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“Qinghe Gang, Lianping Sect?”
Wei Yunlan, who had returned to the back mountain, was surprised by the two names she heard from Seventh Lady Yu. “Those are martial arts factions, right?”
She had heard of the former; it seemed to be a large faction with influence in the south, possessing considerable power in water transportation. As for the latter, she had never heard of it. Perhaps it was a local gang in Lianzhou?
“I didn’t expect Tianshu Pavilion to have connections with martial arts groups,” Wei Yunlan remarked.
A hint of something unfathomable flickered in Seventh Lady Yu’s eyes. “Then in Miss Wei’s eyes, what kind of place is our Tianshu Pavilion?”
It wasn’t a martial arts group, then?
Wei Yunlan was momentarily taken aback. She hadn’t really considered this question before.
From beginning to end, she had never associated Tianshu Pavilion with the martial arts world. Compared to the free-spirited martial arts practitioners, Tianshu Pavilion seemed more like a well-organized group closely connected with Dayong…
Yet, it didn’t belong to the Dayong court or the imperial family.
After all, when the city gates were breached in her previous life, the people from Tianshu Pavilion didn’t care about the lives of the emperor, the second prince, or those high-ranking officials; they only protected the citizens of the Capital.
“What kind of organization is Tianshu Pavilion, exactly?”
A look of confusion appeared in Wei Yunlan’s eyes.
Seventh Lady Yu’s lips curled into a slight smile. “Miss Wei, that’s a question I asked you first.”
“……”
Wei Yunlan decided to answer properly. “In my eyes, Tianshu Pavilion is a highly just and righteous organization dedicated to serving the country and the people. Your Pavilion Master must deeply love this country.”
Upon hearing this answer, a look of surprise crossed Seventh Lady Yu’s eyes.
If anyone in this world valued Dayong and the prosperous era left behind by the late emperor the most,
It would undoubtedly be their master.
It was unexpected that Miss Wei understood their master so well.
“……”
Night fell.
This was the third night the Wei family would spend in the forest.
Listening to the occasional wolf howls echoing from the depths of the forest, Madam Gao’s heart throbbed like a kettle on the boil.
“Lan’er said Tianshu Pavilion will take action tonight. Lan’er and Mingxuan are both there. Something might happen, right?”
In the Capital, Madam Gao was always composed and calm.
Even when bandits intercepted them on the road of exile, she was able to remain composed. This was the first time she had shown such a panicked expression.
“Mother, why don’t we go up and check on the situation?”
“Why don’t we go up and check on the situation?” Cheng Yue’e suggested softly.
“No,” Madam Gao firmly rejected. “Lan’er followed because of Heiyun. We are all unarmed; going up now would only create confusion for them.”
However, sitting idle wasn’t a solution either. Madam Gao turned her gaze to the elder physician, Yu Laodao, who was gnawing on a chicken leg by the fire. “Doctor Yu, do you have a prescription for preparing some kind of tranquilizer that could be effective against wild beasts?”
“A tranquilizer…”
Doctor Yu stroked his grizzled beard. Generally, physicians wouldn’t have such prescriptions on hand, but he actually knew a few. The problem was, without the necessary herbs, it would be difficult to make any.
He spread his hands and said, “I do have a recipe, but I don’t have enough herbs on hand.” He was quite familiar with what herbs the Wei family had in storage.
Madam Gao sighed in disappointment. Doctor Yu, still holding onto his chicken leg, glanced at the flickering flames in the fire and suddenly recalled an old remedy used by children in a mountain village.
“Grind charcoal and itch grass into a powder, mix them together, and sprinkle it on the skin to create an unbearable itching sensation.” This method was effective not only for humans but also for beasts.
“Itch grass grows everywhere. I can teach you how to identify it.”
As the Wei family members, young and old, gathered to prepare the medicine, Wei Yunlan stood at the highest point of the slope, looking toward the direction of the mine.
From their position, they could see the entrance to the mining road.
As the hour of the pig approached, it was almost time for the Northern Barbarian commander to arrive with his men to transport the ore.
It was also nearly time for the operation to begin.
Standing on the mountain, waiting for the imminent change, Wei Yunlan felt a surge of emotions, as if she were about to join armored warriors in battle.
“They’re coming,” a voice beside her alerted.
Wei Yunlan focused her gaze and saw black dots appearing at the foot of the mountain, getting closer. It became clear that it was the team coming to transport the ore.
Just like the personnel from the previous night, at the forefront was the burly barbarian who towered over the overseer.
After exchanging a few words, the barbarian waved his hand, signaling the men to start loading the ore onto the carts.
At that moment, the sounds of fire and hooves echoed from the mountain road once again.
Two groups of people, one dressed in blue and the other in red, charged into the entrance of the mining road simultaneously, blocking the barbarian commander’s team from escaping the mine.
A battle was about to erupt.
The burly barbarian was the first to draw his long knife, charging toward the two groups, demonstrating his formidable fighting skills.
The barbarian’s movements were not complicated, but his strength was indeed formidable. Few could withstand his powerful, sweeping attacks.
However, the two groups of people were smart enough not to focus solely on him. They sent three or four individuals to contain him while the rest engaged in battle with his guards. With their numerical advantage, they quickly gained the upper hand.
At that moment, the mine overseer aimed at the sky and released a signal flare for communication.
The blue and red teams clearly saw it but did not stop. Seeing this, Wei Yunlan understood that the real battle was just beginning.
The people from Tianshu Pavilion aimed to lure out the masterminds behind the black iron mine and seize this opportunity to capture them all at once!
More and more people surged into the valley, and chaos erupted within the mine.
The heroes from the Qinghe Gang and Lianping Sect fought deftly, killing several mine overseers in the blink of an eye. The remaining overseers, seeing this, were terrified and scattered, attempting to use the abducted refugees as human shields.
Just then, a well-equipped group of soldiers surged in from the mountain road. The mine overseers’ eyes lit up with renewed hope upon seeing them.
Taking advantage of the soldiers’ approach, Wei Mingxuan shouted amid the chaos, “Everyone, run this way!”
After shouting, he began to sprint toward the back mountain, with Wang Gui and several refugees he had befriended in the last couple of days following closely behind. Many others, seeing this, also began to run after him.
They hadn’t gone far when some people stopped, saying, “Wait, this is the direction of the back mountain!”
“There are wolves on the back mountain; we can’t run that way!”
“If we don’t run, are we just going to be killed by those people? I’d rather be bitten by wolves!”
Amid the mixed opinions, Wei Mingxuan stepped forward and declared, “I have a way to avoid the wolf pack.”
He didn’t elaborate further, only stating, “Everyone, it’s up to you whether you want to stay here and be killed by the Barbarians and their lackeys or take a chance and run up the mountain!”
After just a moment of hesitation, the group of refugees made their choice.
“Up the mountain!”
“If we stay here, even if we don’t die, we’ll be enslaved by them. It’s better to fight for a chance at survival up the mountain!”