The seriously ill emperor was furious, and suddenly stretched out his hand and grabbed Fu Jinzhan's wrist. She and Guo Shao were shocked. Who would have thought that a dying person who couldn't speak clearly could make such a sudden move
Ah, Fu Jinzhan cried out in pain.
Guo Shao immediately rushed forward and grabbed the emperor's forearm. As soon as he exerted force, he felt that the emperor's hand had loosened, and hurriedly used his other hand to pry it open. It was not difficult, and he quickly rescued Fu Jinzhan from the emperor's clutches, and casually pulled her behind him to protect her.
At this time, the people outside heard Fu Jinzhan's cry and rushed in. Fu Jinzhan walked out from behind Guo Shao and said with a pale face: "Back off."
Guo Shao breathed a sigh of relief, and when he turned around, he saw several red fingerprints on Fu Jinzhan's wrist, which made her tears well up in her eyes. Guo Shao felt very distressed, and in a hurry he lifted her wrist and blew on it: Are you okay? Are you okay
It was okay for her that no one treated her like this. Hearing Guo Shao's concerned tone, she immediately pointed at her forehead with her other hand in grievance: He always hurts me. The scar here has not healed for a month or two, and I bled a lot at the time.
Guo Shao took a closer look and saw another old scar. He immediately thought to himself: The person I protected at the risk of my life was being wantonly abused in front of the emperor. He felt very uncomfortable, as if he found out that a beautiful woman, whom he had tried every means to take care of but couldn't get, was being abused like a straw by a rich and handsome man.
Fu Jinzhan looked angry and sad. She turned to the person on the bed and said, "Do you remember the groom I told you about?"
The person on the bed sighed, closed his eyes and said nothing.
At this time, Fu Jinzhan said angrily: I told you. After Li Shouzhen's mansion was destroyed, I was escorted back to Daming Mansion. On the way, I was worried that the general who had been a groom would harm me, so I had to give myself to him. The groom was Guo Shao.
The emperor suddenly opened his eyes.
Guo Shao was puzzled when he heard this. When had Fu Jinzhan ever committed herself to him? After Li Shouzhen's defeat, Guo Shao was hit on the head with a stick and was basically dead. When Fu Jinzhan left Hezhong Prefecture, he might still be in the mass grave. How could he escort her
It should be that Fu Jinzhan remembered the wrong person. At that time, she might not have known Guo Shao very well.
He was immediately filled with mixed feelings. It was too uncomfortable for Fu Jinzhan to have been close to a groom whom she couldn't even remember.
And she actually said that Guo Shao had been a groom. Could it be that in her heart, he was really of such a lowly status
Guo Shao's heart was full of turmoil, and he was both annoyed and ashamed. He finally managed to suppress his emotions, faced the reality for the time being, and said calmly: The situation is still critical now, so don't let him talk nonsense in front of the ministers.
Fu Jinzhan nodded coldly.
Guo Shao said again: I want to meet Zhang Yongde so as to split the Iron Cavalry Army's defense zone as soon as possible.
Fu Jinzhan said: "You can decide these things by yourself, you don't have to ask me everything. Your performance over the years has proved that you have grown up."
Guo Shao felt a little disappointed, so he called the person at the door to come in and bowed, saying: "Queen, please take care of yourself. I have finished what I want to say, and I will take my leave now."
Fu Jinzhan looked him up and down, seemed to want to say something but stopped herself, and in the end just waved her hand gently.
Guo Shao walked out of the Jinxiang Hall and was exposed to the sunlight. He heaved a long sigh. He sighed again and looked up at the sun for a while. The bright light made him dizzy. Even the scorching sun could not dispel the shadow in his heart.
He felt that his self-esteem had been greatly trampled upon. Ordinary people could not defeat him, but Fu Jinzhan could do it easily. He secretly made up his mind to let Fu Jinzhan see his achievements and let her realize that it was a very wrong view to regard herself as a horseman or a servant.
Although he claimed to be a guard of the Fu family before, it was just a statement to show his loyalty. He could say that, but Fu Jinzhan couldn't look down on him.
Guo Shao thought for a while, then asked his personal soldiers to bring the horses over, and led a team of people to run to the side, straight to the Privy Council.
After entering the lobby, Wang Pu and Wei Renpu came out to meet him. Guo Shao didn't waste any words and stated his idea directly.
After hearing this, Wei Renpu said: Zhang Yongde was in the left wing camp of the Konghe Army in the north of the city, and the Privy Council sent someone to deliver the commendation order. Wang Pu pondered for a moment and said: It is not a good idea to summon Zhang Yongde in the name of the queen or for me to go there on my own initiative.
Guo Shaoyi thought that directly issuing an order to summon Zhang Yongde might make him feel dangerous, which would not be conducive to uniting and winning over more people; if people from the central government took the initiative to go, they would not be able to test Zhang Yongde's true attitude.
Wang Pu continued, "I have an idea. Zhang Yongde recognizes my handwriting. Now I will write a private letter to invite him to the Privy Council to talk. If Zhang Yongde is willing to come to the palace, that would be the best; if not, he can refuse, because it is not a military order."
Guo Shao immediately agreed: This is a good idea, Envoy Wang has considered it very carefully.
