Catching Monsters

Chapter 571 Qi Yushan

In the Imperial Study early in the morning, Xiao Yuzheng's brows were tightly furrowed, while Feng Yuze stood beside him with his head down, not daring to utter a sound.

Xiao Yuzheng's face was grim, and he said in a deep voice, "Mr. Ye just left without saying goodbye, and you didn't even notice?"

The place where Ye Xiuyuan lived was secretly monitored by many eunuchs arranged by Feng Yu.

Of course, one aspect was surveillance, and another way of saying it was to secretly protect Ye Xiuyuan.

Unexpectedly, Ye Xiuyuan suddenly disappeared without a trace, leaving only a farewell letter in the house in that small courtyard.

Xiao Yuzheng slowly picked up the farewell letter on the table, glanced at Feng Yu with displeasure. Ye Xiuyuan was a man of great talent, and it was such a pity to let him leave like this.

Xiao Yuzheng then opened the letter and slowly read it. After reading it, he said in a deep voice, "Mr. Ye is overthinking things. He claims to feel threatened and needs to leave the capital to avoid trouble."

"He will return once the trouble has passed."

"With so many experts in the capital, surely I can protect him?"

Hearing Xiao Yuzheng's dissatisfied words, Feng Yu lowered his head and said respectfully, "Your Majesty, why don't I send someone to search for him as soon as possible? Mr. Ye has only been gone for a short time, so it shouldn't be difficult to find him."

Xiao Yuzheng stared at the contents of the letter, pondered for a long time, then slowly shook his head, sighed, and said, "Forget it, if a man as extraordinary as Mr. Ye really wanted to hide, how could you and I find him so easily?"

"Yes." Feng Yu nodded upon hearing this. Just then, a knock sounded on the door of the Imperial Study.

Feng Yu turned her head and glanced at the door, then quickly went forward and opened it.

Qin Hong walked in from outside, holding a secret letter from the north in his hand: "Your Majesty, I have a special situation here that requires your immediate attention."

Xiao Yuzheng took the letter from Qin Hong, his brows furrowing slightly: "Qi Yushan of the Northern Grasslands? The Fox Clan and many experts are gathered there?"

"Yes." Qin Hong nodded emphatically and said, "The Fox Clan sent a large number of experts to search for something on many snowy mountains in the north some time ago."

“Three days ago, all the fox clan experts seemed to have discovered something and gathered on the mountainside of Qiyu Mountain. Our spies in the grasslands have limited strength and can only find out this information.”

"If we want to go further, we'll probably have to send someone from the Tongyou Guard to take a look."

After listening, Xiao Yuzheng closed his eyes and pondered for a moment before saying, "Isn't Jiang Yun on good terms with the Fox Clan? Let Jiang Yun and Linglong go and investigate to see what's going on."

"Yes." Qin Hong quickly agreed upon hearing this, and then Xiao Yuzheng went to handle other matters.

Xiao Yuzheng was very busy with official duties, especially now that Xu Xiaogang had completely blocked the territory of the three southwestern provinces and was preparing for the final offensive.

Many grain allocations and material transportations required Xiao Yuzheng's personal attention and instructions.

There was no other way; without Xiao Yuzheng's instructions and attention, these guys would be quite audacious in their passive resistance and corruption.

We are currently at a critical juncture in the three southwestern provinces, in the effort to wipe out Wang Longzhi and his gang. We absolutely cannot afford any unforeseen events.

……

After returning from the Marquis of Weiwu's residence, Jiang Yun prepared to lie down and rest, having spent the entire night searching for someone.

Upon hearing that they had failed to find Feng Beier, Xu Suwen couldn't help but look worried, and she hadn't slept well all night.

Just as Jiang Yun was about to go to sleep, Yun Pingchuan rushed to his door, knocked, and said, "Master, Eunuch Qin from the palace has arrived and says he wants to see you."

Yun Pingchuan didn't know Qin Hong's true identity, only that he was dressed in a eunuch's robe and was quite old, so he must have a high status in the palace.

In fact, Qin Hong rarely left the palace to contact these ministers anymore.

These matters are generally Feng Yu's business, but Jiang Yun's status is quite special because he is a member of the Tongyou Guard.

