After being tortured like this, no one could be at ease tonight.
The next day, Shopkeeper Gao went to the backyard to find Yuan Gang. After staying up all night, he smiled wearily and said, "Boss, the Third Young Master has been found. Everyone can rest assured."
He had been waiting for news from the Huyan family. After all, Huyanwei's travel expenses were provided by Yuan Gang.
Yuan Gang asked, "Where did you find him?"
Shopkeeper Gao replied, "Alas, he didn't run too far. We caught him two hundred li away. He was chased and hid in a haystack in a pasture. They found him and brought him back early this morning. Oh, he was in such a sorry state. He was covered in grass. Why did he have to suffer? "
Yuan Gang was speechless. He didn't know what to say about Huyanwei. He was too useless. He was caught just like that. If he didn't have the ability, why would he run?
Little did he know that the Huyan family didn't know where Huyan Wei had run off to in the beginning. However, this matter had alarmed the Emperor. How could Vast Cloud Map let Huyan Wei escape? He immediately ordered the administrative office to find him. Soon, he had set his eyes on Huyan Wei, who had gone to a farm to change horses.
The school affairs office didn't directly arrest him. Hao Yun Tu also wanted to save face. How could he forcibly arrest someone who didn't want to marry his own daughter?
In any case, someone secretly sent the news to the Huyan family. The Huyan family could do as they saw fit.
The Huyan family immediately issued a military order. They mobilized the Valiant Cavalry in the direction where Huyanwei escaped to.
Thousands of cavalrymen swept across just to catch Huyanwei. Moreover, the target was clear. There were also cultivators cooperating with them. Where could Huyanwei, a lonely stray dog, run to? Just like that, they caught Huyanwei and brought him back!
Shopkeeper Gao took out three gold notes with a face value of one thousand. "Boss, the Third Young Master borrowed money from you. The Great General asked us to return it to you. He asked us to settle Third Young Master's debt."
Yuan Gang took it. The debt note was also on him. He casually took it out and gave it to Shopkeeper Gao. He asked, "What should we do after we catch him?"
Shopkeeper Gao sighed. "That's miserable. Once we caught him, the Great General ordered us to punish him. The Third Young Master was beaten until he wailed like a ghost and howled like a wolf. He said that he wouldn't dare to do it again. The Third Young Master probably wouldn't be able to get off the bed and walk in the short term, let alone escape. Sigh, Boss, if there's nothing else, I'll go get busy. "
Yuan Gang nodded silently.
Not long after, a piece of news spread out and shook the entire Capital of Qi.
It was rumored that during the morning court session, Great General Huyan Wuhen suddenly proposed to the Emperor in front of all the officials. He proposed to marry Eldest Princess Hao Qingqing on behalf of his son Huyan Wei. The Emperor readily agreed in front of all the officials.
Words of gold and jade cannot be taken lightly. What is done cannot be undone.
As for the parties involved, neither the man nor the woman had the right to refuse!
But for some people, this wasn't what they were concerned about.
Amidst the clouds, Su Zhao and Qin Mian stood in front of a map. Qin Mian pointed at the map and gestured to the east. "Judging from the route, it's obvious that we're going to leave Qi Kingdom and return to Yan Kingdom!"
They received news that someone had inadvertently seen Niu Youdao and a disciple of the Heavenly Jade School in disguise along the way. When they received the news, they immediately sent people in that area to investigate. Sure enough, they found a disciple of the Heavenly Jade School in disguise.
"I knew that scoundrel was cunning!" Su Zhao gritted her teeth. She didn't dare to voice out her suspicions. Now that the results had confirmed her suspicions, she said decisively, "Contact the higher-ups immediately and request the cooperation of the other Halls. We must intercept him at all costs! Once he escapes back to Qingshan County, the organization will have to pay a heavy price if we want to touch him again when he's in their territory. We must not let him escape! "
She had long wanted to get rid of Niu Youdao. Now that she had obtained permission from the higher-ups, she would naturally do her best.
"Yes!" Qin Mian responded and quickly left.
However, not long after she left, Qin Mian returned in a hurry. She said, "That scoundrel Niu is cunning. He's still misleading us by heading east. He's heading west." She flashed a secret letter in her hand. "It says that Niu Youdao is already far away from our territory. It says that even if we rush over, it'll be too late. They're asking us not to act rashly, lest we get exposed!"
"He went west?" Su Zhao was surprised. "Is it confirmed?"
Qin Mian said, "The higher-ups must have obtained reliable information to be able to directly send us an order. Otherwise, they wouldn't have asked us to stop the operation!"
Su Zhao looked at the map again. "He went west. Where is he now?"
"The higher-ups didn't tell us the details. They only said that they wanted us to stop the operation. However, since they said that he's far away from our territory, even if we rush over, it'll be too late. Niu Youdao should be near the sea. Once he escapes to the sea, he can hide anywhere. It'll be impossible to find him again. "Qin Mian pointed in the direction of the Qi Kingdom's territorial waters.
Su Zhao's heart skipped a beat when she heard that Niu Youdao had gone to the sea. She was worried that Niu Youdao would make a move on the warhorses.
However, on second thought, she realized that she was worrying too much. The warhorses from the Northern Prefecture had long gone out to sea. There was no point for Niu Youdao to go there now. Moreover, the fleet had always been in contact with them. The fleet had already gone north and was now far away from the coast of the Qi Kingdom.
