In the inn, several secret guards looked solemn, sitting silently without saying a word, only eyes occasionally meeting, revealing deep worries.
They have been waiting for the Prime Minister here for many days. According to the Prime Minister's order, they dared not leave this inch of land at all.
However, as time passed, the Prime Minister never came back, as if he had been swallowed by the night.
"The Prime Minister has not returned, and the extremely cold land is full of dangers. Have you encountered something unexpected?" Finally, a secret guard couldn't help but whisper to break the silence.
Everyone's hearts were tight, and the prime minister's advice appeared in their minds, not allowing them to get close to the dangerous and extremely cold place.
But at this moment, they could not care about the safety of the Prime Minister.
"No matter what, we must go and see. Even if we disobey the order, we cannot watch the Prime Minister in danger." The secret guard in the lead gritted his teeth and stood up suddenly, his eyes full of determination.
The other secret guards also stood up one after another, checked their weapons and equipment, and tightened their night clothes.
Then, they gently pushed open the inn door.
With their keen tracking skills, they were exploring in a difficult manner along the direction of the Prime Minister's departure.
Xi Yu has been searching in the mountains for a long time, his forehead is covered with sweat, but he still has no trace of the herb.
He was helpless and anxious. When he thought that Cai Wenshuang might know something, he hurried to ask.
"I searched for a herb with no results. I don't know where it was born?" After saying that, he hurriedly handed the herbs drawn by Song Shuwen to Cai Wenshuang.
Cai Wenshuang took the picture and looked at it carefully. Her brows gradually frowned. Finally, she shook her head and showed apologies: "I have never seen this herb."
The light of hope in Xi Yu's eyes dimmed instantly.
But Xi Yu's eyes suddenly became as sharp as an eagle, locking Cai Wenshuang tightly, and asked in a cold and hard voice: "Are you deceiving me?"
Cai Wenshuang shook his head quickly, his eyes open and without any intention of dodging.
Xi Yu was exhausted and found a dead wooden pier to sit down slowly. His whole body seemed to have been removed from his energy and was extremely depressed.
Seeing this, Cai Wenshuang was full of doubts and couldn't help asking: "Why do you have to look for this herb?"
Xi Yu was silent for a long time, and his voice was low and hoarse.
"I'm looking for one of my wife's girls."
When Cai Wenshuang heard this, he couldn't help laughing, his face full of disbelief.
"Hmph, look at you, you don't look like the prime minister at all. If you were really the prime minister, how could you be willing to take risks in this remote place to find medicine for a little girl?"
When Xi Yu heard this, he smiled bitterly, but did not make any excuses.
He looked up at the continuous mountains in the distance and said in his heart: "Even if others don't understand, I must find this medicine..."
When Cai Wenshuang saw that Xi Yu did not say anything, the grievance and dissatisfaction in his heart became stronger and stronger, and he couldn't help but complain again.
"Don't you find this medicine, and you plan to keep detaining me here? You have to wait until the year of the Monkey and Horse Month? It's too unreasonable to act like this!"
Her voice was filled with a hint of crying, and her eyes were filled with resentment and helplessness.
Xi Yu turned his head suddenly and glared at her fiercely, with warnings and boredom in his eyes.
Cai Wenshuang was so scared that she trembled, swallowed the words behind her back, curled her lips, and turned her head unwillingly.
For a moment, the atmosphere fell into a stalemate, and only the wind whistled in my ears, as if adding a bit of desolate background to this embarrassing situation.
Xi Yu tightened his clothes, frowned, and continued to think about ways to find medicine, while Cai Wenshuang sat aside with grievance, secretly cursing this unlucky encounter.
On the other side, Lao Cai was pacing back and forth in the dim and damp cave, anxious.
"Why haven't this girl come back yet?" He murmured to himself, his brows frowned into the word "chuan", and his heart was full of anxiety, "Can it be that something unexpected happened on the road?"
Lao Cai couldn't help but decide to go out to find his daughter.
He was exploring carefully along the way.
