Though it was called a barren mountain, it wasn’t as towering as Sanghua Mountain. Its height was more like a hill, with gentle slopes that could be ascended on horseback.

On the outskirts of the hill, there were mostly small animals like wild rabbits and pheasants, which were the livelihood of the local hunters. Song Suiyuan and his two companions had no intention of taking away the people’s means of living, so they headed straight to the depths.

Along the way, they only hunted four wild rabbits. As they ventured deeper, the midday sun was gradually obscured by the tall, interwoven leaves, and a chilly gloom enveloped them. In the excessive silence, Yang Zhi’s rationality returned: “This mountain has never been cleared, and I’m afraid we can’t guarantee His Highness’s safety.”

The Crown Prince was the heir of the Great Chu Dynasty, and his safety was not just his own concern but was tied to the entire dynasty.

Although the journey had been peaceful so far, the danger lay in the lurking unknown, and Yang Zhi began to regret.

Zhou Mingyan frowned slightly, about to retort, but Song Suiyuan pulled his horse to a stop and said calmly, “The trail of the missing ends here. Let’s stop.”

They could search for traces of beasts nearby, but it wasn’t wise to go further.

Yang Zhi also halted his horse and nodded, “Yes, yes, this is good enough.”

Zhou Mingyan was the only one among them who had personally trained on the battlefield. Skilled and bold, he said, “I’ll take another look,” and rode his horse past the two, advancing about ten feet.

Yang Zhi thought for a moment and reluctantly followed.

Song Suiyuan held the reins without moving, lowering his head to gently touch the small head that had popped out from his front lapel, and asked softly, “How are you feeling?”

“Not good,” Ah Yan, with cat-like eyes, surveyed the surroundings before retreating into Song Suiyuan’s clothes, hugging its little belly with its paws, and whispered, “I’m so hungry.”

Although it had eaten breakfast before coming to find Song Suiyuan and had been obediently nestled in his arms, occasionally enjoying the scenery, its stomach was indeed growling.

Hearing this, Song Suiyuan turned to retrieve a bag hanging from the saddle, took out some snacks, and coaxed it out, “Hungry? Here, have a bite.”

Ah Yan sniffed, somewhat surprised, and poked out its upper body.

The cat took the snack and happily meowed, “Meow~”

Thanks~

Song Suiyuan chuckled softly and casually pinched its ear.

Up ahead, Zhou Mingyan seemed to have found something and returned with Yang Zhi, “Let’s go, let’s look for some prey nearby.”

Any creature passing by would leave traces, especially since it seemed to have rained yesterday. However, after wandering for half an hour, their harvest was still only a few wild rabbits and small snakes.

Zhou Mingyan and Yang Zhi couldn’t help but feel frustrated and puzzled, “Where have all the mountain beasts gone?”

Compared to the two who were seriously hunting, Song Suiyuan, with his little white cat, seemed to be on a leisurely outing. He leisurely trailed behind them, occasionally chatting with Ah Yan.

After a while, every sentence Ah Yan spoke almost had an overlay of that voice, occasionally missing a long sentence, becoming quite stable.

If he had known he could hear Ah Yan speak today, he definitely wouldn’t have invited the two out.

“There’s water to the southwest, I wonder if there are any fish,” Ah Yan said, nibbling on a ball pastry, meowing from Song Suiyuan’s embrace.

So, Song Suiyuan, trailing at the end of the group, called out to the two, “Why don’t we take a break and have something to eat? After all, the scenery here is picturesque.”

“Sure,” Zhou Mingyan turned back, eagerly looking at him, “Where should we go now?”

Song Suiyuan tilted his ear to listen, “There’s water to the southwest, let’s go there.”

The sound was faint, hard to hear unless one listened intently. The little white cat’s ears were quite good.

Hearing this, Ah Yan perked up, shaking its little head in delight.

Song Suiyuan can read minds!

