Martial Arts World Assassin

Chapter 401 Unexpected Guest
Huang Sixi stayed alone in the Luoyang Palace, waiting for news from Ning Daoqi and Shi Feixuan.

During this period, Feiying sent a message to Dali City, ordering Li Jing and Xu Shiji to lead troops south to Guanzhong.

After several days, Huang Sixi had not yet waited for the arrival of troops, but instead welcomed a distinguished guest from the Song clan.

That night, he was reading the list of officials appointed by Li Tang in Qianyang Palace by lamplight when he suddenly sensed a noise coming from the roof of Lin Palace.

He thought someone was trying to rescue Li Yuan's family, so he went out to capture them himself.

As a result, he jumped onto the roof and saw that it was an old acquaintance.

He immediately shouted, "Why is Second Uncle Song in the Luoyang Palace?"

This acquaintance is the second-in-command of the Song clan, 'Earth Sword' Song Zhi.

Huang Sixi had known Song Zhi long before last year when he massacred the Iron Cavalry Society in Jiangnan. When Huang Sixi led Zhai Jiao and hundreds of orphans to move to the Qianligang Mountains, Song Zhi lived in Qianligang for some time in order to treat his poisonous wounds.

In the entire Song family, Song Zhi and Song Yuzhi are the ones who have the best relationship with Huang Sixi.

"Ah! Shiro, you really took Luoyang!"

Song Zhi looked tired and exhausted, but when he saw Huang Sixi's face clearly, he immediately became energetic.

He jumped to Huang Sixi's side and excitedly grabbed Huang Sixi's arms, saying in a surprised and happy tone: "I heard that you conquered Luoyang and captured Li Yuan, so I came all the way to find you, but I was worried that the news was not true, so I sneaked into the palace at night!"

In fact, during the day, Song Zhi had sneaked into Luoyang City and took a walk around. Since the guards in the city were all soldiers from the Dugu and Yuwen clans, Song Zhi did not dare to take the initiative to contact them.

Song Zhi knew that Huang Sixi had two great generals, Li Jing and Xu Shiji, under his command, and had also recruited Zhai Jiao and Tu Shufang, a group of former Wagang soldiers. However, Song Zhi searched the entire city and did not find a familiar face. In desperation, he decided to break into the palace at night and look for Huang Sixi directly.

Huang Sixi gestured to him: "Let's go down first and talk slowly in the hall!"

After seeing Huang Sixi, all the anxiety and worry he had felt over the past few days disappeared. He immediately laughed, let go of Huang Sixi's arm, and followed Huang Sixi off the roof.

When he landed, he looked around and didn't see any guards on duty. He couldn't help but ask, "The defense of the palace is useless. I have climbed all the way here without being detected by any masters. Silang, don't you have any confidants in the palace?"

Huang Sixi spread his hands and said, "I conquered Luoyang alone, where can I find confidants to use?"

If these words were spoken by someone else, Song Zhi would definitely find it hard to believe, but Huang Sixi was an exception. It was not surprising that Huang Sixi could capture the Turkic royal court's Dali City and Luoyang alone.

Song Zhi was stunned for a moment, then gave Huang Sixi a thumbs up and said, "Silang, you conquered a capital city single-handedly. This is unprecedented and will probably never be repeated. But you don't have any trusted men around you. How did you deal with the members of the Li clan you captured?"

Huang Sixi pointed to the Lin Palace and said to Song Zhi: "All of Li Yuan's family members are imprisoned here. I will guard them personally!"

Then he made a joke: "Second Uncle Song, you can break into the palace, but it will be extremely difficult for you to rescue Li Yuan's family!"

"Why should I save this old devil? I wish I could beat him up!"

Song Zhi took a sip of wine and wanted to go into the hall to humiliate Li Yuan, but he had more important things to discuss with Huang Sixi at the moment, so he put Li Yuan aside for the time being.

He followed Huang Sixi into the Qianyang Palace, and seeing Huang Sixi sitting on the dragon throne at the top, he asked solemnly, "Chang'an was captured by Li Yuan's son Li Shimin, and my brother was unfortunately captured. Silang must have received the news, right?"

Huang Sixi nodded: "I have received a lot of information about the fall of Chang'an these days, but I still don't have a comprehensive understanding. Uncle Song, did you participate in the battle of Chang'an?"

Song Zhi sighed deeply, "Wenlong and I have been stationed in Tongguan to resist the Tang army. Last month, Li Mi and Yu Wenhuaji's Jiangdu soldiers fought for the Liyang Warehouse. Their forces are similar in strength and it is possible that both sides will suffer losses. Wenlong and I do not want to let the Tang army reap the benefits. If Li Mi and Yu Wenhuaji are defeated by the Tang army, then the Li Tang will be able to occupy the fertile land of the Central Plains and gain an overwhelming advantage over Guanzhong!"