Unexpectedly, I saw Xi Yu and his daughter sitting quietly not far away.
Old Cai was furious and rushed forward quickly, pointed at Xi Yu with his finger, looked at him with anger, and accused loudly: "Yu Xi, what do you mean? Why didn't you let my daughter go? How could you be so untrustworthy!"
His voice trembled slightly from anger, his eyes full of concern for his daughter and anger for Xi Yu.
Xi Yu raised his head, looked tired, and was about to explain, but was interrupted by Lao Cai's scolding: "I treat you sincerely, but you act like this, it's really a waste of my trust!"
Lao Cai became more and more angry as he spoke, and his chest was fluctuating violently.
Seeing this, Cai Wenshuang hurriedly got up and grabbed his father's sleeve, and persuaded him: "Dad, don't worry, listen to him."
Old Cai snorted coldly, glared at Xi Yu fiercely, stood aside with his hands on his chest, waiting for Xi Yu's explanation, his eyes as if he was saying, if he didn't give a reasonable explanation, he would never give up.
Xi Yu's mouth curled up a sarcastic curve and spoke coldly.
"Oh? You said you treat each other with sincerity? If you hadn't taken your daughter as a hostage, you would have been so obedient and cooperated with me?" His voice had a hint of undetectable anger and contempt, and his eyes shot towards Lao Cai like an ice skate.
Lao Cai's face turned pale at these words, his lips trembled, but he couldn't say a rebuttal.
Xi Yu stood up, dusted the dust on his clothes, and continued, "If you can't find this herb for a day, your daughter will not be able to leave for a day. Of course, if you can help me find this herb, I will release her immediately, which is why you have done your best for your daughter."
He hugged his chest with his hands, staring at Lao Cai with his eyes tightly, and did not let go of the slightest change in expression on his face.
Lao Cai clenched his fists tightly, his joints turned white, and he struggled between anger and helplessness.
Cai Wenshuang looked at his father and Yu Yu again. His eyes were full of anxiety and helplessness. He wanted to say something, but was forced to swallow the words back by the tense atmosphere.
For a moment, the atmosphere between the three was tense, and only the wind whistled around.
At this moment of stalemate, Xi Yu's eyes trembled, and his body was as sharp as Cai Wenshuang. He suddenly made a move, and his slender fingers tightly pinched Cai Wenshuang's neck like iron pliers.
Cai Wenshuang's eyes widened instantly, his face full of fear. His hands subconsciously broke Ji Yu's hand, but he couldn't beat him, and could only make a "whimper" struggle.
Xi Yu looked at Cai Wenshuang's painful and scared look and had no intention of letting go. He just frowned slightly and said coldly: "I offended."
Although there was a hint of apology in the voice, the strength in his hand did not decrease at all. He seemed to use this move to force Lao Cai to surrender and help him find the crucial herb as soon as possible.
Seeing this, Lao Cai was furious and roared: "You despicable villain, let go of my daughter!"
As he said that, he rushed towards Xi Yu, but before he could get closer, he was shocked by Xi Yu's eyes.
I could only stamp my feet anxiously and angrily, anxious but helpless.
"You'd better not come over if you don't want your daughter to die quickly."
Lao Cai gritted his teeth, a resolute look flashed in his eyes, and he said loudly: "For my daughter, I can only give up! Show me the drawings again, and I'll try to find them."
After hearing this, Xi Yu was slightly stunned, and then handed over the herbal pictures drawn by Song Shuwen.
Lao Cai took the drawings, looked at them carefully, frowned, and after looking for a while, he shook his head helplessly.
"To be honest, I have never seen this herb before, but since I have responded, I will try to find it."
Seeing this, Cai Wenshuang hurriedly grabbed the corner of Lao Cai's clothes and dissuaded him in a crying voice: "Dad, don't do this, it's cold and cold, it's too dangerous."
"Good daughter, you are now hostage in his hands. What can I do if I don't listen to him? How can Dad watch you fall into danger but do nothing?"
