At the north gate of Suzaku City, a six-foot-high city wall is built with blue-black stone bricks. There are already traces of rain erosion on the wall over the years, silently describing the history covered by moss and its own indestructibility.
As the first city guarding the southern frontier of the dynasty, the sergeants guarding the city gates were all wearing armor and holding weapons, and their team discipline was strict. These soldiers wore armor with patterns characteristic of southern Xinjiang. Although the blackened dried blood stains on the clothes made them look a little old, the weapons held firmly in the hands of the soldiers were all worn. His master wiped the blade until it was white and bright, and a gust of wind happened to blow by. The red tassels hanging under the blade swayed and told the people passing by how many people's blood they had been stained with.
At this time, people outside the city carrying fresh vegetables to catch the morning market and caravans about to leave the city passed each other.
Mu Qing, who was disguised as a businessman in his thirties, rode a big brown horse behind the caravan. He looked back at this scene. Because he had been trained in a bloody environment for many years, he could clearly feel the cold and bloody atmosphere coming from the defending army.
When Mu Qing was in Hidden Valley, he had heard that the strength of the sergeants guarding the gates of Suzaku City had all reached at least the seventh level in Jianghu. The internal skills and mental techniques they had learned were firmly controlled by the Bai family of the Mujin Dynasty. , the name is Iron Bone Moving Mountain Strength.
This is a skill that uses body training as the main method and mental skills as a supplement. The ninth level of iron bone body training and the ninth level of mountain-moving mental skills complement each other. When combined in a formation, they have the effect of transcending levels to fight against the enemy. A single seventh-grade soldier may not be that powerful and invincible, but if you encounter a military formation of hundreds or even a thousand seventh-grade soldiers on the battlefield, then a first-grade master may not be able to escape.
And this is the reason why the Mujin Dynasty was able to rule for one hundred and seventy-three generations despite constant rebellions and riots, because the army it owned was the most powerful army in the entire continent. Only the royal family will have the most complete techniques and upgrade materials in their hands. For those in the military who crave power, there is nothing more tempting than this.
Mu Qing's current strength is around the fourth level of Jianghu, and there is nothing weird about the mental method he has learned. It is called Shura Jue, which is a pure internal skill that all assassins in Hidden Valley can learn. It can be said that with Mu Qing's current level of internal energy accumulation, if he encounters a hundred seventh-grade military monks who have learned the power of moving mountains with iron bones, he can still escape unscathed.
The strength evaluation levels given in Jianghu are always just a rough approximation, because each has learned different skills or physical skills, and even has certain means of killing and saving lives, so the fourth-level strength of people is like heaven. Two leaves in the South Swamp Forest are the same and never the same.
As long as Mu Qing is not allowed to encounter someone who is good at using poison, he is confident that he can safely escort the entire caravan back to Jinguan City in Qingchuan Prefecture. Of course, after communicating with Liu Weirui at noon yesterday, he only agreed to protect her alone. As for the entire caravan, it depends on the situation.
…
In the distant mountains, under the sunlight, the lines of the mountains became much clearer, meandering back as the caravan moved forward.
Some of the mountain flowers on both sides of the road are already blooming impatiently. The dew left on the petals in the early morning is gradually thinning, but it is like finely brewed wine, which is intoxicating.
On the road ahead, due to the previous rain, shallow green grass has grown, and the horse's hooves stepped on it, just like stepping on soft pastries and leaving no trace.
By midday, the warm wind had not intoxicated the pedestrians on the road.
The caravan that Mu Qing was in was busy changing its formation. This caravan, with a total of fifty-two fully loaded carriages and one hundred and thirty-one people, left the wide official road and was coming to the narrow commercial road. In the past, the official road could accommodate two carriages running side by side without any hindrance, and there was even room for them. However, on the current commercial road, the road surface has become much narrower, and one can only drive one following the other.
The whole team is like beads strung on a scattered silk thread, scattered among the Qingdai mountains.
After setting foot on the business road and driving for some distance, the people who had not eaten yet and were busy because they had just changed formations, were already feeling the fatigue in their limbs slightly due to the noon sun and the warm wind.
Mu Qing had already arrived in the middle of the team at this time, barely walking parallel to a carriage. He had already discovered the hidden danger when the team changed formation.
