He turned around and asked Duan Hu and the other two, "Was the journey smooth?"
"Smooth!" The three of them nodded and took out the maps they carried with them. They marked all the relay stations they had checked along the way.
Niu Youdao had the three of them focus their markings on one map and ask about the situation in detail.
The three of them had checked more than seventy relay stations over the past three days. Only a dozen or so relay stations had received new recruits recently.
Even so, it still attracted Niu Youdao's attention. Zhao Da wasn't the only one who had recently joined the relay station. The relay stations along these three routes alone had more than a dozen new recruits!
It didn't seem like a lot of people, but to Niu Youdao, who had been paying attention to this matter, it was enough to raise his guard!
Niu Youdao used a charcoal pencil to mark the locations of the dozen relay stations. He stared at them and pondered carefully. He didn't know if they had been replenished because they were looking for him, or if they had been specially assigned because of him. There was a huge difference between the two. The difference lay in the number and density of manpower used.
At first, he didn't see anything out of the ordinary. The relay stations weren't all near the fork like Zhao Da had said!
However, he gradually saw some clues. The charcoal pencil drew a circle around the area the three of them had checked. The charcoal pencil was drawn horizontally on the map, erasing most of the area within the circle, leaving only a narrow route area.
After eliminating the messy visual interference, only the obvious routes were shown. The situation immediately became clear.
Even the others gradually began to see some clues. Black Peony pointed at the map from the side and said, "The locations of these stations are very particular. Taoist Grandpa, look at these distribution points. No matter how the nearby routes intersect, as long as one goes to and from this area, one will definitely pass by one of these relay stations. The other points are almost the same. This way, there's no need to have people at every relay station. We can save a lot of manpower. "
Niu Youdao nodded slightly. He could also see it. In that case, it wasn't to replenish manpower at the relay stations, but to specifically target him.
This was in line with his suspicions. If every courier station was staffed, how many people would Yan have to invest in this matter? It was impossible for Yan's spies to abandon other important matters just because of him.
Yuan Fang blinked. "It's much more convenient this way. We just need to figure out the possible relay stations along the way, and we can go around them. We don't need to go around every relay station."
Niu Youdao: "That's not realistic. First of all, we are not familiar with the road and do not know the location of the relay stations. We will only be able to see the relay stations when we get closer. Look at this road, there are three relay stations …" He pointed at a longer route, "If we did not find out that they were planted at the one on the left, would you be able to tell which one it is? Also, along the way, there were many relay stations set up at the bridgehead of the river. People could cross the river by walking on the waves, but what about horses? Take a long detour? Are you tired? If that's the case, then there's no need to ride a horse. It's better to travel on foot. "
Yuan Fang scratched his neck and chuckled. He wanted to say that he hadn't thought about it that carefully.
Black Peony and the others were slightly bewildered. They did not know where exactly he was going. From beginning to end, he refused to travel on foot. Why did he insist on making life difficult for these relay stations? He was clearly making preparations for a long and arduous journey. Just how far was he going to travel, and where was he going?
"There's another problem. Who can guarantee that every place will be exactly as we predicted? Who can guarantee that there won't be extra people set up in a certain place?"
Black Peony: "Daoye, what do you mean?"
Niu Youdao indifferently said, "It's impolite not to reciprocate. It's fine if you don't know, but since you already know, then we'll get rid of all these spies."
Duan Hu asked suspiciously, "Daoye, I'm afraid that just the few of us won't be able to do this, right?"
Niu Youdao: "Of course we can't. Up against an organization like this, it's not something that we, or any ordinary sect, can fight against. The wealth and manpower they can mobilize behind them is not something we can imagine. The Immortal Retaining Sect, Lingxiu Mountain, and Fuyun Sect can just send a few people, and they can force us to flee in panic. The power behind them can command more than just these three sects, and the experts they can send are also far more than just these few people. If we really jump out and fight them head-on, we'll just be courting death! We won't be able to do much. At most, we'll alert the enemy, and we won't be able to bite many. "
Black Peony: "Then what should we do?"
"Let the people with the power to keep them in check do it." Niu Youdao raised his hand and pointed at Duan Hu and Wu Sanliang. "I'll have to trouble the two of you to make another trip."
The two replied, "Please instruct us, Daoye."
Niu Youdao: "Immediately head to the capital of the State of Zhao. Don't stop along the way. Use the fastest speed to get to the capital of the State of Zhao. Find five people: the envoy of the State of Han, Zhuge Xun; the envoy of the State of Song, Tu Huaiyu; the envoy of the State of Jin, Chu Xiangyu; the envoy of the State of Wei, Sui Pao; and the envoy of the State of Qi, Zuo Annian. Once you find the five people, don't say anything else. Just tell them the story of how the Yan spies planted in the courier stations. Don't say who they're targeting. They'll naturally be alerted and notify the imperial courts to investigate as soon as possible!"
