Her eyes trembled as she looked up at Yue Linxi and saw the gravity in his expression. He must have reached the same conclusion.

If that were the case, the escort of less than a thousand troops before and behind her would likely be unable to resist the Great Peace imperial guards ten li away.

As she considered this, another scout returned, reporting the same as before: the Great Peace imperial guards appeared to be only a few thousand cavalry, presumably a scouting party, heading in their direction.

Meng Tinghui mounted her horse and said urgently to Yue Linxi: “Order the troops to hide in the mountain forest. There’s a path below; those Great Peace imperial guards might choose to go around by the foot of the mountain.”

Yue Linxi nodded and quickly issued the orders.

She gazed into the distance from her horse, seemingly able to see the dust rising faintly in the far distance. Beneath the vast yellow sand, tiny black shadows moved rapidly forward.

Yue Linxi said from the side: “My lord, please take cover as well.”

“No,” Meng Tinghui frowned. “We must see whose troops they are before making further plans.” With that, she urged her horse forward with a light command, climbing to the mountaintop before stopping.

Yue Linxi followed, reining in his horse behind her, accompanying her as they gazed into the distance.

Gradually, those black human figures grew larger. Indeed, several thousand cavalry charged forward, the sunlight reflecting blinding cold light off their armor plates. The war horses moved silently with bits in their mouths, and beneath the saddles gleamed the distinctive ring-locked horse armor unique to the Great Peace imperial guards.

The formation moved swiftly, with several deep purple military banners flashing through the ranks, unfurling in the wind—these were the flags that only the imperial guard cavalry from the capital region could use!

Meng Tinghui recognized them, and her heart suddenly tightened.

According to this, the Great Peace imperial guards appearing here must be troops under the Emperor’s command, who had traveled all the way here and were finally launching a major offensive against the rebels on the Jiankang route.

The moment she thought about his Imperial Majesty being on the Jiankang route, she had no time to wonder how these troops had penetrated so deep into this territory, only thinking about where his Imperial Majesty might be.

Yue Linxi leaned closer and asked: “Has my lord identified whose troops these are?”

Meng Tinghui suddenly came back to her senses and forced herself to appear composed: “They must be imperial guards from the Fengqing route; there’s nothing to worry about. The advance party is too small to tell under whose command they are.”

Yue Linxi’s brow furrowed deeply. “I wonder which nearby prefecture or county has been attacked by the Great Peace imperial guards. We’re almost at Shuzhou, yet here we encounter Great Peace troops blocking our way—truly hateful.”

She pressed her lips together and said: “Let’s not alarm them. If these troops see soldiers hiding in the mountains, the consequences are predictable.”

A strong wind swept through, raising dust, and soon armored cavalry flashed by on the narrow mountain path above.

Yue Linxi sighed softly: “Pity we only have about a thousand troops; otherwise, this would be an excellent place for an ambush.”

Meng Tinghui gazed intently at the distant formation, seeing their pace gradually slow down. Soon came the sound of reining in horses, after which the troops stood in orderly formation at the foot of the mountain, advancing no further.

She lowered her eyes slightly, her heart also giving a light sigh.

Military tactics that even Yue Linxi could devise, how could the Great Peace imperial guards not know? Moreover, these capital imperial guards were the elite of the elite among all Great Peace troops. In terms of attack and battle effectiveness, every officer and soldier was first-rate.

She had thought that with the Emperor personally leading the campaign this time, the capital imperial guards would certainly press directly toward the northern border. Who would have expected them to come to this area heavily afflicted by rebel troubles?

The sound of galloping hooves came again from the narrow path below. The few riders who had just passed through came racing back, galloping to the front of the formation.

Yue Linxi looked worried. “It seems these Great Peace officers also fear an ambush in the mountains. If they turn and come up the mountain, what shall we do?”

Suddenly, there was movement in the formation. Someone rode out, received the report from the scouts, then turned back to the formation and gave some orders on both sides. Shortly after, the several thousand troops turned in waves, as if preparing to withdraw.

Meng Tinghui said softly: “These troops are just the vanguard scouting party; they probably won’t risk crossing the mountain and will return to regroup with the main army.”

Seeing that there was truly nothing to worry about, Yue Linxi finally relaxed his expression and nodded. “Let’s go.”

The war horse’s coat was completely black and glossy, the ring-locked armor covering its tall, strong body making it appear even more invincible.

The rider wore light armor that gleamed faintly, a long spear in hand, a cold-gleaming sword at his waist, the pheasant feathers on his helmet swaying slightly in the wind. That resolute and handsome figure, even after a thousand nights—

Still made her lose herself at first glance.

The autumn wind blew fiercely through her clothes, body, heart, limbs, and bones, making her crimson skirt hem flutter lightly, stirring an endless giant wave in her heart.

Half the sky was filled with clouds reflecting the sun, the blue sky was light and clear, yet everything around seemed to lose its color, lose its color… until there was no color left except for him.

She stood rigid on her horse, knowing she should leave, yet reluctant to just walk away like this.

That horse, that man.

He rode to the front of the mountain, planting his spear’s silver tip in the ground, once again surveying the narrow path with his eyes.

She stared at his every move without blinking, across the steep mountain, green trees, fallen flowers, and fine moss. Now she was high above, with troops at her command, beautiful and noble, yet she could not approach him one step.

She couldn’t even call out to him.

Yue Linxi sensed her unusual behavior and immediately turned back, asking: “Is there something strange?”

She said softly: “No.”

Yue Linxi followed her gaze and looked over, then asked: “Has my lord recognized who that young commander is?”

She shook her head and said decisively: “I don’t know him. I was just watching him examine the mountain pass, fearing he might suddenly lead his troops up this mountain path.”

Her heart was pounding like a drum.

One beat after another, heavy and fast.

It hurt.

She had never imagined that he would personally lead these few thousand cavalry as the vanguard. If something happened on the road, what would become of his imperial person?

She steeled herself to retreat, but that black steed suddenly reared and turned its head. His gaze flew like a blade with the wind.

It fell directly into her eyes.

Across such height and distance, he still saw her, then locked his gaze and did not withdraw it.

Her entire body began to tremble.

He had seen her.

But how could he see her at this time and place?

And how could she, Meng Tinghui, be seen by him at this time and place?

She should be in North Jin, should continue to bear the name of a traitor who sold out her country, should disappear forever from his sight, never to meet again in this life.

Her palms were completely covered in sweat.

His appearance disrupted everything she had planned.

She truly never thought that there could be such a coincidence in this world…

Yue Linxi was right beside her, gazing down the mountain with her. She couldn’t let Yue Linxi know that he was the Emperor of Great Peace, or Yue Linxi would surely send someone to order troops from Yizhou, where they had come from, to surround and destroy his few thousand troops in this area. She also couldn’t let him discover the nearly thousand rebel troops hiding in the forest behind them, or an intense battle would be inevitable, and the situation would spiral beyond her control.

So she dared not move, nor speak, nor even shift her gaze. She feared he might do something in the next moment that she couldn’t respond to.

But he just stood there, head slightly raised, eyes bright, looking at her without moving a muscle.

He stood there looking at her, and the gaze of the several thousand troops behind him also burned like fire through the wind, all looking toward him.

Her whole body felt hot, then cold, her spine damp with cold sweat.

His figure stood as straight as a thousand-year-old pine, like a cold sword in the wind, proudly and resolutely waiting for her below, blocking her, cutting off all her future paths.

Even with a thousand strategies in her heart, once they encountered his armor plates, there was no more room to maneuver.