When Jiang Yun heard that Qin Hong had arrived, she knew something was wrong, so she quickly got up and went to the living room, where Qin Hong had been waiting for a while, drinking tea.

"Eunuch Qin, why have you come in person?" Jiang Yun said with a smile as he stepped forward. "If you have any instructions, you could have just sent someone to let me know, and I would have come to the palace to see you in person."

As they were talking, Jiang Yun sat down next to Qin Hong.

Qin Hong said slowly, "I'll have to trouble Lord Jiang to make a trip to the northern grasslands."

"The northern grasslands?"

Upon hearing these four words, Jiang Yun frowned slightly and asked, "What are your instructions, sir?"

Soon, Qin Hong recounted the gathering of many fox demons at Qiyu Mountain.

"I've considered that among the Tongyou Guards, you're the only one with a certain connection to the Fox Clan. Even if you go, the danger shouldn't be too great," Qin Hong paused and said. "Princess Ningyi will also be going with you."

Hearing Qin Hong's instructions, Jiang Yun frowned slightly, feeling a little strange. Why would the fox clan gather in the northern grasslands?
Of course, this task doesn't seem to be very difficult. Back then, Jiang Yun's cultivation level wasn't high, so he felt that there were dangers everywhere when he entered the northern grasslands.

Jiang Yun has now reached the second-grade True Monarch realm. There aren't many experts with this level of strength on the grasslands.

"When does Eunuch Qin need me to depart?" Jiang Yun asked.

"The sooner the better." After Qin Hong finished speaking, he slowly stood up: "I still need to go to Princess Ningyi's residence to inform her of this matter. Once you are ready, you can go directly to see Princess Ningyi."

"it is good."

Jiang Yun stood up and personally escorted Qin Hong to the gate of the Jiang residence.

Of course, there wasn't much to pack, but I needed to let Xu Suwen know first.

Of course, to avoid worrying Xu Suwen, Jiang Yun also explained the details of the mission. After hearing that it was just to investigate the situation, Xu Suwen's expression did not seem so tense.

After a short rest and some meditation, Jiang Yun's fatigue from not sleeping all night disappeared considerably.

At the north gate of the capital, Jiang Yun and Linglong, both dressed in ordinary martial arts attire, rode their horses northward.

Linglong's face showed some happiness; as long as she could leave the capital, it would be a good thing.

This girl has always been someone who can't sit still.

……

Ten days later, on the vast grassland, Jiang Yun and Linglong, wearing bamboo hats and black cloaks, looked like two traveling knights. "We should reach Qiyu Mountain in two more days," Jiang Yun said slowly, sitting on his horse.

It must be said that the grassland is vast, and Qiyu Mountain is a mountain that extends further north from the grassland.

For the past ten days, the two of them have been traveling at breakneck speed, and even when they reached the grasslands, they were basically in a state of constant rest.

They still haven't reached Qiyu Mountain.

"According to the people from that tribe, we should reach a horse market in about an hour. We can rest for half the night, change horses, and then continue our journey," Linglong said in a deep voice.

Jiang Yun nodded, and the two rode their horses. It was noon, and the sun was shining brightly overhead. Soon, they could vaguely see a market that was not small in size ahead.

The horse markets on the grasslands are different from those in the Central Plains.

The horse market in the Central Plains was indeed a place for selling horses, but it wasn't very large, with at most only a few dozen horses.

The horse markets on the grasslands are much larger, and a typical horse market will be open for two to three months.

During this period, merchants from various tribes would come to exchange horses, or bring other shops to barter for goods.

Although the use of gold and silver exists on the grasslands, it is more common in the cities of various tribes. Ordinary nomadic people on the grasslands mostly barter.

The horse market was enormous, with hundreds of tents, each spaced far apart. In front of each tent were displayed their own goods, waiting for people to come and haggle over prices.

Jiang Yun and Linglong did not stop. Riding their horses, they soon arrived at the center of the horse market, where horses were traded.

Each of these log pillars has seven or eight horses tied to it; looking around, there are probably several hundred horses.

The arrival of Jiang Yun and Linglong also drew the attention of many Hu people.

Of course, there were also people from the Central Plains on the grasslands, but most of them were used as slaves. Jiang Yun and Linglong's appearances were nothing like those of slaves.

