Li Yan quickly arrived at the north city gate without stopping. He also looked around, fearing that he would suddenly run into Advisor Ji.
He walked quickly through the gate and headed out of the city, his mind working rapidly as he walked.
"Except for the short delay in the confrontation with Liu Chengyong at the back door of the military warehouse, the rest of the time was very short, and that time was taken into account before.
Roughly speaking, from entering the military camp to now, it has been about half an incense stick of time. At this time, Chen An and Li Yin will not be suspicious, and Ji Wenhe should still be in the Marshal's Mansion."
While he was thinking, he had already walked out of the city gate and came to the outside of the city gate. As expected, he did not see Chen An and Li Yin trying to stop him.
If the two of them had reacted at this time, they would have been blocked at the South Gate or the North Gate, and he would not have been able to get out from anywhere else. He smiled, greeted the soldiers guarding the city, and left quickly.
The soldiers guarding the city were a little surprised. First, how could Lord Li walk out, as he had just entered the city on horseback. Second, where were his two guards who never left him.
But they didn't dare ask too many questions, so they just said hello and let him go.
After Li Yan left the city, he walked only half a mile before turning and rushing to the Daqing Mountain on the west side. He would not be foolish enough to walk more on the official road, as that would only increase the chances of encountering the enemy, which was not the result he wanted now.
… …
Inside the Marshal's Mansion, Military Advisor Ji looked at Marshal Hong's frowning face and reluctantly picked up the tea and took another sip.
By this time, about half an hour had passed since noon. The two of them spent more than a quarter of an hour discussing the military situation, and then they repeatedly discussed countermeasures.
“This is already the fourth option!”
After taking a sip of water, Master Ji leaned back in his chair. Although these things did not require the use of spiritual power, they were also extremely exhausting.
After a while, he saw that Marshal Hong was still thinking, so he spoke.
"General, this plan has taken into account the loopholes in the first three plans. All possible accidents can be remedied. Although military strategists say that there should be no omissions, we can only use our strengths to judge the situation. There is no so-called perfect plan."
As he was speaking, Division Master Ji's expression changed and he looked out the door.
Marshal Hong was listening to him, but he stopped talking halfway through. He looked up and saw Division Master Ji looking out the hall door, but he saw nothing and heard no sound.
While he was wondering, his ears moved again. At this time, he heard faint footsteps outside the door, and his face suddenly became solemn.
"This fellow's internal strength has become increasingly powerful, and judging from his complexion, he looks even worse than before, which shows how strong the poison is.
If this situation happened to me, I would have to use at least 80% to 90% of my internal energy to suppress it. So with this calculation, the little internal energy I have left would only make me a second-rate figure in the martial arts world.
But after suppressing the poison, the remaining internal strength of this guy is still far better than my current heyday, which is really shocking. "
There was a voice outside the lobby door.
"General, the gold and silver collected as taxes in the city this month have been loaded onto the trucks. Once you personally inspect them, they will be sent to the garrison camp in the rear."
When Military Advisor Ji heard this, a hint of sneer appeared on his face inadvertently, but it was only fleeting. He also knew the character of this Marshal very well. In addition to his love for the martial arts secrets of various factions in the world, he was also very interested in this yellow and white thing.
The border areas have been relatively peaceful in recent years, and the imperial dynasty has issued a decree early on that local people are not allowed to migrate to the border areas in order to demonstrate the people's patriotism.
Therefore, there is still a huge demand for daily necessities, which has led to many business travelers coming here to take risks and pan for gold. As a result, the economy here has become quite prosperous.
Since Marshal Hong arrived here, he has been in charge of both the military and political affairs, holding all power and controlling the local taxation.
But he also knew that he couldn't do things to the extreme, as it would be bad if the people complained. In addition to keeping 40% for the local government, he converted the remaining 60% into gold and silver every month and gave it directly to the army, which was called "military salary."
He was certainly worried about keeping these "military supplies" at the forefront of defending the city. If they were not transported away, they would accumulate over the years and amount to a considerable amount. If the city was lost, how would he be able to take them away in time
So he would find time every month to transport all the goods to the garrison camp in the rear, and each time he would personally inspect them and seal them before shipping them off.
Strategist Ji was naturally very disdainful of this practice. As an immortal cultivator, he naturally looked down on the yellow and white things in the mortal world.
After hearing this, Marshal Hong grinned at Strategist Ji.
