I only wished to take up my fiefdom, but my elder brother forced me to rebel.

All eyes below the city were on that arrow.

He Shen's face darkened first.

"Your Highness, I am leading men to attack the city."

"Wait a minute."

Lu Yuan looked up at the city gate.

"I'll give you one more chance."

"The official letter has been stamped with the seal of the Northern Liang Emperor. From the date of handover, this city should belong to Dayong."

"Open the gates now. The guards may leave the city with their personal belongings. I will not stop a single one."

The commander on the city wall did not answer.

Several of his lieutenants were also trying to persuade him.

"General, the letter of credence is genuine."

"What if the Southern King investigates if we really hand it over?"

"But Her Highness the Princess is downstairs..."

The garrison commander turned and cursed.

"Shut the hell up, all of you!"

He certainly knew that the letter of credence was genuine.

When He Shen sent people to demand the city, he had already verified the seal.

However, when caravans passed through the city each year, the tolls they secretly collected were quite substantial.

Some of the goods in the two large warehouses in the city were not recorded in the official register.

If he surrenders the city now, all his past debts will be brought up again.

He originally intended to get rid of the items first.

However, Liang Qingtian led an army of 100,000 southwards.

This gave him an opportunity.

If he delays for a few more days, the previous letter of state will be completely invalidated once the war between Daliang and Dayong begins.

Who will bother checking his accounts then?

He didn't believe that Lu Yuan would dare to attack the Liang garrison under the noses of 100,000 troops.

"The Crown Prince of Yong!"

The garrison commander shouted down from the city wall, "The official letter was written by the imperial court, but I am eating the rations of the Liang army."

"Without the decree of the Southern King, I dare not open this door."

Liang San Niang's face was very unpleasant. She said coldly, "How dare you! This princess is here! Open the door at once!"

When the people on the city wall saw her, they frowned.

"Please forgive me, Third Princess."

"This humble general only obeys military orders."

Liang San Niang gripped the horse's reins tightly.

She knew immediately that the other party was trying to stall for time.

Lu Yuan laughed instead.

"Can."

"When it comes to rules, you talk to me about military orders, so I'll talk to you about military orders too."

After speaking, Lu Yuan turned to look at He Shen.

"Quickly evacuate all the people outside the city gates to a safe place."

"Send troops around the city to shout to the people that today Dayong will only take over the city, not plunder grain or enter people's homes."

"Anyone who dares to take advantage of the chaos to steal even a single penny from the people will be dealt with according to military law."

"As you command!"

He Shen immediately accepted the order and left.

The crowd that had been watching outside the city quickly dispersed to both sides.

The news also spread inside the city gates.

The garrison commander felt uneasy upon seeing this.

Lu Yuan wasn't trying to scare him.

This means they're really going to take action.

He snatched the bow from the soldier next to him.

"Martial law declared for the entire army!"

"Anyone who dares approach the city gate, fire arrows!"

He Shen returned to Lu Yuan's side.

"Your Highness, it's all been cleared away."

Lu Yuan nodded.

After that, he only said four words.

"Archery battalion, advance!"

The group behind immediately dispersed to both sides.

Three hundred musketeers were divided into several rows, raising their muskets and aiming them at the city gate.

The soldiers guarding the city wall were still cursing.

After seeing those dark iron pipes, some people's expressions immediately changed.

News of the Dayong firearms had already reached Northern Liang.

However, news and what you see with your own eyes are different.

The defending players can still hold on.

"They dare not."

"The King of the Southern Court is behind us."

"Keep an eye on them!"

Lu Yuan raised his hand.

"First row."

The musketeers all aimed their guns at the area near the door bolt.

"put!"

After the roaring sound began.

This era was underdeveloped; most city walls were made of earth, and the city gates were very thin.

After several shots were fired, many holes appeared in the heavy wooden door, and the outer iron sheet became twisted.

Seeing this, the people on the city wall also began to fire arrows.

Dozens of arrows were fired, most of which hit the shield carts in front of the musket battalion.

He Shen became an instant sensation.

"Your Highness, they've made their move."

"Then why be so polite?"

Lu Yuan turned his gaze toward the city wall.

"Only shoot those with bows, don't let them fly randomly into the city."