They traveled a bit southwest, and the sound of water was like ringing jade. Pushing aside the human-height grass, they saw a mountain spring, where the water was green and white in the rapid parts, and clear to the stone bottom in the calm parts.

Song Suiyuan had prepared plenty of dry food, but the three decided to roast the wild rabbits they had caught to add flavor.

“It would be best if we could lure out a beast or two.”

The only pity was that this section of the mountain spring had no fish. However, Ah Yan was not disappointed because it could finally get down and walk around.

While the three set up the rabbit roasting rack, the small bundle dashed straight to the spring, extending a paw to play with the water surface.

Song Suiyuan kept an eye on it from the corner of his eye and reminded, “Play on the shore, be careful.”

Listening to Ah Yan talk today, Song Suiyuan realized it seemed much smarter than he had imagined, sparing him a lot of unnecessary worry.

Zhou Mingyan turned his head and asked, “Are you sure Ah Yan won’t get swept away by the water?”

Song Suiyuan replied, “It won’t, it’s very smart.”

Zhou Mingyan hesitated, looking at the adorable little bundle, which seemed to understand and retracted its little paw.

But after all, it was just a tiny kitten.

Once the wild rabbits were skewered and over the fire, Zhou Mingyan immediately went to find Ah Yan, tentatively reaching out his mischievous hand.

“Ah Yan, for the sake of my hard work with no results for an hour, comfort me and let me pet you…”

Ah Yan, with innocent round eyes, extended a little paw towards him.

Zhou Mingyan’s eyes lit up.

Ah Yan’s little paw stepped on his robe, having just been in the water and then on the ground, leaving a dirty little plum blossom print when it moved away.

Hmph, can’t even catch prey, what a waste of father’s teachings.

After treating his cousin coldly, Ah Yan turned and ran towards Song Suiyuan, obediently extending its two paws for him to see, “Meow meow.”

Wipe the cat’s paws.

Song Suiyuan, having witnessed everything, happily picked it up by the scruff and gently wiped its little paws, brushing off the dust on its short legs.

Yang Zhi, sitting on leaves by the fire, laughed, “His Highness is as unwelcome by cats as ever.”

Zhou Mingyan angrily returned, pretending to want to hit him, “Yang Weiqing, you’re not allowed to say that.”

“There’s no need for me to say it, just look at Suiyuan,” Yang Zhi shrugged.

Zhou Mingyan simply went for a chokehold, and the two playfully tussled, the fatigue from disappointment quietly fading away.

Song Suiyuan, holding the cat, withdrew his gaze, the corners of his eyes seemingly curving, and he lowered his head to kiss Ah Yan’s round head.

He was in a good mood.

Light and airy, the feeling was very subtle. Ah Yan lifted its head in a daze, meeting Song Suiyuan’s peach blossom eyes.

Just now, what was that? A kiss?

The little white cat puffed up its furry face, trying hard to think, but in Song Suiyuan’s eyes, it looked like it was staring at the rabbit meat, waiting.

When the first wild rabbit was cooked, he tore off a piece, cooled it, and offered it to Ah Yan’s mouth, “Eat up.”

With the food at its mouth, Ah Yan let itself off the hook and took a big bite.

The fresh rabbit meat sprinkled with well-prepared spice powder was a heavenly taste.

“Delicious!”

Song Suiyuan smiled, truly an easy-to-please little raccoon slave.

One person and one cat shared two wild rabbits, with one and a half ending up in Ah Yan’s belly.

“Someone’s coming!” Zhou Mingyan suddenly exclaimed.

Yang Zhi quickly extinguished the fire, drawing his sword and standing guard by his side. Song Suiyuan, a step slower in settling the little white cat, raised his guard.

However, two round-faced youths emerged from the grass, looking younger than them.

As both sides sized each other up, the little white cat in Song Suiyuan’s arms suddenly greeted them friendly, “Meow~”

Guiyi Town.

Song Suiyuan’s fingers relaxed on the bow.

