Only when the figure completely disappeared into the darkness of the forest did A Wu dare to stop and lean against a tree.
Despite wearing cloth socks on her feet, she still felt a sharp pain from being pricked by stones and dead branches. She trembled as she put on her shoes.
It was almost pitch - black in the forest. The moonlight was fragmented by the overlapping tree canopies.
It wasn't quiet all around. The chirping of insects came one after another, and occasionally there was the rustling sound of small animals shuttling through the grass and leaves. Every sound made her jump with fright.
She was afraid of disturbing any living thing and attracting unnecessary attention. So she just groped forward in the dark for a short distance. Finally, she chose a thick bush, pushed aside the branches and leaves, and curled up inside to hide.
The half - wet short jacket on her body had dried under the baking near the cremation furnace. She unfolded it, tightly hugged the child in her arms, and wrapped the two of them up tightly with the thick cloth. In this tiny space, they were silent, merging with this dangerous and menacing night.
A Wu didn't dare to close her eyes all night.
It was not until the sky began to turn pale with the first light of dawn that the hazy light penetrated the dense forest and gradually outlined the surrounding contours. Only then did she realize that they were in a remote and uninhabited forest. The trees were sparsely spaced, and there were thick shrubs under the forest.
Perhaps because there was a cremation site nearby, there didn't seem to be any villages around, and there were no signs of human activities in the forest. This made her tense nerves relax a little.
She lowered her head and met a pair of wide - open eyes.
The little prince had woken up at some point and was quietly lying in her arms. His once clear and bright eyes were now bloodshot and frighteningly red.
He bit his lower lip tightly. Even in the dim light, A Wu could see his small body trembling slightly, but he didn't let out a single sob or whimper.
A Wu sighed silently in her heart. The little prince was already four years old. Born into the royal family and being precocious, he must have understood the fall of the palace and the separation of life and death.
"A Wu..." he murmured extremely softly and slowly, his voice so weak that it seemed to be fading away, "My mother... "
"Only we have escaped," A Wu's voice was very low but extremely clear, as if she wanted to engrave every word in his heart. "Your Highness, from now on, the only thing we have to do is to survive."
She looked into the child's eyes, speaking slowly and heavily, word by word: "No matter how sad and scared you are now, even if it's just to remember last night, you must survive. Only by living and growing up can you do what you want to do."
The child's body trembled slightly. He didn't ask any more questions but just buried his head even lower.
He still remembered that after his father went out one ordinary morning, he never came back. His mother hugged him and shed silent tears. The people he was familiar with disappeared one by one, just like his father, silently. He vaguely understood what that meant and also knew that it would sooner or later be his mother's turn, and then his own.
When his mother calmly drank that cup of wine, the fire outside the window was terrifyingly red. But the door of the side hall was locked, and they couldn't get out. They could only quietly wait for death to come inside.
"I will take good care of you," A Wu's gentle voice pulled him out of his memories.
"We will both survive," she said firmly, her eyes shining astonishingly in the dim light of the forest.
The prince and the princess had once saved little her, allowing six - year - old A Wu to grow up safely until now.
The Eastern Palace had fallen, and her benefactors had suffered misfortune. She couldn't take on the heavy burden of the country's power, nor could she bear the responsibility of avenging the great injustice. But she had taken in this child. This was all the past and future that she could take on.
She took a deep breath. The cold morning air in the forest rushed into her nostrils, making her more awake. She stood up, wrapped the short jacket around again, and tightened it.
The clothes on the little prince were still quite thick. She carefully tidied up his collar and patted off the dewdrops and leaves.
"Let's go."
She took his cold little hand and didn't choose to go deeper into the forest. Instead, she tried to climb up along the higher ground, pushing aside the waist - high weeds and thorny bushes with great difficulty.
She needed to find a place with a wide view to see the layout of this forest and the possible threats they might face.
As the terrain gradually got higher, A Wu pushed aside the last thick bush, and suddenly, a broad view unfolded before her eyes. They were now in a relatively open area on the mountainside. She cautiously crouched down and looked into the distance.
On the other side of the mountain, in the thin morning mist, several wisps of cooking smoke were rising in the distance, and there were sporadic thatched cottages in sight.
There was human habitation, but it also meant danger for them.
She immediately retracted her body and hid back behind the dense forest.
The trees and shrubs here were thick enough to hide in. But the dangers came not only from people but also from hunger, thirst, the cold at night, and the snakes, insects, wild beasts in the forest.
The most urgent thing was water and food. After the thrilling night, both of them were extremely hungry.
Without strength, everything would be in vain.
However, finding a water source was not the most important thing at this time because the raw water might have parasites. In this desolate mountain, if they got sick because of it, all their efforts would be in vain. So before they could boil the water, they could only rely on wild fruits to replenish moisture.
"We have to find something to fill our stomachs first," she squatted down and looked at the little prince at eye level. "Follow me. We'll step gently on the rocks and tree roots. You can hold on to the nearby tree trunks, but don't use too much force. If there's anything, you must call me right away."
The child nodded vigorously.
A Wu broke off two branches of moderate thickness, carefully removed the protruding twigs, and gave the smaller one to him. "The stick can be used to explore the way and also to support us when walking. It'll help us save some energy." She demonstrated by waving the stick in the grass in front and then taking a couple of steps while supporting herself with it on the ground.
The child closely followed behind A Wu, imitating her actions, lifting his legs high and landing gently, making almost no sound.
For the rest of the journey, they were like two cautious wildcats moving in the silent forest. A Wu kept scanning the surroundings non - stop. The path she chose was tricky and hidden, trying to avoid the soft soil as much as possible.
"Look over there," A Wu suddenly stopped and pointed to a low - lying bush not far away, which was densely covered with small, dark - purple berries. "They're Chinese bayberries."
There was a hint of excitement in her voice. She quickly stepped forward, picked a few, wiped them on the relatively clean inner sleeve of her clothes, and put one into her own mouth first.
The familiar sweet - and - sour taste spread on her tongue. Then she put the remaining berries into the child's palm. "These are edible. They're very sweet."
The child was obviously extremely hungry. He imitated her and stuffed the berries into his mouth. The sweet - and - sour juice made him squint his eyes involuntarily, and his tense little face also seemed to relax a bit.
"We need a container to carry some with us," A Wu looked around, and her eyes fixed on some flexible wild vines a few steps away.
While she started to gather those strong vines and remove the leaves, she naturally gave an order: "Your Highness, please help pick more Chinese bayberries. We'll eat them on the way."
"Okay," the child replied, deftly picking with his little hands.
He picked a large handful and handed them to A Wu. Then he looked up at her seriously and said, "A Wu, you can't call me the little prince anymore from now on."
He knew that the three words "the little prince", along with his original name, Xiao Chenyao, had disappeared in last night's fire.
Lin Wu paused in her actions, looked at his tense little face, and felt as if something had gently bumped into her heart. She followed his words and softly asked, "Then what should I call you?"
