Chapter 7

Zhao Chen once again stepped into the Qinling forest, a familiar scene, a familiar scent, but his mindset was vastly different. Last time, he was desperately trying to get out of the Qinling, but this time, he wanted to stay in the Qinling forever, preferably staying as far away from Li Er and his men as possible, if not for the thousand elite soldiers of the Tang Dynasty behind him.

The national treasury was empty, and Li Er was eager to mine for gold to fill the coffers. After another confirmation, Li Er dispatched personnel from the Ministry of Revenue and the Office of Works, led by Qin Qiong, to head into the Qinling with a thousand elite soldiers of the Tang Dynasty.

At the mention of Qin Qiong's name, Zhao Chen's mind involuntarily conjured up the image of the hero from the "Romance of Sui and Tang," wearing a swallow feather armor, holding a pair of iron flails, riding a red rabbit horse, and being invincible in Shandong. Unfortunately, the Qin Qiong before him more resembled a middle-aged uncle from next door. If it weren't for his robust build and the occasional sharp glint in his eyes, Zhao Chen would have doubted whether this Qin Qiong was the same as the one he knew.

Of course, whether the person before him was indeed Qin Qiong, or whether he was the same Qin Shubao who once commanded the battlefield and could take the head of a general from among thousands of soldiers as easily as picking something from a pocket, Zhao Chen had lost his original curiosity after a series of encounters in the Tang Dynasty.

If I can't provoke them, can't I at least avoid them?

"Boy, how much further?" At noon, Qin Qiong, wearing heavy armor weighing dozens of pounds, came to where Zhao Chen was resting and asked with a frown.

The forest was dense with branches and leaves, and the ground was covered with thick layers of decaying leaves. Each step felt like stepping on a pile of cotton, making it impossible to maintain balance, let alone ride a horse.

"Not far, we should reach it before dark!" Zhao Chen sat on the ground, slowly chewing on a boiled egg that Hu Lu had brought him before leaving, speaking with little enthusiasm.

Although Hu Lu had fled without a sense of righteousness that day, it didn't affect Zhao Chen's good feelings towards him. Perhaps it was because Hu Lu was one of the few people who made him feel a bit of human warmth after coming to the Tang Dynasty!

Regardless of Hu Lu's motives!

So before leaving, Zhao Chen generously gave Hu Lu a jar of high-quality tea. Whether the bastard would ruin it was none of Zhao Chen's concern.

"Did I hear right, you tricked Li Jing that old man in front of His Majesty?" Qin Uncle had the desire to chat, and Zhao Chen clearly noticed the gleeful look in his eyes.

That's right! No good bandit from the Wagang! What kind of neighborly uncle are you pretending to be! Don't you get tired!

"You're wrong, that day I only mentioned Li Da Jiangjun because my master talked about him. I didn't expect to almost lose my life!" Zhao Chen remembered Li Jing's murderous look that day, and his chest ached reflexively. Damn it, I'll get back at him sooner or later.

"Right, I heard you listened to your master's Three Heroes of the Dusty World. How did you explain it to pass the time?" Qin Uncle watched Zhao Chen peel an egg, naturally took it, and stuffed it into his mouth, mumbling.

Bandit! Zhao Chen inwardly wailed, seeing Qin Uncle choke on the egg, quickly unscrewed the thermos and handed it over. However, he shook his head vigorously at Qin Uncle's tempting words, determined not to make the same mistake again.

"Boring!" Qin Uncle took a sip of the warm tea from the thermos, clearly satisfied with the mellow taste, but then, seeing Zhao Chen shake his head vigorously, he sniffed indifferently and walked away with the cup.

I knew it would be like this. What can you expect when something falls into the hands of a bandit? If you don't get it back, you might end up being forced to pay with your life.

So! Unless necessary, don't argue with these bandits! It's better to eat another boiled egg and feel more grounded!

As the sun was about to set, the thousand-strong team finally arrived at the spring where Zhao Chen had discovered the gold mine. There were still traces of Zhao Chen's presence by the spring, along with some chaotic animal hoof prints, indicating that others had visited the area in recent days.

Qin Uncle gave the order, and the thousand elite soldiers immediately set up camp around the spring.

Zhao Chen suspected that there was an underground river beneath the spring. After the tents were set up, he mentioned this to Qin Qiong, and several soldiers immediately began digging.

A thousand-strong team camping in the wild needed a sufficient water source. Once the underground river was dug up, it would provide enough water for the thousand soldiers' daily needs.

