Martial Arts World Assassin

Chapter 402 Battle of Weishui
After getting Huang Sixi's promise, Shi Feixuan still decided to follow Ning Daoqi and Song Zhi to Tongguan to meet Song Yuzhi's troops.

Huang Sixi continued to stay in Luoyang City and arranged for Pei Renji and other Wagang generals to take over the defense of the city.

After he completed the deployment, Song Yuzhi also arrived at the palace accompanied by Ning Daoqi, Shi Feixuan and Song Zhi to meet Huang Sixi.

Song Yuzhi's troops did not accompany them, but were stationed in Tongguan on standby.

This army was originally under Song Zhi's command. They had been stationed in Tongguan to resist the threat of Li Tang's army. They were forced to withdraw after being defeated by Li Shimin last month.

This time, Ning Daoqi, Shi Feixuan and Song Zhi succeeded in a surprise attack on Tongguan, and used Li Yuan's imperial edict to surrender the Tang soldiers inside the pass. This pass located between Luoyang and Chang'an has changed hands again and returned to the hands of the Song clan.

In order to block Li Shimin's way back to the east, Song Yuzhi stationed his troops in Tongguan, while she traveled light and only brought a group of guards to meet Huang Sixi.

In the following days, Huang Sixi began to arrange the operation to recapture Chang'an with his generals.

During this period, everyone thought that Li Shimin would send an envoy to Luoyang to negotiate the exchange of hostages, but in the end no envoy arrived.

Instead, intelligence came from Chang'an one after another that Li Shimin was attacking everywhere, falsely conveying imperial edicts in the name of Song Que, and constantly eliminating officials and generals arranged by the Song clan in various places in Guanzhong.

Perhaps Li Shimin knew in his heart that even if he exchanged the relatives of the Li family for the relatives of the Song family, Huang Sixi could still be captured again. Instead of doing this, it would be better to occupy more territory, recruit more soldiers and horses, and plan for the final battle with Huang Sixi.

Just as Huang Sixi was pondering Li Shimin's true intentions, Li Shimin had already cut the Gordian knot and captured the Guanxi Pass with lightning speed, capturing Song Que's eldest son.

When the news reached Luoyang, everyone was stunned, and they all secretly praised Li Shimin for his outstanding talent and said he was definitely a genius in marching and fighting.

In the entire Guanzhong territory, Song Que's eldest son commanded the largest number of troops. Once he was captured, the Song clan would lose the ability to encircle Chang'an.

However, Li Shimin will continue to fight and if he is not contained, the Song clan will probably be incorporated one by one, and the entire Guanzhong will fall completely into Li Shimin's hands.

Song Zhi realized that the Song clan was in danger of collapse, so he advised Huang Sixi: "Silang, we can't wait any longer, we must stop Li Shimin from sending troops!"

He hoped that Huang Sixi would leave Luoyang immediately and go to snipe Li Shimin.

Now Huang Sixi was sure that Li Shimin would not exchange hostages, so there was no need for him to stay any longer.

He had previously arranged for Pei Renji and the old soldiers of Wagang to take over the defense of Luoyang City, so he took Song Zhi, Song Yuzhi, Ning Daoqi, Shi Feixuan, Dugu Feng, Yuwen Shang, Shan Xiongxin, Qin Qiong and others on horseback and flew to Guanzhong.

Since Li Jing and Xu Shiji's troops had already marched south, Huang Sixi went to join them first, and then led 20,000 elite cavalry to march towards Chang'an in a mighty force.

That morning, the troops arrived at the banks of the Wei River.

Looking across the river, everyone saw a surging array of Tang soldiers stationed densely on the south bank of the Wei River, with their backs against the majestic city of Chang'an, the thousand-year-old capital.

The ten-foot-high flags fluttered in the wind, stretching endlessly, looking extremely spectacular.

Song Zhi looked over the Tang army formation and took a deep breath. "Li Shimin's troops are estimated to be more than 100,000. Did he recruit all the able-bodied men in the capital?"

Li Jing smiled calmly: "How can a temporary conscription have any fighting power? They have fewer cavalry than us. As long as we find the position of the commander-in-chief and lead the troops to charge, we can win the battle!"

Comparing the military strength of both sides alone, there is a gap of nearly ten times. Moreover, they are deploying their troops in a plain wilderness. Any general here would probably not dare to challenge the sharp edge of the Tang army.

