Chapter 390 Changing Horses
Zhu Qingyan stared at the direction where Mu'er's figure disappeared for a long time, then she retracted her gaze and looked at Zhu Lan.
"Now it seems that we can only take a detour to Longyou."
Zhu Lan nodded, and the three of them mounted their horses, intending to return to the fork in the road they had passed on the way here.
Zhu Lan suddenly asked Zhu Qingyan:
"If you run into Mu'er head-on and have to fight, what are your chances of winning?"
Zhu Qingyan thought about it seriously, then shook his head slightly.
"have no idea"
“I have never fought with her, but like Ah Jing, she grew up in the military and has more practical experience than me.
Besides, the people around Jing are definitely good at fighting, so I’m not sure I can win.”
Zhu Lan nodded, "I understand."
If fighting alone, perhaps Zhu Qingyan could hold out for a while, but now she has to take care of herself and Gongsun Yushu, and it will be even more difficult for her to do so alone.
Zhu Lan didn't say much and led the two of them to the fork in the road they came from.
…
As the sky brightened, the three of them were already speeding on the road to Longyou.
Gongsun Yushu was somewhat worried and asked:
"If we take a detour to Longyou, will it be like what you said before, that the King of Zhenbei has arranged assassins to ambush near the capital in advance and wait for us?"
"It's hard to say." Zhu Lan was very frank.
Gongsun Yushu was furious, "Aren't you very good at foreseeing things? Why don't you calculate it and think of a solution?"
Zhu Lan glanced at him strangely, "I am a scholar, not a god, how can I predict everything in the world?"
"It turns out that there are things you can't handle." Gongsun Yushu sneered, and felt much more balanced.
Zhu Qingyan couldn't bear to listen any longer and said sarcastically, "That's right. The King of Zhenbei is not like some idiots whose every move can be easily calculated by others."
Gongsun Yushu felt humiliated, but he didn't dare to get angry, so he just turned his head away and kept silent.
Soon, a hill appeared in front of the three people. If they wanted to reach Longyou, they had to climb over this hill.
There was a winding mountain path on the hill. Once they entered the path, the horses of the three men began to fall behind each other.
The horse that Gongsun Yushu rode was newly purchased at the official post station. It was of average quality and had mediocre strength. When he was halfway up the mountain road, his speed slowed down significantly.
Although Zhu Qingyan's horse was a good horse prepared by Ding Wangyuan, it seemed to be old and was having some difficulty running.
Only the red horse that Zhu Lan rode was the most agile, so she did not let the horse go at full speed, otherwise she would be far away from the other two.
The three of them reached the halfway point of the mountain. Zhu Qingyan looked down and his expression suddenly changed slightly.
"Oh no! Mu'er has discovered our whereabouts and is catching up with us."
At the foot of the mountain, a black figure was approaching with the sound of horse hooves.
But fortunately, the mountain road was winding, and although the distance between them and Mu'er seemed very close, if she really wanted to catch up, it would take her half a day.
"Let's go." Zhu Lan said in a deep voice.
The three continued to gallop towards Longyou.
Zhu Lan was riding on his horse, but he was quickly weighing and calculating in his mind.
The speed at which the three of them travel together depends on the speed of the slowest horse, which is the barrel effect.
The fast horse that Mu'er was riding was a strong and fine horse selected from a thousand miles away in the Northern Frontier Camp. If he continued to chase like this, he would surely be caught up by Mu'er in half a day at most.
The map unfolded in Zhu Lan's mind, and her attention stayed on every important pass -
The current location of the three people is still a whole day's journey away from the nearest important town in Longyou.
During this period, even if they galloped non-stop, they would still be caught up by Mu'er, and then all three of them would be in danger.
"Stop!" Zhu Lan suddenly spoke.
Zhu Qingyan was caught off guard and stopped in a hurry, looking back at her in confusion.
Zhu Lan immediately dismounted and said to Zhu Qingyan in a deep voice:
"Come down, and we'll change horses."
"Why?" Zhu Qingyan asked, but still did as he was told.
"If three of us go together, we will definitely be caught up by Mu'er and it will be difficult to deal with her." Zhu Lan said quickly, taking out something and stuffing it into Zhu Qingyan's hand.
"Of the three of us, you are the best rider and my horse is the fastest."
"The best solution for the current situation is for you to ride on my horse and go to the nearest town, Penglai, to get reinforcements, and then come back to meet us."
"No!" Zhu Qingyan said immediately, "If Mu'er catches up with you, how will you protect yourselves?"
"I will try my best to hold her back." Zhu Lan said, "Besides, I am not her target, so she may not kill me."
"This matter involves life and death, I can't do that..." Zhu Qingyan still refused.
"Stop talking nonsense." Zhu Lan stuffed the reins directly into Zhu Qingyan's hands, "Once Mu'er catches up, the three of us will be in trouble."
"Rush to Penglai Town as fast as you can. Remember, the earlier you arrive, the less danger we will be in." Zhu Lan instructed.
Zhu Qingyan only felt his heart beating violently, even his hands were trembling slightly, and he looked at Zhu Lan at a loss.
The last time the two were in such a dangerous situation was in the camp of the Great Purification, where they were about to be sacrificed. But at that time, Zhu Lan had a backup plan and had already arranged for General Gu to come to meet them.
But this time is different. This time there is really a killer chasing after him!
"Don't worry." Zhu Lan lowered his voice a little, "I can't sacrifice my life for a bad guy. If the crisis really comes, I will hand him over and I will be able to protect myself."
"...For the first time, I hope that you are really a coward who is afraid of death." Zhu Qingyan finally looked at Zhu Lan with complicated eyes.
He waved his whip and rode away.
The good horse behaved very differently after its owner changed, and it disappeared in the blink of an eye.
"Let's go." Zhu Lan said to Gongsun Yushu, and the two continued to ride forward.
It was not until the two of them finally climbed over the hill that Gongsun Yushu just breathed a sigh of relief, looked back, and suddenly screamed in fear.
"She...how can she catch up so fast!?"
Zhu Lan looked back and saw Mu'er's figure appeared halfway up the mountain. The distance between them had been shortened by more than half compared to before!
"As expected of a man trained by the King of Zhenbei." Zhu Lan said in a low voice, his expression not looking good.
She quickly took a look around and said decisively, "Let's go into the woods!"
The woods beside the road were overgrown with weeds. Zhu Lan and Gongsun Yushu rode in on horseback, and then Zhu Lan asked Gongsun Yushu to dismount.
Gongsun Yushu came down obediently.
Zhu Lan picked up a sharp branch from the ground and stabbed the two horses hard on their butts!
The two horses neighed in pain, spread their four hooves and galloped away, disappearing in the blink of an eye.
"What are you doing!?" Gongsun Yushu screamed in fear, but how could he stop two galloping horses?
"Without a horse, how can we get to Penglai Town!?"
"If you continue riding your horse, you will be too conspicuous and will definitely be caught. Let the horse go now. The hoof prints on the road will confuse her vision and lead her to the other side."
Zhu Lan's voice was very calm, and he pointed to the side.
"There's a cave over there. Let's hide in there first."
(P.S. I will resume posting twice a day next Monday.)
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