Guiyi Fei Tang

Chapter 489 Liu Lang's Charm (A Long Chapter of 10,000 Words)
"Sorry..."

"Haha, look what I got!"

"So much grain?!"

"Ha ha ha ha……"

Under the blood-red setting sun, Longmen County, surrounded by Dahe Mountain and Jundu Mountain, appeared particularly small at this moment, simply because it was completely surrounded by a huge number of tents, and between the tents were many shaved-haired Hu people.

Most of them had their heads shaved, and tens of thousands of small Turkic horses were tethered in front of their tents.

At this moment, they were all holding onto what they had seized, exchanging items with people from different tribes.

Someone managed to grab the grain, and the people around him became envious and offered to exchange their clothes, cloth, and farm tools with him.

Their banners varied, but most represented different tribes and depicted various totems and beasts.

Among them, the Three Stars Banner is the most eye-catching because it is very similar to the banners planted in the besieged Longmen County.

"happy!!"

Among the tens of thousands of tents, one tent that occupied a considerable area attracted the most attention. Inside the tent sat many Hu people dressed in round-necked robes and wearing belts.

The Xi people usually wore short robes with the left side overlapping the right, leather belts, and leather boots. However, after receiving investiture from the Tang Dynasty, the upper and middle classes of the Xi people began to be Sinicized.

They began to learn Han culture and Han crafts, and the most common targets of their raids were artisans. Gradually, they began to cultivate the land, mine minerals, and make various kinds of pottery.

However, they only had a small number of artisans, and many supplies could not be obtained by plundering from the border. Therefore, when necessary, they still needed to ease relations with the Tang Dynasty and conduct trade.

"We owe this all to Zhu Xie Chixin. If it weren't for his suggestion, we wouldn't have known that the Tang people were already in internal strife!"

"That's right, that's right, hahaha..."

The Xi nobles inside the tent laughed heartily, but there was a hint of sarcasm in their laughter and words.

In the past, Li Keyong, who was sitting next to Li Guochang at this moment, would probably have already taken action against these people.

Li Keyong, however, remained calm and said, "Longmen is just the beginning. The Khitan have already sent troops to attack Yingzhou. They will definitely gain more than we have."

"If we cannot penetrate deep into the heart of Guizhou, what we will gain will certainly be nothing more than the Khitans, and we will only be able to eat some leftovers."

Faced with Li Keyong's remarks, the nobles burst into laughter: "What's so difficult about entering a mere Gui Prefecture?"

“The number of soldiers and civilians in Guizhou is only twenty or thirty thousand, and they are scattered in various places. I'm afraid that when they see us heading south, they will only dare to hide in the city and will not dare to go out to fight.”

"At that time, all those villages outside the city will be our people, and we can plunder them however we want."

"Ha ha ha ha……"

The laughter of the Xi people was extremely grating, but Li Keyong remained calm and simply raised his wine cup: "Then I wish everyone a successful start and a bountiful return."

"drink!!"

Everyone raised their glasses to drink, and their laughter carried far.

The banquet lasted for a full two hours before it ended. The leaders of each tribe rose and walked out of their tents to their own headquarters.

Li Guochang, Li Keyong, Zhou Dewei, Kang Junli, and Gai Yu returned to their camp under the escort of more than ten soldiers carrying torches.

It had only been half a year since Liu Jilong conquered Daibei, and Li Keyong and his men had just gained the trust of the Xi people and Xi Jie tribe.

What did we gain?

After Li Keyong and Li Guochang sat down, they began to inquire about Gai Yu and the others.

Seeing this, Gai Yu said, "Many people have fled into Longmen City, but we have obtained a lot of tools. If we can capture some more craftsmen, we can enslave those defeated tribes and make our own armor after returning to Mo Nan."

Seeing Gai Yu say this, Kang Junli couldn't resist adding, "Our troops number only a little over a thousand; we definitely can't outmaneuver them this time."

"General, why are you inciting them to invade with the Khitans? Wouldn't it be better if we invaded ourselves?"

Upon hearing this, everyone turned to look at Li Keyong, who clenched his fist and said:
"The Xi and Khitan people are powerful, as you have all seen. We will inevitably have to fight against them in the future."

"But if we can use Liu Jilong to severely damage them, then the valleys of southern Mongolia and northern Yanshan will be ours."

“The southern part of the desert is suitable for grazing, but it cannot produce grain. Only the river valleys north of the Yanshan Mountains are suitable for growing grain.”

At this time, the southern desert was unlike later times, where white disasters frequently struck, freezing livestock and crops to death.

In this environment, the northern Yanshan valley occupied by the Xi people was undoubtedly a good place to avoid wind and snow and cultivate crops.

