Heading east from Yulin Mansion and past Hutou Valley, you will find the remaining peaks of the Loutu Mountains. These mountains are not too high, but they are endless. From a distance, one peak after another looks like waves.
There are several paths crisscrossing between the peaks. If there is no one to guide you, you will often go the wrong way.
Zhao Cheng walked alone, holding a hiking pole, and walked easily. When he met people, he asked for directions. When he didn't meet anyone, he chose a random path. He originally thought that these paths would eventually lead to inhabited places.
But it is obvious that he does not understand the situation of the mountain people in the Dachen Dynasty.
The so-called mountain people live in the mountains and make a living by fishing and hunting. The government cannot manage them, so they can only rely on the mountain people to self-govern and elect a leader of the mountain people, and then everything must be done by this leader.
Moreover, the mountain people did not farm and had no fields, so there was no grain tax, and only head tax and corvee were left.
The mountain people live in the mountains. Some officials have never entered the mountains, so there is no way to talk about poll taxes and corvees. Therefore, relatively speaking, the burden of life on the mountain people is not heavy, but the living environment of the mountain people is very difficult. bad.
In the deep mountains, there are all wolves, insects, tigers, leopards, mandrills and bears. If you are not careful, you will be buried in the belly of the beast.
When Zhao Cheng realized that he was a little hasty, it was getting dark. At dusk, except for the unknown sounds of birds and animals in the mountains and forests, there was no sign of anyone. If he couldn't find a place to stay tonight, he might have to stay in the wilderness. .
There was a village on the way here, but it was far away from here. It took two hours to travel. When I thought about walking back for two hours, and might have to walk back again tomorrow, I simply rested on the roadside.
This path is very smooth. It can be seen that people often pass by here, and there is no grass growing. There are also piles of firewood on the roadside. It is obvious that someone collected firewood here and did not have time to transport it away.
Zhao Cheng lit a bonfire with the scythe he carried with him, just enough to use the firewood on the roadside, without having to collect firewood himself.
After Xiongxiong's fire ignited, he felt a lot more at ease.
Most animals are afraid of fire. With this bonfire, Zhao Cheng's safety can be greatly improved.
"Who is there?"
Because the bonfire was lit, perhaps because of the light of the fire, someone soon discovered Zhao Cheng.
Zhao Cheng heard someone talking and replied happily: "I am a passing scholar. I had to camp in the wilderness because I missed my accommodation."
"Sir?" Following the rustling of footsteps on the leaves, a man dressed as a hunter appeared in front of Zhao Cheng.
"Why don't you take the main road?"
Zhao Cheng smiled bitterly and said: "I originally wanted to take a look at the mountains and rivers along the path. The scenery is quite good, but unfortunately there are too few villages along the way, so it is not convenient to rest."
The hunter had already walked up to Zhao Cheng, and only then did Zhao Cheng realize that the man was carrying a bow and arrow, a knife at his waist, and a fork in his hand, with two rabbits and a pheasant hanging on it.
"Do you know that if you light a fire in the forest, it will easily burn the mountain?" The hunter inserted his fork into the crack of the stone and walked towards Zhao Cheng with his hand on his waist knife.
Zhao Cheng felt that this person was a little dangerous, and it seemed that he came with bad intentions, so he took out a thicker piece of firewood from the bonfire and held it in his hand. There was still smoke coming from the other end of the firewood.
When Orion saw Zhao Cheng's cautious movements, he paused and said, "I do know a place where you can stay. Just come with me."
Zhao Cheng shook his head: "No need, I'll just stay here for the night."
Orion stared at Zhao Cheng for a while, then blew a bone whistle hanging on his chest. Not long after, rustling footsteps sounded all around.
Zhao Cheng held a torch and looked around, only to see shadowy figures appearing in the forest. It looked like there were about a dozen people.
"What do you want to do?" Zhao Cheng knew that he was too hasty. He went into the mountains alone and was helpless. This hunter and the people surrounding him were obviously not good people.
Orion looked gloomy and did not answer. At this time, someone said: "Hua Lao Qi, why have you become more and more soft-hearted since the Mid-Autumn Festival last year? You are just a kid, do you need everyone to come together?"
Orion turned his head in that direction and said, "I'm not soft-hearted, this man is a scholar."
"oh?"
As the sound approached, the speaker came out of the forest. Zhao Cheng looked at him and saw that the man was about two meters tall, with thick and powerful limbs. He did not hold any weapons in his hands and was dressed like the hunter. About thirty years old, with a curly beard.
If Zhao Cheng were to describe him, he might be described as a combination of Zhang Fei and Lu Bu. In short, he was a very fierce and strong man.
As soon as this person appeared, Zhao Cheng knew that he was probably going to die here today. There were so many people on the other side, and they were all much stronger than him. They also had bows, arrows, swords and guns, but he only had a piece of firewood in his hand.
If there is a conflict, there is no need to think about the odds of winning. Surviving is already the biggest miracle.
The strong man glanced at Zhao Cheng and said, "Are you a scholar?"
Zhao Cheng nodded and said, "Yes, I am a scholar."
"Sure enough, your courage is different from ordinary people. Since you are a scholar, just follow me up the mountain. If you don't want to go, you will only die!" The strong man did not hide his purpose, and he went straight to the point.
I just passed the government examination and became a Gongsheng student. I only have three months to go to Beijing to take the provincial examination. But now I am kidnapped by a group of hunters and asked to go up the mountain. Is this considered a bandit?
Could it be that Zhao Cheng's smooth life has just begun and is about to end prematurely?
Even if Zhao Cheng regretted it now, it was too late. If he could make a choice again, he would definitely not walk this mountain path alone.
Four or five men dressed as hunters had surrounded him with knives and spears. Looking at the sharp spear points and blades, Zhao Cheng could only stand up silently, and then he was tied up with ropes by these people.
"You are a scholar, so you must know how to read and write, right?" the strong man asked.
Zhao Cheng hummed as an answer.
An Orion walking behind him waved the thorn stick in his hand and slapped Zhao Cheng on the back: "The boss is asking you a question!"
This slap made Zhao Cheng take a breath of cold air, but he gritted his teeth and remained silent.
The strong man waved his hand at the man behind him: "The scholar Pi Nen can't help but beat him. If he is beaten to death, where do you want me to find such a suitable scholar?"
"Master, there are so many teaching gentlemen in the city, why don't you just kidnap any of them and bring them back?" The man retorted, obviously dissatisfied.
The big boss chuckled: "You know nothing! Didn't his family look for him after he was kidnapped? Didn't the government file a case? These are all troublesome things. It's the most suitable person to bump in by himself. Others only think that he was caught by a wolf. Let’s go eat, who in this deep mountain and old forest would look for it?”
