The old man with the crane hair?
Standing in front of the small eatery at the foot of the mountain, Xue Yao carefully scrutinized every face that passed by.
The minorities here are the people within the boundaries of Qi, the appearance and the Han people are not too different, hard to say the difference, but also only relatively long eyes, there is no such magical features as crane hair and childlike face.
Besides, how could the little fat cub be with such a strange looking old man?
From what my father knew of the cubs, they were unlikely to interact with any strangers except for asking for food.
Even if the old man had offered food, the cubs would have turned their backs on it and not just traveled with a stranger.
The little chubby cub doesn't really like to spend a lot of time with strangers.
Because of his different thinking pattern, Lu Qian can't behave exactly like a normal person, but it doesn't mean that he likes his difference, in fact, strangers show a shocking discussion to him, whether it's a malicious mockery or a kindly love, it makes Lu Qian feel uncomfortable.
Xue Yao could sense it - every time the party was crowded, the familiar elders deliberately led Lu Qian to speak in a doting tone, making use of the boy's distinctive mannerisms to make the guests laugh.
This behavior often leaves the chubby cub frozen on the spot at a loss for words.
The little fat cub was worried that when he behaved strangely, he would freeze and not move, because since he grew up being scolded by the Third Prince for being "stupid" and "having a bad brain", the little fat cub subconsciously felt that it was not a good thing for him to be out of place in his surroundings.
Over the years, only Xue Yao patiently understood and got used to this naturally different fat cub, and tried to live and communicate with the fat cub's way of thinking, never mocking or trying to correct the fat cub's odd behavior like the others.
That was why Lu Qian usually liked spending time with Xue Yao more than with his mother consort and brothers.
This gifted cub mistakenly believes that the only one of his kind in this strange world is his little companion reader.
As such, Xue Yao really couldn't imagine that the little fat cub would be traveling in the company of strangers.
He was going to wait a day, and if he couldn't wait, he'd look elsewhere.
The camel-drawn couple did not accompany the dry wait, and Xue Yao sat alone under the pergola.
By mid-afternoon, the poisonous sun was so bright that no one was outside the eatery.
The drowsy Xue Yao suddenly heard a system alert - 2 points of security dropped.
Xue Yao stood up violently in fear.
His stand startled a certain person behind him as well.
Almost at the same time, there was a muffled "plop" sound from behind him.
Xue Yao turned his head warily, and saw a dirty teenager falling against the wall.
The teenager looked up and locked eyes with Xue Yao, and suddenly got up and hid behind a pile of firewood.
Xue Yao recognized the teenager as the milk thief he had redeemed.
Hesitating for a moment, he cautiously walked over and inquired toward the back of the woodpile, "You didn't leave? Why are you following me?"
The teenager didn't seem to want to run away, he was just hesitating, not knowing how to talk to his savior.
A moment later, the teenager poked his head out to look at Xue Yao and replied in a less-than-normal pitched Chinese, "I can't leave."
Xue Yao felt that his accent was off, and upon closer inspection, he realized that the teenager's forehead was broad, with a thin single eyelid, somewhat similar to the locals' looks, and probably not Han Chinese.
"Why can't you leave? Where is your home?" Xue Yao asked him.
The young man looked at him for a long time and said in a low voice, "On the grasslands outside your territory, if you are willing to take me through the two garrison passes in front of you, my father will be able to give me a great deal of money."
Father?
Xue Yao's brain went blank for a moment, and when he came back to his senses, he immediately stepped forward and grabbed the teenager's wrist, fearing that he would run away!
"You're a prince of the Khitan!" Xue Yao said sharply.
The teenager had no way out but to place his bet on this kindly hanyou and nodded without resistance.
"How did you escape!" Xue Yao asked anxiously.
"Your Third Prince tried to assassinate me." The young man straightened his back and did not break free from Xue Yao's hand, barely putting on the air of a Khitan warrior, raising his chin, he said, "A wise man let me go, so that I can go back and ask my father to release your fifth prince."
Xue Yao quickly figured out what had happened - the Third Prince had already killed the emissary, and naturally had no intention of sparing the hostage.
The good thing is that the Crown Prince is now in control of the situation, and by bringing the Khitan prince back to the camp, he will be able to let the Crown Prince make the decision to exchange the hostages.
Xue Yao immediately said, "Don't worry, no one will kill you now, go back with me and we will immediately send messengers to send you across the river in exchange for hostages."
"Can't go back." The teenager stared at Xue Yao warily, "I escaped the desert to get rid of my pursuers, now I can only go out of the Eastern Pass and make a detour back to the camp, but I don't have a belt tag and I can't get past the garrison pass."
Xue Yao hurriedly explained, "Those people who were trying to kill you are no longer there, I was chased by them before, and now they're all under the control of our Crown Prince."
The teenager's eyes lit up and he spoke in Khitan, "Are you a Khitan too?"
Xue Yao didn't understand, "What?"
The teenager's eyes darkened again, "The people who were after me are all here, they've just changed into civilian clothes, and they've come to this village."
Xue Yao was startled and looked around warily, "Where are they?"
The teenager said, "In the village, you were also targeted."
Xue Yao didn't believe me, "I've been wandering around this village for a day and there's no one after me."
The teenager said, "They followed you as if they wanted to find someone else through you, so they didn't arrest you. Because you didn't notice, they let their guard down, and I followed you to protect you, and there were only two of them, and soon many will come, and we won't be able to escape."
Xue Yao's heart rose to his throat as he sniffed.
These days were so busy looking for the Seventh Prince that they didn't return to the camp to inspect the specific situation, could it be that the Third Prince was planning to secretly get rid of the Seventh Prince?