"That being said, Liu Jilong is currently fighting Lu Long, and Lu Long is probably no match for him."

"If Liu Jilong takes Lulong, our army will probably have a hard time ever recovering."

Gai Yu's words poured cold water on Li Keyong, but Li Keyong was still unwilling to give up.

"If we can capture the Xi Jie, Xi, Khitan and other tribes, and unite the Tatars and Bohai, we will not be without a chance to return!"

Returning to the Central Plains became almost an obsession for Li Keyong, but he was unwilling to surrender to Liu Jilong, so he could only seek development in the cracks.

Although he only had a few hundred Crow soldiers, he was confident that he could fight against the several thousand southern tribes of the desert, thanks to their armor and archery skills.

However, most of the tribes in southern Mongolia are controlled by the Khitan and Xi people. If he were to annex these people in a frenzied manner, it would inevitably provoke retaliation from the Xi and Khitan people.

Therefore, he had to use Liu Jilong to weaken them, and then slowly expand while they were weak.

"In a few days, we will incite them to enter Guizhou, and then we can use Liu Jilong to weaken them."

Li Keyong's eyes flickered, and the people in the tent looked at each other in bewilderment. They could only bow to him and then be dismissed by Li Keyong to rest.

While they were resting, Husi Guang led five thousand elite cavalry into Youzhou, but Zhang Gongsu noticed them.

Zhang Gongsu deployed defenses north of the Sanggan River to prevent Husi Guang from crossing the river to join forces with Cao Mao in Ji County, while Zhang Gongsu himself was gathering elite troops from various prefectures and continuously converging on Lu County.

Husiguang's supplies were insufficient, and now that he was being blocked by Zhang Gongsu, he had no choice but to retreat to the Grand Canal and transfer grain from Cangzhou to the north, waiting for an opportunity to reinforce Jixian.

While Zhang Gongsu was gathering his troops, Liu Jilong in the south had already surrounded Weixian, forcing Han Junxiong to recruit 30,000 soldiers to defend the city with new recruits, gather 20,000 troops to reinforce Xiangzhou and Chanzhou, and seek help from Chengde and Zhaoyi.

Upon receiving the news, Wang Jingchong of Chengde Town raised 50,000 soldiers. Li Honggui led 30,000 troops south to Zhaoyi with 5,000 Chengde cavalry as the vanguard. After joining forces with Zhaoyi, they would cross the Zhang River at Cizhou and head south to Xiangzhou in Weibo.

At that time, the three towns will gather troops, totaling at least 70,000 soldiers, and they will not be afraid of being unable to deal with Liu Jilong's mere 20,000 men.

"Damn it! This guy just stands around us without fighting back, what's the logic behind that?!"

Standing in front of the city gate of Weixian, Le Yanzhen looked at the government troops who had surrounded Weixian with no more than 10,000 soldiers but did not attack at all. He couldn't help but feel anxious and then cursed.

At this moment, Liu Jilong had already occupied three counties in Weizhou, leaving only Wei County and Liyang County unconquered.

Le Yanzhen had 20,000 troops at his disposal, and with the county of Wei fortified, he was confident that he could wear down Liu Jilong here. However, he couldn't stop Liu Jilong from attacking the city at all.

He wasn't the only one who was anxious; the Han army outside the city was also anxious.

"What exactly does Your Highness intend to do?"

"We left 5,000 troops to garrison the three counties. Right now, our army only has 10,000 infantry and 5,000 cavalry left. What can we do with such a small force?"

"I heard that Governor An's troops on the south bank of the Yellow River have also been transferred. Shouldn't they cross the river to join forces with our army and then take Wei County?"

"If we just stay here and wait for the other three towns to gather their troops, it will probably be difficult to fight them."

"Beep--"

Outside the tent, the generals were anxiously discussing, but when they heard the wooden whistle, they all fell silent and went inside the tent.

They entered the tent in an orderly fashion, only to find a sand table of Hebei set up inside, with Liu Jilong resting his hands on it.

“I have heard what you have to say, and it’s about time…”

Liu Jilong began to speak, and before anyone else could reply, he removed both hands from the sand table, his eyes burning with determination, and said, "Imperial Edict!"

The generals dared not delay, and all raised their hands in a gesture of respect, awaiting Liu Jilong's order.

"Zhao Ying ordered the elite cavalry to be the vanguard, and I ordered the cavalry and infantry to be the central and rearguard. Li Shangyin led the laborers to retreat back to Ji County."

"Each soldier shall carry half a month's worth of rations and a gunpowder pouch. After nightfall, we shall break camp and head north!"

"Your subordinate obeys!!" The crowd accepted the order before raising any questions.

