The Legend of the Condor Heroes: From Being Expelled from Peach Blossom Island

Chapter 300 Temporary Departure
Around the end of the Tang Dynasty, the famous peasant uprising, in which Huang Chao's rebel army swept across the country, took place.

Huang Chao employed mobile warfare tactics, avoiding the enemy's strength and attacking their weaknesses, traversing vast areas of what are now Shandong, Henan, Anhui, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Hunan, Hubei, and Shaanxi provinces.

Finally, he led his army into Shaanxi, proclaimed himself emperor in Chang'an, established the Great Qi regime, and then carried out a brutal extermination policy against the Li Tang imperial family and other powerful families.

"The magnificent carriages and embroidered wheels have all vanished, and not a single mansion or vermilion gate remains." "The imperial treasury has been burned to ashes, and the bones of officials and nobles have been trampled on the streets."

One group of members of the imperial clan, in an attempt to escape Huang Chao's clutches, fled westward to the Ziwu Ridge area. By some stroke of luck, they found a safe haven there where they could live in seclusion.

This branch of the royal family left early, taking with them a lot of resources and craftsmen. They continued to excavate and build here, and soon developed all kinds of living conditions.

Less than three years later, Huang Chao was driven out of Shaanxi, and this branch of the imperial clan quietly returned to Chang'an.

However, this uprising completely exhausted the last bit of luck of the Tang Dynasty. After the failure of Huang Chao's uprising, the Tang Dynasty lasted only twenty-three years before being destroyed by Zhu Wen, and China entered the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period.

It was the same clan, skilled at escaping, who secretly returned here and eked out a living for many years. They dared not contact the outside world. After two or three generations, the people here gradually died out. The few remaining descendants could not bear the isolated life and fled.

As time passed, this place was gradually forgotten, becoming an unknown relic in the Ziwu Ridge.

Those who fled at that time must have entered Gansu Province, integrated into the local population, and even later became true Western Xia people.

And this leader was actually a descendant of those people, but after a hundred years, these people had long forgotten their ancestors.

Presumably in order to return to Western Xia as soon as possible, after receiving orders to find a hidden base for Western Xia in the Ziwu Ridge area, the chief finally remembered his ancestors' last words and knew that there was such a hidden place deep in the Ziwu Ridge.

Following the clues left by his predecessors, he finally found the secret cave after many twists and turns, and drew a map at the same time.

The map that Wu Chengyu found was originally supposed to be sent back to Western Xia along with his letter in exchange for his chance to return to Western Xia.

Unfortunately, before he could send his letter, Wu Chengyu, the god of death, arrived first.

After carefully considering the contents of the letter, Wu Chengyu concluded that the people of Xixia Yipintang at most knew that their leader was trying to find a suitable location.

Before this letter was delivered, no one knew the location of the secret cave, so this place was currently safe and most suitable as their base.

Boss, what a good man! Who would have thought that this secret cave would be the final burial place of the Li family of the Tang Dynasty, but it also brought Wu Chengyu the greatest surprise.

Wu Chengyu calculated the days; it was already the end of September, and winter would arrive in less than two months. At that time, the Ziwu Ridge area would inevitably be blocked by heavy snow, so now was the best time to move.

"Little Deer, give the order to pack everything up, we're moving."

The little deer was also very happy; with her intelligence, how could she not know that the secret cave was the best hiding place?

~~~~~~~~~~~
Ten days later, all the supplies and people in the cave area were moved into the secret cave, and Wu Chengyu no longer had to endure the damp and dark cave.

There is still a considerable amount of food brought back from the fortress, which can last for several months if consumed sparingly. However, now is the time for them to replenish their physical deficiencies, so they are still drinking rice porridge three times a day.

This way of eating might not be enough to get through the entire winter, and food supplies became Wu Chengyu's most pressing issue. "Chief, as you instructed, the cave has been prepared, and the carpenters have installed the doors and windows to ensure it's airtight."

Next came the felling of trees to build beds for the children, so they would no longer have to sleep on haystacks.

We've also repaired that blast furnace and tried lighting it. The fire wall inside the stone cave is intact; it definitely won't be cold in winter.

“Very good, Yang Laosan, you guys who are good at farming, reclaim some wasteland here, and next spring we will try to plant some grain. Although there is not enough land, the grain will definitely not be enough to eat, but it can make up for some of the shortfall.”

“Ou Dachui, you and the craftsmen should repair this place properly. You know better than I do what needs to be done, so decide for yourselves.”

"Little Deer, the most important thing for you kids right now is to get your health back. It won't be possible to recover your current physical condition in just a few months, so just stay here and relax."

Remember to tell the children that no one is allowed to leave this secret cave without my permission, or they will never come back.

Gentlemen, I will be leaving for a while, no more than a month. We can't manage this place on our own; I need to go out and solve some problems.

"Chief, will you really come back?"

"Don't worry, Little Deer. I said I would give you the ability to control your own destiny. Until then, I will not abandon you."

After explaining the situation, Wu Chengyu left with two large boxes of gold. Fortunately, the horses were still in the small valley at the foot of the mountain, and the carriage he brought from the fort was also there. Wu Chengyu selected two good horses, put them on the carriage, and headed east, preparing to leave the Ziwu Ridge area.

Wu Chengyu's destination was Tongguan County, which is near Ziwu Ridge and later became Tongchuan City.

Tongguan County has a long history, which is said to date back to the Xia and Shang Dynasties. It is located in the connecting area between the Guanzhong Basin and the Shaanbei Plateau, and its geographical location is very important. Sun Simiao and Liu Gongquan were both from Tongchuan. There is also Yaowang Mountain here to commemorate Sun Simiao.

During the Song-Jin War, this was a major garrison area for the Song Dynasty. However, the Song army suffered a crushing defeat, and Tongguan and even the entire Shaanxi province fell to the Jin Dynasty.

Wu Chengyu left Ziwu Ridge this time purely to seek help and to develop a base area, which he could not do by relying solely on himself and the people under his command.

Although he claimed he wanted to develop his own territory and army, he couldn't be coy when it came to asking for help or asking for things; the Shaanxi rebels were his best allies.

The most important thing is not just supplies, but also a source of information about the outside world, so that he can always know what is happening outside.

Later generations emphasized the importance of distribution channels, such as material and information channels, which were not things that Wu Chengyu could solve on his own.

His wife, Hong Niangzi, had been operating a rebel army in Shaanxi for many years. These resources were readily available, and it would be the most foolish thing not to make use of them.

When we saw Old Man Liang off from Chang'an last time, he left some contact information.

Tongguan County served as a base for the Song army in those days, and the rebel army always had a liaison point there, instructing Wu Chengyu to seek help there in case of any problems. It was also the closest county to Ziwu Ridge and was extremely prosperous.

(End of this chapter)