Chapter 224: I Think You

"W-what are you going to do?"

The Wu merchant's face turned liver-colored the instant Li Rui finished speaking.

He recoiled in terror.

He stared at Li Rui.

This elderly Yu man before him was like a deep ocean trench—utterly inscrutable.

He suddenly felt regret.

Glancing around at the other Wu people, they all stepped back in unison, putting distance between themselves and him.

The Wu merchant finally broke:

"I—I was wrong. I'll do as you say."

He tried to yield, but Li Rui's gaze grew even colder.

The next instant.

A flash of blade-light.

The Wu merchant's head flew high into the air, crimson blood spraying, splattering the nearby trees—horrifying to behold.

Everyone who saw it drew a sharp breath.

So ruthless!

Everyone said Wu people were fierce and warlike, but today they finally understood: Yu people were truly heartless.

The mountains and woods fell into dead silence.

Li Rui spoke slowly: "I don't know how you think, and I have no interest in finding out—but I will tell you one thing."

"This is a battlefield!"

Shuowan 。

He walked on without looking back, continuing toward his predetermined direction.

Dao Mo gazed at the Wu merchant's corpse on the ground, his expression complex; he gritted his teeth and followed after him.

As Li Rui had said, this was now equivalent to war—every act of mercy would only prove inefficient, and killing to establish authority was the most effective method now.

After that, no one dared question Li Rui's decisions again.

Until deep into the night.

The group crossed a small hill.

They saw a city ahead, glowing with lights.

Qinghe City.

When they saw Qinghe, Dao Mo's expression finally eased slightly.

He was about to speak.

When he heard Li Rui instruct Tan Hu beside him: "Send two men down to scout."

Tan Hu acted swiftly, immediately ordering the Running Tiger Cavalry to descend.

Xu Wen had remained silent all along, but now he spoke:

"Director Li, we're near Qinghe City—who would dare attack here? Isn't this overcautious?"

Li Rui's face was expressionless: "Director Xu, do you know when swordsmen prefer to strike and kill?"

Xu Wen froze.

He didn't understand why Li Rui would ask a question so unrelated to their current situation, but he still asked instinctively: "When?"

"The moment they step through their own door."

Xu Wen's heart sank.

He understood Li Rui's meaning.

Because that's when vigilance drops lowest—seemingly safest, yet most dangerous.

Aren't we in exactly that situation now?

Moments later.

The scouts returned.

Tan Hu pressed: "What's the situation?"

The scout reported everything he'd seen, without omission.

When he heard no enemy ambushes were found, Tan Hu finally exhaled.

He was about to ask Li Rui whether to enter the city now.

But he saw Li Rui's face had grown more grave than ever—he sighed deeply: "Huizi, send someone a li away and fire the signal arrow."

"!!"

Tan Hu's eyes widened in confusion: "Brother Li, there's no one there—why fire the signal arrow?"

Li Rui explained:

"Just now Xiao Hai said there's a merchant caravan resting in the woods beside the road."

"But the county office has clearly banned all merchant travel—where did this caravan come from?"

Tan Hu wasn't a fool—he began reasoning: "Brother Li, could it be those people defied the order and left the city?"

Li Rui: "Are we going to gamble with our lives?"

Tan Hu fell silent.

He immediately ordered a soldier: "Take men a li away and fire the signal arrow!"

The signal arrow was specially made by the Anning Guard.

Fired outside Anning City, it would rouse not just a few garrison commanders—Jiang Lin and Cao Wei would both come out personally to investigate.

If proven misused, the punishment would be severe.

Li Rui was nothing if not decisive.

As for why they went a li away—

Of course, to prevent enemies from spotting the arrow; if the opponent was too powerful, they might kill them before Jiang Lin or Cao Wei arrived.

So going a li away allowed them to detect enemies at once—and still have time to retreat.

Tan Hu finished everything.

His gaze toward Li Rui grew even more reverent.

He had once served in the northwestern frontier army—he knew too well how terrifying a man could be who remained sharp-minded even in crisis.

If it were him, he'd have charged into the city without a second thought.

He never would've considered all this.

Swoosh!

A piercing shriek echoed over Qinghe, leaving a lingering white trail in midair.

The Anning Guard west of Qinghe City sprang to life instantly.

A cavalry unit galloped out of the city.

"Damn!"

Outside the road, in the woods.

Several men who appeared to be Yu merchants all looked up at the white smoke in the sky.

Their faces darkened.

"Master Rui, we—"

They turned to the old man still seated on the rock.

They were the elite hidden by the Southern Frontier Qi clan outside Qinghe City.

But they hadn't waited for their target—they'd gotten the Anning Guard's signal arrow instead.

The old man, Qi Rui, slowly stood up:

"Let's go."

"This place is no longer safe—Jiang Lin and Cao Wei together? I'm no match for them."

Saying this, he rose first.

Walked into the deeper woods.

The others exchanged glances; though reluctant, they followed him in unison.

On the road.

Piles of goods lay scattered on the ground, rattling in the wind; a pale streak of dawn appeared on the horizon.

