The Emperor ordered Zhao Tang

Chapter 12 Siege
On the first day of November, heavy snow fell throughout the country.

All areas west of Tongguan were affected, and several houses collapsed in Chang'an. Li Maozhen discussed attacking the city. The weather was extremely cold, and there was a lack of war equipment for climbing high places. Wang Xingyu and others did not dare to force the soldiers to fight. Seeing this, the two towns of Tong and Hua held their troops in place, saying they would wait until the weather cleared up.

Upon hearing that the troops were to be recruited, the various units of the Fengxiang Army were in an uproar.

One moment they said that an army was coming to the city to defend the emperor, the next moment they said that the Shen Ce Army was going to attack the camp, and the next moment they said that the Bining Army was going to flee. The Ya Army surrounded the shogunate's assistants and demanded firewood, wine, meat, and winter clothes, which made Li Maozhen furious, and he cooked and killed the leading military officer.

On the third day of the eleventh month, Wang Xingyu of Bining Army threw dead bodies into the city, asking for the position of prime minister and the execution of Yang Fugong. Yang Fugong was furious and sent crossbowmen to shoot the messenger to death.

On the fourth day of the eleventh month, Han Jian, the governor of Huazhou, asked the saint to reward the troops, and the saint responded by shooting arrows from the top of the city wall.

On the sixth day, the weather cleared up and the rebels began to attack the city.

The circumference of Chang'an City is nearly 80 li, about 26 li long from north to south, and 15 li wide from east to west. The city wall is about 40 zhang high, or 12 meters. The wall is more than 10 zhang and a half thick, or 4.5 meters. The city wall is made of bricks, stones and purple sand, and is extremely solid.

There are twelve outer gates in total. The three gates in the west are Kaiyuan, Jinguang and Yanping, the three gates in the east are Tonghua, Chunming and Yanxing, the three gates in the south are Anhua, Mingde and Qixia, and the three gates in the north are Guanghua, Jingyao and Fanglin. Because the Daming Palace protrudes a corner, there is also a Chongxuan Gate outside the Xuanwu Gate.

The purpose, of course, is to prepare for emergencies.

The emperors of the Tang Dynasty never stayed at home. Every "tour" of Xuan, Dai, De, Xi and Zhao was very secret. While the ministers were still on duty as usual, the emperor had already quietly gone to Fengxiang... The main idea was that a cunning rabbit has three burrows.

At this moment, the eunuchs of the Ministry of Internal Affairs had been urgently mobilized and assembled at the foot of the Xuanwu Tower. More than a thousand elite cavalrymen were secretly transferred, each with two horses, all of which were imperial horses brought from the Feilong Courtyard. The kings, princesses, concubines, and princes were brought from various places. Of course, they were too conspicuous, so only more than 20 men and women who were close to the emperor were selected. They were guarded by the eunuchs with weapons, and they cried one by one. The eunuchs looked normal. They had encountered such things many times and became calm.

If something goes wrong, just escort the emperor out of the city.

As for the destination, Ximen Chongsui had already decided on it - Shacheng, southeast of Chang'an City, where one could hide in the mountains towards Jinshang area.

There is really no other way.

Xichuan has been lost, Fengxiang has also been lost, so let's run wherever we can.

……

outside the city.

"This is truly a city of kings and tyrants!" Li Maozhen walked around the city and carefully surveyed it. He couldn't help but sigh, "It would be a pity if the Li family kid took over this place."

After discussing with Wang Xingyu, Han Jian, Li Maozhuang and others, they finally decided to launch a real attack from Fanglin Gate and Chongxuan Gate, and make a feint attack from other gates.

It was not that they did not want to surround the city, but the city was too big. If the troops were too dispersed, each side would have no advantage. Moreover, Yang Fugong was desperate and actually forced over 100,000 men and women to be conscripted, causing a commotion on the top of the city.

In addition, because the army was dispatched in such a hurry and there were few mountains or forests around Chang'an, the rebels lacked equipment, and even the gate fences had to be chopped and made on the spot.

However, Li Maozhen was still very confident.

There was no need to consider those able-bodied men. The only ones who posed a threat were the Shen Ce Army. As long as they charged twice, and the brave warriors climbed up first, and the young men followed closely, the weak imperial army would naturally collapse.

