Time quickly approached evening. Second Master Fan was hiding far away in a tea shed at the end of the small mountain. Somewhat anxiously, he gulped down several mouthfuls of tea and repeatedly urged Fan San to go gather information: “Go see if people have arrived yet. Are they taking this route?”
Fan San was unwilling to move a foot. Looking at Second Master Fan with complete disapproval, he sighed deeply, feeling that talking to this Second Master was exhausting enough to make him cough up blood—because this ancestor simply didn’t listen to anyone else. Probably in this world, except for himself, he couldn’t hear anyone else’s words. Young Master Sannan and the large monk had both told him not to come down the mountain, not to come down the mountain. But he insisted that the moment they left, he would sneak out. He looked down at his feet, helplessly tinged with a few parts pleading, begging this ancestor like begging his grandfather and grandmother to return to the temple: “Second Master, this is a critical moment right now. Please don’t add to the chaos here. What if fighting breaks out soon and chaos erupts, with a few people running out from over there who recognize you?! Although Young Master Sannan said he’s planned everything to be foolproof, those are still Imperial Guards after all. Moreover, the Crown Prince has Dao soldiers with him. If a few people break through, what will you do then? Listen to this humble one and let’s hurry and leave!”
Second Master Fan had no intention of leaving. He was just curious, wanting to know what capabilities these monks had to make a mountain collapse. He impatiently waved his hand to brush Fan San aside, sternly rebuking: “Get lost! How could this master add to the chaos? This master came here to handle business. If I don’t see it with my own eyes, how will I know whether these monks truly got things done?! What if it’s like that Ma Yuantong bunch and something goes wrong?!”
The words sounded very reasonable, but in reality he just wanted to watch the excitement. With such a master… Fan San was full of resentment, thinking that when he returned home, he must speak properly with the Master and the Eldest Master, must properly treat Second Master’s stubborn donkey temperament.
The sound of horse hooves came from the distance. Second Master Fan couldn’t be bothered with Fan San anymore. He impatiently rushed out of the tea shed, then immediately felt something was wrong and hurriedly pulled back his body, poking his head out to look at the distant scene—it was truly a convoy, and the leader was wearing a flying fish robe! Second Master Fan was so happy he nearly put his palms together chanting “Amitabha Buddha.” Sure enough, the news transmitted back by that planted spy was true. The Crown Prince really took this route at this hour. He could almost imagine the praise from his parents after returning home and the rewards from his younger sister.
His gaze unconsciously drifted toward the mountain beside him. Because it had already experienced one avalanche and one earthquake, and the nearby Yangquan had just experienced warfare, no one had come to clean up. Many trees that had slid down with the mountain were piled haphazardly to the side, crooked and askew. Some trees had already exposed their roots, swaying back and forth when the wind blew, as if they would topple at any moment.
Right now, hundreds of death warriors and expensively hired craftsmen were ambushed in the tunnels of this mountain—these masons truly believed that the people who hired them wanted to tunnel through this mountain to build a road, and once the road was built, they could transport coal out. They knew best which spots to strike and where to hit to make the mountain collapse faster.
After the deed was done, these masons would all die here too. Even among these death warriors, once the mountain collapsed, many would be unable to escape in time and would rest eternally underground with Zhou Weizhao. Second Master Fan’s eyes gleamed. Those horse hooves sounded as if they were trampling on his heart. He covered his chest, eyes wide as he watched the horses and carriages gradually enter his field of vision. Then he saw the Imperial Guards turn back to say something, leading the carriages closer and closer. He felt his heart was about to leap out of his chest.
The wait was unbearably long, but in fact Second Master Fan didn’t actually wait very long. Perhaps because it was getting late, that group’s traveling speed was extremely fast. Just as Fan San reached out his hand to pull Second Master Fan, they finally reached the middle of the mountain.
At precisely this moment, the ground beneath Second Master Fan’s feet suddenly began to faintly move. He grasped the tea shed and finally managed to stand steady. A thread of fear rose in his heart, and he involuntarily retreated several steps—this seemed too close. If the mountain truly collapsed, he wondered whether it would slide this far.
When he got nervous, he loved to overthink. But before he could finish thinking, a change had already occurred over there. Watching rocks rolling down from all directions, the earth began to shake and the mountains began to move. Yet among those following the carriages, not a single one actually went to attend to the carriages. They all either rode horses and galloped swiftly toward the tea shed, or used their momentum to leap and jump rapidly—not one person went to attend to the carriages.
Fan San’s mind was sharp. When Second Master Fan was already scared silly, he pulled Second Master Fan and turned to flee, running while fearing Second Master Fan would act foolishly again. He trembled as he reminded him: “Second Master, something’s wrong! Don’t act foolish—stay close to this humble one!”
At this moment, it wasn’t up to Second Master Fan to act foolishly. His legs had already gone soft. Even as stupid as he was, he knew the situation was wrong—if the Crown Prince truly sat in that carriage, the first thing these Imperial Guards and accompanying soldiers should do would be to rescue the Crown Prince in the carriage, not turn tail and run. This clearly showed they already knew there was an ambush and were staging a ploy of sacrificing a plum for a peach.
Behind them came the faint sounds of weapons clashing in combat. Second Master Fan’s legs truly went weak. Numbly following Fan San for a stretch, he finally felt his chest and throat burning with pain, so painful he could hardly persist. Gasping for breath, he clung to a tree halfway up the slope, wheezing and panting for quite a while. The moment he opened his mouth, cold wind rushed in and his throat hurt like stabbing pains. Like a fish, he opened his mouth wide and took several fierce breaths before finally recovering. Pulling at Fan San, he asked with his liver and gall nearly shattered: “What do we do?! Behind us are all Imperial Guards!”
Now he knew to ask what to do. Where was that arrogant and domineering energy from when he made such a fuss about watching the excitement? Fan San waved his hand fiercely, as if this could somehow alleviate the burning pain in his throat. After a while, he reached out to drag Second Master Fan along, thinking for a moment before saying: “Back to the temple. Young Master Sannan also came out. He and the large monk are separately guarding the other two routes. No matter what, since there’s no one on this route, there must be people on those two routes—our people all said they personally saw the Crown Prince board the carriage. There definitely won’t be any mistake. Let’s first return to the temple and wait for news.”
That previously despised dilapidated place now became a lifeline in Second Master Fan’s eyes. He nodded vigorously, following Fan San step by step, not daring to fall behind for even a moment, exactly like evil spirits were chasing behind him.