Chapter 502

Wen Boyuan said: "Zhao Zhihe!"

"Present!" a warrior in black leather armor appeared on Wen Boyuan's right.

Wen Boyuan calmly said: "What place is ahead?"

Zhao Zhihe said: "Ten li ahead is the Black Pine Forest, part of the Mountain Plain Realm; normally bandits operate there, belonging to the Ox Head Stronghold of Crouching Ox Mountain, their chief Zhang Tan, with over two hundred men under him, using their familiarity with the local geography to make a living by banditry."

After Zhao Zhihe finished speaking, Wen Boyuan smiled at Hu Xiaotian and said: "Thank you for the reminder, Lord Hu."

Hu Xiaotian cursed inwardly, "I kindly reminded you, and you're pulling this stunt with me—are you trying to tell me everything's under your control?" Hu Xiaotian nodded, spurred his horse and left, even if I'm being meddlesome.

Wen Boyuan felt a surge of vengeful satisfaction, and he loudly said: "Zhao Zhihe, Liao Gang, you two lead ten warriors ahead to scout the Black Pine Forest; if any abnormality arises, send word to me immediately."

"Yes!"

Twelve knights shot forward like a bolt of black lightning to scout ahead.

Wen Boyuan then said: "Zhan Peng!"

"Here!"

"You lead twenty archers to guard the princess's carriage on both sides; shoot on sight any abnormality."

"Yes!"

As Hu Xiaotian passed Wu Jing Shan's carriage, Wu Jing Shan lifted the curtain and shouted loudly: "Lord Hu, Lord Hu!"

Hu Xiaotian reined in his horse, lowered his head and smiled: "Sir Wu, what are your orders?"

Wu Jing Shan said: "What happened? Did we encounter bandits?"

Hu Xiaotian shook his head: "Just arrived at a place where bandits often appear; I went to remind General Wen to be careful."

Wu Jing Shan let out an "oh"; as a civil official, he wished for a smooth, trouble-free journey. Seeing troop deployments, he couldn't help but panic.

Hu Xiaotian saw his fear and smiled: "Sir Wu, don't worry. With General Wen, a master, guarding the carriage, even if we meet bandits there'll be no danger."

Hu Xiaotian returned to the princess's carriage; at that moment Zhan Peng led twenty archers to guard both sides, exchanged a glance with Hu Xiaotian, and they understood each other implicitly.

After traveling another short ten li, which took an hour, the scouts sent ahead had confirmed there was no danger in the Black Pine Forest. This forest is a necessary passage heading north to Da Yong. Upon reaching the forest's edge, it was already Wei Hour that day; based on prior information, crossing this black pine forest would take two hours, meaning they should emerge at dusk.

Opinions differed on whether to press on; Hu Xiaotian suggested setting up camp for the night to be safe and travel tomorrow, while Wen Boyuan urged continuing forward. If all went well, they could exit the forest before dark.

Hu Xiaotian thought the weather could change unpredictably; who knows what might happen in the Black Pine Forest? Any unforeseen factor could delay them, and if they failed to leave the forest before nightfall, they'd have to spend the night inside—an absolute adventure for them.

But Wen Boyuan thought that with their current strength, a few hundred bandits, even if they all came out, posed no problem. Wu Jing Shan shared his view, believing in acting early rather than late, urging everyone to speed up. They should be able to leave the forest before dark, and resting afterward would be just as good; there was no need to waste half a day.

The minority yields to the majority; moreover, Hu Xiaotian's main duty is handling internal logistics and finance, so he could only nod and agree to continue forward.

After entering the Black Pine Forest, Wen Boyuan reminded everyone to stay alert and closely watch every rustle in the surroundings. Upon entering the woods, the light grew noticeably dimmer; the already dark sky gave a feeling that night was approaching.

As they went deeper into the forest, the road grew narrower and narrower; where the branches were thick, warriors had to hack them away with knives and axes, and the pace slowed considerably. Wen Boyuan directed the troops to keep moving, reducing the horses' speed, gradually drawing level with the princess's carriage—to be ready for any sudden situation. He looked up: all around was dense pine forest, the branches piled with unmelted snow. Gazing through the gaps in the needles, far off were countless trunks; the northern side was whitened by wind and snow. Looking up, he saw only the sky torn by branches, a gloomy expanse that seemed ready to collapse at any moment.

Men and horses trudged through this vast snowy wilderness; the deeper they went, the purer white snow stood out starkly against the dimming light, the banners torn by the north wind fluttered with a rustling sound.

Hu Xiaotian's voice suddenly rang out from behind Wen Boyuan: "General Wen, it looks like we'll have to spend the night in this Black Pine Forest."

Wen Boyuan said: "In clear weather two hours will get us out of the Black Pine Forest; even if it takes a bit longer—say, an extra hour—we'll surely be out by Xu Hour." He spoke with full confidence.

