The team heading to Jun Mountain quickly disappeared at the end of the long street. Meng Fu was no longer visible. Li Yue turned around and still didn’t answer Qingping’s question, only said to her: “Alright, let’s go back.”
Qingping felt somewhat uneasy. No matter what, today was still the birthday of the old Marquis. Although Madam no longer managed the household, as the Marchioness of Xuanping, there were many guests coming to the residence today. It was impossible for her to completely ignore the occasion. She was originally going to use illness as an excuse to push some of these matters away, but now she just happened to leave the residence at this moment—now it would probably be difficult to find another excuse.
Qingping was extremely curious—just who was Madam here for? How did she not notice anything?
Inside the carriage, Meng Fu also quickly learned from the secret guards that His Majesty had caught a cold.
The hand holding the scroll tightened slightly. In the end, Meng Fu let out a light sigh. Since he had caught a cold, why did His Majesty still come out?
His Majesty like this…
She put down the scroll and pressed her chest lightly—who could truly remain calm and unmoved?
If she really were the ruler of the world, the supreme sovereign, if she could truly let go of all the worldly gazes and judgments, then at this moment, she would definitely jump out of the carriage, run up to His Majesty, and talk to him about that old incident during the Lantern Festival in the eleventh year of Wenkang.
She wasn’t. And she couldn’t.
Meng Fu decided to let herself go. Perhaps it would make many people feel angry, ridiculous, or bewildered. They would look at her with all sorts of eyes, speculate about her. But she knew that in the end, she could never escape the mortal world. Even so, she could still try to find a place of balance within it that made her feel a bit more at ease.
Meng Fu dismissed the secret guards and sat alone in the carriage. Their party had already left the Imperial Capital and would reach Jun Mountain by nightfall today.
The capital behind them grew smaller and smaller in her line of sight, until it could no longer be seen at all. The princes, nobles, and soldiers heading for the Jun Mountain hunt numbered over a thousand. Meng Fu’s carriage moved in the middle of this crowd.
By afternoon, they reached Luò Mountain. Sitting in the carriage for so long made Meng Fu feel a bit stifled, and she wanted to ride a horse for a while. But the clear sky suddenly grew overcast, thick clouds rolling in, violent winds rising. The road ahead dimmed. In the distance, Wind Gathering Mountain stood tall amidst the fierce wind, like a lacquer-peeling Buddha statue—an omen that a heavy storm was coming.
In just a few breaths, rain began to fall. Bean-sized raindrops pelted the ground, splashing out muddy droplets with crackling sounds. The rain was too heavy. Meng Fu had no choice but to order the group to stop and find a place to take shelter from the rain.
There were no houses nearby, so the soldiers could only set up camp on the spot. As the tents were almost ready, Meng Fu was just about to dismount, but the coachman suddenly raised his whip, driving the horses forward with a sharp jolt. The soldiers who were setting up camp quickly mounted their horses to chase after it. But then came a loud rumble—several massive rocks rolled down from Luò Mountain, directly blocking the road ahead. This was the only route to Jun Mountain. If they wanted to take another path, they would have to go back the way they came, and even with fast horses, it would take several hours. But by that time, where would they go to find His Majesty?
The carriage suddenly charging forward startled Meng Fu. When the rumbling behind them stopped, she looked outside. The coachman probably knew he wasn’t a match for Li Yue, so he had already leapt from the carriage and fled. The two spirited horses pulling the carriage had been wounded. The sharp pain caused them to raise their heads and neigh in agony amid the storm, charging forward like mad beasts.
The horses’ hooves splashed through the water like war drums, and the carriage roared with jolts and tremors. Meng Fu gripped the handrail tightly on one side. She didn’t know where these two horses were going to take her—she couldn’t stay inside the carriage forever.
Meng Fu took a deep breath and stepped out of the carriage. Her clothes were quickly soaked by the downpour. Just as the last sliver of light in the sky was swallowed by darkness, a silver-white bolt of lightning streaked across the heavens, illuminating the entire world in an instant.
The horses were running too fast—there was no way to jump off. Meng Fu held her breath and focused her mind. At the moment when lightning again lit up the sky, she leapt from the carriage and landed on the horseback. It was the first time she had done something like this. Her hands clutched the reins, still shaken with lingering fear, but there was no time to steady herself. Following the methods Li Yue had once taught her, she clamped her legs tightly around the horse’s belly, pulled on the reins, and did her best to stop the two horses.
Thunder rolled without pause. Meng Fu’s heart had never pounded so violently in her chest. But the more dire the moment, the more calm was needed. The raindrops fell chaotically, pouring into the endless forest. These sounds merged with the pounding hooves, adding a layer of tension.
