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Chapter 737 Above Gaomen
The sword pierced the puppet soldier's armpit with precision and just the right amount of force, easily severing the puppet soldier's tendons.

The puppet soldier's arm suddenly drooped limply like a puppet with its strings cut, and the knife in his hand fell to the ground.

Zhu Yu seized the opportunity, turned his sword, aimed at the opponent's ribs, and thrust it forward.

Blood gushed from the puppet soldier's chest, soaking a large area of ​​his clothing.

The puppet soldier also fell to the ground silently, lifeless.

Just then, footsteps approached rapidly behind her. Zhu Yu was terrified and hurriedly tried to turn around, but then she heard a "whoosh" behind her, as if something had broken through the air, followed by a muffled thud.

When she turned around, she was shocked to see a tall, muscular puppet soldier, holding a steel sword, with wide-open eyes, lying stiffly on the ground.

A white-feathered arrow pierced his neck, and far behind him was Lu Chao, who had not yet put down his bow and arrow—he and several others had been scattered and tripped up by the puppet army, but had finally caught up.

Before long, the puppet soldiers were all killed, and the streets were filled with layers of assassins. Lu Qing casually wiped the bloodstains on his face with his robe, quickly checked on Zhu Yu and Lu Chao, and seeing that they were both safe and sound, the group hurried towards the palace.

When they arrived at the palace gate, there were already people waiting for them.

A large crowd had gathered in the open space outside the palace.

Zhu Yu did not stay in the capital for too long, but she had accompanied Lu Qing to Cao Tianbao's General's Mansion and Lu Zhang's Prince Yi Mansion. She could tell at a glance that those people were not ordinary people, nor were they wealthy merchants in the capital. Almost all of them were high-ranking officials in the capital.

Behind these people stood a group of puppet soldiers. Judging from their posture, these high-ranking officials were not gathered here voluntarily, but rather were driven here by someone.

Their faces showed confusion, fear, or both. They had been whispering among themselves, at a loss, but upon seeing Lu Chao and Lu Qing, they seemed to have suddenly found their pillars of support and instinctively moved closer to them.

Most of these people used to follow Zhao Bi and fawn over Lu Zhang in court. They didn't really care about Lu Qing, and even towards Lu Chao, they mostly just paid their due respects, honoring him as the only heir left by the late Empress Wang. They weren't particularly close to him.

However, recently, seeing Lu Zhang kicked out of the capital, Lu Ze suddenly turned on him, abandoning his previous harmless demeanor and gathering a large number of troops to besiege the capital. Unfortunately, Emperor Jin kept the palace gates locked during this time and refused to see anyone, causing panic among the officials.

They had also heard the news of how the Situ family had recently obeyed Lu Chao's orders, besieged the puppet army, attacked the Brahma land, and achieved frequent victories.

Therefore, the current Crown Prince Lu Chao is naturally the most worthy candidate to rely on and depend on.

"Your Highness..." The people gathered around Lu Chao, bowing to him tremblingly, while observing his attitude.

Lu Chao maintained his detached demeanor, politely gesturing to the ministers with a hint of aloofness, then, like Lu Qing and the others, turned his gaze to the palace walls. Several people stood atop the high Gaomen Palace walls, led by Lu Ze, who appeared to have already taken control of at least the area outside the palace's main gate.

Standing next to Lu Ze was Consort Duan, who was wrapped in a fur cloak.

In this season, although it's not exactly warm, it's clear that wearing a cloak is still a bit too heavy. Yet, Consort Duan wrapped the cloak tightly around herself, as if she were in the dead of winter.

Lu Ze, however, did not notice his mother's unusual behavior. He stood on the palace wall, glaring at Lu Chao, Lu Qing and the others below, his posture somewhat bluffing.

"My two elder brothers, you led your troops into the capital and now you want to break through the palace gates. What are you trying to do?! Do you intend to harm Father Emperor?!" he questioned sternly.

Lu Qing glanced at him, ignoring his question, and instead turned her gaze to the thin middle-aged man standing diagonally behind Lu Ze.

"High Priest Ishan, I'd like to use the question my good-for-nothing brother asked you earlier to ask you something," he said with a half-smile to the thin middle-aged man. "Now that things have come to this, let's not beat around the bush. Why go to such lengths to gather all the ministers of the court here? What is your purpose?"

"What high priest? Brother, what tricks are you trying to pull now?!" Lu Ze looked around in confusion, and seeing that everyone around him was one of his own people, he became annoyed, feeling that Lu Qing was deliberately ignoring him and trying to provoke him. "Now I'm asking you all a question!"

"High Priest, have you allowed your puppet to remain in the Vatican for so many years that it has forgotten its true identity?" Lu Qing asked the middle-aged man with a smile, before finally turning to Lu Ze. "Your Highness, wake up! You've been used for so long, and now that you're standing on the palace walls, haven't you realized that the intentions of those around you are completely different from what you want?"

Lu Chao also spoke to Lu Ze, saying, "Lu Ze, don't be so stubborn. You're inviting trouble into your home. It's not too late to turn back."

"Stop your charades and try to bewitch us!" Lu Ze sneered disdainfully. "I'll give you one last chance out of consideration for our past brotherhood."

"You must withdraw from the capital now, and are not to return unless summoned by the Emperor. Otherwise, regardless of whether these pillars of the court or the Emperor himself encounter any problems, it will be your fault, and you will be held accountable!"

"Your Highness..." The middle-aged man who had been silent behind Lu Ze finally spoke up. He lowered his eyes and gently reminded Lu Ze, "There's also the withdrawal of troops from Vatican City..."

"Don't you know what's more important at a time like this?!" Lu Ze turned to glare at him, somewhat annoyed. "The siege of the capital is the most pressing issue right now. The fate of those in the Vatican is in their own hands; it's not something I have time to deal with right now!"

The middle-aged man frowned, glanced quickly at the city below, and didn't say anything more, standing aside with a strange expression.

"Well?" Lu Ze urged, "What did you guys say?!"

“There’s nothing to say,” Lu Qing spread his hands and smiled sincerely. “We’ve fought our way here with great difficulty, and we won’t back down an inch, whether it’s the capital or the Brahma lands.”

When he mentioned the word "Vatican City," he gave Lu Ze, or rather the middle-aged man next to Lu Ze, a rather provocative gesture, raising his chin slightly.