"Master Military Advisor, what you said just now is absolutely right. There is no perfect plan in the world. I have thought about it again and again, and I will use your last plan. I will call the lieutenant general and his staff to discuss the matter later."
When Advisor Ji heard this, he knew that his mind was no longer on this matter, so he stood up and bowed.
"Now that it's settled, I will no longer be involved in the subsequent matters. My health has been getting worse recently, so I will go back to recuperate."
"Oh, okay... Military Advisor, you also need to take care of your health. If you need any herbs, just let me know and I will send someone to find them. But I can't help you with the poison you've been poisoned with. I can only blame my poor martial arts skills. Alas!"
After hearing this, Advisor Ji just smiled, bowed again, and walked out of the hall.
Looking at the walking back, Marshal Hong's face gradually darkened. After a short pause, he looked towards the back of the lobby.
"Junior brother, since the report has come, let's go to the back to check on that guy."
Marshal Hong then flashed and dodged behind the gate. Behind him, a figure rushed out from the back of the lobby and followed him.
In a room in the back garden of the Marshal's Mansion.
"Huh? Why are you here alone? What's going on?"
As soon as Marshal Hong entered the room, he closed the door casually. The figure behind him did not follow him in, but he was also nowhere to be seen in the garden outside, as if he had disappeared.
After entering the room, Marshal Hong glanced around and his face suddenly became gloomy as if water was about to drip out. He saw Liu Chengyong staying in the room alone, with an uneasy expression on his face. When he saw him come in, he quickly stood up.
Liu Chengyong knelt on one knee with a look of shame on his face, bowed his head and saluted.
"General, I am incompetent and cannot bring Li Yan here. Please forgive me, General."
Marshal Hong said indifferently with a gloomy face.
"you say!"
Half a cup of tea later, Marshal Hong held the two pages of letter and looked at them carefully. There was a small porcelain bottle on the table.
After he read the letter over and over again, his expression changed from gloomy to bright. After a while, he put the letter in his arms.
"So, Li Yan's martial arts skills are even better than yours?"
"Yes, I can guarantee it with my life. His aura is extremely dense. If I miss the target, it will definitely attract other people's attention."
Liu Chengyong was also thinking and said in confusion that he still couldn't figure out how a person could cultivate internal strength to such a level in just a few months, and how there could be such a martial arts technique in the world.
Marshal Hong held his chin with one hand and pondered for a while, also with a look of disbelief on his face.
If the man in front of him had not been a loyal subordinate who had followed him for more than ten years, he would have probably slapped this nonsense man to death, but he also knew that Liu Chengyong would never lie to him. "Then you go back first."
After a pause, he said to Liu Chengyong.
Liu Chengyong couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. He quickly said goodbye and walked out quickly. His back was already soaked.
"It turns out that Brother Li really didn't lie to me. After reading the letter, the commander-in-chief's anger subsided. I don't know what it said."
Marshal Hong stood in the room for a while, then took out a piece of letter from his arms.
"Junior brother, come and take a look."
A figure floated in from outside the house silently. When the person stood still, he turned out to be a very strong man.
With such a figure, she moves so lightly, which gives people a huge contrast in feeling.
The big man took the letter and looked at it for a while, then read one of the pages over and over again.
"Hiss, Senior Brother, this kid really gave me a way to practice."
"Yes, this is the first level of the 'Mu Yin Gong' practice method. Can you tell whether his 'Mu Yin Gong' practice method is genuine?"
Hearing this, the big man picked up the paper again and read it carefully again.
"Junior brother, I just looked carefully, and some of the methods of practicing the skills are unheard of. With my current knowledge, I can't tell the real from the fake for a while."
Marshal Hong spoke up.
“But this kid only gave us the first level of the technique, and the rest can only be given to us after we help him complete the rest of the tasks.
I can't tell whether this technique is real or not. Well, do you want us to try it?"
The big man looked up and said, his eyes gleaming with expectation.
Marshal Hong did not answer immediately. He held his chin with one hand and thought for a while, looking at the big man's expectant eyes.
"I have considered what Junior Brother said, but the path of internal strength is not something that can be achieved immediately after just one try."
There was silence in the room for a while, and then Marshal Hong spoke again.
"But you can give it a try. Maybe you can experience his practice route and gain some insights. But that kid used the following practice method to force me to help him..."
Marshal Hong's eyes flashed with ferocity, and his tone became gloomy.
