The prince is more stable

Chapter 477: Release from Heavy Pressure
The Liao Kingdom came to the capital.

The next morning, Zhang Rong, the special envoy of the Prince of Hejian of the Song Dynasty, suddenly assembled 500 soldiers. They set out from the inn at dawn and headed straight for an area of ​​low-rise houses in the western part of Shangjing.

The houses in this area are very dilapidated, mostly made of wood, and are inhabited by a mixture of Liao people, Han people, and various nomadic peoples from the north.

The people who live here have one thing in common: they are poor.

This is a typical slum where most of the sufferings in the world are concentrated. When you walk in, you can't feel any happy and peaceful atmosphere.

Who would have thought that the long-lost Song envoy Su Shi was hiding here.

Five hundred soldiers surrounded Zhang Rong. Ignoring the astonished looks of the Liao people, Zhang Rong swaggered into the residential areas and stopped very accurately in front of a dilapidated door.

Pushing the door open, entering, and lifting up a flawless wooden floor in the room, a long and dark passage was revealed.

Zhang Rong walked into the corridor with a hunched back and helped the haggard Su Shi out.

After not seeing the sun for many days, Su Shi just returned to the ground. His eyes were stimulated by the light outside and suddenly closed. It took him a long time to adapt before he slowly opened his eyes.

After helping Su Shi sit down at the table, Zhang Rong bowed and said, "Master Su, I'm so sorry for the hardship you've endured. I'm Zhang Rong, the special envoy of His Royal Highness the Prince of Hejian. Under His Royal Highness's orders, I'm going to the capital to bring Master Su back home!"

Su Shi's haggard face was slightly moved, and he asked in a hoarse voice, "Prince of Hejian? Zhao Zi'an?"

"Exactly."

Su Shi was moved and sighed, "I am a burden again and owe him a favor..."

"Your Highness and Scholar Su are close friends regardless of age difference, so there's no need to be so formal."

Su Shi said slowly, "The Liao people want to get rid of me as soon as possible. You sent me away from Shangjing. I'm afraid the journey is full of dangers and murderous intentions. I am also a burden to you..."

"I have the military order, and I will go even if I die." Zhang Rong said in a sonorous and powerful voice.

Su Shi smiled. "I've long heard of the valor and prestige of the Song Dynasty's Dragon Guard Battalion. Seeing it with my own eyes today, I can see that the reputation is truly well-deserved. They are truly worthy of being under Zhao Zi'an's command."

"Mr. Su, it's not advisable to stay in the capital for too long. It's better to leave now." Zhang Rong said.

"Okay, I'll leave everything to General Zhang. I'm already sixty years old, and death is not a pity. If you encounter an ambush on the road, don't worry about my safety. You should protect yourselves and kill more enemies on the battlefield. My death will be worth it."

…………

The whole city of Shangjing was shaken today.

Zhang Rong and five hundred soldiers surrounded Su Shi and slowly walked out of the slums. The onlookers from Liao were shocked, and the news soon reached the Shangjing Liaison Office.

The garrison commander Xiao Zhengshe was shocked and hurriedly led thousands of Liao troops to intercept Su Shi and Zhang Rong.

When the two sides met, Xiao Zhengshe and Zhang Rong looked at each other from a distance through the crowd, both with expressionless faces.

A few days ago, the two were still chatting and drinking with each other in the garrison, but they didn't expect that they would come into conflict today.

Looking at Su Shi who was surrounded by the Song army, a hint of surprise flashed in Xiao Zhengshe's eyes.

The Liao army turned Shangjing upside down but could not find any trace of Su Shi. However, today he was found by Zhang Rong. This was not only embarrassing for the Liao Kingdom, but also difficult to resolve.

Staring at Su Shi's haggard face, Xiao Zhengshe was silent for a while, and suddenly burst into laughter.

"Master Su, last time the inn caught fire, we put out the fire, but we couldn't find Master Su anywhere. It would have been easy for us to find him. Since Master Su is fine, why didn't he inform us, but instead hid in this poor place without seeing the light of day?"

Su Shi sneered, "If I had informed you, I wouldn't be alive today. Don't you know why the inn was flooded?"

