Luoyang was destroyed, and only 60,000 of the 300,000 army remained. Li Jingye, Shan Chao and others led the troops all the way to Chang'an.
Empress Wu was furious when she heard the news, and Li Xiaoyi was killed and removed from the name, and Yu Wenhu was ordered to integrate the frontier field army to defend the capital, ready to meet the King Qin's army who had overcome all obstacles.
But it wasn't this that made her even more angry.
Hundreds of thousands of troops witnessed with their own eyes that the real dragon appeared in Luoyang City, carrying General Huaihua to the top of Shangyang Palace, and then the Big Dipper came to the world, and the century-old city wall of Luoyang suddenly collapsed into powder.
Rumors that shocked and disturbed her spread all over the world overnight.
"The Duke of England, General Huaihua, and others started a rebellion in the name of the Holy Majesty, occupied Luoyang, the eastern capital, and marched all the way to Chang'an. Do you have any ideas?"
Empress Wu's majestic voice echoed in the golden hall for a long time, and the officials looked at each other with different expressions.
After the destruction of the Eastern Capital, the world was shocked, and the voices of kings from all over the country rose up, and there were even more heroes in the south of Shandong to respond, forming a double-team trend against Chang'an. Although the Daming Palace is still magnificent, no matter how expensive the incense is, it is difficult to cover up the approaching gunpowder.
"The rebel army has come from afar, and the troops are bound to be exhausted, and the Queen of Heaven has ordered General Yuwen to defend the capital, and this battle will surely be victorious..."
Tianhou said coldly: "Flaty."
The waiter who spoke blushed and retreated.
"The Queen of Heaven may wish to ask the Holy One to announce to the world, and sternly reprimand the Duke of England and General Huaihua and others." Another censor said euphemistically: "Especially the strange omens that appeared on the day when Luoyang City was broken have spread all over the country, which has aroused the hearts of the people. Panic; only when the sage refute it with the golden words, can the world know that the real dragon emperor is still sitting in the capital, and all kinds of rumors and barbarous words will naturally disappear..."
— But these words hit the weakness of Tianhou's heart.
Let the emperor appear in front of the world as the real dragon emperor, further shaking her control? Naturally, it is extremely inappropriate.
However, if the emperor doesn't show up, what else can be done to crush the recent rumors that "the real dragon appeared in Luoyang City"
Shen Ruoshui behind the sky, just about to open his mouth to refute something, suddenly Cheng Wu, the general of Zuo Wuwei, stepped forward, looked directly at her, and said in a deep voice: "The British and others rebelled under the banner of 'King Qin'. They will respond one after another. If the Empress Dowager wants to quell the rebellion and stabilize the country, why not return the power to the Holy One, won’t the rebellion be settled?"
The hall was full of silence, Empress Wu's well-maintained, fair-skinned hands were tightly grasping the golden throne, and even the knuckles were protruding with blue veins: "... Dear dear friends, whoever has such advice, may as well join in stand out?"
No one spoke or moved, only Cheng Wuting stood upright in the middle of the golden hall.
Empress Wu gave a long laugh—although no one dared to speak, but she was sitting in the hall condescendingly, why couldn't she see how many people secretly had the same thoughts at the moment, but they didn't dare to show their heads because they cared about their wealth and lives
"Come on," she called out.
The guards filed in from the gate of the palace, and the expressions of the ministers all over the floor changed in horror. They only heard Empress Wu shouted every word: "Cheng Wuting has ulterior motives, and he is in vain. His Majesty is critically ill, and secretly informed the British Duke and other rebels. Detain me and ask for execution!"
"Heavenly Empress! You imprisoned the Holy Majesty, killed your parents and children, and swallowed the emperor's grandson! You will suffer retribution!..."
Cheng Wuting's angry reprimand gradually faded away, the civil and military officials were in an uproar, Tianhou's chest heaved violently, and she roared sharply: "Retire from the court!" After saying that, she got up and walked away.
In the side courtyard of Qingliang Hall, the guards leaned over one after another: "Welcome the Empress!"
The guards here are all her cronies who had been placed in the Xiaoqi Camp, and now they are specially transferred back to the palace to guard the safety of the Forbidden Palace in this precarious and sensitive period. Tianhou shook off the hands of the maids who supported her, without looking at anyone, she drew the dagger at his waist when passing by the captain of the guard, and strode towards the wooden door at the end of the courtyard.
boom!
The light flooded into the room from the wooden door in response to the sound, Xie Yun turned his head on a high-backed armchair in front of the window, his eyes were calm and unwavering: "Are you here to kill me?"
The house arrest for the past month did not make him feel depressed or haggard. On the contrary, he was calm, calm, and even a little indifferent, which was no different from the memories of the past twenty years in Empress Wu's mind.
Empress Wu gasped for breath, and suddenly reached out and grabbed Xie Yun's neck: "You have expected this day, haven't you?"
The two looked at each other, one up and one down, and a brief smile appeared in Xie Yun's eyes: "Did the southern army break through Luoyang?"
"..."
"Only by conquering Luoyang and passing through Shandong can we make all the heroes of the world respond and lay the foundation of King Qin fundamentally." Xie Yun looked into Empress Wu's eyes with a little regret, and said, "You should send someone to lure the British Duke to go south to Jinling, and then let him In the name of calming down the chaos, Li Xiaoyi intercepted and killed the Southern Army in Yuchang and Runzhou, and the chaos can be settled within a month at most...the situation today will not be the same."
Empress Wu's fingernails painted with Yinhong Koudan trembled slightly on his cotton-white soft skirt: "I ask you, you had expected this as early as ten years ago when you disobeyed my order and brought Shan Chao from Mobei to Chang'an." It's been a day, hasn't it?!"
