Finding a shady spot, Chen Xiaobei lay down, closed his eyes, and relaxed.
Unknowingly, he fell asleep.
In his dream, he saw his parents from his previous life, happily describing to them the various interesting things happening in Hetou Village in this Great Cang Kingdom.
He also dreamt of the moment he was hit by a car.
The ear-piercing screech of brakes, replaying in his dream, startled him, and he sat up with a jolt.
Chen Xiaobei's sudden sitting up startled Yang Chun and the others beside him.
Seeing the sweat on his forehead, Yang Chun looked bewildered, "Brother Xiaobei, did you have a nightmare? I heard you calling for your parents and something about a car just now."
Chen Xiaobei could only shake his head helplessly, "Alas, my parents passed away many years ago. I've been dreaming of them a lot lately. It seems it's time for me to burn some incense for them."
It wasn't until after noon that Da Lao Hei, along with Hou Liu'er and the others, came down from the mountaintop. Da Lao Hei's steps were light, and his face was full of joy as he descended.
If one didn't know better, they would think he was getting married tonight.
From a distance, Yang Chun and the others waved enthusiastically at Da Lao Hei.
As soon as they met, Da Lao Hei impatiently announced the good news.
"Oh, it's a pity you didn't go to the mountaintop. Standing on the summit and looking around, it was truly magnificent. There were small hills all around."
Hearing Da Lao Hei's words, Chen Xiaobei shook his head. Ignorance was indeed terrifying. What were "small hills"? That was the feeling of "standing on the highest peak, looking down upon all other mountains." sudan novel network
But thinking about it carefully, it was true that not going to the mountaintop would be a regret.
With this thought, Chen Xiaobei harbored a selfish wish that he might have a chance to come here again someday.
After all, Sun Jian still needed him to guide the way, and the Liu family was also eyeing Qingniu Mountain. He would definitely go to the mountaintop next time.
The group returned the way they came, and when they reached the grove of dogwood trees, Da Lao Hei, true to his word, was the first to rush forward and begin picking the tender leaves.
It wasn't surprising that this fellow knew what he was doing, picking only the tender leaves.
Chen Xiaobei did not start picking by the roadside. Instead, he walked through the sparse dogwood trees, continuing to search deeper inside. He hoped to find something else as he went further in.
Seeing him walking deeper and deeper, Da Lao Hei couldn't help but call out, "Brother Xiaobei, don't go too deep. We'll have to descend the mountain soon."
Although Chen Xiaobei verbally agreed, he did not stop his forward progress. After walking about thirty meters further, he found something.
Continuing inward, the dogwood trees became even sparser. In a not-so-dense patch of grass ahead, there were some red tops, which were ginseng.
Just as Chen Xiaobei was about to take a few more steps to investigate, several snake heads suddenly emerged from the grass.
Yes, snake heads.
Fortunately, they were the common garden snakes found at the foot of the mountain, which were non-venomous.
But regardless of whether they were venomous or not, the size of these snake heads alone was as big as his fist, and their bodies were thicker than his arm.
With snakes this big, let alone several of them, he wouldn't be able to handle even one. Chen Xiaobei cautiously and slowly retreated, while simultaneously unstrapping his backpack and taking out his repeating crossbow. At critical moments, this thing could truly save a life.
Fortunately, the snakes in the grass did not attack him actively when he retreated. Instead, they lowered their heads and hid back in the grass.
Seeing this, Chen Xiaobei suddenly remembered a legend he had heard in his previous life, that old ginseng and ganoderma would be guarded by snakes.
It seemed this legend had some truth to it. He had witnessed it today, with large snakes beside the ginseng.
After putting the repeating crossbow back into his backpack and picking a few tender dogwood leaves as a cover, Chen Xiaobei hurried back.
"I was hoping to find some rare treasures further inside, but it turned out to be nothing but dogwood," Chen Xiaobei said with a self-mocking tone, which made everyone burst into laughter.
They chose the same forest where they had camped the previous night for their accommodation, although tonight would be a tougher time for them.
Not only was their wine gone, but their beef and mutton were also finished. They would have to fend for themselves.
Fortunately, these mountain bandits had plenty of ways to cope. They scattered in all directions within the forest.
Soon, someone returned with a wild rabbit, and another with a few birds. Even more outrageous was Da Lao Hei, who dragged back a snake that was over three meters long.
Seeing this snake, Chen Xiaobei's hairs stood on end.
The size of this snake's head was similar to the snakes he had seen in that dogwood grove.
Good heavens, if such a behemoth were to attack him, would the repeating crossbow really save his life? Chen Xiaobei had his doubts.
Therefore, he decided to take the opportunity to ask Elder Hei Zheng for advice.
"Great Chieftain, you are too formidable. How did you catch such a large snake?"
Hearing his question, Da Lao Hei burst into laughter.
Yang Chun, who was standing nearby, immediately chimed in, "You wouldn't know this, would you? Our Great Chieftain has a unique snake medicine. If you sprinkle it in front of a snake, it immediately becomes weak and unable to move, at your mercy."
Was there really such a miraculous medicine?
Chen Xiaobei was filled with envy, "Oh my, I didn't expect Great Chieftain to possess such a divine elixir. Alas, it's a pity I can't buy it."
Da Lao Hei glanced at him. "What's there to regret?"
As he spoke, Da Lao Hei reached out and took out a palm-sized gourd from his embrace.
The mouth of the gourd was tightly plugged.
"I'll give you this snake medicine."
Chen Xiaobei was overjoyed and thanked him profusely as he took it. This time, he did not stand on ceremony with Da Lao Hei.
After eating and drinking their fill, they decided to sleep in the trees.
Meanwhile, at the foot of Qingniu Mountain, in Hetou Village.
Cui Hongyu and Chen Qiao'er sat in the courtyard under the large locust tree, both in low spirits. After all, this was the second night that Chen Xiaobei had not returned.
Chen Qiao'er looked up at the crescent moon in the sky.
"Sister-in-law, where do you think my brother is now?"
Cui Hongyu gently patted Chen Qiao'er's shoulder, "He's in Qingniu Mountain, of course. But don't worry, your brother will definitely be back tomorrow."
Chen Qiao'er did not show the expected surprise. Instead, she pouted her small lips, "Sister-in-law said the same thing yesterday, but he still hasn't returned."
Cui Hongyu gently tapped Chen Qiao'er's little head again, "Alright, this time for sure. He'll definitely be back tomorrow."
After saying that, she stood up, went to the door to check again, and after ensuring the courtyard gate was securely fastened, she walked back and took Chen Qiao'er's hand.
"Let's go, we'll go back to our room and sleep."
County Town.
The Liu family.
It was almost the second watch, and the Liu family was still brightly lit.
There were only four people in the large reception hall.
Sitting in the main seat was naturally Liu Rumei. Sitting in the guest seat was a man with red hair and blue eyes.
He spoke in slightly broken official dialect, "Miss Liu, you must tell me an exact time. If you make us wait on Qingniu Mountain like this, until when will we have to wait?"
Liu Rumei smiled slightly, "Don't worry, they are more anxious than I am. They will definitely appear on Qingniu Mountain in the next few days."