The Northern Song Dynasty returned south, seeking the truth of the Dao.

The woman looked up shyly at Wang Zhenhuan, seemingly seeking praise. Wang Zhenhuan, in a surprised tone, held up the he shou wu (Polygonum multiflorum) and said, "Could it be that you, Madam, were in charge of farming at the farm before?"

"You dug the hole so quickly with your bare hands, I truly admire you, young man," Wang Zhenhuan said sincerely to the woman, clasping his hands in a fist salute. Hearing Wang Zhenhuan's praise, the woman lowered her head shyly.

Wang Zhenhuan cut off the root of the Polygonum multiflorum and carefully put it in his pocket. Then he pointed to the direction he had come from when he had come from. The woman understood and crouched down to leave.

Wang Zhen carefully followed behind, glancing occasionally in the direction of the white tiger. Fortunately, the white tiger didn't seem to care much about their actions, keeping its eyes closed and remaining still.

Before leaving, Wang Zhenhuan stood before the crevice and clasped his hands in a fist salute to the white tiger. Then he turned and left through the narrow crack. After he left, the white tiger opened its eyes.

It stared in the direction Wang Zhenhuan had left, its eyes filled with a mixture of confusion and familiarity. After a moment's thought, it closed its eyes again and lay down. All of this, however, went unnoticed by Wang Zhenhuan, who had already left.

They'd been in the mountains for almost an hour, and although their harvest wasn't much, this one he shou wu (Polygonum multiflorum) was enough for the three of them. Besides, it had a laxative effect, so they couldn't eat too much.

"Madam, this piece of he shou wu is enough for the three of us. Besides, it's getting late, and my wife needs someone to take care of her. Why don't we head down the mountain now?" Wang Zhenhuan asked the short, plump woman.

Although this short, plump woman was mute and of rather ordinary appearance, it was entirely her doing that they found all the Polygonum multiflorum. She even did the digging work.

Whether out of respect or politeness, one should ask the woman's opinion first; this is the most basic etiquette in dealing with people. The woman nodded in agreement upon hearing Wang Zhenhuan's words.

So the two of them retraced their steps. As the saying goes, going up a mountain is difficult, but going down is easy. It took them a full half hour to go up, but only the time it takes for an incense stick to burn to go down.

Wang Zhenhuan and the woman returned to the manor. The manor gate still lay on the ground, and from outside, one could vaguely see a room in the western corner, with a faint light shining from it.

That was the location of the woodshed. Seeing that everything was as before, Wang Zhen was relieved. He pushed open the door of the woodshed and saw Lin Qingyan half-squatting on the ground, cooking something by the fire.

Hearing the door open, she looked up and saw that it was Wang Zhenhuan returning. Her face beamed with genuine joy. That smile was like a spring breeze, making Wang Zhenhuan's heart flutter.

"Brothers, you're back? I was thinking of boiling some water for you, but I didn't realize there wasn't much water left in the water bag."

"Sit down quickly. The arrow in your body hasn't been removed yet. If you move around like this, what if you tear the wound and it bleeds again? If you're injured, rest properly. Why are you showing off?" Wang Zhenhuan hurriedly stepped forward and helped Lin Qingyan sit down.

"I've seen you've been so busy these past few days, and I wanted to help out. Look at your face, you look so haggard. You haven't eaten anything for days, you've lost so much weight." Lin Qingyan replied, her eyes red, as she reached out to stroke Wang Zhenhuan's cheek.

Wang Zhenhuan lowered his head, pulled his hand away from Lin Qingyan's, and said in a relaxed tone with red eyes, "Your brother is in good spirits. What's a few meals without food? Besides, Madam has already found me something to eat. Look."

As he spoke, he took out some he shou wu (Polygonum multiflorum) still covered in soil from his pocket and handed them to Lin Qingyan. Lin Qingyan took the he shou wu, examined them curiously, and then pinched them with her fingers.

"Brother, is this a chestnut? Why is it so big? And why does it look so strange?"

"This isn't a common chestnut; this is much better. It's called He Shou Wu, a traditional Chinese medicine that can replenish deficiencies. You've lost so much blood; it's perfect for replenishing your strength."

Wang Zhenhuan brought back the he shou wu (Polygonum multiflorum), throwing a few into the fire as he explained. The "tu li" that Lin Qingyan mentioned is actually small taro, called "tu li" in the Song Dynasty; the larger ones were called "tu zhi dan."

After placing the he shou wu (Polygonum multiflorum) properly, he picked up the water bag and the curved knife, and said to Lin Qingyan and the woman, "Qingyan, you and your wife stay here and watch over the he shou wu, don't let it burn. I'll go to the river to fetch some water."

Seeing Lin Qingyan nod, he was still worried, so he cupped his hands to the short, plump woman and instructed her, "Madam, my wife has difficulty moving around, so I'll leave her in your care. I'll be right back."

The woman nodded, and Wang Zhenhuan pushed open the door and went out. He looked up and saw that the sky was completely dark. There wasn't a single star tonight; it must be past 7 PM.

After stepping out of the gate, he suddenly remembered something, returned to the courtyard, and righted the two fallen door panels, placing them against the gate. Looking out from the courtyard, the light from the woodshed was no longer visible.

He nodded in satisfaction and turned to walk towards the river. He hadn't blocked the gate during the day for fear of attracting the attention of the Jurchens. Now, at night, he blocked it to prevent the light from drawing their attention.

Regardless of whether the Jurchens passed through here, it's always good to be safe than sorry. The night wind was a bit noisy, and the sweat he had worked up climbing the mountain made him shiver from the cold wind.

He quickened his pace and in less than a quarter of an hour he heard the rushing sound of water. Reaching the riverbank, he parted the reeds, bent down, and took out his water bag to fetch water.

As soon as the water bag entered the water, he suddenly heard a strange sound, a sound he knew all too well—the hoofbeats of galloping horses. He filled the water bag and listened intently again.

That's right! It was the sound of horses' hooves, faintly carried on the autumn wind. He lay down, pressing his ears to the ground. The thunderous sound almost shattered his eardrums!

Wang Zhenhuan hurriedly got up and ran towards the manor without looking back. There was only one path leading to the manor, and the sound of hooves must be coming from that path. He was extremely anxious and ran like the wind.

He rushed back to the manor in less than half an incense stick's time and kicked open the gate. The heavy gate thudded against the ground. The door to the woodshed opened, and the short, plump woman came out, looking at Wang Huanzhen with suspicion.

"Pack your things and get ready to leave! The golden statue is coming!"

Upon hearing his words, the short, plump woman panicked and hurriedly went back into the house. Wang Zhenhuan followed behind him. After returning to the woodshed, Lin Qingyan also heard their conversation and struggled to get up.

Wang Zhenhuan stepped forward, put the cotton coat on her, then squatted down, carried Lin Qingyan on his back, and walked towards the door. Just as he stepped outside, he remembered something, returned, and kicked over the clay pot on the fire.

The water in the clay pot extinguished the fire, sending up a plume of thick white steam. But before he could even reach the door, carrying Lin Qingyan on his back, he heard the deafening sound of horses' hooves!

His expression changed drastically, and he turned and ran towards the back door with Lin Qingyan on his back, the short, plump woman following closely behind them...