Mu Qing helped Princess Ningyang up the city wall.
Zhong Anbo pressed the little emperor and followed closely behind, followed by the left and right prime ministers and a group of guards.
The night wind howled, blowing Princess Ningyang's cloak into the air, and the originally meticulously combed hair was also a little messy.
The two generals hurried over to salute Princess Ningyang and the little emperor.
While Princess Ningyang was talking with the generals, Li Qiong secretly looked away.
At this time, the top of the city wall was in a mess. The archers were constantly pulling their bows and shooting arrows, and the trebuchet was ready. The soldiers moved stones and threw them towards the bottom of the city wall through the trebuchet.
Catapults are very effective tools against enemy siege.
However, due to the hazy night and the distance, it was difficult for the trebuchet to hit the enemy.
Moreover, moving stones is a time-consuming and labor-intensive task, which cannot be done as frequently as archery.
Therefore, it is more used to intimidate the enemy and warn them not to approach again.
Li Qiong looked into the distance.
In the dark night, nothing can be seen clearly.
But he knew in his heart that half a million Xuanjia guards were dormant in the depths of the darkness.
Once they come out in force, the wall will be breached sooner or later.
Under the signal of Princess Ningyang, all the defenders in Tianjing City stopped attacking and quickly hoisted the truce flag.
The night wind blew the white flag flutteringly.
In order for Xuanjiawei to see the truce flag clearly, the general asked the soldiers to gather the torches.
With the blazing fire, the white flag stands out in the dark night.
It can be seen even if it is more than ten miles away.
Bian Ziming, who was holding up his shield and struggling forward, suddenly found that the enemy had stopped attacking. He was startled, and cautiously poked half of his head out from behind the shield.
Through the hazy night, he saw the white banner hanging above the city wall.
The word armistice is written on the huge flag.
The opponent is requesting a suspension of the fighting.
The scout hidden in the darkness also saw the truce flag, not only that, he also saw Princess Ningyang and the little emperor standing above the city wall.
The scout immediately turned around and ran back to the camp as fast as he could.
"Report! The enemy troops hang out the truce flag, requesting a truce!"
When the generals in the Xuanjia Army heard this, they couldn't help feeling complacent.
It seems that the defenders of Tianjing City knew that it would be difficult to win, so they took the initiative to hang the flag to show their weakness.
They all looked at Li Liao, waiting for Li Liao's decision.
Li Liao asked for specific details.
When the scout said that he still saw Princess Ningyang and the little emperor, Li Liao's expression changed immediately.
He ordered: "Let General Bian withdraw his troops temporarily and see what the defenders of Tianjing City want to do? Report as soon as you get the results."
"Here!"
The scout rushed back like flying.
Above the city wall, everyone is nervously waiting for the result.
Princess Ningyang prayed that Li Liao would show up quickly and that nothing would go wrong.
Li Qiong hoped in his heart that Li Liao would not show up.
As long as he doesn't show up, he still has the hope of turning things around.
At the critical moment when everyone was holding their breath and waiting nervously, they suddenly heard an exclamation from below.
"who is it?!"
Immediately afterwards, there were screams one after another.
Everyone was shocked.
Prime Minister Zuo hurriedly asked, "What happened?"
A soldier with a wounded arm staggered up the city wall, fell to his knees with a plop, and cried out.
"Report to Your Majesty, Your Royal Highness, the secret agents of Xuanjiawei appeared in the city, they launched a surprise attack when we were not paying attention, and killed several brothers!"
The expressions of all the people present changed.
The general couldn't help yelling: "Those bastards are so despicable, they even arranged a secret operation among us."
Princess Ningyang is indeed a person who has seen the world, even at this moment she can still maintain her composure.
She asked in a deep voice: "How do you know that the sneak attacker must be the secret agent of Xuanjiawei?"
The pawn was taken aback by the question, but couldn't answer for a while.
Li Qiong spoke quietly at this time.
"Who else is attacking us besides Xuanjiawei at this time?"
The two generals immediately echoed: "Your Majesty's words are absolutely true!"
Princess Ningyang was about to say something more when the pawn who was kneeling on one knee suddenly pulled out a dagger from his sleeve and stabbed at her.
The opponent's movements were too fast, Princess Ningyang was too old to dodge at all.
Mu Qing, who was closest to her, made a timely move and grabbed the soldier's wrist.
The pawn's reaction was extremely quick, and he immediately flipped his wrist.
The sharp blade turned a corner, and cut a deep bone wound on Mu Qing's arm.
