Liu Ce, to prevent any misunderstandings, took the initiative to greet, "Ma Han, why are you here?"
Ma Han also smiled and cupped his hands, "So it's Brother Liu, it's rare to run into you here, truly rare."
As he spoke, Ma Han turned and gestured behind him, "I've taken on a job, bringing a few people into the mountains to gather some herbs."
"Right, Brother Liu, why are you here too?"
Liu Ce chuckled, "Oh, we just came out of the mountains and are resting here."
Both parties knew the truth but spoke insincerely.
After a few more pleasantries, they cupped their hands and parted ways.
Watching them leave, Liu Tie, standing nearby, asked with slight surprise, "Why didn't Brother Liu Ce stop them?"
Liu Ce sighed, "Perhaps our two families will have to fight side-by-side in the future, so it's not good to make things too difficult today."
"Then what do we do next?"
Liu Ce looked in the direction where Tian Wen and his group had departed, his gaze growing firmer, "Send someone to follow them discreetly. You go and report the situation to His Highness the Crown Prince. I'll stay here to guard the steep slope, and we'll deal with him slowly when he leaves."
Liu Tie was taken aback, "You want me to go down the mountain?"
Liu Ce nodded, "Brother Tie, doesn't the Prince have another task arranged for you? That matter cannot be delayed."
Liu Tie shook his head, "If I leave, I'm afraid you won't be able to hold on. The Prince's errand isn't particularly urgent."
Liu Ce frowned, "Regardless of urgency, you must quickly attend to the Prince's arrangements, you can't keep him waiting too long." Saying this, he loudly called into the distance, "Yang Chun, Yang Chun, come here."
Hearing himself called, Yang Chun quickly trotted over, "Steward Liu, please instruct me."
Liu Ce looked at him and said earnestly, "Yang Chun, I have a tricky matter and would like to hear your opinion."
Seeing his solemnity, Yang Chun dropped his smile, "Steward Liu, whatever you need, just give the order."
Liu Ce pointed to Liu Tie beside him, "Brother Liu Tie has been ordered by my Marquis to apprehend Xiong Fei and Hou Liu."
Yang Chun was stunned, "Xiong Fei and Hou Liu? Does the Prince know them?"
"Yes, they falsely used the names of the villagers from Hetou Village to deceive my Prince. They have committed a capital offense."
Upon hearing this, Yang Chun's expression turned serious, "I do know where those two hail from, but I can't guarantee they are there."
"It's fine, it's fine. I'll send a few more men with you. You can search slowly and be sure to catch these two villains." Liu Ce's words reassured Yang Chun.
Yang Chun turned to bid farewell to Yang Zhi. Upon hearing it was an errand for Liu Xiangnan, Yang Zhi's smile was wide enough to split his face, "Brother, this is a rare opportunity. If you complete this task, you'll be noted by the Marquis."
"Whether you can wash away your identity as a mountain bandit and become a new person depends on this errand."
Yang Chun also became somewhat excited upon hearing this, "If you say so, then I must succeed in this task."
"Yes, I'll assign a few brothers to you." Yang Zhi immediately began making arrangements.
At this moment, Tian Wen and Ma Han had walked several miles and stopped only when they could no longer see the steep slope behind them.
Ma Han asked with some concern, "Guard Tian, was my response just now alright?"
Tian Wen raised his hand and patted Ma Han's shoulder, "It's fine, don't think too much about it. Let's keep moving forward."
"They are still guarding the steep slope. This is good news; it means the Lotus Cult Leader and the others are on the mountain."
Ma Han remained cautious, "Guard Tian, what should we do next?"
Tian Wen pointed to the side of the road, "There are traces of many people passing here. Let's follow them slowly."
"Everyone maintain distance and don't get separated. Getting lost in the mountains can be fatal."
While Tian Wen led his men into the mountains to search, the Lotus Cult Leader received news that was both joyful and disappointing.
Butterfly and his men tracked them to the Dragon King River, confirming that someone had crossed.
However, they could also see that there were people ambushing on the other side of the river.
After hearing Butterfly's report, the Lotus Cult Leader frowned and remained silent.
At that moment, Chu Han, standing nearby, spoke, "Leader, why don't we follow this river downstream? The river flows for thousands of miles and eventually into the sea. We're bound to find a way out."
Upon hearing Chu Han's words, the Lotus Cult Leader's eyes lit up.
"That makes sense. Then we shall go downstream and see if we can find an exit."
The Lotus Cult Leader, holding the map, confirmed the route several times before leading everyone off in grand fashion.
About ten miles from the Dragon King River, they chose a fork in the road and turned downstream. Although the path was overgrown and difficult to traverse, everyone's spirits were high, as there was at least a glimmer of hope to escape the mountains.
Meanwhile, Chen Xiaobei also led his men to that wooded area. Upon arriving, Chen Sanliang immediately became excited.
"Yes, yes, right here. The big stone eye is over there."
Chen Sanliang pointed eastward.
His reaction indicated that Chen Sanliang had indeed been here before.
Chen Xiaobei led his men, treading on the thick fallen leaves, moving forward slowly step by step.
At this point, a village guard member spoke, "Captain Xiaobei, clearing is too difficult. Why not just burn it?"
Chen Xiaobei shook his head, "No, burning it is too dangerous."
Chen Xiaobei was concerned that the fire would produce a large amount of carbon dioxide, which would collect in low-lying areas.
If there was a huge stone cave beneath this stone eye, it would be filled with carbon dioxide. If people went down, they would encounter danger and accidents.
Under Chen Xiaobei's insistence, everyone present worked together to clear a simple passage.
Upon reaching the cave entrance, Chen Xiaobei ordered torches to be lit, tied to ropes, and slowly lowered into the cave.
After lowering about three zhang, the torch hit a wall, indicating they had reached the bottom.
Chen Xiaobei then slowly pulled it up a bit and shook the rope a few times, making the torch spin to observe.
It could be seen that when the torch turned towards the southeast, the flame clearly extended outwards, indicating air flow in that direction, meaning it was possible to go forward.
This matched some of the situations Chen Sanliang had described.
After confirming these details, Chen Xiaobei turned to Chen Sanliang, "Brother Sanliang, you are familiar with the situation, you go down first."
Chen Sanliang untied the rope from his shoulder and securely fastened it to a nearby rock.
A rope of over three zhang was commonplace for these mountain folk.
With a few quick movements, Chen Sanliang descended to the bottom of the cave.
Chen Xiaobei then assigned two village guards to stay behind, "You two, do not go down. Just guard the entrance. Every time it takes the time for an incense stick to burn, you should call out a couple of times. We will judge the distance by sound."
However, Chen Xiaobei did not reveal everything. He wanted more than just to judge distance. By keeping the two men guarding the entrance, they could better handle any unforeseen circumstances. For instance, if it suddenly rained heavily, they would have to withdraw quickly, otherwise, if a large flood poured into the cave, they would have no place to escape.
With all arrangements made, Chen Xiaobei was the last to descend into the mountain cave.