Su Xiao felt dazzled by the array of neatly stacked gold bars in the room. There were antiques and calligraphy all piled together at the corner of the room. She observed for any trap before entering. She walked to the gold which had no inscription on it and picked one to weigh it. She couldn't believe her luck. They were indeed real gold and so many at that.
What was such amount of gold doing at an abandoned forest with a tomb in it? She had many theories on this but first, she had to take all this gold. It was obvious whomever smuggled this gold was a corrupted official and hiding it here was also a cunning idea. Who would ever imagine that such gold and valuables would be hidden in an abandoned and scary forest. Unlucky for them, they had to encounter it and she would reap the benefits.
With this gold, they wouldn't be stranded in the Northern Wilderness and could live comfortably too. With a single touch, everything was swept into the space and the room was naked. There was no time to explore so she exited. She planned to come with Mu Wei to see if he had any idea about the tomb. As for the gold, forget about it. Him not knowing wouldn't do him any harm.
She pressed the mechanism and the door rumbled closed. She carefully marked the spot and went outside. They wouldn't take that part of the cave and it was also conveniently divided into three which was suitable for them. Their room was in the inner cave, close the door which wouldn't arouse suspicion if they suddenly disappeared. Outside the cave, it was getting late so she hurried up to lead them to the cave.
After walking back for a few minutes she heard noises which was weird considering she hadn't even heard a chirping bird since she entered the forest. Quickly, she climbed the nearest tree and held her breath. Those noises became clearer and she looked down. She was pleasantly surprised to see three bears. All were adults with two being male and one a female. They were circling the tree she was sitting on looking for something.
She knew they were looking for her. Without wasting time, she entered the space and got a silencer. She positioned herself properly on the tree and aimed at the bears shooting them down in a go. The cries of the bears alarmed the exiles who were nearby and the stopped in fright. Su Xiao came down and took two into her space and dragged one of the male. Seeing a moving figure, the exiles backed away and some stopped screaming.
Mu Wei got down to check what it was. Su Xiao dragged the bear and dropped it at their feet surprising them. They all stared at her in shock wondering how she killed the bear alone with no weapon.
"I found the bear and a cave not far from here. It's wide enough to accommodate everyone inside so we just need to find a stone to cover the entrance"
"Thank you for your hardwork, lady Su"
"It's nothing. Helping you is also doing myself a favor"
With that she got into the cart and directed the way. After walking for fifteen minutes, they finally arrived at the cave. Just as she said, it was huge and comfortable ignoring the cold floor. She got off and led their horses to the inner area of the cave.
"Chief, you can arrange how everyone is staying. My family and I will stay at this area"
She pointed to the side to emphasize her meaning. Mu Wei although not knowing why she insisted on there didn't object. Su Xiao continued,
"We have to hurry up before night. After everyone is settled, you should divide the task amongst them. Some should skin the bear and start cooking outside, others should look for a stone to cover the entrance while the rest tidy up the cave. That way, we could complete before the fog appears. Also, once the cave is closed, no one should lit a fire"
Someone couldn't help but curiously ask,
"Why can't we lit a fire?"
Without looking at her, she calmly responded,
"Once the cave is closed, no oxygen comes in and the little one in the cave will be depleted by the fire as it needs oxygen to burn which could lead to suffocation"
Although they couldn't understand her strange words, they still understood the general meaning. Lu Dan immediately started assigning tasks to everyone. The ladies were left to tidy up the cave, the chief left with some men to go find a stone while others cleaned up the meat. Su Xiao walked to Mu Wei who was about to join those looking for a stone called him.
Swiftly excusing himself, he followed her to a quiet corner and leaned in to listen.
"I found a tomb in this cave"
He looked at her in shock before leaning closer, their faces were almost touching. Su Xiao didn't notice the situation and continued,
"At the corner we're staying, their is a mechanism that opens a door behind it. I found a tomb and some books in there. What surprised me is the inscription on the Tomb"
"What does it say?
"It's about a general called Wei"
Mu Wei's pupil dilated in shock as he tried to digest the information. Su Xiao observed his reaction which showed he had an idea about who he was. After a moment of silence, he finally asked,
"Did anyone see you or know about this?
"No. I went in alone"
"Alright. We will go later but as of now, let's hurry up"
The matter was discussed and everyone went back to their tasks. Su Xiao left the cleaning to Bai Ling to search for a more important thing.
Water source.
There was no water apart from the little one they managed to salvage. The other exiles didn't have any water which could cause misunderstandings. With that thought, she called the two brothers to go with her. After giving instructions to Bai Ling and Shi Dong, she left. They walked silently into the deeper parts looking for any water source.
Su Xiao observed the terrain as she walked looking for place with most moist soil and footprint of animals which could indicate any water near. After walking for almost thirty minutes, she spotted animal droppings and felt excited. Quickly calling out to Li Tuo she instructed,
"Follow those trails of droppings and we will surely find a water source near"
Skeptical, they looked at her. Su Xiao explained further,
"Those droppings means an animal was near. They should have come back from drinking water. Look, the droppings are almost dry and not consistent"
They followed her words and noticed she was right. They immediately got excited and followed her with their water barrels. She was truly a goddess. Soon, the heard water rushing and ran to the place. Their was a stream rushing to an unknown end right in front of them. Li Gu couldn't help but exclaim
"Boss, you're indeed a goddess. Only you can find food, cave and water in such a forest"
"Yes boss. With this water, we can survive for a while this forest"
Su Xiao echoed their humor before urging them to fetch water before it became too late. It was weird, the stream seemed completely unaffected from the poisonous fog which made her more curious about this fog. The quickly fetched the water and went back to the cave.