The prince is more stable

Chapter 221: Burning Xingqing
Xingqing City suddenly closed its gates, Zhang Xiaoyi disappeared without a trace, and the thousand musketeers had no time to sneak into the city. The agreed signal became a red Kongming lantern...

All signs indicated that Xingqing City was in danger. Zhao Xiaoqian's intuition told him that this Kongming lantern was lit by Zhang Xiaoyi.

He used a red Kongming lantern to tell Zhao Xiaoqian that it was too late.

I don’t know which link went wrong, and I don’t know what Zhang Xiaoyi’s current situation is, but since the dangerous signals have appeared, Zhao Xiaoqian will never lead 5,000 soldiers into the fire pit.

"Stay on standby, send out scouts twenty miles away to monitor the movements around!" Zhao Xiaoqian gave the order immediately.

He couldn't retreat at this time. He didn't know whether this was a trap set by the enemy. If he retreated and happened to fall into the enemy's trap, he would be doomed.

"Let's retreat after daybreak. It's dark now and it would be bad if we fall into an enemy ambush." ​​Zhao Xiaoqian said in a deep voice.

The musket is indeed invincible, but it does not mean that you can still kill people in the enemy's encirclement.

As for the Xixia capital...

If things fail, just give up decisively. There is nothing to regret. If a military commander does not even have this kind of decisiveness, won’t the soldiers who follow him be stepping into the gates of hell?
Staring at the Kongming lantern that was gradually becoming blurred in the air, Zhao Xiaoqian felt extremely heavy-hearted.

Zhang Xiaoyi, what is your situation right now?

…………

Zhang Xiaoyi's situation at the moment is very complicated. He feels like he has been dragged into a brand new world.

The man led him to a house and hung a lantern at the door.

I don’t know if this lantern was a signal, but not long after, a group of people came to the door.

These people are all in their prime, but they are dressed differently.

Some of them dressed up as merchants, wearing silk and satin shirts; some dressed up as porters, smelling of sweat; and some had ordinary looks and ordinary clothes. You would look at them a few times, but then you would forget what they looked like.

Zhang Xiaoyi was stunned, staring blankly at the increasing number of people in the yard, unable to figure out where these people came from.

The man saw his confusion and said with a smile, "You don't need to ask about our origins. You just need to know that we are your friends, not your enemies. The prince wants to seize Xingqing City, so we will help him."

Zhang Xiaoyi nodded and chose to believe it.

"These people are leaders, each leading a small team. We have 500 people in Xingqing City. We sneaked in in batches a month ago." The man explained.

Zhang Xiaoyi was shocked and asked, "You knew a month ago that the Marquis wanted to seize Xingqing City?"

The man smiled bitterly and said, "Of course not. This is the capital of Western Xia. Since the Crown Prince is leading his troops to fight against Western Xia, we sneaked into the capital with the intention of gathering information for him and, by the way, choosing a critical moment to sabotage and assassinate several important officials and generals of Western Xia..."

Sighing, the man shook his head and said, "Who knew things would develop to this point? You are so brave, daring to undertake such a great undertaking alone. The prince is also so bold, actually believing that you can do it. You two are really friends..."

Zhang Xiaoyi's old face turned red, but he was secretly surprised in his heart.

Five hundred people actually sneaked in quietly, they are simply an army.

But judging from the man's tone, they are not directly subordinate to Zhao Xiaoqian. They seem to have another master, and the origins of these people are becoming more and more mysterious.

"As expected, the army under the command of the county marquis has already ambushed outside the city. We originally agreed to wait for my signal fire, but something unexpected happened here..." Zhang Xiaoyi said in embarrassment.

The man laughed out loud: "No problem, we will seize the city gate tonight. If the prince has left, we will escape from the city. If the prince is still lying in ambush outside the city, we can take advantage of the situation and occupy Xingqing City."

Staring at Zhang Xiaoyi, the man said, "It's still the same internal and external cooperation. Nothing has changed. The difference is that now you have five hundred helpers."

