Once the eagle's cry had completely faded away, Lu Qiqi estimated the speed at which the eagle had spread its wings and soared, and guessed that the eagle had already flown far away.
Therefore, he said, "An Jiu, send two people to follow the Tatars. They have eagles scouting in the air, which is much better than us searching blindly."
Furthermore, in her view, the hundred or so Tatars passing through this area might already know Song Yanqing's whereabouts, and their current purpose was to capture Song Yanqing and the Shadow Guards.
An Jiu had the same idea, and immediately ordered two Shadow Guards to go and investigate the situation, while the rest waited quietly in the forest.
By this time, it was broad daylight. On the vast grassland, the twenty-odd people following closely behind were too conspicuous.
If the Tatars discover the plan, it will be doomed to failure, and the people may not even be found, and they may perish on this grassland.
The group had left the pass last night and were now starving. An Jiu immediately ordered the Shadow Guards to rest where they were.
He then took out the dry rations he had prepared earlier from his bundle, untied the thin cloth, and selected a flatbread that was not burnt.
He walked up to the village chief of Kangle Township, squatted down and offered him the flatbread, saying, "Village chief, please have something to eat first."
Lu Qiqi looked up and saw a flatbread bigger than her face in front of her.
Her hand, which was holding the dried meat in her bundle, froze instantly, for some reason feeling like she'd been caught sneaking a bite in class.
She secretly let go of the dried meat and took the flatbread. The hard texture made her teeth ache reflexively.
Thank you.
After saying that, An Jiu prepared to get up and step aside.
Seeing that he was about to leave, Lu Qiqi quickly called him back, "Wait."
An Jiu stopped in his tracks, turned around and looked at Lu Qiqi, and said respectfully, "May I ask what your orders are, Princess Kang Le?"
Lu Qiqi picked up her bundle and stood up. Then she patted the fallen leaves behind her, took out a cloth bag from the bundle, and handed it to An Jiu. "I came prepared for this trip. There's dried meat and maltose inside. Go and share it with the Shadow Guard brothers."
An Jiu hesitated for a moment. Both of these items were rare in the army and in the border town. He was unsure whether he should accept them.
Lu Qiqi seemed to understand the hesitation in his eyes, so she handed the cloth bag to An Jiu and sat down on the ground to eat the flatbread.
The movements were so fluid that they could be described as being performed in one go.
Seeing this, An Jiu understood her meaning and whispered, "Thank you, Princess Kangle."
After saying that, he took the cloth bag and distributed its contents to the Shadow Guards.
When the Shadow Guards went out on errands, even in Xinjing they didn't receive such good treatment. Not to mention the dried meat, they could still afford to eat a few meals if they spent some money.
Maltose, a food favored by the wealthy, was something they never even smelled while on missions, let alone tasted.
Therefore, when the Shadow Guards saw the dried meat and candy, their surprise outweighed their delight.
One of the Shadow Guards took the paper-wrapped candy from An Jiu and grinned, both surprised and delighted, exclaiming, "Candy! It's actually candy!"
These Shadow Guards weren't all over twenty; some were just a few years older than nineteen.
Most of these people were orphans. As for how they joined the Shadow Guard, Lu Qiqi had no idea. She had only heard Song Yanqing say that they were all pitiful children.
Seeing their rare childlike smiles, Lu Qiqi felt a moment of relief from her disappointment at not finding Song Yanqing.
As evening fell, one of the Shadow Guards who had gone to investigate returned.
He dismounted and led the horse into the woods.
Lu Qiqi, who was always on the lookout for any movement in the alley, immediately spotted the Shadow Guards returning.
She jogged over, stopping two meters away from the Shadow Guard, her eyes fixed on him as she asked, "How is it?"
At this moment, An Jiu also walked to Lu Qiqi's side, and everyone held their breath and pricked up their ears to listen for news.
Shadow Guardian, "Your subordinate..."
Having not drunk water for so long, my voice has become hoarse and hoarse, as if I have a mouthful of coarse sand in my mouth.
Seeing this, Lu Qiqi immediately said, "Quickly, let him drink some water to moisten his throat."
The Shadow Guard took the water pouch handed to him by his colleague, tilted his head back, and began to gulp it down, making gurgling sounds in his throat.
"Hey~"
The Shadow Guard drank half a sachet of water in one gulp, then let out a sigh.
A dozen pairs of eyes were fixed on him, so there was no time to waste.
He put away his water pouch, wiped his chin haphazardly with his sleeve, and said, "Reporting to the village head, the Tatars have stopped at the foot of the Yanlian Mountains. It is estimated that there are more than a thousand of them. They have divided into several groups and entered the Yanlian Mountains to search for the whereabouts of the prince."
Once these words were spoken, all the answers were laid bare.
The good news is that Song Yanqing was not captured by the Tatars, but instead hid with the Shadow Guards at the foot of the Yanlian Mountains.
The bad news is the opposite: the Tatars have not captured Song Yanqing, but they have sent so many people, so they must be determined to get him.
For a mere twenty-odd people to rescue someone from a thousand men is an extremely difficult task.
Suddenly, Lu Qiqi thought of something and said, "Yanlian Mountain is not far from the West Gate. The Tatars' use of more than a thousand people is too conspicuous. General Qin's side will probably also find out something."
The next moment, the Shadow Guard's words shattered her assumptions: "The Tatars are taking a roundabout route to the foot of the Yanlian Mountains. According to my observation, the Western Camp probably can't detect them."
Without the help of a large force, it was simply a pipe dream for these twenty men to bring Song Yanqing back to the border town!
An Jiu immediately sent someone back to the West Gate camp to report the news, and Lu Qiqi did not stop him. More help meant more chances for Song Yanqing to survive.
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