DDT - Chapter 64
Chapter 64: General × Little Emperor (19)
Two days later, hundreds of thousands of Zhenbei Army soldiers assembled on the plains outside Feng City. The soldiers were arranged in neat, orderly squares.
Chi Junluo and the young emperor Yi Han stood spiritedly at the head of the entire army. Chi Junluo began the routine pre-march address.
The square formations all stood quietly, listening as the relay soldiers passed her words back through the ranks.
Chi Junluo stated the purpose of this campaign in a simple and clear manner, followed by words of encouragement for the soldiers.
The atmosphere in the army gradually grew heated. Seeing that the time was right, Chi Junluo issued the first command after the army's consolidation: "March out!"
Advance on the Imperial City!
Led by General Chi, Yi Han, and Vice General Wei Long, the cavalry formations followed close behind, then the infantry, archers, and crossbowmen. Bringing up the rear were about a hundred catapults.
The army, arranged in perfect order, set off on the wide official road, moving at a moderately fast marching pace.
For this campaign, Chi Junluo and Yi Han had no intention of concealing their movements. After all, an army of hundreds of thousands was too massive a force to hide, and attempting to do so would only slow them down. In any case, with their formidable strength and superior numbers, they had nothing to fear.
The army advanced mightily, occupying the entire official road, and soon arrived at Imperial City. The Zhenbei general led his men and persuaded the defending general to open the city gates. Although the Fourth Prince was the current emperor and had seized the Imperial City, he had not yet managed to gain control over all the cities in the country. Thus, in these chaotic times, with the border-defending Zhenbei Army bearing down with hundreds of thousands of troops, the situation was clear. The Zhenbei general claimed to be here to exonerate Emperor Mingzhao and capture the rebel and traitor, the Fourth Prince. Behind the general was a youth exuding an imperial aura, who must be the young Son of Heaven. News of the palace coup had already spread throughout the nation, and people had assumed Emperor Mingzhao was forced into the coup and killed. Who would have thought that the emperor had actually fled to the northwest border and gained the support of the Zhenbei general? The prefect of Imperial City immediately knelt and shouted, "Long live the Emperor!" and thus surrendered to the Zhenbei Army. From any perspective, a battle between the Zhenbei Army, seasoned by years of bloody warfare defending the border, and the private soldiers hoarded by a few princes would most likely result in a victory for the Zhenbei Army. In short, to save his own skin, it was best to surrender first. If the restoration failed, he could always claim he was coerced.
The process of retaking the "lost territory" was exceptionally smooth. At every city the Zhenbei Army passed, they left two thousand soldiers to garrison it and prevent the Fourth Prince's spies from leaving the city to send word.
After ten days of marching, they had passed through seven cities, large and small, all of which had surrendered to the Zhenbei Army.
On the eleventh day, only a mountain forest separated the grand army from the Imperial City.
At this moment in the Imperial City, the Fourth Prince had occupied the throne for some time. A few days ago, he had dispatched men to the southwest border in an attempt to placate Old General Chi. His men had not yet returned, and the Fourth Prince felt a sense of unease, a slight panic in his heart. It seemed it was time to send someone to the northwest border to retrieve the military tally from the Zhenbei Army.
The Fourth Prince thought to himself that with ten days having passed, no matter how strong General Chi Luo's constitution was, she had likely already perished. After all, that poison was more potent than the deadliest poisons like crane's crest red, not to mention the Hehuan San that was administered with it.
General Chi Luo was probably as dead as one could be.
At this thought, the Fourth Prince's heart filled with joy. A great threat had been eliminated. Without a leader, the Zhenbei Army would have no choice but to obey him.
Convinced that the poison had taken effect, the Fourth Prince sent out no more pursuers. After all, without the protection of General Chi Luo, that damn Yi Han was just an insignificant little brat, not someone he, the current Son of Heaven, needed to pay any mind to.
The more he thought about it, the happier the Fourth Prince became, and he couldn't help but indulge in revelry within the palace. He held banquets night after night, summoning batch after batch of dancers and musicians into the palace. He stopped attending morning court during the day. After being stood up a few times, the officials simply gave up and stopped coming to court as well.
The Fourth Prince not only indulged in song, dance, wine, and women, but now he even engaged in debauchery in broad daylight.
