Tang Dynasty: Starting with 3,000 elite cavalry, a bloody battle to retake the city.

The surroundings were noisy, with the maids exclaiming in surprise, their eyes shining like stars.

But Xiao Tuan suddenly glared at her and hissed, "Shut up! Everyone, calm down!"

She looked down at the figure on the recliner—Han Ye's eyes were slightly closed, his breathing was deep, and he had fallen asleep in an instant amidst the commotion.

Xiao Tuan felt a pang of sadness, gently tugged at his sleeve, and whispered, "Hasn't the young master suffered enough these past few days? What do you know... Let him rest a bit."

"Go, go, get out!" she waved her hand to shoo people away, her tone leaving no room for argument.

Everyone fell silent and tiptoed away, afraid of disturbing the tranquility.

She was left alone, quietly standing guard to the side, her gaze fixed on Han Ye's face as if looking at a city that had been lost and then regained.

A breeze stirs, and the curtains flutter.

Before long, a heroic figure arrived, stepping on the moonlight.

Li Yingge, dressed in indigo casual clothes with a short blade at her waist, slowly approached Han Ye's courtyard.

Her steps were extremely light, yet carried a sharp, razor-like edge.

Looking up, I saw Han Ye sleeping with a cool expression, and there was still a trace of weariness between his brows.

Her eyes flickered slightly, and she called softly, "Xiao Tuan."

Xiao Tuan snapped back to reality: "General?"

Li Yingge stared at her, her voice extremely low: "You once said... your young master might be the Ghost-Faced General."

Now that Ghost Face is dead—then who exactly is your young master?

"Huh?" Xiao Tuan's pupils dilated, her cheeks instantly burning hot. She stammered, "I...I don't know...My young master is my young master...No matter who he is, he's the light in my life..."

As she spoke, her eyes sparkled, and she laughed in a silly way.

Li Yingge, however, did not laugh.

She stood in the shadows, a storm raging in her eyes.

From Youzhou to Chang'an, a thousand-mile journey paved with blood, mountains of corpses and seas of bones.

How did Han Ye manage to come back alive all by himself?

Escape? Where to escape to? How to escape?

Totally impossible!

Her fingers tightened slightly—this young man must be related to the Ghost-Faced General.

The truth is simply hidden too deeply and has not yet surfaced.

She glanced at Han Ye one last time, then turned and left, her steps resolute.

But she didn't see it—

Just as she turned around, a long tear silently slid down Han Ye's cheek, past his temple, and into his clothes.

Heroes lay down their armor and return to dust; tears fall silently, yet the pain is heart-wrenching.

……

at the same time.

Deep within the palace, the lights in the imperial study remained burning.

Li Shimin still had a white cloth wrapped around his head and wore the same plain robe; the room was filled with solemnity.

But the emperor's eyes were now like reforged iron, radiating a cold light.

He abruptly looked up, his voice booming like tearing silk: "How is the army assembled?!"

Cheng Yaojin clasped his hands and knelt on the ground, his voice booming like a bell: "Your Majesty! The vanguard of 50,000 men, led by Yuchi Gong, has already marched straight towards the banks of the Wei River! Another 50,000 will set off tomorrow, and the final 30,000 await Your Majesty's personal command!"

"Good!" Li Shimin slammed his hand on the table, and the dragon table cracked open.

His voice was hoarse, yet every word was stained with blood: "Two days from now, we will march on the Wei River—to fight the Khan of the Three Kingdoms, a battle that will decide our fate! Blood debts must be repaid in blood!"

"Blood for blood! Blood for blood! Blood for blood!"

Cheng Yaojin, Qin Shubao, Changsun Wuji, and Fang Xuanling roared in unison, causing the palace beams to tremble and their murderous aura to soar into the sky.

But at that moment, Li Shimin suddenly frowned, his gaze sharpening: "Where is Li Jing? Where is he?!"

