Lin'an Never Night

Chapter 653: Afterglow (Additional chapter for the leader who speaks frankly)
The situation in front of Zongyang Palace was quickly brought under control.

The prisoners were tied up, so how much resistance could they have?

The officers and soldiers escorting them were enough to deal with them, not to mention the old soldiers who had not yet withdrawn also joined the battle.

Upon hearing the news, Shao Hongyuan, who had returned from Xinkaimen, quickly began to control the Imperial Street to prevent the situation from getting worse.

Yang Yuan ran away, stepping on the moving heads and shoulders of the people as if he were walking on flat ground.

Zhao Ning'er sat on the high pole, swaying, her face pale with fright.

She screamed in shock, and suddenly saw Yang Yuan walking on the "waves" towards her. His heroic appearance calmed her frightened heart.

"General Ziyue, save me!"

Zhao Ning'er's brain suddenly tensed up. She had just listened to "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" with Li Fengniang two days ago. Looking at Yang Yuan at this moment, he was simply the reincarnation of Zilong. She called out subconsciously.

"Second uncle!"

Li Fengniang also screamed. She could not sit still and suddenly slid down from the tall bamboo chair.

Li Fengniang hurriedly called for help, but saw Yang Yuan leap over, stretch out his arms, and grab Zhao Ning'er in his hands.

He didn't save me, he went to save Ning'er!
Li Fengniang's eyes turned red. She felt so aggrieved that she wished she could just fall to her death.

But her body suddenly paused, and when she looked again, she saw that Yang Yuan was standing steadily on the ground, and she was sitting in his arms somehow.

Zhao Ning'er sat in Yang Yuan's other arm, with a look of curiosity on her face. The feeling of fear was completely gone, and she only felt excited.

Li Fengniang looked at Yang Yuan with red eyes, but Yang Yuan was looking around and didn't even look at her.

He didn't even bother to ask if the other person was frightened, showing no consideration at all. Li Fengniang started to feel resentful again.

Yang Yuan saw the two men's guards rushing over and shouted, "Follow me!"

Yang Yuan took the lead and turned around and left.

Li Fengniang and Zhao Ning'er's guards were also in casual clothes. If they were not led by Yang Yuan, they would not have been able to pass through the chaotic battlefield of Imperial Street.

But with him leading the way, even if some soldiers were blinded by rage and misjudged their relationship and attacked with swords, Yang Yuan would stop them with a loud shout.

Zhao Ning'er and Li Fengniang were both very light, and Yang Yuan held them in his arms without any effort.

Zhao Ning'er just felt it was fun at this moment, and was not afraid even though there were swords and sabers flashing all around.

After all, Li Fengniang was a few years older than her, and in an ordinary family in Ezhou, she was already at the age to get married.

Her buttocks were sitting in Yang Yuan's arms and being held up by him. Yang Yuan ran with big strides, and Li Fengniang's body also fell with him. She couldn't help feeling a strange feeling in her heart.

However, before she could daydream too much, Yang Yuan had already led them across the Imperial Street and stopped under the wall of Zongyang Palace.

Yang Yuan bent down and put Li Fengniang and Zhao Ning'er on the ground. He touched their heads and said softly, "It's safe now. Don't be afraid."

After that, Yang Yuan stepped forward and said, "You stay here!"

Yang Yuan asked the two women's guards to protect them, then turned around and ran towards the chaotic battlefield.

Li Fengniang touched the top of her head, and it seemed as if Yang Yuan's big hand was still stroking it.

The corners of Li Fengniang's lips curled up slightly, revealing a sweet arc.

He touched my head first...

Yang Yuan had never thought so much.

He saved Zhao Ning'er first, not because of her noble status, but because of the impression that Zhao Ning'er had always been as weak as a porcelain doll.

Falling from such a great height is generally not a big deal as long as no one steps on you, especially for a young person whose body has not yet fully grown.

But if it were Zhao Ning'er, that might not be the case. Of course she would have to be rescued first.

As for touching Li Fengniang's head first, it's because she is taller than Zhao Ning'er.

The veterans beside Zhao Chen were like hungry wolves and tigers. Even though they were protecting him with several "Blood Pagoda" masters, they could not get close to him at this moment.

Zhao Chen was horrified. How could things develop to this point?
This was totally beyond his expectations.

