Baldy said, "On my way here, I already saw quite a few refugees, all coming from the northeast. The main group has reached thirty li away, I'm afraid there are a few thousand people, and some of them are leading."
"What is their current situation?"
The Bald man said gravely, "I sneaked in last night, and those leading were cooking meat soup. The smell of the meat was off, I'm afraid it was human flesh."
Wei Youcai said calmly, "When people are starving, they'll eat anything. It's not surprising."
He pondered for a moment, and said, "Thirty li away, that means they can reach us the day after tomorrow. With thousands of people coming even to our remote area, it seems there are hardly any people left in those counties in the northeast."
The man said, "Big brother, this time I brought three capable brothers, ten sets of leather armor, and three powerful bows. The refugees are not moving fast; as long as we avoid the main force, it shouldn't be hard to break through. Big Brother, should we flee or defend?"
Refugees pass through, and not a blade of grass remains; this saying is not without reason. The hoes in the refugees' hands can be used to till the soil or kill people. In the Wei Mansion, there were only a few dozen people to face several thousand refugees. Once the mansion is breached, it would mean total extinction.
But unless absolutely necessary, no one wants to flee their homes and become refugees themselves.
Wei Youcai's eyes narrowed into slits, and after a long time, he finally said, "Defend!"
Baldy's spirits lifted, and he said with a fierce smile, "Alright!"
In the remaining two days, everyone in the estate worked with all their might, raising the courtyard walls by another half a foot and reinforcing the weaker sections.
During those two days, wherever Wei Youcai went, he carried Little Weiyuan. Little Weiyuan watched as the big man took leather armor and the powerful bow out of a leather bucket, and watched each house servant pick up a weapon and don leather armor. Then on the third morning, Little Weiyuan ate a full meal with everyone.
Not long after daybreak, swirling dust could already be seen at the end of the main road, with an indeterminate number of people within it. Seeing this scene, a few house servants on the courtyard walls began to tremble.
Wei Youcai had already changed into robust attire, and now, carrying Weiyuan, he ascended the corner tower unhurriedly. He ordered people to place an imperial tutor's chair at the top, then sat down holding Weiyuan. The steward and the Bald man were already standing on the corner tower, and seeing Wei Youcai bring Weiyuan up, they were taken aback. The Bald man asked, "Big Brother, is it appropriate to bring the child up here? In case..."
Wei Youcai waved his hand and said, "It's fine! Yuan'er understands things early and now understands everything, letting him witness bloodshed sooner is also good."
The steward said, "My lord, it's not appropriate for you to be here either!"
Wei Youcai gave a chuckle and said, "Don't worry about me. If the refugees breach the mansion, I'll die no matter where I hide. So today, I'll just sit here, and see how they break into my home and eat my flesh!"
Meanwhile, the main force of refugees had already neared. The refugees, in tattered clothes and pale faces, had fierce expressions. They were carrying hoes and pitchforks, and many of them had large dark stains on their bodies, clearly dried blood.
There were also women in the crowd, all scantily clad. Some young women were tied together with ropes, almost naked.
Seeing the Wei family's large mansion ahead, a green light flared in the refugees' eyes. A few among them in local dress were pointing at the mansion.
The steward, noticing these people sharply, suddenly started cursing, "Isn't that Hu San? That bastard son of a bitch! If it weren't for the lifesaving grain we gave him last year, would he still be alive today?"
The steward cursing did no good; the refugees, having spotted the large mansion from afar, could no longer restrain themselves. Regardless of distance, they started charging like a swarm.
The noise of the refugees shouting was chaotic; from afar, it was just a roar of killing. But Yuan'er heard every word clearly, even amidst the shouts of dozens of people at the same time, he could distinguish each voice clearly as they hit his ears.
"There's food and women inside! Brothers, kill!"
"We're starving to death, yet they're living it up inside!"
"Kill all the landlords!"
Seeing the refugees swarm like wild beasts, Yuan'er suddenly turned and asked, "Why do they want to kill us?"
Wei Youcai said gently, "Just watch, you'll understand soon."
It didn't take long for the refugees to reach the wall, starting to howl and climb up. The wall of the Wei Mansion was only one zhang high, and the stronger individuals could reach the top with a leap. Those less strong were lifted up by others nearby, barely managing to climb up. The Wei family's servants stood on the wall; initially fearful, but at the critical moment, they became ferocious, screaming as they hacked at the hands and heads reaching over the wall, blood and fingers flying everywhere.
The refugees were too numerous; those at the back who couldn't get to the front picked up stones from the ground and hurled them at those on the wall, quickly resulting in several servants with bloodied heads, and some even fell off the wall. Yet, those who fell clenched their teeth and climbed back up, ignoring the blood pouring down their heads. Everyone knew that if the wall was breached, the outcome would be worse than being hacked to pieces.
The corner tower of the Wei Mansion stood three zhang tall, where the three men Baldy had brought back were shooting arrows downward. These men had obviously practiced archery, shooting both quickly and fiercely. The steward also stood on the corner tower, with several flags of different colors at his feet. He waved the flags now and then, coordinating the servants while targeting specific enemies, occasionally calling out, "That tall one in black clothes over there is probably a leader, shoot him!"
Following the steward's directions, the three archers quickly felled seven or eight fierce refugees. But by this time, everyone was blinded by rage, still desperately assaulting the estate, stepping on the bodies and limbs of their comrades to climb up.