In the thirteenth year of the Tianbao era: I became Yang Guozhong's eldest son.

Yanhe noticed that his expression changed slightly, but he didn't say anything. He simply raised his hand and pushed the cup of medicine, which had already cooled down, towards him.

"Brother, drink your medicine."

Yang Xuan gave her a strange look, then took the medicine cup without hesitation and swallowed it down mouthful by mouthful.

The medicine is very bitter.

But the bitter taste, once swallowed, actually made one more alert.

He put down his bowl, paused for a moment, and then spoke again.

"Ah Fu".

"I'm here."

"Make another trip in the middle of the night."

"First, keep an eye on the woodshed, lest that porter really gets scared and starts shouting."

"Secondly, go around the area between the side gate and the front yard. If the courier who handed you the paper wants to check the weather again, remember him."

"Remember their appearance, their gait, and which leg they lean towards."

"Even if I bump into someone in a crowd tomorrow, I need to be able to recognize them."

Afu puffed out his chest.

"Don't worry, young master, I have an excellent memory for people."

Yang Xuan nodded.

Then he looked out the window.

It was already late at night.

There were two fewer lights in the post station than before.

But the fire in the corner of the backyard never went out.

The fact that the fire is still burning means that this group is still guarding it.

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This also shows that people outside will continue to believe.

I believe they will not move until tomorrow afternoon.

I believe that their current arrangements are merely for self-preservation, and they are far from being able to turn on others.

But only Yang Xuan himself knew.

From the moment the porter slipped the first piece of paper out of his sleeve, this net was no longer just something someone else had cast for him.

He was also pulling back with his hand.

Yongxing Post Station remained quiet that night.

At least on the surface.

Yang Xuan slowly closed his eyes, but a faint hint of coldness lingered on his lips.

After the bitterness of the medicine subsided, the pain in my back became even more pronounced.

It's not the kind of intense pain that suddenly pierces into the bone.

Instead, it was fine and dense, layer upon layer, rising upwards, like the fire that had been suppressed under the head by a blow, finally finding a crack and slowly emerging.

The lights inside the room were dim.

The flames were small and thin, casting only a faint, blurry shadow on the window paper.

Yang Xuan leaned against the couch, closed his eyes to rest for a moment, and when he opened them again, the weariness in his eyes had been forcibly suppressed.

Yanhe looked at him but didn't urge him to lie down.

She knew that it would be useless to persuade her at this point.

Ah Fu tiptoed back from the doorway, glanced at the people by the bed, and then said in a low voice:

"Young master, we've checked the woodshed."

"The porter surnamed Tian cried twice and begged for mercy three times, but he didn't actually dare to shout anything."

"Judging from his appearance, he seemed terrified, but he was still unwilling to give up, and kept stealing glances at the door."

Yang Xuan nodded.

"Where is the courier?"

"It hasn't shown up again."

"However, it looks like someone has stepped on that short wall on the west side of the front yard twice."

"I didn't dare to chase after them, but I did write down their footprints. When I came back, I deliberately dragged half a broom along the side to cover up the tracks."

Pei Zhao glanced at Afu, surprisingly without finding fault, and only said in a low voice:

"Not pursuing it was the right thing to do."

"If we chase after them now, it's fine if we catch them, but if we don't, we'll only alert ourselves first."

At this moment, Cui Shen was unfolding the scroll of paper that had been taken from the porter's sleeve, and he looked at it again by the light of the lamp.

There weren't many words on the paper.

What's truly valuable isn't the words themselves.

Rather, those few seemingly scattered pieces of information were enough for outsiders to set up an ambush on an official road in a very convincing manner.

There were injured people in the main vehicle.

The secondary vehicle carries medicine.

We will depart tomorrow afternoon.

If Yang Xuan and his party really followed this route, they would leave the post station near noon. With the carriages slow, the people tired, and the medicine still burning, the main carriage would inevitably not be able to move fast. All it would take to stop them briefly on a narrow road, a steep slope, or the edge of a forest would be enough to make the group look disheveled.