"Your Highness, if we head north, are we not going to attack Xiangzhou?"

"Xiangzhou is currently garrisoned by more than 10,000 troops from Weibo, but Xiangzhou has six counties. The garrison commander of Xiangzhou cannot disperse his troops. He will mostly concentrate his troops to defend Ye County and Anyang, leaving the remaining four counties undefended."

"That's true, but the garrison commander of Weibo isn't stupid. He certainly won't leave any grain in the four counties."

"That's right. Moreover, if our army marches north, Weixian will be relieved. What if the troops from Weixian attack Jixian?"

"Wei County is alright, but I'm worried that if Zhaoyi and Chengde march south and surround our army with an army several times larger, what will we do then?"

The generals argued incessantly, and seeing that they couldn't quiet down, Liu Jilong frowned and said, "Just follow military orders and don't worry about anything else!"

"Yes……"

The generals bowed their heads in agreement. Only then did they recall the victories Liu Jilong had personally led in battle, and suddenly they felt that an army several times their size was nothing.

Although that's what she thought, she was still nervous, while Liu Jilong waved his hand and said, "Step down."

The generals all withdrew, but Zhao Ying stayed behind. After they left, he bowed and said, "Your Highness."

Liu Jilong pointed to Dezhou, then looked up at Zhao Ying and asked, "Has An Pohu already reached Pingyuan County?"

"Based on the pace, they should have arrived by now." Zhao Ying answered without hesitation. After all, the military order had been issued six days ago, and they should have arrived by now, even if it was slow.

"The imperial edict ordered An Pohu to directly attack Qinghe County, the seat of Beizhou. After capturing Qinghe County, he was to advance southwest to Zongcheng, Quzhou, Ping'en, Feixiang, and Cheng'an. After that, he was to wait for my order to cross the river and attack Fuyang."

"Remember, march thirty li every day, neither too fast nor too slow!"

"Yes!" Zhao Ying quickly agreed, then bowed and left the tent.

After he left, Li Shangyin entered the tent, looked at Zhao Ying's departing figure, and then bowed to Liu Jilong.

"Has Your Highness already devised a strategy to defeat the enemy?"

Liu Jilong did not answer, but simply smiled at him, his meaning unspoken.

"Then I will await Your Highness's report of victory in Ji County."

Seeing his confidence, Li Shangyin, despite his great curiosity, had to suppress it.

"After Yishan returned to Jixian, he sent a fast message to Cui Shu, ordering him to gather the remaining troops in Hedong and attack Luzhou and Yizhou."

As Liu Jilong finished speaking, Li Shangyin frowned slightly: "If that's the case, Hedong will inevitably be vulnerable. If a powerful family were to cause trouble then, what would happen..."

He paused before he could say anything, because he belatedly realized that this was probably something Liu Jilong had done on purpose.

"Your subject obeys the order..." Li Shangyin took a deep breath, bowed, and left the tent.

Shortly after his withdrawal, the entire Han army camp became lively, a scene that both surprised and frightened Le Yanzhen, who was observing from the sidelines.

"You son of a bitch, are you about to make your move?"

Le Yanzhen gazed at the Han army camp in the distance, then turned to his men and ordered, "Be prepared to leave the city at any time. Rely on the trenches and ramparts outside the city to defend against the enemy. We must take a bite out of Liu Jilong!"

"Yes!!" The officers on both sides bowed and responded. Seeing this, Le Yanzhen looked solemnly towards the outside of the city.

He waited for a whole day, until the sun went down, but he still didn't see Liu Jilong's troops begin their attack.

"You Kansai barbarians! How dare you bully me like this!!"

As the sun began to set, Le Yanzhen, who had endured half a day of torment, couldn't help but draw his sword and slash it fiercely at the wall in front of him.

Dust flew everywhere, and no one dared to step forward. Le Yanzhen swung his sword wildly several times before finally sheathing it, panting heavily. He then instructed his men to keep an eye on the Han army's movements before returning to the yamen to rest.

After he rested, the aroma of meat filled the Han army camp.

Liu Jilong ordered the slaughter of one hundred mules and donkeys to reward the army. The 15,000 soldiers ate until their bellies were bulging, and everyone had a satisfied look on their faces.

Seeing this, Liu Jilong ordered his army to leave the city and head north to Tangyin.

Li Shangyin decided to stay until the next day, when he would lead the laborers to evacuate to Ji County at Chenshi (7-9 AM).

They spent a sleepless night, and it wasn't until the early hours of the next morning that the civilians who remained at the camp disguised themselves as Han soldiers and slowly retreated towards Ji County.

