8 AM .

  Zhao Yun and He Xing continued traveling northeast toward Ganling City . Along the way, they encountered runaway peasants who fled from wars, and they tagged along with Zhao Yun for the sake of their safety .

  As Zhao Yun was still wielding a spear, they thought that he was more reliable than traveling alone .

  He Xing and Zhao Yun could not refuse them, so they brought them along their journey .

  11 AM .

  Because of their previous actions, they became an eye-catching group of war refugees . More peasants flocked to them and wanted to follow them to Ganling City as well .

  "Your majesty, this ……" Zhao Yun concerned about their well-being .

  "Take them along . They’re our people, so we shouldn’t abandon them . "

  "Alright, but I won’t be able to protect them all . "

  "…… I know . " .

  Soon, a scout team from Gongsun Du noticed their caravans . A group of 20 riders galloped toward them and yelled, "All of you, surrender immediately! Come with us if you don’t want to die!"

  The peasants panicked, "S-Sir, what did we do?"

  "We suspect that one of you might be the runaway criminal that we’re looking for . If you’re not a criminal, you don’t have to be afraid since we will give you food and let you go later!"

  The crowd sighed a relief since they were honest citizens . However, Zhao Yun stared at these soldiers with a frown .

  All eyes of the riders were inspecting female refugees as if they were searching for someone .

  ’This is not the way they search for a criminal . They’re looking for us!’

  He Xing also had the same thought . She turned to Zhao Yun to see if he had a solution .

  Seeing Zhao Yun’s troubling face, He Xing asked the chat .

  He Xing: "Gongsun Du is searching for us . "

  He Xing: "One of his scouts are claiming civilians that they are looking for a criminal, but they are definitely looking for me . "

  Lu Zhi: "I think my plan is busted . Your majesty, do not follow them . "

  Lu Zhi: "Tell Zhao Yun, it’s time to break away from there!"

  He Xing: "Then, where should we go?"

  Xun Yu: "Head south, your majesty . Regroup with lord Lu since he’s the closest troops . "

  Xun Yu: "Gongsun Du wants you as a hostage to escape our net, so don’t get captured . "

  He Xing: "There are civilians with us . What are we going to do about them?"

  Jia Xu: "As hard as it may be, I need you to leave them behind, your majesty . "

  Jia Xu: "Your safety takes priority! Our lord hasn’t recovered yet . If something happens to you, I’m afraid that our lord won’t be able to handle it . "

  Lu Zhi: "I’m sending my fastest units and Tian Yu ahead . As long as you keep fleeing south, you’ll meet them . "

  He Xing took a deep breath and told Zhao Yun about their conversation .

  Zhao Yun gulped as he steeled his heart . Once the fight started, everything would be in chaos . Liu Xie and He Xing’s life would also be at risk, and their fate fell into his hands .

  This was a heavy responsibility!

  "I’ll bring you out, your majesty!"

  While they were whispering, a rider approached them .

  "Hey, you! All women have to go with the other group . All men have to follow our commander!"

  At this moment, the soldier finally caught a glimpse of Zhao Yun’s spear .

  "Wait a minute, why are you carrying a ……"

  *PU*

  The spear tip entered his neck, cutting his sentence .

  Zhao Yun pulled the soldier down from his horse and jumped on the horseback . He pulled the rein and charged at the nearest riders .

  *SWUA*

  *SWUA*

  \r \r \r

  *SWUA*

  Unprepared, five more soldiers were cut down .

  The remaining soldiers detected the odd sounds of iron cutting flesh . They turned around and saw their friends being killed by Zhao Yun .

  "Why, you!?"

  Zhao Yun ignored the chaotic cries of the peasants and Gongsun Du’s scouts . He charged at them without blinking .

  The scout captain shouted, "Go tell our lord, we found the suspect! Hurry!"

  One of the riders fled the scene, and Zhao Yun could not interfere it . Still, these few soldiers were not his match .

  Two minutes later, all riders became lifeless corpses .

  Zhao Yun glanced at the direction of the former fleeing rider with grimaced expression .

  ’More pursuers will come . We have to hurry!’

  He rode toward He Xing . As usual, he pulled her and Liu Xie on the horseback before he galloped south, heading back to Lu Zhi .

  Noon

  The scout reached Gongsun Du Camp with his discovery .

  Budugen was surprised that they found the empress this quick, "Are you sure that he’s with the empress?"

  "Yes, my lord . He was with a woman and a child . We tried to separate them, but he immediately resisted . "

  Wang Men revealed interest, "Did the man use a spear?"

  "Yes, my lord . "

  "How about his age . Is he about in the early 20s or less?"

  "Err, yes . I think he’s quite young . "

  Wang Man turned to Gongsun Du, "There was a rider that rescued the empress . He’s a spear master, and he’s in his teen . I think he’s our guy . "

  Upon hearing the report, Gongsun Du could not sit still .

  "We found them! All forces, chase after that man . Wherever he is, the empress might be with him!"

  With Gongsun Du’s order, 21,500 soldiers mobilized south, ignoring the approaching threat from the north .

  Wang Men took his 6,000 the remaining horse archers and headed out first . As a light cavalry unit, he had confidence that he could catch Zhao Yun before the others .

  Budugen separated his 5,000 Xianbei warriors from Gongsun Du’s main army . He volunteered to guard the supplies and the reserve troops, which he would also act as their rearguard .