Zhao Chen saw an opportunity and wanted to escape from among the veterans.

Uncle Gou was quick-witted and quick-handed, and he kicked him on the hip.

Zhao Chen fell to the ground with a grunt, groaning in pain: "You...are so bold, I...my leg seems to be broken..."

His voice was so thin that the old soldiers didn't hear it at all. When they saw that he was unable to move, they didn't even need to look after him and just let go and started fighting with the enemy.

The Fifth Buddha saw that the situation was not good and wanted to escape quickly.

In his original plan, even if the plan on the city wall failed, he revealed his identity as an envoy of the Jin Kingdom, and the person he was escorting was the crown prince of the Song Dynasty, so the Song people could not kill him.

Because if we kill him at this time, we will not be able to explain to the world.

The crown prince was sent back to you, but you killed him. Why?
However, I'm afraid that not many people have heard him reveal his identity yet, and in this melee, the few people who heard it either died or escaped.

He couldn't see the situation on the top of the city wall clearly because the flags were too dense.

No matter what, he failed because he failed to escort Zhao Chen in time and failed to let the civil and military officials of the Song Dynasty and the countless people watching the military parade know about this matter.

The only way to survive now is to escape.

escape……

A team of imperial guards came over and used the open space opposite the Imperial Street vacated by the fleeing civilians to quickly set up a line of defense. Large shields were raised with clanging sounds and spears were placed on the shields.

There is no escape.

Fight again...

Why are these gray-haired old soldiers so terrifying?
Especially the one wielding the ox-ear knife, the lame man, and the skinny old man, they were like three killing gods.

The Fifth Buddha took a deep breath and shouted: "I am the Great..."

"Look at the knife!"

Yang Yuan held the knife he had snatched, walked quickly, and chopped down on the man's head.

"Keng!"

When the two swords collided, the Fifth Buddha's arms felt numb and he took three steps back.

"I am Da Jin..."

"kill!"

Yang Yuan didn't even give him time to shout and chopped him down with his sword again.

The fifth pagoda staggered and blocked another knife.

"He is Da Song..."

"Kill, kill, kill!"

Yang Yuan struck the Fifth Buddha with three consecutive strikes, causing him to stagger and retreat repeatedly.

Yang Yuan got angry and shouted: "Kill, kill, kill, kill!"

His hair stood on end, and he would never allow the Fifth Buddha to reveal the identity of the Crown Prince.

When he shouted for the first time just now, few people heard him, and the few people who heard him occasionally were probably unable to hear clearly because of the chaos.

Those few people did not dare to spread the words they did not hear clearly.

But even though the battle is still going on, the enemy's situation is clear, and there are soldiers from the Imperial Guards lined up next to us. If we let him reveal his identity, it will be very difficult to deal with him.

Although the possibility of the emperor abdicating was almost non-existent, it was inevitable that the legitimacy of the Emperor of the Song Dynasty and his rule would be challenged, leading to an extremely embarrassing situation.

Yang Yuan did not dare to kill Zhao Chen, even if he did it for the current Song Dynasty emperor.

As long as he dared to take the initiative to kill Crown Prince Zhao Chen, he would not have a good end.

No matter how broad-minded the emperor is, it is impossible for him to be fearless.

However, his greatest achievement was that he was able to stop the Jin people from making a fuss and put the initiative into the hands of the court.

Seeing that Yang Yuan was like a madman, eager to kill this Jin man who was over fifty years old, Old Man Song, Uncle Ji, and Uncle Gou all abandoned their enemies and rushed towards the Fifth Pagoda.

Yang Yuan swung his sword again and again, forcing the Fifth Buddha to block and unable to shout out.

"Swish, swish, swish" a series of swords chopped down, and just as Yang Yuan's momentum slowed down, Old Man Song and his two men had already rushed over, and three figures suddenly fell. The Fifth Buddha, like Yang Yuan, had also exhausted his old strength and had not yet generated new strength. When he could not change his moves, he was attacked by these three veterans who were best at seizing opportunities. The three swords wiped, stabbed, and chopped him, hitting his vital points.

Those who want to wipe will wipe their throats, those who want to stab will stab their hearts, and those who want to chop will chop the back of their heads.

The fifth pagoda stared straight ahead and fell headfirst to the ground.

Yang Yuan stepped forward with his knife, kicked over the Fifth Buddha, and after making sure he was dead, he struck him again with his knife, saying in a deep voice, "Kill them all, leave no one alive!"