The Left Military Commander on duty quickly informed Le Yanzhen of the news. Le Yanzhen, without even washing up, rode his horse directly to the top of the city wall. When he saw that the Han army was indeed retreating, he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

"Hahaha, Liu Jilong may have a great reputation, but he's not all that great."

Le Yanzhen immediately felt relieved, and those around him began to flatter him:

“What you say is very true, Your Excellency. Liu Jilong must have seen so many trenches and ramparts outside the city and realized that he was not as capable as Your Excellency, so he withdrew his troops.”

"Your Excellency's victory over Liu Jilong today will surely be admired by all!"

"Repel them?" Upon hearing their words, Yue Yanzhen's eyes flickered, and he then said to those around him:

"Find some strong refugees in the city, behead hundreds of them, and send them to Liyang. When the general's army is stationed in Liyang, they will surely know that our army has defeated Liu Jilong."

"Your subordinate obeys!!"

The two were overjoyed and immediately accepted the task. They searched the city for refugees with fleshy faces, cut off their heads, and sent them to Liyang.

Within two hours, after confirming that the Han army had retreated to Ji County, Le Yanzhen immediately sent men to deliver cartloads of heads, still dripping blood from the carts, to Liyang.

Weixian County is more than 30 li away from Liyang. The carriage took a full five hours to arrive in Liyang City before dusk.

Currently, there are over 15,000 troops stationed in Liyang, and the camps outside the city have been fortified with trenches, ram's horn walls, and other defensive measures.

When Le Yanzhen sent his son Le Congxun to escort the head to the capital, he found the army in full battle array. He immediately began to boast on horseback.

"We have just repelled the government troops, and these are the heads we just cut off. Look at your appearance, what is there to fear from Liu Jilong?"

He rode forward on horseback, mocking everyone along the way, and soon arrived at the camp with more than ten cartloads of heads.

At this moment, he had not yet noticed that the atmosphere inside and outside the tent was strange. He triumphantly dismounted, walked to the front of the tent, turned to the side, and displayed the more than ten cartloads of heads.

"Colonel Le Congxun has come to report a victory. Our army fought against the government army for more than ten days. This morning, the government army was defeated and retreated. These are the heads our army has taken in the past ten days. Please take a look, Commander..."

Le Congxun waited smugly for Han Junxiong and the others to praise him, but after waiting for a long time without anyone saying anything, he began to observe carefully.

The generals inside the tent all looked grim, and Han Junxiong, sitting in the main seat, had an even more somber face.

"You said you repelled the Han army at dawn, so where did the government troops retreat to?"

Han Junxiong questioned in a deep voice, his voice barely concealing a hint of anger.

Le Congxun also sensed something was wrong, but still forced himself to say, "They've retreated to Ji County..."

"You dog-and-rat bastard! Bullshit!!"

Han Junxiong suddenly snapped, crumpled the letter in his hand into a ball, stood up, and threw it at Le Congxun's face.

Although it didn't hurt, it was still an insult.

Le Congxun wanted to lash out, but seeing the strange expressions on the faces of the generals in the tent, he bowed and picked up the letter, opening it.

When he saw what it contained, his eyes widened suddenly, and he opened his mouth but didn't know what to say.

"You say they only withdrew their troops this morning, then who attacked Tangyin County last night?!"

Han Junxiong questioned Le Congxun, who stammered, "But... but our army did see them retreating towards Jixian at dawn, and their numbers were at least thirty to fifty thousand..."

"Still dare to argue?!" Upon hearing that Yue Congxun still dared to lie to him, he immediately gave orders to those around him.

"Drag him away and give him twenty lashes to teach him a lesson!"

"Yes!"

Because Yue Congxun usually acted arrogantly because of Yue Yanzhen's status, and he had just come over with a lot of taunts.

For ordinary state soldiers, they might not dare to lay a hand on Le Congxun, but for the guards of Weibo...

Not to mention attacking Yue Congxun, we'd attack Yue Yanzhen and his men without hesitation!
"Uh-huh!!"

Le Congxun was dragged away, and screams soon followed.

After his temper subsided, Han Junxiong sat back down, and the other officers also spoke up:

"Tangyin County has less than a hundred cavalry and infantrymen, so it's normal that it can't be defended. Besides, all the grain in the city has been transported to Ye County. Even if Liu Jilong takes it, he can't hold it for long."

"The most urgent task at present is to urge Chen De and Zhao Yi to gather troops and head south to join our army in besieging Liu Jilong, or even just to repel him."

"That's right. First, drive Liu Jilong back to Huaizhou, then join forces to seize the five prefectures of Yi, Ding, Cang, De, and Di in Hebei from the imperial court. From Hebei, we will attack Henan and join forces with Zhu Quanzhong to occupy the area east of Hulao Pass. We're not afraid that the imperial court will not surrender!"