Sure enough, it didn't take long for the underground river to be uncovered. A water column as thick as a bucket gushed out, spraying the soldiers who were digging, causing them to stagger.

There were skilled craftsmen in the team. Zhao Chen gave them a rough idea, and they immediately began cutting wood and quarrying stones, quickly enclosing the newly dug river.

As the turbid water gradually settled and became clear, Qin Uncle scooped up a bowl of clear water, tasted it, and nodded in satisfaction.

With the water problem solved, Zhao Chen continued to instruct the craftsmen to cut wood and quarry stones. Qin Uncle, puzzled, came over to where Zhao Chen was helping to scrape tree bark and asked, frowning.

"Boy, why are you cutting more wood?"

"To build houses!" Zhao Chen straightened up, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and looked at Qin Uncle with a matter-of-fact expression.

The forest was humid at night, and the ground was covered with thick layers of decaying leaves. If they slept on the ground, they would likely wake up with sore backs. In the long run, it could lead to dampness and cold.

Old Qin's cheeks twitched, clearly indignant at Zhao Chen's apparent misuse of public resources. However, unusually, Old Qin just snorted and walked away.

Since the camp was set up here, the surrounding wild animals needed to be cleared. Old Qin didn't want his soldiers to die from wild animals rather than enemies.

A thousand elite soldiers of the Tang Dynasty going out to hunt would be a spectacular sight. Zhao Chen didn't know what it would look like, but he knew that after Old Qin gave the order, the thousand soldiers charged into the forest, and the roars of wild animals never stopped.

The poor animals, who usually just intimidated weaker animals to assert their meager dignity, now faced a thousand roaring killers. Their only options were to flee in panic or become victims.

Zhao Chen didn't care about the fate of the animals. He was focused on building a small wooden house. The craftsmen sent by Li Er were undoubtedly the best. As long as Zhao Chen expressed his ideas, they would go beyond and create something even better than he imagined.

As the saying goes, many hands make light work. With a group of craftsmen working on a small wooden house, it didn't take long to build a suspended wooden house.

Zhao Chen was very happy! The craftsmen were very happy! Old Qin was very happy, and seeing Old Qin so happy, Zhao Chen's face darkened.

"Good job, boy!" Indeed, Old Qin stepped into the wooden house, inspected it inside and out, and finally stood on the wooden ladder, patting the handrail and declared, "This belongs to me!"

Zhao Chen wisely chose to endure. What can you say to a bandit!

With a wounded heart, Zhao Chen turned his grief into strength and continued to help the craftsmen build the wooden house.

Before the sun set completely, a suspended wooden house was completed. Looking at the remaining materials, Zhao Chen had the craftsmen make several high-back chairs, a bed, and a table.

Laying out his bedding on the bed and moving the chairs and table into the wooden house, Zhao Chen looked at the simple but warm interior and finally smiled.

Not bad! Zhao Chen had already decided to stay here long-term, far away from Li Er, and focus on mining for him. He didn't believe anyone would come to this remote mountain to cause trouble!

Unfortunately, just as this thought appeared, Old Qin leisurely walked in, followed by his angry questioning.

"Why don't I have these in my house?"

"Move them!" Zhao Chen didn't bother to look at Old Qin's bandit face. If he wanted to rob, why put on an angry act? It's tiring!

Sure enough, Old Qin shamelessly had the items moved out of Zhao Chen's wooden house. Zhao Chen stood in the empty house, seething with anger. This life was unbearable. He thought he had escaped Li Er, but now he had to deal with this bandit who wanted to rob him all the time.

The young carpenter named He San walked into the wooden house, carrying the newly made furniture for Zhao Chen. Seeing Zhao Chen still seething with anger, he couldn't help but shake his head.

This young master had so many creative ideas, but why couldn't he understand the situation? What kind of person was Duke Qin? If he wanted something, he would just ask. Why would he need to rob a young man like you?

He San actually hoped Duke Qin would rob him. How prestigious it would be to be robbed by a Duke!

Zhao Chen naturally didn't understand He San's thoughts. If he knew He San's masochistic mindset, he might have kicked him to death.

"He San, make a bed for each tent, no need to be too fancy, just make it sturdy!" Anger is bad for the liver. Zhao Chen took a deep breath, decided not to think about it, and gave He San the order.

He couldn't be selfish and only think about himself. Zhao Chen would rely on these people for a long time, so he didn't want them to wake up the next morning with sore backs from a night of hard work.