While the entire Qingyang Mansion was immersed in the joy brought by victory, the imperial capital thousands of miles away was surrounded by an atmosphere of fear, anger and worry. After Tu Mingzhi of the Zhenguo Company was defeated and fled back to the main camp on October 8, it immediately triggered the collapse of the empire's Western Expeditionary Army. Kurdo and Geya led the main Luo Bei cavalry to pursue them all the way, chasing them away. The imperial army had no way to go to heaven and no way to enter the earth, so they fled in panic. After the imperial infantry was defeated, Kurdo and Geya only sent a part of their troops to disperse them to prevent them from gathering again and posing a threat to their own troops. The main force pursued the imperial cavalry led by Situ Mingzhi with all their strength. Situ Mingzhi was already frightened. Fleeing all night, they entered Bonan Prefecture. Kurdo and Geya followed them. Situ Mingzhi, who had not yet gained a foothold, had to lead his troops to escape again. They chased and escaped until they fled into Longdong, Kansai County. The enemy did not continue the pursuit until they entered the Mansion's territory. It was already October 10th -
The exhausted Situ Mingzhi only rested for one night in Longdong Mansion. On October 11, he left tens of thousands of remaining troops behind. He hurried back to the imperial capital with only a dozen followers. He knew that the news of his tragic defeat would soon come. It will be reported back to the Imperial Capital. If you don't return to the Imperial Capital before His Majesty the Emperor learns the news and find a few powerful people who can intercede for you to do the work for you, will your head be able to save your head from the wrath of the Imperial Brother? It's all unknown. Thinking of this, he couldn't help but regret deeply why he went back to wade through this muddy water. He even resented He Zhiqiu for why he didn't insist on letting him serve as the commander of this battle -
He was so anxious along the way that he worked overtime every day and rushed back to the imperial capital from Longdong Mansion in only five days. However, the imperial intelligence agency stationed in Longdong did not fully grasp the empire until October 13th due to Situ Mingzhi's blockade of information. The defeat of the Western Expeditionary Army was reported to the Imperial Capital via express mail on October 15th, which was also the time when Situ Mingzhi returned to the Imperial Capital—
As soon as he returned to the imperial capital, Situ Mingzhi didn't even have time to take a breath, and went to the house of Tian Yi, the imperial minister of finance. Seeing this, Tian Yi quickly invited several ministers who had good relations with Situ Mingzhi to discuss it, and asked Situ Mingzhi to come immediately Go to the palace to ask for mercy, and then bear the thorn to plead guilty. Just when Situ Mingzhi entered the palace for an interview, Emperor Tanghe Empire Situ Mingyue received the battle report from the military department that the Empire's Western Expeditionary Army was completely wiped out, and immediately ordered an emergency court meeting. By this time, it was already the afternoon of October 15th. Got—
"According to the current intelligence, the Imperial Western Expeditionary Army attacked the enemy's main camp on October 8, and the entire army was defeated. Large-scale enemy troops were discovered in the three prefectures of Qingyang, Bonan, and Guide in the northwest counties. It is suspected that they have already Controlled by the Luobei people, an unknown number of enemy troops were also found in the area bordering Longdong Prefecture in Guanxi County, and it is suspected that they may continue to advance eastward. The remaining approximately 30,000 cavalry of the empire are currently deployed in Longdong Prefecture, but they lack weapons. We are equipped with grain, grass and other logistical supplies, and morale is also poor." The head of the military intelligence department became quieter as he reported -
"Very good, very good. The majestic Tanghe Empire's Western Expedition Army of more than 200,000 people actually only has less than 30,000 people left in a few days. Is this called fighting or committing suicide? It is really unprecedented!" Situ Mingyue's face turned red. He turned white, turned from white to blue, his chest rose and fell sharply, and he stood up and walked around in front of the imperial case in excitement. Seeing His Majesty the Emperor was so angry, all the ministers in the palace lowered their heads and remained silent. "What about Situ Mingzhi?" Situ Mingyue tried her best to control her emotions and asked, "Master Zhen Guo Gong is already on his way back to the imperial capital and may arrive soon." The person in charge of the Intelligence Department replied in a low voice. "So, he still has a life left?" Situ Mingyue asked viciously, and there was a deathly silence in the hall -
"Your Majesty, the Duke of Zheng is asking for an audience outside the palace." The guard outside the palace gate reported, "You've come just in time, let him go to the palace!" The anger that had already subsided was raging in his heart. I saw Situ Mingzhi naked, with a few thorn sticks tied on his back, kneeling and crawling into the hall, "I have betrayed the great trust of the emperor. I deserve death. Please punish me." Situ Mingzhi was full of emotions in Situ Mingyue. His eyes were trembling with anger that could melt steel, and he seemed to stutter when speaking. His head was buried on the ground and he didn't even dare to raise it—