"Brother, I'll try this technique. If it's true, it's worth it even if it helps him. At worst, I can just kill him in the end. He's just a wild kid, but he dares to be so presumptuous. Humph!"
"Okay, Junior Brother, let's go to the secret room. I'll protect you. You can try it."
After Marshal Hong finished speaking, he reached out and picked up the small porcelain bottle on the table and put it in his arms, then turned and walked out, still whispering to himself.
“But this kid is still quite skilled. He was able to put this thing on Ji Wenhe without being noticed… Hehehe, I really can’t bear to kill him.
But this guy is too cunning. If he treats us like this, if we are not careful, won’t we fall into his trap? "
Chen An and Li Yin were as anxious as ants on a hot pan, and rushed out of the military camp and left in a hurry.
The two of them had been chatting with their old colleagues in the military camp for about two hours, but Li Yan had not come out yet, so they couldn't help feeling anxious.
They frequently looked in the direction of the central army camp and glanced at each other from time to time. They both felt uneasiness in each other's eyes. After a while, the two looked at each other again, stood up at the same time, apologized to those people, and walked aside to whisper.
After a dozen breaths, the two men gritted their teeth and walked towards the central army tent. They had trespassed into the important central army camp without military orders, and they might lose their heads.
When the two of them were still some distance away from the central army tent, they were discovered by patrolling soldiers, who shouted at them and demanded that they produce their pass tokens.
Fortunately, the two were also veterans in the army, so they had their own excuses. They said that they had important matters to discuss with Lord Ji and hoped that they could inform him.
When the patrolling soldiers saw the two of them, they realized that they might have something urgent to discuss with Lord Ji. Moreover, someone recognized them as people from the Military Advisor's Mansion, so someone went to report to the central military tent.
A short while later, the soldier who reported the incident came back and spoke to the two of them with a stern look on his face.
"Are you two trying to make fun of me? When did Lord Ji come to the army today? Leave quickly, or I will arrest you immediately, humph!"
When the two heard this, they immediately felt something was wrong. They thanked him quickly and rushed to the camp gate.
This made the patrol team look at the two of them like crazy and couldn't help but be a little surprised.
"It seems that finding Master Ji is really an urgent matter."
Chen An and Li Yin knew that there was only one exit in the military camp. As for the exit of the baggage storage camp at the back, they didn't even think about it. What kind of place was that? It was the most important place in the army. Besides, it was not a place for people to enter or exit.
After arriving at the camp gate, the two men hurriedly asked the gate guard again, and finally got a result that shocked them.
"Master Li went out alone more than two hours ago."
Little did they know that this group of soldiers today were also arranged by Marshal Hong to wait here, just waiting for them to find out the result.
Chen An and the other two were horrified, knowing that they had made a big mistake this time. Lord Ji had issued a death order, requiring them not to leave Li Yan's side.
In shock and anger, they almost lost their composure and started fighting with the gatekeeper, but the gatekeeper just said something lightly.
"Master Li wants to leave. Do I have the right to detain him? Do you want us to commit insubordination?"
Chen An and Li Yin were so angry that they rode out in a hurry, one heading towards the south gate and the other towards the north gate. If Li Yan wanted to leave the city, he would definitely go through these two places. If he hadn't left the city yet, then everything would be easy.
A quarter of an hour later, the two met again at the agreed place, each told the result, and then rode together to rush to the military advisor's residence.
Just now at the north gate, they easily received the news that Li Yan had left the city two hours ago. This made them feel a little uneasy, but still had some expectations.
In just a short while, the two of them hurriedly arrived at the Military Advisor's Mansion, jumped off their horses and rushed into the valley, causing a crowd of people outside the valley to be very surprised.
The two of them also forgot the warning not to enter the inner valley without orders. After entering the inner valley, they went straight to Li Yan's room. After entering the room, they found that the room was empty, but there was someone there.
The backs of both of them were wet at this moment, and they hurried out of the house to look carefully into the valley. The valley was not big and the whole valley could be seen at a glance. At this time, in the valley, there were only swaying flowers, spring water slowly flowing down the rock wall, and only a breeze blowing.
Just as they were about to conduct a thorough search in the valley, hoping that Li Yan was hiding in a pool of water or lying among the flowers, or even in the toilet, when a voice suddenly came from behind them.
"Why are there only the two of you? Where's Li Yan?"