There is a happy inn in the capital.

Chapter 405 Seduction by Solitude

Liang Yuying immediately drew her sword, and Li Shuchen also stood up alertly, gripping his long staff.

The sound grew closer, and then a figure appeared at the cave entrance.

It was that one-armed guard; he was carrying a large, heavy cloth bag.

"Where did you go?" Li Shuchen asked.

The one-armed guard put down the cloth bag, opened it, and found it filled with various herbs, wild fruits, and tubers.

"Find food and medicine," he said simply. "It's not safe in the mountains. Tomorrow I'll take you on another route."

After saying that, he walked to a corner of the cave and began…

That's right, they've started grinding the medicine again.

Li Shuchen and Liang Yuying exchanged a glance, both seeing suspicion and wariness in each other's eyes.

The next day at dawn

The fog was thicker than yesterday, a vast expanse of white, making it difficult to see a person five steps away.

"Snap, snap, snap..."

Li Shuchen was awakened by a rhythmic sound.

The sound of the mortar and pestle rubbing together was especially clear in the quiet morning.

"Mr. Judu, you're up really early," Li Shuchen said, rubbing his eyes as he walked over.

The one-armed guard lowered his head, saying, "The best herbs in the mountains must be picked before the morning dew dries."

Li Shuchen squatted down and looked at the herbs in his basket: "What can these cure?"

"Stop the bleeding, reduce fever, and detoxify," the one-armed guard replied briefly, finally stopping his movements and skillfully using his remaining arm to fill a small cloth bag with the ground medicine.

"There are poisonous insects on the road we're walking on today. Sprinkle this powder on the corner of your clothes to prevent them from biting you."

He handed Li Shuchen a few packets and then continued grinding the medicine.

At this time, the others also woke up one after another.

Ye Bingli stepped out of the cave, took a deep sniff of the damp air, and turned back with a slight smile. "There's a very special, fresh scent of herbs and plants in the mist. I've bought so many spices, but I've never smelled anything like it before."

She walked to the one-armed guard and casually picked up a herb: "This is... Paris polyphylla? It's recorded in the 'Compendium of Materia Medica' that it grows in damp places and can treat snake and insect bites."

The one-armed guard paused slightly, looked up at Ye Bingli, and his eyes held a complex expression.

"Does Miss Ye understand pharmacology?"

"I know a little," Ye Bingli smiled. "I've been weak since childhood, and I've been reading medical books since I was young, trying to find ways to improve my health, but unfortunately, the results have been minimal."

Li Shuchen glanced at Ye Bingli with concern, but when their eyes met, Ye Bingli shook her head, putting her mind at ease.

She never mentioned being physically weak since childhood; it seems she made it up to deceive the lonely woman.

Gu Ziying had already started a fire and was cooking some thin porridge. This time the firewood was dry, so there wasn't much smoke.

Princess Changning was tying her clothes, tightening the wide sleeves.

Liang Yuying observed the terrain at the cave entrance.

“According to the original plan, we should continue westward,” Liang Yuying said as she walked back into the cave, “but we encountered a mudslide yesterday, and the road to the west is probably impassable now.”

The one-armed guard suddenly spoke up, "I know a shortcut that can get around that."

Everyone looked at him

"What path?" Liang Yuying asked.

"The hunters and herb gatherers took this route; it's well-hidden, but steep and difficult," the one-armed guard stood up. "If you trust me, I can lead the way."

Everyone looked at each other

Li Shuchen recalled the strange occurrences of living alone, and alarm bells rang in his mind.

She looked at Liang Yuying, who shook her head almost imperceptibly.

Ye Bingli smiled and said, "Then I'll trouble you. However," she changed the subject, "why are you so familiar with this mountain? Judging from your accent, you don't seem to be a local."

The one-armed guard was silent for a moment: "I have been gathering herbs in this mountain for three years, so I am naturally familiar with it. As for my accent, I am originally from Qingzhou, but I have drifted here."

This explanation makes sense, but Li Shuchen still feels that something is not right.

After breakfast, everyone packed their belongings.

The one-armed guard led the way, following an extremely secluded path almost completely covered by weeds; without his guidance, no one would have found it.

The mountain path is indeed steep; in some places, you need to use both your hands and feet to climb.

The carriage was definitely not going to make it, so the group could only pack up and carry the most important supplies, while hiding the rest in the cave for the time being.

"Is this path... really passable?" Gu Ziying looked at the almost vertical rock face in front of her and took a step back.

"Don't be afraid, I'll take you up," Xiao Xiuyuan whispered behind her.

The one-armed guard had already climbed up, a vine hanging down from above: "Hold on tight, I'll pull you up."

Liang Yuying went first, followed by Ye Bingli and Gu Ziying.

When it was Princess Changning's turn, she showed no fear. Instead, she deftly grabbed the vines and climbed up in a few swift movements, leaving Li Shuchen dumbfounded.

"Your Highness, what skill you have!" Li Shuchen shouted from below.

Princess Changning chuckled from above, "How was it? I didn't waste my time learning what you taught me, did I?"

"Barely passing," Li Shuchen said with a smile.

She grabbed the vines and began to climb.

Halfway up, she glanced down unintentionally.

The fog lifted slightly, revealing the path they had just walked, but the path's direction was rather strange.

Li Shuchen was startled.

This road doesn't detour westward, but rather veers northward, and the terrain becomes increasingly treacherous. If there's no road ahead, they'll be trapped on the cliff face.

Holy crap %*&&*%*&*%&%%&*%*%

A beautiful phrase was born in Li Shuchen's mind.

She looked up and saw the one-armed soldier looking at her from above, his eyes deep and unfathomable.

"Shu Chen, come up quickly!" Liang Yuying called from upstairs.

Li Shuchen steadied himself and continued climbing.

She couldn't alert them now; she needed to find an opportunity to tell Yuying.

After everyone climbed up the rock face, they found themselves on a narrow platform. Three sides were sheer cliffs, with only the path they had come from and a narrow crevice in front of them, barely wide enough for one person to pass through.

"Go through this crevice, and the path down the mountain will lead there," the one-armed soldier said.

"Are you sure?" Liang Yuying stared at him. "Why do I feel like we're going further and further astray on this path?"

The one-armed soldier remained unfazed: "There are no straight paths in the mountains; detours are common. If the general doesn't believe me, he can find his own way."

The atmosphere froze for a moment.

Ye Bingli suddenly exclaimed "Oh dear!" and pointed to a plant on the rock wall: "Look, that looks like a dendrobium, and it's of excellent quality. It's extremely beneficial to my injuries."

She walked over excitedly, but the one-armed soldier instinctively stopped her: "Miss Ye, be careful, the cliff face over there is loose..."

Before she could finish speaking, Ye Bingli slipped and fell towards the edge of the cliff.

"Bing Li!" Li Shuchen, who was closest, rushed over to pull her up, and the two of them fell to the ground together.

A loose rock had appeared in Ye Bingli's hand at some point.

Even more shockingly, where the rock had fallen, a hidden little hole was revealed, inside which were several oil paper packages.

"What is this?" Princess Changning asked curiously, picking up a packet and opening it to find white powder inside.

The one-armed soldier's expression finally changed.

Liang Yuying took the paper packet, dipped a little powder in it, smelled it, then touched it lightly with the tip of her tongue before spitting it out.

"It's lime powder mixed with some kind of medicinal herb; inhaling large amounts can cause dizziness and weakness."