Situ Mingyue let out a long breath, put his hands behind his back, and his tone became much calmer, "What is your crime? Do you still remember what I said to you when I appointed you as the commander of the Western Expedition Force? Do you still remember? Remember Mr. He’s repeated instructions from the military headquarters here?”—
"Brother I remember."—
"The great rivers and mountains in the northwest were destroyed in one day. The Central Plains was shaken, and people's hearts were in danger. God's sins can be forgiven, but one's own sins are unbearable. In this case, don't blame the emperor's men for being ruthless. Come, Situ Mingzhi will be arrested immediately He was pushed out of the city gate and beheaded in public, and his head was hung on the city gate to thank the people of the country!" -
The cold voice sounded like thunder in Situ Mingzhi's ears, "Brother Emperor, please spare my life, Brother Emperor, please spare your life!" Situ Mingzhi never expected that Brother Emperor would not even ask the opinions of the ministers in the palace, and directly announced himself He was so frightened by the death penalty that he begged for mercy -
The ministers in the palace were also shocked and did not even have time to make any reaction. This was the emperor's biological brother who was always close to his mother, but he was actually ordered to be beheaded by his majesty himself. "No one is allowed to intercede for him, otherwise, no wonder." I am heartless." The cold voice sounded again, breaking Situ Mingzhi's last glimmer of hope. Several wolf-like guards rushed up, dragged Situ Mingzhi and walked out of the palace. Several of the officials in the palace originally thought Before he could plead for Situ Mingzhi, he was frightened back by Situ Mingyue's next two words, leaving only Situ Mingzhi's pitiful screams echoing in the hall -
He Zhiqiu couldn't bear it anymore. He knew that His Majesty was really angry this time. His Majesty the Emperor has always had a bad temper. When he was young, he once ordered the guards to kill two ministers who dared to go against his will in the main hall. In this case, the other ministers were shocked. If If I don't come forward to dissuade him, I'm afraid that Duke Zhen Guo will really be killed -
"Hold on! Your Majesty, please listen to me. The failure of this Western Expedition was caused by many reasons, and I also bear unshirkable responsibility." He Zhiqiu came out and knelt down -
"He Aiqing does not need to defend Situ Mingzhi, nor does he need to take the responsibility on himself. I have made my own decision." Situ Mingyue remained unmoved at all -
"Your Majesty, I am indeed responsible for the failure of this battle. At that time, I thought that Zhen Guogong was not the best candidate to be the commander of this battle. However, after His Majesty made the decision, I also took a chance and thought that maybe it would not be possible. There will be big problems, and I did not stick to my own opinions. This is where I failed in my duty." -
All the ministers in the palace also knelt down to plead for Situ Mingzhi. Situ Mingyue sighed, "I also bear the responsibility of employing unwise people in this battle. Who is more responsible than me? Anyway, although I am exempted from the death penalty, Situ Mingzhi will be removed from all official positions and titles, and will be imprisoned and will be tried by the three departments of justice." -
After dealing with Situ Mingzhi, Situ Mingyue was still angry, "Everyone here, remember that when I appointed Situ Mingzhi as the commander-in-chief of the Western Expeditionary Army, all of you were present except Mr. Lu who was not here due to illness. It seems that except He Aiqing who had dissuaded me. Apart from me, you all agree and support me. Now that I think about it, I should bear the responsibility for employing people who are not virtuous, but what kind of responsibility should everyone here bear? If I eat the emperor's salary and take the emperor's salary, I am afraid I should share the worries for you. I hope that everyone should reflect on themselves!" -
Hearing His Majesty's harsh tone, all the ministers knelt down and apologized, "The current situation is so bad, what good advice can He Aiqing have?" Situ Mingyue ignored it, "Your Majesty, we need to understand the situation in the northwest region as soon as possible before making arrangements. But as per I deduced that the Luobei people do not yet have the strength to march into the Central Plains, and they will at most harass Longdong Mansion for a while, so please be at ease, Your Majesty, but the situation in other places is worth noting." He Zhiqiu answered cautiously -
"Oh? Tell me what you think." Situ Mingyue asked quickly -