Several military officers spoke in unison. Han Junxiong pondered for a moment, then looked at everyone and said, "I will immediately send men to urge the armies of Chende and Zhaoyi to march south." "Furthermore..."

Before he could finish speaking, a fast horse rushed into the camp, approaching from afar.

In an instant, the fast horse galloped to the front of the command tent, dismounted, and handed over the military document.

The guards at the door stepped forward, took the military document, and carried it into the tent.

Everyone looked at Han Junxiong with curiosity, but Han Junxiong's expression changed drastically when he saw the urgent message on the military document, and he hurriedly opened it.

After a long pause, Han Junxiong looked at everyone with an even darker expression: "An Pohu is leading his army around Pingyuan with 30,000 troops to attack Beizhou. They will reach Qinghe in three days at the latest!"

"What?!" Upon hearing this, many officers and soldiers stood up.

Their property is all in Qinghe. What will they do if Anpohu attacks and conquers it?
"General, since our army has already transported all the money and supplies to Anyang and Ye County, it's fine to let Liu Jilong launch a strong attack first."

"That's right. We should withdraw to Weizhou now, reorganize, and then rush to Qinghe's aid!"

"Damn it, my family and relatives are all in Qinghe. How can we let the government troops attack us?"

"Most of the town's elite troops are located here; they should advance eastward to contain the government forces!"

Everyone was talking at once, basically saying that they wanted to withdraw their troops to save Qinghe.

Han Junxiong knew that if he didn't withdraw his troops, he would definitely be coerced by Qinghe's soldiers. Thinking of this, he could only nod: "Tomorrow at dawn, we will break camp and head north to reinforce Beizhou!"

"Yes!!" Everyone responded and then hurriedly left the tent to coordinate the troops.

Faced with the government troops' two-pronged offensive, Han Junxiong couldn't help but feel a bit of a headache.

He pondered for half the night before finally falling asleep in the latter half of the night, only to be awakened by the sound of horses' hooves shortly after he fell asleep.

But as soon as he opened his eyes, a messenger arrived on horseback with a voice from outside the tent: "General, Liu Jilong has led his troops north and has already occupied Yaocheng!"

Upon learning that Liu Jilong had marched north and occupied Yaocheng, Han Junxiong was not surprised. He simply stood up, lifted the tent flap, and frowned as he said:
"Yaocheng is just an empty city. It's fine to let him occupy it. As long as he doesn't attack Anyang and Ye County, there's no need to report to him in the middle of the night."

"Yes!" The captain of the cavalry quickly withdrew, while Han Junxiong looked at the sky and realized that it was not long before dawn, so he did not continue to rest.

As dawn approached, the tens of thousands of elite troops from Weibo stationed in Liyang broke camp and marched north along the Grand Canal toward Qinghe.

The journey from Liyang to Qinghe is three hundred li, and it takes a full seven days to reach the destination.

Although Han Junxiong knew that Liu Jilong's men had the means to breach cities, he thought that Qinghe's city walls were sturdy and would not be breached within three to five days.

As he traveled, undercurrents began to stir within Luoyang City, as the four towns of Hebei were also on the move.

Inside the government office of the Secretariat, many officials took advantage of their break to discuss the war in Hebei and Henan.

Gao Jinda was aware of these rumors, but he believed that his prince would soon pacify the four towns of Hebei, at which point these cowardly officials would continue to behave themselves like quails.

However, in such a vast imperial court, it is still possible to gather a few loyal and brave individuals...

"Hey!!"

Inside Yuanbi City, after Li Yi dismounted and drank the tea from the official's hand, he belatedly looked at the official and asked, "You don't look familiar. Which government office do you work for?"

Li Yi had not yet noticed anything amiss, but it was only after the official in the scarlet robe took the tea from his hand that he suddenly realized something was wrong.

"Your Majesty, have you forgotten the glory that Emperor Taizong created in the past?"

Li Yi was terrified by this man and quickly looked around, but he did not see Ximen Junsui, Zhang Ying, Yang Gongqing and others.

"How did you come here to harm me?!"

Li Yi quickly took two steps back, mounted his horse, and was about to leave when the official grabbed the reins.

"Wei Zhaodu, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, pays his respects to Your Majesty..."

Wei Zhaodu revealed his identity, then pleaded with a look of desperation, "Your Majesty, we all harbor the desire to save the country."

"Now that Liu Jilong has gone north to quell the bandits, tens of thousands of troops in Henan have been reassigned to An Pohu and Li Yangchun."

