Less than two hours after Meng Tinghui entered the city, Yue Linxi galloped back to the Da Ping military camp outside the city.

At that time, the generals were gathered in the central command tent discussing matters. When they heard a soldier report that Yue Linxi had urgent news for the Emperor, their expressions immediately changed.

Ying Gua had Yue Linxi brought in and asked directly in front of all the generals: “What urgent matter?”

Yue Linxi, with sweat on his forehead and an anxious expression, quickly said: “Shortly after entering the city, she conspired with the loyalists there and left the city heading west! As I was following Your Majesty’s orders, I dared not make any errors, so I risked my life to come out of the city and report this to Your Majesty.”

The people in the tent, upon hearing this, did not understand the situation and looked at each other in confusion.

Ying Gua’s face remained impassive. He merely glanced at Yue Linxi, then turned to the soldier who had brought him in and said: “Bind this man and take him away.”

Without a word, the soldier pulled out hemp rope and moved forward to tie him up, shocking Yue Linxi, who struggled violently and asked: “Why is Your Majesty doing this?”

Ying Gua did not bother to explain, simply saying: “Chai Shao!”

A young commander standing beside the command desk immediately stepped forward and respectfully said: “At your service!”

He ordered: “Issue commands to the imperial troops at the east gate. Lead the attack on the city yourself; there’s no need to wait any longer.”

Yue Linxi was greatly alarmed and tried to speak again, but the soldiers tightly held his neck and dragged him out of the tent.

Chai Shao seemed to understand somewhat. Recalling the incident on the mountain road outside Mingzhou that day, and comparing it with the scene in the inner tent last night, he understood the imperial intent and promptly said: “I obey the command!”

As he was about to leave the tent, Ying Gua added: “Dispatch five thousand elite cavalry from the camp outside the city to accompany me to the west of Shuzhou city.”

Chai Shao froze. “Your Majesty, aren’t five thousand troops too few?”

Ying Gua’s eyebrows raised slightly. “If any more, we would be falling right into their ‘lure the tiger away from the mountain’ strategy.”

Someone nearby couldn’t help but step forward and say: “Going west might also be a trap. If Your Majesty is concerned about Lady Meng’s safety, why not let us lead troops to pursue?”

“I must go personally,” he replied with a determined gaze, looking at his generals. “Because she is no longer your court official, but my Empress.”

In the prefect’s office in Shuzhou city, time was passing slowly.

Meng Tinghui sat quietly, watching the half-burned incense stick on the table in front of her, feeling that time was crawling at an excruciating pace.

Fan Yu paced restlessly around the room, finally glancing at her and saying: “When the scout’s report comes in a moment, you’ll know whether his feelings for you are genuine or false! If he doesn’t pursue you at all, you can put aside these thoughts and focus wholeheartedly on our cause of national restoration.”

She pressed her lips together in silence and quietly closed her eyes.

Someone as militarily astute as the Emperor would surely anticipate an ambush by rebel forces west of Shuzhou. But to be safe, he would still send generals with troops westward to investigate, thus unnecessarily sacrificing those Da Ping imperial soldiers. However, as long as he didn’t fall into the trap and suffer an ambush, the Da Ping imperial army would remain orderly, and she wouldn’t need to worry.

After about three-quarters of an hour, a scout finally arrived in a hurry, tumbling from his horse before reaching the office, stumbling in with a panicked expression: “The Da Ping Emperor has led troops westward!”

Fan Yu’s face lit up with joy: “Excellent!” But then, noticing the soldier’s flustered manner, he frowned and asked: “Why are you so agitated?”

The soldier’s face turned pale: “The Da Ping imperial troops are attacking the city!”

Fan Yu’s expression changed as he waved the soldier away, standing rigidly.

Meng Tinghui’s face also changed—she hadn’t expected him to personally lead troops westward… He must have anticipated a possible trap there, so why would he still go personally?

In her ear, she seemed to hear his last words to her echoing—

“I will wait for you in the camp.”

She had once promised him that she would return, would bear him a child, would stay with him forever, but she had ultimately failed to keep these promises.

Yet he hadn’t let go, traveling north to bring her back to the Da Ping army, forcing her to become his Empress, sharing a tent with her at night, and even saying—he was waiting for her.

But she had once again failed to return.

He might think she had deceived him again, or perhaps that she was being coerced and in danger, but regardless, he had personally gone to pursue her once more.

No matter how many times, he still wanted her.

He still loved her!

Just as she still deeply loved him.

She suddenly stood up and said to Fan Yu: “If you let me out now, there’s still time to stop the Da Ping imperial troops from attacking the city.”

“Impossible,” Fan Yu turned around. “As long as we can kill him, I don’t care even if Shuzhou city is trampled flat by the Da Ping imperial troops!”