Cheng Yaojin paused, then hesitated before saying, "Your Majesty... Today, Li Jing's son-in-law returned to the capital, and it seems that Lord Li is at home managing household affairs..."

"Li Jing's son-in-law?!" Li Shimin was taken aback, then his expression changed slightly.

Isn't that... the husband of Li Yingge, whom he personally appointed as the "Divine Might Female General"?

The gloom on his face eased slightly.

When Li Yingge was mentioned, a rare hint of kindness appeared in the emperor's eyes—that girl was practically his daughter.

Now, her husband has finally arrived in Chang'an.

Li Shimin's eyes flashed, and curiosity arose in his heart: Besides my princes, who else is worthy of a heroine like Li Yingge?!

The night was as dark as ink.

Chang'an fell silent.

After the imperial court decided on the strategy for sending troops today, Li Shimin had nothing else to do.

Next, just wait.

When Khagan Jieli steps onto the Wei River, when the army gathers at the border—

The final battle is about to begin!

It wasn't that he deliberately delayed until now, but rather that the border region was already riddled with problems.

Youzhou is now an empty city.

In Dingzhou, nine out of ten houses are empty.

Countless cities were reduced to ashes.

The flames of war raged, and there was nowhere to retreat.

How could this battle take place anywhere other than along the Wei River?!

That was the last backbone of the Tang Dynasty!

And at this moment—

Li Shimin did not rest in the palace; in fact, he had already left the palace.

He stood alone on the city wall of Chang'an, the night wind howling and blowing his tattered white robe.

Li Junxian led the imperial guards to stand at a distance, not daring to approach.

He alone reached out and touched the mottled city wall, his fingertips tracing the cracks left by time, as if touching the weeping face of this empire.

After a long silence, he whispered something almost inaudibly:

"I... will not let you die in vain."

Li Shimin gave a bitter smile, his voice low and hoarse like embers in the wind: "If I win in two days—Chang'an will prosper forever! If I lose…I will be buried by the pass, and Chang'an will likely be reduced to ruins."

He had no way out.

In fact, just two days ago, he ordered a royal coffin to be cast!

He chose to go to war carrying his own coffin, never to return from the battlefield.

Li Junxian's eyes welled up with tears, and his throat felt like it had been burned by fire. He said hoarsely, "Your Majesty will surely win! Even if we all perish in battle, we will protect you!"

Li Shimin slowly shook his head, but his eyes were as cold as iron being tempered, unfathomable.

He gazed at the distant frontier, a cold smile playing on his lips: "You don't understand."

I can only win, I cannot lose.

Once defeated, one deserves only to be buried in the wilderness.

He pointed to the blood-stained ground, his voice suddenly turning icy: "Look there, how many people have died?!"

"The people of Youzhou, the men of Dingzhou, the Ghost-faced General, and those soldiers who wore bronze masks to their deaths... Countless Han men fell on that land."

His tone suddenly turned somber, like a ghost crawling out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood, each word uttered with gritted teeth: "If I cannot annihilate the Turks, how can I face them?!"

Li Junxian stood behind him, unable to utter a single word.

He knew that the emperor was not making harsh statements at this moment.

To personally lead the army while carrying a coffin was both a vow and a final farewell!

Especially the moment the news of the Ghost-Faced General's death arrived—

The anger in Li Shimin's heart had burned away all hesitation and benevolence.

Now, no one can stop him.

Unless... the Ghost-Faced General has truly returned from hell!

"what?"

Just as Li Junxian was thinking this, he suddenly heard a soft sound beside him.

He followed Li Shimin's gaze—his pupils suddenly contracted!

High on the city wall, a young man lay casually on the blue bricks, looking up at the starry sky, as if the world consisted only of this one patch of night sky.

"Who?!" Li Shimin frowned. "During curfew, unauthorized entry onto the city walls is strictly prohibited. How did he get up here?"

Li Junxian looked bewildered and could only shake his head.

