Even if there was a man hidden inside, it would be very difficult for that hair to get caught.
That is to say, the hair found in this small and concealed compartment was very likely from a woman!
These two people definitely had something fishy going on!
His eyes narrowing sharply, Yi Yuan said in a cold voice,
"Mian Xiao, immediately surround this inn!"
After saying that, he leaped into the air and headed straight for the guest room the innkeeper had pointed out earlier.
Inside the room, Shan Hou had been closely monitoring Yi Yuan's movements. The moment he took out the hair, Shan Hou gave a meaningful look to the somewhat nervous Saint Master behind him, signaling him to get ready.
So when Yi Yuan kicked open the window with a "bang" and jumped in, the Saint Master, feigning "fright", "thudded" to the ground from the low stool, looking terrified.
And Shan Hou angrily roared,
"Who is it!? How dare you barge in on your grandpa!"
Before his words were even finished, he grabbed two huge iron hammers and swung them at Yi Yuan.
With a light leap, Yi Yuan dodged nimbly like a sprightly swallow. The next moment, he was already in front of the Saint Master, who was crawling and trembling behind the table.
"Hero, spare my life!"
Sitting down on the ground with a thud, the Saint Master's legs were shaking so much that he didn't dare to move. He shouted,
"I have money! I'll give you all my money!"
This sixty - year - old man had a hoarse voice and graying temples. His weather - beaten face was full of panic and pleading, looking extremely pitiful.
But unfortunately, Yi Yuan was unmoved. His sword, sharp enough to cut through iron, was already pressed against the Saint Master's neck. The sharp blade cut a long, narrow wound on his loose skin, which made Shan Hou roar in desperation,
"Stop! Just tell us what you want. Don't hurt our family head!"
Yi Yuan didn't even blink. His ink - colored eyes were bottomless, as dark as if there was no light at all. He was like a demon from the eighteenth level of hell, staring straight into the Saint Master's soul through his body.
"Hand over Xiao Xi, and I'll spare your whole body."
"Xiao Xi?"
The Saint Master looked completely confused.
"What Xiao Xi? Hero, this old man has no mountains or forests, let alone streams or ponds in Li County. If the hero... Ah—"
With a scream, Yi Yuan's long sword flashed and cut off one of his ears. Immediately, blood gushed out, and the Saint Master howled in pain.
"How dare you!"
Shan Hou roared angrily. He swung his iron hammers so fast that they made a whistling sound, and hammered towards Yi Yuan with great force.
Yi Yuan's eyebrows twitched slightly. He dodged to the side, avoiding Shan Hou's huge hammers. Then he crouched down, circled around the Saint Master on the ground, and quickly got behind Shan Hou. He kicked Shan Hou out with one swift move.
In a short time, Mian Xiao had already arranged for the yamen runners to surround the inn. He brought two people up to search the room.
After a thorough rummaging, Mian Xiao soon found a charming and unconscious young woman in the cabinet.
But it wasn't Ye Xi.
"My lord,"
Mian Xiao turned to look at Yi Yuan.
"It's not Miss Xi."
It seemed that seeing the matter was exposed, the Saint Master didn't even have time to tend to his bleeding ear. He hurriedly knelt on the ground and kowtowed repeatedly,
"Hero, spare my life, spare my life... I, I just had a momentary lust, so I was bold enough to abduct this girl. I didn't know she was the hero's person. Please spare this old man. I'll never dare again, never again..."
Not her?
How could it not be?
Yi Yuan couldn't believe it. He went over to check in person.
But the girl had a fair complexion, without any traces of makeup or disguise. She was indeed just an ordinary girl who had been abducted after being drugged.
His heart sank little by little.
Could this person really have nothing to do with that strange group of people? Did they just act out of lust?
But this could also reasonably explain why there was that hair in the compartment.
But where was his Xiao Xi? Where was his Xiao Xi?
It had been half a month. His Xiao Xi had been missing for over half a month.
Yi Yuan always felt that something was still off. He had been suppressing his emotions for too long and was really reluctant to let go of any suspicious point.
He placed his sharp sword on the Saint Master's neck again. Yi Yuan's voice was bone - chillingly cold.
"Where is Xiao Xi?"
The Saint Master was extremely terrified. Tears streamed down his old face as he said,
"This, isn't this her? Then I really don't know..."
"My lord!"
The urgent shout of a yamen runner outside suddenly interrupted the Saint Master's unfinished words.
"A carriage has rushed out at the city gate in the direction of the city entrance!"
This was a luring - the - tiger - from - its - den scheme!
No wonder he felt something was wrong. All these things, starting from that hair, were deliberately arranged to delay his time!
His heart tightened. Yi Yuan kicked the Saint Master away and flew out.
He handed the unconscious girl to the yamen runner beside him and simply told them to watch the two people carefully. Then Mian Xiao immediately followed him and ran towards the city gate.
As soon as the two of them left, Shan Hou quickly and neatly dealt with the two yamen runners.
The Saint Master, who had been wailing and terrified just now, immediately changed his appearance. He actually knelt down in front of Shan Hou and said resolutely,
"Don't bother, sir. I'll do it myself."
His hoarse voice had become clear. It turned out that this Saint Master was a fake!
The fake Saint Master's eyes were full of fanaticism. Then he continued,
"It's an honor for this humble one to do things for the Saint Master. If I die and the great cause is achieved, it's my greatest fortune."
After saying that, he quickly took out a dagger hidden in his sleeve and stabbed it into his own chest.
Shan Hou didn't even blink an eye, as if this was indeed a great honor for the fake Saint Master.
After making sure that the man's body had been thoroughly dealt with and wouldn't expose their identities, Shan Hou quietly opened the window and climbed out.
A large number of people were rushing towards the city gate in a hurry. The clattering of horses' hooves was chaotic.
Yi Yuan took the lead on his horse. His black clothes fluttered in the wind, trampling on the snow and dust on the ground.
An unassuming gray - cloth carriage was slowly moving forward along the roadside, going in the opposite direction of Yi Yuan and the others.
This was a carriage entering the city, and no one paid attention to a carriage entering the city.
The snow - white steed brushed past the simple carriage. Yi Yuan caught a glimpse from the corner of his eye and only saw a smiling old man with white whiskers, looking kind and amiable.
It was just a momentary thing, and Yi Yuan immediately shifted his gaze.
He didn't see that the strong wind brought up by the galloping steed lifted a corner of the cotton - lined curtain, revealing Ye Xi, who was unconscious and had changed her appearance.
The two sides gradually drifted apart.
The old man with white whiskers, the real Saint Master who had escaped the trap, immediately darkened his face and drove the carriage into a quiet alley.
In the alley, there was unexpectedly another plain carriage!
The Saint Master quickly transferred Ye Xi to the new carriage. Then he "shua" pulled off his beard and took off his coarse - cloth cotton - padded jacket, putting on a long cotton - lined robe. Suddenly, he looked decades younger.
He drove the horse again and headed straight for another city gate. This time, the carriage was much faster.
The common people who had been trapped at the city gate overnight were leaving the city one after another. The officers and soldiers were checking more strictly. Anyone who seemed a bit off was stopped and not allowed to leave.
The Saint Master, in his long robe, looked gentle and polite, and was very amiable. He looked just like a well - educated old gentleman.
The city - guarding officers and soldiers checked him and found nothing suspicious, so they immediately waved him through.
And at this moment, Ye Xi suddenly woke up.