The seal on the courier's body had already been removed. However, his body trembled violently a few times before his eyes bulged and he stopped moving. Black blood flowed from the corner of his mouth.
Duan Hu looked embarrassed. "Daoye, I was careless."
After running back and forth, he finally locked onto the target and wanted to interrogate the Empress Dowager. In the end, he messed it up. He was truly ashamed.
Niu Youdao casually pulled a piece of clothing from the room and threw it on the ground. He quickly tiptoed to the courier's neck to prevent the blood from dripping onto the floor. Then, he turned back and said, "It's not your fault. Who would have thought that a spy at a relay station would be a death warrior … but be careful next time."
"Yes!" Duan Hu nodded awkwardly. He really did not do his job well.
Niu Youdao looked around the room. "Search carefully. Don't miss any suspicious clues. Remember to reset everything that you've searched."
"Yes!" Duan Hu replied and immediately rummaged through the room.
Niu Youdao was not idle either. However, he was not in a hurry to act. Instead, he slowly checked with his hands behind his back.
Soon, the birdcage on the roof was found. There were a few feathers of the Golden Wing inside. Niu Youdao picked them up and looked at them before asking him to put them back on the roof.
A piece of folded paper was found under the mattress. Duan Hu opened it and was stunned. "Daoye, look!"
Niu Youdao, who was squatting on the ground to check the courier's body, looked up and took the paper. His pupils shrank as he stared at the portrait. He slowly stood up and asked, "Does it look like me?"
Duan Hu said, "The face is at least 70% similar. Including the hair that Daoye tied at the back, it's 90% similar."
Niu Youdao's expression gradually turned solemn. He knew ink painting and could even appraise the authenticity of antique calligraphy and paintings. He was an expert in certain aspects, so he could tell at a glance that the portrait was not a painting but a printed one!
Slowly, he turned back to look at the poisoned blood on the corner of the courier's mouth. "Stop searching. Reset everything. Take the corpse out and dispose of it. Don't leave any traces. Also, disguise yourself and return to this relay station. Find a way to bribe a courier and find out this person's background. "
"Alright!" Duan Hu nodded.
Niu Youdao kept the painting and walked to the window to take a look outside. When there was no one around, he slipped out and disappeared into the forest behind.
After returning to a place several kilometers away and meeting up with Yuan Fang and Black Peony, Black Peony asked, "Daoye, how was it?"
Niu Youdao took out the portrait and held it between his fingers.
Black Peony opened it to take a look, and Yuan Fang also poked his head over. When they saw the person in the painting, the two of them looked at each other.
"Daoye, did you find this in the relay station?" Yuan Fang asked.
Niu Youdao, who was standing with his hands clasped behind his back, did not utter a word and was deep in thought.
There was actually a portrait of himself in the relay station. Even though he had some suspicions before, it still exceeded his expectations after seeing it for himself. The deeper meaning behind it made his heart sink.
The portraits were printed, and if they were to be printed, they would have to be engraved. There was no need to go through so much trouble if there were only a few portraits. This meant that there were a lot of portraits of him. What was the mastermind trying to do by making so many portraits of him? Naturally, they had to find him!
And that courier was actually a kamikaze soldier!
There were two types of kamikaze soldiers. One was soldiers who fought with their lives on the line, and the other was those who carried secrets that could not be revealed. The courier was obviously the latter!
He did not have any enemies within the borders of the State of Zhao. Again, those who could run to the borders of the State of Zhao to kill him were either from the Yan imperial court or the Song family!
Combining this point, then who was this kamikaze soldier with secrets?
Would the Song family send someone who was not a cultivator but an ordinary person with secrets to deal with him? Not likely!
In addition, the secret confrontation a few days ago had already faintly revealed that this person's influence was not to be underestimated. The Song family did have power in the Yan kingdom, but their influence was not so great that they could quickly gather their forces in a remote area of another kingdom. This should be beyond the scope of the Song family's ability!
Combining all the clues from before and after, the answer was obvious. It was a secret agent planted by the Yan imperial court in the State of Zhao!
Combined with the large number of portraits, Niu Youdao realized that the Yan imperial court had used the power of the state to find his whereabouts. Once he was found, he would naturally be killed. This was the consequence of him killing the envoy of the Yan imperial court!
This also solved his previous doubts. Why did the person who bought his life not contact the people of the three sects? The secret agent planted by the Yan imperial court in the State of Zhao would not be easily exposed. It was very unlikely that he would be in contact with Gao Sucong and the others who were hunting him.
As for the portrait in the hands of the Immortal Retaining Sect, although he did not know if it was the same version as this one, since both sides had used the same portrait, he already had his suspicions. Either the Song Clan obtained it from the Imperial Court, or the Imperial Court obtained it from the Song Clan.
Lei Zongkang, who was waiting outside, led Duan Hu and Wu Saner back.
Jumping off the horse, Duan Hu quickly walked to the side of Niu Youdao and reported, "Daoye, I spent a few gold coins and found out from a courier. The deceased was called Zhao Da. He used to be a Groom who drove horses in the nearby city. Later, he was admired by a member of the imperial court and helped him become a courier. He just arrived at the station about ten days ago."