The emperor has established a new crown prince, the crown prince may not be able to rightfully assume the throne, the third prince may still be thieves.
Xue Yao was caught in a dilemma, if it was true that the Third Prince's men had already blended into the village in disguise as this teenager had said, then he would definitely be poisoned on his way back to the camp with the teenager.
But what if the Khitans don't keep their promise if they help the Khitan prince to blend out of the pass?
The young man seemed to see his concern and took the initiative to propose, "As long as you send me through the pass, I can give you letters and tokens; you will give these to the patrolmen, and they will bring you to the messenger, who, after reading the letter, will first release your royal son, and you will return safely to the shore first, and then let me go."
Xue Yao hesitated.
"Do you want to watch your fifth prince die in the enemy camp?" The teenager whispered a threat, "There's no time for that."
*
"Be a man, be quick!" Old man Xu "croaked" around Lu Qian for the whole morning, "If you promise to be our master, we'll save your fifth brother right away!"
"Master is returning to the palace." His Highness sat in the circle chair, unmoved.
"What's the point of harboring yourself in that small area of the palace all day long? To the south of this White Walking Mountain, there are many waterfalls and streams, and to the north is a vast grassland, where is it not as good as your little dragon nest?"
"There are no courtesans here." His Highness didn't understand how he was going to live in the mountains, but these two old men demanded that His Highness learn martial arts before he could leave the mountains.
"You have arms and legs, do you need others to serve you? How comfortable are you to serve yourself? And we can also take care of each other, old man's massage skill is one of the best in the world, you can't enjoy this kind of care in the palace!" Old man Xu said, making a wink towards Sword Saint.
The Sword Saint's heart was in the right place, and he immediately ran to the edge of the couch and lay down face down.
"Kid, watch and learn!" Old Man Xu walked over to the Sword Saint, rolled up his sleeves, lucked up his palms, and demonstrated his own Pushing and Nudging Mastery on the spot!
"Uhm ...... oh!" The Sword Saint enjoyed the divine technique of the Green Dragon Sect's Sectmaster's nudging once in a while, and immediately fell into a state of intoxication.
"Is the force still okay?" Sect Master Xu thoughtfully inquired as he pushed and nudged.
"Very good." The Sword Saint smiled approvingly at Sect Leader Xu with a sideways glance.
Master Xu nodded like a spring breeze, and secretly turned back to see if the little prince behind him had any eyes ......
Lu Qian's small face, which had always been expressionless, had now wrinkled into a ball!
It was as painful as seeing my mother's consort picking her feet in front of her!
The Sword Saint who floated like an immortal and didn't stir up dust in the remote story was completely broken in the eyes of His Highness at this moment!
"What kind of expression is that!" Sect Master Xu sensed something was wrong and turned to question the brat.
"Don't stop, continue." Sword Saint tugged on the hem of Old Man Xu's shirt, gazing at the "Pushing Master" with an expectant gaze.
Old man Xu tsked his mouth and turned back impatiently and with a little bit of smugness, "Here it comes, see how anxious you are."
Lu Qian frowned, finally realizing that something was wrong.
"Master Xu, are you the wife of the Sword Saint?" His Highness asked out loud.
Yao Yao had said that as long as they married the crown princess, they would be able to stay together like this until old age without separating.
Mother Consort is usually so gentle when she rubs Father's shoulders.
Your Highness has never seen anyone marrying a male princess before, but I finally saw it today.
However.
The question.
Leave the two old men, frozen into clay statues.
In the next moment, the two old men jumped away to the sides at the same time, dusting off the marks left by the other on their bodies with a look of disgust!
"What nonsense are you talking!" Old man Xu stormed, "If you dare to talk nonsense again, I'll beat you up even if you're a disciple!"
"Aren't you husband and wife?" His Highness cocked his head.
"Of course not! You silly boy!" Old man Xu was ten thousand times unconvinced, "Even if we are husband and wife, I should be the husband! What's in your eyes!"
With a loud "thud", Old Man Xu was kicked off by the Sword Saint on the couch.
The Sword Saint stood up in a whirlwind dashingly, looking coldly contemptuous of Sect Master Xu, "What kind of husband are you? A small child can see that you can only be this Honor's mother-in-law."
"Your ass!" Old man Xu copied his crutches and began his daily time of deadly rivalry.
His Highness cocked his head in amazement as he watched the two old men fight their way from the house to the outside.
Once upon a time, when I watched my mother's consort beat up my father, it was all about a small pink fist and a gentle shove.
The two Jedi masters are just different, and the couple is flying off the handle when it comes to pampering each other.
"Bang" a loud sound, the sword saint a "small pink fist", smashed the "little petite wife" Xu palm knocked down the tree.
His Highness's eyes lit up, suddenly feeling that life in this mountain forest was new and much more interesting than in the palace.
*
Xue Yao utilized the general's pass card to take the Khitan prince and muddle through the two garrisoned passes, and arrived at the west side of the river the next evening, where he found a boatman at the ferry and headed for the other side of the river.
All the way to hurry up the road, finally have a break to sit on the boat, Xue Yao realized that the Qidan teenagers eyes are all red bloodshot, lips are dry and cracked bleeding mouth.
Xue Yao hurriedly took out the flavored milk and pastries he had prepared for the little chubby cub from his traveling bag, allowing the teenager to quench his thirst and fill his hunger.
The Qidan teenager had just received the food when his complexion steeped.
Xue Yao froze at the look in his eyes, and was just about to speak when he realized that the teenager's gaze didn't seem to be on his face, but behind him.
"Don't turn around." The Khitan boy lowered his head and whispered to Xue Yao, "There's an official's ship sailing over at that end."