"The eastern capital region has less than ten thousand soldiers. Has Your Majesty not considered restoring order to the chaos?"

"I...I never thought of that. Minister Wei, you didn't need to test me like this. I truly never thought of that!"

Li Yi anxiously looked around, wanting to ask for help but afraid of attracting Zhang Ying's attention.

"Your Majesty, if Liu Jilong pacifies the four towns in Hebei, his next step will probably be to ascend the throne and become emperor."

"The Tang Dynasty has stood for 254 years. Is it destined to be destroyed by Your Majesty and your ministers?"

"Your Majesty, I have already made preparations with the wise men in the court. As soon as Your Highness leaves the palace at dawn tomorrow and heads south, someone will meet Your Majesty and escort you south."

"Liu Jilong is about to usurp the throne. Your Majesty cannot stay in Luoyang for long. The Prince of Bohai is in the south and can surely ensure Your Majesty's safety!"

Wei Zhaodu tried to persuade him earnestly, but in Li Yi's eyes, it was a way of harming him.

Seeing that he could not leave, Li Yi said almost in tears, "I am still young, and all I ask for is to live."

"According to you, even if I flee south, I will only be someone else's puppet. Even if the King of Han usurps the throne, he won't turn against me because of my sister's affection. But if I go south, can you guarantee that Gao Qianli won't harbor rebellious thoughts in the future?"

“The Prince of Bohai would never do such a thing!” Wei Zhaodu hurriedly assured him, but his assurance seemed so weak to Li Yi.

"I……"

Before Li Yi could finish speaking, someone suddenly raised their voice: "Who are you, and why are you obstructing His Majesty!"

Li Yi and Wei Zhaodu looked over and saw that the eunuchs who had been playing polo with Li Yi had noticed something was wrong and quickly rode over at full speed.

Seeing this, Wei Zhaodu had no choice but to let go, and Li Yi quickly shook the reins and rode over, then reassured the eunuchs, "I'm fine..."

"We need General Zhang to check on His Majesty's wellness!"

The eunuch, who usually played polo with Li Yi in a harmonious atmosphere, suddenly became tough and picked up a wooden whistle to blow it.

"Beep--"

Shortly after the wooden whistle sounded, hurried footsteps and the rustling of armor plates kept coming. Zhang Ying and Ximen Jun also quickly walked over from outside the field.

Soon, dozens of imperial guards appeared at the scene. Zhang Ying and Ximen Jun then stepped forward and heard the whole story from the eunuch.

Zhang Ying frowned and looked at Li Yi, bowing respectfully, but her tone and eyes were quite unfriendly: "Does Your Majesty wish to tell the truth?"

“I, I…”

Li Yi looked at Zhang Ying, then at the captured Wei Zhaodu, his expression shifting, unsure where to begin or how to begin.

Seeing his predicament, Wei Zhaodu immediately straightened his chest and said, "I was merely discussing some matters with His Majesty, why are you arresting me!"

"Why didn't you inform us before discussing matters?!" Zhang Ying was not as polite to Wei Zhaodu as she was to Li Yi. She raised her voice and scolded him, which startled Li Yi.

"Take him away!" Zhang Ying waved her hand and ordered. Wei Zhaodu knew that if he was taken away, it would definitely implicate everyone else.

He tried to break free, but felt the Imperial Guards' hands gripping him like giant pincers. He could only try to provoke Zhang Ying.

"With all four garrisons rebelling, Liu Jilong will be defeated and forced to retreat south. The Prince of Bohai will surely lead his troops north, and the villains will be completely annihilated by him!!"

"Heh." Zhang Ying remained unmoved and could only sneer, "Gao Pian?"

"You fools, do you not know that Gao Qianli led his troops to attack eastern Zhejiang, but was defeated by Yang Xingmin at Qingyang and lost Chizhou?"

"What did you say?!"

Wei Zhaodu looked shocked, clearly unaware of this matter.

"To actually pin your hopes on His Highness's defeated opponent, what a fool!"

Zhang Ying waved her hand dismissively: "Drag him away."

Before Wei Zhaodu could speak, the imperial guards covered his mouth and dragged him away.

Li Yi was also frightened by Gao Pian's defeat at the hands of Yang Xingmin. He didn't know whether to feel relieved or not, but after noticing Zhang Ying's unfriendly gaze, he immediately explained, "Lord Zhang, I didn't..."

"I will report this matter to Your Highness." Zhang Ying bowed coldly, then turned and left with Ximen Junsui and the others.

Seeing that he didn't give him a chance to explain, Li Yi was as weak as a wilted eggplant, and his legs almost gave way and he sat down on the ground.

