Chapter 371: Arrival at Lijiazhai
The next morning, Luo Xinxin and her friends were going into the mountains. In order to make it look more realistic, they took the bus to town instead of a private car.
Mr. Yang was only accompanied by his assistant, Huo Kewei and his comrades, and Luo Weian.
If there are too many people, the target will be too big and will arouse suspicion from the enemy.
When they entered the mountains, they first took a bus to the town, and then took a ox cart to the foot of the mountain. In the town, they met the Miao woman from yesterday, who was also going into the mountains with a basket of things on her back.
"What a coincidence! Are you going into the mountains too?"
Luo Xinxin took the initiative to greet her. The woman nodded and said hoarsely, "I'm going home."
"Oh, your home is in the mountains. Do you know the Li family? The powerful Li family."
They sat on the same ox cart, and Luo Xinxin and the Miao girl chatted non-stop, being particularly talkative.
"Why are you looking for the Li family? Did a relative die outside and can't come back?" the woman asked back.
There is only one village in the mountains with the surname Li. This village has a lot of dealings with people from outside because they can drive corpses. In the past, when people were marching, fighting, or doing business, people would die in foreign places and the bodies could not be transported back, so they would ask the Li family to transport the bodies back.
Therefore, the Li family has a very high status in the mountains.
"Pfft... Good luck! My husband is from the Li family. We came back specially to worship our ancestors. It's just that this is our first time here and we don't know the way."
Luo Xinxin quickly spat a few times.
The woman looked at Li Rong carefully and asked doubtfully, "Are you a descendant of the Li family?"
"right."
Li Rong speaks Miao language.
The woman chatted with him in Miao language for a few words, and Li Rong answered fluently. She also mentioned the names of his grandfather and second uncle. The vigilance on her face immediately disappeared a lot.
"You're lucky to have met me today, otherwise you would have wandered around the mountains for a month and still not found the place."
The woman became much more friendly and even offered to lead the way for them.
"Thank you, what's your name?"
Luo Xinxin thanked him repeatedly.
"Call me Aunt Jinhua. That's what the young people in the village call me." The woman said with a smile.
"Aunt Jinhua, we are destined to be together. Would you like some scallion oil cake?"
Luo Xinxin took out the scallion pancake from her luggage bag. Although it was cold, it still smelled delicious.
Aunt Jinhua didn't want it at first, but the scallion pancake was so fragrant. She had only eaten it once in her life, and it was only half a piece. The taste became her white moonlight. She would think of it every time she dreamed, and her saliva would wet the pillowcase.
The two scallion pancakes she bought yesterday were for her two grandsons, and she couldn't bear to eat them herself.
She took the scallion pancake and took a small bite. Although it was not as delicious as the hot one, she still thought it was delicious, just like the taste in her dream.
"I'm stuffed."
She only ate one-third of it and put the rest back into the backpack and took it back for her husband to eat.
"I bought a lot yesterday, and Auntie took it back for the children to eat."
Luo Xinxin took out three more and stuffed them directly into her backpack.
The four scallion pancakes were very attractive. During the rest of the journey, Aunt Jinhua was very kind and told Luo Xinxin a lot of taboos in the village, which she remembered in her heart.
When they reached the foot of the mountain, Luo Xinxin also rushed to pay the cart fare. Now private individuals were not allowed to raise cattle, and the ox carts were the collective property of the nearby villages. They came to the town every day to pick up passengers to earn extra money and increase the village's income.
The fare was not expensive, only five cents, but for the people in the mountains, it was also a considerable expense. Aunt Jinhua was more polite to them and took them to take a shortcut.
"Only people in the village know that road. People outside the mountain don't know it. It can save half the time and we can get up the mountain before dark."
Although Aunt Jinhua is not young anymore, her legs and feet are very nimble. She can climb the mountain without even breathing hard and at a very fast pace.
"Thank goodness I met my aunt today, otherwise we would have gone through a lot of unnecessary trouble."
Luo Xinxin expressed her gratitude again and provided emotional value to Aunt Jinhua along the way.
It is the end of October now. It is not too cold at the foot of the mountain, but it is a bit cold on the mountain. The spicy strips on the mountain are preparing to hibernate and generally do not come out.
The shortcut Aunt Jinhua led us to was not easy to walk on. In fact, it was not a road at all. It was probably a small path that people in the mountains often walked on. It was not only rugged, but also very steep.
Luo Xinxin sprayed mosquito repellent on everyone and put hoods on the two children to prevent their faces from being scratched by branches.
