The mountain wasn't high; when Li Lanzhen and Silver Fox descended it, the sun was still setting in the west.
"Aunt Lanzhen, why don't you sit here and rest for a while? I'll check if there are any wild beasts around. Is it safe for us to rest here tonight?"
Li Lanzhen was also quite tired. She sat down on a rock and nodded, "Okay, I'll rest for a while. You can go now."
Li Lanzhen drank a few sips of the spiritual spring water and sat down to look at the surrounding environment.
This area is open and bright, with flat land. If there are no signs of large animals nearby, you can rest here at night.
They laid straw mats on the ground, and then each person had a mattress and a quilt to cover themselves.
It's still cold in the mountains at night, but if we build a fire around the area, we should be able to stay overnight without any problems.
Now let's see if the silver fox can spot any large wild animals in the vicinity. If so, this place is still not suitable for living, and we need to find a more suitable place.
Just then, Silver Fox returned and sat down next to Li Lanzhen.
"Aunt Lanzhen, this area is quite safe. There's a river not far ahead. The water is shallow but clear, and you can drink from it."
We'll rest here tonight; I'll keep watch.
"Silver Fox, how many people are there in this secret place?"
There are 20 people in total.
"Okay, I understand. I'll put them all on the grass on both sides first, and then check their physical and mental condition."
If it's alright, we can build a shack here together, or just sleep on the floor.
“Okay, Aunt Lanzhen, just put them on this lawn.”
Without hesitation, Li Lanzhen took out 20 sets of bedding, 20 bamboo baskets, and clothes and shoes for them from her spatial storage.
A dozen or so large knives, two wooden buckets, two wooden basins, 20 large bowls, chopsticks, spoons, kitchen knives, cutting boards...
A large iron pot, two earthenware jars, a bag of cornmeal weighing about 18 or 19 pounds, and more than 20 potato dumplings.
Looking at the mess on the ground, Li Lanzhen asked Silver Fox.
"Take another look and see if there's anything else we need to bring out. Once we've prepared everything, we'll put it on the lawn."
Silver Fox followed behind Li Lanzhen, excitedly watching the various things that appeared out of thin air.
He answered Li Lanzhen's question.
"That's enough. I don't think there's anything else that needs to be brought out, just these things."
We'll have one meal tonight and one meal tomorrow morning, and then we should leave.
"Aunt Lanzhen, would you like us to bring out a carriage?"
Li Lanzhen shook her head and said, "No, the road ahead is still rugged and uneven, and to enter Peach Blossom Spring, we have to go through a narrow cave entrance that a carriage cannot pass through."
"Then these things will do."
When we leave tomorrow, everyone should carry a basket on their back, and the belongings should be distributed among everyone so that it won't be tiring.
After the two looked around again and felt that they were almost ready, Li Lanzhen said.
"Silver Fox, I'm going to put them all on the grass."
Silver Fox nodded, stood beside Li Lanzhen, and observed the mountains on both sides.
Li Lanzhen waved her hand, and there were 20 people of all ages lying on the lawn.
What surprised them both was...
I just let them out onto the grass.
Silver Fox's three bodyguards sprang to their feet, back to back, vigilantly observing their surroundings.
Silver Fox said in a deep voice.
"Second brother, fourth brother, fifth brother, I'm here!"
The three guards heard Silver Fox's voice.
In the blink of an eye, they were beside him, surrounding him and going on high alert.
Li Lanzhen was surprised and envious.
"Silver Fox, they are fine!"
Silver Fox coughed and said, "I haven't met the lady yet. It's safe here."
"Greetings, Madam. Thank you, Madam."
Han Mingxiang and Han Shulan came out hand in hand.
Standing there dumbfounded, they turned around and saw Li Lanzhen. The two of them happily ran over and took Li Lanzhen's hands.
"Mother, are we home yet?"
Li Lanzhen warmly took their hands and said, "Not yet. We'll rest here for the night and get home tomorrow. Are you both alright? Is there anything else bothering you?"
Han Mingxiang shook her head and said, "Mom, I feel very energetic, and all the pain in my body is gone. It's so strange."