Qi Yu's face was grim. He'd chased fifty li—and still let them slip away.

He never imagined the Wu merchant caravan had deviated from the deployment map's route—changed course early, even abandoned all their goods on the spot.

As if they'd foreseen it all.

"What exactly happened?"

Qi Yu's mind was full of questions.

Deployment routes were always strictly confirmed—hardly ever changed.

Yet the final result was:

The Wu merchant caravan had vanished right before their eyes.

Liu Jiaoniang's smile vanished; she watched coldly.

After all, this plan was entirely the Southern Frontier Qi clan's doing—they were only here to lend a hand; if it failed, it affected them not at all.

=9+book_

Qi Yu suddenly glared fiercely at Liu Jiaoniang:

"Did you leak the information?"

Liu Jiaoniang laughed bitterly: "Qi Yu, are you a dog? You bite anyone you see."

Yet she muttered to herself.

Today's affair looked unmistakably like someone had slipped word out.

Qi Yu was about to explode.

Then Yuan Gao spoke up: "Who is leading the Yu state's delegation this time?"

Qi Yu's mind conjured several names:

"Wu Shou Dao Mo, Market Supervisor Xu Wen, and Anning Guard Captain Li Rui."

When he heard Li Rui's name,

Liu Jiaoniang's eyes flickered with surprise.

'He's still alive?!'

She remembered clearly: Li Rui had been drugged by her Meinu, and the immortal qi had been seized from that Yu state official.

Not only was he alive, but he'd been promoted to Captain.

Yet Liu Jiaoniang had no intention of speaking. As always, today's affair had nothing to do with her.

Saying more would only bring trouble upon herself.

Yuan Gao glanced at the cargo and issued his final order:

"Take the cargo away. That's half the mission accomplished. The Anning Guard will arrive soon—if Jiang Lin is with them, I may not be able to stop him."

Though unwilling, Qi Yu understood.

The situation was now beyond recovery.

The Yu state couldn't find them in the mountains, and neither could they.

Staying longer might mean being surrounded by Jiang Lin's troops—then it wouldn't just be a failed mission, but a death sentence.

He gritted his teeth:

"Move it!"

The sun blazed overhead; hooves pounded urgently, sending stones bouncing off the ground.

A troop of soldiers appeared on the road.

"We're here."

Xu Wen dismounted first.

This was where they had abandoned the cargo.

Now, there was no cargo left—only bare, yellow earth.

Cao Wei and Yan Zhongxing dismounted.

Both wore grim expressions.

Last night, Cao Wei had seen the signal arrow and personally rode out to investigate; he first found two Benshu Cavalry soldiers, then was led to the main force of Dao Mo, Li Rui, and others.

After learning the full situation,

He immediately brought men to the site where the cargo had been abandoned.

They were too late.

"Audacious bastards—they dared rob an army!"

Cao Wei's temple veins bulged.

This was like slapping his face—hard.

"Investigate!"

"Find out who did this—no matter who!"

At this moment, several Wu state merchants cast glances toward Li Rui, intentionally or not.

Finally,

One Wu state merchant spoke: "General Cao, the order to abandon the cargo and retreat was made by Senior Li. What if it was just a band of thieves? Wouldn't that humiliate both nations?"

Hearing this,

Li Rui remained calm as ever.

The Anning Guard men's expressions turned icy.

Earlier, Li Rui had struck swiftly, killing a Wu state merchant on the spot. Back then, the merchants had dared not retaliate due to the urgency—now that the crisis had passed, they seized their chance.

Yan Zhongxing pondered.

Before arriving, he had already learned the full story from Xu Wen.

To be honest,

It wasn't impossible.

After all, Li Rui had ordered the cargo abandoned without even seeing the enemy.

Dao Mo's heart sank.

As a Wu state official, he was nearly certain: the Wu princes would act—only the question was which one.

These merchants were from his own country, yet their greed and betrayal disgusted him.

He was about to speak—

But Cao Wei cut in with a cold, hostile snort: "Are you questioning the Yu state's decision?"

The Wu merchant froze.

He hadn't expected Cao Wei to be so forceful—turning the issue into a matter of national dignity, leaving him speechless.

Cao Wei continued:

"I, the Anning Guard, will investigate this thoroughly. But before we uncover the truth, anyone who spreads rumors—no matter their nationality—will be killed by me, Cao."

In front of outsiders, as Assistant Regional Commander of the Anning Guard, he had to stand unconditionally by his men—including Li Rui.

The Wu merchant shrank back, cursing inwardly:

"Mindless brute!"

He was a merchant; they were soldiers. In either Yu or Wu, once pushed, he couldn't afford to fight back.

As tension mounted,

Yan Zhongxing sighed and intervened:

"We can delay the investigation, but the market is imminent. With cargo lost, resolving this is now urgent."

Yu merchants arrived at the market only to find no goods.

The market would become a laughingstock.

Cao Wei frowned slightly.

This was indeed difficult.

As silence fell over the group, Li Rui spoke slowly:

"Actually, the cargo still exists."

(End of Chapter)