toiled in the fields?

“What are you shouting about! What are you shouting about! You peasants, you want the miracle pill to save your lives, do you think the clan has an endless supply of miracle pills? Do you know the cost of refining one miracle pill?”

Zhao Tiezhu looked down at the ragged women and children below, his face full of disdain.

But seeing them stunned by his words, he felt a sense of satisfaction as a superior, “To put it bluntly, even if you add up all your worthless lives, you can't get two miracle pills!”

“Want food? Want the miracle pill? Give up on it!”

“The clan saved your men once, do you expect them to save them again? Your men fell ill due to their own carelessness, it has nothing to do with the clan. If you blame anyone, blame that little boy Yi Yun. He got sick and infected everyone. That little beast, even in death, he still causes harm!”

Zhao Tiezhu deliberately fanned the flames.

At this moment, a harsh voice immediately rang out in the crowd, “Military Officer Zhao is right, it's all because of that little troublemaker Yi Yun!”

This was Lian Cuifhua's voice. She had been hiding in the crowd, waiting for this moment to guide public opinion.

“And that fox-like Jiang Xiaorou! Our Lian Clan kindly took in their family when they were in trouble, gave them food and a place to live, but they didn't show gratitude and instead brought disaster upon us!”

“Fellow villagers, if you blame anyone, blame those two little troublemakers!”

Lian Cuifhua shouted at the top of her lungs. At this moment, the families of the laborers were in a state of despair, unable to discern right from wrong.

Besides, the truth of the matter was too complex and difficult for them to understand.

“Now that little bitch Jiang Xiaorou has run away, she fled to avoid punishment! Let's burn down their house! If she comes back, she'll freeze and starve to death!”

“Burning down their house will also drive away evil spirits. Let's go, fellow villagers!”

Lian Cuifhua took off her tattered coarse outer garment, leaving her in a simple vest, and jumped onto the platform, waving the garment like a small flag.

People have a herd mentality and are easily swayed.

Moreover, in their hearts, it was indeed Yi Yun who had caused their mainstays to fall ill, leaving them with no way out and likely to die of hunger and cold.

Under Lian Cuifhua's deliberate incitement, the people once again attacked Jiang Xiaorou's home.

Some were truly angry, some were blindly following the crowd, and some felt sorry for the situation.

But the result wouldn't change. Dozens of torches were thrown at Jiang Xiaorou's dilapidated, cow-dung-filled shack.

Flames shot up into the sky.

The crackling sound was like the devil's laughter, and the fiery serpents licked the sky wantonly. Black smoke rose, darkening the beautiful red sunset in the west...

Not far away, Lian Chengyu watched this scene with a cold expression. Burning down Jiang Xiaorou's home couldn't satisfy his anger. Finding Jiang Xiaorou would be more meaningful.

He said indifferently to Zhao Tiezhu, who was following him, “Order everyone not to affect the bone refining process. Also, if you find Jiang Xiaorou while hunting, bring her to me, and there will be a heavy reward!”

“Yes, Master Lian, I will ensure it is done properly!” Zhao Tiezhu accepted the order and left.