She gave a slight tug at the corner of her mouth, then deliberately reached into her waistband and pulled out the short dagger that Lu Duo had given her earlier. She removed the sheath and placed the blade against her throat, saying softly: “If he dies at your hands this time, I will not live for you either.”

Fan Yu frowned, seemingly in disbelief: “You…!”

Meng Tinghui’s smile vanished as she said coldly: “Let me out of the city.” She stared at Fan Yu and spoke sternly: “If he dies and I die too, can there still be peace in the world? You and the Da Ping imperial troops will surely fight each other in chaos, while North Jian will seize the opportunity to mobilize troops, march south, plunder, and occupy territory. By then, the fires of war will burn far beyond these northern routes—what crime have the common people committed? Are you trying to restore a nation or destroy the world?”

Fan Yu’s face turned alternately black and white. Seeing the blade of her dagger pressed tightly against her throat, he was forced into silence, unable to speak harshly.

She continued: “If you release me now, and lead your troops northward with the Da Ping imperial army against North Jian, then these northern territories and half of North Jian’s domain will become my fief, as well as your ancestral land. After his passing, my children will rule this empire, and you will enjoy high positions and substantial rewards. Why must you gamble with the lives of countless common people for such petty fame and profit now?!”

Others in the room sighed softly, saying: “Master Fan, her words are reasonable. Let her go out and tell the Da Ping imperial troops to stop attacking the city.”

The rest, having heard this, also began to agree.

While Fan Yu remained rigid with indecision, Meng Tinghui had already rushed out the door without regard for anything else. She ran outside to find the guards and urgently asked: “Where have you confined the imperial officer who came with me?”

The guards, seeing that she had already come out, dared not refuse to answer and quickly released Lu Duo. Upon seeing her, his eyes filled with worry and joy, but before he could speak, he saw that she had already swiftly mounted her horse and was galloping toward the west gate of the city. He hurriedly took his horse and followed behind her as they rode westward.

Qing Yun galloped through the chaotic troops, flying like a spirit through the western gate that was already erupting in battle, and raced westward with flying hooves and shaking mane.

The thirty-mile journey was not short. Her high chignon was shattered by the wind as she rode, yet she still desperately whipped her horse, wanting Qing Yun to run faster, even faster!

She wanted to catch up to him, stop him, and embrace him tightly.

She wanted to tell him that she had returned, that she would never leave him again, that she would bear his children, hold his hand and stand by him forever, never to be separated again. She wanted to tell him that she had never betrayed him from beginning to end, that she had always loved him deeply.

The autumn wind roared in her ears, faintly mingled with the distant sounds of fighting from the valley, making her whole body tremble on horseback. Blood surged to her heart, and her throat tightened with a sweet, metallic taste.

She had raced as fast as she possibly could, so why couldn’t she catch up to him in time?

Shallow grass disappeared beneath Qing Yun’s hooves, with jagged stones all along the way.

As she neared the valley entrance, the smell of blood wafted toward her. She pulled on the reins to stop her horse and looked up to see scattered corpses not far away, with spears, swords, and arrowheads strewn everywhere. Her stomach twisted violently, but she managed to hold back from vomiting.

There wasn’t a single living person nearby, though the sounds of killing could still be heard faintly from the distant curve of the valley, each sound like a needle piercing her eardrums painfully.

Lu Duo finally caught up to her, panting heavily, and upon seeing the scene, became alarmed and shouted: “My Lady!”

She turned her head and caught sight of a dark helmet beneath the trees and stones.

The pheasant plume on the helmet was so magnificently eye-catching—that was the pheasant feather that only he could wear!

Her pupils contracted sharply, and she suddenly dismounted like a madwoman, not even caring that her long dress tripped her to the ground. She ran past the corpses and bloodstains.

Lu Duo was so shocked he could barely breathe and hurriedly dismounted to run over and stop her, fearing that the battle might turn back out of the valley. “My Lady, please calm down!”

She desperately pushed away Lu Duo’s hand and bent down by the helmet, frantically examining each corpse on the ground, looking at their blood-stained armor and robes, her body trembling and her heart quaking.

He had said that from now on she would be his Empress, that even if she died, she would still be his. But how could he leave her like this?

Tears blurred her vision, and blood soaked through her hands. Her body shook more and more violently, her heart growing increasingly numb, until she could no longer stand and collapsed sideways amid a pile of spears and bloody arrows.

“Meng Tinghui.”

This hoarse yet familiar voice from not far away made her suddenly raise her head.

The sunlight in the valley was dazzling, illuminating half of his handsome face, creating golden ripples that shook her heart violently, making her fear it was just an illusion.

In an instant, as the sounds of killing flowed around them, she abruptly stood up and, without thinking, ran toward him, throwing herself into his arms, holding him tightly, crying uncontrollably.