As he said that, Lao Cai took a deep breath, wrapped his slightly thin clothes tightly, and tried his luck to find the herb. Even if the hope was slim, he would not give up this little opportunity.
Xi Yu frowned, with a little suspicion in his eyes, and looked at Lao Cai and asked, "Are you not as familiar with this Wuliang Mountain as you said? You said with confidence that the things in this Wuliang Mountain cannot be moved casually, and I thought you knew where this herb is."
Lao Cai looked embarrassed and quickly explained: "I did say that, but this doesn't mean I have really seen this herb."
Xi Yu snorted coldly, a hint of impatient flashed in his eyes, and he said, "Since that's the case, your daughter and I will go to the cave to wait for you first. You can go and search quickly, don't be too late."
After saying that, regardless of whether Cai Wenshuang was willing or not, he reached out and grabbed her arm and forced her to walk towards the cave.
Cai Wenshuang struggled while shouting in a crying voice: "Let me go, I don't want to go in, Dad, save me!"
Lao Cai was anxious when he saw his daughter being forced to take away, but he didn't dare to come forward to stop him. He could only stomp his feet anxiously and shout at Xi Yu's back: "Don't hurt my daughter, otherwise I will never end up with you!"
Xi Yu turned a deaf ear and pulled Cai Wenshuang straight into the cave, leaving only Lao Cai standing in the cold wind, with a sad face, then gritted his teeth and began to find the herb with difficulty.
After entering the cave, Cai Wenshuang broke away from the arm that was being pulled by Xi Yu, stared at Xi Yu with anger on his face, and said loudly: "You are definitely not the prime minister. Otherwise, how could you hurt the people like this and do such a hostage-holding act!"
Xi Yu sneered, his eyes full of mockery, and he retorted: "You still have the face to say this? How did your father treat me? He fooled me around. If I just give in, would I be slaughtered? I was forced to do this and then come up with this bad plan."
Cai Wenshuang was choked and speechless for a moment, her chest was flushed violently, and her eyes were red, but she didn't know how to refute it. She just stood there angrily and looked at Xi Yu, and the atmosphere in the cave became tense instantly, as if it was about to break out.
Although Lao Cai has been entrenched on this Wuliang Mountain for a long time, the mountain is vast and mysterious everywhere. He may not be able to know every scene on the mountain.
What's more, it is even more difficult to find that herb in this extremely cold and cold place at this moment.
Lao Cai Shen walked forward with difficulty with one foot shallow and one foot shallow. The wind blew across his cheeks like a knife, and his clothes seemed as thin as cicada's wings, and could not resist the cold at all.
After walking for a while, he began to tremble uncontrollably and his teeth could not stop fighting. But when he thought that his daughter was still in Xi Yu's hand, he gritted his teeth and forced himself to continue exploring deeper, his eyes still searching around, not missing any place where the herb might be hidden.
More than an hour passed quietly in Lao Cai's difficult search, but he still found nothing.
The bitter cold wind seemed to be about to drain all his strength away. The coldness had already penetrated his clothes and penetrated into his bones. He was trembling with coldness, and his hands and feet gradually became numb.
Lao Cai couldn't hold on anymore, so he had to drag his heavy and stiff body, find a leeward-looking mountain rock nearby, and slowly sit down.
He hugged his arms tightly, curled up, trying to warm himself up a little. The white air exhaled from his mouth kept lingering in front of his eyes, his face full of fatigue and helplessness, and he silently prayed in his heart that this short rest would help him recover some strength so that he could continue to look for the herbs that concern his daughter's safety.
In the cave, the atmosphere was still cold and stalemate.
Cai Wenshuang looked at Xi Yu angrily and asked with anger, "Can you confirm that this herb must be on this mountain?"
Xi Yu slowly shook his head, looking helpless.
Seeing this, Cai Wenshuang was furious, her face turned red, and she shouted: "Since that's the case, aren't you playing with my father? He was so cold outside, but you let him do this useless work!"