Moreover, it was unlikely that Niu Youdao knew about the warhorses.
It was more likely that Niu Youdao already knew that the Waning Moon Pavilion wanted to deal with him. He knew that the Waning Moon Pavilion was too powerful and that it wasn't safe to travel by land, so he wanted to escape by sea.
After figuring this out, Su Zhao heaved a sigh of relief, but at the same time, he gnashed his teeth in hatred. "He betrayed Linghu Qiu and secretly ran away, leaving us confused. He then released the news that he and Linghu Qiu had fallen into the hands of the imperial court as bait to attract our attention and continue to cover his escape. Now he's saying that he's going east, but he's actually fleeing west. This thief is truly treacherous! "
Qin Mian sighed. "Yes! This thief's plan seems simple, but it's actually very clever. Every part of his plan is carefully planned and well concealed. He's managed to slip away from us for so long, but we still haven't been able to see through him. He's led us here and there by our noses. We're so confused that we can't gather our forces to pursue and kill him. This time, if it weren't for the fact that the higher-ups had grasped the situation in time and gathered their forces to chase after him in the east, I'm afraid he would have already escaped by sea by the time the trap was revealed. "
She looked up at the map. "He should be reaching the coast soon. I hope the higher-ups can make it in time. Otherwise, we'll be in big trouble!"
Su Zhao sneered. "We won't be in big trouble. At most, we'll just let him be for a while!"
Qin Mian remained silent. She couldn't tell her that Wei Chu had faked his death because it was too important.
Why did the higher-ups want to kill Niu Youdao in the Kingdom of Qi at all costs?
The reason was simple. Even Linghu Qiu didn't know, so Niu Youdao naturally didn't know that Wei Chu was faking his death. As long as Niu Youdao was still in the Kingdom of Qi, Niu Youdao wouldn't dare to spread the news. However, once Niu Youdao left the Kingdom of Qi and the Jin King's sphere of influence, who could guarantee that Niu Youdao wouldn't mention it to others? Would Wei Chu still be alive then?
The setting sun on the grassland was a splendid sight.
The herdsmen on horseback waved their long poles to drive the cows, sheep, and horses into their pens.
In the distance, five riders galloped over. It was Niu Youdao's group of five.
The riders gradually slowed down and merged with the herd of cows and sheep. Naturally, they were asking who the owner of the ranch was to change horses.
A young girl pointed to an old man standing on a wooden platform by the fence in front of them. That was the owner of the ranch.
As the five of them slowly trotted over on their horses, a man carrying a long pole galloped over and stopped the five of them with the pole.
The five of them stopped their horses and looked at him. The man was also scrutinizing them.
Niu Youdao smiled and asked, "Friend, why are you stopping us?"
The man stared at him for a while and said, "If I'm not mistaken, you should be Niu Youdao."
As soon as the man said this, the five of them looked calm on the surface, but they were shocked on the inside.
Niu Youdao stroked the beard on his cheeks and narrowed his eyes. "We don't understand what you're saying, friend."
The man stretched his hand into his bosom and took out a token. He showed it to the five of them. The token was engraved with a sinister eagle with a pair of intimidating eyes.
The corner of Guan Fangyi's mouth twitched. She looked at Niu Youdao's reaction and realized that Niu Youdao didn't seem to recognize him. She urged her horse closer and whispered, "Someone from the administrative office."
"This must be Hong Niang!" The man asked. He slowly kept the token in his hand and suddenly said in a serious tone, "His Majesty has an imperial decree. The five of you are to take a short rest and return to the capital tomorrow to discuss important matters!"
Now that the other party had said it to this extent, Niu Youdao understood that the secret of his whereabouts has always been under the control of the Vast Cloud Map. Slowly he asked, "May I know what important matters they have to discuss?"
"It's not mentioned and it's not my place to ask. A place to rest has already been prepared for you. Please! "The man extended his hand in invitation and turned his horse to lead the way.
The four people on the left and right looked at Niu Youdao.
Niu Youdao kicked the horse's belly with his heels and followed the other party. At the same time, he observed his surroundings.
The four people looked at each other and followed.
When they arrived at the farm, there were indeed tents prepared for them to rest in. Food and drinks were also prepared in the tents. It was obvious that not only did they know their whereabouts, they even knew when they would arrive.
After checking the food and drinks and confirming that there were no problems, Niu Youdao ate and drank in silence.
He didn't expect that they would only need half a day at most to reach their destination. Just when he thought that he could successfully escape, he didn't expect that someone from the administrative office would appear and ask them to stop. At this moment, there were many things on his mind.
Guan Fangyi grumbled and grumbled that they had to go back again. They had traveled for so many days for nothing.
When they were done eating and drinking, Niu Youdao gave Guan Fangyi a look. The latter followed him out of the tent and took a stroll in the farm while bathing in the afterglow of the setting sun.
Someone was carrying a sheepskin water bag and feeding water to the animals. Guan Fangyi's eyes immediately lit up. "It's so dirty. I'll ask them for some water to wash them."
Niu Youdao stopped her. "Let Xu Laoliu and Uncle Chen check out the people here. If there are no cultivators and no one is stopping us, we'll leave immediately after dark!"
Guan Fangyi, who had just taken two steps, stopped and turned around. She was stunned. "You want to defy the imperial decree?"
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