Crossing the Unknown Country

The Ye family was also holding a family meeting. All the adult men in the family sat together. The war was imminent and they could not escape. As long as the war started, these criminal slaves would be the first to go to the battlefield. Although their family was better now than when they first arrived, it was only a little better.

The current situation in their family is that all adult men will probably have to go to the battlefield. They are not afraid, because it is already like this and there is no way to avoid it. The family has encountered such a big disaster, and life and death have become less important. Moreover, the country is in trouble, and it is time to stand up and fight the enemy here. Ye Jingchen is still young and cannot go to the battlefield. He and his brothers and sisters, as well as his mother and aunts, need to find a shelter to prevent the enemy from really attacking. The family always has to leave offspring to continue the incense. At any time, there will be nothing without people.

Ye Jingchen followed his brothers and took on this task, going out to find such places in the mountains every day. Natural caves are the best, generally safer than those dug by humans, and many of them have water sources and vegetation, so as long as they bring enough food, they can hide for a few days. The family came here and hid money in exchange for the children's freedom. Because they were young and could not do heavy work, those people acquiesced to their request.

Ye Jingchen has experienced a great change in his family. Although he is still young, he has come all the way from the capital. His status has changed from a noble son to the grandson of a criminal. The gap in status has brought about a great change in his living conditions, and the little man has undergone great psychological changes. From the original luxurious clothes and food, surrounded by many servants, to now eating coarse food and needing to do everything he can, these changes have affected him as a whole.

He followed his brother to find a place to take shelter. Perhaps because of his short stature and his low vision, he saw a small gap behind a piece of gravel. He squatted down and carefully observed the place. Not far from the bottom of the mountain, behind a large forest, there was a landslide next to the mountain, and huge rocks covered the place. People usually don't go here because they are afraid that the rocks under their feet are unstable. They take a slightly farther mountain road, where safety can still be guaranteed.

He called his brother to dig it open and see. They worked very hard to expand the cave entrance so that one person could bend in. The space inside was OK. It was a big cave. They lit torches and walked into the cave. There was an underground river at the innermost part of the cave. There were some small fish swimming in the river. Finally, the cave disappeared in the underground river. They saw animal feces and bones in the cave. It was estimated that there were animals living here before. Later, the cave entrance was buried and they were trapped here.

This place is good, but it also has disadvantages. If the mountain collapses again, they will not be able to escape. They can only hide here if they dig another hole. They looked at the hard stone wall. This is a big project. They have to ask the adults at home to come and take a look. They retreated and concealed the hole with stones, and then they walked down the mountain.

After the adults at home got off work, they told them about their gains today and also expressed their doubts, hoping that the adults would go with them to have a look. Finally, everyone discussed that Ye Jingchen's father should take a leave and go there to think of a solution. When they heard from the younger ones that the whole family could hide in there, they were very happy. No one hoped that the place would be useful, but it was always better to be prepared.

The next day, Ye Jingchen's father followed them up the mountain and found the entrance to the cave. Several people worked together to clear the entrance. Ye Jingchen took his father in first. He looked at the space in the cave and appreciated the place they found. When they all finished looking and retreated together, he asked the children to bring the iron rod and dig underground. Not very deep was the stone, and the way to dig the passage downwards was blocked. They had to go out first and think of a way. Several people filed out and stood outside the cave looking at the bare stone outside. He suddenly remembered the method of solidifying the stone, which might be feasible by cultivating the soil, planting trees and grass. He roughly figured out this method, and together with the children, he found a few large stones to block the entrance of the cave, and took the children down the mountain.