Mu Qing was in pain and had to let go of her fingers.
The pawn stabbed the dagger at Princess Ningyang again, but he had already missed the best time to do it.
At this moment, everyone had come to their senses and shot one after another. Zhong Anbo and the left and right prime ministers protected the little emperor and Princess Ningyang, while the two generals rushed forward and restrained the assassin who was disguised as a wounded soldier.
The assassin was pinned to the ground with his hands tied behind his back.
He raised his head with difficulty, and grinned at Princess Ningyang, showing a ferocious smile.
"There is poison on the knife, and those who are poisoned will surely die!"
After speaking, he bit the poison sac hidden in the gap between the back molars.
When the poison broke out, he vomited blood on the spot, his body convulsed, but he lost his breath after a while.
Princess Ningyang looked at Mu Qing who was covering her wound with her hands, and asked anxiously.
"How are you doing?"
Mu Qing felt dizzy, her entire right arm was numb.
She picked up her hand, looked at the wound on her arm, and found that the edge of the wound had turned black, and the blood that flowed out was also black.
This is clearly a symptom of poisoning.
She staggered and fell to the ground.
Zhong Ambo hurriedly supported her.
Princess Ningyang anxiously said: "Go to the doctor!"
Because of this sudden change, the atmosphere on the city wall became more tense.
Li Qiong: "Grandmother, Xuanjiawei's minions will kill even you, do you still want to protect them?"
Princess Ningyang: "Don't talk nonsense, this matter is strange."
She didn't believe that Xuanjiawei would kill her.
Whether it is Li Ji or Li Liao, it is impossible to kill her.
However, the next moment, they heard continuous shouts of killing from below the city wall.
A general sent someone down to check, and learned that there was indeed a group of troops in the city. Those people killed many soldiers guarding the city gate. It seemed that they wanted to open the city gate and let the enemy troops enter the city.
Li Qiong sneered: "Look, these detailed works are sent by the Xuanjia Army. They just want to attack from inside and outside, and catch us by surprise."
Princess Ningyang's complexion was extremely pale.
Li Qiong suddenly pulled out the sword of the guards around her, and pointed the tip of the sword at Princess Ningyang.
"Don't be fooled by her and Li Ji. They said so much before to fool us into letting go of our guard, and then cooperate with each other to kill us all."
Hua Dingzong exclaimed: "Don't mess around!"
Li Qiong glared at him: "You traitor, you have no place to speak here!"
Then Li Qiong looked at the two prime ministers on the left and right, and continued to lobby.
"It's not like you don't know what kind of character Li Ji is. He is a lunatic who kills people without blinking an eye. If you really want him to be the emperor, you don't want to have a good life in the future!"
Neither of the two prime ministers made a sound.
There is one thing to say, they really have no hope for the character of the regent.
Let such a vicious, vicious and cruel guy sit on the throne, no one knows what will happen in the end
But the 500,000 Xuanjia troops are standing outside the city, if they resist stubbornly, the end will definitely be miserable.
The two were caught in a dilemma.
The scouts hid in the dark to observe.
When he saw the scene on the city wall, he immediately ran back to the camp and told Lord Zhen Guo everything he saw.
After listening, Li Liao's heart sank to the bottom.
He asked: "Can you see clearly, the little emperor is really pointing his sword at Princess Ningyang?"
The scout hurriedly said: "The humble officer can see clearly, there is absolutely nothing wrong!"
Li Liao sneered.
"The little emperor is really promising, even his great-aunt dares to be cruel!"
Princess Ningyang is the mother of Princess Rouwan, even for Princess Rouwan's sake, Li Liao will never let Princess Ningyang have anything to do.
More importantly, Princess Ningyang is one of the few people in the royal family who firmly defends Li Ji. She must be alive, so that Li Ji's road to the throne will be smoother.
In an instant, Li Liao had made a decision.
He had to break into Shangjing before the little emperor killed Princess Ningyang!
Li Liao immediately got on his horse and gave an order.
"Set off!"
The trumpet was sounded.
The 500,000 Xuanjia troops in black armor came out in full force.
The black cloak blends with the black night.
They are like huge monsters hiding in the dark, quietly showing their sharp claws, and rushing fiercely towards the enemy.
On the top of the city wall, Li Liao was still trying his best to lobby the prime minister, not knowing that the danger was approaching.
Until the sentinel standing on the watchtower suddenly screamed.
"Xuanjiawei! Xuanjiawei is here!"
Everyone was startled, and all turned their heads to look outside the city.