Xiao Zhengshe sighed, "Your Majesty has always been concerned about the safety of Scholar Su. He issued an order to search the entire city for your whereabouts. This was originally a good intention. I'm afraid Scholar Su has some misunderstanding about Your Majesty."

Su Shi laughed heartily and said, "There is no use arguing about this matter. Today I am fine. What do you think of your country?"

Xiao Zhengshe subconsciously looked at Zhang Rong.

Zhang Rong chuckled, "Don't look at me, Xiao, the governor. I'm here on the orders of the Prince of Hejian of the Song Dynasty to send Scholar Su back to the Song Dynasty safely..."

Zhang Rong narrowed his eyes and looked around, saying, "Shou Xiao is now leading these thousands of Liao soldiers to surround us. Is he planning to send Scholar Su and me out of the city, or is he just going to kill us and put an end to it all?"

Xiao Zhengshe was startled and couldn't help but turn his head to glance in the direction of the Liao Palace, becoming more and more hesitant.

The news of Su Shi's discovery came so suddenly that the Liao people had no time to react, and Zhang Rong was already about to escort Su Shi out of the city.

However, Su Shi was the person Yelu Hongji wanted to kill. Yelu Hongji did not express his opinion, and Xiao Zhengshe did not dare to let Su Shi and others leave rashly.

"Finding Scholar Su is a great joy. General Zhang, why are you in such a hurry to leave? Why don't you go back to my headquarters with Scholar Su? I'll prepare some wine and offer a farewell to both Su and General Zhang before you leave?"

Zhang Rong sneered, "A delaying tactic? Waiting for the Liao Emperor's order? No need for that. We'll leave immediately. If Xiao Liushou dares to openly ambush and kill the Song envoy in public, go ahead and do it. I'll be waiting!"

After saying this, Zhang Rong shouted, "Men, listen up! Escort Scholar Su out of the city. Anyone who dares to stop us will be considered an enemy of the Song Dynasty and killed!"

Although the five hundred accompanying troops were outnumbered by the Liao army, they fought bravely despite being surrounded.

"kill--!"

A shout of killing shook the whole city. Five hundred people took steps forward at the same time, stirring up a cloud of yellow dust on the ground. A team of only a few hundred people had the momentum of an army of one hundred thousand. The air seemed to be filled with the smell of swords and blood, which made people feel fear in an instant.

Thousands of Liao soldiers were frightened by the momentum of the Song army and could not help but take two steps back, thus opening a gap in the encirclement.

Zhang Rong mounted his horse and waved. The crowd, fearlessly surrounding Su Shi, advanced slowly under the gaze of thousands of Liao soldiers. Cold sweat streamed down Xiao Zhengshe's forehead.

At this time, he was unable to make a decision at all.

If he let Su Shi go, he was afraid of being held accountable by Yelu Hongji.

He ordered the killing of Su Shi and Zhang Rong, but he was still afraid of being held accountable by Yelu Hongji. Without a clear order, he would definitely have to bear the blame for the murder of the Song envoy.

Caught in a dilemma, hesitant and at a loss, Xiao Zhengshe suddenly felt a little regretful. Why did he run over so quickly when he heard the news that Su Shi had been found? Wouldn't it be better to pretend to be deaf and dumb?

"General Zhang, please give me some face and don't make things difficult for me!" Xiao Zhengshe gritted his teeth and shouted.

Zhang Rong said violently, "We are not familiar with each other, so I cannot give you face. If you want to kill me, then kill me, as long as you can bear the consequences!"

Zhang Rong led five hundred Song soldiers and escorted Su Shi out of the slums step by step and walked towards the gate of Shangjing City.

In the end, Xiao Zhengshe did not dare to give the order to take action. The consequences were too serious and he could not afford it.

Every time the Song army took a step forward, the thousands of Liao troops surrounding them followed suit. During this time, fast horses kept rushing to the Liao palace to report the news.

When Zhang Rong and his group almost reached the city gate and saw that it was closed, Zhang Rong's face suddenly became gloomy.

"Xiao Liushou, do you really want to force me to fight to the death?"

