My chat group is full of female losers

Chapter 328 Capture
His face was filled with disbelief, as if he had misheard: "Your Majesty, what did you just say?"

Chu Lu was too lazy to say anything more to him, and simply said, "You may leave now. I will handle this matter personally."

Huo Qi remained silent for a long time, his resolute face shifting with emotion. Finally, he bowed with a cold expression and said, "Very well... Then this humble general wishes Your Majesty great military success!"

After saying that, he turned around abruptly and strode away angrily, looking very bad, as if he might rebel at any moment.

Chu Lu ignored this and immediately summoned the deputy commander of the Imperial Guard.

"What are your orders, Your Majesty?" the deputy commander asked respectfully, not daring to be negligent in the slightest.

"I have identified the mastermind. You must immediately mobilize your forces and proceed according to my plan!"

"Yes!" The deputy commander dared not disobey in the slightest and immediately accepted the order and left.

The capital was already on edge due to the war, and now the air was thick with tension, ready to explode at any moment.

A large number of Imperial Guards poured out of the palace gates like a flood. They didn't go to the city walls, but headed straight for the south of the city. They rode swiftly with their mouths gagged and their hooves wrapped in cloth. In no time, the intersecting streets and alleys seemed to be gripped by an invisible hand, and not even a fly could escape.

With such a grand display, how could anyone in the capital who paid attention not know about it?

Inside the Prime Minister's residence, Shen Shi'an and several confidants listened to their subordinates' reports, their faces filled with surprise and doubt.

"Has he lost his mind?" Jia Ruhui exclaimed in shock, his mouth agape. "The country is on the verge of collapse, and he still has the leisure to cause trouble in the city?"

“It’s a blood sacrifice…it must be a blood sacrifice formation…” Wen Yutang’s face was as white as paper, his lips trembled, and his voice was as soft as a mosquito’s buzz.

If even the ministers were so terrified, the common people were naturally even more so. Fearful eyes crowded through the cracks in doors and windows, staring intently at the Imperial Guards in their gleaming armor, exuding a menacing aura. All sorts of frightening speculations spread faster than the plague.

When there wasn't a single person to be seen on the street, Chu Lu had already stood on the roof of a nearby tall building, looking down at what lay ahead.

Under the heavy siege of the Imperial Guards, the entire southern area of ​​the city was completely sealed off.

The deputy commander came to report: "Your Majesty, the manpower has been arranged and we can take action at any time."

Chu Lu nodded slightly, his voice completely calm: "Make your move."

At a single command, a squad of elite Imperial Guards, who had been waiting for some time, rushed in. Each of them had cloth strips stuffed in their ears, communicating entirely through hand gestures, and clutching a portrait in their hands, as they began to break down the door and search for people.

"boom!"

A door was kicked open violently, and soldiers rushed in, dragging out the terrified men and women from the room and comparing them one by one with the features in the portrait.

"No, next one!"

They searched every corner carefully, yet ruthlessly and roughly, looking for every suspicious figure. But after searching several streets and alleys, they found nothing.

On the high-rise building, Chu Lu's heart also began to pound with anxiety.

A moment later, the Imperial Guards, who had been advancing all the way, stopped in front of an inn called Yingbinlai.

The inn was two stories high, and the old wine flag that had been used to welcome guests at the entrance drooped listlessly. The place, which was usually quite lively, was now closed, with the windows shut tight on both floors, like a lonely grave with no one to pay respects, exuding an eerie atmosphere.

On the oil paper of the innermost window, a blurry figure was pacing back and forth anxiously.

That was a woman.

She was pacing back and forth in the room, her hands twisting white in her hands, her face contorted with fear that seemed to seep from beneath her skin. Even the slightest sound of beetles rustling outside sent a shiver down her spine, as if pricked by a needle.

At this moment, the captain waved his hand, and an Imperial Guard immediately stepped forward and suddenly raised his foot.

With a bang, the heavy wooden door was kicked open, shattering the deathly silence inside the inn.

The soldiers poured in like a pack of wolves, their cold armor mingling with the dust they kicked up in the dimly lit hall. They moved swiftly and ruthlessly, breaking open the rooms on the first floor one by one, overturning tables and chairs, only to find them empty.

Upstairs, in the innermost room, the woman trembled violently and almost collapsed to the ground.

Heavy, rhythmic footsteps echoed up the wooden stairs, creaking and groaning, each step feeling like a blow to her heart. She could clearly hear the soldiers reaching the second-floor corridor, then the muffled thud of the first door being flung open, followed by the second… The sounds were relentlessly approaching her, room by room, down the corridor.

Her breathing became rapid, her chest heaving violently. She glanced desperately at the closed door, then abruptly turned to the window behind her.

"boom!"

The door to the next room was violently kicked open.

A fierce glint immediately appeared in the woman's eyes.

The next moment, Chu Lu's pupils contracted slightly on the high-rise building. He saw the window on the innermost side of the second floor of the inn suddenly shatter, and amidst the flying wood chips, a figure stumbled out! It was that woman. She jumped out without regard for anything, crashing heavily onto the low tiled roof next to her, then breaking through the roof and landing on the ground. She bounced once, looking like she was in pain, but she didn't even have time to cry out. She immediately scrambled away in a panic.

