After the four or five flying fish robes were all dead, the constables from Guanle County dared not approach any further. Head constable Liu Feng, after having his waist knife knocked away by Fang Jie and three teeth kicked out, squatted to the side trembling. Seeing the three ruthless killers stop, he shrank back in fear, not daring to utter a word.
Fang Jie glanced coldly at the constables. Someone threw their waist knife far away first, and the others immediately followed suit, dropping their weapons. Then, very consciously, they stood together, raising their hands above their heads to show they would not resist again.
Fang Jie scoffed, "You think you're worthy of wearing the official robes of the Sui Dynasty?" He strode over to Liu Feng and asked, "Are there any roadblocks ahead?"
Liu Feng hurriedly replied, "Sir, we're in a position of power and have no choice. It's not that we want to stop you, but we can't refuse orders from above..."
"That's not what I was asking!"
Fang Jie glared at him, pointing his sword at his nose.
Liu Feng trembled, thinking Fang Jie was about to draw his sword. He cried out in fright and collapsed to the ground. After a while, when he felt no pain, he dared to open his eyes. Seeing the blood-soaked youth staring coldly at him, he quickly scrambled to his feet and said, "That's all. All the way to Guanle County, only our group intercepted them. Although Guanle County has tens of thousands of people, there are only a few dozen constables and sergeants like us. The others are just hangers-on. Those officials from the capital said our hangers-on disciples and such are not presentable enough, so they didn't let us bring them..."
He continued rambling on, but Fang Jie had no time to pay him any attention. He slowly walked to a constable of similar build and pointed his sword at the man's neck, saying... "Take off your clothes."
The man froze, then his eyes filled with terror. He pleaded, his voice trembling with tears, "Sir... I can't do it, I can't serve you..."
"What the hell are you thinking!"
Fang Jie kicked the man away, slightly annoyed, "If you don't take off your clothes by the time I count to ten, I'll castrate you."
The constable immediately frantically stripped off his clothes, not stopping after his outer garment. Soon he was completely naked. Mu Xiaoyao turned around, a hint of anger hidden in her eyes. This man was honest; not only had he taken off all his clothes, but he hadn't even left a single sock on his feet.
After he finished, seeing Fang Jie also quickly strip off his clothes, he immediately turned pale with fright. He muttered, "I'm so pitiful," and glanced at his companions with shame and indignation. Seeing that no one intended to help him, he gritted his teeth, knelt down, and prostrated himself on the ground, not daring to lift his buttocks. His voice was filled with sorrow as he said, "Sir... please be gentle..."
Fang Jie took off his blood-soaked clothes, put on the constable's uniform, and was about to leave when he suddenly saw the naked constable kneeling on the ground, trembling all over.
He was startled at first, then couldn't help but laugh: "What's your name?"
He asked.
"My name is Tieyi..."
The constable turned to look at Fang Jie and answered with shame and indignation, his face full of determination.
Fang Jie walked over to him, glanced at the man's physique—not bad—and kicked him in the backside, saying, "Tieyi, huh? Quite an impressive name… You have potential. I reckon you won't be able to stay in this government office after today. I'll show you a way out. I've heard that wealthy families are often fond of men, and some people have a particular taste for them. Why don't you change careers…"
With that, Fang Jie turned and leaped onto the crimson horse that had been standing by the roadside, gave a shout, and galloped off. Da Quan and Mu Xiaoyao mounted their horses and followed closely behind, quickly disappearing from sight.
The handsome man called Tieyi plopped down on the ground, wiped the sweat from his brow, and let out a long sigh of relief.
"Thank goodness… thank goodness…"
He murmured, then looked up to find his companions looking at him strangely. Especially his closest friend, who was staring at him intently.
"Luo Chenhe!"
He shouted angrily, "Get out of my way, all of you!"
...
...
Fang Jie and his two companions didn't enter Guanle County. Instead, they bypassed the county town and headed southeast. Fortunately, they had three fine horses, and soon they had shaken off their pursuers. Although the Flying Fish Robes officers stationed at Fenglin Ferry also had warhorses, their mounts were clearly not on the same level as Fang Jie's.
After traveling fifty li in one go, Fang Jie waved to Da Quan and Mu Xiaoyao, who were following closely behind, and slowed down. Even if they didn't need to rest, the warhorses still needed some fodder and water. It would be a huge loss to exhaust such good warhorses to death in one go.
Besides, the so-called "precious horses traveling a thousand li a day" is pure nonsense.
In terms of running speed over a certain period of time, it doesn't seem difficult for warhorses to travel a thousand li a day. In reality, for any large force, even highly mobile light cavalry like the Mongol Empire's wolf cavalry, covering two hundred li (approximately 100 kilometers) in a day was already extremely difficult.
Warhorses also needed rest and food.
Seeing a low hill ahead, with an endless forest at its foot, Fang Jie pointed in that direction, and the three men spurred their horses towards it. They rode deep into the forest, and after dismounting, Fang Jie patted the red horse's neck and told it to graze. The horse, whether it truly understood or not, refused to lower its head to eat, instead slowly walking deeper into the forest, seemingly searching for something.
The two pure white warhorses did the same, ignoring the fallen leaves and the tender green grass that had sprouted after being pushed aside. They followed slowly behind the red horse, as if something ahead was drawing them in.
Fang Jie didn't bother with it. He told Mu Xiaoyao to rest, and he and Da Quan retraced their steps, meticulously cleaning up the tracks left by the warhorses. Xiang Qingniu had told him that the people in the Sui Dynasty's intelligence agency were top-notch scouts; even the slightest clue could attract their attention.