After a long silence, Xie Yun said, "No."
"At first I just wanted him to live," Xie Yun's voice lowered, almost muttering, "Just like the first time my mother heard me begging for a bowl of water outside the wall, the first time I was in Turkic Seeing him in a tent... just wanted him to live."
—No matter how much conspiracy and intrigue were mixed in the relationship later, at least at the first moment, I was desperate and you were in jail, we just wanted to support each other to survive, that's all.
Empress Wu stared at Xie Yun, panting slightly, and after a long time she couldn't help nodding and sneering: "I understand... I understand."
She raised her neck and took a long breath.
She understood what kind of relationship it was, but the protagonist of the story had changed from her to someone else.
"On the day Luoyang City was broken, tens of thousands of soldiers witnessed the emergence of Qinglong, and flew to the Luoyang Palace with Shan Chao on their backs. The first emperor sincerely did not deceive me."
Every syllable seems to burst out from between Empress Wu's teeth, with a thick, undisguised irony. After she calmed down for a moment, the sarcasm gradually turned into a hint of cruelty, but her tone was extremely clear: "Things have developed into what they are today, not only because you have changed, but I have also changed. When I poisoned Yu Wenhu and failed, you I risked my life to take the blame, and afterwards I knelt down and begged His Majesty to save you from being exiled, and I went to the city gate to see you off several times... You are no longer the original you, and I am no longer the original me."
Xie Yun closed his eyes slightly and let out an inaudible sigh.
Empress Wu hissed: "The Xie Yun I knew died on the way to Mobei when the gate of Chang'an left..."
Xie Yun, however, denied her words with a self-deprecating tone: "No, the Xie Yun that the empress knew, died after the seal that prepared the auspicious omen for your enthronement."
Wu Hou's complexion was pale, his eyes were red, and he shook his head almost tremblingly. He didn't know whether he didn't want to believe it or he was deeply grieved, and he raised his hand inch by inch.
- Bark!
The sound of blood splattering echoed in this quiet and remote courtyard, the white robe on Xie Yun's chest quickly blushed bright red, and the point of the dagger in Empress Wu's hand had already sunk into his lapel!
"..." Xie Yun's lips leaked a trace of blood, but he panted and laughed lightly: "Mother, you have to pierce deeper... This is not acceptable."
The shiny blade trembled and reflected a swaying halo. Empress Wu's hands, and even her whole body, trembled uncontrollably, so that this woman, who had never been afraid of swords and swords for so many years, seemed a little collapsed.
"It's okay, that's it..."
Xie Yun closed his eyes, and leaned deeply on the back of the chair as if extremely exhausted, with a faint look of confusion in the corners of his brows and eyes: "When I die in the hands of the empress, and the empress dies in the hands of Qin Wangjun, the world will never be the same again." Without you and me, this world will return to the track of the Li and Tang Dynasty passing on forever... A hundred years later, the history book commentary said, you are the demon queen who brought disaster to the country, and I am the treacherous minister who usurped power... It can be regarded as a famous name in history."
Big tears welled up from Empress Wu's eyes, ran down her cheeks, and wet the expensive embroidered robe.
She can't remember the last time she cried and lost her voice. It seems that all the tears have been shed in the lonely harem of the first emperor, and in the long winter night of Ganye Temple; all the love and hatred left are directed towards the power The years of peak climbing turned into ashes.
However, at this moment, the bitter pain of unwillingness and despair came back.
It was so easy for the sharp point of the knife to penetrate into the flesh, but she didn't understand why the weight in her hand was over a thousand weights, as if she was not killing others, but killing herself bit by bit.
With a loud clang, the dagger fell to the ground.
Xie Yun opened his eyes, and Empress Wu watched him step back quickly, his steps could almost be called staggering. At this moment, footsteps came from far to near outside the courtyard, and the cronies rushed into the house and knelt on the ground with a loud bang: "Queen of Heaven! The 300,000 British rebels are approaching the city, and they are almost at Mingde Gate!"
·
The soldiers are approaching the city, at a critical moment.
Outside the Mingde Gate, on the plain thousands of miles away, the wind at the end of the horizon swept across the land, the sky was full of withered grass and bleak, and the sun was dim.
Standing on the city wall and looking down, the black army is overwhelming the mountains and plains, and the blood-stained "Dan" on the commander-in-chief flag in front of the battle is like a golden lion roaring up to the sky, dancing wildly in the sun.
Empress Wu raised her chin slightly, her face with gorgeous makeup and undiminished charm was reflected in the sun, and the outline looked extraordinarily hard.
Yu Wenhu, who was in full armor, bowed his head and said in a deep voice, "The Queen of Heaven."
In the wilderness, there is a tall figure looming in front of the formation, wearing a battle robe, and the light reflected from the helmet makes people unable to open their eyes.
- That's a single super.
The man who destroyed the city and pulled out the stronghold like a tiger, led troops thousands of miles from Yangzhou to the foot of the capital, and completely shook the foundation of her rule, was her own son.
Empress Wu withdrew her gaze and said coldly, "Bring Commander Xie."
Yu Wenhu was stunned for a moment, but he saw Empress Wu's personal soldiers bowed and retreated, and after a while, they actually escorted a person from left to right to climb up the tower!
The man with tied hair and a cotton white brocade robe, with a thin and tall figure, walked step by step from the strong wind. The blood from the stab wound on his chest had dried up, leaving obvious crimson marks on the front of his clothes.
Yu Wenhu didn't know what to say, his pupils constricted rapidly—it was really Xie Yun.
Empress Wu pointed to her side and said coldly, "Stand here."