More than three hundred horses came along the official road from the southwest to Zhongdu.
"stop!"
The girl at the front suddenly reined in her horse and called to a halt, and the more than 300 people following her stopped.
"What's wrong, Master?" Zhao Xingmeng held the horse's belly and approached Ning Qingyan.
As he spoke, he did not forget to look around.
Everything was calm and nothing out of the ordinary.
In this way, he became even more confused.
Why did you suddenly stop?
Fuchuan, Ning Qingze, Ning Qingke, Bai Wei, Banxia and others all vigilantly surrounded them on horseback, firmly protecting the two most noble people in the middle.
The other three hundred people, for some unknown reason, could feel the sudden change in the atmosphere, and they all became silently vigilant.
"Send someone to explore the road ahead." Ning Qingyan did not answer Zhao Xingmeng's words, she just raised her chin and looked at the entrance of the canyon ahead.
To return to Zhongdu, the canyon ahead called "Tiger Leaping Gorge" is the only way to go.
This canyon is actually not very long, probably only more than one mile, less than two miles.
The canyon is narrow and surrounded by high mountains to the left and right, making it very suitable for an ambush.
If a large group of military horses were passing by, they would indeed be easily ambushed. However, Ning Qingyan and the others only had more than 300 people, and they all rode fast horses. If they rushed over directly, it would be difficult for the enemy to trap them.
Unless there is a trap set in the canyon to hurt the horse!
And the reason why Ning Qingyan called "stop" was not because she felt something, but because Bixi was warning her, sending a message to her that there was murderous intent ahead.
After Fukawa heard Ning Qingyan's instructions, he raised his hand to summon a few people and walked towards the canyon together.
The remaining people quickly formed a defensive formation without any orders and paid close attention to the surrounding developments.
The almost half-month experience in Nanzhao allowed them to grow up quickly.
He was no longer those young men in Anyang Town who only knew how to fight in the ring.
They have all seen blood and experienced life and death!
From this, a tacit understanding was developed, and Ning Qingyan's teachings were integrated into everything.
The few people brought by Ukikawa performed outstandingly in Nanzhao and were favored by the scout-turned-guide, who taught him a lot of scouting and investigation knowledge in private.
Therefore, it is most suitable for them to explore the way forward.
…
The official road was very quiet, with no convoys passing by in front or behind.
Only the occasional breeze blew through the branches, sweeping through the tree crowns and making a rustling sound. In this strange silence, even Zhao Xingmeng, who was anxious to return to Zhongdu, noticed that something was wrong.
"Master, the officialdom is very quiet today!" He whispered to Ning Qingyan.
Ning Qingyan nodded almost imperceptibly.
Here, it is about two days away from Zhongdu, but because it is already close to Zhongdu, the official road here connects several cities.
It's daytime again now. Logically speaking, the official road shouldn't be so quiet. Only their group appears.
unless……
"I'm afraid someone deliberately set up checkpoints to prevent others from entering the official road." Ning Qingke also thought of this.
Ning Qingyan said nothing and allowed the people around her to discuss.
Zhao Xingmeng frowned fiercely, "If someone really does this, then they are targeting us."
"But why is this?"
"And, to do all this, I'm afraid this person is also extremely powerful!"
The more you analyze it, the worse it seems.
Zhao Xingmeng became a little uneasy.
He was not afraid of anything else but that this matter had something to do with the royal family.
However, he still couldn't figure out what the purpose of the person behind this was?
What's the benefit of stopping them?
Do you want to kill him as the prince? Or kill Princess Ding?
Zhao Xingmeng's thoughts had already turned to the struggle for power, but he couldn't figure out who would take action against a worthless prince like him?
If the target is not him, but Princess Ding, Ning Qingyan, what good will it do to kill her?
Angry King Ding?
It's normal for him to think wrong, because he doesn't know about the 'secret realm' in the Forest of Wuwu.
As for Ning Qingyan, after hearing Biyi's warning, her first reaction was excitement.
Her intuition told her that the mastermind hiding in Zhongdu had lost his patience and wanted to jump out on his own.
I'm afraid it was the sudden disappearance of Wuwu Forest that made him panic!
He was even more worried that the 'secret realm' would fall into his or Ning Yan's hands.
Ning Qingyan narrowed her eyes, and a trace of sneer flashed across her cold eyes.
Ukikawa and his men had already sneaked into the back of the canyon from the trail.
They climbed along the steep mountain wall, reached the top of the mountain in an extremely concealed manner, and occupied the high ground to look into the canyon.
Some falling rocks blocking the road first appeared in their field of vision.
Immediately afterwards, they discovered some details, confirming that there was an ambush in the canyon.
After receiving accurate information, several people quietly left the same way.
The people who set up the ambush never expected that Ning Qingyan and the others would notice something strange in the canyon early, nor did they expect that these fledgling teenagers would investigate from behind like experienced scouts.
They didn't expect anyone to appear behind them. They only focused on the entrance to the canyon and in front of them, and naturally ignored what was behind them.
After all, we still underestimated the enemy!
Fukawa returned to the team with his men, and without any delay, immediately told Ning Qingyan the information he had found.
"Master Ning, there is indeed an ambush in the canyon ahead!"
"The opponent's number is probably around a few hundred, and they are hidden in the mountains on both sides. When we look from a high place, we can vaguely see the clothes in the trees."
"They also deployed archers. There were huge rocks blocking the road in the canyon, so the horses couldn't run."
"I also smelled the smell of kerosene."
Another person, during the report in Fukawa, interjected.
As soon as the few people shared the information they had discovered in a few words, Ning Qingyan's plan already emerged in Ning Qingyan's mind.
"It seems that the other party knows our details very well." Ning Qingyan smiled.
I'm afraid that they were targeted not long after they left the Southwest Territory.
Then, the news was quickly passed back to the master behind Zhongdu, and then he chose to lay such a dragnet in the canyon, a must-pass point two days away from Zhongdu.
First, block the road with huge rocks to prevent them from rushing out of the canyon.
Then they attacked with bows, arrows, and kerosene. From the opponent's perspective, they were all baby birds that had just left their parents' wings.
If you encounter such an unexpected attack, you will definitely panic, and more than half of them will be killed or injured.
The morale of the remaining people was already in chaos, so they were not in danger. The hundreds of people in ambush could 100% capture them all.
By then, if the traces are swept away, who will know what happened here?
Unfortunately, they missed one point. Ning Qingyan's men were not young birds, but wolves who had killed people from Nanzhao and had experienced life and death and cruel training.
"In that case, let's fight back from the rear. Remember, stay alive." Ning Qingyan ordered with a relaxed expression.