  Gongsun Du allowed it without realizing Budugen’s real intention .

  Looking at the trusting Gongsun Du, Budugen sneered, ’Idiots . ’ .

  Cheng Yu, Xiahou Dun, and their escorts traveled south, returning to Xuchang . As they were Cao Cao’s men, all scouts from Gongsun Du left them alone .

  As they were traveling, they saw a panicking group of civilians at the roadside . Curious, Cheng Yu sent his men to inquire about their situation .

  The result surprised them as they were the peasants that followed after Zhao Yun and He Xing . However, Zhao Yun resisted against Gongsun Du’s soldiers and killed them all . Afterward, they left them there .

  Cheng Yu mumbled to himself before he peered at Xiahou Dun .

  "How about it? Want to snatch the empress?"

  "What’s the catch?"

  "If we have her, Mengde remains as a righteous prime minister . If we don’t have her, Mengde will be a villain in the eyes of people . "

  "Is there a demerit to this if we take the empress?"

  "Zhang Tong will find out about our scheme if we pursue . If we don’t, he won’t find out . "

  Xiahou Dun shrugged, "Too troublesome then . Leave them alone . "

  "Are you sure? His current position is quite awkward, you know? He got this position from a false empress . "

  "That’s none of my business . I have one job, and that is protecting you . Anything else is irrelevant to me . "

  Cheng Yu chuckled, "Got it . "

  The two disregarded the events and the people as they continued marching south . .

  4 PM .

  After hours of galloping outside of the forest, Zhao Yun could see a group of horsemen before him .

  Upon seeing their banners, Zhao Yun could finally smile .

  It was the flags with the letter "Tian . " This unit belonged to Tian Yu!

  The leader of the riders also recognized Zhao Yun from afar . As Tian Yu knew about Zhao Yun’s behavior and riding style, it was not hard for him to differentiate Zhao Zilong form the rest of regular riders .

  "Zilong!"

  "Guorang!"

  "AHAHAHA! You undying bastard! You made it!"

  "Same goes to you, silly fool!"

  Zhao Yun had the urge to leap from his horse to hug his friend . Unfortunately, Tian Yu’s subordinates, He Xing, and Liu Xie were watching . He had to control his manner .

  "Ahem, how did you rush here?"

  "Haha! You’d better ask her majesty about this . Master Lu said that she sent this …… err, clan message to him? And he knew that all of you will be coming south, so we’re here to pick you up . "

  As they chatted, a soldier got down from his horse and offered the horse to He Xing .

  "Your majesty, please . "

  He Xing nodded and got on the other horse with her son . As a woman with high status, riding with a man who was not her husband in public was against her moral .

  Tian Yu nodded in approval, "Alright, let’s regroup with master Lu . I don’t want to listen to his lecture again . ".

  "AHAHAHA! Sucks to be you . "

  "Oh, you don’t have to worry, Zilong . Master Lu said you fOOked up the bodyguard duty, and he has reserved his private tutor course for you as well . "

  "Err, crap . "

  Zhao Yun sulked while Tian Yu’s subordinates snickered by their boss’ misfortune .

  Unfortunately, their little happy reunion had to be put on hold as the ground trembled . It was a sign that an army of horsemen was coming in their direction .

  "Enemies!"

  "Get into an array!"

  Tian Yu turned to Zhao Yun, "Don’t screw up your bodyguard job this time . Stay behind us . "

  Zilong complied with the suggestion . One mistake was enough, and Zhao Yun swore that he would not make the same mistake again .

  Soon, an army with the banners, [Wang], came to their sight . It was Wang Men’s troop of 6,000 riders .

  Wang Men raised his fist and ordered his troops to stop . Upon seeing the [Tian] banners and the dirty Zhao Yun behind their formation, he understood what had happened here .

  ’They reunited, but that doesn’t matter as long as I defeat these men . ’

  Wang Men whispered to his aide, "Form wedge . We’ll charge at them . "

  Meanwhile, Tian Yu read Wang Men’s mouth as he licked his lips .

  "Wedge, is it? Okie, dokie!"

  Tian Yu bellowed with everything he had as if he wanted Wang Men to hear his words .

  "MEN!"

  Tian Yu’s soldiers tensed, getting ready to form any formation he commanded .

  "TURN AROUND!"

  Everybody turned their horse around in confusion . Everyone was thinking why Tian Yu wanted to show their backs at the enemies .

  "RETREAT!! RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!!"

  Zhao Yun, He Xing, and all 5,000 light cavalries almost spat blood .

  "Dafuq, Guorang!?"

  "Eh, shut it and follow my command, Zilong . I REPEAT AGAIN! RETREAT!!"

  All the soldiers looked at each other and shrugged . They turned their horse around and galloped away, showing their back to Wang Men . Zhao Yun and He Xing also rode with them .

  Wang Men stared at them with wide eyes . No word could describe his feeling at the moment .

  When he came to his sense, Tian Yu and others had already fled a hundred meters .

  Infuriated, Wang Men shouted, "CHASE! AFTER THEM!!"

  All 6,000 soldiers with a wry smile galloped after the fleeing troops . They took out their bows and arrows, getting ready for a horse archer tactic .

  Unfortunately, before they could shoot an arrow, they saw a straight line of running horsemen with Tong’s repeating crossbows .

  "Eh?"

  Behind the running riders, Tian Yu had a mocking grin on his face .

  "ARROWS, RELEASE!!"