It's funny to say that there are 131 people in the entire caravan, but after excluding the 104 drivers who take turns driving the carriage, there are only 27 people left, and this also excludes Liu Weirui and her maid Xiao in front. Cicada, which meant that twenty-five people including Mu Qing had to guard the caravan, which was dragged in a single line and was not moving fast.
If there is a group of bandits buried in the high valley in front of them, only a dozen people can cut the caravan in the middle, making it difficult for them to take care of the head and tail. The best result is that at most half of the caravan can be saved.
"You can't just come out and suffer." Mu Qing thought in his heart. Seeing that there were still a few miles to go and he was approaching the entrance of the valley ahead, he dismounted, handed the reins to the driver who was idle and walked forward.
The other person was still more than ten feet away but did not come closer, but because of his fourth-grade hearing ability, he just happened to hear the conversation between the two people in front of him.
"Miss, that man named Mu Qing has been following the back of the convoy. He is a lazy guy who doesn't work hard even after being paid. Why are you looking for him?" A young man on horseback followed Liu Weirui. complained to her.
After hearing the complaints from Li Niu's apprentice Li Si, Liu Weirui held up the black hair that escaped from her forehead with her hands and shook her head with a smile.
Because Li Niu's departure was rather sudden, no one in the caravan knew the reason why she and Li Niu went to Liuye Bookstore yesterday except the person involved. All the guards, including Li Niu's apprentice, only said that because of Li Niu's departure, the young lady hired a good man to accompany her in the city.
They thought this in their minds, especially Li Si, who was Li Niu's disciple and had reached the seventh level. It was obvious that his lady did not recognize his strength, so they vaguely regarded Mu Qing as an opponent, but they didn't know that he was going to It was his master who said he didn't recognize his strength, because it was his master who personally made arrangements for Liu Weirui.
If Li Si hadn't mentioned this person, Liu Weirui might have almost forgotten that there was such a person in his team.
Liu Weirui actually didn't take Li Niu's arrangement seriously.
First, she had to walk the business road from Jinguan City to Zhuque City several times a year. Since she became a deacon, there have only been a few chaos during the many business trips in the past few years, and they have not always happened. was easily solved, so she was very relieved about this route chosen by many business travelers.
Secondly, because Mu Qing gave him the impression that he was more like a shrewd and capable businessman who negotiated prices, rather than a powerful martial artist, so after Mu Qing had a conversation with her yesterday, she agreed to Mu Qing. Replacement Condition Requirements.
In her eyes, Mu Qing was just equivalent to the four gold that had been used. She was ready to waste the four gold and treat it as a lesson in the world, but Mu Qing came to her door again, so why didn't she use it? principle.
"Xiao Si, I believe you can lead the team well. That person was recommended by your master. You two should get along well and avoid conflicts." Liu Weirui knew that Li Si would have misunderstood and didn't want the current leader of the guard to get into trouble and cause something to happen. Then he explained. It's just that the reason was not explained in detail to Li Si.
"Master Rui." After hearing the end of their conversation more than ten feet away, Mu Qing stepped forward and said.
"Mr. Mu Qing, why are you here?" Liu Weirui was surprised by Mu Qing's sudden appearance, and asked slightly while sitting on the horse.
"Uh, keep you safe." Mu Qing raised his head slightly, glanced at Li Si who just said bad things about him, and said in a calm tone.
"Hmph! I'm with you, young master, so you don't have to bother with me. You should go back to the back of the team and continue to be lazy." Sitting high on the horse, Li Si, wearing a dark blue outfit, looked ancient. Tong, who was full of vitality, glanced sideways at Mu Qing who was standing under the horse, and said enthusiastically.
"Xiaosi, don't be so rude."
Lu Weirui always dresses in men's clothing when she goes out. Today she wears a tooth-white jersey brocade sweater. Three thousand black hair is half-tied with a red rope. The naturally hanging hair in front of her forehead hides the blue waves in her clear pupils. She had just used her eyes to stop Li Si who almost spilled the beans, and her tone was slightly harsh.
With Mu Qing's eyesight, he figured out Liu Weirui's daughter's identity when they met in front of Liuye Bookstore. However, these were trivial matters, so he never revealed it.
At this moment, he stood alone under the horse and looked up. The midday sun forced him to squint his eyes. Sitting on the horse against the light, Lu Weirui really looked like a handsome young man in a troubled world.
