The soldier carefully examined each of them with the portrait in his hand, and finally waved his hand: "Pass!"
The group left the city safely.
On the way, Qingyan approached Qingyu and whispered, "Don't they have any decent painters in the Northwest? What kind of paintings are they? Our young master is so handsome, and they actually made him look awful."
Qingyu glanced at him and said unhappily, "If it weren't for the painter's poor skills, we would have been caught by now."
Qingyan chuckled twice when he heard this: "That's true."
In the northwest morning, the rising sun shines on the endless plain under the vast sky.
An autumn breeze blew, bringing a hint of chill. Waves of golden grass surged forward, undulating and rolling towards the place where the clouds and sky met, vast as the sea.
In the southwest, there are continuous mountains lying in the sky like a dragon, and clouds and mist are covering the mountains and forests there.
In the mountain forest, the morning light fell through the gaps between the sparse yellow-green leaves. The withered yellow leaves on the branches were blown by the breeze, flying down and spinning, and landed on the shoulders and heads of several men in black.
The black ground was covered with withered yellow leaves, which made a "crunching" sound when stepped on, one after another, fast and chaotic.
"Boss, something's wrong! We just came to this place!" said one of the men in black.
As he finished speaking, the long sword on Ruliu's neck tightened a little, and the blade cut through the skin of her neck, causing a sharp pain.
The man in black holding him said in a cold and angry voice: "Lead the way properly, don't play tricks on me!"
Ru Liu made a bitter face, looking extremely cowardly, and spoke cautiously, "Don't be angry, big brother. This is my first time in this damn place in the northwest. My master only has that shabby house, and it's really hard to find."
The leader of the men in black warned coldly: "I'll give you one last chance. If you lead me the wrong way again, I'll kill you!"
"Okay, okay, okay." Ru Liu said okay three times and promised, "Don't worry, I won't make the wrong choice this time."
Ru Liu prayed in her heart, Master, you must leave there as soon as possible!
At noon, the sun was even brighter, illuminating the entire mountain forest with a golden color.
A small earthen house suddenly appeared in front of them.
Ru Liu was delighted when she saw a wooden board on the dilapidated window.
It seems that the master is safe.
But he couldn't escape.
Master, Ruliu can no longer accompany you for the rest of your life, so please take care of yourself!
He pursed his lips tightly, tears sliding down from his eyes, slowly flowing down the sides of his nose, along his cheeks and dripping onto the ground at his chin.
One drop after another.
I kept comforting myself in my heart, it's okay, it just hurts a little, if I die, I die, as long as my master is safe.
It’s just that he can’t bear to leave his master and can’t let his master go!
He thought about how his master had been used to being served by him since childhood, and how his master would be alone in this strange place in the northwest without him to serve him. If he died, where would his master find a servant as loyal and caring as him to serve him?
The black-clad man holding him hostage snorted disdainfully at his behavior: "What a coward!"
He took away the long sword that was on Ruliu's neck, threw him to his men beside him, and took the lead with a group of men in black to approach the small, dilapidated earthen house.
Ru Liu felt desperate, but he did not forget to observe the current situation vigilantly to see if he could find an opportunity to escape.
"Swish——" The sound of a sharp arrow breaking through the air suddenly rang out.
Then countless sharp arrows were shot out from inside or behind the house, and half of the men in black were caught off guard and shot dead.
Seeing that the situation was not good, the man in black behind turned around and tried to capture Ruliu as a hostage.
Behind him, a group of tall yamen runners jumped out from somewhere.
Ru Liu was so stunned by the sudden change in the situation that she was unable to recover for a while until the men in black were attacked by a group of yamen runners, some died and some escaped.
In front of him stood a tall man in an official robe with a stern face.
This person has deep eye contours, a high nose bridge, and thin lips without any curve that shows any emotional fluctuation. Every contour of his face contains a sharp and cold meaning.
"Excuse me, are you a close confidant of Lord Xiao?"
Ru Liu suddenly frowned upon hearing his cold question, staring at him warily and asking, "Who are you?"
The man in front of him clasped his hands together and said politely, "I am Pei Yanli, the garrison commander of Dong'an City."
"Shoubei Pei?!"
Ru Liu was so surprised that she stepped forward and grabbed Pei Yanli's hands, expressing her excitement of surviving the disaster vividly.
"Great! You're finally here! Have you seen my young master?"
Pei Yanli withdrew his hand without a trace. Facing his enthusiasm, his cold tone softened a little: "Master Xiao is safe and should be on his way to Dong'an City now."
"That's good."
Ru Liu looked relieved. Thinking of Xiao Yunchen's instructions before leaving, she said, "Then let's quickly set off to Dong'an City to meet up with my young master, shall we?"
Pei Yanli responded, explained the situation to the yamen runners arranged by Su Tongzhi, and then took Ruliu back to Dong'an City.
Pei Yanli ordered his men to give a horse to Ruliu, and the group then rode on without stopping.
The sun hanging in the sky moves all the way from east to west. When the scorching and dazzling sun reaches the west, it turns into a colorful sunset.
When Ru Liu followed Pei Yanli to Dong'an City, the sun had already set and the moon had not yet risen.
On the towering city wall, the flag with the word "Xiao" printed on it was rustling vigorously in the northwest wind, looking as ostentatious and arrogant as his eldest son.
After entering the city, Ruliu waited for Pei Yanli alone for a while.
He came back soon, his stern face showing a hint of joy, and said, "Master Xiao has entered the city and is now resting at the post station."
When Ru Liu heard this, she immediately said excitedly, "What are you waiting for? Take me to see the Master!"
Perhaps because she was in a good mood, Ru Liu was also in the mood to appreciate the customs and folkways of Dong'an City.
My eyes swept across the shops on both sides of the street, thinking that after settling down, I must find an opportunity to go shopping.
Then he pulled Pei Yanli aside and said, "Captain Pei, you showed up at the perfect time. If you had been any later, I would have died there. Fortunately, my young master is safe now, otherwise I really don't know what I would have done..."
She kept talking like a willow catkin all the way, as if she was very frightened and urgently needed to find someone to relieve her emotions.
Soon the two arrived at the inn where Xiao Yunchen was resting.
After reporting their identities, the two went to the backyard of the post station to meet Xiao Yunchen.
At this time, the waning moon had quietly appeared in the sky, which was not yet completely dark, accompanied by a few faint stars, and began to present the night scene of a new day.
In the courtyard, candlelight shone through the room where Xiao Yunchen was resting. A figure was swaying inside, but there was no sound.
Ru Liu was the first to go forward and knock on the door.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
