Chen Xiaobei kept replaying Yang Chun's unfinished half-sentence in his mind. It was obvious that Da Lao Hei had deliberately interrupted Yang Chun, which meant Da Lao Hei didn't want him to know too much.
This was rather interesting. Three groups were all pushing towards Qing Niu Mountain, but what exactly was on the mountain?
If there was really a treasure on the mountain, then why didn't any of the villagers in Hetou Village know even a tiny bit about it?
Clearly, Chen Xiaobei didn't have an omniscient perspective on the current situation and couldn't figure it out immediately.
But there was one thing he was sure of: these three groups must belong to different factions, otherwise, they would have already joined forces to find him.
Since they belonged to different factions, he would have to be careful in the future. If any two of them met, it would likely lead to bloodshed. At that time, he probably wouldn't be able to stay out of it.
In this case, not only should he prevent the two sides from meeting, but he shouldn't even let any of them know that he was in contact with the other two.
If that were the case, he couldn't let any of them come to the village to find him so brazenly anymore.
There was no impenetrable wall in the world; such conspicuous behavior would eventually lead to trouble.
Therefore, how to establish smooth contact with these people without being discovered by more villagers was a difficult problem that needed to be carefully pondered.
Especially Da Lao Hei, his actions would have to go underground.
With this thought, Chen Xiaobei finally relaxed and fell into a deep sleep.
He didn't know how long he had slept when he was gently woken up.
Opening his eyes, he saw Yang Chun in front of him. "Brother, get up the tree quickly! There's movement of wild beasts in the distance."
After waking him up, Yang Chun directly let out a loud shout, "Everyone wake up."
Following his shout, everyone present opened their eyes.
Some were clearly still half-asleep and looked at Yang Chun in a daze.
"Everyone get up the tree quickly." Da Lao Hei waved his hand, and without a word, everyone turned around, grabbed the nearest large tree, and climbed up rapidly.
Chen Xiaobei picked up the bundle beside him, slung it over his shoulder, and then quickly climbed the tree.
He climbed more than two zhang high in one go before stopping.
Not long after, several pairs of small lights appeared in the distance. Seeing these lights, Chen Xiaobei's heart sank.
Why wolves again?
It made sense. Qing Niu Mountain was hundreds of miles in radius; how could there only be those eleven wolves?
There weren't many wolves, only three.
It seemed that wolves were quite afraid of fire. Because of the campfire, they didn't dare to get too close. They just circled from a distance, occasionally marking their territory with wolf urine. Chen Xiaobei didn't know what that meant.
After circling a few times, the three wolves turned around and ran away in unison.
This made Chen Xiaobei a little confused. Shouldn't they howl a few times and call for their companions?
Seeing the wolf pack leave, Yang Chun was the first to jump down from the tree. This action made Chen Xiaobei a little worried. What if the wolf pack came back?
"Alright, everyone, come down. It's nothing."
"Brother Yang, do you think the wolves won't come back?" Chen Xiaobei couldn't help but ask.
Yang Chun smiled calmly. "They won't come back tonight, at least. We can have a good night's sleep."
"Why?" Chen Xiaobei was a bit confused.
"These three wolves must have separated from the pack. If they had companions, they would definitely howl to call them. But they left without a sound, indicating that there are no companions nearby, and the three of them were not confident in handling so many of us, so they retreated for now."
Upon hearing Yang Chun's analysis, Chen Xiaobei secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Great, at least he could sleep soundly.
Although Yang Chun said it so casually, he was actually very careful, specifically assigning two people to keep watch.
As expected, everything was normal, and Chen Xiaobei slept until dawn.
After a simple meal, they prepared to set off.
Emerging from the dense forest, everyone's eyes suddenly opened up.
The main peak of Qing Niu Mountain in the distance was already faintly visible, seeming to be about ten miles away.
Although this place was deserted and there was no longer any road, the terrain gradually became steeper as they went higher, and there were no tall trees, only some low-growing shrubs.
Seeing these shrubs, Chen Xiaobei's heart stirred. This was not Burning Bush, just like the ones in Hulu Valley! Only here, there was a larger patch than in Hulu Valley, and they looked healthier.
Seeing Chen Xiaobei staring at these shrubs, Yang Chun next to him couldn't help but ask, "Brother Xiaobei, what are these things?"
Chen Xiaobei smiled faintly. "This is called Burning Bush. If you pick the leaves and boil them with water, you'll get a spicy sensation."
"Oh, so the restaurants in the city add this to make spicy dishes?" Yang Chun couldn't help but exclaim.
His words reminded Chen Xiaobei. That's right, he remembered reading historical records that Burning Bush leaves were used as spicy condiments in ancient times.
Yes, Burning Bush could also be sold for money; he had overlooked it.
Hearing Chen Xiaobei's reply, Da Lao Hei also seemed a little surprised. He stepped forward, looked at the Burning Bush, and couldn't help but laugh heartily.
"Remember this place. When we go down the mountain later, we'll pick some to take back, so we don't have to buy it in the city."
Not bad, quite a thrifty master of the stronghold.
They continued to walk forward for about three miles. From here on, there were no more surprises; a path led directly up to the summit.
Looking at the mountain peak that almost pierced the clouds, Chen Xiaobei sat down on a nearby rock. "Great leader, I'll wait for you here. You guys go up the mountain yourselves. I'm really out of energy."
Da Lao Hei looked up at the mountain peak not far away, then turned to look at Xiong Fei and Hou Liu. Finally, he smiled. "Brother Xiaobei, you're so close to the summit; wouldn't you feel it's a pity not to go up?"
Chen Xiaobei thought to himself, what's there to regret? I don't want to go up the mountain at all; you forced me.
"Great leader, I want to go up the mountain too, but I really can't walk anymore. I need to save some energy for when we go down the mountain."
Yang Chun, being adept at reading the situation, quickly stood up to smooth things over. "Great leader, since Brother Xiaobei is too tired to walk, let him rest here."
After speaking, he winked at Da Lao Hei, who naturally understood. He nodded. "In that case, Brother Xiaobei will rest here. By the way, Yang Chun, take two men to stay and protect Brother Xiaobei." Su Dan Novel Network
Chen Xiaobei understood that "protect" also implied "monitor." If he took the opportunity to run back and cut those two ropes, then Da Lao Hei and the others would have a much harder time getting back.