Meanwhile, Yuan Si followed the fleeing Brother Bao. He must have been scared out of his wits, for he stumbled and staggered the whole way. When he first ran out of the village, he was still carrying a large machete. Once clear of the village, however, he looked at the blade in his hand, hurled it far away, and then took off at a dead run.
Yuan Si followed behind, cleaning up his mess. 'Why would he just toss a machete at the village entrance? I guess I'll hold onto it for now.'
And so it went, one person running obliviously ahead, the other patiently pursuing from behind. After running all night, just as the sky began to brighten, Brother Bao finally entered the mountains.
Yuan Si sized up the mountain before her and nodded. 'This is the largest and most verdant mountain in the area. These bandits certainly have a good eye.' It was true; if someone unfamiliar with the terrain were to duck into these mountains, they wouldn't be found for a good long while.
