No, gentlemen also guard against

Chapter 816 Intimate Distance
A cool breeze blows along the path in the lush forest.

A stream runs through the forest, like a nimble white snake.

A group of people were stopping by a stream to rest for a while, fetching water with ladles and bowls, and resting.

"What is Dalang looking at?"

Wei Mei suddenly asked.

Upon hearing this, Li Guoer and Li Xian turned their heads and saw Li Dalang fetching water while looking back with a dazed look at the forest path they came from.

"It's okay. I was just thinking, if Li Congshan and the others don't fall into the trap, what will we do if they catch up with us? We really can't escape."

Next to him, Lu Ya, who had been staring at the compass, shook his head:
"Brother Zhang just sent us a message using the compass... According to the agreement, this message means that Li Congshan and others followed the little princess's prediction and continued to go south. They chased us to Hanyang County and did not find our alternative route."

Wei Mei and Li Xian breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.

They, along with Li Dalang and Lu Ya, could not help but look at the young girl with plum blossom makeup who was fetching water with her skirt lifted up and supported by Cai Shou not far away.

Li Guoer ignored him, her attention seemed to be attracted by the fish swimming in the stream, she watched with interest.

The pink lady's skirt that she usually wore was gone, and in its place was a blue double-breasted short jacket commonly worn by young women of the common people.

Not only Li Guoer, but also Li Xian, Wei Mei, Li Dalang, and Lu Ya, all changed their outfits.

Like an ordinary wealthy man on his way.

The amount of luggage they carried with them was also reduced by more than half, and the carriage that was previously brought out from Xunyang Palace disappeared.

The air between the crowd was filled with a mellow and spicy smell.

It smells like a mixture of ambergris and realgar.

These spices were smeared on Li Xian's family's clothes, as well as Lu Ya's Taoist robe, compass, and peach wood sword.

Covering their breath.

Lu Ya looked at Li Guo'er with admiration, and couldn't help but say more:

"Your Highness the Little Princess is smart. She came up with such a brilliant plan. She threw away all the debris along the way and set up many tricks. She asked Senior Brother Zhang to follow with a compass and report the news. We know exactly what debris attracted Li Congshan and the others. This saves us from being suspicious and even doubting ourselves..."

At this point, he looked emotional:

"In this way, we will know exactly which luggage on our side attracted Li Congshan and his men to chase us. Then we can arrange a big fire to burn all the suspicious luggage and leave some that are certain, such as the accompanying carriage that transported ice. Fellow Daoist Xie will carry it and pretend to be us so that we can go south and mislead the enemy."

Wei Mei turned back and looked in the direction of Qingya Post Station, with a lingering fear on her face:
"It was really dangerous. I didn't expect that not only the two carriages we often use in the palace were marked, but also the carriage that transports ice... They were all marked by Li Congshan and his men. Although I don't know how he did it and what kind of Qi training he used, if it wasn't for Gu'er to try it out, it would really be a disaster."

Li Dalang asked curiously:
"Sister, what was the meaning of the poem you left at Qingya Posthouse yesterday? Why did you suddenly leave ink marks behind?"

Li Guoer didn't raise his eyes, still scooping water from the stream, and shook his head gently:

"Thank you for your request, sister. If we want to deceive Li Congshan and leave a trace at the same time, this is the only way."

Li Dalang asked with concern:
"What do you mean? Is this a hint? Is Miss Xie going to leave it for Tan Lang?"

Li Guoer lowered his eyes and said:

"I think it's risky, but Sister Xie is confident that he can find it."

As if she remembered something, she curled her lips:
"Since the skirt knife has been reacting from time to time, Sister Xie has been distracted every day. I can only obey her this time to make her feel at ease."

Li Xian said with some emotion:
"We have to listen to Ling Jiang. She has made great efforts this time. She continues to drive south to help us divert the pursuers... The more I think about it, the more ashamed I feel. Tan Lang and Ling Jiang have helped us so much, but we have always implicated them. We have been running away all the way. We can't help Tan Lang much in Xunyang City, and we also affected his search for the child bride. It was the same in Longcheng..."

Li Xian, who was dressed as a wealthy man, was speaking halfway when he felt warmth on the back of his palm. He turned around and saw that it was his wife Wei Mei who was stroking the back of his hand.

Wei Mei comforted optimistically:

"Now is not the time to feel sorry for ourselves. We must return to Luoyang. This is the greatest reward for Tan Lang and Ling Jiang. We have come all the way from the Su Mansion in Longcheng. We can't turn back. If we turn back, we will fall into an abyss. No one can stop us from returning to Beijing!"

Li Xian looked north silently, his eyes a little hazy.

Li Dalang turned around and asked Lu Ya:
"Master Lu, when will Master Zhang return? Will he wait for Miss Xie to come back with him?"

Lu Ya shook his head slowly and glanced at the compass:

"I don't know. After Senior Brother Zhang sent that message, there was no response. But I can ask."