After climbing for nearly two hours, Aunt Jinhua stopped and pointed to the village ahead, where they could vaguely see smoke rising from cooking fires.
"Have we arrived yet?"
Luo Xinxin asked in surprise.
Aunt Jinhua nodded and said, "We're at my house."
The smile on Luo Xinxin's face froze. She thought they had arrived at Lijiazhai, and her joy was in vain.
"Lijiazhai is another hour's walk away. Just keep following this road and go over the next mountain to get there."
Aunt Jinhua pointed them in the direction, but as it was getting dark, she didn't go with them.
"Auntie, could you please ask a strong young man from the village to lead the way for us? We don't know the way, what if we get lost? I'll pay you one dollar, how about that?"
Luo Xinxin didn't say she would give five dollars. After all, she was just an ordinary citizen and couldn't appear to be too extravagant.
One dollar is a huge sum of money for people in the mountains.
Sure enough, Aunt Jinhua's eyes lit up. One dollar was enough for her monthly expenses.
"Wait a moment, I'll go get my man!"
Aunt Jinhua hurried back. Ten minutes later, a thin, short man appeared, also dressed in Miao clothing. He held a torch in his hand and asked, "Are we going to Lijiazhai?"
"Yes, are you Aunt Jinhua's lover?"
"Well, I'm her man, come with me."
The man looked at them for a few seconds and walked in front. The light of the torch was not particularly bright and could only illuminate a little of the road around him. Li Rong took out a flashlight, which was much brighter than the torch.
The wheelchair could not move on the mountain, so Huo Kewei and his comrades took turns carrying Mr. Yang up.
Li Rong carried Da Mao and Er Mao on his back, while Luo Xinxin and Mr. Yang's assistant were responsible for carrying the luggage. The journey was not easy.
"Do you want me to call for help?"
Aunt Jinhua's husband asked.
"That's great! My hands are sore from exhaustion. Comrade Huo, are you guys exhausted too?"
Luo Xinxin immediately put down her luggage and looked towards Huo Kewei.
Huo Kewei glanced at Mr. Yang, hesitated for a few seconds, and then said, "I'm not tired, but I'm worried that the leader can't handle it. It would be better if there was a stretcher."
"You can carry it on a board. I'll go get some strong men, but you have to pay for it," said the man.
"Then let's do the same as you did, one dollar each, okay?" Luo Xinxin asked.
"Okay, wait for me."
The man went back with the torch. Ten minutes later, he came back with four strong young men and carried a board. Luo Xinxin saw that it looked like someone's door panel had been removed.
It was cold on the mountain, but the man was thoughtful and put a quilt on the board so Mr. Yang wouldn't feel cold when he lay on it.
The four strong young men were very strong and lifted Mr. Yang easily. Huo Kewei and his comrades helped with the luggage, and Luo Xinxin felt a lot more relaxed.
The sky was getting darker and the mountain wind was getting stronger. I had sweated while climbing the mountain and my clothes were all wet. Now they were sticking to my back and were cold and very uncomfortable.
Luo Xinxin dressed the two children in thick clothes and hats, and she also wore some herself.
After walking for an hour, they saw a few lights and asked excitedly, "Are we there yet?"
"We still have to walk for another ten minutes."
Aunt Jinhua's husband doesn't like to talk much. He only answers when Luo Xinxin asks him a question. The other four strong young men can't speak Mandarin, but only dialect and Miao language.
After walking for another ten minutes, the lights became brighter and I could vaguely see a few sloping corner buildings.
"We're here, please go in."
The man pointed towards the village.
"Thank you, everyone."
Luo Xinxin took out five dollars and gave it to the man.
The four strong young men were very happy. It was only a two-hour round trip and they could earn one dollar, which was really a good deal.
They mumbled a few words to the man, and the man said a few words back. They stood there without moving.
"Wait a minute, if Lijiazhai doesn't accept them, we will definitely have to hire someone to send them down the mountain, and the wages will be higher." said the man.
The eyes of the young men lit up. Uncle Jing was so smart that they hadn't thought of this.
So, they stood guard at the entrance of the village to see if Luo Xinxin and her group could enter the village.
[Third update completed. Today I went to Xizhou Ancient Town and Shuanglang Ancient Town. The scenery is very beautiful, but the weather was not good. I will choose to visit when the weather is good next time. I will put the photos in the chapter comments. The photos are not good, so you have to make do with them.]
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