Xi Yu sneered, his eyes were a little cold and he responded indifferently: "Then what can I do? I originally planned to look for it myself, but now that I have the free labor force of your father, why don't I use it? I can't just put ready-made help, I'm not that stupid."
Cai Wenshuang was so angry that she trembled all over. He pointed at Xi Yu, but was so angry that he couldn't speak. His eyes were filled with tears of grievance and anger. He wanted to rush up to argue with Xi Yu, but he was afraid of his methods and could only bit his lips and feel sulking.
Cai Wenshuang bit his lips tightly, and a past incident suddenly came to his mind.
My father once tried hard to persuade him to learn martial arts, saying that if he learned martial arts well, he would be able to protect himself in this world in the future.
But at that time, she felt that practicing martial arts was too troublesome. She had to get up early and go to bed late every day, and endure those boring moves, so she willfully rejected her father's kindness.
Now that she is in such a situation, she is full of regret when Xi Yu is so controlled.
If I could have learned martial arts well at the beginning, how could I be so frustrated at this moment? I could only let the person in front of me bully him, and I would not even have the confidence to refute him.
She clenched her fists secretly, her eyes full of reluctance, and sweared in her heart that if she could spend this safely, she would definitely learn martial arts well and not be bullied like this.
On the other side, the secret guards were struggling to travel through this extremely cold place with difficulty.
Their eyes searched eagerly, not letting go of any corner where people might be hidden. However, after searching, they found no trace of the prime minister.
Just when they were anxious, they saw Lao Cai resting in a sheltered place.
Several secret guards looked at each other, no longer hesitated, and appeared directly in front of Lao Cai in an instant.
One of the secret guards stepped forward and clasped his fists and said, "Brother, we took the liberty to disturb you. I wonder if you have ever seen strangers come here? We are looking for my prime minister, please let me tell you one or two."
The other secret guards also stared at Lao Cai with bright eyes, looking forward to getting clues about the prime minister from him.
Lao Cai was shocked by the sudden appearance of the few people. After seeing clearly that they were strangers, he became alert.
Old Cai looked up his eyes and looked at these people carefully, thinking to himself, "Look at these people's extraordinary demeanor, they are definitely not ordinary people, but he is full of concern for his daughter at this moment, so he has no intention of caring about these people."
So he replied angrily: "I have already said that I have not seen anyone, don't bother me anymore."
A secret guard frowned, his face showed impatience, and his tone was a bit deterrent.
"You'd better tell the truth, otherwise, don't blame us for being rude to you."
When Lao Cai heard this, he was furious and snorted coldly: "Hmph, what are you talking about? I'm so old, are you still afraid of you? I really haven't seen any strangers, do you believe it or not!"
After saying that, Lao Cai hugged his chest with his hands, stalking his neck, and looked at the secret guard without showing any weakness, as if he would never surrender even if he fought his life.
Seeing this, another secret guard hurriedly stepped forward and said apologetically: "Old man, I'm really sorry. My brother is indeed a bit rude in his words, but we do have important things to do, and I hope you can tell the truth."
Lao Cai was unmoved at all, waved his hand impatiently, and scolded loudly: "I have said everything, I have seen nothing, you guys get out of here, don't waste my time here!"
When the secret guard who was criticized before heard this, he was immediately angry and embarrassed, his face turned red. He didn't care about any politeness, and shouted loudly and started to fight against Lao Cai.
Although Lao Cai looked like an ordinary old man in the mountains on weekdays, he was actually good at martial arts and was not willing to show weakness. His eyes sternly, he avoided the opponent's attack, and then he quickly fought back and fought back and forth with the secret guard.
The other secret guards were stunned when they saw that Lao Cai had such a powerful martial arts. They did not expect that this seemingly ordinary old man would be so difficult.
After reacting, they looked at each other, no longer hesitated, and joined the battle to help the previous secret guard come.
Seeing this, Lao Cai sneered, with a fearless determination in his eyes and said loudly: "You are many, right? Humph, then I'm not afraid of you either, just let the horse come over!"
Chapter completed!