There were exclamations and the neighing of rhinoceros horses from behind the team. The nervous Luyuan soldiers around Yan Liqiang drew their weapons with a choke sound, and the advancing team also became slightly chaotic...
"Don't be nervous, stop here and be on guard, I'll go take a look at the back..." Yan Liqiang said to the people around him, then turned his horse's head and rushed to the back.
With Yan Liqiang's level of cultivation and perception, if someone was lying in ambush and spying on the roadside, he would not be unaware of it at all. Moreover, he did not hear the sound of arrows breaking through the air just now, so Yan Liqiang judged that they were not attacked, but that something went wrong within the team.
This is indeed the case!
When Yan Liqiang came to the back of the team, he saw a carriage lying on the road with one side tilted. One of the broken wheels of the carriage had fallen to the side, and the carriage on one side was scraping against the ground. The things in the carriage also rolled out and scattered all over the ground.
Fortunately, there were no people in the carriage, but it was pulling some baggage. Except for the coachman who fell off the carriage and suffered some minor injuries, no one else was affected.
A group of accompanying craftsmen were surrounding the carriage, picking up the scattered things from the carriage, while some were busy untying the rhinoceros horses pulling the carriage.
"What's going on?" Yan Liqiang asked.
Manager Wen came over quickly and said, "Sir, the bushing inside the wheel hub of this car is cracked, the copper hub and axle outside the axle are worn and fallen off, and the axle has crushed the spokes..."
The wheels and axles of this four-wheeled cargo carriage still used the old-style hub structure. After two days of long-distance travel, the hubs and axles had worn out over time, and coupled with the heavy load, they naturally broke down.
In this case, it can be repaired, as the team carries tools and parts, but repairs are very time-consuming, and will take at least five or six hours to complete. So Yan Liqiang knew at a glance that this carriage was no longer worth repairing. Fortunately, when leaving Luyuan, he had already considered the possibility of this situation, so there were several carriages in the team that were completely empty. If this situation occurred, there was no need to repair it, and just change the carriage.
"No need to repair it. Move the baggage on the wagon to another empty wagon, then move the wagon off the road so it doesn't block the road behind..."
“Yes, yes, yes…” Manager Wen nodded and directed his craftsmen. In just a short while, they had moved all the things on the cart, untied the rhinoceros horses that were pulling the cart, pushed the broken carriage to the side of the road, and cleared the road.
Seeing that everything was almost done, Yan Liqiang walked back to the front of the team.
Just as they were walking to the side of Concubine Rong's carriage in the middle of the team, the curtain of Concubine Rong's carriage was pulled open, revealing Concubine Rong's somewhat lazy and tired eyes. "Master Yan, we have been traveling for half the night. Where are we now?"
"Your Highness, we are more than 200 miles away from Wuting County and have passed two counties. At this rate, we will be able to reach the county seat of Hualan County before dark today..."
"Is it safer here now?"
"Madam, do you want to get off the car and take a rest?"
"Well, I'm really tired after all this bumpy ride. If there's a place to rest nearby, why not take a rest there before continuing on our journey!"
Yan Liqiang looked at the sky. It was already dawn and he could hear birds singing. The team had been running for most of the night and had experienced riots in Wuting County. Most of them were physically and mentally tired. This was the wilderness and there was a river not far away. There was a river beach beside the river and the terrain was open, which was suitable for rest and, well, for chopping off people's heads.
"Since the queen is a little tired, let's take a rest nearby, eat something, and then get on the road again!"
"Um!"
A few minutes later, Yan Liqiang led the team to move from the official road to the river beach not far away and set up camp by the river to rest.
After the team settled down and everything was almost ready, Yan Liqiang asked people to invite Concubine Rong, Prince Min, Princess Anping, as well as the three imperial concubines Duan, Rui, and Yi, and Elder Liu to his tent. Of course, even if Yan Liqiang had not invited them, Eunuch Jiang would naturally follow Concubine Rong and Prince Min.
Everyone sat down. Just as Concubine Rong was about to speak, Prince Min couldn't help but shout, "Master, Master, how come your arrow last night was so powerful? It turned into a giant python after you shot it. Hundreds of soldiers couldn't resist your arrow. It was really amazing. Master, can you teach me?"
Yan Liqiang smiled and said, "As long as Your Highness wants to learn, I am willing to teach you. However, practicing Kyudo is not something that can be achieved overnight. You will have to endure a lot of hardships in the process. Your Highness can take your time..."
King Min clapped his hands and laughed, looking excited, "As long as the master is willing to teach, I will study hard..."
"Ahem..." Concubine Rong coughed twice, looked at Yan Liqiang, and said, "Thanks to Lord Yan for turning the tide last night and saving us once again!"
"Those who harassed us last night were just a mob that was put together at short notice. They collapsed at the first touch. They seemed to be very powerful, but in fact they were just taking advantage of the darkness to scare people. They can't stand a fight at all. If it weren't for my family and a group of guards protecting the ladies and princes, we only needed to send out the guards in the palace to disperse the mob. Those people couldn't hurt you at all. Your Majesty, you saw that Lord Yan led the soldiers of Luyuan to attack the enemy last night, and no one was lost. If those White Lotus rebels had a little ability, Lord Yan would not have it so easy..." Before Yan Liqiang could speak, Eunuch Jiang spoke in a shrill voice, understating it, as if what happened last night was not worth mentioning at all. After he finished speaking, he raised his eye and glanced at Yan Liqiang.