When the bandits invaded Tongguan in the past, the Shence Army, which was ordered to reinforce, just took a look and then disbanded on the spot. What is there to worry about for such an army?
When Li Maozhen thought of the mountains of wealth from all over the world piled up in the warehouses of Qionglin and Daying, he grinned subconsciously.

Haha.

God has been kind to him.

The last time he left Chang'an, he was still a small guard general.

What now?
But Wang Xingyu, who was not far away, had a serious expression.

A gentleman does not stand under a dangerous wall, and he always follows the trend. A few years ago, Zhu Mei entered Chang'an and established a new emperor, which angered the powerful vassals of Hedong, Xuanwu, and Hezhong. Sensing the crisis, he decisively rebelled and killed Zhu Mei's family, and restored order, which enabled him to maintain his power in Bining. If Chang'an was really taken down, everyone would be very happy...

He just wanted to satisfy his desire to be a prime minister, but he didn't want to be punished by people like Li Keyong.

I hope Li Maozhen has some sense in mind and doesn't take advantage of his power to be merciless to the saint.

Otherwise, he would have to follow the example of previous generations and stab the enemy in the back to eliminate the evil for the country.

But now the city still needs to be attacked.

If he didn't scare the saint, how could the saint let a common man like him become prime minister?

……

dong dong dong.

The sound of drums rang out like raindrops, and there was a great commotion in the rebel camp.

"Beat your mother!"

"It's so cold that I have to fight?"

"Why not just kill the Marshal? Is there anyone willing to be the governor? Come out and take the lead."

"That damn dog must have drunk so much human blood that he lost his mind. I won't go today."

The weather was freezing cold, the walls were high, and the siege was tough. The soldiers were resentful and almost ready to revolt. Li Maozhen had no choice but to reward them with money and goods, and the army reluctantly set out. The guards walked around, cursing, hitting with their scabbards, kicking with their feet, and threatening to rob the city for three days, so that these killers could quickly form a team and prepare for the attack.

Li Maozhen is still considered lucky, as he can still afford the cost of starting a war.

There was chaos in the city.

The imperial court requested the Tianwei Army to send troops, and Li Shunjie was very unwilling and even wanted to resist the imperial edict. But thinking that the emperor had treated him well, he could fight, but to let him risk his life... Yes, in his opinion, relying on only his tens of thousands of people would be like sending himself to death.

But before Li Shunjie could think it over.

At noon, the Tianwei Army heard that the rebels were attacking Chongxuan Gate, and they started to make a fuss. They threatened to kill the commander and surrender outside the city, which frightened the military academies so much that they dared not say a word. Some of them gradually slipped out of the camp to find a place to hide. Another group of thieves went to the palace to rob, but were repelled by the eunuchs who were guarding the Daming Palace. Just as they were hesitating whether to try again, they suddenly heard someone shouting, "The Prime Minister is here!"

Da da da.

The crisp sound of horse hooves echoed on the bluestone bricks.

"drive!"

Liu Chongwang whipped his horse several times, and a group of guards and more than ten miscellaneous officials from the Southern Court followed behind his horse.

Soon, the noisy Tianwei Army soldiers came into view and they all turned around and stared at Liu Chongwang.

"Who wants to rebel?" a thunderous shout came.

Liu Xianyuan jumped off his horse, bent over and threw the long spear in his hand fiercely.

coax.

The soldiers dodged one after another, what a great strength!

You looked at me, I looked at you, and we quickly formed a line, staring at the burly man with deep eyes and a high nose ten steps away.

Herod.

“Pull!” Liu Chongwang grabbed the rope and the Malaysian stood up snorting.

His cloudy old eyes fearlessly swept over the chaotic soldiers that filled the palace entrance.

"What army are you from?"

A chaotic soldier shouted: "It's Tianwei's son."

"Which army is the Tianwei Army?" Liu Chongwang raised his whip and pointed at an officer beside the horse: "You tell me, and speak loudly."

The green-robed official immediately took over the conversation: "In the Tianbao period, the long-term warriors were sent to garrison Hexi and stationed in Shibao City. Geshu Han gave the army the name of Tianwei Army to spread Tianwei in the wilderness. In the Zhide period, they went to Lingwu to protect the emperor and fought in Xiangji Temple. Because of their merits, they were appointed as the imperial guards. In the Guangde period, the Tibetan invaders entered Chang'an, and they followed the emperor's carriage to cross Shanzhou. In the Zhonghe period, they followed the troops from various routes..."