No one spoke for a moment.

The night outside grew even deeper.

The fire in the corner of the backyard was still burning, crackling occasionally, as if it were continuing the play of "Tomorrow Afternoon" for everyone.

Yang Xuan raised his hand to press his temple, and suddenly asked:

"Is Uncle Wen asleep?"

Yanhe Road:

"no."

"When I went out earlier, he was showing Cai Fan the medicine packets, and he also arranged the steamers, charcoal stove and medicine rack that were supposed to be loaded onto the cart the next morning."

"The more realistic it looks, the more people will believe it."

Yang Xuan smiled, but his voice was indifferent:

"Then tell him to set it up for another half hour."

"After midnight, put the medicine you really need to take and the most important valuables into the dark compartment of the back cart."

"What's visible on the surface is only half left unseen."

Cui Shen was taken aback for a moment, then realized what was happening.

"Does the young master mean that if someone attacks the main carriage tomorrow afternoon, they should first target what is visible?"

"Otherwise what?"

Yang Xuan said.

"The fish is already right in front of us, we can't just leave the bait out."

Pei Zhao, standing by the window with his arms crossed, heard this and suddenly asked:

"What's the arrangement for that porter surnamed Tian tomorrow morning?"

"Tethered?"

"Should we just let him pretend he doesn't know?"

Yang Xuan glanced at him.

Pretend you don't know.

"And we need to make him feel that our arrest tonight was hasty and half-hearted."

"He thought he had already given himself away, but we hadn't had a chance to explore further."

"That way, people outside will dare to continue to believe him."

Afu couldn't help but mutter:

"Having already got him, and then making him feel like he hasn't fully exposed himself, that's too much trouble."

Cui Shen gently tapped the scroll and whispered:

"No need to bother with that; tomorrow we'll only be disappointed by the group lying in ambush."

"If we fail and end up empty-handed, it won't just be the few outsiders guarding the roadside."

"Those waiting for a reply, those watching for any movement, and even those in Chang'an calculating the time, all went to find nothing."

Yang Xuan nodded.

That's exactly what I mean.

"We are still injured, there aren't many of us, and our knives haven't fully healed yet."

"Since we can't cut the wrist of the person who reached out right away, let's just let them feel empty for a while."

"The earlier you empty your account, the more chaotic things will become later."

He said this in a very flat tone.

It's like talking about a trivial matter.

But everyone inside could tell that this was no longer a simple escape for their lives.

For the first time since leaving Chang'an, Yang Xuan truly shifted the dynamic from being "chased around" to "turning back and leading the other party."

Even a single step is enough to send chills down one's spine.

Yanhe looked at him quietly for a moment, then suddenly stood up.

"I'm going to the inner courtyard."

"Those old women who accompanied the carriage and the servants who came with it, we don't need to wake them all up tonight, but we should still give them a good knock."

"Especially those two quick-handed but shifty-eyed guys next to the main vehicle, if they see the car moving early tomorrow morning, they might panic first."

Yang Xuan nodded.

"There's no need to spell it out."

"Just tell them one thing."

"If anyone leaves their seat without permission, overturns a vehicle, frightens a horse, or shouts before 5 a.m., they will be tied up immediately."

Yanhe responded and turned to leave.

Once she left, only Yang Xuan, Cui Shen, Pei Zhao, and Afu remained in the room.

Afu is a lively person. She hadn't noticed it while she was tense, but now that she saw Yanhe go out, she couldn't help but move closer.

"Young master, if someone really comes up empty-handed tomorrow, can we still pursue them?"

Pei Zhaoxian scoffed.

"You think this is like catching thugs on the street?"

"Those who come up empty-handed may not be left for you to chase."

"Those who are truly in this business, when they see something is wrong, the first thing they do is to disperse."

"All that will be left for you to see are horse tracks, cigarette ash, trampled grass, and the spots where people have stopped."

"These things are useless to you, but I can see some clues about them."