A moment later, Song Anhao and his group found the black horse collapsed on the official road.
Yao Ying said, "This should be that assassin's horse. There are no wounds; it died of exhaustion."
The young Song Anhao was already mad with anger. His brows were scrunched up, and his cheeks were puffed out larger than steamed buns.
"Chase him! We must get the carriage back and make him pay for the damages!"
Xuetuan seemed to understand its little master's intentions. It took the lead and started walking, occasionally looking back to urge them on if they did not keep up.
A glimmer of realization flashed in Song Anhao's eyes, and he immediately stepped forward to follow.
"Xuetuan can smell the horse thief's scent. If we follow it, we will definitely find the person."
Arriving at the base of the outer city wall, Yao Ying stepped forward to ask the villager on guard duty, "Sir, did any carriages enter the city this afternoon?"
"There were three, but I do not know which one you are asking about," the villager nodded while shrinking his body to the side.
He had heard that the newly arrived County Princess Linghui kept a white tiger as a pet. Could this be the one?
Yao Ying clarified, "The door curtain is gray, embroidered with a mountain and rock pattern."
The villager shook his head with a troubled expression, "I did not really pay attention to that."
"Roar~" Xuetuan tugged at Song Anhao impatiently, instantly pulling the belt tied around its neck taut.
I smell it right ahead.
The scent is getting fainter, hurry up.
Under the inner city wall, the yamen runners' faces drastically changed when they saw the white tiger running over.
Only upon realizing that it was Song Anhao leading it did their raised hearts finally settle back down.
One of them greeted him with a subservient smile, "Young Master Song, why did you bring the tiger out today?"
Even if it was a pet, the common people would still be afraid. Appearing in a crowded place would cause panic.
Panting heavily, Song Anhao explained, "I took Xuetuan out of the city to hunt, but my carriage was stolen, and the culprit even killed five of my horses."
Having run for so long, he was already out of breath from exhaustion. Feeling it was embarrassing, he had rejected his guards' offers to carry him several times.
"What! The carriage was stolen?" The yamen runner widened his eyes in disbelief.
To dare steal the prefect's carriage and kill five horses, this person was too audacious.
Was this not just courting death?
He began to recall in a panic.
"There were a few carriages that entered the city just now, but they all looked about the same. We checked their travel passes and did not see any problems."
Yao Ying spoke rapidly, "The culprit is a professional assassin. The travel pass is definitely fake."
Having rested enough, Song Anhao continued charging forward. Seeing its little master move, Xuetuan immediately resumed leading the way.
Seeing them about to leave, the speaking yamen runner quickly instructed his companions to continue standing guard while he took two men to chase after them.
The commoners on the street scattered to make way when they saw the white tiger charging over, and the uproar made people's eardrums buzz.
The yamen runners shouted from behind, "Everyone, do not panic! This tiger is domesticated and will not hurt people!"
"That is my family's carriage!" Song Anhao shouted upon spotting the vehicle.
Xuetuan jumped onto the carriage and found it empty. After sniffing around for a while, it jumped down and looked around, its round nose twitching rapidly.
After determining the direction, it dashed forward.
On the other side, after exchanging a thousand taels of silver at the Jufeng Bank, Poison Scorpion found a nearby clinic to treat his waist.
When Xuetuan led Song Anhao charging in, he was lying on a sickbed in the back room having a doctor perform acupuncture on him.
"Ah!" The medicine boy let out a terrified cry upon seeing the tiger, his entire body going stiff.
Poison Scorpion, who was lying prone on the bed, suddenly opened his eyes. The pores all over his body shrank sharply as he grabbed the curved ring blade placed by his hand and scrambled up.
The doctor hurriedly tried to stop him, "The needles have not been removed yet, you cannot get up!"
In the next second, the door curtain was smashed open. Xuetuan roared furiously at Poison Scorpion, and the doctor fainted on the spot from sheer terror.
It was him; it was this exact scent.