Li Jing was full of confidence, but his confidence did not come from the cavalry he trained personally, but from Huang Sixi who was the main force.

Back then, on the banks of the Tabu River outside the Great Wall, Huang Sixi rushed into the Turkic army alone and beheaded Shibi Khan and Wuzun Bixuan. Li Jing did not think that the Tang soldiers in front of him were stronger than the Turks.

Perhaps there were masters around Li Shimin who were as powerful as the Martial Master Bi Xuan, but Huang Sixi’s skills in refining swords with thunder and lightning at Jingbo Lake were no longer comparable to what they used to be.

Even if there were two masters of the same level as Martial Master Bi Xuan, they would not be able to protect Li Shimin's safety today.

At this moment, Li Shimin was in the center of the layers of military formations, sitting majestically on a steed, with a three-meter-high flag erected behind him. As a young commander in his twenties, he possessed a courage and bravery that ordinary people could not match.

He knew that Huang Sixi's magical skills were invincible, so he did not stay in Chang'an City to defend it. If Huang Sixi attacked the city at night and found his hiding place, the expert guards around him would probably be killed by Huang Sixi, and no one would be able to save him.

In fact, he had no choice but to choose to fight outdoors. For a master of Huang Sixi's level, it would be easiest to assassinate him within the city of Chang'an, and it would be most difficult to assassinate him among thousands of troops.

After all, Huang Sixi rushed into the army of thousands on his own, and both his true energy and physical strength would be greatly consumed. If Huang Sixi's strength could be exhausted by the number of soldiers, and then the masters around him could besiege him, there might be a chance of winning.

So Li Shimin brought all the available soldiers and fought a decisive battle with Huang Sixi on the battlefield.

However, Li Shimin knew in his heart that the chances of winning this desperate battle were not high, because Huang Sixi had once stabbed Shibi Khan and Wuzun Bixuan to death among tens of thousands of Turkic cavalry.

But he had to fight. Li Shimin believed that all the heroes fighting for the world would be ruthlessly wiped out by the victor, whether they were defeated or surrendered.

Li Shimin himself held this idea. If he could firmly establish his rule over the world and hold supreme power, he would not let go of anyone who competed with him for power. Even if his brother Li Jiancheng wanted to compete with him for the throne, he would not mind killing his brother.

It is precisely because power cannot be compromised that Li Shimin will go all out and fight Huang Sixi to the end.

Since surrender means death anyway, you might as well give it a try.

The Goguryeo leader Fu Cailin, Tuyuhun prince Fu Qian, and Western Qin prince Xue Rengao who were around him all had this mentality and came from afar to support Li Shimin.

Goguryeo had been devastated by Huang Sixi and was on the verge of destruction, so Fu Cailin had to fight a desperate battle.

Tuyuhun had not yet met Huang Sixi, but in order to compete for the vast trade route of the Hexi Corridor, Tuyuhun had been fighting with Xu Shiji, a general under Huang Sixi, for several months.

Western Qin had ambitions to seize the world. It had been invading the borders repeatedly since last year and had been fighting with the Song clan in Guanxi for a long time. The conflict had become irreconcilable. In order to eliminate the biggest opponent in the conquest of Central Plains, Western Qin Emperor Xue Ju sent the crown prince Xue Rengao to Chang'an to assist Li Shimin in the battle.

If Huang Sixi cannot be killed today, Goguryeo, Tuyuhun and Western Qin will all be finished in the future.

Not long ago, Chang'an was captured. Fu Cailin, Fu Qian and Xue Rengao made great contributions. It was because of their desperate fight that they captured Tiandao Song Que alive.

There were three other young masters around Li Shimin, Kou Zhong, Xu Ziling and Ba Fenghan.

In fact, these three people had no grudge against Huang Sixi. If it was said that Ba Fenghan came to Huang Sixi for revenge for the tragic death of his confidante Fu Junyu, this would make sense.

But the involvement of Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling seemed to be unreasonable.

At this moment, the two of them looked at the solemn and murderous scene of the army on the north bank, and suddenly felt a little scared. Xu Ziling sent a message to Kou Zhong: "Master Zhong, are we meddling in other people's business?"

Kou Zhong glanced at the tall, graceful young girl behind Fu Cailin and couldn't help but raise his nose, as if he was sniffing the girl's fragrance from a distance, with an expression of enjoyment.

"Not long ago, we helped Auntie capture Song Shidao, opened the city gates, and assisted the Li clan in capturing Chang'an! Once we did this, we were already standing on the opposite side of the Song clan!"