Hu Xiaotian said: "You Hour is when it gets dark; are we supposed to rush along in the dark? The roads in this forest are tangled and complex."

Wen Boyuan turned his head and gave Hu Xiaotian a cold look: "You needn't worry; Zhao Zhihe is a local, he knows this area very well."

Hu Xiaotian said: "I'm thinking of everyone's safety; even if he's a local, the snow has covered the roads, the forest is deep and dense—better safe than sorry."

"Lord Hu should just attend to his own duties; since I've taken on this mission, I'll guarantee the princess's safety."

Hu Xiaotian chuckled: "General Wen, that's wrong—not only the princess, but also Sir Wu, me, and every single person in this troop. Are you really going to ignore whether we live or die?"

Wen Boyuan stared at Hu Xiaotian with a cold smile: "Lord Hu, you're absolutely right; how could I forget you?" Yet in his heart he wished Hu Xiaotian would die soon.

Hu Xiaotian glanced around the boundless, desolate forest and sighed: "This forest has no end; if we get lost, it'll be trouble."

Wen Boyuan silently cursed this crow's-mouth, but events unfolded exactly as he had said. Although Zhao Zhihe was a local, he wasn't particularly familiar with the Black Pine Forest, and he'd left his hometown over ten years ago; the trees kept growing, so the situation now differed greatly from when he was there. Moreover, it had just snowed these past two days; looking around, everything was a blank white. When they first entered the forest, the road was still wide enough to discern, but once they went deeper, the path narrowed until they could no longer tell where the road was, and could only feel their way north by direction.

Originally they expected it to get dark at You Hour, but because of the overcast sky and the forest's shade, the light had already dimmed before You Hour. Zhao Zhihe dared not proceed blindly and came to report to Wen Boyuan.

Wen Boyuan heard his report, pondered briefly, then went straight to Wu Jing Shan's carriage.

Hu Xiaotian watched Wen Boyuan's actions from afar, smirking inwardly: "This jerk won't listen to my advice and insists on charging through the Black Pine Forest; now he's stuck between a rock and a hard place—looks like we'll have to spend the night in this woods."

Wen Boyuan obviously ignored Hu Xiaotian, and after consulting Wu Jing Shan decided to set up camp right there and wait until morning to move on.

Hu Xiaotian also couldn't be bothered to argue with him; under the circumstances, pressing on would simply be unwise.

Wu Jing Shan dismounted from his carriage, stepped through the deep and shallow snow, and came respectfully to the princess's carriage: "Princess!"

The princess lifted the carriage curtain and said: "Sir Wu, what is it?"

Wu Jing Shan said: "It's gotten dark early today; I discussed it with the two generals and we've decided to camp here for the night, then set out again at dawn."

Hu Xiaotian cursed inwardly: "This old bastard is really hateful—when did he ever consult me? He dares to make decisions for me."

The princess said: "Fine! Let's rest tonight and leave tomorrow."

As the soldiers pitched camp, Tang Tiehan came with his men to inspect the horses and vehicles as usual; among them was Zhou Mo. After they finished checking the princess's carriage, Hu Xiaotian pointed at Zhou Mo and said: "You, stay behind!"

Tang Tiehan blinked, not understanding what Hu Xiaotian meant.

Hu Xiaotian said: "The princess's carriage lacks a dedicated person to inspect and maintain it; you stay on to handle this." In fact his true aim was to have Zhou Mo remain by the princess's side to protect her; although Wen Boyuan had brought many warriors, only Zhan Peng was truly trustworthy, but Zhan Peng couldn't be constantly at the princess's side, so Hu Xiaotian found an excuse to keep Zhou Mo near her.

Tang Tiehan said: "Lord Hu, we still have other matters..."

Hu Xiaotian cut him off mercilessly: "Nothing is more important than the princess's business." He stepped up to Tang Tiehan and whispered, voice only Tang could hear: "If you don't obey, I'll reveal what happened to your sister."

Tang Tiehan started; he had thought he'd gotten away with his deception yesterday, but he never expected to be caught after all—this guy's eyes are sharp. He had thought that after all those experiences this fellow might improve a bit, but it seems his nature cannot change; he's still the same spoiled brat, actually threatening me.

Hu Xiaotian patted his shoulder: "Best if we all keep the peace."

Having secured Zhou Mo's presence beside him, Hu Xiaotian felt a weight lift from his heart; Zhou Mo's martial arts are strong, and with him guarding the princess they could practically guarantee absolute safety. At this point Zhan Peng and the others were reassigned; after the princess's tent was set up, Long Xi Yue entered the tent accompanied by Zi Juan.

Hu Xiaotian had people light a bonfire around the tent, which dispelled some chill; after the camp was set up, night had completely enveloped this dense forest.

After Wen Boyuan arranged the defenses, he also came to the princess's tent to pay his respects.

The princess merely responded from inside the tent with two perfunctory words, without showing herself. (To be continued~^~)