The Empress has abandoned me? I'll support a new emperor and destroy your kingdom!

"Creak—" The heavy gate slowly rose.

"Soldiers!" Yun Jin's clear voice rang out clearly in everyone's ears through the cold wind.

"The traitorous king is wicked, colluding with foreign enemies, wreaking havoc on the nation, and slaughtering the people! Today, I, the Empress, will stand shoulder to shoulder with you, to strike down the enemy chieftain, quell the rebellion, and achieve unparalleled glory! There is no retreat, only advance; with me, there is no invincibility!"

"No retreat! We are invincible!" The eight hundred riders roared in unison, their voices shaking the heavens.

"Follow me—kill!"

Yun Jin spurred her horse, and the white horse neighed loudly, charging out of the city gate like an arrow released from a bow!

Zhao Jianing followed closely behind, and the eight hundred elite cavalry surged out like a steel torrent, rushing towards the unsuspecting rebel outposts on the riverbank!

"Cavalry! Government cavalry!"

"Stop them!"

Scattered rebels attempted to intercept them, but were easily torn apart like paper by the heavily armored cavalry charging at high speed.

Eight hundred cavalrymen, like a red-hot dagger, drew a sharp arc along the riverbank, avoiding the main force of the rebel army's attack and fiercely stabbing towards the flank of their central army!

The sound of hooves thundered, and the earth trembled.

The rebel army quickly spotted the suddenly appearing cavalry, and shouts of alarm and warnings rang out.

However, the route Yun Jin chose for the attack happened to be the junction of the two rebel formations, where the defenses were relatively weak.

Moreover, the rebels' attention was mostly focused on attacking the city. By the time they reacted and adjusted their formation to deal with the situation, the eight hundred cavalrymen had already rushed to the edge of the central army formation like a whirlwind!

"Fire!" Zhao Jianing roared.

The charging cavalrymen took down their "divine crossbows" and unleashed the first deadly volley of arrows at the hastily assembled rebel guards in the center!

At such close range, the "Divine Arm Bow" unleashed its full power, and the rebel guards fell like wheat being harvested.

"Stop them! Protect the prince!" The rebel general was terrified and desperately mobilized his troops to block them.

However, Yun Jin and Zhao Jianing did not bother with the matter at all.

Their only goal was that "Prince Jingjiang" banner!

Eight hundred riders formed a wedge formation, with Yun Jin at the forefront and Zhao Jianing on the left flank. Ignoring the arrows and spears coming from both sides, they charged desperately toward the banner!

People kept falling from their horses after being hit by arrows, but the speed of their charge did not decrease at all; on the contrary, it became even more frenzied!

Closer! Closer still! We can already see the face of Prince Jingjiang, Yuntao, distorted with terror beneath the great banner!

He was left with only a few hundred of his most elite personal guard cavalry!

"Yun Tao! Prepare to die!" Yun Jin shouted fiercely, his horse spear gleaming like a dragon as he charged straight at Yun Tao!

"Protect the prince!" The imperial guards charged forward at the last minute.

"boom!"

Two elite cavalry units clashed violently!

Shouts and neighing of horses filled the air, weapons clashed, and blood and flesh flew everywhere!

As Yun Jin's spear passed by, two of his personal guards were sent flying.

Zhao Jianing swept his long spear horizontally, like a ferocious god.

The eight hundred cavalrymen unleashed astonishing fighting power, causing the imperial guards, who outnumbered them several times over, to retreat in disarray!

Yun Tao was so frightened that he turned his horse and tried to escape.

However, Yun Jin had already locked onto him. Ignoring the spear thrusting from her side, she spurred her horse, accelerating the white horse. The lance in her hand transformed into a cold light, striking towards Yun Tao's back like lightning!

"Your Highness, be careful!" A loyal guard rushed forward and blocked the spear with his body!

The long spear pierced through his chest, and blood spurted out.

But Yun Jin's momentum did not diminish. Using the momentum, she drew her lance and swept it horizontally, knocking another charging guard off his horse, and once again approached Yun Tao!

Yun Tao was terrified and no longer cared about his dignity. He tumbled off his horse and scrambled backward to escape.

