Everyone turned to look at her. Qin Sang pointed to the dried mud on the ground and said:
"This place is actually where rainwater from the three surrounding mountains accumulates during the rainy season. Because these three mountains are massive and the riverbed is the only exit—and because the riverbed is higher—this place must have been a large pool before."
"Look, there are still many animal footprints and bones here. It's clear that animals used to come here often to drink, but because of the current drought, they don't come anymore."
"Judging by the erosion on the three mountains, over two meters of water used to collect here. Once it rains, with the runoff from the three mountains plus that mountain spring waterfall, anyone living here would definitely be flooded."
Everyone couldn't help but feel greatly disappointed.
"Then do we need to keep looking?"
"Da Zhuangs Mother, we're really just seeking temporary shelter. It might not even rain, and it's been dry for so long; even if it does rain, it shouldn't be enough to drown anyone right away, right?"
"How about living in the trees?"
Qin Sang didn't want to discourage them too much:
"Adults can live in trees, but what about the elderly and children?"
"One or two nights might be manageable, but it's not a long-term solution."
"We don't know how long the Rebel Soldiers will be around. It could be a month or two if it's short, or half a year to a year if it's long. We have to prepare for the worst."
"However, although there's a risk of flooding here, it's not without a solution."
"As long as we dig drainage ditches here and clear the path from the riverbed to the lower ground, we can drain the water from this area."
"Additionally, I suggest building a wooden bridge. That way, if it does flood, everyone can escape to the mountain via the bridge."
Qin Sang had found the hollows around these three mountains during her second Drone scouting yesterday. She was bringing it up now so that if everyone agreed, they could bring all the necessary tools when they fled, allowing them to solve the problem faster.
Tian Yougen nodded in agreement:
"Digging ditches is no problem. Once we're in the mountains, we'll have nothing but time anyway."
Da Huas Father smiled:
"To be honest, with such a large flat area, if we dig the ditches and remove the risk of flooding, this would be a great place for farming."
Reminded of this, Tian Dajiang grew excited:
"That's right! With mountains and water, we can grow vegetables and farm, and we won't even have to pay taxes. Thinking about it, I'm afraid people might not even want to go back to the village after staying here for a while."
Hunter Xu looked around. Hearing what everyone said, he remained noncommittal.
Only Hunters like them knew how terrifying the mountains could be. It was fine with many people, but if it were only one or two families, they would be swallowed by the deep mountains until not even their bones remained.
"Then we'll settle on this place for now. If it turns out to be unsafe later, we'll go deeper to find another spot."
Qin Sang couldn't scout any further. It had taken nearly two days to get here; while the return trip would save some time, it would still take over a day. She had to deliver goods to the Town tomorrow and couldn't afford any delay.
No one had any objections. Qin Sang noted the coordinates on her map.
The Drone was landed in the mountains; Qin Sang planned to leave its location fixed and find a chance to retrieve it once the whole family had moved.
Setting out on the return journey, everyone was eager to get home. They wondered how the mosquito coils were coming along and if everything at home had been packed.
Da Huang seemed to sense everyone's urgency to return to the village. He kept darting back and forth through the forest, his large mouth hanging open and his long tongue lolling out from the heat, yet he refused to rest.
It got dark earlier in the forest than outside. As the sun began to tilt westward, the light in the woods dimmed considerably.
"The return trip is indeed much faster. It's only been four hours and we've already reached the woods where we rested yesterday. How about we don't stop tonight and just push through to get back?"
Tian Yougen suggested.
Qin Sang didn't quite agree:
"Traveling at night is more dangerous than camping. If we encounter a wild beast, we'll have nowhere to hide. I think we should spend the night in the forest and just set off early tomorrow morning."
The others agreed:
"Then let's walk a bit further. Anyway, there's nothing but trees in these mountains."
"Right, let's walk for another two hours. Once it's completely dark, we'll just climb up the trees to sleep. We've got our hammocks with us anyway."
Qin Sang had no objection to this:
"Alright, let's push on for another two hours."
Hunter Xu and Qin Sang walked at the very front. Hunter Xu, experienced in mountain travel, would occasionally look back to check the head count. Since Xu Hu was at the back, he would be able to notice immediately if anyone failed to keep up.
Hunter Xu stopped in his tracks:
"Hu-zi, where's Zhou Lin?"
Qin Sang looked over the group. Zhou Lin was supposed to be walking in front of Hu-zi, but he was nowhere to be seen.
Xu Hu immediately replied:
"Uncle Zhou just said he had to take a piss and would catch up with us."
Hunter Xu's expression turned serious:
"Why didn't you say something when someone fell behind?"
Being scolded, Xu Hu's voice grew quieter:
"Uncle Zhou said he didn't want to delay everyone, so he told me not to say anything. He said if I did, everyone would definitely wait for him. He said it would be a quick piss and that he'd follow the markers to... catch up with us."
Seeing Hunter Xu's grim expression and that he was about to scold him again, Qin Sang raised her hand to stop him:
"Don't blame Hu-zi; he also didn't want to delay everyone."
After saying that, Qin Sang called out loudly:
"Da Huang?"
Within seconds, Da Huang shot toward them like an arrow:
"Whine..."
Da Huang circled Qin Sang affectionately, his head rubbing incessantly against her pant leg.
Qin Sang crouched down, fed him a piece of jerky, and pointed back at the path they had come from:
"Da Huang, go see if Zhou Lin is coming. If he is, remember to come back and let Grandma know, okay?"
Everyone was exhausted, and Qin Sang wanted to save some energy. She figured if Zhou Lin really was coming, Da Huang's speed in finding him would be much faster than theirs.
Da Huang understood immediately and darted back toward the path they had come from.
Hunter Xu pulled out his canteen and took a sip of water:
"With Da Huang scouting the way, I've had it much easier. Where did you buy this Da Huang? If I get the chance, I'd really like to buy one just like him. If I took him hunting in the mountains, the haul would definitely be bigger."
Qin Sang was about to reply when she heard Da Huang's frantic barking coming from the dim forest.
Qin Sang could tell from the tone that something was wrong:
"This is bad. Something happened. Let's go check quickly."
As she spoke, she took off running back the way they came.
The others weren't slow to react either and followed suit.
"Mother, wait for me!"
"Aunt?"
Qin Sang ran toward the sound of Da Huang's barking without slowing down, her heart sinking the closer she got.
Da Huang had never barked this frantically before. Usually, when guarding the house at night, he would at most give a few casual barks to warn anyone passing by.
Even with those Shanshui Brothers before, one could hear that his barks were mostly out of anger and warning.
But now, Qin Sang could clearly hear that Da Huang's barking was filled with fear.
"Da Huang? Da Huang?"
It grew even darker. At this moment, the sun was blocked by Qingfeng Mountain, making it increasingly difficult to see.
The people behind didn't dare run blindly anymore and began shouting at the top of their lungs:
"Zhou Lin? Da Huang?"