Entering the Forest
Fuyu Mountain, the most famous mountain in Chaozhou, is a majestic mountain that stretches for thousands of miles. It has more than 400 peaks and ancient forests that are so dense that you can't see the sun. The only way to pass through the forest is the Yuyang Ancient Road, which has been used by locals for nearly 100 years.
Lu Chang and his group encountered danger in the middle section of the ancient road, according to...
One of the locals who escaped said that they had just returned from Shiyu Port and were traveling on the ancient road when a dragon suddenly appeared in the mountains. The situation was critical, and everyone scattered and fled. He escaped the disaster, but could not find anyone else. He could only leave the mountain first and then report the matter to the government.
Jingwan once heard Lu Chang say that some mountain people were farming in the mountains. After a large number of trees were cut down, if there were continuous heavy rains, the mountain would become unstable, rocks would roll down, and mud and water would flow down. The mountain people called this "emerging dragon," meaning that this kind of disaster was like a dragon or snake in the ground causing trouble, catching people off guard.
In fact, this situation does occur in Northwest China. If sheep graze too much grass, or if villagers cut down forests to prepare for winter, landslides can occur. In winter, when the mountains are covered with thick snow, even the slightest disturbance from animals or people can trigger an avalanche.
Jingwan ran into the small building. Yuancheng called after her, but she didn't respond. When she came out again, she had changed from her fitted long dress into a neat riding outfit and wore a pair of small leather boots. She was carrying a package and asked the butler to bring her a horse.
Yuan Cheng knew she was going into the mountains to look for someone, and hurriedly stopped her: "We've already sent people to search for him in the mountains, don't worry, wait a little longer!"
She ignored him, mounted her horse and rode off, leaving Yuan Cheng no choice but to follow.
It was still drizzling, and the rain gradually blurred her vision. She wiped it hard and continued riding at full speed.
At the foot of the mountain, many people were waiting. Besides government officials, there were many local people. Hearing that Lu Chang had gone missing, the people spontaneously came to the mountain to search for him, and some even brought hunting dogs.
Two days have passed and there is still no trace of them. The mountains and forests are too vast, and even the local people have never been to traverse 90% of the area. They can only agree to travel together and make marks along the way to avoid getting lost.
Even at night, no one dared to delay. They searched the forest with torches in hand, and some were even bitten by poisonous snakes and lost their lives.
There are too many people, and the area is too vast. Besides, only the Yuyang Ancient Road is relatively safe. If things continue like this, those who get lost in the mountains will either wander further and further away or encounter wild beasts. The depths of the forest are shrouded in miasma; if he were to encounter…
Jingwan's heart was breaking just thinking about it.
Tears and rain mingled on her face as she followed Yuan Cheng, watching the people carry two corpses down the mountain. She rushed over and wiped the mud off the corpses' faces. Only when she saw that it wasn't Lu Chang did she breathe a sigh of relief.
According to the locals who found the two bodies, they were dug out from the ancient Yuyang Road. The bodies were buried in the soil, and their mouths, noses, and ears were all filled with mud and sand. One of the bodies died after being hit on the head by a huge rock.
The minor officials lamented that Mount Fuyu was too vast to find anyone, and that the forest was teeming with tigers, wolves, and venomous snakes, and that some had already lost their lives because of it.
Fearing for Lu Chang's safety, Yuan Cheng glanced silently at Jing Wan, noticing her stiff, almost rigid body. Just as he was about to offer comfort, she asked in a hoarse voice, "Which section of the ancient road did he disappear on? Did the person who escaped see them running that way?"
An old man standing nearby hurriedly said, "There is a stone tiger sculpture in the middle of the ancient road. My son said that's where they parted ways. It was too rushed at the time, and we only saw the adults heading west."
She looked at the two bodies and remembered what the officials had said: only these two bodies were found at the landslide site. It seemed that her cousin had escaped this calamity. She comforted herself, thinking that no news was good news.
He only brought the hunting dog that was with his father-in-law, and hurriedly went into the mountains.
Yuan Cheng tried to stop her, saying that Lu Chang had already gotten into trouble, and he couldn't let Jing Wan get into trouble too. But Jing Wan shook him off and said to herself, "Lord Yuan, you should know that no one is more suitable to go to the mountains than me."
He reached out to grab her hand, but it froze in mid-air. Yuan Cheng couldn't argue. How could he not know Jing Wan's nature, so naturally inclined to the mountains and forests, as if she were born to belong to nature, a part of it?
"Lord Yuan, don't come into the mountains with me. Just wait here. If you hear any news, set off fireworks, and I will come out!"
Jingwan gave him a deep look, then led the hunting dog into the mountains. Yuan Cheng had no choice but to send dozens of officials to protect her.
She had also raised dogs in the Northwest, where the dogs were free-range, wild and untamed, and could even fight wolves. Jingwan specially brought one of Lu Chang's clothes for the hunting dog to sniff, so that it could lead them away.
An official said, "Young lady, this dog won't go very far. If it goes any deeper, there will be a stench of decay, and the dog won't be able to smell it anymore."
Ignoring everything else, she followed the dog forward. Sure enough, after walking a hundred meters west from the ancient path, the hunting dog kept circling the trees and wouldn't go any further.
In the vast forest, I had no idea which direction to go.
She stopped, closed her eyes, and tried to breathe quietly.