Fortunately, the eunuchs on either side stepped forward to help him up. He then looked at the eunuchs who usually played with him and were now looking at him coldly. He immediately realized that his happiness these days had actually been under Liu Jilong's nose.

As he was filled with fear, the once peaceful city of Luoyang suddenly became tense after Wei Zhaodu was arrested.

Countless imperial guards began to seal off the city gates, strictly controlling entry and exit, and even boats on waterways were not allowed to enter Luoyang.

The Imperial Guards ransacked Wei Zhaodu's residence, and this action was naturally reported to the Southern Court.

Liu Zhan, Xiao Gou, and others came looking for Gao Jinda. After telling Gao Jinda about this, Gao Jinda frowned and asked, "Wei Zhaodu?"

He was very familiar with Wei Zhaodu, but he didn't know what Wei Zhaodu had done wrong, so he stood up and said, "I'll go there myself."

"That's very good." Liu Zhan and Xiao Gou didn't understand what had happened either, but they could vaguely guess that it was probably related to the emperor.

Seeing Gao Jinda get up and leave the yamen, the two men frowned and looked at each other, but after noticing the other's strange expression, they asked, "This matter..."

"I don't know." Liu Zhan shook his head; he truly didn't know about this matter.

Since he facilitated the relationship between Liu Jilong and Li Meiling, many officials in the court have called him Liu Jilong's lackey and have distanced themselves from him.

"If you don't know, who else does?"

Xiao Gou was puzzled, but he quickly thought of two people, and his expression changed slightly.

"You know?" Liu Zhan had worked with him for several years, and seeing his reaction, he knew that he most likely knew.

"It's not confirmed yet; we need to go and inquire."

Xiao Gou spoke with difficulty, then turned and left the hall, while Liu Zhan looked worried.

Before long, Pi Rixiu and Wei Zhuang entered the hall one after the other, but they did not see Gao Jinda, only Liu Zhan.

"Prime Minister Liu, why did the Imperial Guards confiscate Vice Minister Wei's residence?"

"The Imperial Guards will need to give an explanation for this matter."

Pi Rixiu and Wei Zhuang questioned Liu Zhan, but Liu Zhan smiled bitterly and said, "It's mostly related to His Majesty..."

The two felt a sudden tightness in their chests, and several figures involuntarily flashed through their minds, causing them to feel their mouths to go dry.

Seeing the two of them like this, Liu Zhan thought to himself that even they knew who was behind it all, and it was laughable that he, as the prime minister, knew nothing at all.

He inwardly mocked himself, but had no intention of getting involved.

He only wanted to protect Li Yi and the bloodline of Emperor Taizong; as for others, they were none of his concern.

"Let's finish our shifts early today and go home to rest."

Liu Zhan sighed and then walked out of the hall. Pi Rixiu and Wei Zhuang exchanged glances and then also turned and walked out.

Meanwhile, Gao Jinda had already arrived at Zhulong Gate and met Zhang Ying, who was eating, on the gate tower.

Upon seeing Gao Jinda arrive, Zhang Ying calmly stood up, wiped her mouth, and then bowed to him, saying, "Prime Minister Gao..."

What happened inside the palace?

Gao Jinda frowned and asked, somewhat displeased with Zhang Ying's actions.

Even if Zhang Chang were here, he wouldn't be treated so lightly.

"Someone is trying to persuade His Majesty to flee south. I have already sent people to investigate."

Zhang Ying stepped out of her seat and gestured for Gao Jinda to sit down, and Gao Jinda did not refuse and sat down directly.

"Besides Wei Zhaodu, is there anyone else?"

When Gao Jinda asked, Zhang Ying chuckled and said, "They're really quick. The Imperial Guards haven't been mobilized for long, and they've already alerted Prime Minister Gao."

Gao Jinda ignored his thoughts and simply said, "Investigating the case is fine, but don't use your position for personal revenge and affect His Highness."

"I know." Zhang Ying nodded slightly. Gao Jinda frowned, stood up, and walked out of the gatehouse.

Shortly after he left, Ximen Jun and Yang Gongqing arrived. They had obviously run into Gao Jinda, who looked rather unwell, on the way. So when they arrived, they asked Zhang Ying, "Has Prime Minister Gao been here?"

"Hmm." Zhang Ying nodded slowly, then asked, "How is the Supreme One?"

"Not long after we left, His Majesty went back to Zhenguan Hall to rest. It seems that it was not something that had been planned for a long time."

Yang Gongqing spoke truthfully, and Zhang Ying nodded in satisfaction: "As long as the Supreme One is not involved, let people follow the clues and find this group of people, but don't make a big fuss about it."

"Your Highness is currently suppressing a rebellion in Hebei and cannot afford to be distracted."