"Ten days ago …" Niu Youdao muttered and raised his hand, "Map!"
The few of them seemed to be used to his habit of looking at maps. Yuan Fang took out the map and showed it to Duan Hu.
Niu Youdao stared at the map that was as dense as a web. He didn't know if there were spies at this relay station or if there were spies at all the relay stations. He hoped that only that relay station had spies and he just happened to run into them. However, he knew that this was just a way of comforting himself.
He also did not know if it was because he was certain that his men were in the State of Zhao and had spread his network throughout the entire State of Zhao, or if he had spread his network to all the other countries.
He had never stood at the height of a country's power and did not know how powerful it was. However, when he thought about the fact that there were many courier stations along the way to Han, he felt somewhat uneasy.
He could avoid the courier stations and travel on foot. He could also disguise himself and spread out to avoid attracting attention.
However, there were many inconveniences in this. It was not a good idea to keep hiding when there were so many people coming and going. Also, he did not know how many portraits had been distributed, and he did not know who had gotten their hands on them. He did not know if he could avoid one end, and this made his heart heavy.
"Duan Hu, Wu Saner, Lei Zongkang." Niu Youdao called the three of them over and pointed to the map, "After the three of you disguise yourselves, set off from this fork in three different routes. Do not miss a single courier station along the way. Bribe the couriers one by one and see if there are any new couriers like Zhao Da. Mark the locations of the courier stations on the map. Three days later at this hour, we'll meet here! "
He could not be sure if there were spies in the courier stations all along, or if Zhao Da was just a special case, or if there was something else going on.
The three of them could not understand what he was doing. If there was a problem with the courier stations, they could just avoid them. There was no need to compete with the courier stations. However, they still cupped their hands and said, "Yes!"
Niu Youdao said, "Spend some money to find a courier station to exchange horses along the way. Do not rest while the horses rest. Set off immediately!"
"Yes!" The three of them received the order and immediately changed their appearances. Then, they rode out of the forest and arrived at a fork in the road.
After the three of them left, Niu Youdao did not linger. He continued deep into the mountains and went far away from this place to hide …
Inside Quan Residence's study in Chi Zhou Prefecture.
Quan Shaokang, who was sitting behind the desk, had a tense expression on his face. "Still no news?"
A courier station reported to their superior that they had suddenly lost a courier. They did not know where the courier had gone and did not return home. On the surface, it seemed like a simple matter of losing a courier. However, when the news spread, it immediately alerted them because they knew the courier's true identity.
Butler Quan Qiao said, "We're still looking for him at the courier station. I don't know if he got lost in the mountains."
Quan Shaokang said, "He just happened to send a message and he went missing. Do you think it's such a coincidence? Perhaps he has already fallen into the hands of Niu Youdao. "
Quan Qiao hesitated. "He was only in charge of sending a message. He wouldn't have done anything else. There are so many courier stations along the way. How could Niu Youdao lock onto that courier station and him? That doesn't seem very possible! "
Quan Shaokang slowly stood up. "It's hard to say. This Niu Youdao is not an ordinary person. I noticed it the moment we exchanged blows. Within Cloud Crossing Mountain's sphere of influence, he was actually able to force Cloud Crossing Mountain's people to admit defeat, stop fighting, and compensate them with money. The second time, he was found at the same courier station by the same informant. After that, no one found any trace of him. The second time he showed up at that courier station, there's definitely something wrong. He must have been targeted! "
He walked out of the desk and paced back and forth with his hands behind his back. Suddenly, he stopped and said, "For safety's sake, immediately notify those who have direct contact with the missing person to move. Immediately contact all the courier stations within Crimson Province for the same mission to enter a state of silence. All those who have direct contact with the missing person to move!"
Quan Qiao said, "The higher-ups …"
Quan Shaokang said, "Execute it immediately! I'll explain to the higher-ups. "
"Yes!" Quan Qiao accepted the order.
Three days later, the appointed time was approaching.
In a valley, Niu Youdao had just sent Black Peony to fetch Duan Hu and the other two when he summoned Yuan Fang. "I'll go to other places to observe. You go and hide along the way. See if there's anyone following them. If there's no one, come back and light the pile of firewood I piled yesterday at the back of the valley, then meet up with them. If there's anyone following them, don't come back. Go directly to this place. I'll meet you there. "The map pointed to a location.
"Okay!" Yuan Fang understood what he meant. He nodded and quickly left.
Niu Youdao looked around and disappeared into the depths of the mountain forest.
Thus, when Black Peony brought Duan Hu and the other two back, they discovered that there was no one in the valley. They looked everywhere but couldn't find anyone.
Unable to find anyone, Black Peony could only shout, "Daoye … Daoye …"
After a while, Yuan Fang's voice sounded. "What are you shouting for? Daoye has something to do. He'll be back soon."
The few of them turned around and saw Yuan Fang flash out of the mountain forest at the side.
After a while, Wu Sanliang pointed to the back of the valley. "Look, there's smoke behind the mountain."
The few of them looked over and indeed saw smoke rising from the back of the mountain. They immediately flew over to investigate.
When they arrived at the back of the mountain, they saw a pile of firewood burning fiercely, but no one was in sight.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
