Jiuxi

Chapter 706 704 [Unstoppable]

Dadu, the imperial city.

When Tian Jue walked into the imperial study, Emperor Jing was reading a file.

He just took a glance and remembered that this should be the File No. 7 A that Qing Yugong had people collect and organize, which was the detailed information about Lu Chen of the Southern Qi Dynasty.

Although the Main Audition Department only reports internally and not externally, it will also pay attention to key figures in the enemy country and will naturally not ignore Lu Chen. I just don't know whether this file will be more detailed compared to the records of the Main Audition Department.

Emperor Jing put the file down and said leisurely, "Guess who the other six files that the prince asked to be sorted out are from?"

Tian Jue's heart trembled. With the momentum and fame of Southern Qi Lu Chen, he could only be ranked seventh in the A-class. Then the first six must be very famous names, and the emperor might be among them.

He bowed his head and said, "I dare not make any rash guesses."

"Don't be so nervous. The prince is a smart man. He should have realized that Qing Yuyingye is my man. How could he let him know the real secret?"

Emperor Jing smiled and continued, "The first six are Li Duan, Li Tianrun, Xiao Wangzhi, Li Daoyan, Qin Zheng and Xue Nanting, all of whom are heroes of Southern Qi. My name is not on them."

Tian Jue remained silent. He really didn't know how to continue the conversation.

Emperor Jing didn't take it seriously and asked, "Today, Yongping accepted Brother Hai's invitation, and the two of them went to the royal hunting ground together?"

Tian Jue replied, "Yes, Your Majesty. According to the spy's report, Princess Yongping's attitude towards the Fourth Prince was rather cold, but the Fourth Prince did not mind. After they had been playing in the hunting ground for a while, the communication between the two seemed to have made some progress, and Princess Yongping was no longer cold to him all the time."

"I blame myself for spoiling her too much in the past."

Although Emperor Jing said this, there was no anger in his eyes. He smiled and said, "Young people are always like this. They may feel a little awkward at first, but they will be able to get along with each other after a while."

It seems that it is not his job for an emperor to care about the affairs of his juniors, but Tian Jue does not think so, because he knows the significance of this marriage very well.

The fact that Qing Yugong did not refuse again showed that he understood the emperor's good intentions. This was a gesture of submission and concession.

Thinking of this, Tian Jue mustered up the courage to say, "It's not easy for the prince either."

"I didn't expect you to speak up for others."

Emperor Jing was slightly surprised, then said gently: "It's not easy for him, and it's not easy for me either. There are not so many perfect things in this world. Someone has to pay a price."

Tian Jue replied: "Yes."

Emperor Jing asked again, "How is the investigation going on with that matter?"

Tian Jue was silent for a moment, then said cautiously, "According to your majesty's instructions, I have thoroughly investigated the Crown Prince's past social interactions and have confirmed that four years ago, there was a retainer around the Crown Prince who presented him with the strong liquor Queshanhong, thus winning his favor. This retainer's name is Zhai Xuan, and he is from Fuzhou, western Hebei. Three years ago, Zhai Xuan bid farewell to the Crown Prince in the name of attending the funeral because his father passed away, and he has not appeared since then."

"Zhai Xuan..."

Emperor Jing narrowed his eyes and said slowly: "I think this is a fake name."

Tian Jue said, "Yes, Your Majesty. I have asked someone to check, and no one in Fuzhou with the same name as Zhai Xuan matches. This retainer not only has a fake name, but even his background is forged."

Emperor Jing sneered and said, "Perhaps this person has already turned into bones. No matter how hard you search, you won't find anything. Start with Wu Yan. I don't believe he can do it perfectly."

Tian Jue responded: "I obey the order."

At this time, an eunuch came in and reported: "Your Majesty, General Gu Xin is outside the palace asking for an audience."

"Xuan."

Emperor Jing spoke calmly, and then said to Tian Jue: "I'll give you another month to investigate all the people involved in the death of the crown prince."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Tian Jue was very tactful and bowed and left.

Soon, a tall Tibetan general walked into the imperial study and saluted, saying, "Your Majesty, I am Gu Xin, and I pay my respects to you."

"No need to pay tribute."

Emperor Jing looked up, his eyes showing relief: "You came back just in time."

He transferred 10,000 cavalrymen from Nanjing Road back to Beijing, and Gu Xin was the general leading the troops. As the cavalry general of the Loyal Army, he, like Pucha, was an absolute confidant of Emperor Jing.

Gu Xin was a straightforward person, and he got straight to the point and asked, "Your Majesty, does the Prince of Changshan really have a rebellious heart?"

Emperor Jing couldn't help laughing and asked, "Who told you this?"

Gu Xin said calmly, "There are more and more rumors in the streets, how could I not hear them? Besides, your majesty asked me to bring 10,000 elite cavalry back to the capital, and it was when the Southern Qi invaded the border, it must be because some people in the court were restless."

Emperor Jing seemed to like his temperament and asked, "If the rumors are true, what are you going to do?"

Gu Xin grinned, looking a little ferocious: "Whoever dares to be disloyal to Your Majesty, I will chop off his head, even if it is the Prince of Changshan, I will never hesitate."

"You... you still have this bad temper after more than ten years."

Emperor Jing smiled and shook his head, saying, "Don't believe those rumors. The prince is very loyal to me, and I am not summoning you back to the capital to deal with him."

Gu Xin was stunned and said, "Your Majesty, I am even more confused."