Xiao Zhengshe hesitated for a moment and said, "I dare not open the city gate without the imperial order."

Zhang Rong smiled grimly: "Then break down the city gate! My men, listen to my orders—"

Before he could finish his words, a horseman came rushing over.

Xiao Zhengshe couldn't help but feel overjoyed and breathed a sigh of relief.

The imperial edict finally came from the palace. No matter whether His Majesty wanted to kill or release him, Xiao Zhengshe would not have to take any responsibility.

The knight dismounted, came to Xiao Zhengshe and whispered, "Your Majesty has issued a secret decree to allow Su Shi and his party to leave the city."

Xiao Zhengshe felt as if he had been pardoned. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and shouted, "Open the city gate quickly and send the Song envoy back safely!"

He spoke loudly, especially emphasizing the word "safe and sound", and his hidden thoughts were obvious.

Xiao Zhengshe, riding on his horse, gave Zhang Rong a deep look and said with a bow, "General Zhang, although we have just met, I respect you as a man of honor. Only a hero can show such courage today."

"The journey back to Song is a long one, I hope you take care."

Zhang Rong twitched the corners of his mouth and reluctantly returned the greeting.

Su Shi looked at the open city gate quietly, and his eyes suddenly became moist.

It seemed like a different world inside and outside the gate. Su Shi never thought that he could actually leave Shangjing alive, and the Liao Emperor actually allowed him to leave in a swagger.

Zhang Rong, who was standing beside him, grinned at Su Shi and said, "Master Su, let's get going. Once we get out of this city gate, you'll be free from your troubles."

The two looked at each other and smiled.

Although they knew that the road ahead was still full of dangers, they now had freedom.

…………

Liao Palace.

Yelu Hongji was furious, and Yelu Wutera and Xiao Wuna, who were kneeling in front of him, lowered their heads and remained silent.

The news that Su Shi had been found had already reached the Liao Palace. As Zhen Qing had expected, Yelu Hongji did not intend to let Su Shi go.

One of the reasons was that Su Shi incited rebellion and misled the people in Shangjing, which violated the emperor's taboo.

In addition, Yelu Hongji ordered the killing of Su Shi, but Su Shi did not die. Instead, he appeared in a swagger and left Shangjing safely. This was undoubtedly a serious damage and provocation to the emperor's prestige. Yelu Hongji had been emperor for many years and had never been so cowardly.

If a person like Su Shi had not died, how would Emperor Yelu Hongji have the face to lead the civil and military affairs of Liao in the future and win the hearts of the people?
Even though the identity of the Song envoy was sensitive and it was not appropriate to kill him openly, Yelu Hongji also planned to imprison Su Shi and imprison him for many years like Su Wu of the Han Dynasty. As long as he did not kill the envoy, it would not be considered a violation of the rules.

But Yelu Hongji finally issued an order to let Su Shi go.

Because just this morning, Yelu Hongji received a military report from the south.

The 30,000 soldiers of the Longwei Camp under the command of Zhao Xiaoqian of the Song army were suddenly mobilized again a few days ago. Led by Zhao Xiaoqian himself, the army approached Xijin Prefecture of the Liao Kingdom and changed its formation on the way close, making a three-sided pincer attack on Xijin Prefecture. It was obvious that the Song army had the intention of attacking Xijin Prefecture.

Xijin Prefecture was one of the five capitals of the Liao Dynasty. It was the Nanjing of the Liao Dynasty. Its geographical and strategic location was very important. More importantly, it was located within the scope of the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun. If the Song army conquered Xijin Prefecture, it was basically equivalent to the Song army taking over the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun.

This was a catastrophic event. After hearing the military report, Yelu Hongji almost fainted.

While shocked by Zhao Xiaoqian's audacity, Yelu Hongji issued several imperial edicts to mobilize the nearest troops around Xijin Prefecture to rush to Nanjing for assistance.

At the same time, Yelu Hongji hesitated again and again, and finally ordered Su Shi to leave.

　The holiday is over and updates will resume from today.

　　Today is the fifth day of the Lunar New Year. We welcome the God of Wealth. I wish you all great wealth and prosperity this year!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)