Her eyes, the sweep, the quick, professional sweep of his body, his robe, his bearing, was there. The assessment, the physical assessment, was there. He was handsome. Annoyingly so. His face, the golden skin, the sharp features, the gold-crimson eyes, was beautiful. His body, beneath the imperial robe, was clearly muscular. His bearing, the absolute, relaxed, imperial bearing, was there.
But her expression, the disinterest, the forced disinterest, was maintained. Her thoughts, internal, were elsewhere.
'Brother Mu. I hope he is alright. He was so agitated when he heard the news. If this emperor discovers him...'
The thought, the worried thought of a woman who had a secret ally, a secret brother-in-arms, a man she trusted more than her own family, was there. Her eyes, briefly, flickered. Toward the sky, toward the mountains, toward where she knew Shen Mu was hiding.
'I will not let this old man ruin everything.'
