BXBX NOVEL Chapter 359 - 359: Pursuit
Li Yu and Ji Xiang rode their horses out of the city and galloped towards Mount Spindle. The two of them quickly arrived at the foot of the mountain and rode their horses up the mountain path. At midnight, they arrived at the wooden house where the hunters rested.
Li Yu dismounted and tied the horse to the tree outside the house. Ji Xiang picked up firewood from the front of the wooden house and built a fire. He took out horse feed and fed the horses.
Li Yu entered the house and took out the hanging pot from her space. She went to the stream beside the house to scoop some water and hung the hanging pot on the fire to burn.
Ji Xiang looked at the dark hanging pot and felt that it was a little familiar. He asked curiously, “Madam, why does this hanging pot look like the one we used when we fled?”
Li Yu smiled dryly. “Sigh! I forgot to bring it back last time. I only realized that it was still there when I entered the house.”
Ji Xiang had no doubts about Li Yu’s words. “Perhaps there aren’t many people going up the mountain these days. Our haste to come out is just right.”
The two of them took out dry food and ate. Ji Xiang said to Li Yu, “Madam, sleep for a while. I’ll watch the horses.”
Li Yu looked around and entered the house to take out a sleeping bag from her space. She handed it to Ji Xiang. “You didn’t rest well at night. Your body won’t be able to take it if you have to rush tomorrow morning. I think you should bring the horse to the door and tie it up. Go in and rest for a while!”
Ji Xiang took the sleeping bag and felt that Li Yu’s bag was like a treasure chest. “Alright, Madam. I’ll add a few more large logs to the fire.”
After the two of them packed up, Li Yu placed the crossbow beside her and lay on the wooden bed to adjust her breathing before quickly falling asleep.
Ji Xiang lay in the sleeping bag and felt that this thing was really good. It was like a biz cotton iacket. He fell asleep listeninz to the insects in the forest.
The two of them slept for two hours before getting up and continuing on their way. Li Yu held the torch and led the horse in front, following the traces left behind by Shen Shuo and the others. When the sky turned dark, the two of them got on the horse and quickly rushed forward. At midnight, they arrived at the place where Li Yu had encountered the two Qi soldiers.
The two of them dismounted. Li Yu glanced at Ji Xiang, who was feeding the horses, and said to him, “I’ll go to the forest to get some wild animals.”
“Okay, I’ll build the fire. Be careful.”
Li Yu entered the forest and sat down to rest for a moment. She took out two pheasants from her space and tidied them up by the stream before carrying them back. Ji Xiang looked at the pheasants in Li Yu’s hand and smiled. “Madam, you’re so fast. You’ve already tidied them up.”
“I was lucky to meet these two unlucky fellows as soon as I entered the forest.” As Li Yu spoke, she skewered the chicken on a wooden stick and roasted it. After eating, the two of them got on their horses and rushed forward. They arrived under the first mountain beam when it was dark.
The mountains in September were already cold. The two of them walked to a big tree, tied up the horse, and picked up some firewood to build a fire. Ji Xiang began to roast a roe deer he had caught on the way. Li Yu looked at the blueprint. “Our one-day journey might be comparable to two days taken by General Shen and the others. When we reach the top of this mountain beam, we should be able to catch up to them. I wonder how General Shen is? Did you notice that there are Qi spies around?”
Ji Xiang spun the wooden stick in his hand, and his originally cheerful expression turned worried. “Madam, can you survive such a hard journey?”
Li Yu recalled that when she was on a mission in her previous life, she sometimes didn’t sleep for two to three days in a row. “It’s fine. Let’s hurry up and eat. We’ll start traveling after resting for an hour.”
Ji Xiang nodded and picked up his dagger to cut the roe deer meat and smear the seasoning on it. Suddenly, in the distance, there was a faint wolf howl and a faint tiger roar. The horses tethered to the tree became restless.