"Alright!" Ximen Jun and Yang Gongqing agreed, but Gao Jinda, who returned to the Southern Office, did not see Liu Zhan and Xiao Gou.

He didn't want to bother Liu Jilong, but considering Zhang Ying's attitude and worried that something might happen, he still sent someone to deliver the letter to Weizhou.

However, this letter was not sent to Liu Jilong, but to Li Shangyin.

However, while the letter was being sent north, Liu Jilong had already learned through scouts that Han Junxiong had traveled north along the Grand Canal.

"It seems that An Pohu has already led his troops to attack Qinghe."

At this moment, Liu Jilong stood in front of the city wall that had been breached by the blast, with the stone plaque bearing the inscription "Linzhang" inlaid on the city gate in the distance.

Tens of thousands of Han soldiers were pouring into the city from outside, while Zhao Ying was walking from the direction of the city gate and bowing to Liu Jilong.

"Your Highness, the city's granaries are empty, and the people don't have much surplus grain either; it has all been transported to Ye County and Anyang."

"The military camp inside the city is big enough, just enough for the brothers to rest."

After Zhao Ying finished speaking, Liu Jilong then said, "It seems they are preparing to fortify their defenses and withhold food from us, attempting to wear us down."

"What is the situation in Ye County and Anyang? Is it feasible to attack them?"

Zhao Ying shook his head: "The cavalry have seen it. It is a city with high walls and thick walls, and it is built with stones. It can be seen that the city was built not long ago. It should be that the walls were added after Weibo responded to Zhu Quanzhong."

Now that they knew that Liu Jilong's troops had the means to breach the city walls, the regional military governors would naturally reinforce the walls as well. Liu Jilong had anticipated this, otherwise he wouldn't have been in such a hurry to send artillery eastward.

"Where have the artillery pieces been delivered?" Liu Jilong asked.

"It has arrived in Tongzhou, but it will take at least another month and a half to reach Daibei."

Seeing Zhao Ying say this, Liu Jilong pondered for a moment and then said, "There's no need to transport them to Daibei. Now that Guizhou is in our hands, we don't need cannons to attack Jizhou."

"Send the order to move the artillery to Huaizhou, and then transport it to Weizhou after receiving further instructions."

"Furthermore, get a good rest tonight. Tomorrow, you will divide your forces to attack Ye County and Anyang. It would be best to take the opportunity to send some cavalry across the Zhang River to Fuyang to cause some disturbances."

"Yes!" Zhao Ying replied, then raised a question: "But Your Highness, if we divide our forces, we will only have five thousand cavalry and infantry. After a strong attack, we will probably suffer many casualties."

"Moreover, if our army goes to Fuyang to provoke trouble, it will inevitably attract the troops of Chengde and Zhaoyi to Fuyang. At that time, tens of thousands of troops will march south, and our army's forces are so dispersed that we are probably no match for them."

"Hehe." Seeing his question, Liu Jilong patted him on the shoulder and said, "No need for a direct attack, just surround it."

"Furthermore, the troops surrounding Ye County must display my banner so that Lu Kuang of Zhaoyi will believe that I am besieging Ye County."

"If they send out fast horses for help, do not stop them. It is best to let Zhaoyi, Weibo, and Chengde know how many troops we have and where they are besieging the enemy."

"Yes." Zhao Ying looked puzzled, but his confusion did not prevent him from obeying orders.

He knew he couldn't fathom his prince's thoughts, so he only needed to follow his prince's military orders.

However, they only had 15,000 soldiers, and now they had to send out another 10,000 infantry and cavalry separately, leaving Liu Jilong with only 5,000 elite cavalry.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but ask with concern, "Your Highness, if I lead troops to Ye County and Anyang, are you planning to go back to besiege Wei County, or withdraw to Huai Prefecture, or go to support Governor An?"

Liu Jilong slowly shook his head, raised his eyebrows and smiled faintly, his brows revealing an air of disdain.

His appearance made Zhao Ying feel as if she had returned to the time in Longyou.

At that time, His Highness was still full of vigor and had not yet restrained his arrogance.

"I'm not going anywhere; I'll just rest here in Linzhang County."

“But what about the provisions…” Zhao Ying instinctively wanted to bring up the issue of provisions, but then he saw Liu Jilong put his arm around his neck and laugh heartily:
"We have enough provisions for twelve days. Twelve days is enough. After that, the elite troops of the three towns will be wiped out!"

Seeing his high spirits, Zhao Ying felt as if the scene of the three towns being completely destroyed was really unfolding before her eyes.

"Yes! The elite troops of the three towns will be wiped out in twelve days!"

(End of this chapter)