Perhaps I was exhausted, because I had no dreams that night. When I woke up again, it was already dawn. At this time, the birds in the forest started chirping and chattering. The whole forest was filled with the chirping of birds, and everyone woke up.

After taking a sip of water from her water pouch, Shen Mingzhuang stretched and loosened her arms. Sleeping outdoors like this was really tough. She was so tired yesterday that she had tied a sleeping bag to a tree and fallen asleep. Now that she was awake, her whole body ached.

The others weren't much better off. He Wenqing found some herbs somewhere and had everyone put them in their water bottles, saying, "These will help you stay alert and ward off miasma on the way back."

Upon hearing this, Shen Mingzhuang smiled and thanked He Wenqing. He had no reason to harm them, since He Wenqing wouldn't benefit from their deaths anyway, and he still trusted them to some extent.

After eating some wild fruits from the mountains and having some dry rations for breakfast, the group headed out of Qingmao Mountain.

In April and May, there are all kinds of wild fruits in the mountains, but they are all sour. Shen Mingzhuang tasted two bites of the wild fruit that Shuangyue gave her, and it was so sour that it almost made her teeth hurt.

By this time, the valley had become bright. Shen Mingzhuang found a tree and surveyed the surrounding terrain. Seeing the deep ravines between the cliffs on both sides, she suddenly felt a lingering fear. If she hadn't been able to land safely last night, she probably would have become a white-faced skeleton in these mountains.

Everyone was eager to return home. It took them one or two days to get into the mountains, but only one day to get out. They set off in the morning and arrived at the mountain pass by evening.

"Let's hang in there a little longer. We'll reach a post station soon, and then we can get a good rest tonight. Let's all have a good meal, get a good night's sleep, and regroup before heading back to the capital tomorrow morning."

Although Shen Mingzhuang was also very tired, seeing everyone panting heavily, he worried that they wouldn't be able to keep going, so he still offered a word of encouragement.

Upon hearing that they could have a good rest tonight, everyone was eager to continue their journey.

After walking another ten miles or so, we finally saw the candlelight of the post station.