Chapter 62: Be Our Guide

Before Cui Hongyu could speak, Chen Qiao'er had already started clapping her hands with excitement.

"Great! This is wonderful! Now we'll have two homes!"

Looking at the excited Chen Qiao'er, Cui Hongyu slightly nodded.

"I will do whatever my husband arranges. But what should I do tomorrow?"

Chen Xiaobei smiled. "You don't need to do anything. Just look after Chen Qiao'er."

After a brief rest, Chen Xiaobei set out to the mountains.

After all, repairing the house was an expensive task, and with the added house from Chen Dachun, the budget had to increase significantly, so he needed to earn more money quickly.

The first stop was, of course, to go to Hulu Valley to find two ginseng roots, which he could soon exchange for silver.

Of course, if he was lucky enough to find a hundred-year-old ginseng, it would fetch a good price.

On the way back, he also planned to gather some fish-mint herb.

By now, Chen Xiaobei was quite familiar with traveling in the mountains, and it didn't take long before he reached the mountain temple.

However, upon arriving, he felt a tightness in his chest.

Next to the temple, there were clear signs that someone had been there recently.

Clearly, after the night they had searched for Chen Dachun, very few villagers came up to the mountains anymore.

So, these marks were most likely left by the black-clad figures he had seen before.

Chen Xiaobei became cautious, walking slowly and pausing frequently to listen. When he didn't hear anything, he would continue forward.

Ahead, there was a steep slope, and once he climbed it, he would quickly reach Hulu Valley.

Chen Xiaobei listened intently for a long time, making sure there was no sound around, before he carefully began to climb the slope.

But as he took a step forward, he suddenly felt his foot give way, and his body began to fall.

"Damn, a trap!"

Chen Xiaobei cursed inwardly. By the time he tried to break free, it was too late. There was nothing beneath his feet, no foothold to push against.

In desperation, Chen Xiaobei spread his arms wide, hoping to increase his body's surface area and somehow stop the fall.

But in the next instant, an unexpected fishing net appeared on the ground, falling over him and trapping him. In the next moment, his whole body was suspended in mid-air.

Chen Xiaobei found himself hanging upside down, his limbs tangled, and it was incredibly awkward.

"Help! Help!" He couldn't help but shout loudly.

He hoped that the trap here was set for beasts and that his cries would bring the trap's master.

Sure enough, after shouting twice, a voice came from nearby.

"Stop shouting. No one will come to save you."

With the voice, several black-clad figures appeared beside him.

The tallest one in the front had a rugged face with a thick beard.

It was them—the same group he had seen that day.

"You... let me down!" Chen Xiaobei shouted loudly.

The man with the thick beard looked at him, and Chen Xiaobei forced a smile.

"Kid, let me ask you, are you from Hetou Village?"

Chen Xiaobei quickly responded, "Yes, yes, I'm from Hetou Village. I have no quarrel with you. Why are you guys capturing me?"

"Why capture you? Is your name Chen Xiaobei?"

"Yes, I'm Chen Xiaobei."

"I heard that a few days ago, you saved someone from this mountain. His name is Liu Tie, right?"

Hearing this, Chen Xiaobei cursed inwardly. What was he afraid of? It was exactly what he feared.

"About the person you mentioned, I don't know his name. That day I went up the mountain to collect herbs and happened to meet an injured person."

"He said he would give me five taels of silver and asked me to carry him down the mountain. Then he promised another five taels of silver if I would take a message to the Liu family in the county."

"I don't know what his name was."

Although Chen Xiaobei's acting skills were not impressive, what he said sounded reasonable.

The man with the thick beard lowered his head and thought for a moment before slightly nodding. "Hmm, what you say does make sense. Liu Rumei gave you quite a bit of silver, right?"

Chen Xiaobei couldn't help but sigh, "Sigh, don't even mention it. She only gave me ten taels of silver. When I asked her for a horse, she wouldn't give me one, so I had to buy a donkey cart with the silver."

As soon as these words left his mouth, the group of black-clad men burst out laughing in unison.

"They say Liu Xiangnan is generous, with a righteous heart, gathering heroes from all over the world, but I think it's all just rumors."

"Good sirs, I don't know who this 'Du Xiangnan' you speak of is. Could you let me down first? My arms are about to break!" Chen Xiaobei struggled again.

The man with the thick beard waved his hand, and someone stepped forward. In a flash, they untangled Chen Xiaobei from the fishing net and placed him back on the ground.

"Thank you, thank you. If there's nothing else, I'll be on my way," Chen Xiaobei knew he shouldn't linger. As they say, the best strategy in a tight spot is to leave.

"Hold on," the man with the thick beard now adopted a more friendly demeanor, though with his face, it didn't come across as particularly warm.

"Let me introduce myself, I'm Sun Jian."

Hearing this name, Chen Xiaobei almost laughed out loud. This Sun Jian was not the famous Sun Jian from history.

"We're planning to venture deep into Qingniu Mountain. Can you guide us? Of course, we'll pay you. You can name your price."

Chen Xiaobei shook his head vigorously.

"To be honest, I've only gone into the mountain to collect herbs, and once I crossed this steep slope, I've only gone about one or two more miles. I've never gone deeper, so I don't really know the way."

Sun Jian chuckled, "Even if you don't know the exact path, you grew up at the foot of the mountain, so you're familiar with the area. We'll be completely blind once we get into the mountain. The roads ahead are like a maze, we've gotten lost several times."

Chen Xiaobei, already nervous about entering the mountain, became even more hesitant after hearing Sun Jian's words. "Brother Sun, I really can't help you. Maybe you should look for someone else."

At that moment, a black-clad man beside them sneered and drew a curved knife from his waist.

"You're asking for trouble, kid."

He grinned and added, "Let me tell you, we're working for the national master. If you do well, the national master will speak well of you in front of the emperor. You could become a high official, ride fine horses, and marry multiple wives. Doesn't that sound wonderful?"

Chen Xiaobei thought to himself, this guy's skills at making empty promises are just like my old manager's back in my past life. They always promised rewards, but in the end, nothing ever came through.

Even if we guide you through all of Qingniu Mountain, the credit will still be yours.

If you get all the meat, at least let me have a sip of the soup—my ancestors will be smiling in their graves.

Sun Jian deliberately waved his hand. "De Gui, how can you speak to Brother Xiaobei like that?"

"Brother Xiaobei understands the bigger picture and will definitely help us out," he added, leaning in closer.

"Brother Xiaobei, I know you have a wife and a sister at home. It's not easy to support a family."

With that, Sun Jian pulled out a silver ingot from his robes and extended it towards him.

"Take this for now. After the task is done, there will be even more generous compensation!"

It looked sincere, but Chen Xiaobei could tell that the words were heavily laced with threat.