The third person to catch on was Zhou Mingyan, who squinted his eyes, “So they’re from Guiyi Town.”

The two youths had bags with Guiyi Town’s unique symbol hanging from their waists.

It made sense for two seemingly defenseless youths to have made it here.

Yang Zhi sheathed his sword and, with his bright appearance, raised a familiar smile, “I’ve long heard of Guiyi Town’s reputation, my apologies.”

Guiyi Town was a rather unique existence in the Great Chu Dynasty, focusing solely on herbal medicine with the strength of the entire town. They had pharmacies all over the dynasty, and many renowned medical experts had some connection to Guiyi Town.

For instance, the two elderly imperial physicians in the current Imperial Medical Office were driven out by Guiyi Town in their youth, which spurred them to become imperial physicians.

For instance, the Duke of the State’s wife, Jiu Xi, was ostracized by Guiyi Town, later taken back to the army by the Duke, saving countless lives on the battlefield.

Everyone knew that herbal medicine was a life-saving business, but Guiyi Town only sought gold and silver. Their herbs were more expensive than ordinary pharmacies, and they would even raise prices based on the person, very arrogant.

However, Guiyi Town’s herbs were indeed of top quality, able to find medicines others couldn’t and hire renowned doctors to cure difficult diseases at high prices. Thus, while most people grumbled in private, they were respectful and courteous when dealing with Guiyi Town people.

The two round-faced youths were accustomed to the attitude of others once they knew their identity, and they returned the courtesy proudly.

Yang Zhi had no prejudice against Guiyi Town and could see that their price hikes were to give other pharmacies a chance. Being the one who usually conversed, he took the initiative to introduce himself, “The three of us are from the city, out hunting today. This is Huang Dalang, Wang Silang, and I’m Liu Er. May I ask your names?”

The round-faced youth replied, “Shi Er, Shi Zhu.”

The three indeed wore luxurious clothes, their swords and bows shining like new, and one even brought a cat hunting, truly like rich city kids.

Yang Zhi shared the last rabbit with them, watching as the perfectly round-faced Shi Zhu took out a silver needle, poking the rabbit into pieces before he and Shi Er ate it.

Yang Zhi: “…”

Due to Jiu Xi, Zhou Mingyan had always disliked people from Guiyi Town, keeping his head down, pretending to wipe his sword handle.

Song Suiyuan, on the other hand, focused on the little white cat in his arms, his thoughts hidden beneath his eyes.

Ah Yan knew about Guiyi Town, likely because of the Duke of the State’s wife, but it was clearly curious and friendly towards Shi Er and Shi Zhu.

Meanwhile, Yang Zhi quickly became familiar with the two, asking about the herbs they carried.

“Slipgrass, for treating colds,” Shi Er replied.

Yang Zhi looked curious, “Why have I never seen it before?”

Shi Er swallowed the rabbit, “Slipgrass is not usually needed, only prescribed when a large amount of cold medicine is required.”

“I see,” Yang Zhi nodded, “Are there so many people with colds recently?”

Shi Er paused, then said, “Don’t roast meat by the spring, it attracts beasts.”

He was clearly changing the subject.

Song Suiyuan looked up, briefly exchanging a glance with Zhou Mingyan.

Yang Zhi, however, nodded along, feeling a bit scared, “Thanks for the warning, luckily nothing was attracted today.”

Shi Er said, “No worries, Shi Zhu and I spread a lot of beast repellent powder today, it should last until the next rain.”

Zhou Mingyan ground his teeth, so it was these two causing trouble.

After eating and drinking their fill, the two sides parted ways again. Since no beasts would appear in the mountain, the three rode their horses back.

On the way, Yang Zhi frowned, “Why do they need so much cold medicine?”

Zhou Mingyan thought deeply, asking Song Suiyuan, “What do you think, Suiyuan?”

Ah Yan answered, “Meow.”

To save people.

Song Suiyuan, holding the little cat in one hand, gave it a deep look and said, “I don’t know.”