The horse beneath her gradually slowed, but before Meng Fu could let out a breath, a group of men in black descended from the sky. They raised long swords, shouting, “Dog Emperor! Give us your life!” and charged at Meng Fu. Fortunately, the secret guards finally arrived, surrounding Meng Fu and engaging the black-clad men in combat.
These black-clothed men were skilled fighters. When clashing with the secret guards, the fight was evenly matched. The leader of the black-robed men had even stronger martial arts—three or four secret guards surrounded him, but couldn’t subdue him.
The wind and rain blurred the world, the heavens darkened, and blades and swords clashed in flashes of light.
Meng Fu immediately thought of the unknown master who had appeared during Prince Xuan’s capture. These black-clothed men could very well be people left behind by the former Crown Prince.
She drew the mini-crossbow she carried with her and fired an arrow at the nearest black-clothed man. Though she didn’t hit, it was enough to break his focus, and he was slain by the sword of a secret guard.
At the same time, the leader of the black-clothed men broke through the secret guards’ encirclement. Ignoring everything else, he charged straight toward Meng Fu. Dark clouds churned, the world murky, and a stark white sword-light reflected off Meng Fu’s face. She gripped the crossbow tightly and fired several arrows in a row, but none managed to stop the man’s advance. Her heart tightened—was she really going to die here today? Then what about His Majesty?
The long sword came straight for Meng Fu’s face. At this critical moment, Eunuch Gao suddenly leapt out from who-knows-where, and without hesitation used his slightly plump body to block in front of Meng Fu.
Just as Eunuch Gao was about to be splattered with blood on the spot, at the very brink of life and death, the heavy curtain of the sky above was torn open by someone. Ten bolts of lightning were hurled downward, striking straight toward Meng Fu. The massive flash of light seemed capable of destroying this entire world. Meng Fu instinctively closed her eyes—and in that moment, time stood still.
She didn’t know how long had passed before the light faded, the clouds dispersed, the rain ceased, and sunlight poured down in ten thousand beams. Everything returned to normal. The rain had come quickly and left just as fast—it arrived with overwhelming force, as if only to deliver that final bolt of lightning.
The moment the lightning fell, everyone engaged in battle couldn’t help but stop what they were doing. They all turned their eyes toward the Emperor. Now that the phenomenon had vanished, the secret guards became even more cautious, silently watching His Majesty, not daring to speak—only exchanging glances in wordless communication.
Had His Majesty really been struck by lightning just now?
Why was no one going forward?
Should they be preparing for the aftermath already?
Who would have thought—being a secret guard meant not only shielding against assassins, but also lightning strikes?
The leader of the black-clothed men was also stunned by the phenomenon, momentarily forgetting that he had come to kill this “dog Emperor.” Now that he came back to his senses, he didn’t immediately attack, but instead burst into wild laughter. He revealed an expression of having achieved great vengeance and shouted loudly: “Heaven has eyes! Truly, Heaven has eyes! Li Yue has committed countless evil deeds, utterly heartless and devoid of conscience—now even Heaven cannot stand to see it and has struck him with lightning! Your Highness, now you can rest easy in the underworld!”
Gao Xi righteously and loudly rebuked: “Nonsense! That was clearly a heavenly auspicious sign descending from the skies, bestowing blessings upon His Majesty! Heaven’s thunder has opened His Majesty’s meridians and governing vessels—His Majesty’s martial arts have advanced another level! This is a blessing to the world! A blessing to all the people!”
The atmosphere around them froze for a moment. The other secret guards all turned to look at Gao Xi, the last one to speak, and without exception were filled with admiration.
This flattery was masterful.
No wonder this man had climbed from the bottom to His Majesty’s side in just two short years. He really had some skill.
Gao Gonggong, excellent!
Not long ago, in the Xuanping Marquis Manor, Li Yue had taken his medicine and felt a bit drowsy, so he lay down on the bed and fell asleep. In his dream, he was riding a little horse with Meng Fu, wandering around and having fun, when suddenly, bursts of loud noise came from his ears, disturbing his sweet dream.
So annoying.
The moment he woke up, he heard Gao Xi saying that his own ren and du meridians had been opened. [Note: 任督二脉 — “Ren and Du meridians” are two major energy channels in traditional Chinese medicine and cultivation novels. Having them opened usually implies a breakthrough or dramatic increase in martial prowess.]
His Majesty furrowed his brows and said rather impatiently: “What kind of nonsense are you all spouting here?”