At this time, Shao Hongyuan had just led the imperial guards to control the entire Imperial Street and rushed to Yang Yuan.

Hearing Yang Yuan's words, Shao Hongyuan's heart trembled. He accepted the order in a deep voice, waved his hand, and shouted sternly: "Kill them all, leave no one alive!"

The large shield on the ground was lifted up with a bang, the spear was moved from the shield to the side of the shield, and the shield bearer's blade was placed on the shield.

"Keng keng keng keng..." The iron walls and steel barriers slowly pressed in from all sides of the long street.

The core few Jin spies who knew the details disappeared after the death of the Fifth Pagoda.

Even if you do, you need to have the brains to realize that you can take advantage of it.

Yang Yuan rushed over, picked up Zhao Chen, and rushed towards Zongyang Palace.

"Sister Fengniang, do you think General Ziyue is very powerful?"

The little princess Zhao Ning'er watched from afar, her eyes full of admiration. She had been watching Yang Yuan's actions on the long street.

What Li Fengniang was thinking about was that when he picked me up, he let me sit in his arms, and he carried that person like he was carrying a dead dog. It turned out that he still loved me...

In the city gate tower, Xiao Luo hurriedly checked the official's injuries.

There were four eunuchs guarding the Dragon Palace, two accompanying him and two guarding the door.

Only when Prince Jin rushed in with a sullen face did they not stop him; no one else was allowed to enter.

At this moment, they did not even dare to trust the two prime ministers easily.

Zhao Yuan was not unconscious. He coughed up blood and told the King of Jin: "Brother, you go and take charge of the situation. The chaos must be stopped as soon as possible. The captives are rebellious. I have ordered that all of them be beheaded!"

Although Zhao Yu was a little scared when he saw him coughing up blood, he still had enough energy to speak and didn't seem to be in danger of his life, so he felt relieved.

He also knew that no one except him could take charge of the situation at this time. Zhao Qu agreed and looked at Xiao Luo again.

Most people who learn martial arts know some medical skills. Xiao Luo said hurriedly: "The official has broken several ribs and his internal organs are also injured, but his life is not in danger."

Zhao Yu was relieved and stood up and said, "Don't worry, big brother, leave the outside to me."

Zhao Qu walked out quickly. At this time, several imperial doctors ran to the medicine box themselves, running very fast, leaving their medicine boys behind.

All the officials outside were stunned. They had no choice but to be stunned. The officials from the Imperial City Administration were standing around with their swords drawn, and no one could move.

When Zhao Yu came out and took a look, he couldn't help but frown.

There is no need to treat it as a powerful enemy, as it will only discourage loyal ministers.

Zhao Ju immediately mentioned several names, including Prime Minister Shen Gai, Second Prime Minister Wei Liangchen, and Privy Councilor Yang Cunzhong, all of whom were unlikely to or had no motive for rebellion.

In order to avoid suspicion, he did not mention his father-in-law, the Minister of Rites Qu Mo, by name. The old man's face immediately turned dark, and Zhao Qu pretended not to see it.

The minister whose name was mentioned by King Jin was invited to come out and help him preside over the situation.

Soon, all the officials stood on the top of the city wall again, the dense flags were dispersed, and the yellow umbrellas moved closer.

The people saw it all clearly from Taipingfang and Zhongwazi, opposite the Zongyang Palace.

In their view, the prisoners had simply rioted and been suppressed, and nothing else had happened.

The suppression was as decisive and swift as thunder. Soon, corpses were dragged away and buckets of clean water were poured onto the Imperial Street.

In the city gate tower, the imperial doctors arrived and re-examined the emperor's injuries.

It was finally determined that three ribs were broken and the spleen was ruptured, but the situation should not be very serious.

As for the flesh wounds, there were almost none. No matter how sharp the silver fish talisman was, it was not as sharp as a sword. Moreover, the fish talisman was not big. Lei Yingxing held it in his hand just to increase the power of this punch.

The emperor was wearing thick clothes in three layers at this grand ceremony, mainly because of the blunt force trauma caused by Lei Yingxing's heavy punch.

This guy's fist is really powerful. If he gets hit by two more punches or one punch to the chest, the official's life will be in danger.