But this scene piqued Li Shimin's interest.

Fortunately, he traveled incognito today and did not reveal his identity.

At that moment, he led Li Junxian step by step toward the young man.

My footsteps on the stone steps felt as heavy as the weight of the entire city of Chang'an.

……

That young man was none other than Han Ye.

Unable to sleep at night, his mind was filled with images of battle, blood, broken flags, and tattered armor whenever he closed his eyes.

Zhong Fang's dying gaze, Jiang Fuzi's life-burning cry, Xiahou Dun's bloodied and fallen figure, and those rows of masked soldiers wearing bronze masks charging into the enemy ranks...

Everything was churning in his mind, tearing at his consciousness.

Can't sleep.

I really can't sleep.

So he quietly left Li Jing's residence, scaled the walls and ridges, and made his way to the walls of Chang'an, wanting only to quietly look at the starry sky and let his heart cool down.

"Young man, what are you looking at?"

A gentle voice came from behind.

Li Shimin had already approached and bent down to ask.

Han Ye didn't even lift his eyelids.

Still gazing at the vast sea of ​​stars, his voice was as cold as frost: "Observe the overall situation."

Li Shimin's heart skipped a beat: "What is meant by 'the overall trend'?"

"The general trend of the Tang Dynasty." Han Ye's tone was calm, but every word was as firm as nails.

Li Shimin's expression changed slightly, and his eyes sharpened instantly.

Li Junxian scoffed, "Arrogant! A mere brat dares to talk about the state of the nation? Do you think you can even see a few stars?"

But Li Shimin didn't get angry. Instead, he smiled and said, "Then tell me, what did you 'observe'?"

"Whoosh—"

Before he could finish speaking, Han Ye suddenly sat up!

His eyes flashed like lightning, piercing straight at Li Shimin!

In that instant, the air seemed to freeze, and even the night wind held its breath.

He stared at Li Shimin, each word spoken with the sharpness of a knife and axe:

"You really want to hear it?"

Li Shimin felt a sudden chill run down his spine.

But he suppressed his fear and nodded: "Speak."

The next second—

Han Ye spoke coldly, his two sentences exploding like thunder in the sky:

"This battle is destined to be lost!"

"The Tang Dynasty is doomed!"

boom!!!

The entire city wall seemed to have been pierced by lightning!

Li Shimin trembled violently, his eyes suddenly turning bloodshot, as if he had been stabbed in the chest!

Li Junxian suddenly drew his sword, roaring like thunder: "How dare you spout nonsense, you brat! Are you courting death?!"

But Han Ye didn't even glance at him.

After saying that, he lay down straight again and looked up at the starry sky, as if those two words were just a casual breeze.

Li Shimin stood frozen in place, his fingertips trembling, his chest heaving violently.

Hope was almost crushed to dust by those two sentences.

My mind was buzzing incessantly, as if ten thousand horses were galloping and trampling my consciousness.

And in this deathly silence—

Han Ye's voice rang out again, cold and lonely, yet possessing a suffocating penetrating power:

"The Ghost-Faced General traded his life for time..."

"He doesn't want you to die with him."

The night wind howled over the walls of Chang'an.

The boy lay beneath the starlight, his gaze deep and unfathomable, as if he had traversed the cycle of life and death and seen through the long river of fate.

Li Junxian suddenly drew his sword, a cold glint flashing as the blade pointed directly at the young man.

A murderous intent surged in his eyes, and his anger almost consumed his reason.

This kid is far too audacious—he actually dared to utter such rebellious words as "The Tang Dynasty will surely perish" in front of the emperor!

That's practically suicide!

As long as Li Shimin gives the order, he can rush up immediately and cleave the man's head in two with a single stroke!

But... the moment he gripped the hilt of the knife, a hint of hesitation quietly surfaced.

Can this seemingly arrogant young man really be easily cut down by my blade?

He might not be a match for Han Ye!