After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

The night wind howled.

The main camp tents continued to rattle and bang in the strong wind.

A cold breeze seeped through the narrow seams of the door fabric.

A lamp stood on each side of the entrance.

The flames flickered in the wind.

Two oil lamps were also placed on the speaker's table.

Inside the tent,

The light and shadow were dim and yellowish.

The newly appointed governor, who was extremely pragmatic, kowtowed very hard, and his already bruised forehead was now covered in blood.

As Huang Zhongcai kowtowed, he looked at the shadow cast on the ground by Prince Duan, feeling both shocked and bitter, and cried out in despair.

He urged him to take office.

This is both a great achievement and a great taboo for a subject.

No crown prince could tolerate his elder brother being urged to ascend the throne by his ministers, even if he was acting on the orders of his father, the emperor, especially since he was a military general.

I have indeed come tonight on the orders of the Emperor and Lord Ortai to test whether Prince Duan dares to bring troops into the capital.

More importantly... Huang Zhongcai recalled the few words Lord Ortai had revealed to him, and his heart was filled with shock.

It's likely that the Emperor is testing whether Prince Duan knows about the old eunuch's assassination attempt on him.

Even, is that old eunuch one of Prince Duan's men?

If that old eunuch is related to Prince Duan, then Prince Duan will know that the Emperor has probably really passed away, and he will definitely lead his troops into the capital without stopping, and quickly ascend to the throne as the eldest son.

If the old eunuch had nothing to do with Prince Duan, then Prince Duan would be suspicious and hesitant, unsure whether the matter was true or false. However, if the prince still led his troops into the capital after I urged him to ascend the throne, it would be enough to prove that Prince Duan was not sincere.

If things had stopped at the moment, at the moment when Prince Duan was righteous and not only rebuked him, but even planned to go to the capital alone, Huang Zhongcai would have thought that Prince Duan was pure, filial and loyal.

Although his lineage nearly blocked his path to the throne, he was still worthy of being the emperor's son.

but……

Suddenly, the other person's expression changed.

Huang Zhongcai's heart clenched and trembled; he dared not think too deeply about it.

"Governor Huang,"

After a while, Han Chang smiled, bent down to help the Han army commander of the Plain Yellow Banner up, and said calmly:

"I was merely joking with the Governor-General, please do not take offense. Tomorrow the Governor-General may impeach me for acting arbitrarily and delaying military affairs, and suggest that my Father Emperor issue an edict ordering me to stop engaging in theoretical discussions and to entrust the affairs of this region to Minister of War Ortai for decision-making."

Huang Zhongcai's knees went weak, and he finally breathed a sigh of relief, quickly saying:

"This servant dares not! Prince Duan is thoughtful and deliberate, his military tactics are upright and magnanimous, and his ability to lead troops far surpasses that of this servant..."

"No,"

Han Chang looked at him calmly, then interrupted:

"You must be impeached."

Meeting that gaze, Huang Zhongcai's breath almost caught in his throat for a moment. After a few breaths, Governor Huang solemnly clasped his hands and said:

"This servant obeys the master's order and will write a secret report immediately."

……

……

The bright moon hangs high in the sky.

At dawn, the stars in the sky form irregular shapes.

Ning Nan didn't understand astrology, and could only barely recognize the Big Dipper in the north.

Tian Shu, Tian Xuan, Tian Ji, Tian Quan, Yu Heng, Kai Yang, Yao Guang...

He remembered several of Mu Ziying's apprentices; it seemed they were named those few things.

There was a man named Hao Yuheng who tried to humiliate Princess Tang, but he was shot dead by Hao Yuheng.

There's also Xu Tianji, whom this person wanted to kidnap and take to that ship; it's unknown whether he's still alive.

When my mind is filled with random, nonsensical thoughts.

Xu Xiyin brought Yu Yantan, a man from the Heavenly Principle Sect, to report on the interrogation.

"Young Master," Xu Xiyin said worriedly, "it seems we've run into big trouble."

Ning Nan sat on a large rock by the roadside. His bottom was ice cold when he first sat down, but it was much warmer now. He looked at the newly appointed Left Protector.

"Young master,"

The Daoist nun, in her early thirties, furrowed her brows, which held a touch of heroic spirit. Her eyes were filled with worry as she spoke in a deep voice:

"Miaofeng Mountain... is surrounded by government troops."

"Oh?" Ning Nan raised an eyebrow.

"The Third Prince... Prince Duan led 10,000 elite guards and another 10,000 Green Standard Army soldiers to surround Miaofeng Mountain."

"Prince Duan?" Ning Nan's heart sank.

Han Chang.

Yu Yantan's people naturally did not know this person's other identity.

Xu Xiyin said that Han Chang had been dismissed from his post and expelled from the cult by the old leader Han.

"Exactly." Xu Xiyin replied heavily.

It was when Han Chang was still the Left Protector that he ordered her to write that letter, saying that he would exchange the Southern Kingdom delegation for the young master at Miaofeng Mountain.

later.

The old leader then set the location for this sect's Xiangshan Conference at Miaofeng Mountain.

Xu Xiyin was puzzled by this matter. Han Changying had already betrayed his religion, yet he still chose to become the prince of the Tartar emperor.

The old leader was aware of this matter and expelled him from the sect. Why didn't he move the Southern Kingdom delegation's location and the Xiangshan Conference's location?

Now, Han Chang has brought his men to besiege the mountain, clearly intending to wipe out the Heavenly Principle Sect and the Southern Kingdom delegation in one fell swoop, using it as a stepping stone for his advancement!

"All the temples on the mountain have been searched by the soldiers, and all our people are now trapped on the mountain."

"Yu Yantan and his group were from Zheng Baoju's jar. They secretly broke out from the east side of Miaofeng Mountain at night. Although they evaded the sentries, they were still discovered by the patrolling cavalry."

"They were chased all the way here, and only by constantly traversing mountain paths did they manage to escape. Everyone else is dead except for him."

Xu Xiyin had mixed feelings.

20,000 people.

With 20,000 elite troops surrounding the mountain, even though Miaofeng Mountain is large enough, as long as they search the mountain in sections every day, they can find everyone in three to ten days and wipe out all the members of the Heavenly Principle Sect.

Huff... The nun's breathing faltered.

A series of booming sounds echoed in my head.

For this young cult leader, the Southern Kingdom delegation was his top priority, and the members of the Heavenly Principle Sect... he probably wouldn't care much about them.

But for her...

The mountain was inhabited by her father's generation and her peers, and now it was filled with the sect's elites and upper echelons.

Seven or eight altar masters, dozens of incense masters, and seven or eight hundred of the most loyal followers of the sect, scattered across various provinces and counties, had come together to pay homage to the new leader and discuss important matters.

Now they are trapped on the mountain and don't have enough to eat.

Yu Yantan said that the seventy or eighty people in their group hid in three caves, and after only one day, they heard the sound of the Tartars searching the mountains.

Many brothers said that waiting was also a death sentence, so they might as well go out and fight the Tartars. However, they were firmly suppressed by Master Zheng.

Xu Xiyin felt a chill in her heart.

If all these people were to perish at the hands of the Tartars...

That Confucian Church...

The newly appointed Left Protector held his breath, filled with fear, and his face turned deathly pale.

It's likely that it will be difficult to rebuild within the next ten years.

"Master Xu."

Ning Nan bent down, picked up a twig from the ground, tapped it to remove some dirt, tore off a few leaves and forks, thought for a moment, and said softly:

"Could you please bring me a map of Miaofeng Mountain?"