In my dream of returning to the Tang Dynasty, I snatched Wu Zetian from my lap.

"Your Highness, the wind is blowing hard, it looks like it's going to rain. Should we find a place to stop and take shelter from the rain?" Huang Tu asked from outside.

Li Yuanchang pulled back the curtain, and the strong wind whipped his black hair wildly, a sign that a downpour was imminent.

"Tsk." He couldn't help but frown slightly, feeling that his mission hadn't gone smoothly.

The robbers might not go out because of the rain.

"Let's find somewhere to take shelter from the rain."

"yes!"

With permission granted, the convoy quickly slowed down and came to a stop. In a short while, the guards, disguised as merchants, found an excellent place to take shelter from the rain.

Torches were lit all around, illuminating the eerie woods.

After eating a few bites, Li Yuanchang took out a map, revised the route, and sent men to move all the post station soldiers to a distant location, giving the enemy space to plunder.

He planned to catch the group of guys who kidnapped the stallions, and then follow the trail to find out the truth.

As long as there is evidence, the imperial court cannot interfere, and he can have a legitimate reason to take action.

After conquering Japan, Li Yuanchang had even bigger plans. As can be seen from the map, half of the Liaodong Peninsula was no longer under his control.

The connection between Japan and Goguryeo was like a gap, which was strategically unacceptable.

Most importantly, the matter of the Far East horse farm remains unresolved.

Lee Won-chang had written letters and sent gifts to Silla many times, hoping to establish a partnership with the Queen of Silla, but the Queen of Silla never replied.

I don't know if something went wrong in the middle, or if the queen just didn't buy it.

Su Gui once speculated that both Silla and Baekje might have had close ties with Chang'an. Although Far East had reconciled with the court and was nominally a military vassal state, given the court's style of conduct, it would certainly remain wary.

These two places are bridgeheads, since they both belong to the peninsula.

Li Yuanchang also thought it was possible. Historically, Silla and Baekje were both followers of the Tang Dynasty, especially Silla, whose current queen was a staunch supporter of Li Shimin.

Regardless of the circumstances, Li Yuanchang was determined to resolve the issues between these two countries.

The third quarter of the hour of Zi (11:45 PM).

The camp was eerily quiet, save for the cries of mountain spirits and the crackling of torches.

Gusts of strong wind occasionally raged, but the downpour still hadn't arrived.

Li Yuanchang tossed and turned in his tent, unable to sleep.

Sleeping on these hard wooden planks is nowhere near as comfortable as the soft, fragrant bedding of the Far East Royal Palace. After being idle for so long, I'm no longer used to sleeping in the open like this.

In the Far East Royal Palace, he rested his head on the breasts of beautiful women, embraced their slender waists, and could even spend the entire night in a body temperature of thirty-seven degrees Celsius.

Just as I was finally starting to feel sleepy, suddenly!

The sound of weeping drifted into the tent.

Li Yuanchang initially thought it was the cry of a mountain spirit. The ancient ecological environment was completely different from that of later generations. There was no industrialization or pollution, and a large number of strange and unusual animals existed in the mountains and fields, which have become extinct in later generations and are not even recorded.

Their cries sometimes sound like babies, sometimes like ghosts, which is very eerie. This is why the ancients were able to pass down so many ghost stories.

But later, the more I listened, the more something seemed off; the crying sound was too realistic.

So much so that the camp was alerted.

Li Yuanchang put on his shoes and went outside. The deep mountains and dense forests were pitch black, and the towering trees stood like ancient demons. The sound of women crying made people's scalps tingle.

This environment is more terrifying than any thriller in the 21st century.

Where else can special effects create such a natural atmosphere?

The guards awoke one by one, stood in a huddle, holding torches, their expressions wary.

But none of them showed any fear. Almost everyone here was used to seeing mountains of corpses and seas of blood. Once they drew their swords, they were more effective than butcher knives. Even ghosts were afraid of them!

"Your Highness, something seems amiss."

"It sounds like someone crying. Should we send someone out to look for them?" Guo Chao whispered.

Li Yuanchang frowned: "In this desolate wilderness, at the dead of night, where are we going to find a woman? Could it be some kind of mountain spirit causing trouble?"

Some ferocious beasts are adept at mimicking human body movements and sounds, making noises in the dark to lure people closer, who then become their prey.

There is a type of bear like this, and it has existed in later generations.

"Yes, but this sound..." Guo Chao frowned.

"Never mind," Li Yuanchang whispered, his eyes fixed on a certain direction, his voice coming from the depths there.

"yes!"

Thus, the camp remained undisturbed.

“Eh…”

From the depths of darkness, a soft sound emanated, seemingly tinged with doubt.

At this point, the crying stopped.

The guards on the open ground gradually relaxed. Li Yuanchang glanced at them, ordered his men to strengthen the camp's defenses, and then turned and returned to his tent.

But as soon as the people entered, a terrified scream erupted from the camp.

"ghost!"

The sound instantly created a sense of terror, and the entire camp came back to life.

"Over there, over there!!"

"what!"

Caught off guard, the guards cried out in alarm and their formation crumbled.

Li Yuanchang rushed out and just happened to see a woman in white wholesale dress drifting past from the woods not far away. The visual impact made even his pupils widen by three points, and his heart rate surged reflexively!

In ancient times, late at night, in an old forest, a white-clad female ghost weeps, almost filling the entirety of terrifying elements.

But in an instant, Li Yuanchang's eyes flashed with a murderous aura.

There are no ghosts in this world!

How dare you play tricks on him!

"Grab her!!"

He roared, his voice like a divine explosion, instantly shattering the terror and eeriness of the desolate wilderness and twisting the magnetic field.

Upon hearing this shout, all the guards' primal fear vanished instantly.

"Rush!!"

Huang Tu roared and charged forward with his personal guards, who were from the mountain tribes.

They are like humanoid beasts, natural predators in the jungle; the forest and the darkness are their domain.

This time, the white-clad female ghost was startled.

When people encounter ghosts, they are usually scared out of their minds and fall ill, running away in a panic. So why do these people still want to catch ghosts?

The white-clad female ghost landed and quickly fled into the distance.

This action made Li Yuanchang even more certain that someone was playing tricks, and ghosts don't just run away!

boom!

At that moment, the sounds of fighting erupted from deep within the woods, along with screams of agony.

"What a human being!"

"There's an ambush!" Guo Chao was shocked. He drew his sword and led his men to guard around Li Yuanchang, ready to detonate the signal flare for making black powder at any time.

Besides these hundred men, Li Yuanchang was followed by a light cavalry force of about a thousand men, ready to provide reinforcements at any time.

Li Yuanchang pressed down on Guo Chao's hand, telling him not to pull the trigger.

"Your Highness, they might be the real culprits we're looking for."

"It's too early to draw conclusions now. Let's wait and see," Li Yuanchang said calmly, unmoved.

Pretending to be a ghost to scare people and blocking someone's path to kill them are two completely different methods and styles.

He had been expecting to encounter robbers, but instead he encountered a ghost.