This aunt is Fu Junqiang, the younger sister of Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling's adoptive mother Fu Junchuo, and she is also the lover in Song Shidao's dreams that he can never forget.

Then Kou Zhong turned his gaze away from Fu Junqiang and looked at the gentle woman behind Li Shimin who was dressed elegantly and had the temperament of a lady from a noble family.

The more Kou Zhong looked at this woman, the more he liked her, and he couldn't hide the admiration in his eyes.

He then said to Xu Ziling, "After we opened the city gate, we were invited by Madam Xiuning to join the siege of Tiandao Song Que. Now the people of the Song clan must hate us to death. How can we be considered meddling in other people's business if we follow Madam Xiuning into battle this time?"

Lady Xiuning was no one else but Li Shimin's biological sister, Princess Pingyang, who was canonized by the Li Tang dynasty and was known as Lady Li in the world.

As early as when Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling just left Yangzhou, they met Li Xiuning by chance in Pengcheng. When Kou Zhong saw Li Xiuning for the first time, he was obsessed with Li Xiuning's noble demeanor as a girl from a wealthy family and vowed to pursue her.

Unfortunately, Li Xiuning had already been engaged to Chai Shao, and Kou Zhong could not get her. In order to make Li Xiuning look up to him, Kou Zhong set his ambition to dominate the world.

Not long ago, Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling assassinated Yu Wenzhi in Luoyang, avenging their adoptive mother Fu Junchuo. They then planned to go to Chang'an to look for Yang Gong's treasury in order to take out the weapons left by Yang Su and use them to start an army.

As a result, the two men encountered Li Shimin's army halfway through their journey. Not only did they see their beloved Li Xiuning again, they also met their aunt Fu Junqiang. After the two beauties' pleading, Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling became more masculine and decided to work for Li Shimin.

However, after Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling helped Li Shimin capture Chang'an and capture Song Que, they learned that the world-renowned assassin Jiang Long, the true dragon emperor Khan who destroyed the Turkic royal court, had unexpectedly captured Luoyang like a god from the sky, and not only captured the Tang Emperor Li Yuan, but also captured Li Shimin's entire family.

When Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling heard the news, they were immediately frightened, and they felt like they had stirred up a hornet's nest.

However, in order to show his courtesy to the beautiful woman, Kou Zhong didn't care even if he poked a hole in the sky.

But Xu Ziling was unwilling to make the same mistake again.

He looked at Huang Sixi who was at the front of the army on the north bank and advised Kou Zhong: "That True Dragon Son of Heaven Khan specializes in killing barbarians and bandits, and he also destroyed the Turkic royal court and solved the border problems of Central Earth. The people of the northern border counties all regard him as the world's number one hero. His title of 'True Dragon Son of Heaven' is well deserved!"

He pointed at Li Shimin and said, "Mr. Zhong, take a look at the people around the Li Clan. In order to fight for the world, they are recruiting soldiers from other races. They are simply villains. If we continue to serve the Li Clan, it seems that we are not on the side of justice!"

"Well..."

Kou Zhong smacked his lips, unable to refute. "This 'True Dragon Son of Heaven Khan' first destroyed the Iron Cavalry Society and then the Four Great Bandits. He is indeed a chivalrous man. If he becomes the emperor, the people of the world will probably live a good life. But we have already made an enemy of him, what should we do? Can't we do anything and wait for him to kill us in the future?"

Xu Ziling analyzed: "We only helped the Li clan to open the city and occupy Chang'an. We didn't kill anyone from the Song clan. Our crime is not punishable by death! If we leave now and live in seclusion in the mountains, we won't be hunted down in the future!"

Kou Zhong muttered, "Who knows! We can't trust our lives to outsiders!"

Xu Ziling frowned: "What do you want to do, Master Zhong? Do you want to stay and fight? Once you fight with the 'True Dragon Son of Heaven Khan', I'm afraid there will be no room for maneuver, and you will have to die!"

Kou Zhong was not convinced: "Why do we have to die? He, the 'True Dragon Son of Heaven Khan', also has two hands and two feet, how can he kill us? The Li family has an army of more than 100,000, maybe we don't even need to do anything, he will be trapped in the army and die of exhaustion!"