"We are not rebelling!" The soldier responded, "It is the bandits who are attacking Chang'an and want to steal the saint's property, so they fled east to Bianzhou to save themselves."

Liu Chongwang ignored him and asked, "What's your name?"

"The King of Zhao!" The soldier was not afraid of the stage: "I am the commander of the Tianwei Army. The commander-in-chief has appointed me as the commander of the killing team."

"What are your abilities?"

"He could climb over walls and trenches and swim through rapids, and no one could catch up with him. He could close his eyes in the dark, listen to the sound and shoot arrows, and he would kill any enemy within fifty steps. In the next year, he defended Tongguan against bandits. He shot four arrows and killed three leaders of the bandits and one of their soldiers."

"Such a brave warrior, shouldn't he be rewarded?" Liu Chongwang shook his whip and pointed at Wang Congxun: "It is said that Yan and Zhao have many generous and tragic men. Now I see that it is true. The soldiers are silent, only you are answering. It seems that you are quite prestigious and courageous. I will appoint you as the commander of the army, grant you the rank of Tiger Guards, and make you the emperor's guard. Do you dare to accept the important task of the country?" Before he finished speaking, Wang Congxun sheathed his sword: "Why not!"

"Good! Left and right, give the brave warriors lamb shoulders and fill their stomachs to defeat Maozhen's army." Wang Congxun drew out his dagger and cut the food. Liu Chongwang retracted his gaze, jumped on his horse and whipped it, and took two steps forward. He said to the chaotic army that was whispering and talking, "The enemy is so powerful that the saints guard the Xuanwu Gate. You are the imperial guards. You don't kill the enemy in front of the emperor to gain merit, but act like rats to plunder the palace and ruin your reputation. How can you be wise? If you really want to make money, you should go to the Xuanwu Gate to wait for the emperor's order. If you are still violent, you should summon the Feilong and Pengri soldiers to kill you together."

The chaotic soldiers made a lot of noise, then quickly became quiet, and their eyes became clear.

A bearded man cut off his hair, holding it with a grin, "We are only seeking to survive. Maozhen is out there, and we cannot let him live. If we flee, we will die. If we defend, we will die. If we wait to die, why not die with the enemy!!!"

"Very martial." Liu Chongwang snatched the axe from a guard and said, "It was given by the emperor. Hold it with martial arts. I give it to you."

"I wish to chop off Mao Zhen's head with this."

The soldiers were in a commotion, and under the leadership of several people, they finally shouted in unison: "We obey your orders!"

Liu Chongwang shook his coat and drew the sword from his waist: "The whole army will go to Xuanwu Gate to defeat the bandits."

"Kill, kill, kill!!"

The densely packed soldiers soon spontaneously formed four columns.

It has to be said that if the Tianwei Army were not so poorly disciplined, they would indeed be elite.

Da da da.

Hua Hua Hua.

The sound of armor plates rubbing against each other caused by footsteps and the neat, heavy and dense footsteps echoed in the palace corridor.

The scattered soldiers of Tianwei, Yushan, Hubi, etc. in the city, ranging from a few to hundreds, gathered one after another. A single firewood is hard to burn, but a group of firewoods will burn the sky and boil the sea. The military leaders understood this truth. The court officials gathered at Xuanwu Gate welcomed nearly 30,000 troops in horror. Looking at the huge crowd and the endless forest of long spears like a sea of fire, the officials' minds were blank and their legs trembled unconsciously: trapped inside and outside, it's doomed!

Nearly 30,000 soldiers brandished swords and shouted with overwhelming force: "Kill, kill, kill!!!"

"The rebel army is coming to Xuanwu Gate!"

The eunuchs stationed here shouted loudly.

"Defend the enemy!"

"Hold on to the Saint."

The servants and palace maids were so frightened that they ran around in panic. The timid ones burst into tears and swarmed behind Li Ye.

……

"No, they are not rebel soldiers." Li Ye patted the little palace maid beside him.

The formation of this group of people is relatively neat and their steps are orderly. How could these warriors cause chaos in such an orderly manner?

Could it be that the old man subdued the rebellious troops?

This is amazing.

Previously, Prime Minister Zheng Ting gathered the rebel troops from Qi, Jing, Shan and Bin towns and more than 100,000 defeated soldiers of the Shence Army and fought against the Chao bandits in the field and won a great victory at Longwei Pond.