Fortunately, the forest was covered with a thick layer of fallen leaves, leaving no deep marks. He and Da Quan broke off some branches to make brooms and slowly swept back.
Although this wouldn't completely erase the tracks, it was safer than doing nothing. Over the years, Da Quan and his team had become quite adept at this, quick and efficient, and appeared very professional. After cleaning up the tracks, the two of them made it look like they had escaped in the other direction.
When they finally finished cleaning up and turned back to look for Mu Xiaoyao, Fang Jie and Da Quan were dumbfounded.
Where was Mu Xiaoyao in the forest? Just as Fang Jie was about to shout, Da Quan grabbed his arm, stopping him. Da Quan sniffed the air carefully and pointed in a direction, saying, "Xiao Yao's scent is very unique; she must have gone deeper into the forest."
Fang Jie frowned. "Sister Xiao Yao wouldn't leave without a reason."
He carefully looked around; there were signs of a struggle. He then walked in the direction Da Quan pointed. "Although she has the ability to sense enemies, I only realized after truly entering the Great Sui Dynasty that there are countless extraordinary people in this world. Having a sense doesn't necessarily mean you can find an enemy. The absence of signs of a struggle here doesn't necessarily mean there wasn't one..."
As he walked, he slowly drew his sword, his eyes filled with determination.
Da Quan quickened his pace, overtaking him. "I'll go first. I'm better at finding people than you are. Xiao Yao carries warning lights; unless she encounters a master who she can't even react to, she wouldn't fail to warn you."
Fang Jie nodded, but his worry deepened. Although Fan Gu was also territory of the Sui Dynasty, it was far too small. Even in that tiny town, no more than three and a half miles long and wide, there were hidden masters like the old cripple and the dog meat shop owner. The Sui Dynasty's territory was vast; one could imagine how many unknown masters existed there.
After walking several hundred meters, Fang Jie's eyes suddenly sharpened.
The seemingly deep forest had suddenly come to an end.
The large dog squatted down, looked at the fallen leaves, and whispered, "They're coming this way. Be careful."
Fang Jie hummed in agreement, took a deep breath, and slowly stepped out. He leaned forward, his eyes fixed intently on the outside of the forest. His leg muscles were taut as he walked, ready to react instantly to any slight movement. Perhaps he hadn't realized it yet, but since leaving Fan Gu, his body had become considerably stronger than before, and his hearing, smell, and sight were all much more acute.
Concentrating intently, he could even faintly hear the subtle sounds outside the forest.
...
...
Outside the forest, there was no danger, only a lake.
It wasn't that the forest ended there, but rather that this small lake, roughly two miles in circumference, was nestled within a dense forest. The lake's surface was as still as a bronze mirror; perhaps because the forest was so dense, the wind could hardly penetrate from any direction, so there wasn't a single ripple on the water.
The surrounding forest was deep and secluded, the lake calm and still. The beauty here was otherworldly; even if it were, it was a paradise on earth.
Upon exiting the forest, Fang Jie immediately spotted Mu Xiaoyao.
She stood by the lake, seemingly gazing at the water in a daze. About twenty meters away from Mu Xiaoyao, the three warhorses of the Northern Liao people were drinking water. Perhaps animals like horses don't possess the same level of intelligence as humans, but their survival instincts are far stronger. Perhaps while in the forest, they knew there was water to drink here.
Fang Jie didn't rush over rashly. He cautiously surveyed the surroundings, confirming there were no ambushes within several hundred meters, before quickly rushing towards Mu Xiaoyao. Big Dog followed closely behind, constantly glancing around. Fang Jie reached Mu Xiaoyao's side, and he and Big Dog flanked her, asking, "Sister Xiaoyao, why did you come here without even saying goodbye? Did you encounter enemies?"
Mu Xiaoyao slowly shook her head, her voice soft but filled with deep fear: "I don't know… In the forest, it suddenly felt like I was out of control, and I ended up here. But when I got to this lake, the feeling of being bound disappeared… I looked carefully, and there's no one here."
Fang Jie wasn't an atheist in this life, because his ability to live again was beyond scientific explanation.
"Could it be… ghosts?"
He blurted out the question almost instinctively. "It's so quiet here, how could there be anything unclean? Besides... in broad daylight, even if there were such things, they wouldn't dare to come out so openly and scare people, would they?"
The big dog's tone wasn't entirely certain; after all, today's events were too strange.
"Quiet..."
Fang Jie repeated, then his eyes suddenly lit up: "Something seems odd here... Quiet! Too quiet. Not even a single bird in sight, not even the lake is moving. This is almost impossible... unless..."
Before he could finish the word "unless," the sound of hooves suddenly came from behind. Fang Jie quickly turned around and saw over a hundred imperial guards in dark red flying fish robes riding out of the woods. Upon seeing Fang Jie and his companion, the guards immediately shouted a few words, then the hundred-odd men spread out in a fan shape to surround them.
As the hooves shattered the tranquility, the surrounding scenery abruptly changed!
There was no lake at all; it was just a large expanse of lush green grass.
Not far from the three of them, a middle-aged man dressed in gray cloth sat cross-legged on the grass. He held a wooden ladle, drawing water from a tiny spring beside him. After filling the ladle, he fed it to the crimson horse standing beside him. After the crimson horse finished drinking, a second horse came to drink from the ladle. After the second horse finished, a third horse came to drink.
The man in gray cloth, having fed all three horses, reached out and stroked the crimson horse's drooping head. He looked at the horse approvingly and said in a very soft voice, "More well-mannered than a human, very good."