Qiao Lian'er's eyes lit up, but after carefully examining Gao Shuying's expression, she felt a sense of unease.

"Sister Gao, you must be tired from your journey. Please come in and have a seat."

As he spoke, he led Gao Shuying's horse to the stable and tied it up.

The two horses looked each other up and down as soon as they met, sniffing each other.

But when they realized that the other two were both male, they looked disappointed, turned their heads away, and ignored each other.

Gao Shuying was indeed thirsty.

He entered the courtyard and looked around, exclaiming, "Little girl, your family is really capable to have built such a spacious and beautiful courtyard in the countryside."

It was already stunning from the outside, but once inside, the layout was well-organized, interesting, and aesthetically pleasing, adding an extra layer of surprise.

After sitting down in the living room, Mrs. Feng brought out tea.

"Young lady, have you had lunch yet? We just ate at home, let me heat it up for you."

"I've already eaten in town." Gao Shuying smiled. "No need to trouble you, Auntie."

After Madam Feng left, Gao Shuying took a sip of tea and felt much more comfortable on her lips and tongue. It was a good tea, but she had no interest in savoring its aftertaste.

In town, she only bought two steamed buns to fill her stomach.

"Lian'er, I want to apologize to you."

Qiao Lian'er's heart skipped a beat.

"Sister Gao, you haven't found them?"

Gao Shuying's face, which looked haggard from days of travel, carried a somber expression.

"I rode at full speed and traveled to all the major cities in the prefecture. I also used all the connections I could to inquire about any recent personnel changes in the government. If there were any, I took the portraits to compare them with the real people. I couldn't find anyone who matched."

"Those who went up the mountain to search also found nothing."

She shook her head in distress: "The deadline has passed, I can't complete this task. I still need to catch those two people. The job at the state government office is very urgent, so I can't continue."

Qiao Lian'er even suspected that Song Laosan had really grown a pair of wings and flown away.

He had suffered for a period of time and his health was not as good as before. How could he escape the search of so many elite soldiers? Gao Shuying was even more professional in this regard. As long as there was the slightest clue, it was impossible for him to escape her eyes.

But everyone is doing useless work.

"Sister Gao, it's alright. I know you've done your best, and you've worked really hard these past few days. I'll still give you some reward."

Looking closely at Gao Shuying, she seems to have lost some weight compared to when I saw her a few days ago.

Seeing that she was about to get up to get the money, Gao Shuying quickly stopped her, her face serious.

“Little girl, I don’t get paid if I don’t complete the task. We can’t break that rule.”

"I'm just wondering, with so many people leaving your camp, where exactly can this Song Yuanyi escape to?"

"Generally speaking, this is almost impossible to do."

Yes, Qiao Lian'er was also completely baffled.

She said, "We can't see him now, but he will reappear someday."

Gao Shuying felt a chill run down her spine.

"Little girl, I promise you, I will keep an eye out and bring you news as soon as I have any clues."

"Then I'll have to trouble you, Sister Gao."