"Mr. Mu Qing, did you find something wrong?" Over the past few years, Liu Weirui had developed a good habit of dealing with people. She stopped the horse, dismounted, and then asked Mu Qing politely. He expressed his apology to Mu Qing with his eyes for Li Si's words just now.
"Well, when crossing the canyon like in front, our formation can easily be cut off in the middle, and we can't see each other from the beginning to the end." Mu Qing saw that Liu Weirui, as his employer, had a good attitude, and he was not angry at Li Si's words. He spelled out the possible problems he discovered in detail.
"Tch~" After hearing what Mu Qing said, Li Si shook his head directly on his horse.
Liu Weirui's eyebrows, which were originally wrinkled due to confusion, gradually softened.
Mu Qing noticed the subtle changes in the expressions of the two people, and instead frowned.
"Mr. Mu Qing, I also mentioned the issue you mentioned to Xiaosi's master when I first followed the caravan." Liu Weirui saw the confusion on Mu Qing's face and motioned for the two of them to talk while walking.
"Grandpa said that the merchants of the imperial dynasty traveled all over the Kyushu, and there would be big or small troubles on every trade road, but as long as you understand the two most important things, you will be worry-free: first, strengthen yourself, and as long as the merchants can do At the level of the Ten Families, heroes from all over the world will compete to be the guest of the family, and even the royal family will give them face when they go out. Naturally, they are not afraid of any trouble on the road; secondly, for a family like ours, every martial artist As long as the horseman and the groom are members of my family, their lives will always be more important than the goods. It will be easy to solve everything by thinking from these two aspects."
Mu Qing will remember the light in Liu Weirui's eyes many years later when she said these words to him.
When the martial arts masters like Li Si, who belonged to the Liu family, heard their eldest lady's words, they looked at their young lady's eyes and felt like they would die for their confidants.
"Xiao Si." Lu Weirui indicated with her eyes what Li Si should do next.
"Hmm, sir, I'll give the orders then." Li Si didn't say much, and after receiving Liu Weirui's eyes, he led his men and gave the orders one by one.
In less than half a quarter of an hour, all the grooms in the front half of the caravan gathered in the middle and rear, leaving only the martial arts master in the caravan who controlled the direction of the carriage by one person across several carriages. As a result, most of the non-armed grooms in the convoy gathered at the rear. Even if they encountered danger, it was only the armed guards who took the lead. If they were still defeated, they would naturally have to consider themselves unlucky.
"Sir, you'd better go to the middle of the cavalry. There are more guards there. Since the master has left, it's natural that I should lead the leading horse." Li Si seemed to have experienced this a long time ago and ordered his men to do something. He was not sloppy, and even acted a little livelier than usual because his master was away.
"Yeah, thank you for your hard work, Junior Four. If you are really in danger and outnumbered, come back to the middle section and join us as soon as possible. As long as you still leave the goods there, they won't be lost." Liu Weirui learned from his father three years ago After taking over the responsibility of being the main line of the Liu family, he gradually started to consider every detail when doing things.
"Sir, don't worry. If you encounter three or five thieves, it will only be their misfortune." Li Si raised his chin and smiled.
He is very confident in his seventh-level strength. Ordinary mountain thieves are vulnerable to him. Even some village leaders and other well-known village leaders have just entered the first-level martial arts. From these few years Judging from his years of experience following his master and caravans, he did not have to worry about possible troubles on the business road.
"Hmph, do you think you are invincible just because you have a little bit of Three-Legged Cat Kung Fu?" A sarcastic remark suddenly came from behind Liu Weirui, but it was Xiaochan, the maid who had been following her silently, who spoke up.
It was only at this time that Mu Qing shifted his gaze from Liu Weirui to the delicate and capable maid in a tan-yellow shirt. The latter also noticed Mu Qing's eyes. She had a tall and straight posture and a slight momentum. It turned out that she was also a martial artist. characters.
"Sister, you'd better protect the young master, outsiders cannot be trusted after all." Li Si said helplessly to his sister Li Chan, but he transferred his firepower to Mu Qing.
"Mr. Rui, let's go to the back."
Mu Qing had no intention of stepping on Li Si based on his fourth-level strength. Only a weak person would bully someone weaker than him. He would just treat him as a mosquito that buzzed when exploring the way.
If Li Si, a mosquito, still came to make noises in front of him, he might have given him a sore throat for a few days without even realizing it. You must know that his talent as a pharmacist was recognized by Chen Zhuo.