Xu Ziling argued, "Don't be naive, Young Master Zhong. The 'True Dragon Emperor Khan' has experienced so many bloody battles, how could he allow himself to be defeated? Look at the other side. He has so many cavalry under his command, but he is not in a hurry to launch an attack. It is clear that he has made preparations for a steady and cautious battle. The Li family is definitely not his opponent!"

Kou Zhong wanted to say something when he suddenly heard a commotion behind the Li clan's army.

He and Xu Ziling looked over and saw several blood-soaked cavalrymen rushing to Li Shimin's banner in panic, shouting, "Your Highness, the Prince of Qin, Chang'an... Chang'an has fallen!"

Li Shimin remained calm and looked up into the distance. More than twenty miles away was the city of Chang'an, but he could not see the outline of the city, so it was difficult to verify its authenticity.

But he thought to himself, he had been away from Chang'an for only half a day, stationed his troops on the south bank of the Wei River, intercepted Huang Sixi's main force, and Chang'an City was guarded by his brother-in-law Changsun Wuji, how could it be possible for it to fall?

Even if Huang Sixi divided his troops and ordered tens of thousands of veteran Wagang soldiers stationed in Luoyang to rush to Chang'an, how could he successfully capture the city in less than half a day?

Just as Li Shimin was deep in thought, a familiar cavalry figure suddenly came into his sight. The cavalryman was fleeing in a panic from the direction of Chang'an City. It was his brother-in-law, Changsun Wuji.

When Li Shimin saw Zhangsun Wuji, his heart sank immediately, and a negative feeling that the situation was hopeless emerged in his mind.

"King Qin!"

Zhang Sun Wuji said sadly: "The Song clan dug a secret passage outside the city. They rushed into the city directly through the secret passage. Not only did they capture the city, they also rescued the Song clan's family members..."

After hearing this, Kou Zhong subconsciously interjected, "That secret passage might not have been dug by the Song clan. It should be the secret passage of Yang Gong's treasure house, and they are using it!"

Chai Shao, who was standing by, heard this and shouted coldly, "When we first entered the city, the King of Qin specifically asked you to explore Yang Gong's treasury, but you kept making excuses. You searched the city for nearly a month and didn't even find a door to the treasury! Did you deliberately conceal it? This is what caused the disaster!"

"Fuck you!"

Kou Zhong cursed inwardly and retorted: "I, Kou Zhong, stand upright and do what I preach. It was my stepmother who revealed the clue to Yang Gong's treasure house. After I met my master and aunt, I returned the clue to them. My master and aunt also didn't find it. Why do you blame me!"

Chai Shao didn't trust him at all: "Who knows if you are using fake clues to fool people!"

Kou Zhong was suddenly speechless, as he found that his respected master Fu Cailin and his beloved aunt Fu Junqiang were both looking at him unfriendly. They obviously agreed with Chai Shao's opinion that he wanted to monopolize the treasures in Yang Gong's treasury, so he deliberately concealed the clues to the treasury.

But God is my witness. Before her stepmother Fu Junchuo died, she only mentioned the place name "Yuema Bridge" as a clue to Yang Gong's treasure house. As for where the treasure house was hidden in "Yuema Bridge", Fu Junchuo did not reveal it at all.

Fu Cailin and Fu Junqiang worked hard for a month but still couldn't find the door to the treasure house. It was definitely not Kou Zhong's fault.

Kou Zhong and Xu Ziling still don't know that the mechanism of the "Yue Ma Bridge" had long been rearranged by Huang Sixi. Even if Lu Miaozi came in person, he wouldn't be able to open it again within a month, let alone other people?

Seeing his subordinates quarreling, Li Shimin immediately comforted Kou Zhong: "Don't be upset, brother Kou, you have nothing to do with the destruction of the city. If you really wanted to get your hands on Yang Gong's treasure house, you wouldn't have revealed the clues in the first place!"

Kou Zhong's expression eased a little, but he did not respond to Li Shimin. He had already decided to retreat. He turned his head and winked at Xu Ziling, determined to find a chance to withdraw from the battlefield.

Li Shimin wanted to focus on military affairs and no longer paid attention to Kou Zhong.

Now that Chang'an had been captured and their retreat had been cut off, Li Shimin felt that Huang Sixi would certainly not risk charging into the enemy's ranks again. Instead, he would wait for Huang Sixi to lose his composure until the army's morale collapsed. By then, Huang Sixi would not need to charge into the midst of more than 100,000 soldiers and horses to capture the king, and he would be able to win easily.

(End of this chapter)