Chapter 94 Strange Behavior
The three sisters were chatting happily, while the aunties were quick and precise in their actions.
They quickly snapped the tender ferns into pieces, and you could tell how happy they were just by listening to the sound.
Hearing the noise, the three people went over and saw a series of crooked, dark-colored things spread out on a slope in front of them.
The aunties next to me explained that this dish is called "monkey leg vegetable," saying that its color and shape resemble a monkey's leg.
The three of them took a look and found it quite interesting. Luo Yin picked a few and found that they were fuzzy but not prickly.
Breaking them off one by one was somewhat stress-relieving, and I gradually became interested in it.
Everyone squatted on the ground and worked hard, and soon they had cleared the whole area.
Looking at the neat and tidy scene, I have to say it's quite satisfying.
Sister Xiaofang recalled the past with a look of emotion, "I never thought that coming out would be so interesting. Thinking back, before, I was always squatting on the ground digging."
"We have this all around here, don't you have it where you are?" Aunt Yang asked curiously.
They then started talking about their origins, asking where the three of them came from.
When the aunties heard that the first two were from the capital, they were both surprised and excited.
Although these women from the deep mountains had heard about life in the capital, they found that it was pretty much the same as what they thought.
They just ate better and used better things than the others, so they weren't curious anymore. After all, these things were already in their imaginations, so they were somewhat prepared.
But then they heard that Luo Yin, the youngest, came from the northernmost grasslands.
The aunties immediately started talking.
"Oh dear, so you've been living on the grasslands since you were little? Where do you live? Are there houses on the grasslands? What are they made of?"
"The grassland is all grass, where would they get trees to build houses? They must have used mud."
One of the women immediately retorted, stating directly that her question was incorrect.
"That's impossible. How could you cover it with just soil? They need special kilns to fire the clay bricks."
The three sisters watched as their aunts started arguing in the local language, and they immediately stood up and rolled up their sleeves.
Luo Yin quickly stood up to interrupt, "Hey, ladies, stop arguing."
Although I didn't understand it very well, I had a feeling that if I didn't stop them, things might get bad.
"Cough cough, it's no big deal!"
"Aren't you afraid the young girls will laugh at you? You'd better all put on a good face," the village chief's wife said, and the other women naturally gave her face.
Seeing that the atmosphere seemed to have eased, the village chief asked about things on the grassland.
They never imagined that one day they would encounter people from the northernmost part of the country.
Luo Yin briefly recounted some everyday events, which elicited repeated sighs of admiration from them.
It's surprising that people actually travel on horseback. There are very few trees on the grassland; as far as the eye can see, there are only endless meadows.
Unlike them, this is a continuous mountain range and evergreen forests.
"Let's go up the mountain and take a look. Those wild fruits should be ripe by now."
Several aunties pointed to a small hill not far away and said they would take them there.
The three sisters exchanged glances, each seeing a different expression in the other's eyes.
Some eyes showed doubt and apprehension, some saw joy and happiness, while others revealed helplessness and a bitter smile.
The three exchanged glances, reaching a preliminary consensus.
I decided to go and see for myself, since it wouldn't be good to leave abruptly now. Maybe I'll gain something different by following the aunties.
From this perspective, the climb doesn't seem so tiring.
On the contrary, it gave the three of them a sense of joy in taking a paid break, and the personal time interspersed with their work made things more efficient.
Luo Yin was particularly adept at this approach, and she was the one who rushed to the forefront among the three.
I got along very well with one of the aunties, and we even talked about inviting each other to dinner. The auntie directly invited me to come down the mountain to her house for a meal.
Luo Yin nodded with a smile, then took the small tools and followed beside her.
"Come on, this whole area is edible. Try the yellow jujubes, they're very sweet and sour."
The large patch of small yellow lantern-like things that catches the eye are yellow berries, the most common wild fruit in the mountains at this time of year.
"These fruits are quite small, somewhat like those red wild berries."
Yu Lizhu picked a few and popped them into her mouth.
"Yes, yes, I knew it looked familiar. I've eaten that red one before."
After everyone stopped and picked most of the fruit, each person took some home for their children, and then continued uphill.
After walking a short distance, they came across a small stream.
The stream babbles gently, its flow neither fast nor slow, yet the volume of water is considerable.
Luo Yin deliberately moved closer and found that the water was clear and looked sweet, but she didn't dare to drink it.
The women next to her, seeing her looking over, quickly pulled her back, saying, "Don't drink this water! It looks clean, but it's not. If you want to drink, go up a bit further. There's a mountain spring up there, and that one is clean."
"It looks very clean here. Could there be some small animals around?" Luo Yin asked curiously.
"That's not how it's said. Nobody in our village touches this water when they come up the mountain. I don't know why, even though it looks clean now, it becomes murky again after a while, like some muddy water has been poured in. It's filthy!"
