The next day, early in the morning.
The Chief returned and briefly recounted the situation on the mountain.
"I am incompetent and could not gather any news from that side!"
This was the first time he had returned from a mission in failure, which was somewhat surprising to Fan Zehao and Zhao Jiaqi.
"What happened?"
The Chief lowered his head in shame. "There were not just two people guarding that mechanism, and there were several more not far away. This would have been fine; it would have been enough to knock out the guards. But the guards were very cunning. Not only did they tie ropes to the external mechanism, but these ropes were connected to the inside. The other end of the rope was tied to a bell. As soon as there was the slightest disturbance outside, a group of people would rush out from the mountain cave!"
Hearing his detailed explanation, Zhao Jiaqi asked, "Did you alert the people inside the mountain cave?"
"Yes, but I dodged in time, and they did not discover me!" After speaking, the Chief felt guilty and knelt on one knee. "I have alerted the enemy. Please punish me, master and mistress!"
Fan Zehao helped him up. "There's no need for punishment. As long as you are unharmed, nothing else matters!"
Cultivating such talent was not something these people could compare to. If he had to choose between the two, he would have unhesitatingly chosen the Chief.
However, this mountain cave was now a significant problem. He had previously simply thought it was a place to hide gold, but now, it seemed possible, but not likely.
"Alright, you go out stealthily in a moment and pass on the message. Have Zhang Heng and Xiao Ce bring some elites, break into small groups, and infiltrate the vicinity of this county town to set up an ambush. If we truly cannot find the secret within, then we will resort to a direct assault!"
This would be faster and safer, but relatively, the opportunity to catch those behind the scenes would be smaller.
The Chief understood Fan Zehao's intentions. After he left, he took Zhao Jiaqi's hand and they left the room.
"You were definitely not speaking well of me last night. And today, you're holding hands like this. Aren't you afraid the village chief will become suspicious?"
Fan Zehao chuckled, his thick, dark eyebrows raising. "What is there to be afraid of? I'm openly showing affection. However, in his eyes, he only sees me as a pretty boy clinging to you for survival!"
Zhao Jiaqi smiled and shook her head. This man, once he put his mind to it, was full of wily schemes.
They went out to have breakfast and saw the village chief's gaze fall on their clasped hands. His eyes flickered twice, and he immediately beckoned them to sit down. The servants then served the meal.
Zhao Jiaqi said to the maid who brought her food, "Pour me some vinegar, just a small dish."
The maid did not speak, her eyes looking at Wang Yuanzhi. After he nodded, the maid went down. Kuaishu Ge.
Zhao Jiaqi's brow furrowed slightly, somewhat perplexed. She smiled at Wang Yuanzhi. "The village chief's family rules are quite strict, even more so than our Fan Manor!"
Wang Yuanzhi heard the sarcasm in her words. He smiled and said, "Madam, you wrong me. The servants and maids in my manor are all disabled. Some are deaf, some are mute. She doesn't not want to answer you, but she is looking at me, hoping I will speak for her!"
Is that so?
Obviously not, but these were all excuses. However, it was possible that the maid was indeed mute.
Breakfast was finished in silence.
Wang Yuanzhi wiped his mouth and voluntarily invited the couple to go up the mountain for a stroll and catch some fish for a taste.
After the village chief finished speaking, he strode ahead, which surprised the couple. However, being able to go up the mountain once was an opportunity.
So, they called for the Chief, and the four of them set off for the mountain. This time, the guards at the mountain were two young and strong men.
The early spring weather was gradually warming. The air on the mountain was relatively cold, but it did not prevent some small wildflowers from blooming.
Zhao Jiaqi was like a young girl in love, stopping to pick some flowers as she walked. Fan Zehao and Wang Yuanzhi walked ahead, while the Chief followed behind her to protect her, actually chatting secretly.
"Memorize the paths around here and draw secret marks. If our people really need to attack, they must know which path is safe!"
The Chief did not understand the Consort's meaning. "Does the Mistress mean that this path is the safest way up and down the mountain?"
She raised her eyelids and looked at the two people not far away. Wang Yuanzhi showed no signs of nervousness on his face, clearly indicating that there was nothing around.
Of course, it was the safest path, otherwise, that village chief would have craned his neck to watch her.
"The dangerous path must have people ambushing around it!"
With that explanation, the Chief understood.
Whether this path would be used was still unknown, but marking it down would be useful, and who knew if it would be used.
They walked up the mountain. The mountains and rivers were beautiful, and the birds sang and flowers were fragrant, making it very appealing. After walking into the mountains for a short while, they saw villagers gathering wild vegetables in pairs.
They walked in twos and threes, carrying baskets in their hands, filled with tender wild vegetables. They greeted them enthusiastically upon seeing them.
The village chief smiled and asked, "You have money at home, yet you still eat these wild vegetables. Don't you want to try a different flavor?"
A woman from the village smiled and replied, "No matter how much money we earn, we have to save it. No amount is enough to spend!"
After speaking, she turned and went to pick in another direction. Zhao Jiaqi lowered her eyelids as if she hadn't seen this harmonious scene.
She had been on the mountain for half a day, and the wild vegetables at her feet had piled up, yet these people had not picked any. Coincidentally, they came to the mountainside to pick. It had to be said that these people were truly going the extra mile.
It seemed that not only were they acting for the village chief, but the village chief and the villagers were putting on a show for them. She wondered who would win the Oscar.
The village chief led them to a clear stream. There were not many fish in the stream, nor were they big. However, they saw many frogs.
They popped out one by one. The Chief knew these were good things and immediately began to catch them. The village chief was somewhat surprised to see this.
He pointed at the Chief and said, "Fan Da, why is your guard catching frogs? These things eat insects, and there's not much meat on them!"
Fan Zehao almost burst out laughing at the village chief's words. "Village chief, you may not know this, but these frogs are treasures. Frogs at this time are very clean. You can stew them after washing them. If you wait any longer, they won't be edible!"
"And frog oil is a good thing, rare and hard to find!"
What he meant by rare and hard to find was that no one here knew where the frog spawn oil was. Therefore, besides his wife and him, others truly did not know.
Even the Chief and his men had only discovered that this stuff was edible after eating it by chance once. Since then, they had searched everywhere in early spring.
Hearing his words, the village chief felt ashamed. Before he could say anything, he saw that he had already entered the river and joined in the catching. He didn't know how to describe it.
He was only thinking in his heart that this child was truly unfortunate; he ate these things when he had nothing else to eat before!
His eyesight was not good. He saw a frog and shouted to Fan Zehao, "Behind you, there's one behind you too!"
He looked behind him, and his brow furrowed tightly. "This is a toad, not a frog. This thing is medicinal, not for eating!"
Wang Yuanzhi was internally collapsing. They looked similar, but their functions were different?
So, he casually asked, "What about the green frogs?"
The former two were one edible, one medicinal. What about the green frogs?