The two teams of musketeers turned their guns toward each other.

After one round, all the archers on the city wall lay down, and no one dared to peek out again.

The soldiers standing guard behind the gate also scattered to both sides.

"Second row."

Another round has passed.

The bolt broke.

One of the door panels is tilted inward, with only the hinge still on.

Lu Yuan saw that the soldiers guarding the city wall had fallen silent.

"I just told you to open the door, but you didn't listen."

"Now it's all right."

"The door is gone."

He Shen almost burst out laughing.

Liang San Niang also turned her face to the side.

That bastard can drive you crazy even when he's fighting.

"Let's go into town!"

The Imperial Guards rushed through and broke down the gate.

Some of the guards on the city wall still tried to resist, but the Third Princess of Northern Liang followed behind the Crown Prince of Dayong, holding a letter of state stamped by the Emperor of Northern Liang.

Many soldiers exchanged glances and then placed their weapons on the ground.

They joined the army to earn a living.

There is no need for a garrison commander to disobey the emperor's letter.

Only a few personal guards still wanted to protect their commander's retreat, but they were quickly blocked by He Shen's men.

In less than half an hour, the city gates, military camps, and government offices had all been captured.

No one looted.

No one broke into the house.

Even shops in the city remained open for business as usual.

The frightened people soon discovered that the first thing the Dayong army did after entering the city was not to arrest and rob people, but to post notices.

All the original private checkpoints have been cancelled.

From then on, caravans would only need to pay taxes once, according to the amount stipulated by the imperial court.

The first people in the city to get excited were not the common people, but the shopkeepers who had been doing business for many years.

"Only one charge?"

"Do we not need to pay at the East Gate either?"

The official in charge of posting the notice pointed to the crown prince's seal on it.

"If anyone dares to overcharge again, we'll take them to the authorities to file a complaint."

The merchants looked at each other and suddenly realized that changing the flag wasn't so bad.

One of the bolder ones even pressed further, asking, "How long will this notice be in effect?"

The official replied bluntly: "The Crown Prince himself decided that anyone who overcharged can file a complaint. The yamen won't handle it; you can submit a petition to the capital."

The merchant quickly copied down the tax amount from the notice.

In the past, a truckload of goods traveling from the east to the west of the city would be ripped off three times over.

The money saved now is all profit for myself.

Lu Yuan ignored the people's opinions.

He had already arrived inside the city granary.

He Shen took out two account books from inside.

The amount of grain recorded in the official account was 30,000 shi (a unit of dry measure).

However, the secret account contained 70,000 shi of grain, a lot of goods, and privately collected toll money.

When the guard brought the account book in, his face immediately turned ugly.

After flipping through a few pages, Liang San Niang's anger subsided.

"You are not loyal to Daliang; you can't bear to leave this city."

The defender opened his mouth to explain.

But Lu Yuan stuffed the account book into his arms.

"You don't need to explain. You can explain it to Liang Qingtian yourself when you see him."

These words are more painful than killing him.

The king of the South Courtyard was very strict in disciplining his troops.

If it were known that he had embezzled military rations and used military orders to evade delivering official documents, it would be questionable whether he could even save his own life.

That evening, news of the city's fall reached the other two Northern Liang cities that had not yet completed their transactions.

The next morning, a group of people came to deliver the city gate keys.

At noon, the last garrison commander also personally handed over the household register.

He originally planned to wait until the two sides started fighting before making a decision, but when he heard that the muskets had pierced through the city gate in just two rounds, he rushed over to take over.

He Shen held the receipts in his hands, grinning from ear to ear.

All eight cities of Beiliang have been handed over and will henceforth belong to Dayong.

Just as Lu Yuan was about to order his men to prepare for the next stop, the ground began to shake.

The people on the city wall all turned their attention to the north.

Before long, a troop of cavalry appeared before them.

The large "Liang" character military flag at the very front also began to slowly move over.

Upon seeing this situation, Liang San Niang immediately became nervous.

"My lord, my great-uncle has arrived!"

Before long, a cavalryman charged out of the army formation and arrived at the city.

The newcomer held Liang Qingtian's token in his hand and shouted loudly towards the city wall.

"Your Highness, the King of the Southern Court requests that you and the Crown Prince of Dayong meet at the front lines."