Today, Prime Minister Liu Chongwang is in a position to quell the rebellion in the capital and turn danger into fortune.

"The saint has nothing to worry about." Liu Chongwang rode out on his horse, bowed from a distance downstairs, and said, "Jian'er is willing to be used by the saint."

Du Rangneng was afraid that the emperor would say something wrong, so he leaned close to Li Ye's ear and said hurriedly, "Show up quickly, let the soldiers see you, and then announce the rewards to stabilize the army's morale. Give more rewards, and the treasury will be rich."

"It's the law of nature." Li Ye nodded.

So, accompanied by court officials, he walked to the railing and revealed the emperor's true face.

"Long live, long live, long live." The soldiers waved their swords.

The emperor just waved his hand hastily, and the eunuchs pushed him back, and then the dense shields covered the front. So Li Ye asked Du Rangneng: "Use the treasures of Daying and Qionglin Treasury to reward the strong men with meat, clothes, and new shoes, and give each of the officers a set of ceremonial swords, iron armor, and bows, and let the imperial officials cook delicious food and feast for them. Is it okay?"

"Is it okay?" Du Rangneng immediately ordered his subordinates to carry out the order.

Immediately, three officials of praise shouted: "The emperor will reward the warriors with meat, clothes, and new shoes, and will rank their swords, armor, and bows. The imperial officials will give them food."

As the news was passed down layer by layer, the soldiers were delighted.

"Besides, if we defeat the bandits, the court will reward us with some cloth, tea, salt, currency and porcelain." Du Rangneng then instructed the officials to pay tribute.

"only."

"Wang Congxun, a native of Zhao, is a commander of the Tianwei Army and a slasher. He can shoot at night by listening to the sound. He has been appointed as the Lieutenant General of the Tiger Guards and has entered the Weiwei Temple." Liu Chongwang reported again, and the emperor agreed: "Send the strong man to my side."

"go."

Liu Chongwang shouted, and Wang Congxun strode out of the crowd and came before the saint under the guidance of the eunuchs.

"The Archer?" the emperor asked gently.

"I don't deserve it, but I can kill people." Wang Congxun looked calm.

The court officials could not help but frown. Wasn't it inappropriate for Liu Gong to send such a thief and warrior to the saint?

The emperor didn't think so. Hearing this, Li Ye smiled and said, "Kill a few people for me and see."

Wang Congxun placed his hand on his knife, swept across the eunuchs, ministers, palace maids, and attendants present, and said coldly, "Saint, just point your finger."

Well……

The brain circuits of these warriors are really...

Li Ye held his forehead with his hand.

"Outside Chongxuan Gate, there are mad thieves swarming like ants. How about I go there with you?"

"If Li Maozhen dares to show up, I will make the whole army mourn tomorrow." Wang Congxun gritted his teeth.

If it weren't for this guy, we would have been living a happy life in Huazhou a long time ago, and wouldn't be in such a miserable state as today.

"A saint should not go into danger personally. What if the city is breached..." Han Yu, a scholar from the Imperial Academy, advised.

"fart!"

Wang Congxun's eyes were red. "In the previous defeat, I protected the envoys of the upper army and fled for their lives. The bandits chased and killed them with more than a thousand riders. Now I am standing on a building several feet high, with an iron shield in front of me and minions on my left and right. How can I be in danger? If you are not like this, please punish me. The people of Zhao can surrender and will not be despised."

"Master, do you not believe in the Slasher?" The emperor looked at Wang Congxun and said, "I will stand behind you and watch you."

……

Downstairs of Chongxuan Building.

More and more bandits came forward.

The Shen Ce Army and the civilians, both men and women, used every tool they could think of to stop the rebels' offensive.

Stones, boiling oil, feces, ice water, corpses, forks.

Even the clothes and quilts were set on fire.

Fortunately, the city is more than ten meters high, the walls are more than four meters thick, and the rebels lack siege equipment, so the current defensive battle is not very critical.

"The saint is here." The eunuchs took the emperor to the foot of the Chongxuan Tower and sat him down.

"Don't grab my arm. I know what's going on." Four or five hands held Li Ye tightly from all positions like iron clamps.

It was as if he would be unable to hold back and jump off the building to commit suicide at any time.

The eunuchs looked at each other and loosened their hands, but warned in a serious tone: "But the saint can only sit here and not take another step forward."

(End of this chapter)