"In my humble opinion, the purpose of the Luobei people's eastward march this time is mainly to seize food and grass to tide over the difficulties in their territory, and they have not made preparations to march eastward to the Central Plains. Otherwise, they could have taken advantage of the situation and made a sudden advance without having to attack Longdong Prefecture. The border stopped, and our army there did not make any preparations at all. We need to seize the time to understand the activities of the Luobi people in the northwest region so that we can take corresponding measures in the next step. It’s just that we are in Guanxi and Heshuo counties. Our troops are already very weak to guard against threats from the southwest, and the war is raging in the Principality of Jerok in the north. Archduke Allen of the Principality of Jerok has twice sent envoys to us for help, but our troops from the Northern Military Region can cope with King Poole's troops. The attack seems to be somewhat inadequate, and they cannot spare any troops to reinforce, let alone deal with the Luobi people. Machi Khan in the south seems relatively calm, but its military strength has far exceeded that of our southern military region. Although they have not made any changes now, they must not take it lightly. The only one that can be mobilized is the Seventh Army Corps of the Eastern Military Region." He Zhiqiu analyzed every word carefully -
"But, Mr. He, there is only one legion stationed in Donghai and Jiangnan counties, and the Japanese are very rampant now. I'm afraid the seventh legion cannot be mobilized at will." A handsome young man came out and asked. This man was Situ Mingyue's second legion. The seventh son, Situ Yuan, is inextricably linked to the powerful local factions in Donghai and Jiangnan counties. His mother is from a noble family in the Kingdom of Milan, so he also has a special relationship with the powerful nobles in the Kingdom of Milan. —
He Zhiqiu couldn't help but frown secretly, his unintentional words actually touched the interests of His Highness the Seventh Prince again. "Your Majesty the Seventh Prince is overthinking it. It has already entered late autumn, and the Japanese generally do not make major movements during this period. What's more, I have no idea of mobilizing troops from the east. After all, the distance is too far, and distant water cannot quench the thirst of the near." -
"In your opinion, what should we do now?" Situ Mingyue felt her head hurt after hearing this. There were wars everywhere. Except for the northwest region, the north was also at war. The Principality of Jerok was the number one obstacle to the Kaman Empire in the north. The natural barrier of the enemy cannot be ignored, but now the troops are insufficient and stretched -
"In my opinion, the current focus is on gathering intelligence. At the same time, we can order the other two divisions of the City Guard Corps, except the First Division, to prepare for battle and station themselves in Heshuo County and Jerok Principality respectively, just in case. "He Zhiqiu pondered for a long time before replying -
"Then if you have any other suggestions, please tell me and let me hear them." Situ Mingyue glanced sideways at the ministers kneeling at His Highness -
"I have something to say." Interior Minister Lu Wenfu stood up and went out to the parade -
"Lu Aiqing, please speak." Situ Mingyue was still very polite to Lu Wenfu. After all, Lu Wenfu had nothing to do with the selection of the commander-in-chief, and he was also quite unpopular among the officials -
"Currently, there is a lot of discussion in various places about the failure of the Empire's Western Expedition. Rumors are spreading in many places, especially in the Imperial Capital and Heshuo County, causing people to panic. I would like to ask your Majesty to agree to issue an announcement. People are strictly prohibited from talking about it in private. If there are any rumors to confuse the public, If you do, you will be punished as a spy for the enemy." Lu Wenfu still looked like he was bearing down on the mountain without changing his expression -
"Oh, then I'm not going to cover my ears and steal the bell? After all, paper can't cover up the fire. If the people want to talk, let them talk, but those who deliberately spread rumors and cause trouble must be severely punished and cannot be tolerated." Situ Mingyue sighed. He ordered in a tone -
"I obey the decree."—
The news of the empire's defeat in the Western Expedition immediately spread throughout the imperial capital. From the princes and ministers to the traffickers and soldiers, everyone was talking about it, and the news became more and more popular. Some say that the Luobi captured the entire 200,000-plus army of the empire's Western Expedition and buried all the prisoners alive; some said that the Luobei army had occupied the entire six prefectures of the northwest county and captured all the imperial court officials; Some say that the Luobei people have united with the three northern countries of the empire and will invade soon; some even say that His Majesty the Emperor has left the imperial capital for inspection in the south of the Yangtze River. In fact, he is afraid that the Luobei people will really attack the imperial capital and be surrounded. inside. These rumors are told with nose and eyes, as if these people saw it with their own eyes and heard it with their own ears -
After Guan Yingying, Hua Yumei and An Qier learned the news, they were all anxious and asked around for news about Wu Feng. Since the imperial authorities kept the details of the empire's defeat strictly confidential, the three of them could not get the exact information. , not to mention the fact that Wu Feng led the Fourth Regiment, even the Imperial Intelligence Department did not know about it at the time. However, Gu Ji had already been mentally prepared, because when Wu Feng left, he revealed to Gu Ji that he was not optimistic about the Western Expedition and asked Gu Ji to take care of the three girls. So Gu Ji told the three girls to rest assured and said that Wu Feng Feng was already prepared and would inform them immediately as soon as he had any news.