Song Zhi and Jie Wenlong were right in their judgment. Li Tang did take advantage of the bloody battle between Li Mi and Yu Wenzhi to send troops to annex the territory of Wagangzhai.

Song Zhi continued, "Wenlong and I took advantage of the war between Li Mi and Yu Wenzhi to send a troop out of Tongguan to attack Luoyang, in an attempt to tie down Li Tang's forces and prevent them from attacking Li Mi and Yu Wenzhi. As a result..."

Huang Sixi continued: "What was the result?"

Song Zhi looked bitter: "In the end, the troops we sent out were defeated by Li Shimin, and then Li Shimin sent troops to attack Tongguan. Wenlong and I failed to defend it and were forced to retreat to Chang'an! After Li Shimin occupied Tongguan, he did not defend it at all. He immediately led his troops into Guanzhong and marched all the way to Chang'an!"

The person the Li family fears the most has always been Huang Sixi.

Because Huang Sixi was on an expedition to Goguryeo and could not lead his troops back to support, Li Shimin decided to fight quickly, hoping to defeat the Song clan in one fell swoop, capture the Guanzhong area, and then connect it with the Central Plains, so as to have the advantage of resisting Huang Sixi in the north.

Huang Sixi asked: "How did Chang'an fall? Was there any internal rebellion?"

Song Zhi said: "Originally, there are enough soldiers and food in Chang'an City. There is absolutely no problem in defending for several months. Dalang and Sanlang each have tens of thousands of soldiers guarding various places in Guanzhong. Once they receive the news that Chang'an is under siege, they can immediately come back to provide assistance!"

Song Que had four sons and two daughters.

Except for the second son who stayed in Lingnan, the other three sons were all stationed in Guanzhong.

When Li Shimin's troops surrounded Chang'an, Song Que's youngest son Song Shidao, eldest daughter Song Yuhua and son-in-law Jie Wenlong, as well as youngest daughter Song Yuzhi were all in the city.

The fall of Chang'an City was indeed related to internal support, but the internal support did not come from Guanzhong nobles such as the Dugu clan or the Yuwen clan, but from the Song clan themselves.

Song Zhi explained the whole story: "My nephew Song Shidao was ordered to guard the city gate. He fell in love with the Korean swordsman Fu Junchuo at first sight and was deeply in love with him. When Li Shimin attacked the city, Fu Junchuo sneaked into the city to confuse Song Shidao..."

Huang Sixi interrupted immediately and said, "Fu Junchuo died a long time ago. He was killed by Yu Wenzhi last year. It is impossible for him to still be alive!" When Huang Sixi first came to the Tang Dynasty last year, he found Fu Junchuo's tomb in the Jiangbei Valley.

Song Zhi sighed and said, "Fu Junchuo is indeed dead, but she has a junior sister who looks very similar to Fu Junchuo. My nephew only met Fu Junchuo once and was not familiar with him at all. He had no idea who was who. He was bewitched and tricked into being an insider. In the end, the city gate was secretly opened by Fu Junchuo's junior sister, and Li Shimin easily broke into the city!"

Huang Sixi knew that Fu Cailin had a female disciple named Fu Junyu, who had served as an envoy of the Bohai Kingdom together with Ba Fenghan. However, when Huang Sixi broke into the Goguryeo palace, Fu Junyu fled in order to rescue Fu Cailin and died under Huang Sixi's sword.

Huang Sixi asked, "What is the name of this woman who seduced Song Shidao?"

Song Zhi said: "Her name is Fu Junqiang, and she is also Fu Cailin's last disciple!"

Huang Sixi thought to himself that these remnants of the Goryeo clan were determined to disrupt the Central Plains. Next time they met, they must not be given any chance to escape. "So, it was the Song clan leader that Fu Cailin led the siege?"

Song Zhi's face gradually changed, and a hint of anger appeared on his face: "In addition to Fu Cailin, there are also Tuyuhun Prince Fu Qian, Western Qin Prince Xue Rengao, Fu Junchuo's adopted sons Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling, and the Turkic Ba Fenghan. The six of them besieged my brother, and my brother was defeated in the end!"

Back then in the Goguryeo palace, after Huang Sixi killed Fu Junyu, Ba Fenghan took advantage of the chaos to escape. He probably followed Fu Cailin in order to avenge Fu Junyu.

But Huang Sixi still didn't understand the two: "Why did the Tuyuhun prince and the Western Qin prince participate in the battle of Chang'an?"

Song Zhi explained: "The Tuyuhun joined forces with Xue Ju of Western Qin and had always wanted to attack Guanzhong. When Li Shimin's troops were approaching the capital, Xue Ju was also attacking the Guanxi Pass fiercely. However, Guanxi was guarded by Dalang's troops, and Xue Ju could not take it down for a long time. So they sent an elite team of masters to Chang'an, led by Fu Qian and Xue Rengao, to cooperate with Li Shimin to take down the capital!"

