Shen Wenhe led Bai Nianqing further south. After walking for about half an hour, they heard the sound of rushing water.
“Hubby, listen! Do you hear the sound of water?” Bai Nianqing’s sharp ears caught it immediately.
Shen Wenhe had been carefully observing their surroundings all along. The closer they got to a water source, the higher the chance of encountering wild animals. That’s why he hadn’t relaxed his vigilance, which was why he hadn’t noticed the sound of the water before.
But after Bai Nianqing’s reminder, he listened carefully and confirmed, “Yes… I hear it now.”
They quickened their pace and, after walking another three hundred meters, a valley appeared before them. A small creek ran through its center.
Unfortunately, a few wild boars were drinking at the creek. After quenching their thirst, they rolled in the mud by the water.
Shen Wenhe stayed alert and didn’t approach recklessly.
“Hubby, are those wild boars? They’re so scary,” Bai Nianqing said, seeing them for the first time. The long tusks made her heart race.
“Yes, wild boars. Let’s be careful and go around them,” Shen Wenhe said, also seeing wild boars for the first time and feeling uneasy.
“Let’s keep moving forward and find the source of this creek, to see if it’s suitable for us to settle here,” Bai Nianqing suggested.
They moved quietly and carefully, passing through the hillside without disturbing the boars, and continued forward.
After another five hundred meters, the sound of water grew louder. Following it around a bend, they suddenly came upon a waterfall.
“Wow! A waterfall?” Shen Wenhe was astonished by the sight.
Ahead was a cliff about five to six meters high, with water cascading down into a small pool below, no more than five square meters. The creek fed the pool, and the overflow formed the waterfall.
Around the pool, wild vegetables and grasses thrived, and unidentified wildflowers bloomed vibrantly. Fish occasionally leaped out of the water.
“Hubby, this place is perfect. If we stay here, life would be good,” Bai Nianqing crouched by the pool and splashed water on her face.
“This place is good. At least there’s a water source. But with water come animals… Wild chickens and rabbits are fine, but tigers, wolves, and wild boars are worrisome,” Shen Wenhe said cautiously.
They were not particularly capable fighters. Even though Shen Wenhe had trained for a few days with a bodyguard, it was nothing compared to defending against wild beasts. Otherwise, surviving in the wild wouldn’t have been so difficult, and he wouldn’t have considered entering the mountains for refuge.
“Why don’t we check above? Maybe there are no wild animals up there,” Bai Nianqing suggested, looking up at the cliff.
“The cliff is steep with no path. I’ll go up and check; you stay here,” Shen Wenhe said, not willing to risk Bai Nianqing climbing it.
“All right, but be careful,” she said.
“Don’t worry. I’ll be careful,” Shen Wenhe said as he started climbing beside the waterfall.
Bai Nianqing sat on a rock, silent, afraid he might fall.
Half an hour later, Shen Wenhe reached the top and was amazed.
“Wow, it’s so spacious up here!”
Before him was a flat platform. Near the cliff edge, a spring gushed upward. The surrounding stone had been carved into a small rectangular pond. Water filled it and overflowed down the cliff, forming the waterfall.
Most importantly, opposite the pond was another cliff face, smooth and nearly vertical, making it inaccessible to ordinary people.
Even more important, near the cliff wall was a wooden house. Clearly, someone had lived here, though the fallen leaves and twigs suggested it had been abandoned for a long time.
Shen Wenhe approached the wooden house and lightly knocked on the door. “Anyone here? Hello?”
After a long pause with no response, he gently pushed the door open.
“Anyone? I’m coming in,” he called, stepping inside.
The simple house had two rooms, a stove, and a heated brick bed, all covered with a thick layer of dust. Evidently, no one had lived here for years.
As Shen Wenhe inspected the rooms, he found an envelope on top of a chest. It was yellowed and dusty, clearly long forgotten.
He carefully opened it.
The letter explained that the author, Xu Changming, a former imperial physician, had offended someone and was being pursued. He fled into the mountains, living alone until the pursuers left. In despair, he never left the mountains, spending his remaining days here.
He had chosen a burial spot for himself in a cliffside cave behind the house. In the letter, he also left his accumulated treasures for anyone who would properly bury him.
The cave contained his savings: six large chests—two with gold bars, one with silver ingots, two with jewelry, and one with medicinal herbs.
Shen Wenhe hadn’t noticed the cave before. Coming out of the house and circling behind it, he discovered stone steps carved into the cliff.
The steps were narrow but navigable. Carefully, Shen Wenhe climbed, using his machete to clear moss along the way.
At the cave entrance was a wooden door, partially rotted and worm-eaten from time. Shen Wenhe pushed it open.
A strong odor hit him immediately. Holding his breath, he descended two small steps. After the smell subsided, he cautiously entered the cave.
It was spacious, several hundred square meters, divided into smaller chambers. The first chamber was empty. The second contained two bags of food, long spoiled.
The third chamber held six large chests: two with gold bars, one with silver ingots, two with jewelry, and one with medicinal herbs.