In the mere two months since his ascension, he had already taken dozens of concubines, wishing he could soak in the land of tenderness every day and spend every night in pleasure.
His behavior was already that of a fatuous ruler, yet no one dared to voice any objection.
It was already noon, but the Fourth Prince was still inseparable from the embrace of his favorite concubine, too lazy to even eat lunch.
As the two were enjoying themselves in Longmian Hall, a clamor suddenly erupted from outside.
The Fourth Prince assumed it was just some minister wanting to admonish him again. He simply shook his head and continued his activities, truly turning a deaf ear to the world outside…
"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! Urgent report!" The person outside the hall was clamoring but couldn't get in, blocked by several young eunuchs. In desperation, he raised his voice and shouted.
"Aiyah! I told you not to shout! His Majesty said not to disturb him no matter how important the matter is! Otherwise, this servant will be beheaded!" Eunuch Wang stood guard at the entrance to the hall, trying to persuade him earnestly.
However, the guard wouldn't listen. He continued to struggle, trying to force his way into the hall, shouting repeatedly, "Your Majesty! Urgent report from the Imperial City! Urgent report from the Imperial City!"
Just as several eunuchs were struggling to cover the guard's mouth, the hall door was kicked open. The Fourth Prince, a stern look on his face, stood at the entrance loosely draped in an inner robe.
"What's all this shouting in broad daylight? What has become of decorum?!" The Fourth Prince's tone was filled with impatience. He had been in the middle of enjoying himself with a beauty, only to be rudely interrupted.
He was very angry.
When the guard and the eunuchs saw the emperor emerge, they were so frightened they immediately dropped to their knees. The guard saw his chance and, still kneeling, loudly reported, "Your Majesty! An army of hundreds of thousands has appeared outside the Imperial City! They have completely surrounded us!"
The Fourth Prince's eyes widened in fury. "What did you say?!"
"Report!!" In the distance, another guard came running, shouting urgently. Seeing the Fourth Prince standing at the door, he quickly knelt and said, "Reporting to Your Majesty! The army outside the Imperial City has begun to attack the city! The Imperial Guards are resisting!"
The Fourth Prince froze for a moment, not yet processing the news, when another guard ran over from the distance. "Report!!!"
The Fourth Prince couldn't help but rub his temples.
"Reporting to Your Majesty! The attacking army is the Zhenbei Army! The leading general is Chi Luo, General Chi!"
"What?!" This time, the Fourth Prince finally snapped back to his senses. He stumbled back two steps in disbelief, muttering, "How is she still alive? This is impossible! Impossible…"
Regardless of whether the Fourth Prince thought it possible, the sudden attack on the Imperial City was a fact. At this critical moment, he finally forgot about his little beauty. He rushed back into Longmian Hall, changed into his battle armor, grabbed his sword, and hurried out of the palace with his guards, heading straight for the city gates.
Truly, the tables had turned. A few months ago, it was the Fourth Prince invading the Imperial City and the young emperor Yi Han being assassinated. Yet, in just a few months, the young emperor had returned with the Zhenbei Army, becoming the invader himself.
On the walls of the Imperial City, the strong wind made the Fourth Prince's robes whip about.
Below the walls were the dark, dense masses of hundreds of thousands of soldiers, arranged in several neat formations. In the front row were Zhenbei Army infantry attempting to set up scaling ladders, while behind them, archers continuously fired arrows at the city walls. The cavalry had already retreated behind the main army; they had already clashed with the Imperial Guards before the Fourth Prince arrived at the city tower. The garrison of the Imperial City was no match for the blood-soaked Zhenbei Army from the battlefield and was ultimately forced to retreat back into the city.
Stray arrows flew past the Fourth Prince's head from time to time. A general beside him wanted to persuade him to retreat back into the Imperial City, but after seeing the Fourth Prince's grim face, he dismissed the thought.
The catapults were loaded with flaming oil, ignited, and launched towards the city wall. Soldiers on the wall who couldn't dodge in time were quickly engulfed in flames and fell from the ramparts. The other soldiers were forced to retreat, and the general shielded the Fourth Prince as they moved back together.
"Hold the line for me! No one is to retreat!" the Fourth Prince roared in fury.
The soldiers on the wall drew their bows. Below, the Zhenbei Army quickly raised their shields. For a time, the battle was at a stalemate.
