Tang Dynasty Swordsman.

Li Ji looked up blankly and saw a purple-robed official swaggering towards him, escorted by warriors. He quickly pulled his cart aside to make way for the official. Although he kept his head down, he still stole glances and saw that the official had a full face and kind eyes. Although he was only in his thirties, he had the demeanor of an elder. This was Yan Zhuang, whom he had met once before. He wondered who this was.

Then, a casual glance out of the corner of his eye towards the official's back caused Li Ji's previously calm heart to race, and he quickly lowered his head even further. He noticed four warriors behind the man, one of whom was tall and imposing, with an extremely familiar appearance—

Isn't this really that scoundrel?!

Li Ji was filled with unease, wondering if it was truly Sui, or... if there really were such a similar person in the world? It couldn't be that simple. Unless they were twins who had lived together for many years, it was one thing for their facial features to be similar, but there was no reason for their beards and walking postures to be so alike.

It's highly likely that he truly succeeded, but why did he join the rebel army and even become a bodyguard for a rebel official? Was it because he had no way to return to Tang, so he simply became a traitor, or did he, like me, also shoulder a special mission? Whom does he now take orders from? Cui Guangyuan or Li Fuguo?

Now that Li Ji had noticed Zhen Sui, fearing that the other man might also discover him, he feigned reverence for the nobleman, bowing even more deeply and lowering his head even further. Yet, he couldn't help but peek up at Zhen Sui's actions. He saw the man seemingly glance casually in their direction, then his brow furrowed, his expression slightly surprised…

Li Ji's heart pounded wildly. He wondered if the other party had indeed betrayed the Tang Dynasty and would expose his identity on the spot? If so, how much of a chance would he have against four opponents? In any case, Li Ji had compared himself with Zhen Sui in the past, and their skills were roughly equal... If he really encountered danger, would A-Cuo come to his aid?

Perhaps in order to protect Consort Shen, she would be happy to sacrifice me, this unexpected scapegoat...

However, Zhen Sui's gaze did not seem to be fixed on Li Ji, but on the person beside him. After his initial surprise, Zhen Sui stroked his beard and smiled slightly.

After the group had gone quite a distance, Li Ji dared to straighten up. He immediately mimicked the direction Zhen Sui was looking and glanced to his side—it was A-Cuo! Yes, of course they would recognize him. Zhen Sui hadn't seen through my disguise, but he should have been able to recognize A-Cuo!

Come to think of it, after all, he had shaved his beard and even applied white powder to his chin. Since A-Cuo didn't recognize him, perhaps Sui really wouldn't be able to tell him apart just by glancing at him from the corner of his eye.

However, when Li Ji examined A-Cuo, the little girl still had a blank look in her eyes and no expression on her face. He couldn't tell if she had seen Zhen Sui or the enigmatic smile he gave her before leaving...

The incident happened suddenly, and Li Ji was both shocked and frightened. That evening, he sat on the mat inexplicably, unable to decide whether to go and break into A-Cuo's room again... Not only to ask her to send a message outside the palace, but now that he had seen Zhen Sui today, could he use this as a breakthrough to find out some secrets? But that little girl was very tight-lipped, and how could he ask her to say a few words?

As he hesitated and pondered repeatedly, he suddenly heard a soft "thud" in the courtyard, as if something had fallen to the ground... Li Ji immediately became alert, secretly clenched his fists, and silently changed his sitting posture to a squatting posture, listening and guarding with all his might, ready to leap up at any moment.

Sure enough, in the stillness, he heard soft footsteps approaching from the courtyard gate, but they stopped at the window. Li Ji suddenly became alert, immediately controlling his breathing and exhaling through his nose, pretending to snore softly. Sure enough, after listening to the snoring for a moment, the person moved, and then A-Cuo's door creaked open…

Li Ji had noticed a few days ago that the three rooms in the outer courtyard were connected, likely originally one large house that was later partitioned. Moreover, the walls were very thin, and due to years of disrepair, much of the plaster had peeled off, resulting in poor sound insulation. So he moved quietly, carefully pressed himself against the wall, and listened intently to the sounds coming from next door.

Then a familiar voice called out softly, "Orphan, orphan."

Then came A-Cuo's voice: "I called you here today—what do you want?"

