Back in his own home, Chen Xiaobei immediately got busy.
First, he took out a repeating crossbow, loaded it with ten arrows, thought for a moment, then grabbed ten more arrows and carefully wrapped them with his clothes. He then took out a dirty bundle. It was dirty because it hadn't been washed for a long time, and its original color was no longer visible. However, Cui Hongyu had just washed it.
He put the clothes inside, added some dried meat that Cui Hongyu had brought back, and then a few pieces of dry rations.
"Husband, why are you using this old bundle?" Cui Hongyu was very surprised. Chen Xiaobei smiled and said, "It's best not to flaunt wealth. A repeating crossbow is something that cannot be bought with any amount of silver."
All right, Cui Hongyu stepped forward and carefully tied the bundle. Chen Xiaobei slung it over his shoulder, and also brought a waterskin with some water. His supplies for going up the mountain were now ready.
After finishing his preparations, he again instructed Cui Hongyu that if he didn't return, she should sleep in the side room of the west courtyard that night, and also bring the three small dogs there, as they could at least provide a warning.
"Also, if I'm not back by dark, tell Li Dong to patrol closer to our house tonight and come to check if they hear the dogs barking. Don't let anything go wrong."
Finally, he picked up Chen Qiaoer, kissed her forehead gently, and said, "Listen to your sister-in-law at home. I'll be back soon."
With all arrangements made, Chen Xiaobei then left the village to meet up with Da Lao Hei and the others.
Da Lao Hei had brought twelve men. Two were left to look after the horses, and the rest followed Chen Xiaobei into the mountain.
As they walked, Yang Chun and Da Lao Hei walked one behind the other, sandwiching Chen Xiaobei between them. The three of them chatted and laughed, and if someone didn't know, they would think they were old friends who hadn't seen each other for a long time.
Xiong Fei and Hou Liu followed behind, quietly drawing a route map on paper as they walked.
Chen Xiaobei led them all the way to the Mountain God Temple. He stopped there, not going any further. "Big Chieftain, normally we only go up the mountain to this place. I'm not familiar with the path further up, and I can't guarantee whether it's passable or how far it is."
Da Lao Hei didn't seem in a hurry to go further. He first put his hands on his hips and looked around. He couldn't help but praise, "Not to mention, this Mountain God Temple is indeed a good spot. The terrain below is flat, and it gets steeper further up. This is a gentle slope right here."
"If there were a stronghold on the mountain, the Mountain God Temple would be the gate of the stronghold."
As expected, everyone looked at things from a different perspective. Da Hei was a bandit, and everything he saw reminded him of occupying mountains and becoming kings.
After a short rest, Chen Xiaobei led them onward. Having learned from his previous experience with Sun Jian and his men, Chen Xiaobei was much smarter this time. At the first fork in the road, he deliberately took the wrong turn.
This was to lower Da Lao Hei's expectations. He wanted Da Lao Hei to think that he was indeed unfamiliar with the mountain paths, so that things would be easier to handle later.
True and false, false and true. After climbing the steep, straight cliff, it was almost noon.
Da Lao Hei looked up at the sky and pointed to a small grove of trees not far away. "It's already noon. Let's go there to eat something and rest."
This actually surprised Chen Xiaobei. Da Lao Hei actually understood how to enjoy life, eating at regular hours.
What surprised him even more was that among the followers, someone had brought a large wineskin.
Da Lao Hei took it, handed it to Chen Xiaobei, and smiled as he said, "Brother Xiaobei, if you hadn't led the way, we probably wouldn't have gotten this far. I don't have any wine cups, so consider this my toast to you."
Chen Xiaobei waved his hands repeatedly, "Big Chieftain, you go first."
Da Lao Hei did not refuse. He tilted his head back, opened his mouth wide, and gulped down at least three ounces. Then he handed it to Yang Chun.
Don't mention it, these bandits had a good sense of hygiene. When drinking, they directly tilted their heads back and poured the wine into their mouths, but their mouths never touched the wineskin.
After Yang Chun finished, he handed it back to Chen Xiaobei. This time, he didn't refuse. After drinking two mouthfuls, he handed it to Xiong Fei.
Then he turned to Da Lao Hei and said, "Big Chieftain, I'm not familiar with the road ahead. There are so many forks, I'm afraid I'll take more wrong turns than right ones."
Hearing his words, Da Lao Hei laughed heartily, "It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter. We'll go slowly. If it's not done in one day, it'll take two. If it's not done in two days, it'll take three. Since we've entered, we must reach the summit."
All right, with those words, things would be easier.
At this time, the village head Zhao Chunqiang was also having lunch with Chen Ping.
Lunch was simple, one bowl of minced meat noodles each.
Although simple, it was not cheap. Each bowl cost one copper coin.
While eating, Zhao Chunqiang advised Chen Ping, "Since you've resigned, you should focus on farming. I'll find someone to arrange a marriage for you later."
Chen Ping had a bitter expression. "Uncle, can I still go back? Chen Xiaobei must hate me to death."
Zhao Chunqiang did not force him. "If you really don't want to go back, then stay in this town. Later, I'll find you a job. You have to earn a living somehow."
Chen Ping nodded. "In that case, I'll trouble you, Uncle."
After finishing lunch and resting for a while, everyone lazily got up and continued to move forward.
This time, leading them into the mountain, Chen Xiaobei felt relaxed and comfortable. It was like a tour, completely different from being with Sun Jian and his men.
For a moment, Chen Xiaobei even felt a hint of self-pity. How wonderful it would be to visit Qingniu Mountain with his friends and family in his previous life.
Unfortunately, this was a dream that he could no longer realize.
In his previous life, his body had been hit by a car and flung away. He had likely turned to ashes long ago. Even if he went back now, he would probably only be a wandering ghost.
As they walked, they reached the place where they had encountered the wild wolves last time. Chen Xiaobei deliberately stopped to observe for a while longer.
The surroundings were quiet. Occasionally, a bird or two would fly by. There wasn't even a trace of a rabbit in the grass.
After observing repeatedly and confirming that there were no abnormalities in the surroundings, Chen Xiaobei then led the bandits forward.
Moving on, they passed two more forks in the road. The sun was about to set. At this moment, the scout at the front ran back and cupped his fists to Da Lao Hei. "Big Chieftain, there's a deep valley ahead, with cliffs on both sides. What should we do?"
A valley, Chen Xiaobei couldn't help but shudder. The road was correct, wasn't it? The ancestors had told him to see the mountain first when going up, and this was the path. Moreover, the direction felt right.
With a hint of doubt, he arrived at the valley and carefully examined the distance to the opposite side. It was about ten Zhang (approximately 33 meters).
Moreover, the terrain on the opposite side was higher than this side. At a glance, he could only see piles of scattered rocks. There were very few grasses, let alone trees.
What was most despairing was that the sides of the valley were almost sheer cliffs. If they sent men down to the bottom of the valley and then to the other side, there would be almost no possibility of climbing up.