After saying that, the Taoist priest with the expressionless face lowered his head and started to manipulate the compass again.

Li Dalang took a closer look and saw the symbols of the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches on the copper plate, but he couldn't quite understand them, so he had to walk away.

Li Dalang glanced at Li Guoer who was leisurely scooping water, and asked in a low voice that his father and mother who were not far away could not hear:

"Sister, aren't you worried that our plan will fail and Li Congshan will find out and chase us? Miss Xie and Taoist Zhang are not here now. In fact, we are at our weakest now. If we are caught up, we will almost certainly die..."

Li Guoer handed the water bag to Cai Shou, letting the little girl go play in the water and catch fish. She took the white handkerchief and wiped her hands. She looked back with bright eyes, red lips and white teeth, and uttered a few words:

"Yes, I am afraid, but so what?"

Li Dalang was speechless for a moment.

Li Guoer sat on a blue stone with a slender sword at his hand.

She looked her brother up and down.

Li Dalang saw that his sister's pretty face was normal, so he took out his long sword, placed it across his knees, and said calmly:
"We are not going north for sightseeing. From the moment we left Xunyang Palace, no, from the moment we left Longcheng Su Mansion, we should have been prepared to die suddenly on the way.

"If you want to enjoy wealth and luxury, why don't you stay in the Su Mansion in Longcheng? If you don't want to be a bird in a cage, how can you be safe if you want to break out of the cage?"

Li Guo'er lowered her eyes, like stars hiding behind the clouds. She half-drew the long sword on her knee. The sword light was like the bright light of a laurel palace in the sky, flowing like water on the faces of the Li brother and sister who were closest to her.

"Brother, I thought you were already prepared. I didn't expect you to be so scared now. This is human nature, but it's not what a real man does, especially a man who wants to do great things."

Li Dalang scratched his head:
"Brother, I am obsessed. My sister is very brave. I often think that it would be better if she were a man... I thought the reason why my sister was so indifferent was because of what Master Yuan said."

Li Guoer said nothing.

At this moment, she turned her head, and her peripheral vision seemed to be attracted by something.

Li Guoer suddenly looked downstream of the stream.

Li Xian, Wei Mei and others also attracted their attention. They turned around and looked, their faces were stunned.

"What is this? A fish?"

Wei Mei asked curiously.

I saw a white sturgeon swimming slowly from the lower reaches of the stream, swimming upstream.

But if you look closely, you can see that it is floating.

When Lu Ya saw this thing, he suddenly stood up and stared at it.

At this moment, the leaves in the surrounding forests trembled slightly, and the sound of horse hooves hitting the ground came from far away, accompanied by the rustling sound of leaves being blown away by heavy objects.

A knight came to defeat Lin Chong.

Li Xian and others' expressions suddenly changed.

Li Guoer and Li Dalang subconsciously thought of something, and stood up quickly, standing in front of Li Xian and his wife.

Lu Ya listened for a moment, then frowned: "Two people on two horses, maybe scouts..."

"My Lord, it's me!"

Ouyang Rong's clear voice came from the gap in the woods, like a summer breeze blowing on one's face. Li Xian and Li Dalang smiled.

Lu Ya loosened his hand that was holding the hilt of the peach sword behind him and lowered his guard.

He continued to stare at the white sturgeon that inexplicably frightened him. In passing, he saw that the little princess had put down her hand that was holding the moonlight sword. Silently, she sat down on the spot, lowered her head to scoop up water from the stream, and turned her back to the crowd and the person who was about to come.

I didn't go to meet him specially.

After a while, two groups of fast riders rushed out of the woods.

Carrying a man and a woman.

They are all familiar figures.

After Lu Ya saw the young man in Confucian robes and the girl in palace skirt, he looked around and dismounted.

That inexplicably terrifying white sturgeon, like a young swallow flying into the forest, circled around Master Ouyang in joy.

"Tanlang!"

Li Xian, Wei Mei and Li Dalang all went to greet them with smiles on their faces.

Halfway through the walk, they caught a clear glimpse of the cold little face of the girl in the palace skirt.

"Rong...Rong Zhennvshi?"

Everyone stepped back, looking surprised.

Rong Zhen didn't look at the crowd, but stared at the floating white sturgeon in front of him without looking away.

In response to everyone's shouts, she seemed to nod slightly, but the amplitude was very small...she seemed very cold and indifferent.

Ouyang Rong checked everyone and found that everyone was safe and sound. Apart from changing into simple clothes, they did not have any injuries from fighting.

He let out a long breath, pushed away the stupid fish that was clinging to him regardless of the occasion, and said:

"I'll explain the matter of Lady Shi later. I finally caught up with you. By the way, where's my junior sister?"

Ouyang Rong looked around and the atmosphere became quiet.