They gave the emperor some medicines with similar effects on the spot, then fixed the fractured part with a chest cloth, wrote out a prescription for the symptoms, and asked someone to send the medicine to the imperial pharmacy as soon as possible.

The Prince of Jin led his men to the top of the city wall and made an appearance, performing a show so that the people in the distance could see that nothing was happening on the top of the city wall. Only then did he lead the court officials whom he had just named into the city gate tower.

Not to mention that he was the official's brother, even if he was the official's biological son, he would not dare to prevent ministers from seeing the emperor.

Otherwise, if the emperor's condition relapsed or even worsened, he would not be able to explain it clearly.

At this time, the emperor had fixed his wound and let the uninjured half of his body lie sideways on the couch.

Seeing the King of Jin leading the ministers in, Zhao Yuan said, "Don't panic, I'm fine."

When the ministers saw this, they felt relieved.

Zhao Qu led all the ministers to see the emperor. The first thing he did was to let them know the extent of the emperor's injuries so that they would not have any wild thoughts.

Then comes the handling and aftermath of the regicide.

Neither the ceremonial officer nor Lei Yingxing died, and the eunuchs in Baolong Palace acted with restraint.

The two were also carried aside and were being treated by the imperial physician.

Before his accomplices were found out, the two prime ministers had some ideas on how to place the officials in office. They reported them to the emperor one by one and got the emperor's approval.

Then Zhao Yuan asked about the situation outside. Shen Gai knew that the emperor attached great importance to today's ceremony, and it would have a very bad impact if it ended hastily.

He hurriedly reported the remedial measures he had just discussed with Wei Liangchen and King Jin.

Zhao Yuan listened quietly, nodded and said, "Yes, let's do it this way. The lights in Zongyang Palace must be turned on tonight."

Zhao Qu said: "Your Majesty, please rest and recover. I will host the lantern viewing for you."

Zhao Yuan shook his head: "There is a banquet on the city wall, and people are watching lanterns and fire. I can still sit for a while, and I can't be absent."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "Immediately issue an order to lift the ban on gambling in Lin'an for three days, and let the people indulge in entertainment!"

Gambling was banned in the Song Dynasty, except for the three-day period during New Year's Day when the ban was lifted.

It is not certain whether the people have noticed what is happening on the city wall. The government has no choice but to intensify the celebration to eliminate possible impacts.

"Also, prepare three buckets of gold coins and scatter them over the city walls to have fun with the people!"

We also need to prepare for the red envelope rain!
Zhao Yuan would never allow such a grand celebration of his great military achievements that would make him famous in history to end in vain.

In fact, the Song Dynasty emperors had far fewer ways of spending money on entertainment than during the Tang Dynasty, and the only one clearly recorded in historical documents was Emperor Taizong of Song.

Zhao Yu looked at the imperial physician anxiously. The physician hesitated for a moment before saying, "If you are careful, help Your Majesty sit down, and don't move rashly, then... it will work."

Zhao Yu heaved a sigh of relief, and then held Zhao Yuan's hand and said, "Don't worry, Your Majesty, this Xiayuan Night will be as prosperous as the Zhengdan Night."

Zhao Yuan nodded. A military officer hesitated for a moment before coming forward and saying, "Sir, the Inspector General Yang Yuan wants to see you."

Yang Yuan just asked the guards of Zongyang Palace to come in to report the news.

However, Zhao Yu was leading a group of close ministers to visit the emperor's injuries and discuss follow-up measures. The officer did not dare to step forward and had been waiting for a long time.

Zhao Yuan raised an eyebrow and said, "Ask him to come to the emperor."

The commotion outside the city was so loud that people on the city walls naturally knew about it a long time ago.

But they still didn't know what happened outside the city.

Yang Yuan escorted Zhao Chen and waited outside the palace gate.

When Zhao Chen wanted to shout, Yang Yuan just grabbed the back of his neck, and his throat twitched, as if he had lost his voice, and he could not shout anything.

After waiting for a long time, news finally came from Zongyang Palace, ordering Yang Yuan to meet the emperor.

Yang Yuan mentioned Zhao Chen and walked into Zongyang Palace.

As soon as he entered Zongyang Palace, Yang Yuan relaxed his control over the muscles behind Zhao Chen's neck.

Zhao Chen’s identity must not be known to everyone.

But... Zhao Chen's identity must not be known only to him...

(End of this chapter)