"Oh, what do you mean by that?"
The three sisters looked at the woman from the Yang family who had spoken with surprise.
Aunt Yang said with certainty that was exactly right, and the other aunties next to her echoed her sentiments.
"That's right, I've seen it before."
"That's true, although I don't know why, but that's definitely the case."
After their earnest confirmation, the three sisters turned their questioning gaze toward the stream.
Among the three who lagged behind, Sister You spoke up after some thought, "Perhaps there's a hidden current up there. Once it accumulates to a certain point, it will push open a crack and turn the stream into that state."
"It's hard to say whether there's another channel in this stream, but due to some circumstances, only this one remains. However, under special circumstances, the hidden channel will pour muddy water washed down from the side into it."
Luo Yin thought about what the two had said and pondered it herself.
But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't think of any other possibility, and I ended up drinking real spring water.
Seeing that the local women had drunk from it, the three of them followed suit and drank several mouthfuls.
Sweet and refreshing, it quenches your thirst and makes you feel good!
I really wish I could drink a few more bottles later.
What a pity, I didn't bring my water bottle!
Luo Yin looked at the tiny spring, about the thickness of a little finger, with a regretful expression, feeling that this was truly natural water.
"It's almost time, I should go home and make lunch."
They glanced at the sky, and then the words reached their ears.
After spending the entire morning out, the group began to retrace their steps. The journey back seemed more difficult than the way they had come, and Luo Yin found herself having to carefully stop and look around every few steps.
I was afraid of accidentally stepping on something, so I felt that the road had become much steeper.
Luo Yin, keeping an eye on things, reminded her two older sisters that Xiao Fang was a little weaker and was already being helped away by You Jie.
Less than a hundred miles away, on another mountain peak, a few people suddenly appeared from somewhere in the northwest.
Meng Shaoyuan, who was leading the group, looked at the towering mountain peaks and his eyes flickered.
Brother Du, who was supporting Old Chen, took a few deep breaths before he finally recovered.
The group rested on the spot for a few minutes.
At this moment, Xiao Du, who had come to his senses, looked around and felt that something was wrong. Old Chen had led them from Wufeng Mountain, turning left and right, taking shortcuts and small paths. Could it be that they had gone the wrong way?
"Old Chen, where are we?"
The remaining two soldiers were taken aback for a moment, then immediately got up and stood guard.
Even though there were only a few of them, they had a mission to complete. They carefully investigated and kept watch, and found no danger for the time being.
All four of them turned their gazes to Old Chen. Could it be him?
Old Chen rubbed his aching legs, thinking it was truly unfair that he was suffering like this at his age.
"Hmph, would an old man like me lie to you?"
"See for yourselves! How could a blind man like me lead you astray? Who are you kidding!"
The old man vented his anger with a few spitting words.
Du, who was taken aback by the questions, didn't seem to change much, but he exchanged several glances with Meng beside him, confirming that this was not Wufeng Mountain.
But how could that be? They were certain that the route they had just taken was correct.
Although there are mountain ranges outside Wufeng Mountain, their movement between the mountains is not a simple horizontal shift.
Every step of this journey was taken by them, but the mountain in front of them was at least half again as high as Wufeng Mountain, meaning it must be at least 3,000 meters high.
"Xiao Du, Xiao Meng, you two should use your brains and hands too. Don't just leave everything to an old man like me. I'm not a god who can predict everything."
"Hurry up, let me rest a little longer before we go."
The four looked at each other, knowing that the old man was tacitly acknowledging that he had led the way and that they had already left the Wufeng Mountain area.
As for what to do next, they don't know, and they have no right to ask.
But the problems he left behind are what they need to solve.
They were familiar with these matters, while the remaining two comrades split up to stand guard.
Even if there is no danger at present, who knows what might suddenly jump out of the woods.
Xiao Du and Xiao Meng separated and each sat on one side, taking out their things to write and draw.
He was engrossed in calculating, as if he had figured something out.
Suddenly, a sound came from their southwest corner—several heavy, rhythmic footsteps.
Ta-da-da~
Ta-da-da~
Deep and familiar!
This is......
The familiar voice immediately alerted the people on guard.
"Someone's coming! Everyone on alert!"
One person pulled Old Chen back to hide, while the other three immediately found places to conceal themselves.
Old Chen tugged at the boy, about to speak, when the boy covered his mouth with his own, "Mmm~"
"Please don't speak yet, we'll talk later."
The five people who had been hiding saw several neatly dressed men emerge from the other side.
The clothes he was wearing were action suits, and there were no signs of exposure on his body.
Gloves, hat brim, and even face were covered in smears, but those few pairs of eyes scanned the surroundings sharply as if searching for something.
Could it be them?
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