Huo Du

Huo Qingtong spun around at once, staring warily toward the woods. "Who's there? Who's there?!"

"Don't be afraid, miss. I am no bad man." Before long, a young man dressed like a refined noble son emerged, lightly waving a folding fan in his hand. He had something of the charm of a Jiangnan scholar, but the little braid tied atop his head and his grassland attire made the whole sight rather incongruous.

"A Mongol?" Huo Qingtong's heart tightened when she saw his clothing.

"Hm?" Hearing her words, the noble son could not help letting out a soft sound of surprise. He studied her carefully, then finally said, "So it is Miss Huo of the Western Regions. I never expected we would meet here."

"Who are you?" The warning in Huo Qingtong's heart grew stronger. She instinctively retreated two steps, one hand gripping the hilt of her sword tightly, ready to strike at any moment.

"I am Huo Du, at your service, miss." This refined young noble was in fact Huo Du, a minor prince of the Mongol Empire. He had previously been sent to infiltrate the Beggar's Clan in the Central Plains, though no one knew why he had appeared here.

"Huo Du?" Huo Qingtong frowned. "I don't remember you."

Huo Du closed his fan and smiled faintly. "I am merely a minor figure in the Mongol Empire, so it is only natural that you do not remember me. Still, I saw you from afar on the battlefield some years ago. Back then, you were valiant and heroic, like a god of war. You left a deep impression on me."

After a pause, his gaze swept over Huo Qingtong's body. "Who would have thought that after removing your armor and changing into women's clothes, you would be so graceful and