Border Cook

Chapter 642 Entering the Mountain
This matter reached Ruan Zhiheng's ears during dinner.

Ruan Zhiheng put the crab roe noodles picked up by chopsticks into his mouth and sneered, not caring.

When he went to Beijing to meet the Emperor and Empress, he actually brought a dog with him?

Tsk, she is indeed an ordinary woman who is not worthy of being in public. Even though she is lucky enough to have caught the eyes of the Emperor and the Empress, she is still just a vulgar person.

Being able to find such a person as his wife, Lu Qiyan is probably not a good person. He is just a rough and crude warrior.

Not enough to be afraid of.

Ruan Zhiheng smiled and just concentrated on enjoying his crab roe noodles.

There are very few fresh crabs in winter, and the ones he eats are all big crabs with fat and yellow roe that he found in late autumn. They have been raised in the pond at home and were all caught in the past few days. He peeled the meat and took out the roe, and paired it with chewy and smooth ramen to make this bowl of crab roe noodles.

When you take a bite, you will find the noodles are chewy, the crab meat is fragrant, and the crab roe is extremely aromatic. It is so delicious that it makes you drop eyebrows and gives you a very satisfying feeling.

Enjoyment on earth!

At this moment, Xia Yunji was also feeling grateful for the enjoyment of life.

A big bowl of oil-splashed noodles has a rich and mellow flavor. It is very satisfying and refreshing to eat.

The amount of chili in the bowl is just right, fragrant and spicy. From time to time, I order various food dishes from Juxian Pavilion, which is simply very comfortable.

It was a very cold day, but Xia Yunji was actually sweating slightly while eating noodles.

But at this time, Lu Qiyan was also sweating slightly.

Because Xia Mingyue was afraid of the cold, she thought that no one had any resistance to the cold, so when she prepared a hand warmer for Lu Qiyan, Xia Mingyue also prepared a thick fur collar and warm sleeves for him.

Lu Qiyan was not afraid of the cold, and was even the type who could take cold showers in the cold winter. But now he was wrapped so tightly and he was not used to it. In addition, he could not let Wu Jin run with the horse before entering the mountain, so he had to put it on the horse's back, close to him.

In this way, Lu Qiyan was in a situation where he was holding Wu Jin like a big heater, so much so that he was too warm and was sweating a little.

Seeing that he was on pins and needles, Xiao Luoan kindly asked, "Commander Lu, are you feeling unwell?"

"No." Lu Qiyan said stubbornly, "It's just that my wife was worried that I would be cold, so she prepared a fur collar and warm sleeves for me. I have never used these before, so I am a little uncomfortable with them. But the Third Prince probably can't understand this."

After all, no one provides you with a fur collar and warm sleeves.

Xiao Luoan, "..."

Why are you so upset out of nowhere?
Can we still be friends happily?
Wu Jin opened his mouth wide and huffed twice, indicating that he was used to it.

Cen Ying, who followed, and Fang Baosheng, who was beside Lu Qiyan, were a little far away and did not hear the conversation between the two. They just drove their horses forward.

The group of four soon approached Meiling Mountain.

Meiling Mountain was actually called Meiling Mountain in the past, which means unlucky. The reason is that Meiling Mountain is a mountain range with undulating mountains and numerous peaks. Some of the peaks are as tall as bamboo shoots, making it difficult to navigate in the mountains. Even experienced hunters can easily lose their way and die after entering the mountain.

Over time, the place got this name. When the emperor of the previous dynasty passed by here, he thought that the word "money" was unlucky and would affect the country's fortunes. He happened to see plum blossoms in full bloom nearby, so he named it Meiling, which is still used today.

There is only one road leading to Meiling Mountain, which was made by people who went into the mountains to pick mountain products and hunt over the years. It is narrow and winding, and cars cannot pass through, but horses can pass through.

Seeing this path going into the mountain, Lu Qiyan tightened the reins and stopped. "You usually take this path when you go into the mountain to check, right?"

"That's right." Xiao Luoan asked, "Is there anything wrong?"

"This road is not wide enough for vehicles to pass. If they are mining here, they must have taken another route. No matter how many times we walk here, we probably won't find any clues."

Lu Qiyan said, "Let's take another route."

"Okay." Xiao Luoan did not object and followed Lu Qiyan.

Lu Qiyan turned his horse around and did not go near Meiling Mountain. Instead, he walked back and then went around Meiling Mountain from a distance.

The reason why he was able to enter Meiling many times without finding anything and was usually not noticed by ordinary people was, firstly, that he was hiding very well, and secondly, there was a high possibility that there were secret sentries.

There is no problem in taking a longer route at this time.

After walking around the mountain for a long time, Lu Qiyan saw a very wide road, which passed right through the middle of Meiling Mountain. This road seemed to be artificially opened up, with towering rocks on both sides, covered with large and small chisel marks.

We encountered heavy snow on the way before, and Meiling was no exception. Although it has completely melted now, there are still many deep and shallow ruts and footprints left on the road, which shows that there were many people and cars coming and going.

"What kind of road is this?" Lu Qiyan asked.

"I asked Ruan Zhiheng, this is an official road." Xiao Luoan replied, "This official road has existed for decades, it should have existed during the previous dynasty."

"It seems that Yongchuan Prefecture, which is west of Ronghe Prefecture, is rich in well salt. The salt produced needs to be supplied from Yongchuan Prefecture to various prefectures and counties in the east. To the east of Yongchuan Prefecture is Meiling Mountain. If you want to go east, you have to go around from the south or north, which adds an extra 100 or 200 miles to the journey."

"So the previous imperial court ordered the opening of such a road. It took several years to build this road by cutting through the mountains and walls."

"I see." Lu Qiyan nodded. "No wonder the rocks on both sides of the road are so steep and close to the road. It doesn't look like an ordinary road. Although this road is convenient, the cliffs on both sides are very scary when you look up at night."

"Indeed." Xiao Luoan said, "I heard from Ruan Zhiheng that there was a rockfall here before, and no one dared to leave for a long time. It was not until the autumn and winter that people felt a little relieved."

"Yeah." Lu Qiyan nodded again and drove the horse under him to go somewhere else.

After walking a long way, he looked back two or three times.

After walking around again, Lu Qiyan stopped, tied the horse to a nearby tree, and walked towards Meiling.

The road that Lu Qiyan chose was obviously a road that no one had ever walked on. There were weeds, vines and trees growing everywhere under his feet. Fortunately, it was winter, the weeds were dry and yellow, and the leaves were withered, so he could barely walk.

But even so, it still took the group an hour and a half to reach the halfway point of one of the mountains.

When you reach the halfway point of the mountain, the view becomes much wider. Even at night, when you can only use the starlight in the night sky as illumination, you can still see the general appearance of the Meiling Mountains.

Lu Qiyan squinted his eyes and continued to look around.

Suddenly, I saw what seemed to be a fire in the mountain.