The more she tried to calm down, the more agitated she became, even her breathing became disordered. She bit her lower lip until it bled before swallowing the sob in her chest and savoring the cypress scent amidst the rotting odor.
Each human body has its own unique scent, some of which is innate, and some acquired through exposure. Some are fragrant, while others are foul-smelling. This is why many small animals can recognize their owners by their scent.
Lu Chang always carried a scent of cypress. Jingwan once thought it was because he used cypress to scent his clothes, but later she learned that he didn't like using perfume and instead transferred his own scent to his clothes.
She is like a small animal that can smell things. In the vast mountains and forests, every little flower and every clear spring has its own scent, which can even bring different feelings to those who are deep in it, just as people feel hot when they are near a fire and cool when they are near water.
Amidst the pervasive stench of decay, Jingwan first sensed the tremors in the forest. While those present failed to notice anything amiss, she suddenly opened her eyes and shouted, "The mountain is collapsing! Run that way!"
Everyone looked around, but the forest was silent. They didn't know where the collapse was coming from, but they were aware of the danger and instinctively followed her.
Jingwan ran along the densely wooded high ground. The trees slowed down the speed of the mud and sand rolling down. After running a few steps, rocks began to roll down from their left side.
Inexperienced people often lose their way due to the rolling mud and sand, and just run forward like they are being chased by wild dogs. But how can a person's speed keep up with the speed of mud and sand? Before long, they will be caught up and buried in it.
Those with experience know that you have to run in a rectangular direction that is opposite to the direction in which the mud and sand are rolling.
However, two people ran in the wrong direction and were buried by mud and sand.
Everyone had no choice but to stay and rescue the person. However, Jingwan couldn't wait any longer. The longer she waited, the more dangerous it would be for Lu Chang. She released the dog and left it there while she went into the deep mountains alone.
When everyone came to their senses, they could no longer see her; all they saw was a red ribbon tied to a tree branch.
She walked along the deep mountains, stopping occasionally to close her eyes and savor Lu Chang's scent.
How sensitive was her nose? When Jingwan was very young, her uncle Feng San partnered with someone to resell spices. Merchants from the Western Regions deliberately treated moldy and spoiled spices with a special substance and sold them to them at high prices. But when Feng San sold them to the people, they realized that the spices were no longer edible.
After being scammed a few times, he would always ask Jingwan to smell the spices before buying them. High-quality spices had a clear and pure aroma, and each type of spice had its own distinct flavor. She could tell the difference between cardamom (slightly spicy) and amomum (slightly bitter) just by smelling them.
Mother was afraid of ruining her little nose by smelling it, so she forbade Feng San from asking her to do this again.
Yet she still enjoyed this unique feeling of touching the mountains and forests. Once she was in the mountains, even the smell of decay could be detected as a different kind of fragrance.
With this unique nature, she caught a whiff of that unforgettable cypress scent.
It started raining again late at night, making the mountain road increasingly difficult to walk, but she felt fortunate.
Wild animals tend to stay indoors less when it rains, as rain impairs their vision or mobility. And since there was no shortage of food in this forest, we didn't encounter any wild animals along the way.
She dared not walk fast, for if she slipped and fell, injuring her leg, she really wouldn't be able to get out.
The scent of cypress grew clearer, and Jingwan's nerves tightened. Lu Chang was right around her; she could feel him beside her. But after a week, she still couldn't find him.
She dared not call out to her, fearing it would attract wild beasts, and could only stumble and search around a central point.
Just as she turned to go in another direction, a bright light suddenly appeared, standing out starkly in the dark forest.
Her breath caught in her throat. She slowly turned around and finally spotted that glimmer of light again in the moonlight.
She didn't dare breathe loudly; the only sound in the forest was the crunching of her footsteps on the withered branches and leaves. She slowly walked on and stopped in the light.
That wasn't moonlight, but a small silver bracelet. How small? It was the kind of bracelet a seven or eight-year-old child would wear.
The silver bracelet has no patterns, but it has a certain weight to it, which means it must have been polished and carefully protected from time to time to have such a bright color.
The small silver bracelet was in Lu Chang's hand. He placed his hand on his chest, which allowed Jing Wan to spot him.
Jingwan slowly lowered her body and gently picked up the silver bracelet. Long-forgotten memories flooded her mind like a torrent. Holding the bracelet, she looked at the unconscious Lu Chang, her heart filled with unprecedented shock...
Lu Chang was awakened by the jolting. While dodging rocks, he was injured by a sharp branch that pierced his abdomen. Although it didn't kill him immediately, it caused him great pain. Unable to walk any further, he had to rest on the spot and eventually passed out.
He opened his eyes, but couldn't see anything. He only felt himself lying on a weak shoulder. He wanted to speak, but could only weakly open his mouth.
The person beneath him was so short that his feet dragged on the ground. He blinked several times before his vision cleared and he finally regained some vitality.
He also smelled the familiar scent, but he couldn't believe it. How could it be her? She should be at Jin Ning's house right now.
That was the home he had carefully prepared for her; he hoped she would stay by his side for the rest of her life.
But how could he mistake this scent? It was a quiet, natural fragrance.
He felt a renewed will to live, and with all his might, he finally cried out, "Jingwan, Jingwan..."
The footsteps stopped, and the person carrying him replied softly, "Cousin, I'm here."
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