Chapter 583 - 589

Liu Xiu arrived at Han Yu’s place and, without waiting for the servants to announce him, hurriedly entered. Just then, a woman emerged from Han Yu’s room, followed by two servant girls. Judging by her dress and demeanor, she must be Han Yu’s wife. As the woman reached the doorway, she gave Liu Xiu a small bow, then left with her servant girls.

Pausing for a moment, Liu Xiu was momentarily stunned as he watched the woman’s retreating figure before finally regaining his composure.

Was this Su Wenyue? She was pretty, true, but not to the extent people described. He wasn’t particularly astounded. At least for someone like Liu Xiu, who was accustomed to seeing all sorts of beauties, her looks could only be considered above average.

As for the reasons behind the exaggerated rumors, Liu Xiu could easily infer them after a little thought. In the military camp, a woman was a rare sight, let alone Han Yu’s wife, already considered a beauty. It was inevitable that tales about her would be somewhat embellished, almost leading him to believe that Han Yu’s wife was the person he recalled from memory.

He had been so keen on meeting Su Wenyue these past days, yet it turned out she was not at all the person he had in mind. At the time, he had relied merely on a glimpse and a handkerchief; he hadn’t examined it closely. Even if the pattern on the handkerchief was similar, it couldn’t prove anything. The certainty in his heart was entirely due to intuition, which, now it appeared, wasn’t reliable.

However, Liu Xiu’s moment of daze and distraction was brief. Suppressing the faint sense of loss he felt, he quickly gathered his thoughts. It was not the time to dwell on such matters. Liu Xiu was, after all, Liu Xiu. Even if his heart was stirred by certain special elements, once faced with serious affairs, these feelings became insignificant.

It was precisely because of this that Liu Xiu overlooked certain small details and didn’t notice what was amiss here. Knowing that Su Wenyue was not the person he was looking for, he quickly put her out of his mind.

“Xiu Qi, I’m afraid I may need to disturb your rest,” Liu Xiu said with restrained concern for Han Yu’s well-being. After learning that Han Yu was recovering well, he quickly steered the conversation toward the purpose of his visit.

“Is there some movement from the Imperial Court?” Han Yu asked, his tone laced with uncertainty yet filled with conviction. Liu Xiu was a composed individual; it would take important matters from the Imperial Court to create such urgency in him.

“Your guess is good, Xiu Qi. The Imperial Court…” Liu Xiu shared the news he knew with Han Yu without any reservations. His openness was partly out of trust in Han Yu and partly because he didn’t want to hinder Han Yu’s judgment by withholding any information.

“Zhao Fan has already dispatched an army towards us. It won’t take long for them to arrive. We need to figure out how to respond,” Liu Xiu said. Though he appeared calm on the outside, he was indeed worried.

“At this point, we are at a disadvantage, in a completely different situation from how things were in Yiyang City. If we cannot win, our only option is to flee—fighting while retreating, expanding our forces, and seeking strong allies to withstand Wang Mang together,” Liu Xiu stated decisively. Apart from this strategy, Liu Xiu saw no other choice; otherwise, only one outcome awaited them.

Would it come to this again? After all the efforts and struggles against the Imperial Court, especially the triumphant victory achieved through Han Yu’s strategic planning—overcoming the odds and soundly defeating the Imperial Court—how exulting that had been, and now they were reduced to being hunted.

After Liu Xiu left, Han Yu was immersed in busyness. Su Wenyue, who had already experienced the events of her previous life, had a clear understanding of what was to come.@@novelbin@@