Chu Lu's heart suddenly raced. He took a step forward, leaning half his body over the railing of the high-rise building, staring intently at the fleeing figure, and urgently shouted, "It's her! Seize her!"

Chu Lu's order was delivered to the deputy commander at the front by a messenger.

The deputy commander waved his hand sharply, and another group of Imperial Guards immediately moved out, circling around from another direction to attack from both sides and surround the woman.

The woman reacted like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, instantly bristling with rage. A short knife slid out from her sleeve, its cold gleam flashing, and she went berserk, stabbing and slashing wildly, actually drawing blood from the two unsuspecting soldiers.

For a moment, the arrest and resistance, shouts and screams mingled together, making the scene quite intense. But she was ultimately alone, and soon an experienced soldier kicked her in the back of the knee, causing her to fall to the ground with a scream and be held down firmly.

Afterwards, one of the Imperial Guards tied her up with a rope, while another Imperial Guards compared her to a portrait.

After confirming, he immediately went to report to the deputy commander, who, after listening, hurriedly ran up to the high-rise building.

"Your Majesty, we've caught her!" he announced first, then bowed and said, "This humble general has confirmed that she is the woman in the portrait. Shall we bring her here?"

Chu Lu was initially delighted, but then quickly calmed down.

"No rush," he said.

He suddenly realized that the woman might not necessarily be the main character. Her sudden jump out of the window could be due to being terrified, or it could be that she was manipulated by the main character and used as bait. As for the portrait, it was crudely drawn, and it was possible that he had misread it. In short, it was not time to conclude that she was the main character.

Looking at the unsearched area ahead, Chu Lu ordered, "Gag her first, then continue searching the rest of the area. Make sure there are no other suspicious targets."

"Yes!"

The deputy commander immediately relayed the order.

After another incense stick's time, the entire area had been thoroughly searched, confirming that there were no more suspicious persons. Chu Lu finally felt a slight sense of relief and had the deputy commander bring the woman over.

The woman was brought before Chu Lu, trembling all over, her face filled with terror.

Chu Lu, who was originally filled with excitement and joy, was startled when he saw her in such a wretched state, and a strong sense of unease welled up in his heart.

His expression was solemn as he waved for his men to remove the burlap from her mouth.

"Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare me!" The woman cried out as soon as she could speak. "I am truly not that wicked woman who harmed the Empress Dowager! Your Majesty, I have been wronged!"

Chu Lu's unease grew stronger, and he asked sharply, "What are you talking about? When did I say you were a wicked person who harmed the Empress Dowager? Where did you hear that from?"

The woman was so frightened that she froze for a moment. It was only when the deputy commander beside her shouted for her to speak quickly that she snapped out of her daze and hurriedly explained, "It was... a young girl who suddenly kidnapped me in the middle of the night and took me to see a woman who looked very noble, like a young lady from a wealthy family... She said, she said the emperor believes I am the mastermind and will come to arrest me sooner or later, and warned me to be careful... Oh, right! Oh, right!"

The woman, as if grasping at a straw, cried out urgently, "A letter! I have a letter! That young lady gave me a letter, saying that if I showed it to you, she would let me go! The letter is in my arms!"

"A letter?" Chu Lu's heart sank completely. He could almost guess who wrote the letter and what it contained, but he still waved his hand, signaling the Imperial Guards to search for the letter.

A burly Imperial Guard soldier stepped forward and, without any hesitation, searched the area before pulling out a slightly crumpled letter.

He first cautiously shook the letter to make sure there was no poison or anything like that hidden inside, then quickly walked up to Chu Lu and presented the letter with both hands.

Chu Lu took the letter and unfolded it. After just one glance, he knew he hadn't guessed wrong.

The letter was written in beautiful handwriting, but its contents were full of condescending pity: "Do you think you can outwit me with these schemes that are stolen from our wisdom?"
Strategy and wisdom are not yours to begin with. Every step you take today is nothing but a clumsy imitation of a female Taoist priest wearing a male hat. How can you expect to rival the sun's brilliance with stolen fire?
Give up the struggle. The wheels of history will eventually crush all lies, restoring everything to its true state.

After reading this classic female-centric fallacy, Chu Lu slowly raised his head and found the woman being held captive looking at him expectantly, as if hoping to be pardoned.

"Tear--"

Chu Lu tore the letter to shreds expressionlessly, then coldly said to the deputy commander, "Lock her up."

The woman's expression changed instantly.

"Yes!" The deputy commander agreed and ordered his men to drag the woman away.

The woman struggled and wailed, shouting things like, "No! She said she would forgive me!"

The crying gradually faded into the distance.

The deputy commander seemed not to hear him, and cautiously asked, "Your Majesty, what shall we do next..."

"Let's depart," Chu Lu's voice betrayed no emotion, "and return to the palace."

(End of this chapter)