With his head pressed against her bosom, Xiao Jingcheng was dazed by the soft touch and her fragrance. His tail wagged so vigorously behind him that it seemed about to fly off.
Such a huge wild boar was more than they could consume. It would be a great pity to leave it in the mountains. Finally, Li Zhao, Taoist Yuanzheng, and Mo Zhizhang joined forces to tie the wild boar to the back of the carriage. They planned to take it outside and find a town to sell it for money. In this way, no one would suspect their identities. People would only think they were ordinary villagers fleeing from disasters.
The next day, Xiao Jingcheng went out to scout the way. From afar, he saw wisps of cooking smoke in the north. This meant they were about to leave Qianren Mountain, and there were signs of human habitation ahead. It was very likely a village or a town!
However, he didn't rush back to tell Jiang Mian and the others. Instead, he continued to control the body of the yellow dog and ran another three li in the direction of the cooking smoke.
The presence of cooking smoke didn't necessarily mean it was a settlement of ordinary villagers. It could also be soldiers making a fire for cooking.
Since the north and the south were at war, it was better to be more cautious.
Through the gaps in the branches and leaves, he saw a cluster of houses at the foot of the mountain, and pedestrians in coarse cloth clothes walking among them. Xiao Jingcheng finally let out a sigh of relief. He immediately turned back, passed through the forest, and returned to Jiang Mian's side.
"Why did Dahuang go out for so long today?" Jiang Mian rubbed the yellow dog's head. She also noticed that it had been out longer than usual. "Did you hunt another wild animal?"
The yellow dog bit her sleeve and shook it. Then it stood up on its hind legs and walked back and forth in front of Jiang Mian and the others, imitating a human.
Jiang Zhiqing had witnessed the yellow dog's bravery in the past few days and had grown fonder of the dog Jiang Mian had raised. Seeing this, she laughed and said, "Is Dahuang trying to say that it has found signs of human habitation?"
The yellow dog barked twice at her, as if in response.
Jiang Mian also said, "Yes, that's exactly what Dahuang means. Father, Taoist priest, we're about to leave Qianren Mountain!"
They had been walking in the mountains for six days, and finally, they were about to get out of this great mountain!
Moreover, the presence of human habitation meant they could replenish their food and other supplies and also get information about the outside world!
Li Zhao pondered for a moment and said, "We still don't know the situation outside. Even if we've found signs of human habitation, we shouldn't get too excited. Let's go over and take a look first. If we find something amiss, we should leave immediately and not stay."
The group immediately packed their things and, following the yellow dog's guidance, drove the carriage towards the place with human habitation.
The closer they got to the place with human habitation, the sparser the vegetation in the mountains became, and the flatter the road. They stopped briefly on a high platform. Li Zhao and Jiang Mian hid in the bushes, with the yellow dog crouching beside them.
Looking at the cluster of houses at the foot of the mountain, Jiang Mian said,
"This should be a small village. People can't live without water, nor can they be completely isolated from the world. Every household here has a water tank, which means there should be a water source nearby. Father, look, there's also an oxcart parked over there. There are pieces of wood on it. The wood is of the same size and neatly stacked. It should be prepared to be transported outside and sold."
"This means there should be a larger town nearby."
Xiao Jingcheng couldn't help but turn his head to look at Jiang Mian. The girl was analyzing seriously, her beautiful almond eyes shining brightly with a radiance that was hard to look away from.
At the same time, he felt心疼 for her.
Her ability to observe like this was not only because of her natural intelligence but also because she often had to evade pursuers, which had become a habit. Only by staying vigilant could she better protect herself and reach Dongli Town smoothly.
And all of this was thanks to the Ye family.
When he returned to his own body, he wouldn't let the Ye family off.
How dare they even scheme against him! Oh, the Ye family had some nerve.
No one noticed anything strange about the yellow dog. Li Zhao rubbed Jiang Mian's head and nodded approvingly. "You're right. Your analysis is correct. For now, this village seems to be safe. We can interact with them for a while, rest here for a night, and find out about the outside situation."
They got back on the carriage and asked Mo Zhizhang and Taoist Yuanzheng to continue driving. Soon, they completely left Qianren Mountain behind, leaving the lush mountain in the distance, and headed towards the village at the foot of the mountain.
There were people moving around in the village, so it wasn't long before someone noticed the two carriages and a horse coming down from the mountain.
The villagers were very on guard. Immediately, several of them picked up their tools and rushed towards the carriages, shouting, "Who are you! Identify yourselves quickly!"
The curtain of the carriage was lifted, and Li Zhao emerged from inside.
He had smeared Tianli vine on his face. After living in the mountains for several days, his clothes were dirty in many places, and his hair was a bit messy. So, he looked rather dusty.
"Folks, don't be impulsive! Don't be impulsive!"
He bowed to them and said very amicably, "We're from Dongli Town. Some days ago, there was a heavy rain in Cangzhou, and a flood hit Dongli Town. All of our family's houses were destroyed, and our eldest son was seriously injured in the rain. We had no choice but to leave our hometown and go to visit our relatives to find a famous doctor to treat our eldest son."
"We've been walking in the mountains for several days. From afar, we saw signs of human habitation here, so we decided to come and ask for directions. If we've disturbed you folks, I'd like to apologize here."
After the fall of the Chu State, he had traveled incognito among the common people for many years and was very good at disguising himself. Now, speaking with a Cangzhou accent, he easily dispelled their doubts.
"We've also heard about what happened in Cangzhou. It's really a pity."
"Don't blame us for being vigilant, folks. We've heard that there's a war going on outside. Your sudden appearance here really gave us a fright."
"Yes, yes. Our village is remote, but we don't want to get involved in any trouble. We just want to live in peace."
One of the men put down his rake and looked at the carriage behind Li Zhao. "Are all the people in this carriage your relatives?"
"Yes, yes, yes." Li Zhao said. "Yingniang, Mian'er, come out."
Mo Zhizhang and Taoist Yuanzheng jumped off the carriage. Then, Jiang Mian helped Jiang Zhiqing out of the carriage. The yellow dog also stood beside Jiang Mian, panting.
There were old and young, men and women. They really did look like a family.
"This is my younger brother. He's not married yet." Li Zhao first introduced Taoist Yuanzheng.
Taoist Yuanzheng bowed. One of the villagers hesitated and said,
"Is he a Taoist priest?"
Taoist Yuanzheng was still wearing that tattered Taoist robe.
Taoist Yuanzheng repeated his previous excuse, saying that he had taken it from a dead Taoist priest on the way.
Seeing that they believed him, Li Zhao continued to introduce Jiang Zhiqing, Jiang Mian, and the others one by one.
"This is my wife, and these are our second son and youngest daughter."
Then, he walked to the carriage, pulled the curtain back on his own initiative, and sighed,
"The poor soul lying inside is our eldest son."