"Where do you think you're going!" Zhao Jianing spurred his horse forward, his long spear lashing out like a venomous snake, aiming straight for Yun Tao's back!

It seemed Yun Tao was about to die on the spot—

"Whoosh!"

A cold arrow, seemingly from nowhere, shot from a tricky angle, aiming straight for Zhao Jianing's throat!

Zhao Jianing instinctively swung his spear to block, his movement momentarily faltering.

In that split second, several rebel soldiers rushed forward, using their bodies to shield Yun Tao and dragging him backward.

"Fire arrows! Shoot them dead!" Yun Tao screamed hoarsely, still in shock.

More arrows came from all directions, and the Imperial Guard cavalrymen fell from their horses one after another.

Although Yun Jin and Zhao Jianing were brave, they were surrounded by rebel forces, and their cavalry was dwindling as they fought, and their momentum was exhausted.

"Your Highness! Do not linger in battle! Retreat!" Zhao Jianing shouted urgently, deflecting the arrows with his spear.

He realized that although he had disrupted the rebel army's central command and nearly killed Yun Tao, the rebels outnumbered him and had recovered from their initial panic, now closing in from all sides. If they didn't retreat soon, they would be surrounded and annihilated.

Yun Jin knew the situation was hopeless. She glared hatefully at Yun Tao, who was being protected by layers of assassins and fleeing in a sorry state. Gritting her teeth, she said, "Retreat! Retreat towards the south water gate of the city!"

"Follow me!" Zhao Jianing turned his horse around and led the remaining cavalry in another desperate charge towards the way they had come, carving a bloody path through the enemy lines.

This charge was even more brutal than the one that came.

Rebel troops were everywhere, arrows raining down. People kept falling from their horses.

Yun Jin was also hit by two arrows. One arrow pierced through the armor plate on her left arm but did not penetrate deeply into the flesh.

Another arrow grazed his right rib, taking away a piece of flesh, leaving a burning pain.

She gritted her teeth, lay prone on her horse, and fought desperately alongside Zhao Jianing.

When the eight hundred riders finally broke through the encirclement and saw the outline of the Anqing City South Gate Water Fortress in the distance, less than three hundred riders remained, all of them wounded, and many of their horses were also damaged.

"Open the city gates!" Zhao Jianing shouted hoarsely.

The sluice gates of the water fortress were opened again, and the remnants of the defeated army swarmed in.

The gate slammed shut behind them, keeping the pursuers' arrows at bay.

With the help of her personal guards, Yun Jin staggered off her horse and almost lost her balance.

His left arm was bleeding profusely from a wound, his right rib was in excruciating pain, his face was as pale as paper, and sweat mixed with blood and mud clung to his forehead.

But in her eyes burned a flame of resentment and coldness.

"Your Highness! You are injured!" Zhou Bo, Chen Youde and others rushed down from the city wall and were shocked to see what was happening.

"It's nothing...just a minor injury." Yun Jin gasped for breath, pushed away the person who was helping her, and looked out of the city.

The rebel army's offensive has stalled due to an attack on its central command, which nearly killed its commander. There are even signs of chaos and retreat.

But from a distance, the "Prince of Jingjiang" banner, though crooked, still stood upright.

Yun Tao... is not dead.

Fall short.

"What a pity..." she murmured, as a violent wave of dizziness washed over her, her vision went black, and she fell backward.

"Your Highness!"

"Quickly, send a medic!"

Before she lost consciousness, she only heard Zhou Bo and the others shouting in terror, and the faint sound of the rebel army sounding the retreat signal coming from outside the city.

In today's battle, she risked her life, leading eight hundred cavalrymen straight into the center of tens of thousands of rebel troops.

Although she failed to kill Yun Tao in battle, she greatly damaged the morale of the rebel army, disrupted their plans, and proved to the world that this Princess Zhenguo was not only good at defense but also at attacking strongholds, and had the courage to take the head of a general in the midst of a thousand troops!

The news, along with this thrilling counterattack, will surely spread throughout the country at top speed, reaching the capital, the Northern Barbarians, and even... the ears of the Third Prince.

When she wakes up, she will face a completely new, more complex, and dangerous situation.

Anqing City has held on to this day.

But what about tomorrow?

The storms from the north and south have converged.

The real battle may have only just begun.