Concubine Rong's face darkened slightly, and her tone became cold. "Jiang Yun, how can you say that? The situation was critical last night. If it weren't for Lord Yan's extraordinary strength, who made those rebels lose their courage with one arrow, the battle yesterday would not have been so easy. Although I am a woman, I grew up in the palace and don't know much about military affairs, but I am often by your side, and I know that the rebels last night had almost ten times the number of us, with complete cavalry and infantry, and surrounded us, and they were so aggressive. Lord Yan led the soldiers of Luyuan and completely defeated them without losing a single soldier or horse. It was a rare victory. This is not because the rebels are incompetent, but Lord Yan is a master strategist and the bravest of the three armies. You say this, isn't it putting the cart before the horse, and it makes people feel chilled..."
Seeing that Concubine Rong was really angry, the dead eunuch's face changed, and he slapped his mouth twice like slapping a mosquito, "This old slave just can't speak, he deserves to be beaten, he deserves to be beaten, Madam, please calm down, and Lord Ye Yan, please don't mind..."
Yan Liqiang smiled and watched Eunuch Jiang's performance. He was not angry at all. At this time, how could he be angry with a dying person? But looking at this Eunuch Jiang, he couldn't help but sigh in his heart. There are really all kinds of people in the world. They are all eunuchs, but Eunuch Liu is so good at being a human being and has martial arts, but the one in front of him is a rare gem.
Concubine Rong's expression slightly changed. She looked at Yan Liqiang and smiled. "I wonder why Lord Yan invited us here?"
"Nothing, it's just that the White Lotus's chaotic soldiers attacked last night, shouting that they wanted to capture the ladies and the two princes, and their words were filthy, which frightened the ladies and the two princes. They deserved to die. I was thinking about it on the road that night. We came all the way from Luyuan, and we were very careful along the way. Even the guards in the palace changed their clothes. We didn't meet anyone along the way. The ladies and the two princes never revealed their whereabouts in front of outsiders. Why did the ladies and the two princes' whereabouts be exposed to the White Lotus as soon as we arrived in Wuting County? The Lotus Sect and those rebel soldiers almost fell into the tiger's mouth. This matter is of great importance and concerns the lives of all the empresses and the two princes. Therefore, I asked everyone to come here to clarify this matter in person and find out the person who leaked our whereabouts. If this matter is not resolved, we will not even know how our whereabouts were leaked. I am afraid that our subsequent journey will fall into the calculations of the White Lotus Sect and the villains along the way at any time. Even if I have ten times the ability, it will be difficult to protect all the empresses and the two princes!"
When everyone in the tent heard what Yan Liqiang said, almost everyone's face became solemn, especially the women. Just thinking about how they almost fell into the hands of those beast-like White Lotus soldiers last night, what would happen to them, such a possibility made them shudder. If it really came to that, perhaps death would be a lucky thing for them.
Among all the people, only Eunuch Jiang's expression suddenly changed, a trace of fear flashed in his eyes, and the hands hanging in his sleeves couldn't help but tremble...
“Well… let me say one more thing… Yesterday, Lord Yan brought people to Wuting County and met with the county magistrate. I don’t know if Lord Yan and the accompanying guards accidentally let the secret slip, or if they were overheard chatting along the way, so those chaotic soldiers of the White Lotus Sect knew the whereabouts of the ladies and the two princes!” The dead eunuch still had a magnanimous expression on his face, but his eyes flickered as he looked at Yan Liqiang, “But fortunately, the ladies and the two princes were blessed by heaven and turned danger into safety. After all, Lord Yan is still young, and this is the first time he has experienced such a thing. He just needs to be more careful in the future, and don’t be careless and let the bad guys take advantage of him and put the ladies and the two princes in danger again!”
Even at this time, this damn eunuch did not forget to put the blame on himself and turn the tables. His ability to adapt to changing circumstances is truly amazing!
Yan Liqiang sneered in his heart, but his face was calm. "Eunuch Jiang, what you said is wrong. When I arrived at Wuting County yesterday, I was accompanied by several palace guards from beginning to end. They never left my side. They can testify to what I said and who I met. They also listened and watched. Even when I met with the Wuting County Magistrate, I never said a word about the palace. You can confront those guards at any time to see if I leaked the news!"
"Of course we don't suspect that Lord Yan leaked the news!" Concubine Rong comforted Yan Liqiang, frowning slightly, "It's just that it's difficult to investigate this matter. Could it be that the news was leaked when we left the Imperial Capital and the people of the White Lotus Sect knew about it..."
"If we had leaked the news in Imperial Capital, and the White Lotus Sect knew the whereabouts of the ladies and the prince and wanted to send soldiers and experts to intercept them, then the people who appeared in front of us last night would definitely not be those few people!" Yan Liqiang said calmly, "In fact, it is not difficult to find out who leaked the news. Just ask someone and you will know..."
Yan Liqiang clapped his hands as he spoke. Liu Xitong, who had been waiting outside the tent, and two soldiers from Luyuan brought the leader of the White Lotus Sect, who had been captured alive by Yan Liqiang last night, into the tent.
When they saw the appearance of the man who was brought in, Concubine Rong, Concubine Duan, Concubine Rui and Concubine Yi all covered their mouths and exclaimed in surprise.
Last night, when Yan Liqiang led the Luyuan people to meet up with Concubine Rong and her people, he used a little trick to hide the still-living leader of the White Lotus Sect. Later, he stuffed him into a carriage and let people watch. No one present knew that Yan Liqiang had actually captured the leaders of the White Lotus Sect...
(End of this chapter)