A scene of lush greenery filled the horizon as the boat reached the shore.
Xiao Shi came out of the cabin with a white veil covering her beautiful face, only showing her glass-like and cold, desolated eyes – a personality reminiscent of Xiao Qi.
Hai Qinghan put down the board which allowed Chu Li to disembark from the boat and entered the woods.
Chu Li followed behind Hai Qingshan for about ten meters until they reached an empty meadow. In the middle of the woods, there was a huge green carriage led by eight fine horses.
"Brother Chu, do you know how to steer a carriage?" Han Qingshan asked Chu Li.
"Yes," he replied.
He had learned to steer a carriage when he wanted to go downhill with the coachman, Elder Chui.
"Then I'll leave it to you, Brother Chu," Hai Qingshan said.
So, Chu Li untied the reins of the horses and they went on their way.
Chu Li got on the front of the carriage and spurred the horses as he let out two distinct cries. He steered the carriage by trailing the horses ahead of him until they arrived by a shore.
"Lady Xiao Shi, Chu Li knows how to steer a carriage. Shall we let him steer it and have Elder Guo rest?" Han Qingshan asked with a smile on his face.
"Stop bootlicking, young man! I'll steer the carriage. What can you do about it?" Mulin coldly replied.
Hai Qingshan laughed and looked at Xiao Shi awkwardly.
"Elder Guo, come and sit with me. Let Chu Li steer the carriage," Xiao Shi said.
"Fine." Mulin helplessly agreed but not before he gave Chu Li a cold stare.
"Fellow, if your riding skills are lacking, I'll punish you!" warned Mulin.
Chu Li saluted and smiled.
Mulin scoffed and assisted Xiao Shi into the carriage.
The carriage had a wide and huge purple frame. It looked like any other carriage from the outside, just maybe a little wider. However, the interior of the carriage was decorated so elegantly that it was soothing to the eyes. No matter how one sat, they would have felt comfortable.
"Don't mind what he said, Elder Guo is a good man," Hai Qingshan whispered to Chu Li while patting his shoulder.
Chu Li smiled and nodded.
Words never hurt him anyway as he did not care for the words of others about him.
Chu Li steered the carriage with great skills as if the horses knew what he was thinking.
He activated the Omniscient Mirror so he could see the surface and condition of the road ahead of them as well as the thoughts of the horses. He was able to adjust his control of the carriage easily and quickly. This made the carriage move at a relatively fast speed and with stability even when they were going through narrow roads.
About half an hour later, they arrived on the main road.
The six Grandmasters were separated. Four of them protected the four corners of the carriage while another two covered the front and back of the carriage. Hai Qingshan was ahead of them, scouting for proper roads. However, he had a bad habit of disappearing often.
There was still one horse that they left without a rider. Hai Qingshan let the reins loose and had the horse follow behind him with two big bundles tied to it.
Chu Li ignored the others, and only focused on his steering. He knew that Mulin was like a dictionary of insults and he could burst out at any moment except he did not have the right situation to use any of them. Mulin had to resist insulting Chu Li, which was a very tiring task.
Xiao Shi was holding a poetry anthology in her hands while Mulin took out a medical book to distract him from using his profanity. He got immersed in the book quickly and made gestures while looking excited. Time passed very quickly for them both as they indulged in their own activities.
Before they knew it, it was already noon.
Hai Qingshan hastened his horse to the front of the wagon, saluted and said, "Lady Xiao Shi, there's a pagoda up ahead where we can rest. You should also have a bite".
"Okay." Xiao Shi agreed.
Hai Qingshan hastened the horses and led the entourage while Chu Li waved the whip to speed up the carriage. In no time, they entered the woods where there was an old, dappled pagoda. This pagoda was built by the Public House and its main purpose was to provide a place for travelers to rest.
Hai Qingshan untied the two big bundles from the horse, which contained a few wooden boxes and leather water bottles. He carefully opened the boxes, took out four dishes and placed them on the stone table. He distributed some rations and stewed meat for Chu Li and the six Grandmasters.
Mulin and Xiao Shi sat at the stone table and had their meals while the six Grandmasters sat outside the pagoda, guarding it as they ate their food. They were also paying close attention to their surroundings as a precautionary step.
