Han Changmu shrank his neck and looked up at the stars in the sky.
Judging from the route of the baggage train at the front, it seems to be going in the direction of Qiuci Guoluntai.
His heart trembled, "Luntai, isn't that the destination of Li Yushan and his party?"
There seemed to be something pulling him towards that place.
He turned his head and looked at Yao Yao, who was sleeping deeply.
Perhaps Li Yushan hides a secret closely related to Yao Yao.
There was nothing to say all night. The morning sun was bright but cold, and the wind was like a knife tempered with ice, blowing across the exposed skin.
In just a short moment, countless small cuts appeared on the skin. At first, I didn't feel anything. As the cold wind got stronger and the air became drier, blood oozed from the small cuts, and the pain was like being stabbed by knives and needles. Yes, pervasive.
Yao Yao was dressed neatly, the wrap was thick and warm, and he carefully applied a thick layer of ointment on his hands before putting on his gloves.
Gu Chen probed his head and asked curiously: "A Yao, what is this?"
Yao Yao raised a small round bowl half the size of a palm and said with a proud smile: "I made my own hand ointment to prevent freezing and cracking. Do you want to try it?"
Gu Chen smiled and stretched out his hand. As soon as he touched the edge of the small round bowl, a hand stretched out from the edge and passed the small round bowl.
"Does this work? Let me try." Han Changmu turned the small round bowl with a half-smile.
Gu Chen was stunned and watched Han Changmu slowly wipe his hands. After wiping, he put the small round bowl into his sleeve.
Yao Yao was stunned for a long time and then said helplessly: "Sir, that's mine."
Han Changmu raised his eyebrows: "I'll keep it for you."
"..."
Several people were silent and couldn't help laughing until they were shaking all over.
The horse walked across the cliff, and in front of him was a flat wasteland. Here, the sand was sparse, withered vegetation gradually became more numerous, and the frozen stream was still in the ravine, surrounded by a light white mist.
When we arrived at the foot of the majestic Yinshan Mountain, the baggage train had already left, leaving behind deep ruts.
On the trunk of the Populus euphratica tree that has lost all its leaves, there are marks left by Meng Suijie.
Han Changmu looked up.
The entire Silver Mountain is covered with snow, rippling with dazzling silver light in the sun.
Dark brown rocks and soil were exposed in the thin snow at the foot of the mountain. They were so frozen that they were hard to step on.
According to the map, when going to Luntai of Qiuci State, you have to cross the Silver Mountain and cross an unknown river.
The river is extremely deep and cold, with rough waves, and boats often capsize.
At this time of year, there is snow all over Yinshan Mountain. The snow is knee deep and the river is frozen. It is impossible to cross the river on horseback, so we can only lead the horse.
Along the way, it is very easy for cold air to enter the body and leave the root of the disease.
He turned around and looked at the group of people behind him. They were all wrapped up tightly. He urged his horse to come to Yao Yao's side and asked softly: "A Yao, do you still have that tarp?"
Yao Yao was stunned for a moment: "Aren't we going to climb a mountain? Why do we need a tarpaulin?"
Xie Mengxia came over and sighed with a plaintive look on his face: "Ah Yao, when you climbed Tanhan Mountain, you were in a coma, so of course you didn't know anything. Let me tell you, it's better at the bottom of the mountain, and the snow just fell." I wiped the tops of my boots, but from the mountainside up, the snow was up to my knees, pouring straight into my boots. I couldn't walk even a few steps, my boots and clothes were soaked through, and it was bitingly cold."
Han Changmu nodded: "Yes, cold air entering the body can easily leave the root of the disease."
Yao Yao didn't say anything. He shook out the bag neatly, cut a large piece of waterproof cloth into a suitable size, sewed a few stitches with a thick needle and large thread, and made it into something like leggings. He put it on his legs and used The rope was tightly tied several times from top to bottom. Even the shafts of the leather boots were put into the leggings, and the mouths of the boots were tightly tied.
Xie Mengxia patted her thigh and nodded with satisfaction: "It's good now, no matter how deep the snow is, it won't be able to fill the boots."
After getting ready, the group of people rode up the mountain.
Gu Chen and Wang Xian were at the front exploring the road. One of them used a shovel to clear away the snow, which revealed a narrow path. The other used a knife to cut off the dead branches that were slanting out.
When he was almost halfway up the mountain, Wang Xian cleared up the floating snow and dead branches and leaves on the ground and suddenly exclaimed.
Gu Chen hurried over to take a look and said in surprise: "How can there be this in the mountains?"
Several people urged their horses to come over and take a look. There was actually a trap buried in the snow. They pushed it with a branch, and with a snap, the trap bit the branch hard, and its sharp teeth hooked into the branch.
Xie Mengxia felt pain in her leg and touched her ankle: "If this happens to someone's leg, don't bite the bone."
Yao Yao asked doubtfully: "Are there any hunters in this mountain?"
The fact that Xie Mengxia was once snatched away by a wolf is no longer a secret among these people. Gu Chen looked at Xie Mengxia courageously and smiled: "I'm afraid it was used to catch wolves."