The battle raged from noon until late afternoon. The soldiers on the city wall gradually grew exhausted, and the Zhenbei Army began setting up scaling ladders again. Chi Junluo commanded the Zhenbei Army with methodical precision, just as she did on the battlefields of the northwest border, directing the forces with heroic spirit and confidence.
Yi Han sat on his horse beside her, watching the city wall ahead with a somewhat fanatical gaze. Soon, it would be soon. The Imperial City would be his, Yi Han's, prize!
He was about to reclaim his throne! His heart pounded in his chest, a testament to its owner's excitement.
Soon, the scaling ladders were in place, and the first wave of soldiers quickly climbed onto the city wall. Where there was a first wave, a second followed.
Soon, Chi Junluo decided to scale the wall herself.
Yi Han was worried and insisted on going with her. Seeing that she couldn't dissuade him, Chi Junluo had to relent, secretly resolving to pay extra attention to the young emperor's safety.
Yi Han and Chi Junluo perilously made it onto the city wall. Seeing that the enemy general had scaled the wall, the Imperial City soldiers immediately swarmed them. After all, if the general was eliminated, they could earn great merit.
A fierce battle unfolded between the two sides.
They quickly cleared a corner of the wall. The Fourth Prince immediately noticed something was wrong. When he rushed over, he saw Chi Luo, who should have been dead, and that damn Yi Han.
Without a word, they started fighting the moment they saw each other. When Yi Han saw enemy soldiers charging, he quickly raised his sword to meet them.
Chi Junluo had originally thought the Fourth Prince was just an embroidered pillow, but she hadn't expected him to be highly skilled in martial arts, nearly her equal!
This fight was a bit strenuous for Chi Junluo. Not only did she have to contend with the Fourth Prince and look for an opening, but she also had to keep an eye on the young emperor Yi Han's situation.
Just as Yi Han was in the heat of battle, a soldier snuck up behind him and was about to slash at his back. Chi Junluo immediately channeled the Power of the Heavenly Dao into her feet and dashed over like lightning. Seeing Chi Junluo disengage, apparently to save Yi Han, the Fourth Prince was delighted and lunged at her.
After dealing with the soldier in front of him, Yi Han suddenly heard the sound of a weapon dropping behind him. He quickly turned around to see Chi Junluo severing the hand of a soldier holding a saber. Before he could react, he saw a sword pierce through Chi Junluo's chest.
Yi Han: !!!
Chi Junluo felt a sharp pain in her chest. Looking down, she saw a sword had pierced her heart.
Chi Junluo: Damn it, do you have any idea how hard it is for me to do a mission?!
The next moment, the Fourth Prince pulled out his sword. Blood splattered. The Fourth Prince calmly waited for the fearsome General Chi Luo to collapse.
Chi Junluo felt her life force draining away and knew her time was short. With all her might, she held on to her last breath, wrapped her limbs in the huge cheat that was the Power of the Heavenly Dao, and spun around abruptly, thrusting her longsword into the chest of the Fourth Prince, who was standing there dumbfounded. The Fourth Prince reacted extremely quickly. Although he didn't have time to dodge, as he was stabbed, he retaliated with another sword strike, plunging it into Chi Junluo's body.
Chi: MMP!
Chi Junluo released her sword and fiercely embraced the Fourth Prince. The Fourth Prince's sword passed straight through Chi Junluo's body. A look of disbelief, along with the fear of impending death, flashed in the Fourth Prince's eyes.
It all happened too fast. Yi Han's face was filled with shock. He then saw Chi Junluo, holding the Fourth Prince, spin around to the edge of the city wall. Finally, Chi Junluo faced Yi Han, mouthed the words "Take care," and then leaned backward, tightly gripping the Fourth Prince as they both plummeted from the wall.
More Zhenbei Army soldiers surged onto the city wall, eventually capturing the Imperial City completely. Seeing that the Fourth Prince had perished, the Imperial City soldiers stopped resisting and surrendered one by one.
Old General Chi, who had been guarding the southwest border, arrived at the Imperial City with his army, but he was a step too late.
The bodies of Chi Luo and the Fourth Prince lay quietly at the foot of the city wall.
No one saw that on the skin beneath the cloth strip wrapped around General Chi Luo's left wrist, another golden line had appeared.
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