As long as the capital is captured, the elite troops of the Song clan stationed in Guanxi will surely come back to support, and Xue Ju will then be able to march straight into Guanzhong.

If the elite troops of the Song clan did not return to support, and once Li Shimin had stabilized the situation in the capital and led his troops to Guanxi, they would be attacked from both sides and would end up being destroyed.

This is how Chang'an fell.

Huang Sixi finally asked Song Zhi: "Has Yuzhi been trapped in the city?"

Song Zhi signaled Huang Sixi to rest assured: "Although there were six masters besieging my brother at that time, if my brother insisted on escaping, they would definitely not be able to stop him! My brother was captured by them in order to cover Yuzhi and me to escape from Chang'an!"

Except for Song Zhi and Song Yuzhi who escaped, the rest of the Song family members, including Song Que, Song Shidao, Song Yuhua and Jie Wenlong, were all captured.

Huang Sixi asked, "Where is Yuzhi?"

Song Zhi pointed to the west and said, "After we left Chang'an, we were going to go north to Dali City to join General Li Jing. But halfway there, we received a letter from a spy planted by the Song clan in Luoyang. The letter said that the 'True Dragon Khan' had captured Luoyang and captured all the family members of the Li clan. However, these spies did not see the true face of the 'True Dragon Khan' in Luoyang, so they could not guarantee whether it was you, Silang!"

Huang Sixi controlled Luoyang City through the Dugu and Yuwen clans.

In recent days, Huang Sixi has been stationed in the palace and has not held any large-scale ceremonies, so no one in the city has seen him.

Although it was rumored that the "True Dragon Khan" broke through Luoyang and captured the Tang Emperor Li Yuan, the residents in the city would inevitably have doubts. It is also possible that the coup was jointly launched by the Dugu clan and the Yuwen clan, but they just used the name of the "True Dragon Khan" to cover up their tracks.

Huang Sixi never showed up in public and never sent any of his confidants out on any activities, so the spies planted by the Song clan in Luoyang were unable to identify Huang Sixi's identity.

Song Zhi naturally did not dare to come to the palace to pay a visit openly. He continued, "After receiving the news, Yuzhi and I immediately stopped heading north and rushed to Luoyang instead! Since Tongguan was captured by the Tang army, the troops led by Yuzhi and I could not get through, so I asked Yuzhi to stay in Guanzhong and wait for a while, and I sneaked to Luoyang to investigate the authenticity of the news!"

If Huang Sixi rushed to Tongguan, he could easily bring Song Yuzhi to Luoyang, but he absolutely could not leave the city now. If Li Yuan's family was rescued while he was away, they would definitely find a secluded place to hide, and it would be extremely difficult to capture them again.

Since Song Yuzhi was not in danger at the moment, Huang Sixi let Song Zhi stay in the palace temporarily.

By the afternoon of the next day, Ning Daoqi and Shi Feixuan lived up to expectations and led Pei Renji's Wagang veterans into Luoyang City in a mighty force.

When Huang Sixi learned that Ning Daoqi and Shi Feixuan were passing through Xingyang, they teamed up to sneak into the Tang army camp, kidnapped the Tang general Li Xiaogong at night, and then successfully surrendered the Xingyang soldiers with Li Yuan's imperial edict. Finally, they opened the pass and led the old soldiers of Wagang to the east.

Huang Sixi once again entrusted Ning Daoqi and Shi Feixuan: "There is another troop outside Tongguan. Can Sanren and Shi Xianzi go there again?"

In order to get Huang Sixi's new government to provide more funding to Taoism, Ning Daoqi agreed to Huang Sixi's request.

Shi Feixuan put forward a condition: "Can Jianglong Langjun support a number of Buddhist temples just like he supports the Taoist sect?"

Huang Sixi has far-reaching intentions in funding Taoism. When he recruits Taoist disciples through Jianglong Academy in the future, Huang Sixi will teach them medical skills so that they can use medicine as a way to preach in the future.

But all Buddhist disciples are monks, and are not suitable to be recruited to teach in academies.

Huang Sixi said to Shi Feixuan: "This time we are going to pick up the Song clan's troops. The Second Master Song will be the guide. If Sanren and the Second Master Song join forces, they can still capture Tongguan!"

He didn't plan to let Shi Feixuan go with him.

Shi Feixuan already understood Huang Sixi's attitude and couldn't help but let out a bitter smile: "Feixuan was too nosy. I will never mention this again in the future!"

Huang Sixi glanced at her and said, "You haven't become a nun yet, so why are you so concerned about the great cause of Buddhism?"

Master Feixuan replied: "Feixuan grew up in Cihang Jingzhai since she was a child, and she should contribute to the prosperity of the sect!"

Huang Sixi nodded slightly: "Not long ago, your master, Master Fanzhai, ordered the Buddhist monks to go to Dali City to resist the Turks. I will not forget this kindness. In the future, I will take care of your Cihang Jingzhai, but I will not treat other Buddhist sects differently!"

(End of this chapter)