He immediately felt that Wang Pu was indeed a talent. A capable person would have a brain and could quickly come up with appropriate solutions for big and small matters. Moreover, Wang Pu was also a man with great strategies, and such people were not easy to find.
The people in the imperial city were trying every possible means to advance step by step, and Zhao Kuangyin was also busy.
He realized that he had no chance and immediately prepared to escape. However, two things delayed him a little. First, he had to wait for his confidant to pick up his nine-year-old son Zhao Dezhao, his mother, brothers, sisters, daughter, concubine and other family members, which would slow down his journey. Second, he had to persuade his other brothers to follow him.
The first thing went smoothly, but the second thing did not work. Except for Shi Shouxin and his three brothers, the others who were on good terms with him were unwilling to leave. They had just been rewarded and promoted, and they thought that at least their lives were not in danger, and even if they were demoted in the future, they could keep their families.
Zhao Kuangyin had no choice but to rush out of the north gate with dozens of riders.
Unexpectedly, they had just stepped onto the post road when they suddenly saw a group of cavalrymen at the intersection ahead. Zhao Kuangyin secretly thought that it was not good: his plan had been guessed by others.
Arima soldier Wang Shenqi shouted.
The horses were still running, Shi Shouxin said angrily: Fight your way out of this bloody situation.
After a moment's hesitation, Zhao Kuangyin and his men were already approaching, and they saw the enemy also galloping towards them. Zhao Kuangyin looked around and saw that there were farmlands and some houses all around. The land was uneven after turning over, with only a small path in the middle. Now that they had turned around temporarily, it would be easier for the enemy cavalry to stick to them. He didn't say anything at the moment, and asked Shi Shouxin to be the vanguard, and they rushed up together.
The enemy cavalry was not numerous, and they shouted loudly as they approached. When they were several dozen steps away, they heard the crackling of strings, and then the heavy clashing of weapons could be heard, and the fighting had already begun.
Shi Shouxin was the first to ride, and he wielded a long lance as easily as threading a needle, knocking several riders off their horses in a blink of an eye. The general who was blocking the troops had very poor horsemanship, and was obviously not a fierce general. He used his saber to block Shi Shouxin's attack, and the general immediately lost his balance and was thrown off his horse. The others were also shocked when they saw this, and they were completely unable to stop Shi Shouxin, and they were killed to make way for him.
Zhao Kuangyin praised Brother Shi for his good martial arts.
The fighting power of these blocking troops was not as good as that of Shi Shouxin and other fierce generals. The three brothers charged forward in a V-shaped formation, and dozens of people could not stop them. Although the blocking troops were not strong enough, their fighting spirit was very high. They were beaten to the ground, but the rest still did not retreat and attacked Zhao Kuangyin's cavalry from both sides.
At this moment, a rider suddenly rushed up. Zhao Kuangyin's face changed:
Jingniang was wearing iron armor and a helmet on her head. She was tall and slender, and her heroic appearance made her look more elegant than ordinary knights. Jingniang did not answer, but drew out her long sword and rode forward. Zhao Kuangyin hurriedly protected his son in his arms, raised his two sticks and hit him head-on. With a snap, the long stick was pushed away by Jingniang, and the short stick in front used the force to hit Jingniang's head. Zhao Kuangyin's move seemed insignificant, but it had caused many veterans in battle to suffer.
But Zhao Kuangyin subconsciously showed some mercy. Unexpectedly, Jingniang dodged the short stick by tilting her head. She already knew Zhao Kuangyin's double stick moves. After dodging, she tilted her sword and stabbed it lightly, almost brushing Zhao Kuangyin's ear.
Zhao Kuangyin was so frightened that he broke out in a cold sweat. He showed mercy, but she was merciless and her sword moves were very ruthless. Zhao Kuangyin bent his body and dodged the sword's attack that he had anticipated.
The two of them approached each other in an instant. In this kind of horse-riding fight, they usually only exchanged one move before they would stagger each other; but Jingniang moved quickly and in a flash she had exchanged two or three moves with Zhao Kuangyin. At this time, Zhao Kuangyin's horse had already rushed past and she could not catch up.
At this moment, Zhao Pu appeared in Jingniang's sight on horseback. Jingniang recognized him. He was the one who blocked the road near Daxiangguo Temple last time. Jingniang was very angry and rushed forward with a sword. Unfortunately, she was still a step too slow. When she chopped with her sword, Zhao Pu was frightened and screamed. However, the sword could not reach him and cut the strap of the bag on his back with a hissing sound.
A bundle fell off the horse. Jingniang saw the sword hit the air, and she was still angry, so she picked up the sword and threw it. Suddenly, there was a scream, and the sword hit Zhao Pu's thigh. The civil servant did not fall down, but leaned over to grab the saddle and ran away.
After a while, Zhao Kuangyin and dozens of other riders broke through the blockade and rode away in a cloud of dust. Jingniang then dismounted and picked up the bag that had fallen from Zhao Pu's body.
Unexpectedly, soon they saw Zhao Kuangyin's troops split up and turned back. Jingniang and the others were very surprised. She immediately realized that the things that fell from Zhao Pu might be their target. At that moment, she thought that her people could not beat Zhao Kuangyin's fierce generals, and they could not do anything to them for the time being; they fled because they were in a hurry to get on the road and did not want to fight, not because they could not beat them.
So Jingniang picked up her bag and turned around and ran away.