Emperor Jing said leisurely, "I received a secret report from the Northwest Army. They discovered something very strange. According to the report from the spies planted in the Dai Kingdom, thousands of excellent war horses were transported to the southwest and sent to the territory of Shazhou very secretly." "Ah?"

Gu Xin's eyes widened as he asked, "Your Majesty, are those guys in Dai State so poor that they have to sell their war horses?"

“Even if they are willing to sell, Shazhou Qibu can’t afford it.”

Emperor Jing was very patient with him and said slowly: "I think this is not a simple deal. Now the seven tribes of Shazhou have completely surrendered to Southern Qi, but even if Southern Qi has money, Dai will not easily sell war horses, so there is only one possibility."

Gu Xin finally reacted and said coldly, "Dai State is actually colluding with Southern Qi? No wonder Southern Qi dared to take the initiative to invade this time!"

"That's why I called you back."

Emperor Jing stood up and said slowly, "Now that the Great Jing Dynasty is facing internal and external troubles, Geshu Kui has always been arrogant and he certainly won't miss this opportunity. But in my opinion, this man is strong on the outside but weak on the inside and can't stand any setbacks, otherwise he wouldn't have been suppressed by me for more than ten years and never dared to move. He didn't dare to show up until the Southern Qi border army gained a certain advantage. Since he dared to show up, it was nothing more than taking advantage of the fierce battle between our dynasty and Southern Qi to steal and take advantage of it behind our backs."

Gu Xin now fully understood the emperor's intention. He grinned and said, "Your Majesty, we must make those idiots in Dai pay with blood this time."

Emperor Jing nodded and said, "I believe you can defeat them. Remember, don't rush to expose your tracks. When Geshu Songping leads his troops to invade the border, cooperate with the border troops to cut off his retreat and make sure they never return."

"I accept the decree."

Gu Xin bowed and said murderously: "I promise to kill them all!"

Emperor Jing praised him and said, "I am waiting for your victory report."

After Gu Xin left, Emperor Jing stood up and walked out of the imperial study, stood in the corridor and looked at the clear sky, with a deep sense of fatigue between his brows.

As the emperor, he is responsible for all the important internal and external affairs, so he naturally cannot take it lightly.

He turned his head and looked towards the south, thinking that the Qi army might have already advanced straight into the enemy's territory by now?
……

The spring is bright and the flags are waving.

A lonely city stands on the earth.

The sound of killing was like a tide, and swords and guns were wielded simultaneously.

The soldiers of the Guangji Army of the Jingzhou Military Governor's Office of the Great Qi Dynasty climbed up the city wall and tried desperately to tear open the defense line of the Jing Army.

The Jing army's defense was very tenacious, but after several days of fierce fighting, they were extremely exhausted, and the tension in their hearts was growing tighter and tighter.

What made most of the soldiers feel even more desperate was that they were now isolated and helpless, and could only rely on their flesh and blood to defend the city of Taikang.

No reinforcements, no miracles.

The outskirts of Taikang City were all filled with Qi army barracks. At this time, no matter which Jing army came to rescue, they would be surrounded by Qi army. What's more, this time Qi army relied on its superior forces to advance in three directions, and the Jing army stationed in other places was facing the same dilemma.

Blood continued to spurt out from the mottled city walls.

Due to the fierce fighting in the previous few days, and the fact that the Qi army now had extremely complete siege equipment, the Jing army's defense had already become precarious.

"kill!"

A captain of the Qi army jumped onto the city wall, his sharp eyes fixed on the generals of the Jing army under the city wall. He led dozens of brave men to charge forward, the spears in their hands like dragons emerging from the abyss.

When his spear pierced through the chest of the general of Jing Army, the general's flag of Jing Army fell down suddenly. This scene completely destroyed the will of Jing Army soldiers.

Countless men from Da Qi flooded Taikang City like a tide.

As the sun set, the flag of Da Qi was raised on the top of the city wall, and cheers resounded throughout the world.

Outside the city, several cavalrymen galloped over from the Qi army's position, shouting, "General, our army has recaptured Taikang City!"

The soldiers defending the positions all shouted loudly.

Under the central army's flag, Han Zhongjie and Liu Shouguang smiled at each other.

"Congratulations, Lord Marquis, on your victory in the first battle!"

Liu Shouguang was the former chief military minister, but now he serves as Han Zhongjie's deputy. He doesn't seem to care about it, but is willing to do it.

Of course, in terms of seniority, Han Zhongjie is indeed older than him.

Han Zhongjie said modestly: "The victory in this battle depends on Brother Liu's good training of troops and the brave and capable soldiers of the Jingzhou Army. How dare I take credit for it?"

Liu Shouguang smiled and said, "Your Excellency is too modest. After taking Taikang, will our army continue to advance?"

"It was not easy to win this battle. The strength of the Jing army should not be underestimated. In such an absolutely disadvantageous situation, they were able to persevere. However, from another perspective, the civil strife in Jing had a great impact on the Jing army. In order to resolve the internal conflicts, Emperor Jing would inevitably weaken the troops on the border, which is why Wu Yanshu was so stretched."

Han Zhongjie seemed confident. He glanced at the changed owner of Taikang City in front of him and said calmly, "We have made a good start today. I intend to maintain the established strategy and advance step by step from south to north, trying not to give the Jing army a chance to make a detour. What do you think, Brother Liu?"

Liu Shouguang thought for a moment and nodded, "Very appropriate."

Han Zhongjie was in high spirits, and then he gave the order: "Inform the entire army, take a day off, and continue to march north!"

The response was overwhelming, and the heroic spirit reached the sky.

(End of this chapter)