After the meal, upon seeing the Shopkeeper approaching, Rong Yan casually asked, "Shopkeeper, there seem to be so few people around here!"
Seeing this, Qin Ye also wasn’t in a hurry to leave.
Upon hearing her question, the Shopkeeper let out a deep sigh.
"Ah, don’t even mention it, it’s that damned locust plague! It struck right when it should have been harvest season... all the crops that should’ve been gathered were devoured by those damned creatures, leaving nothing but displaced villagers everywhere... With the battles happening beyond our borders, the common people barely have a way to survive..."
Both Rong Yan and Qin Ye frowned at the same time.
In fact, Rong Yan had briefly learned about the locust disaster from Manager Hao earlier on in town.
When they were in the mountains, they hadn’t been affected because of their location deep within, combined with the geographical environment of that county, most of the villages and towns weren’t touched by the locust plague.
In other words, the locusts had bypassed their county.
Outside, the suffering was severe; nearly all the crops in the fields that hadn’t been timely harvested were eaten clean.
Not just the crops, but anything green... fell victim to the locusts’ appetites.
This added insult to injury for the already not so wealthy villagers, turning them directly into disaster victims.
So, the disaster victims in town actually fled in from the outside.
Because there were too many displaced people, and knowing that this county had not suffered severely, those villagers had fled along the greenery to this town. Updates are released by n͟o͟v͟e͟l͟f͟i͟r͟e͟.net
"How come your restaurant... is still open?" Qin Ye suddenly asked.
If there were too many disaster victims, incidents of arson, looting, and robberies become prevalent, and for a restaurant to still be open under such circumstances, it would have to be said that they’re quite bold.
Upon hearing this, the Shopkeeper immediately said, "Speaking of which, we owe our thanks to the government’s County Magistrate. He was quick to collect a large amount of grain from some wealthy households beforehand and provided daily rations. Plus, with the government officers maintaining order, we’ve managed to avoid incidents of looting and robbery."
With that said, he sighed again, "Even so, it’s difficult to do business now. We’ll probably have to close our doors for good soon if we keep on ."
Who would come out to dine in such times? Those with money are staying at home. The wealthy families have their doors firmly locked, fearing a break-in by those disaster victims.
He was actually scared of being robbed too.
Fortunately, the government officers patrolled several times a day.
Additionally, the County Magistrate reassured the business owners, allowing them to continue operating as usual, which gave them some confidence.
Otherwise, who would dare?
A shrewd look passed through Qin Ye’s eyes.
He gave Hu Dao a meaningful glance.
Receiving the signal, Hu Dao quietly slipped away...
Rong Yan didn’t ask further and simply said, "Please prepare some food for the road, we’ll take it with us tomorrow morning."
As soon as she spoke, Qin Ye immediately added, "We’ll settle the bill together tomorrow."
Of course, that request was no problem, and the Shopkeeper happily agreed, "Rest assured, noble guests, I will have someone prepare it right away."
After all, they stood to make a bit more money.
He turned and hurried away.
This time, Rong Yan did not speak of relieving the disaster victims, as the government was handling the distribution.
Previously... she had seen how pitiful the disaster victims were.
Because it was dark now, she hadn’t seen those victims.
Nevertheless, she had a favorable impression of the County Magistrate.
Nowadays, an official who truly serves the people is too rare.
"I’m going back to my room," Rong Yan said as she got up to head upstairs.
Qin Ye immediately responded, "We’ll go back to our room as well."