Chapter 209 Secretly assassinating Chen Cang
As the sun sets, the sky is gradually filled with the afterglow of the sunset.

Di Renjie and Zhao Ji's entourage, in addition to Li Yuanfang and Ruyan, not only brought with them a few military leaders such as Zhang Huan and Li Lang, but also dozens of Qianniu Guards.

Each person was dressed as a Hu person and was equipped with two or more horses. They took turns riding and carrying luggage and supplies to ensure speed. By the way, they disguised themselves as a large horse trading caravan, which was better than nothing.

A group of people galloped between the grassland and the Gobi Desert. Several goshawks circled in the sunset, emitting bursts of shrill cries, adding a bit of mystery and uneasiness to the magnificent scenery.

Zhao Jiyu immediately stared at the circling goshawks, and an ominous feeling inexplicably welled up in his heart, as if they were foreshadowing something.

"Sir, it's getting dark. I think we should rest here today?" Zhao Ji drove his horse to Di Renjie's side.

Di Renjie looked up at the setting sun, pondered for a moment, then turned to Li Yuanfang and asked, "How far are we from the Stone Kingdom?"

"It's less than a day's journey." Li Yuanfang responded quickly and rode his horse closer.

Di Renjie nodded slightly and said decisively: "In this case, let's rest here for a night and recuperate. We will set off early tomorrow morning and head straight to the Stone Kingdom to meet Jili Khan."

Zhao Ji then loudly passed on Di Renjie's order, and the group of nearly a hundred people quickly stopped and set up camp on the spot for the night.

The Qianniu Guards had clear division of labor: some collected firewood, some replenished water, and some were busy setting up tents.

Soon, piles of bonfires began to burn brightly under the night sky, dispelling the coldness all around.

Zhao Ji, Di Renjie and Li Yuanfang sat around the campfire, sharing simple dry food. The fire crackled and the flames made their faces red.

Li Yuanfang was eating when he suddenly looked around: "Is Ruyan not back yet?"

"Not yet. I've been away for a while." Zhao Ji looked at Li Yuanfang with a smile.

Li Yuanfang swallowed the last bite of the cake and was about to stand up: "I'll go find her."

Zhao Ji quickly grabbed him and said, "Don't make trouble. There are differences between men and women!"

"It takes a bit too long this time. What if something goes wrong?" Li Yuanfang said anxiously.

Zhao Ji lowered his voice and said, "It's okay. Unless we encounter a bear or a tiger, ordinary wild animals may not be her match. We mostly stopped in the wilderness along the way, and Ruyan didn't have time to reveal our itinerary."

"However, we ran into that tribe yesterday. In addition, since we are close to the Stone Country, I am afraid that our whereabouts can no longer be kept completely secret. I think Ruyan saw some signal and went to make contact."

Di Renjie nodded and said solemnly, "One or two eagles have been following us this afternoon. They are tamed by humans, which means we have been targeted."

"It's less than a day's journey from here to the Stone Country. It's too late for Ruyan to send a message now, so the Snake Spirit must have given her an order, which means the Snake Spirit is going to take action!"

Li Yuanfang's expression suddenly changed when he heard this, and his nervousness was evident in his words: "What you mean is that the enemy will attack us!"

Zhao Ji took a deep breath and said, "If I were the Snake Spirit, I would definitely take action before we reach the Stone Country and get rid of us without anyone noticing. Once we reach the Stone Country and head straight for Jili Khan, it will be difficult for them to stop us."

Di Renjie's face was serious and his eyes were deep. "Yes, if we start in front of the Stone Kingdom, they can mobilize troops at will. But if we go to the Stone Kingdom, they will inevitably be cautious and there is a risk of being exposed."

"Tonight is the last night before we reach the Stone Kingdom. If they want to take action, it will be tonight!"

Li Yuanfang asked: "What should we do then?"

Zhao Ji's tone was somewhat heavy: "Openly repairing the plank road, secretly crossing Chencang!"
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Ruyan left the team under the pretext of convenience, came to a special marked place, and took out the secret order of the snake spirit from under the stone.

The moment she unfolded the secret order, her face suddenly changed, and she was speechless for a long time. Finally, Ruyan came out of her shock, with complex emotions flashing in her eyes. She turned around quickly and rushed to the campsite.

However, when she returned to the camp, she saw that Di Renjie, Zhao Ji, Li Yuanfang, Zhang Huan, Li Lang and others seemed to be ready to go.

Seeing this, Zhao Ji shouted with a smile on his face: "Ruyan, you are finally here! Get ready quickly, we are leaving now!"

"Set off? No, haven't we already set up camp?" Ruyan couldn't tell whether she was happy or panicked.

Li Yuanfang added anxiously, "The situation has changed. We'll talk about it on the way. Time is running out. We have to leave immediately."

Ruyan had no choice but to nod confusedly, mount her horse and set off with Zhao Ji and the others.

After the group set off, Ruyan discovered that only Di Renjie, Zhao Ji and Li Yuanfang were with Zhang Huan and Li Lang.

"Uncle, are we the only ones this time? What should we do with the remaining Qianniu Guards?" Ruyan asked again.

Di Renjie replied: "They will temporarily attract the enemy's attention and will head to the Stone Kingdom from another route later."

Ruyan was shocked: "Enemy? You mean someone will attack us?"

Di Renjie smiled and said, "Yes, someone is targeting us."

Not long after Di Renjie left, the remaining Qianniu Guards also set out, only making the bonfire burn even more vigorously.

The bonfire burned brightly for a long time until the sound of rapid and clear horse hoofbeats came from afar, breaking the silence of the night.

A large group of Turkic cavalry rushed over and surrounded the camp.

Mochuo personally led his guards out of the Stone Kingdom and came to attack, but what was waiting for him was an empty camp.

"Your Highness Mochu, the camp is empty, there is no one." The captain of the personal guards knelt on one knee and reported in a low voice with a bit of panic in his tone.

Mochu's expression was not good, and he angrily said, "Do you need to tell me this? Am I blind?"

Upon hearing this, the captain immediately fell silent, not daring to make a sound.

At this moment, a scout came hurriedly to report, saving him: "Report! The patrol in the southeast has discovered signs of a large-scale movement of troops and horses, and they are rushing towards the Stone Kingdom!"

Mochuo's expression eased slightly when he heard this, but a fierce look flashed in his eyes. He drew his sword and shouted, "Chase after him and kill Di Renjie! Everyone will get a reward!"

The pursuit lasted from dusk till dawn. Dozens of Qianniu Guards kept splitting up their forces, and finally simply fled in all directions.

Mochuo also initially sent out troops to pursue them, but soon discovered something was wrong.

First, the direction of the Qianniu Guard's escape was completely opposite to the route to the Stone Kingdom. Second, the Qianniu Guard was too scattered. Could Li Yuanfang and Zhao Ji let Di Renjie, an old man, escape alone? This was impossible!
Also, where is the snake killer that Xiao Qingfang promised? Didn't she say that she would control Di Renjie in advance?

Mochu suddenly realized what was going on, raised his hand and shouted, "Stop, go back to the Stone Kingdom!"

However, after a full-speed pursuit throughout the night and the morning, Mochu's team had already run an unknown number of miles away from the Stone Kingdom.

(End of this chapter)