Zhang Xiaoyi pursed his lips and said, "How do we seize the city gate?"

The man smiled at him and said, "Do you have any ideas?"

Zhang Xiaoyi pondered for a moment and said, "Set fire! Set the whole city on fire. Five hundred of us will be scattered throughout the city, setting fire to every house we find. This will draw out the defenders, forcing them to free up men and horses to put out the fires. We will then gather at the west gate and seize it in one fell swoop."

"Why did you choose to seize the west gate?" "My agreement with the Marquis was to take the west gate."

The man was happy: "Good idea, I thought so too."

…………

Zhao Xiaoqian squatted in the canyon, looking up at the sky quietly.

When daybreak comes, he must withdraw regardless of whether there are any changes in Xingqing City. The lives of 5,000 soldiers hang in his hands. He would rather choose the safer and more conservative option of avoiding battle than risk the lives of his soldiers.

It was already Chou time, and there was still more than an hour before dawn.

The scouts sent out kept reporting that no enemy was found around, but they encountered scouts sent out from Xingqing City. The two sides engaged in close combat and suffered casualties on both sides.

Unfortunately, no one was captured alive, so we were unable to interrogate the situation in Xingqing City.

Zhao Xiaoqian scratched his head in annoyance. If Xingqing City could not be taken, then he would have to change his tactics after daybreak and lead his soldiers northward, turning to the right wing Chaoshun Army in the north. In short, the five thousand troops must turn the backyard of Western Xia upside down.

Every victory is a powerful bargaining chip on the future negotiation table.

As for destroying the Western Xia Kingdom, Zhao Xiaoqian did want to, but unfortunately, the Song Dynasty was currently unable to do so.

Shouting slogans is useless, reality is reality.

However, this war will make the Song army famous and gain benefits from the negotiation table, and the Liao Kingdom will also become wary. The current situation of checks and balances among the three countries may have to change.

At this moment, Zhao Xiaoqian's thoughts were a little confused. Zhong Jianzhong and the others were still thinking about whether there would be a war tonight, but he was thinking about the future situation of the Three Kingdoms.

Late at night, Zhao Xiaoqian was feeling a bit sleepy. Just as he was about to crawl into his sleeping bag and doze off for a while, he suddenly heard a soldier shout, "It's dawn over there!"

Zhao Xiaoqian shuddered: "What do you mean?"

Everyone looked towards the east and was surprised to find that at the end of the sky in the east, there was indeed a bright, fiery red light.

Zhong Jianzhong immediately started fighting and cried out, "That's the direction of Xingqing City!"

Zhao Xiaoqian stared at the light at the end of the sky and said, "It's not dawn, it's a fire! Xingqing City is burning!"

Zhong Jianzhong was even more shocked: "How big a fire would it take to light up half the sky!"

Zong Ze, standing aside, was the calmest and said immediately, "Marquis, something must have happened in Xingqing City right now. Whether our army should advance or retreat, you must make a quick decision!"

Zhao Xiaoqian said without hesitation: "This opportunity has come, we can't miss it! All troops, mount your horses!"

Five thousand soldiers mounted their horses without a word. In the dark night, pairs of shining eyes stared at him.

Zhao Xiaoqian said slowly, "This fire must be related to Zhang Xiaoyi. He finally kept his promise. We must not let down the good opportunity he created with his life."

"All troops, march quickly to Xingqing City. The capital of Western Xia will change hands tonight!"

"How fortunate we are to be comrades-in-arms! Let us personally accomplish a remarkable feat for the Emperor!"

"Rewards, land grants, promotions! A true man's chance to establish his fame is tonight!"

"Whoever is the first to reach the summit will be commended to the emperor, conferred a title, and promoted to commander!"

"go!"

Zhao Xiaoqian rode on his horse and galloped out of the canyon first.

Behind him, five thousand soldiers roared excitedly and followed him towards Xingqing City, howling all the way. The unruly savagery and murderous intent quietly spread among the team.

(End of this chapter)