They saw countless Xuanjia guards rushing towards them like a tide, and they felt oppressive like dark clouds overwhelming the city.
The number of those Xuanjia guards is so large that it makes one's scalp tingle, but they are very disciplined in their actions, the formation is neat, and no one leaves the team, which is obviously well-trained.
A strong murderous air rushed towards his face.
This scene shocked the defenders on the city wall deeply.
Although they guard the city of Tianjing all the year round, in fact, most of them are just standing guard and putting on a show. Many city gate guards may not be able to kill individuals throughout their lives.
But the Xuanjia Army is different. They were killed from the mountain of corpses and the sea of blood. They are a truly fearless iron-blooded army.
When the two armies confronted each other, the defenders of Tianjing lost a lot just because of their momentum.
Li Qiong, who could talk non-stop just now, was pale, and the hand holding the sword was trembling slightly.
Hua Dingzong cried out in horror: "What should I do? What should I do now?"
The two prime ministers on the left and right were also a little panicked.
Next, they saw a chariot in the middle of Xuanjiawei.
Standing on the chariot was a man with a straight figure. Behind him was a big flag fluttering in the wind. The word Xuanjia was written on the flag.
The night was hazy, Princess Ningyang hadn't fully seen the facial features of the man, but she had already recognized the familiar figure.
she exclaimed in surprise.
"It's Duke Zhen!"
The left and right prime ministers immediately opened their eyes and looked carefully.
Gradually, they all recognized that the general standing on the chariot was none other than Lord Zhen Guo!
It seems that what the regent said is true, Duke Zhen is indeed not dead.
The last hope in Li Qiong's heart was shattered,
His body swayed and fell limp to the ground as if all his strength had been drained.
Princess Ningyang deliberately found a high place to stand, and she raised her hands high regardless of her appearance.
Li Liaoben had been paying attention to the movement on the city wall.
After seeing Princess Ningyang's actions, he immediately ordered the attack to be suspended.
Princess Ningyang immediately gave instructions to the defending generals.
"Open the city gate, I want to welcome Lord Zhen Guo in person!"
The general looked at the two prime ministers.
The left and right prime ministers hurriedly said, "Go!"
Things have come to this point, it is almost impossible for them to win this battle.
Anyway, they will lose in the end. It is better to open the city gate and let the Xuanjia army enter the city, which can also reduce some casualties.
Hua Dingzong took Mu Qing to the nearest medical clinic for treatment, while Princess Ningyang took the two prime ministers on the left and right down the city wall, and stood behind the city gate and waited quietly.
The soldiers turned the handles, pulled the chains, and slowly lowered the heavy city gate.
Princess Ningyang concentrated and held her breath, ready to meet the Xuanjia Army at any time.
However.
The moment the city gate fell to the ground, shouts suddenly came one after another from behind.
"The rebels are attacking the city! Everyone run!"
Princess Ningyang's heart skipped a beat, secretly screaming that something was wrong.
She turned around quickly and saw that all the people in the city ran out.
They were afraid that the enemy would rush in to burn, kill and loot, and they were all terrified. They didn't even bother to take their luggage, and all dragged their families and rushed towards the city gate by the river.
They want to escape before the enemy army enters the city!
Princess Ningyang shouted: "Stop them!"
However, it was too late.
As soon as the soldiers started to move, the panic-stricken people had already rushed to the gate of the city.
The left and right prime ministers had to drag Princess Ningyang to hide by the side of the road.
The people poured out of the city gate like a tide.
in the inn.
The general reported to Ah Qi.
"Bailey has followed your instructions to let the secret agents placed in the defenders create chaos and assassinate Princess Ningyang, and also ordered people to spread rumors of the cruelty of the Xuanjia Army in the city. Now the gate of the city is in chaos. up."
Ah Qi: "Let's go then."
He pulled up the hood of his cloak, the huge hood covering most of his face.
Then he bent down again, gently picked up Manman, and walked out steadily.
He got into an inconspicuous carriage with Manman in his arms.
The carriage drove towards the city gate.
At this time, there were panic-stricken people near the city gate, including many horses and chariots.
Therefore, when Ah Qi's carriage appeared, it did not attract the attention of others.
The carriage was mixed with the crowd and slowly approached the city gate.
At this moment, Li Ji took the three-flowered cat over a courtyard wall, landed on the ground, and came straight to the city gate.
He saw the chaotic scene near the city gate, and knew that the person who stole Manman must be among them.
He used his inner strength to shout loudly,
"Close the city gate!"
(end of this chapter)