Li Ji thought to himself, "So that's how it is. A-Cuo's real name is 'Qi'er' (弃儿)... or perhaps it's just one character, 'Qi' (弃) – yes, 'Cuo' itself means to put aside or abandon." He had secretly gone over a few nights ago and asked her what her real name and surname were, but the little girl kept quiet. He hadn't expected that he actually knew before.

Be

Chapter 18, King Xiang's Intention

When Zhen visited A-Cuo at night, he mentioned that An Qingxu intended to abandon Luoyang and flee north. A-Cuo couldn't help but ask, "The government troops haven't even arrived yet, and they don't even dare to defend the city?"

Zhen Sui chuckled again and said, "The key is not in Luoyang, but in Suiyang... You don't understand these important military and national affairs, so let me tell you..."

A-Cuo said, "I won't listen. You should leave now!"

Li Ji was eavesdropping next door, leaning against the wall. He thought to himself, "Don't do that. Let him talk. I'm actually looking to hear some news about Suiyang."

Fortunately, Zhen Sui refused to shut up and insisted on explaining: "After An Qingxu usurped the throne, the reason he refused to launch a large-scale westward advance was because Yan Zhuang advised him to first capture Suiyang and threaten the Jianghuai region. Last month, when the Tang army recaptured Xijing, An Qingxu wanted to recall Yin Ziqi's troops from the walls of Suiyang. It was Yan Zhuang who said that Suiyang would fall soon, thus securing the flanks, and that it wouldn't be too late for Yin Ziqi to return then..."

"The key is that the Tang army needs to rescue Suiyang, and the nearest cities are Qiaoxian and Pengcheng, each with tens of thousands of troops stationed there. Yan Zhuang therefore privately sent threatening letters to Luqiu Xiao of Qiaoxian and Xu Shuji of Pengcheng, saying that whoever dared to go to rescue Suiyang would be attacked first, so neither of them dared to move. Seeing that Suiyang was running out of food and about to fall, Helan Jinming suddenly went north and coerced Xu Shuji to go to the rescue, while the Tang court also sent Zhang Hao eastward and strictly ordered Luqiu Xiao to mobilize his troops."

"With these two armies attacking from both sides, Yin Ziqi suffered a crushing defeat, and his hundreds of thousands of troops scattered in an instant. As a result, An Qingxu dared not defend Luoyang any longer and decided to flee north, while Yan Zhuang also wanted to kill Yang Chaozong to shirk his responsibility..."

Li Ji, who was listening from the next door, nodded secretly, thinking to himself that he hadn't expected that Zhen Sui, who seemed so rough and rough, could narrate military affairs so concisely and logically—maybe he was just pretending to be crazy, a guy who liked to play dumb to fool others. The original owner of this body had misjudged him.

But Zhen Sui probably doesn't know yet that the person who played the biggest role in He Lan Jinming's coercion of Xu Shuji to go to the rescue of Suiyang was an old friend of yours... As for Qiao County Prefect Lü Qiu Xiao, he has always been timid and knows nothing about military affairs. In addition, his troops are weak, probably less than 30% of Xu Shuji's. So when he talked to Nan Jiyun, he didn't expect him to go to the rescue.

I don't know why Fengxiang sent Zhang Hao, who had just been appointed prime minister. Zhang Hao might be a decent person, unlike Helan Jinming who hesitated and was eager to save Suiyang. I guess it was because he pressured them from behind, and Xu Shuji rushed ahead, that Luqiu Xiao had no choice but to go north to make a show of it after hearing about this.

However, with reinforcements arriving, given Zhang Xun's consistent tactics and Nan Jiyun's bravery, they would definitely break through the city walls and launch a counterattack, coordinating from both inside and outside. Zhen Sui didn't mention a word about this... What exactly was the situation in Suiyang City? Li Ji was so anxious that he almost scratched his head.

Before he could tell how much information Zhen Sui actually knew, or whether he intended to elaborate further, A-Cuo finally interrupted him: "Why are you telling me all this if you refuse to go? I am only obeying orders from above; who cares about what happens on the battlefield? Are you deliberately stalling for time to alert others and force me to leave the palace?!"

Zhen Sui laughed and said, "You are indeed clever, Abandoner. I will not ask what you are doing in the Yeting Palace, but this place is dangerous, so it is best to leave as soon as possible. If you are trapped in danger, I will not be at ease even if I leave."

"Hurry up—why be uneasy?"

"I don't want to tell you these things either, but there are some things... that are inconvenient to say in this situation. It's too dark to see your face clearly—did you use the box of rouge I gave you the other day?"