Li Yu walked over and stroked the horse. She said softly, “Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid. They’re far from us!” The horse slowly settled down.
After the two of them ate, they leaned against the big tree and began to rest. After two hours, Li Yu opened her eyes and woke Ji Xiang up. The two of them led the horse and continued on their way.
A few days later, on the same ridge, there was a series of snores. Shen Shuo’s men were lying on the ground. Everyone was very tired from the rapid march. Other than the soldiers on night duty, all the soldiers had fallen asleep.
Shen Shuo lay quietly on the ground and felt that something was wrong. The guiding marks left behind by the Qi people in the past two days seemed to have been altered by someone. Who was it? Who caused everyone to walk in the wrong direction a few times? If he had not discovered it early, he would not have known where to turn. Could it be that there was a spy from Great Qi among the people he had brought? Thinking of this, Shen Shuo felt a chill in his heart. Shen Shuo thought to himself that he had to follow the blueprint or the traces left behind by the scouts. He could not follow the road signs left behind by the Qi people anymore.
Before dawn, the military quartermaster in the army began to make food. A tall and strong man quietly hid in the dark. When the leader was not paying attention, he placed a handful of fruit fragments into two large noodle soup pots and quietly ran along the mountain path when no one was paying attention.
Everyone ate their dry food and drank some hot soup to pack their things. After reorganizing the team, they began to travel. Only then did Shen Shuo realize that someone had disappeared. Thinking of what had happened on the way, his expression changed drastically. “Hurry up and chase after him. Yang Rui is a traitor!”
Before he could finish speaking, Shen Shuo felt a cramp in his stomach. Then, there was a rumble. He could not help but relieve himself. He hurriedly hid under a tree. Immediately after, most of the soldiers began to do the same. For a moment, the forest emitted a nauseating stench.
When Shen Shuo came out of the forest holding his stomach and looking at the situation in front of him, Shen Shuo understood that these soldiers had probably been drugged.
The military physician walked up to Shen Shuo and said gratefully, “General, that Yang Rui picked beans for us to put in the pot on the way. Fortunately, he doesn’t know poison. Otherwise, we…”
Looking at his dizzy subordinates, Shen Shuo could only order them to rest again. He said to the military physician, “physician He, quickly boil herbs to stop everyone’s diarrhea.”
Physician He looked at Shen Shuo with a frown. “General, so many people have been drugged. The anti-diarrhea medicine I brought is not enough. I’m afraid it won’t stop for a while.”
Shen Shuo looked at Physician He and thought that only Shen Hui and Chen Lin seemed to be in better condition. He would treat the two of them first and chase after that bastard Yang Rui. “Make Shen Hui and Chen Lin drink the medicine first and let them chase after Yang Rui. Hurry up and find medicine to stop everyone’s diarrhea. Oh…” Before Shen Shuo could finish speaking, he crawled into the forest again.
After a while, he came out of the forest holding his stomach and called Shen Hui over to instruct him, “Ah Hui, you’re the only one among the generals who wasn’t affected so seriously. Bring Chen Lin to capture Yang Rui.”
Shen Hui looked at Shen Shuo and whispered, “Second Uncle, I remember that you promoted Yang Rui. Who recommended him to you?”
“I have some friendship with Third Young Master Wei of the Wei family. He came to me and said that Yang Rui was betrothed to his sister by his grandfather. Now that the Yang family has fallen behind, Yang Rui wants to have a background so that Miss Wei can marry in a more glamorous manner. I saw that Yang Rui’s martial arts are not bad, so I agreed. It seems that the Wei family doesn’t know that there’s a problem with Yang Rui.” Shen Shuo’s stomach hurt again. “Ah Hui, go quickly. It’ll be troublesome if he escapes.”
Physician He handed the medicine bowl to Shen Hui and Chen Lin. After Shen Hui and Chen Lin drank the medicine, Physician He even brought a bamboo tube for them to get on the road..