Qin Nuan walked out of Xiaoxiang Pavilion and headed up the mountain.
The directors had given a simple riddle. The villager probably lost a cow, and that’s why she chose a rope.
As for what sort of cow it was and where it was right now, Qin Nuan still had no idea.
A thin layer of mist covered the mountain early in the morning, and the birds could be heard chirping in the forest.
Qin Nuan had not walked for very long in the mountains when the sun shone through the mist and into the forest. She looked up at the sun and chose to walk towards the southern side of the mountain. The soil there was very fertile, and the grass was luscious there.
She walked for quite a bit, and her entire face was covered with perspiration before she finally made it halfway up the mountain. She stopped to rest for a while when she suddenly noticed that someone was sitting in the middle of the mountain road.
His complexion was fair and smooth, had handsome facial features, and looked like he had traveled from the past. On top of that, his long white robe and fan in hand made him look like a gentlemanly aristocrat.
He sat elegantly in the middle of the mountain road and started speaking when he saw Qin Nuan, “My name is Jiang Yunze, and I am the mountain god of this place. Young lady, why are you here?”
Jiang Yunze?
Qin Nuan quickly recalled that Jiang Yunze was an actor who had starred as the tragic second male lead of many dramas set in ancient China. He was also a guest on the first season of Adventures in the Wild.
Since he appeared here, he was probably the special guest for this episode. He was also probably holding onto the second pouch that the staff had prepared.
When she realized this, Qin Nuan bowed and said, “Mountain god, I have come to the mountains to search for a cow that a villager of Yunzhong Village has lost. Since you are the guardian of this land and have eyes and ears everywhere in this place, I’m sure you know where the lost cow has gone. Mountain God, please give me a hint.”
Jiang Yunze looked down and laughed when he heard what she said. He folded his fan again. “Hmm…I will be honest with you. Last night, I did see a cow in the vicinity. But if you want a hint, then you have to play a round of chess with me. I can only tell you if you win a game against me.”
Qin Nuan bowed again. “Mountain god, please bestow your teachings on me.”
Jiang Yunze allowed Qin Nuan to choose which type of chess she wanted to play, and after thinking for a while, she chose to Go.
The staff quickly carried the chess set over. They had everything prepared.
Qin Nuan knelt next to the chessboard. She had learned how to play Go from the orphanage director. When she was younger, the orphanage director had been a middle school teacher, loved playing Go, and had even won national competitions. Since Qin Nuan was so interested in the game, she taught Qin Nuan as if Qin Nuan were her daughter.
Qin Nuan was naturally intelligent and very opportunistic. Once she had the chance to learn something, she wouldn’t let that chance go.
So she was actually pretty good at playing Go.
Jiang Yunze wasn’t a professional at the game, so Qin Nuan won very easily.
She took the pouch that Jiang Yunze gave her, opened it, and found a poem inside. “I work like a cow for you, and I sing of the southern mountains.”
It was a poem by Su Shi.
Based on the literal meaning of the words, the poem only mentioned a place: the southern mountains. That was the same direction in which she was walking. The second pouch’s clues weren’t beneficial since she had already made it here.
Qin Nuan then glanced at the fan in Jiang Yunze’s hands. A poem was also written on it. “Send away the past, and fewer people can be seen.”
But before she could look at it carefully, Jiang Yunze folded the fan again. He carried the chessboard and disappeared with the staff again.
Qin Nuan continued walking up the mountain.
Over on the other side, the director was watching the screens in Xiaoxiang Pavilion. After he finished watching what Qin Nuan did on her end, he turned to look at an assistant next to him. “Did you check her information properly? Why does she know everything?”
The assistant looked like he had been wrongly accused. He found his file on Qin Nuan and read it to the director, “Qin Nuan, born December 12th, 2000. From City A. A new artiste signed to Warm Hues Media Entertainment. She has never been part of any product before.”
The director looked at how her photo took up half the page, but actual information on her spanned only two lines and twitched his lips.
The video on the screens continued to play, and Qin Nuan soon found a place with cows.
Su Wanyu had walked until her heels cracked, and she chose to give up on the mission, so the staff helped her down the mountain.
Zhou Qingshu played a round of Chinese chess with Jiang Yunze, got the pouch, and continued walking into the mountains.
Hao Bai walked in the wrong direction and didn’t run into Jiang Yunze. But he had made it to the top of the mountain, so if he continued walking, he would eventually reach the place where Qin Nuan was.