Li Xian said with guilt:
"My dear niece is not here. Please help us to lure the pursuers. We are being hunted by Li Congshan. Fortunately, Guoer has a good plan."

Li Guoer glanced at Rong Zhen behind Ouyang Lianghan, silently sizing up this lady historian, her eyes vaguely falling on the tiny gap between the latter's arm and Ouyang Lianghan's arm.

There is a subtle boundary in the physical distance between opposite sexes.

Rong Zhen seemed not to notice the little princess who looked like a saint. She raised her little hand and adjusted the mandarin duck jade hairpin on her high bun.

Li Guo'er's eyes moved sideways, slowly upwards, and landed on the hairpin.

Ouyang Rong suddenly walked up to Li Guoer and pointed at the long sword on her knee:
"Junior Sister's sword?"

Without waiting for him to say anything, Li Guoer picked up the sword and threw it at him.

"Well, thank you sister for leaving me here for self-defense."

Only then did Rong Zhen look directly at the little princess with plum blossom makeup like everyone else.

Ouyang Rong took the Moonlight Sword, weighed it, looked down at it, and after a while, he took out a small seal from his arms.

Being close to Guo'er and face to face, he could see the words "Red Lotus" faintly engraved on the small seal.

No one knew what the young man in scholar's robe meant by this action.

Rong Zhen's face remained normal. She tilted her head to look at the Moonlight Sword and the seal, seeming to be very interested, so her petite body unconsciously moved closer to Ouyang Rong.

The girl's elegant topknot touched the man's broad shoulders.

Except for Lu Ya, the straight man who only loves to stare at fish.

The gazes of Li Guoer, Li Xian, Li Dalang and Wei Mei instantly fell on Rong Zhen's still cold face.

……

Zhang Shixiu didn't expect to meet reinforcements.

On the official road near Hanyang County, he looked a little dazed when he was rescued by the oncoming armored cavalrymen wearing the same black robes and armor.

However, when he saw clearly that one of the leading people was wearing a fiery red dress, he suddenly woke up and said:
"You...Fellow Daoist Xie, who are these people?"

Xie Lingjiang was relieved to see that he was safe:

"These are the reinforcements brought by my senior brother. Her name is Qin Ying, the granddaughter of General Qin. The old general transferred a Xuanwu Battalion from the front line. I finished setting up the sleight of hand in Hanyang County and was about to come back when I ran into Qin Yanqing at the city gate. My family has some friendship with the Qin family, and we are old acquaintances.

"I was going to go back, but since we met them, I might as well bring them out. I was going to stop Li Congshan, but I met Qin Ying on the way. She came back from Qinyayi and said that there was a Taoist priest named Lu Ya who might be hunted by Li Congshan's White Tiger Guards. She asked us to go over and help, so we came. But I didn't expect that the person being hunted was not Lu Ya, but you."

Qin Ying, who was beside her, nodded slightly, as if to say hello, and then rode forward.

Go and help Qin Yanqing to command the Xuanwu Camp and repel the pursuers.

Xie Lingjiang raised his sword and prepared to go to help. Before leaving, he looked at Zhang Shixiu:
"Were you exposed at Qingya Station?"

Zhang Shixiu covered his chest injury and lowered his head in shame:

"Yes, I was discovered by Li Congshan and Miao Zhen, and they chased me all the way here. I didn't dare to lead them back to the east road, so I could only run desperately towards the official road in the south."

Xie Lingjiang frowned: "How did they find you?"

Zhang Shixiu sighed, "It's a compass. It has the aura of Junior Brother Lu on it. It's also what Li Congshan and the others are targeting."

As he spoke, he reached into his arms, preparing to take something, when suddenly his face froze.

"what happened to you?"

Zhang Shixiu said nothing, lowered his head and quickly searched his body.

At this time, Qin Ying and Qin Yanqing returned with the warriors of Xuanwu Camp, carrying thirty or forty heads in their hands.

Qin Yanqing clasped his fists and reported, but his brows were filled with doubt:
"Solved. There aren't many rebels here, only about forty or so riders."

Xie Lingjiang frowned immediately: "Where are Li Congshan and Miaozhen?"

"did not see it."

"Oops!"

Zhang Shixiu suddenly spoke up:
"The compass is missing. It seems to have fallen into the forest during the fight..."

Xie Lingjiang asked seriously, "Fellow Daoist Zhang, where are Li Congshan and Miaozhen?"

Zhang Shixiu looked around in amazement, frowning:

"I don't know. I was defeated by them and was seriously injured. I escaped from the woods and fled all the way south. I only felt that there were pursuers following me. I didn't notice whether Li Congshan, Miaozhen and others were following me."

Everyone immediately looked at each other.

Zhang Shixiu's expression changed.

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(PS: Some good brothers misread the title of the previous chapter "Gu'er offers advice" as "Gu'er offers juice". Brothers, where did you take me? This is not a bus to the kindergarten, let me off!)
(End of this chapter)