Originally, he was only worried about the State of Han, because that was his destination. However, if he targeted the State of Han, he might be suspected of exposing his whereabouts. Thus, he didn't care whether there were spies in other places or not. He didn't need to do anything anyway.
As for whether or not the Yan spies had made such arrangements in the various countries, he didn't know. At the very least, once the various countries made their move, even if they didn't help him scare away the possible dangers, they could at least alert the snake and scare all the possible spies along the way into hiding. This way, he wouldn't have to worry about this aspect of his journey.
Otherwise, looking at the current situation, just because of this little bit of trouble, he had already delayed his journey for several days. He didn't dare to make a move. The power behind the other party was simply too great. No matter how confident he was, he couldn't be so arrogant as to think that he could clash with them alone.
Black Peony and the others were slightly surprised. They couldn't figure out who the envoys of the various countries were because they weren't within the scope of their usual attention. However, they discovered that Niu Youdao's door was very clear, and all of them reported it smoothly. It seemed that the knowledge of those who had mingled in the government was indeed different.
Wu Sanliang said rather worriedly, "Daoye, with our identities, I'm afraid they might not even meet us. I'm afraid we won't even be able to enter their door."
Duan Hu nodded in agreement. This worry wasn't without reason. None of these people were ordinary people. They were protected by experts, and it was very difficult to approach them openly or secretly. Those people wouldn't meet just anyone.
Niu Youdao said, "Don't worry. When you visit them, you can just report my name. Just say that Niu Youdao asked you to bring a message. They will naturally meet you."
Black Peony and the others looked at each other. Did he have that much face?
Actually, it wasn't about face or not. They had all met face to face before. When the incident happened in Jinzhou that night, everyone was present. Niu Youdao knew very well that if they had a problem, they might not necessarily be able to ask those people for help. However, if they met and passed on a message or something, they would definitely be curious and willing to meet them.
Black Peony asked, "Daoye, how will they meet us when we get back?"
Niu Youdao pointed at a location on the map. "Beishan County. After the two of you leave the capital, head straight here. Just wait for us at the largest inn in the county."
"Okay!" The two of them nodded in agreement.
Niu Youdao turned around and asked for a pen and paper. In front of everyone, he wrote a letter that none of them could understand. He then handed it to Yuan Fang. "Disguise yourself and immediately head to Star picking City. Find the store of the Ten Thousand Heavenly Cave Manor. Find the shopkeeper and report my name. Have them send this letter to the Jinzhou Provincial Governor's Office. After that, don't come back here again. Just go straight back to Prince's place and wait for me. "
Black Peony and the others secretly looked at each other. This was the Ten Thousand Heavenly Cave Manor, the Jinzhou Provincial Governor's Office, and now the Prince's. It looked like they had quite the background. No wonder they could meet the envoys of the five nations just by reporting their names.
However, they didn't understand. The Ten Thousand Heavenly Cave Manor was one of the largest sects in the State of Zhao. With this level of relationship, why were they still being chased away by the other three sects?
No matter what, the information revealed by these words secretly raised the spirits of Black Peony and the others. They were filled with hope for the future. As long as they followed this Daoye closely, the background he had just revealed would naturally become their background.
This was better than founding a sect. It was very difficult for those small sects to integrate into such a background. They would be ostracized by the other forces.
Now, it seemed that they had found a shortcut by accident. They were secretly overjoyed.
Only Lei Zongkang lowered his head slightly. He was a little ashamed. He was short-sighted and had eyes but failed to see. He regretted not listening to Black Peony!
But in reality, he had been targeted by the Retain Immortal Sect at that time. Looking at the situation at that time, he didn't have much choice.
And for Niu Youdao, revealing this background in front of them was also intentional. He wanted to send them away to do things. He wanted them to understand that only when there was hope would they do their best. Only then would there be fewer accidents!
Yuan Fang was stunned for a moment. "Daoye, I think I'll come find you directly later."
He was becoming more and more confident in Niu Youdao's abilities. He didn't think that there would be any danger by following Niu Youdao. This trip had broadened his horizons. He wanted to continue following him to broaden his horizons.
Niu Youdao shook his head. "Did you forget the book I gave you at the Moon Inviting Inn? I won't stay here and wait for you. After we split up, it's inconvenient to contact each other on the way. It'll be difficult for us to meet up. And I don't know how much effort the culprit has put into this area. I'm worried about you running around alone. Also, take out the money you have. I need it on the way. "
When he thought of the Record of Exotic Beasts, Yuan Fang's heart trembled. He nodded repeatedly. "Okay! But how do I get back to you? "
But when he heard that the other party needed money, he wailed inwardly. Just thinking about the way this person spent money made his heart ache. He was a complete wastrel!
But he couldn't make the decision. He took out the money reluctantly.
"I have my own arrangements in the letter. You don't need to worry." Niu Youdao counted eighty gold notes and handed them to Black Peony. He let Yuan Fang keep the rest. After everything was arranged, he waved his hand and said, "Alright, do as I say. Fill your stomachs and we'll set off immediately!"
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