Part 7/10:
As the situation deteriorated, the isolated countryside witnessed unspeakable suffering. The government, while knowing full well of the impending famine, continued to drain grain reserves to meet state obligations, placing the burden on farmers to satisfy unrealistic quotas. Hunger turned to desperation, and in the extreme bleakness of survival, accounts of starvation were coupled with reports of cannibalism — a grim reflection of the moral and physical collapse unfolding across the nation.