Chapter 20: Thrilling, Falling off a Cliff
Su Ying put a straw raincoat and a hat on Mother Zhao, and then put on a hat herself. She then distributed the remaining oil-paper umbrellas to He Shouyi and Zhang Cuiniang, mother and son.
Not long after they left the village, the rain began to get heavier.
The heavy rain made it almost impossible to see the road ahead, but they had already walked a distance and it was impossible for them to turn back and hide from the rain.
Their mission today is to pass through Yuecheng and head southwest along Yuecheng.
"This is God's fault. How can we travel when it's raining so hard? Damn it." The young officer cursed. To him, this trip was a real hard job. Not only did the prisoners have to suffer, they also suffered along the way.
According to the planned itinerary, they were going to spend the night in a dilapidated temple outside Yuecheng, but if the rain continued to fall so heavily, they would definitely not be able to reach the destination before dark.
"Boss, is there no shortcut?"
Li Da was also soaked and wanted to get to the destination quickly. "There is a shortcut, but it requires crossing a cable bridge. If we go that way, we can save a lot of walking time."
Saving most of the walking time is definitely a huge temptation for them. No one likes to get wet in the rain.
"Boss, let's take a shortcut, otherwise we won't even have a place to hide from the rain tonight."
Li Da pondered for a moment and nodded. With the rain being so heavy, it was unknown what dangers they would encounter on the way, so it would be better to get to the destination as soon as possible.
"Go south after the next intersection."
"yes."
"Madam, if you are tired, please let me down. I can walk."
"Mother Zhao, you've said this at least a hundred times along the way. I'm not tired. Look, I walk much faster than most people."
Mother Zhao was also very surprised, because Su Ying was indeed walking very fast. Even those who did not carry anything on them did not walk as lightly as her.
"I'm afraid we're heading towards the southwest cable bridge." He Shouyi said slowly, looking in the direction ahead.
"What is that place?"
"It's not a special place. It's just a cliff that divides the two cities. In the past, the imperial court built a cableway to make it more convenient for the people of the two cities to travel. But later, after a bridge was built at a closer place, few people used this cableway anymore."
Since no one was using it, the court no longer spent money on its maintenance, so it is still unknown whether the cable car is good or not, and whether it can be used.
"Are we still far from the bridge?"
"We have to take the main road to cross the bridge. At our current speed, we may not be able to reach the other side before dark. That's why they want to take the small road."
Su Ying had no objection to where they went, she just wanted to get there quickly.
Fortunately, the southwest cable bridge was not far away, and they arrived after noon.
Su Ying looked up and saw rain and water vapor covering the cliff. A rusty cable bridge could be seen in the distance. However, due to the heavy fog on the cliff, they could not see the situation on the other side at all.
The officer untied the dog leash tied to the cart and led the black dog towards the chain bridge.
Not long after, the sound of a dog barking was heard from the other side.
Su Ying listened to the echo and roughly estimated that the length of the cable bridge was about fifty meters.
Fifty meters is not long, and if the iron chain is strong, it will not be a problem to walk across.
In order to ensure that the iron chain would not break, Li Da divided all the prisoners into groups of ten, with two officers in front and behind to cross the bridge.
In order to share the weight with Su Ying, He Shouyi took the bag from her.
The prisoners were all worried that something might happen when crossing the bridge, so everyone was very careful.
"Bai Shuang, follow He Dashu and Zhang Cuiniang and go first. I'll be behind you." When the group was assigned to Su Ying's side, she disconnected.
Bai Shuang nodded, picked up Erbao and carefully followed him onto the bridge. Fortunately, everything went well.
"Madam, this bridge is not easy to walk on. You should put me down. Although my cough has not healed, my strength has almost recovered and I can walk by myself."
The entire bridge is made of iron chains. The wooden boards placed on the chains have long been eroded by wind and rain. It is indeed difficult to walk across with a person on one's back. So Su Ying simply put Mother Zhao down and let her walk more steadily by holding the iron chains on both sides.
Su Ying tore off a strip of cloth and wrapped it around Mother Zhao's wrist, and then looped the other side around the chain to prevent her from falling.
"Jiang Yang, put me down."
"Your Majesty, I can carry you there."
Xiao Jin shook his head. "The chain is unstable. You will lose your balance if you carry too much weight. I can get over it by myself. You carry Ji'er on your back."
"Daddy..." Dabao looked at Xiao Jin worriedly.
Xiao Jin signaled to them not to worry. Although his legs could not walk, his hands could still move, and he could just hold on to the chain and slowly move over.
"Follow up, those behind, let's go to the bridge." The officer in front shouted, and the prisoners walking in front went to the bridge one after another.
As soon as we walked onto the bridge, visibility decreased due to the thick fog.
Su Ying walked at the end and looked at Mother Zhao and the others. "Don't worry, Mother Zhao. This iron chain bridge is very stable. If you take every step firmly, nothing will happen. Even if you slip, I can pull you back."
Su Ying's words were like a reassurance, which gradually calmed the nervous Mother Zhao. After the initial panic, she walked more steadily when she reached the middle of the bridge.
Just when Su Ying relaxed a little, the bridge suddenly shook violently and began to collapse.
Su Ying's expression froze. She grabbed the chain with one hand and held Mother Zhao tightly with the other.
"What's going on up front?"
"The chain is broken, let's go!" someone suddenly shouted from the front.
Su Ying's heart sank and she grabbed Mother Zhao and walked forward steadily.
Suddenly, a hidden weapon passed by Su Ying's ear and flew straight towards Xiao Jin who was walking in front.
"Xiao Jin, be careful!" Su Ying exclaimed.
Xiao Jin suddenly came back to his senses and could only loosen one hand and move his body sideways to avoid the attack of the hidden weapon.
But at this moment, the chain on his hand suddenly broke, causing him to lose his balance and fall off the cliff.
“Daddy!”
Su Ying didn't have time to think, she leaped and pounced towards Xiao Jin.
Xiao Jin looked at Su Ying who jumped down with surprise in his eyes. He didn't expect that she would jump down too.
Su Ying grabbed Xiao Jin's hand, looked at the gradually clearer water flow below and said loudly: "Quick, hold your breath!"
The next moment, the two fell into the cold water. The underwater pressure almost made Su Ying breathless, but no matter how uncomfortable she was, she always held Xiao Jin's hand tightly. She knew that if she let go, Xiao Jin would most likely not survive in his current condition.
Xiao Jin held his breath the moment he fell, but the cold river water still made his scalp numb. A surge of blood rushed up his spine, and he gradually lost consciousness...
(End of this chapter)
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