"Really or not, you're trying to scare me." Xie Mengxia shrank her neck, showing her weak figure. She stretched out her hand to reach Han Changmu's sleeves, and whispered delicately: "Jiu Chao, you have to protect me. I."
Everyone was speechless and turned their heads.
Han Changmu opened Xie Mengxia's hand with a look of disgust, looked deeply into the bare jungle, and said solemnly: "This is not for catching animals, it is for catching people. It is said that there are many bandits in Yinshan, we are afraid He has encountered a calamity."
Yao Yao raised his eyebrows.
What's so scary about those who rob the Tao? They have the King of Hell sitting in charge. If they really meet, they won't be sure who will rob whom.
Han Changmu rubbed his brows in distress: "Cheer up, they are in the dark, we are in the light, the terrain is unfamiliar, this situation is very unfavorable to us."
Everyone became solemn and serious. Even Xie Mengxia stopped joking. He held the horse's belly tightly with his legs and walked forward cautiously.
After walking for two or three hours, I stopped to rest, drank some cold sesame cakes, and drank a lot of cold water, then got on my horse and walked forward.
As we approached the top of the mountain, the knee-deep snow was extremely difficult to walk through. My legs were stuck in the snow and it took all my strength to pull them out.
The legs were tied with dense waterproof leggings. Although the snow could not get into the boots and the half-melted snow could not soak into the trouser legs, the chill was still overwhelming.
Everyone is surrounded by a faint white mist, giving them an ecstatic mood.
It was extremely quiet in the mountains, and the crunching sound of stepping on the snow startled the birds, which fluttered away into the sky.
Gu Chen, who was walking at the front, suddenly stopped and gestured backward.
Wang Xian hurriedly led the horse and walked over.
I saw blood stains all over the snow, melting the thick snow into deep pits.
On the side close to the dense forest, the snow was trampled into mud, and there were some unclear swords scattered around. The drag marks were mixed with blood and extended into the dense forest.
The forest was quiet and cold, the trees had lost all their leaves, and the snow was extremely thick, winding up and down into small snow-white slopes.
The dim light at dusk fell on the hills with a dim yellow color, shining with silver light and casting dark shadows on the back of the hills. There were more than a dozen people hiding in the shadows.
The group of people hiding in the forest, including both men and women, were mostly wearing shabby jackets, with clumps of cotton wool exposed. They were shivering from the cold, huddled together to keep warm.
Only the first master and the second master were wearing sheep fur, and they were all dirty.
Among them, the first head of the house is a one-eyed man in his forties, while the second head of the house is a gentle young man, who is particularly eye-catching.
The first master looked at Han Changmu and his group intently, and the second master said gruffly: "Second brother, we are no match for the group of people who passed in front. I think this group of people is okay. Everyone looks thin. It's so big that it can be knocked down with just one finger."
The second master hesitated for a moment. Although this group of people looked thin, they were all muscular and breathing heavily. Their feet were in knee-deep snow, and their lower body was still stable, with no staggering.
He slowly exhaled a mouthful of pale mist and hesitated: "Brother, let's wait and see. I don't think it will be easy to deal with this group of people."
The head of the house said in a rough voice: "Second brother, ever since we captured the King of Han and brought him to Luntai, he has either eaten vegetarian food or eaten meat along the way. Either the bed is too hard or the carriage is too hard." It’s so troublesome, all the money has been wasted by the endless trouble-making, and if we don’t rob a big one, our brothers won’t even be able to drink from the northwest wind.”
The second master's face darkened and he said: "Brother, if they fall into the trap in the forest, we will take action. If they don't come in, forget it and wait for the next vote."
The eldest master has always been the most convinced by the second master. When he heard these words being said so cautiously, he no longer insisted. He nodded and whispered in a rough voice: "Okay, just listen to the second brother."
Gu Chen and Wang Xian followed the dragging traces and looked into the dense forest. As soon as they took a step, Gu Chen grabbed Wang Xian and said, "Don't go there."
Wang Xian was stunned for a moment and stopped.
Han Changmu walked over with his horse and looked at the messy traces on the ground. There were only blood stains and swords scattered in the dense forest, but not a body.
There is a raised cliff beside the road, which just forms a small shelter from the wind.
He looked at the sky and thought for a moment: "It's getting dark soon. If we don't go forward, we'll rest there for the night and start our journey again tomorrow morning." He paused and then cautiously ordered: "King Gu Chen, Chen Gui, you three Go collect firewood individually, don’t go into the woods, just pick it up outside.”
After arranging these things, Han Changmu looked at the cliff carefully and found nothing wrong, so he and Yao Yao drove the horses to the edge of the dense forest, fed them with grain, and cleared the space under the cliff.
The people behind the ups and downs of the snow slope had their eyes widened. Watching Gu Chen and the others collecting firewood at the edge of the dense forest, they seemed to see fat sheep rushing towards them.
The dense forest has the most dead branches and is relatively dry, making it the most suitable place to light a bonfire.
These bandits were no bigger than bandits with a big business, and they were not very good at what they had, so they had to bury many animal traps in the dense forest, intending to wait for the fat sheep to come to their doorstep.
