Chapter 43 Chaos Is About to Begin Delivery of Goods

Although it was only half a year, the mood of this escort was very different.

The last time Zhao Ya was escorting, he was just an inconspicuous porter, but now he has become an independent escort.

Especially when walking on the official road, the passing merchants saw Zhao Ya walking in the middle of the escort team, and they couldn't help but cast surprised and envious eyes.

After all, there are many escorts, but there are really few young people like Zhao Ya.

If it were someone else, it would be inevitable that they would be a little proud at this moment.

But Zhao Ya not only did not have the slightest sense of complacency, but became more cautious.

After all, this was his first time escorting independently, and he could not afford to make mistakes.

At the same time, Zhao Ya also keenly observed that there seemed to be more refugees on the official road.

There were ragged people everywhere.

They gathered in groups of three or five, with dull faces and haggard appearances, wandering along the official road like zombies.

Zhao Ya's heart tightened, knowing that there must be another place that was hit by a disaster, otherwise there wouldn't be so many refugees.

And there are only two fates waiting for these refugees, either they will be buried in the stomachs of wild beasts, or they will starve to death and then be eaten by wild dogs.

Recalling the descriptions of refugee famine in the history books that he had read before, Zhao Ya's heart was heavy.

This is a sign of chaos.

A glimpse of the whole picture shows that the vast territory of Dayan is obviously like an old man in his twilight years, and is already terminally ill.

In this case, the only thing Zhao Ya can do is to maintain a cautious and low-key mentality, but at the same time be prepared to face challenges.

After all, sometimes you can't avoid trouble just by being cautious, especially in the context of this chaotic world, sometimes you will just kill people for an insignificant or even ridiculous motive, not to mention that you are carrying a escort team.

Sure enough.

Not far away, about thirty or forty miles away from the city, a messy team appeared on the official road ahead.

These people were all dressed in rags, but they were better than the refugees, at least they were not so skinny, and there was still some light in their eyes.

The leading men were even more sturdy, holding rusty weapons in their hands, and were asking for money from the passing small merchants.

Seeing this scene, Zhao Ya immediately raised his vigilance and winked at the people behind him.

These porters were also all ready.

Tan Dong was even more excited and his face was flushed, waiting for Zhao Ya's order to rush over.

But at this time, these people saw Zhao Ya's escort team, especially the escort flag hanging on the escort car, and they were stunned, and then they took the initiative to make way.

Zhao Ya breathed a sigh of relief and immediately led everyone through.

After walking away, Zhao Ya looked back at these people, with a gleam in his eyes.

If I am not mistaken, the weapons in the hands of the leading people are only available in the army.

And they all have obvious signs of training.

This means that they are not farmers, but deserters from the army.

Recalling the news he heard some time ago, saying that several county towns in the south have started fighting, Zhao Ya deduced that these deserters should have come from the south.

This is not good news.

However, these deserters are not fools. After seeing his escort car, they did not stop it, but took the initiative to make way.

At this time, Zhao Ya finally felt how valuable the signboard of Changlong Escort Agency is.

Because of the presence of Meng Lei, a third-level warrior, within a radius of one or two hundred miles, whether it is the bandits who occupy the mountains as kings or the deserters passing through, they have to give face.

It can be seen that only strength is the foundation for survival in troubled times.

After passing this blockage, the more you go down, the more shocking the scene you see.

Refugees are entrenched on the side of the road, and some people look at the passing merchants with hungry wolf eyes, as if they can choose anyone to eat at any time.

But most of them just sat there numbly, then fell down silently and never got up again.

This scene made these originally enthusiastic porters a little nervous.

Tan Dong couldn't help but walk up and whispered: "Boss, why are there so many refugees?"

After leaving the house, Tan Dong consciously changed his address from Brother Zhao to Boss.

"What? Are you scared?"

"I'm not scared, but I feel a little panic."

When he said this, Tan Dong's face was a little solemn, and his eyes looked at the people on the roadside, "Especially after seeing that there are still many children inside, I always feel a little blocked in my heart."

Zhao Ya was silent.

He also saw this scene.

But Zhao Ya knew that he could do nothing at the moment, so he could only pat Tan Dong on the shoulder.

"Don't think too much, this is not something we can control, let's go!"

Everyone was a little silent for the rest of the journey. When it was dusk, they smoothly arrived at the inn where they had stayed before the New Year.

The inn was still open, but it was a little run-down and lifeless.

It was not until Zhao Ya and others arrived that the inn finally became popular.

The waiter greeted the guests attentively, and the shopkeeper came to Zhao Ya and said with a smile on his face.

"This must be Master Zhao, you are indeed young and heroic, please come in."

Zhao Ya smiled, "Don't be polite, prepare a small courtyard for us first."

"Don't worry, I have prepared it long ago without your instructions."

Zhao Ya nodded.

This is the good thing about staying in a familiar inn. Many things don't need to be instructed, the other party has already prepared them.

After setting up the escort car first, and after dinner, Zhao Ya assigned the night watchman, and then called the shopkeeper to chat.

"I see that the inn is empty, and there aren't many guests."

"Alas." The shopkeeper sighed and said with a grimace: "There are wars everywhere now. People don't even have enough to eat. Who is willing to spend money to stay in a hotel?"

"Is the south getting more and more chaotic now?"

Zhao Ya knew that storekeepers like this were generally well-informed, so he couldn't help but ask.

"Well, I heard that Linhai County and Wanshou County are already at war with each other, and several surrounding counties and cities are also ready to take action. Those rich and powerful are gearing up, but it's just a pain for us common people." The shopkeeper sighed.

Zhao Ya chatted with the shopkeeper for a few more words before resting.

There was no talking all night, and after settling the hotel and restaurant bills the next morning, Zhao Ya and his party set off again.

The rest of the journey went smoothly, and we arrived at Hekou Town in the evening.

Last time Zhao Ya didn't come because he stayed at the inn to take care of Wei Yu. This time Zhao Ya found that Hekou Town was very lively.

Because it is adjacent to the mouth of the Sancha River, merchants are constantly coming and going, so the business here is very prosperous.

The Hong family in the inner city of Wuxiang City has a bank account here.

Zhao Ya and his party came to the bank, handed over the escort tickets, and took inventory of the goods. After the transaction was completed, the storekeeper of the bank delivered the silver coins to Zhao Ya clearly, loaded them on the truck, and sealed them.

It was already late at night after all this work.

The manager of the Hong Family Bank was quite good. He arranged a few rooms for Zhao Ya and others to stay, and also sent meals.

Although he was still in the bank, Zhao Ya still did not dare to take it lightly and still sent people to keep vigil in batches.