A-Cuo said irritably, "Throw it away!"

Li Ji thought to himself, "So that's how it is. That day in Ding'an City, I saw Zhen Sui come out of a powder shop, and later I asked the shopkeeper, who said he bought a box of rouge worth thirty coins. I was wondering, I've never heard of him having wives, concubines, or daughters, and even his mother has been dead for many years... Turns out it was for A-Cuo!"

Am I mistaken? If A-Cuo were cleaned up and put on some makeup, wouldn't she be presentable? Why is Zhen-Sui so infatuated with her?

Zhen Sui said, "Is there a eunuch living in the room next door? He might be eavesdropping right now, pressed against the wall..."

Upon hearing this, Li Ji was greatly shocked and involuntarily clenched his fists.

"If I go over and kill him with one punch, then climb over the wall and leave, you naturally won't be able to stay here and will have to leave the palace, right?"

Judging from A-Cuo's tone, he was clearly extremely angry. He hissed, "Did I save your life that day so that you would kill innocent people?! Go now, I'm going to sleep!"

Zhen Sui chuckled twice, but finally dared not linger any longer, and left the room with only the sound of light footsteps. Li Ji slowly turned around, facing his own door, his fists crossed loosely in front of his chest, but after a few soft sounds, there was no more movement.

Wow, this guy is so good at bypassing the firewall, I can't keep up!

Fortunately, this guy was just lying and didn't really intend to rush in and punch me to "death"... No, judging from his seduction of A-Cuo, this is probably not deception or intimidation, but can barely be considered... teasing?

Just as I was pondering whether to sneak over and mock... no, ask A-Cuo, I suddenly heard a "snap snap" of knuckles tapping on the wall, followed by A-Cuo's voice: "If you dare come any closer, I'd rather yell and we'll both break up!"

Li Ji couldn't help but find it amusing, and could only pretend to snore a few times in response.

Forget it, let's not provoke her. Let's talk about asking her to help send messages out of the palace tomorrow night.

----------

The next day at noon, he went out to deliver food and arrived at the Imperial Bedchamber's official residence, where...

As they were delivering the rice and cakes, an elderly eunuch in a red robe, surrounded by attendants, suddenly strode in from outside the door and ordered, "How many eunuchs are here? Bring them all out!"

A court attendant bowed and inquired, "Eunuch Tang, what brings you to summon this eunuch? Has someone committed some offense?"

The eunuch Tang curled his lip: "Exactly. A palace maid in Consort Zhang's courtyard was diagnosed as pregnant. His Majesty suspected that there were fake eunuchs in the palace! He ordered me to take off all their pants for inspection."

Li Ji was immediately shocked... At the same time, he couldn't help but curse inwardly, "An Qingxu, are you an idiot? Your own palace security is so lax! Yan Zhuang and Zhou Zhi stay overnight in the inner palace every day, with many guards by their side—for example, last night, if Zhou Zhi hadn't stayed in the palace, he probably wouldn't have been able to climb over the many palace walls to find A-Cuo—anyone could have slept with him! How could you suspect there was a fake eunuch?!"

Fake eunuchs do exist, though... but I've never laid a hand on any palace servants! Besides, I've only been in the palace for a few days; there's definitely not enough time. No, that's not the key issue. The key issue is, if they really wanted to take my pants off for a physical examination, what should I do? Even if I didn't, how could a man endure such humiliation?!

Oh no, if you really don't have that, then you can't be considered a real man...

It seems my only option is to find a chance to break out of the palace, and I don't even know if I can return unscathed—anyway, Consort Shen is protected by A-Cuo, so she should be safe. If I am lucky enough to survive, I might as well stay outside the palace and work with A-Cuo from the inside in the future…

Thinking of this, I couldn't help but turn my head and glance at A-Cuo, who was unloading the bread baskets from the cart. However, the little girl's gaze was blank as before, and I didn't know if she had even noticed me.

Could it be that she really thinks I've been castrated, and therefore doesn't care at all? It's my fault; I should have explained it to her a long time ago...

Suddenly, a middle-aged eunuch behind the old eunuch said, "Is this the food deliveryman? Let's check this one first."

Li Ji was furious. He thought to himself, "Why are you being so dedicated before the superior has even spoken? Even if I were to storm out of the palace, I would first punch you to death, you troublemaking, childless bastard!"

