Chapter 20: “Mom, Dad Is in Danger!”
From the time they began ascending the mountain at Shen Time (~3:00am-5:00am) until the end of Xu Time (~7:00pm-9:00pm), they still hadn’t found a path downhill. Wu Dahai gradually began to lose his strength, his once unyielding determination slowly crumbling bit by bit.
Even he was struggling, let alone a whole group of guards and every member of the Yu family!
In the end, Wu Dahai conceded, finding a relatively flat spot in the mountains to rest, with plans to resume their journey at first light the next morning.
Hearing Wu Dahai’s order, everyone heaved a collective sigh of relief.
At that moment, they couldn’t even care about the woodcutters’ earlier advice—everyone collapsed to the ground, too exhausted, cold, and hungry to worry about the looming dangers; all they could think about was barely holding on.
Yu Luo herself dropped heavily onto the ground, leaning against a large tree trunk, unwilling to move any further.
All the guards had long since grown weak in the legs, with blistered, sore feet—and let alone the rest of the Yu family.
Perhaps the only one faring slightly better was the old matriarch Chen, since throughout the journey, it had been Yu Zhengqing—the devoted son—who had carried her. She hadn’t taken a single step on her own, which was remarkably ruthless!
Even when utterly exhausted, Wu Dahai never forgot to threaten and instruct the Yu family:
“Out here in the mountains, it’s different from outside. At night, the brothers take turns standing guard without a moment’s slack. Now, just grab some food and gather enough firewood—otherwise, the mountain’s cold weather will freeze you to death overnight. Starting a fire will both ward off wild beasts and provide warmth.
Even if you’re too weak now, once you eat, you must get up, collect more firewood, and then rest again. And none of you should even think about trying to escape; if you do, in these mountains you might be mistaken for midnight snacks by wolves, tigers, or leopards.”
In fact, he meant these words specifically for those from the second and third branches of the Yu family.
These people, having always been in the countryside and relying almost entirely on their legs—even after walking all day—would be much less tired than those of the main branch. Looking at the state of the main branch’s people, sprawled on the ground, Wu Dahai wasn’t at all worried that they would have the strength to escape.
“Rest assured, Commander Wu, we’ve made it this far and never even thought of escaping.”
Hearing this, Yu Liang immediately said in a pleasing tone. Wu Dahai didn’t pay them any mind; he simply took out some dry provisions, and along with water from his water bag, began to eat.
Yu Luo’s family of three always chose places far away from the rest of the Yu family. The three of them huddled together, wolfishly devouring two large meat buns and some braised beef.
Once the food filled their bellies, their strength gradually began to recover. Feeling sorry for his wife and daughter, Yu Haojie wouldn’t let them get up; instead, he dragged his own exhausted body off to search for more firewood.
In truth, Yu Luo’s system space had already stocked a huge amount of firewood—even pre-split logs—so that in the harsh, snowy wild lands, they could safely endure even the bitter winter.
But if she casually took out that prized large firewood, the gossipy members of the Yu family would surely stir up trouble. Yu Luo had to endure it and let her dad go gather firewood.
Meanwhile, the mother and daughter also didn’t idle. They spread out the special grass mats and cotton quilts (which Yu Luo had bought) on the floor and arranged stones to mark off the area where the firewood was to be burned so that the fire wouldn’t spread and accidentally burn other areas while they slept.
Just as the mother and daughter finished their preparations, on the other side, due to the firewood, the eldest daughter, Yu Yingying, started fighting with someone. The cause: while Yu Yingying and Lan had gone to look for firewood, Yu Yingying saw that Yu Qiang’s granddaughter, Yu Qiao’er, was quickly gathering a huge bundle.
Wanting to gain without effort and relying on her former status as a noble daughter, she began ordering Yu Qiao’er around. Who knew that Yu Qiao’er, with her fiery temperament, would directly fight back with her. Just as the guards were about to lash both of them with whips, Yu Qiang and Yu Zhengqing quickly stepped forward to separate the two.
“This Yu Yingying is such a troublemaker. The other night she reported us, causing her two brothers to sustain internal injuries, and today she’s clashing with members of the third branch of the Yu family. I reckon that on the road to the wild lands—which is long and arduous—we’ll have plenty to watch.”
Ye Jiamai shook her head; today was, by far, the quietest day her ears had ever experienced.
Perhaps because the presence of the other two branches of the Yu family diverted the attention of the legitimate ones, today no one bothered picking on them—they simply didn’t like them anymore.
“What’s so entertaining about all this? I think the second branch of the Yu family is conspiring something. When the Guo An Marquis Mansion was prosperous, they didn’t get any benefit at all, yet in exile, they’re an inseparable part of it. Look at the third branch of the Yu family—they seem to harbor deep resentment toward the main branch. And the entire second branch is always trying to curry favor with the main branch. Who knows what they’re thinking?”
“Forget about others, as long as the three of us are fine.”
Returning with firewood, Yu Haojie placed it within a circle of arranged stones. Not looking tired at all, he then turned to go again. “Xiao Luo, quickly take out the fire-folding tool. dad, go and get some more firewood. We should be able to hold on tonight.”
Worried about her dad, Yu Luo urgently called him over in a low voice, “Dad, take just a little less; at night I can secretly add some extra firewood that we bought.”
“No, these woods in the mountains are readily available; they’ll definitely be sufficient. We must save those meant for the wild lands—otherwise, in the snowy expanse, where will we find firewood?”
After saying that, Yu Haojie left again!
Noticing the concern in Yu Luo’s eyes for Yu Haojie, Ye Jiamai patted her hand in reassurance. “Listen to what your father says—he’s right. Although it’s a bit hard work, at least when we reach the wild lands we won’t freeze.”
The mother and daughter lit the firewood, and even in the icy mountains, the flames gradually began to warm them. With the new cotton quilts wrapped around them, not a trace of cold was felt.
Ye Jiamai stroked the soft cotton quilt beneath her, full of praise for Yu Luo. “Sending you out to stock up was the right move—sleeping on these quilts on the ground is so much better than having to sleep on the grass.”
[Ding dong, System Prompt: There is a pack of wolves not far from where Yu Haojie is gathering firewood. Host, please take precautions.]
Even as Ye Jiamai’s voice echoed in her ears, Yu Luo had already turned pale at the system’s message.
“Mom, dad is in danger! I’m going to save dad!”
Without waiting for Ye Jiamai’s reaction, Yu Luo snatched a burning fire stick from the fire and dashed off in the direction from which Yu Haojie had gone.
Seeing Yu Luo suddenly run off, a belatedly alert Ye Jiamai threw off the blankets and chased after her! Yu Luo sprinted forward relentlessly. The mountain paths were uneven, and she tripped twice in succession.
The pursuing Ye Jiamai, seeing this, grew anxious and quickly helped pull her up. “Hurry, slow down—if you fall off the mountain, we won’t even have a place to cry!”
Ignoring all consolation, Yu Luo suddenly discovered two crossbows in her hand. “Mom, the system tells me that there are wolves near dad. When you see wolves, don’t hesitate—just fire an arrow.”
Ye Jiamai, “!!!”
By the time the mother and daughter duo found Yu Haojie, he was already trembling like a sieve, being glared at by a pack of wolves with hungry, predatory stares, completely forgetting his own inherent divine strength.
And these wolves, with their green-glowing eyes in the dark night, looked especially eerie and terrifying, as if they had already made up their minds to pounce on Yu Haojie and tear him apart.
