After finishing, he cupped his fists at Chen Xiaobei and turned to leave.
Watching Zhang Yu and his group depart, Chen Xiaobei felt very uneasy. He suddenly thought of Gourd Valley. Could these people have discovered it?
Seeing them carrying so many things in large bags, Chen Daqiang scratched his head, "Village Chief Xiaobei, could they really have gone up the mountain to gather herbs?"
Chen Xiaobei smiled and shook his head, "If they were really gathering herbs, would they have stayed on the mountain for so long?"
"Moreover, they went up the mountain path but came down this way. It's clearly not normal."
He knew they weren't just on the mountain to gather herbs.
Chen Xiaobei wasn't too concerned about what they were actually doing right now.
What he was most worried about was Gourd Valley. He hoped these people hadn't completely taken over, so he still needed to find an opportunity to check it out again.
Chen Xiaobei led Chen Daqiang into the woods. Based on their location, if they passed through this forest, they would reach the Mountain God Temple.
As they entered the woods, they could see traces on the tree trunks that had been submerged by the flood.
It was clear that the floodwaters had risen gradually here. Before they could pass through the forest, the water level had reached chest height.
It was so strange. The water level was so high in the forest, but it hadn't risen much outside.
What could be the reason?
Further ahead, the floodwaters were even higher. At the peak, they even submerged his head, and then slowly began to recede.
Seeing this, Chen Xiaobei was completely stunned, and even Chen Daqiang couldn't understand.
"Village Chief Xiaobei, why was the water level so high in the forest? Could something have blocked it?"
Blocked by what? The forest itself? But the blocking effect of the forest was limited; it couldn't possibly raise the water level so high.
Therefore, it was obvious that this forest was very strange.
Chen Xiaobei stood on a protruding rock and looked around.
As he looked, he noticed something was amiss.
Looking to the east, there was a lot of dry grass and dead branches, while there was very little to the west.
This indicated that the water receded later in the east, meaning the water had flowed eastward.
With this deduction, Chen Xiaobei became excited and called Chen Daqiang to hurry east.
The valley here was quite open, at least a mile wide.
To have such deep floodwaters, one could imagine how heavy the rain was on the mountain.
The two of them walked until they were close to the rock face. The scene ahead was a bit strange. There were no trees in this large area, but scattered dead branches and dry grass were increasing.
Looking at the circular marks, Chen Xiaobei suddenly slapped his forehead. These were the marks left by a whirlpool. This meant that a huge vortex had formed here.
This immediately explained why the water level in the forest was so suddenly high, while the water level outside the forest was low.
Chen Daqiang, without hesitation, lunged towards the pile of grass, but Chen Xiaobei pulled him back.
"Brother Daqiang, the situation is unclear. Don't go down there."
Looking at the wet grass and branches, Chen Xiaobei thought for a moment and came up with an idea.
He would wait a couple of days for the grass and branches to dry, then bring people to clear them, and the scene below would become clear.
Looking at the sky, Chen Xiaobei called Chen Daqiang to hurry down the mountain, or they might really have to spend the night in the mountains.
In early autumn, it got dark quickly. As soon as the sun set, the temperature in the valley dropped instantly. Even though they walked quickly and kept moving, Chen Xiaobei still felt a chill that penetrated to the bone.
This made it understandable why the Liu family members looked so frozen that day.
This feeling only slowly disappeared when they reached the foot of the mountain and left Qingniu Mountain.
By the time he returned home, it was past the second watch.
Chen Qiao'er had already fallen asleep. Cui Hongyu hurried to warm up his meal and poured Chen Xiaobei a large bowl of wine. "It's cold on the mountain, isn't it? Have some wine to warm yourself up."
Chen Xiaobei picked up the wine bowl and drank it down in one gulp.
"Hongyu, thank you for your trouble."
Cui Hongyu smiled charmingly, "Husband, why are you being so formal? Serving my husband is what I should do."
While Chen Xiaobei was eating, Cui Hongyu casually said, "Oh, Miss Huangying came today and said you promised her some fried firecrackers."
"Yes, I did. We have some ready-made, don't we? You can give them to her."
Cui Hongyu smiled, "I wouldn't dare make a decision without you at home. I told her she had to come to you personally. Oh, should I go call her now?"
Chen Xiaobei looked at Cui Hongyu in surprise. "It's already the second watch. Let's do it tomorrow."
Cui Hongyu had already made a move to get up, but upon hearing Chen Xiaobei's words, she sat back down.
"Alright, then tomorrow night I'll make some dishes and wine, and invite them over for a meal."
Alright, Chen Xiaobei could only nod in agreement.
At this moment, in the Liu Mansion in Qingniu County.
In the spacious reception hall, Liu Rumei stood respectfully with everyone. Seated before them was a young man in white. The young man looked handsome with starry eyes and beautiful eyebrows.
This was Xiao Jingyun, the Crown Prince of the Great Cang Kingdom.
Xiao Jingyun looked at Liu Rumei with a look of approval. "After listening to your report, I am very pleased. If the dragon脉 is guarded, the foundation of our Great Cang Kingdom can be secured."
"Those rumors will naturally be dispelled."
Liu Rumei bowed again, "Your Highness, please rest assured. Rumei vows to defend the dragon脉 with her life and will not give the villains any opportunity."
Xiao Jingyun nodded, "I will personally go to Qingniu Mountain tomorrow. Make the arrangements."
Liu Rumei quickly waved her hand. "Your Highness, the situation on Qingniu Mountain is complicated. The Imperial Preceptor's people have been lurking there for many days. Furthermore, there are reports that Princess Zhaoning is also involved in this matter, but her stance is unclear."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Jingyun's expression froze. "Is this true? Are you sure Zigu is also involved?"
"Your Highness, this is absolutely true. My second brother was ambushed, and the Princess was involved from behind."
Hearing this, Xiao Jingyun's expression turned serious. He stood up, placed his hands behind his back, and paced back and forth in front of Liu Rumei.
"No wonder she has suddenly shown so much concern for me lately, sending people to bring me food and drinks every few days."
After speaking, he frowned, slowly sat down, and rubbed his temples.
"Attacking your second brother is clearly a move to stir up trouble and provoke a dispute between us and the Imperial Preceptor."
"It seems they are not coming with good intentions."
Liu Rumei said with determination, "Your Highness, please rest assured. The Princess relies on nothing more than the Lotus Cult Master. I will deal with it."
Xiao Jingyun shook his head. "We cannot say that."
"Princess Zhaoning's mother, Consort Shu, is the niece of the old Prime Minister Fang Zheng."
"Although the old Prime Minister has retired for many years, he still has considerable influence in the court. This cannot help but lead to speculation."
This time, it was Liu Rumei's turn to be speechless. She hadn't thought of this aspect.
"Alright, tomorrow we will go to Qingniu Mountain first. We'll deal with other matters slowly." Xiao Jingyun said, waving his hand.