Seeing the old eunuch shift his gaze, Li Ji's heart pounded, and he clenched his fists inwardly. Just then, a loud "bang" rang in his ears—

It turned out that A-Cuo had accidentally dropped the bamboo basket, scattering the flatbread all over the ground.

Another palace maid who was following her said anxiously, "A-Cuo, how could you be so careless?" She then called to Li Ji, "Zhi Li, what are you standing there for? Hurry up and come help!"

Li Ji quickly ran over and helped A Cuo clean up the flatbread that had rolled on the ground. During this time, A Cuo seemed to intentionally or unintentionally brush Li Ji's hand, probably meaning: Don't be impulsive, lest you ruin things.

Li Ji thought to himself, "Are you asking me to endure humiliation and take off my pants willingly? But you don't know, if I take off my pants, I'll be exposed!"

Fortunately, this delay allowed five or six eunuchs from the Imperial Carriage Department to be summoned and lined up in front of the old eunuch. The old eunuch then waved his hand and said, "Let the Imperial Kitchen send the food first, so as not to delay and cause me to be scolded." Li Ji thus escaped a disaster for the time being.

But the search would eventually lead back to Si Chu, unless they discovered a second fake eunuch… No, even if they caught the “real culprit,” it wouldn’t necessarily mean the others would be let off the hook. So, while packing up the cake baskets, he mentally planned where, based on the palace paths he’d become familiar with over the past few days, it would be easiest to abandon the carriage and escape…

Not long after leaving Siyu, Acuo took a few quick steps, approached Li Ji, and then, with a blank expression, her lips moved slightly, her voice barely audible: "Don't run away, I'll think of a way."

Li Ji had excellent hearing and heard it clearly—he guessed that the palace maid behind him couldn't hear it—and immediately glanced at her sideways, but A-Cuo slowed down and fell behind the carriage as if nothing had happened.

Li Ji pondered repeatedly. It seemed that if he tried to break through the palace gates, there would be too many guards, and he estimated he wouldn't be able to escape. If he tried to climb over the wall... well, from the position of Si Chu, the wall would be the shortest and the lowest. "Forget it," he thought, "I'll go back first and wait to see how things develop. Ultimately, if I can continue to lie low, that's the best course of action."

Furthermore, if they disappear without a trace, that's one thing, but if they are discovered to have escaped, wouldn't the sudden disappearance of the steward arouse suspicion and lead to a search by higher-ups? Could it affect Consort Shen?

Besides, I had promised that if the rebel army were to invade the palace and wreak havoc, I would help block the gates of the kitchen and save the palace women.

They waited until evening, but the old eunuch didn't come knocking. So, in the dead of night, Li Ji quietly slipped into A-Cuo's room and whispered, "Was the matter resolved? How did you handle it?"

A-Cuo replied, "What ability do I have? I only secretly informed Third Sister and asked her to find a way. She should have gone to Yang Si-Chu. With Yang Si-Chu coming forward, it can be explained that you have only been in the palace for less than ten days, and the other two in the courtyard are old and ugly... I suppose that eunuch will not make a wasted trip."

He paused for a moment, then added, "Perhaps Yang Siqi paid him."

Li Ji let out a long sigh of relief, cupped his hands in thanks, and said, "Thank you for your care." Then he frowned and asked her, "You...did you already know that I wasn't a real eunuch?"

A-Cuo replied, "Others may not know you, but I do. You are from the Li family of Zhao County, the younger brother of the military clerk. How could you possibly have really become a eunuch?"

Li Ji thought to himself that Zhen Sui's assessment was correct; the little girl was indeed quite clever. So, following the lead, he deliberately steered the conversation towards Zhen Sui—"Today is truly an undeserved disaster. An Qingxu is an idiot. People like Zhen Sui, who are constantly in and out of the palace, have countless opportunities to have affairs with palace maids. How could he..."

Chapter Nineteen, Guarding the Gate and Resisting Invaders

With a loud bang, the gate of the catering courtyard swayed precariously.

It was already dusk on the day the mutinous troops entered and looted the palace. Last night, in the dead of night, An Qingxu, along with his family and important officials such as Yan Zhuang and Gao Shang, quietly opened the Xuanwu Gate in the north and left the palace. They then fled Luoyang through the Longguang Gate, making a hasty escape towards the Heyang Bridge. Before dawn, many eunuchs and palace servants received the news and also packed up their belongings and fled the palace.

