A minor leader reached out and took the money bag, his face beaming with delight. The bag was quite large and heavy, and it must contain a lot of silver.

The underling couldn't wait to open the money bag, and the other two underlings also stuck their heads out to see how much silver was inside.

The money bag was quickly opened, and its contents were poured out. It contained not only silver but also gold ingots, leaving the small-time leaders dumbfounded.

It seemed these bandits had never seen gold before. Seeing this, Zhao Xian spoke up:

“Our master is a wealthy merchant in Yanjing, richer than a country. He has been seriously ill recently. He heard that there is a Taoist priest in Mabu Mountain who can cure his illness, so he came to visit him.”

We have been searching for many days without finding any trace of this Taoist priest. If you gentlemen can help us find him, we are willing to offer ten thousand taels of gold as a token of our gratitude.

The bandits never expected that the group they had kidnapped today would be the family of a wealthy man. They were now rich; if they could get ten thousand taels of gold, they would never have to worry about food and drink for the rest of their lives.

"Did you bring this much gold?" a junior leader asked.

"We came out to seek out the Taoist priest. Why would we bring so much gold? But rest assured, the Yelü family never goes back on its word. Once you heroes help us find the Taoist priest, we will immediately send the gold back to you."

These bandits certainly knew who the Yelü family was in the foreign kingdom—they were imperial relatives, and they couldn't afford to offend them.

However, these bandits weren't worried. This place was far from the emperor's reach, and even if they were imperial relatives, there was nothing the emperor could do about them.

What's more, helping them find that Taoist priest would earn them ten thousand taels of gold, a rare opportunity that's hard to find even with a lantern. This money came far too easily.

Thinking of this, the leader's attitude immediately changed. He glanced around, and dozens of bandits immediately put away their swords and retreated to the side.

This left Li Guang and Li Xue stunned. They hadn't expected Zhao Xian to pull such a stunt, getting these bandits to help them find Yelü Khan.

If I had been tasked with dealing with these bandits, a fight might have broken out; these men wouldn't have been a match for them at all.

Brother Zhao is too clever. It seems that money can make the devil turn the millstone. With Brother Zhao's promise of a large sum of money, it would be strange if these bandits didn't work for him.

At this moment, a minor leader approached Zhao Xian, cupped his hands in greeting, and said:

“You have come here looking for a Taoist priest to treat your master’s illness, but there are no Taoist priests who can treat illnesses in the Mabu Mountain area.”

"Are there any Taoist priests in the Mabu Mountain area? Where do they live?"

"Of course there are Taoists. More than a hundred miles away from here, there is a place called Maoerling. There is a Taoist temple there, and many Taoists live in the temple."

These Taoist priests practiced cultivation and also farmed, using the grain they grew to help refugees.

We are very familiar with the Mabushan area. If you are looking for someone, just ask us.

To tell you the truth, even the locals might not know that there's a Taoist temple deep within Mount Mabu.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Xian was overjoyed. Perhaps that Taoist temple was the place they were looking for. Thinking of this, he said:

"How old is the Taoist priest in that temple?"

I have never met this person before, but I heard that he is over fifty years old and a very kind-hearted man.

Zhao Xian nodded and said:

"Perhaps it is this Taoist priest. He must possess unparalleled medical skills, but he is unwilling to reveal them to the world."

"Could this valiant hero arrange for someone to take us to Cat Ear Ridge to find that Taoist priest? Regardless of whether he is the one we are looking for, we promise to give you ten thousand taels of gold, and we will never go back on our word."

"No problem, we'll arrange things at the stronghold first, then take you there to search immediately," the leader said excitedly.

"Then you should hurry up, we'll wait here."

The three minor leaders, along with dozens of henchmen, quickly returned to the mountain stronghold.

A short while later, a minor leader came down from the mountain with two followers.

At this point, the three men's attire no longer bore any resemblance to bandits, much to Zhao Xian's satisfaction.

"Since you heroes are ready, let's set off. I am the steward in the Yelü household, you can just call me Steward."

Upon hearing this, Li Xue secretly rejoiced, knowing that Zhao Xian would not keep his promise to these bandits.

But the bandits believed him without a doubt, mainly because Zhao Xian was too generous, giving them so much gold and silver all at once.

It's unclear whether the gold and silver are real or fake. These bandits probably wouldn't be able to tell. Ge Kaishan was right there beside them, so it wasn't appropriate for them to ask.

What's even more interesting is that Brother Zhao actually called himself the butler. It seems we all have to call him the butler too. Thinking of this, I said:

"Butler, shall we set off now?"

“Of course we should leave now. The master is so ill, we need to hurry and bring that old Taoist priest back to Yanjing,” Zhao Xian said.

Everyone immediately got up and followed the little leader towards Cat Ear Ridge.

It was already afternoon, and we were still more than a hundred miles away from Maoerling. We wouldn't be able to get there today.

As dusk approached, they arrived at a place with no village in front and no shops behind, so it seemed that camping was the only option.

These past few days have been very tough for everyone, and Zhao Xian wanted to prepare some good food to treat themselves.

However, none of us brought any good food, only some dry rations.

This place is deserted and uninhabited; under normal circumstances, it would be impossible to have a proper meal here.

However, Zhao Xian had plenty of ways to get things; he had his own system shop, so he could buy all sorts of good stuff.

Thinking of this, Zhao Xian spoke up:

"Everyone has worked hard these past few days, and there hasn't been much good food. I'll go out and find some wild game to roast and eat when I get back."

Upon hearing this, the bandit leader laughed and said:

“You people from the capital have a different way of thinking. This place is a desolate wilderness, full of withered grass. Where would you find wild game?”

You can't even find a mouse here, let alone any other wild game.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Xian laughed and said:

"There are jungles everywhere here, and the withered grass is full of grass seeds. How can you say there is no wild game here? It's just that you don't know how to look for wild game."

"Just you wait and see if this steward can find any wild game."

Seeing that Zhao Xian was going out to hunt for game, Li Xue immediately became interested and said:

“The steward has gone hunting, I’ll go too.”

Zhao Xian was taken aback, thought for a moment, and then spoke:

“I am the steward. When we go hunting, you must listen to me. This is the middle of nowhere, and it’s easy to get lost.”

"Okay, whatever you say. You're the housekeeper, so of course you have the final say."

Zhao Xian looked at the others and said:

"Light a campfire, the bigger the smoke, the better, so we can find this place quickly when we return."

"Don't worry, steward, we'll go gather more firewood now," Li Guang said.