Jiang Yun and Linglong arrived at a manger. Seeing the many Hu people staring at them with slightly unfriendly eyes, he didn't care and shouted loudly, "Who is the owner here? Let's make a deal."

Jiang Yun called out several more times, but the surrounding Hu people watched coldly, whispering among themselves in a language Jiang Yun couldn't understand.

Jiang Yun frowned.

Linglong, however, became somewhat dissatisfied. It was impossible for so many foreign merchants not to understand the language of the Zhou people. If these foreign merchants traveled all over the country and could not understand the language of the Zhou people, then they would not be able to do business.

Don't know anyone? Then you must know money, right? Linglong took out a small bag of silver, opened it, threw it on the ground, and slowly said, "Is the boss here? If not, we'll go somewhere else to buy horses."

Upon seeing this bag of silver, many people present had their eyes gleaming.

Jiang Yun frowned. She hadn't wanted to be so ostentatious, but it was clear that Linglong didn't care.

Upon seeing the silver, a foreign merchant quickly stepped forward and asked in fluent Zhou language, "Gentlemen, how many bolts of silver would you like to buy?"

Linglong dismounted and said, "Four fast horses, and also prepare a meal."

"Is this enough money?"

"That's enough, that's enough." The merchant nodded repeatedly and laughed, saying, "This money is more than enough to buy eight horses."

The merchant, named Adeshan, was in his forties and looked quite shrewd. He invited Jiang Yun and Linglong into a yurt not far away and then said, "I will arrange some food for you two right away."

Sitting inside to rest, Jiang Yun rubbed his lower back. After riding horses for ten consecutive days, even his body, which was like a stone, was probably not able to take it.

However, Jiang Yun still said to Linglong in a deep voice, "My lord, don't you know that wealth should not be flaunted? After just this, many people will be eyeing us."

Linglong didn't seem to care: "With our strength, it's a good thing that these people dare to have designs on us. I haven't killed anyone in a long time, so it's good to stretch my muscles."

Although she has regained her identity, Linglong was once the leader of the Demonic Sect for many years and was a ruthless killer.

Meanwhile, as Adeshan was preparing food, several Hu people approached and whispered, "Adeshan, add some sleeping potion to their food. After we rob them, we'll give you a share of the money."

Upon hearing this, Adeshan glared at the group of Hu people and said, "If I rob and kill my honored guest, how am I supposed to do business on the grasslands anymore?"

"Once they leave the horse market, it's none of my business how much you want to rob them."

“If we attack them before they leave, it will be disrespectful to me, Adeshan, and I will definitely kill you all.”

Upon hearing this, the foreigners said in a deep voice, "They are all from the Central Plains, they should be slaves..."

“I, Adeshan, don’t care about any of that. I only care whether someone is my guest or not.” Adeshan said, drawing a dagger strapped to his calf and pointing it at the nearest Hu man: “Heguka, you’d better take my warning to heart, or don’t blame me for being impolite.”

After saying that, he chased the group out.

People on the grasslands value integrity above all else; for a merchant, killing a customer and robbing their goods is the greatest taboo.

If you really do it, no one will pay any attention to Ade-shan anymore.

Soon, Adeshan carried some freshly baked naan bread and hot milk into the tent.

"Please eat quickly, you two." Adeshan smiled again and sat down in front of the two.

Jiang Yun nodded and then asked, "How should I address you?"

“Adeshan”.

“Mr. Adeshan, the two of us are planning to go to Qiyu Mountain.” Jiang Yun said with a smile, “If you have time, Mr. Adeshan, I would like to ask you a few questions.”

"Qi Yushan?" Upon hearing these three words, Adeshan's expression changed slightly, somewhat surprised that the two of them were going to that place.

Seeing Adeshan's expression, Jiang Yun narrowed his eyes and asked, "Mr. Adeshan, what's wrong? Is Qi Yushan in some kind of danger?"

Adeshan placed his left hand on his chest, a gesture of courtesy among the Hu people, and then said, "Distinguished guests, I do indeed know some rumors about Qi Yushan..."

"But I am a businessman. If you two want to get information about Qi Yushan from me, you will have to pay extra."

(End of this chapter)