It is estimated that these escaped eunuchs and palace servants spread the news throughout the city, which triggered chaos throughout the city. Soon after, the palace guards and the rebel army guarding the city coordinated their efforts and surged into the palace.

Now that the "emperor" and his ministers had fled, and with hundreds of thousands of Tang troops about to reach the city walls, everyone knew that Luoyang was no longer defensible, and escape was the only option. However, the Tang vanguard was still near Xin'an, and tens of thousands of rebel troops, still unaware of the situation, were stationed outside the city, attempting to stop the Tang army. It was estimated that the Tang army would not be able to enter the city anytime soon. Since there was still some time, it might be wise to "raise" some travel expenses before fleeing.

So the rebels began looting the city, but unfortunately, the An family had already plundered the land after occupying Luoyang, leaving ordinary people with almost no surplus food. Wealthy families like Yu Ling's, on the other hand, not only had strong servants to protect their property, but also worked together in a coordinated, armed defense, making it difficult for the rebels to take advantage. Then, someone suddenly thought, "An Qingxu is gone, the palace is without a master, what's the point of guarding it? Let's just go into the palace and rob it!"

And there are quite a few women in this palace!

Those who first received the news and fled were mostly high-ranking eunuchs and female scribes with official positions. As for the lower and middle ranks, they were at a loss, bewildered and helpless, and were almost all trapped in the palace by the imperial guards. Thus, the Luoyang palace instantly became a den of iniquity. The rebels looted and searched for palace women, venting their lust, which was amplified many times over by fear. Many palace women and even eunuchs had no choice but to find places to hide, as they had previously arranged, including the palace cooks.

Originally a small staff of just over twenty, the inner courtyard was soon swarmed with one or two hundred people, making it almost impossible to move. Manager Lü remained hidden in his bedroom, kneeling and praying, not daring to show himself. Manager Pang, while wanting to maintain order, was of low rank and unable to command effectively. Finally, Manager Yang, supported by Consort Shen and A'cuo on either side, emerged shakily and sternly reprimanded them:

"If the rebel army gets in, none of us will survive! Why are we just huddled in the backyard like turtles hiding in the sand? Hurry up and select the strongest men to go out and block the gate!"

Li Ji naturally took the lead in blocking the gate, and six or seven other eunuchs and palace maids with some strength and courage were also led out by A Cuo to help. They piled up almost everything heavy they could find and move behind the gate, but palace maids and eunuchs still kept fleeing there, pleading and begging, making it difficult to close the gate.

Finally, some rebel soldiers followed the sound and arrived. A eunuch was about to enter the gate when he was shot in the back by an arrow and fell to the ground. At this critical moment, Li Ji could no longer worry about saving more people—it was already difficult enough to save those in the courtyard—so he immediately kicked the eunuch, whose body was already half inside the gate, out of the courtyard, and then pushed the gate shut.

A-Cuo naturally stopped pretending to be senile. With a leap, he jumped more than three feet high and reached out to lock the door.

As a separate courtyard, the gate to the Sichu was quite small, unlike the double doors found in most courtyards and halls of the palace. It consisted of only one door leaf, so instead of a bolt, a key was used. The original meaning of "key" is an iron bar; when applied to the outside of a wheel, it becomes a linchpin, hence the term "cartridge key"; when applied to a door, it becomes a bolt, hence the term "door key." As the saying goes, "A horizontal bar is called a gate, a vertical bar is called a key," and the later term "key point" (or "crucial point") derives from this.

However, the door to the Si Chu Yuan courtyard wasn't secured with iron keys, but rather with a wooden key, held in place by two iron rings in a groove in the upper door frame—it was meant to defend against the inside, not the outside. Li Ji looked at the wooden key; it was barely half a foot long and about the thickness of a cup… This thing could be broken by hand; could it really keep out the rebels outside?

They quickly called over the palace servants and eunuchs to move over several wooden tables and frames and prop them against the door.

Hearing the rebels shouting outside to open the gate, those inside the courtyard paid no heed. Soon, footsteps became hurried, mixed with pleas and screams, clearly indicating that more and more rebels were gathering. Someone asked, "Are there any palace servants inside?" Another replied, "It seems some have escaped inside, and more than one."

The person who had spoken earlier shouted, "Then what are we waiting for? Come and bang on the door!"