Upon hearing they were going to the capital, Hou Liu was taken aback. "What do you want to do?"
"Chen Xiaobei bullies people in the village. He was the one who informed on me, causing the death of my uncle and my parents. Oh, and that Liu Yuanwu's accident is also related to him."
Hearing this, Hou Liu secretly calculated. He was penniless and had nowhere to go. It might as well be a free ride.
"Alas, Er Mao, it's not that I don't want to accompany you, but I'm short on cash. We don't have travel expenses."
Chen Er Mao chuckled, patted his chest. "Uncle, don't worry, I have it. You just need to come with me."
As soon as he heard about money, Hou Liu immediately became excited. "Alright, then let's find a place to hide first."
Hou Liu pulled Chen Er Mao towards the direction of Centipede Ridge. He was familiar with this road.
Finding a patch of woods on the way, Hou Liu said, "Er Mao, let's rest here until dawn, have a good meal in Xiao Jia Town, and then talk about going to the capital. What do you think?"
Chen Er Mao, unaware of Hou Liu's ulterior motives, readily agreed.
Soon, Chen Er Mao fell into a deep sleep, snoring loudly.
Hou Liu, however, couldn't sleep. He still had a banknote hidden on him. He planned to go to Xiao Jia Town to exchange it for cash.
He had intended to flee far away, but now Chen Er Mao had given him an opportunity for promotion and wealth.
If he took the items Chen Er Mao mentioned and found Duke Huguo Liu Xiangnan in the capital,
His Highness might be pleased and reward him with thousands of taels of silver with a casual gesture.
Thinking of this, Hou Liu became excited. He stood up, walked over to Chen Er Mao, and gently called out, "Chen Er Mao, Chen Er Mao."
Chen Er Mao was sleeping soundly and did not respond.
A cold smile crept onto Hou Liu's lips. He slowly reached out and took the bundle from Chen Er Mao's embrace.
According to Chen Er Mao, it contained the Liu family's waist token, silver, and a written account of the events by Chen Sanqiu.
With everything in order, Hou Liu quickly disappeared into the night.
Before dawn, Hetou Village was bustling. Chen Xiaobei led six village guards, along with Ma Xiaoyi and another person. A total of nine people, each carrying three wooden boards and some food and drink, headed towards Qingniu Mountain.
Before leaving, Chen Xiaobei made an agreement with Li Dong. If he did not return within five days, Chen Li Dong was not to go up the mountain. If there was still no news after five days, he could search the mountain.
While they went up the mountain, Li Dong was not idle either. He mobilized the village, asking those with vegetables to pick them and those who were free to help pack apples.
Chen Xiaobo would be quite busy these two days, handling the delivery of vegetables and apples to Xiao Jia Town.
As for deliveries to the county town, Cui Hongyu was personally in charge. To ensure Cui Hongyu's safety, Liu Rumei specially assigned Xiao Qing to accompany her.
Everything seemed busy but orderly, and the entire Hetou Village was bursting with vitality.
As dawn broke, Chen Er Mao also woke up. Upon waking, he instinctively reached for his chest.
Alas, his chest was empty. The bundle was gone, and Hou Liu was nowhere to be seen.
Chen Er Mao shot up, "Uncle Hou Liu?"
"Uncle Hou Liu!"
He called out several times, but there was no response.
Chen Er Mao finally realized he had been tricked by Hou Liu.
He was so angry that he punched the nearby tree trunk hard.
"Uncle Hou Liu, I kindly saved you, yet you treat me like this. Where is your conscience? Where is your conscience?"
At this moment, he felt utterly lost. He couldn't go back to the village after fleeing, and now he was penniless.
Moreover, although he was a minor bully and a scoundrel in Hetou Village, outside of it, he was completely lost and didn't know where to go.
After much thought, Chen Er Mao stamped his foot. "Forget it, forget it. I'll go to Centipede Ridge. There will always be a place for me to hide. I'll settle down there first."
As daylight spread, the city gate of Qingniu County town slowly opened. People came and went, appearing no different from usual.
Just then, a carriage slowly approached.
The guards at the gate stopped it. "Stop for inspection."
The coachman quickly jumped down from the carriage, bowed slightly, "Gentlemen guards, my father inside is unwell. Please do not disturb him."
The guards first lifted the curtain and looked inside. The carriage was covered with quilts, and a person lay on the quilts, seemingly still asleep.
Seeing nothing unusual, the guards waved their hands. "Alright, you may enter."
The carriage turned left and right within the county town, finally stopping in front of the Liu Mansion.
The guards at the entrance immediately asked in a deep voice, "Hey, who are you?"
The coachman stepped forward, clasped his hands, and took out a letter from his embrace. "Please deliver this to Miss Liu Rumei."
Upon hearing that he was looking for Liu Rumei, they knew he had come to the right place. The guard hurried inside to find Liu Ce.
"Steward Liu, a carriage has arrived outside, asking for Miss."
He said this and handed over the letter.
Liu Ce took the letter and opened it, his expression changing slightly. "Where is the person?"
"Right outside."
Liu Ce strode out, approached the carriage, nodded to the coachman, and stepped forward, asking in a deep voice, "Is the senior Zhenren Taiping inside?"
"Cough, cough, it's me. Who are you?"
"I am Liu Ce, Miss Liu's steward. It's like this, Miss Liu is not in the mansion. Please find an inn to stay first, and I will bring Miss to visit you later."
"Alright, I understand."
"Lai Fu, let's go."
Coachman Lai Fu nodded to Liu Ce and drove away, cracking his whip.
Watching the carriage depart, Liu Ce said to the two guards at the gate with feigned ease, "From now on, if anyone comes with a letter looking for Miss, ask a few more questions. Don't be deceived."
The guards assumed they were impostors and paid no attention. The matter was thus dropped.
Liu Ce returned to his room and quickly wrote a secret letter, sending it by carrier pigeon to Hetou Village.
Liu Rumei was overjoyed to hear that Zhenren Taiping had arrived and immediately began preparing to visit. However, her status was too sensitive to visit in broad daylight. So, despite her excitement, she had to wait until dusk before entering the city.
By the time Chen Xiaobei and his group reached the steep slope, the sun had already begun to set, and they naturally moved slower carrying the wooden boards.
Standing on the steep slope, looking at the distant woods, Chen Xiaobei couldn't help but sigh. This was where Liu Yuanwu had met his end. He would have to be careful passing by here in the future.
Chen Dayong, a village guard, saw him standing there in a daze and came over with a smile, asking, "Xiaobei, Village Chief, what are you thinking about here?"
Chen Xiaobei pointed to the dense forest in the distance.
"Li Tong ambushed there. Liu Yuanwu fell from here, an arrow through his heart."
Chen Dayong couldn't help but gasp. "Yes, it was incredibly powerful. Few people in this world could do that."
Indeed, in the age of cold weapons, distance was paramount. If you were far away, you had no recourse.
But thinking about firearms, what was this distance?