Han Shulan nodded shyly and said.
"Mother, I'm fine too."
Before the mother and her two children could finish speaking, a scream drew their attention.
The scream came from a little girl among the 11 people in Tiehua's group.
Suddenly faced with a change in environment, they huddled together, their eyes wide with fear as they looked around, especially at the men besides Silver Fox.
They looked like frightened birds, on guard and ready to run away at any moment.
Li Lanzhen quickly went over and said.
"Tiehua, don't be nervous. We're almost home. We'll rest here tonight and walk along this ravine to the end tomorrow, and we'll be home."
When they saw Li Lianzhen, it was like finding a relative.
The person completely relaxed.
Tiehua also lowered her guard and spoke to the women and children behind her.
"Alright, sisters, don't worry. Aunt Lanzhen is still here. She's going to take us home. From now on, we have a home too."
Tiehua's words made the women start sobbing again.
Li Lanzhen had a headache.
He said to Tiehua, "Tiehua, calm them down. Come over here and get your clothes. There's a small river ahead. Wash up and change your clothes. Don't worry, the women will go first. The men won't go."
Upon hearing Li Lanzhen's words, Tiehua and the other women became even more shy and dared not turn around to look at the crowd.
They knew at that moment how pathetic they were!
They were wearing clothes they had found in the bandit stronghold, some of which were men's clothes, some long, some short, all tattered and smelly.
Tiehua beckoned them over and saw that Li Lanzhen had prepared new clothes for them, including clothes, shoes, socks, and underwear.
A group of women were excited and happy. They picked out clothes and shoes according to their body sizes, and when they saw that there were washcloths and towels, they took one to wipe their faces.
Li Lanzhen called out to them, "Use this basket to carry them over, turn left along this valley, there's a grove of trees there, and a stream flows through the grove. Don't wash your hair, it's getting cold, you'll get sick."
You all go wash up first. The men are all here cleaning and cooking. They won't come over. Don't worry, just wash up.
As they were talking, Silver Fox, accompanied by three bodyguards carrying two buckets of water and a pot of water, came over from the stream.
When Silver Fox heard Li Lanzhen tell the women to go wash up, he quickly called a few people to go ahead and fetch water from the stream.
They built a fire with three stones, placed an iron pot on it, and put two earthenware pots on the fire, all filled with water, and were ready.
Silver Fox said to Li Lanzhen, "Auntie, let's go up the mountain and see if we can catch some pheasants to bring back for everyone to have some meat."
"Okay, you guys go ahead, it's safe for you to rest."
Han Shulan watched as the little girl and her brother also sat up.
He went over, took her hand, and cheerfully told her, "Lingjiao, you're awake! Get up! We'll stay here for the night, and we can go home tomorrow."
Han Mingxiang walked over and looked at Shuisheng.
"Brother Shuisheng, how are you feeling? Does your leg still hurt?"
Shui Sheng said, "It's all better now, my leg doesn't hurt at all."
Where are we? How did we get here?
Han Mingxiang glanced at Li Lanzhen.
She had the same question in her mind, but this was her own mother, so of course she had to speak up for her.
“We were all unconscious. My mother and the others hired a car to bring us here. Get up, let’s go look for some pheasants on the mountain.”
Li Lanzhen saw that everyone had woken up, except for Xu Fuzi and Zhihua, who were still lying asleep on the lawn.
A little worried about them, she went over and gently nudged Zhihua.
"Zhihua, wake up, get up and eat. The roasted chicken leg is ready."
"Grandma, where can I find roasted chicken legs? Uncle is roasting chicken legs again, I want to eat one."
Upon hearing about food, Zhihua sat up.
Li Lanzhen chuckled and pulled her over to hand her over to Han Shulan.
"Shulan, take Lingjiao and Zhihua, and take your clothes to the river to wash and change. Come back for dinner."
"Yes, Mother."
The three of them picked out their clothes, picked up their baskets, and went to the riverbank.
The men all knew the women were over there, so they all went up the mountain to hunt wild animals and dig for wild vegetables.
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