Hai Qingshan greeted Chu Li and they took the horses to a safe distance where they could untie the reins and let the horses feed on grass. Hai Qingshan sat on the meadow and began eating his meal and so did Chu Li.
Xiao Shi took off the white veil which revealed her beautiful face. She ate the dishes slowly, elegantly and very politely.
She only ate vegetables and did not share any words with Mulin. Both of them abided by a daily rule to stay silent during meals and ate very slowly.
After their meal, Xiao Shi took out a silk handkerchief to clean the corners of her mouth. Then, she put on her white veil and left the pagoda to take a stroll in the woods. Her lake-green gown fluttered along with her motions with immense elegance and grace.
The six Grandmasters followed Lady Xiao Shi closely. They maintained their positions and would not budge one bit.
Chu Li finished his rations and stewed meat quickly but Hai Qingshan was eating it deliberately slow.
After another half an hour, Xiao Shi returned to the carriage. Before Mulin entered the carriage, he stared at Chu Li and said, "Young fellow, what is the point of steering the carriage so quickly?"
"Very well, I shall lower my speed," Chu Li said as he saluted and smiled at Mulin.
Mulin scoffed out of annoyance at how Chu Li responded to him. He did not talk back to Mulin every time he was scolded. Mulin also did not scold him out of thin air because it would have been too obvious that he was provoking Chu Li. The only thing he could do was scoff loudly as he entered the carriage.
Xiao Shi pursed her lips, and gently laughed as she saw the situation unfold from her carriage. She shook her head and picked up her poetry anthology again.
Chu Li did not have any other thoughts besides safety. This was a secret trip and he had a duty to ensure that their location would not be leaked. However, Lu Yurong was very witty and astute, so Chu Li had to be extra careful to avoid detection.
Mulin took out his medical book and scoffed as he sat down. He asked, "What background did this fellow come from?"
"Elder Guo, he's the one that Third Lady thinks very highly of. She wants to train him."
"Oh, so he's Third Lady's trusted lieutenant." Mulin scoffed, nodded and did not make another sound.
"What do you think about him, Elder Guo?"
"If the Third Lady thinks highly of him, of course, he's good," he replied.
"You're right."
"He's a clever person," Xiao Shi said softly as she looked at her poetry anthology.
"Hey!" Mulin shook his head. "It's such a pity young Xiao Shi doesn't like witty people!"
Xiao Shi smiled. Both of them did not realize that Chu Li was sitting right outside the wagon and had heard everything they said.
Chu Li forced himself to smile. Even though Xiao Shi looked so delicate and lovely, Su Ru was not wrong about her and she was exactly what he had been warned about. It was going to be harder to get close to her than it was with the Third Lady.
He continued to steer the carriage with great stability but went a little slower than he did the first time. This stabilized the carriage even more than before.
More travelers started to appear on the roads and they often met someone who was riding a horse or rushing on a rickshaw.
Although the road was very busy, their group did not attract any attention because it was normal to see large groups of people walking on the main road.
A single carriage with a few riders was very common and although the one they had was a little wider, it looked normal from the outside.
Han Qingshan spurred his horse with the whip, turned and said, "Lady Xiao Shi, there's a town ahead. Do you want to stop there to rest for the night?"
"Okay." Xiao Shi agreed.
"Turn left at the junction ahead. The North Guard Town is fifty miles away from there," Hai Qingshan whispered to Chu Li.
Chu Li nodded. Then, he furrowed his brows as he looked over at the two riders who passed by him. Hai Qingshan noticed the odd expression on Chu Li's face.
"What happened?" he whispered to Chu Li.
Chu Li pointed at the two riders in the distance and said, "They're scouts."
"Are they going to engage us?" Hai Qingshan asked as his expression turned serious.
Chu Li nodded.
"Are they robbers?"
Chu Li waved the whip, shook his head and said, "I'm afraid they've come because of the Second Lady."
This caused Hai Qingshan's expression to turn sour. "Do you suspect that they're from the Ren Public House?"
Chu Li nodded.
"I'll go and check!" Hai Qingshan said.
He whipped the horse to chase after the two riders right after he finished his sentence. Even if what Chu Li suspected turned out to be false, they wanted to be safe than sorry. There would have been no harm done by being extra cautious.
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