A faint chill immediately struck Chen Xiaobei upon entering the cave.
It was early autumn. When the sun rose during the day outside, the temperature was still pleasant and comfortable.
So, it was normal for the temperature inside the mountain cave to be a little lower. Chen Xiaobei and the others had come prepared, planning to spend the night in the mountains, so they had brought plenty of clothes.
After each of them put on an outer layer, they followed Chen Sanliang further into the cave.
As they walked, the space grew larger. The ceiling was about fourzhang high, so even holding a torch, they couldn't see clearly.
Although there were no reference points, Chen Xiaobei could tell they were going downhill.
Besides the sound of dripping water, there were no other unusual noises, which put him at ease.
After walking for a while, Chen Sanliang, who was leading the way, spoke.
"Look, this is a mark I left last time. Now you should believe me."
Chen Xiaobei stepped forward and saw four or five egg-sized stones on a flat, giant rock by the roadside, arranged in a forward-pointing arrow.
It was clearly man-made. Chen Xiaobei nodded and stepped forward to change the direction of the stones to point backward.
"Everyone, walk for a while and then place a mark like this with stones. This way, when we come out, we can just follow the marks all the way back."
Upon hearing Chen Xiaobei's words, everyone nodded repeatedly. Chen Sanliang was even more impressed with Chen Xiaobei. This was a method his father had taught him, and he was surprised that this seemingly ordinary, teenage Chen Xiaobei knew it too.
Just then, shouts came from the cave entrance behind them from the village guards.
According to Chen Xiaobei's agreement with them, they were supposed to shout once about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.
If they had walked about one li into the cave according to Chen Sanliang's statement, and judging from the distance they had walked, the error in distance should not be large. In other words, it took an incense stick's time to walk one li.
With this rough estimation, Chen Xiaobei had a better idea of their situation.
They walked forward for another three li or so when Chen Sanliang, who was in the front, suddenly exclaimed in surprise, "Do you hear that noise?"
Everyone stopped, and the place became silent.
Now they could hear it clearly: a faint rushing sound from ahead.
This sound was very familiar to everyone. It was the sound of flowing water.
"Water, it's water," everyone shouted excitedly.
They quickened their pace and walked for about another half li, and the scene before them shocked them.
There was a river ahead.
The river was about three zhang wide, and the water was so clear that they could see the bottom. The water seemed to be only waist-deep.
Chen Xiaobei stood there and looked around. He had no sense of direction. He couldn't tell if it was north or south. He could only imagine the direction the water was coming from as upstream and the direction it was flowing as downstream.
Should they follow it upstream or downstream? He was a bit undecided.
Just then, Chen Sanliang spoke.
"Let's follow it upstream and see where the water comes from."
Right, people go up, water flows down.
They decided to do as Chen Sanliang suggested.
They followed the water upstream for another four or five li. However, Chen Xiaobei suddenly decided to stop.
"Brother Xiaobei, let's keep going. There won't be any danger in this mountain cave," Chen Sanliang said, sounding reluctant.
Chen Xiaobei knew that if they continued forward, as long as there was food and water, there would be no danger, at least no dangerous beasts. And from the distance they had walked, there weren't even many insects in the cave.
But Chen Xiaobei was not thinking about these things. He realized that they could no longer hear the shouts of the two village guards from the cave entrance.
This meant they were far enough from the entrance.
Without hearing their shouts, they couldn't accurately judge the time.
If they didn't respond for a long time, would the two at the cave entrance risk coming in to find them?
If they went downstream, it would be troublesome.
"Let's go back now, get those two, and then retrace this path."
After hearing Chen Xiaobei's explanation, everyone finally understood. Chen Sanliang even gave Chen Xiaobei a thumbs-up, "Brother Xiaobei, your decision is absolutely right. Leaving those two at the cave entrance, if anything happens, it would be troublesome."
Yes, if anything happened, it would indeed be difficult.
After walking so far, Chen Xiaobei was no longer as worried about floods entering the cave. Based on his observations along the way, the space here was large enough.
Even if a flood came in, they would have space to hide.
As expected, by the time they returned to the cave entrance, it was completely dark. The two village guards were already anxiously waiting.
When night fell, the temperature in the forest dropped sharply. In contrast, the mountain cave felt much warmer.
Chen Xiaobei asked the two village guards to push a lot of dry branches and leaves down first for a bonfire at night, and then let them come down to eat together.
While having dinner, Chen Xiaobei briefly explained the situation inside to the two of them.
Hearing that they could join him on the exploration the next day, the two village guards became very excited. After all, guarding the cave entrance was an extremely boring task.
Meanwhile, in the imperial palace, Princess Zhaoning received a letter from Tian Wen.
After reading it, she became somewhat unhappy.
A palace maid named Hu Die cautiously asked, "Princess, have you encountered any trouble?"
Princess Zhaoning nodded slightly. "Tian Wen said it has been confirmed that the Crown Prince is safe, but my master may be in danger. He has already led people into the mountains."
"Princess, you should send more people. Tian Wen and his group are too few."
Princess Zhaoning did not commit and slowly stood up. "Accompany me out for a while."
Princess Zhang Ning changed into plain clothes and, with two personal maids, left the imperial palace. After turning left and right, they finally arrived at the back door of a prince's manor.
A palace maid stepped forward and gently knocked on the door knocker a few times. The door creaked open.
Hu Die stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Please inform the Old Prime Minister that Princess Zhaoning is here to visit."
Soon, the retired Prime Minister Fang Zheng, who had received the news, hurried out.
Upon seeing Princess Zhaoning, he cupped his fists and bowed, "I greet Your Highness the Princess."
Princess Zhaoning slightly bowed. "Old minister, there's no need for such formalities. By rights, I should call you grandfather."
As they exchanged pleasantries, they entered the reception hall. Old Prime Minister Fang Zheng waved and dismissed all the servants around him.
"Your Highness, why this sudden visit!"
Princess Zhaoning frowned slightly. "You must have heard about the matter on Qingniu Mountain, haven't you?"
Old Prime Minister Fang Zheng nodded slightly. "Your Highness, please forgive this old servant for speaking out of turn. As the saying goes, when two tigers fight, one must be injured. You entered the fray too early. You should have waited until the Imperial Advisor and His Highness the Crown Prince were locked in a fierce battle..."
Princess Zhaoning couldn't help but sigh. "My brother has already gone to Qingniu County. If I don't act now, it might be too late."
Old Prime Minister Fang Zheng stood up, clasped his hands behind his back, paced back and forth on the floor, and said slowly, "Since it has come to this, we can only take a gamble."
"Oh, then what do you suggest we do?" Princess Zhaoning's eyes lit up instantly.