Chapter 75 Special Methods Xie Qianli always had a pair of dark, clear eyes...

With a swift movement, Jia Ruzhen brought his sword down, the tip of the Fish Intestine Sword completely embedded in the Taihu stone. He pulled the sword out, and there was blood two inches from the tip.

Jia Ruzhen sneered, her expression sinister as she looked at the sword. It was a pity that the weapon she was wearing was a short sword instead of a long sword. There must be someone inside the Taihu stone!

The second sword is coming!

The previous sword strike had severely injured Ying Dang; the sword had pierced his back and may have damaged his internal organs.

Prince Yong's brow furrowed instantly, and in that instant, he was rendered powerless to fight back, the stench of blood filling the entire cave.

But if you don't hide, you'll die!

The Taihu stone blocking the hole suddenly flew out with a roar.

Prince Yong led Ying Xi out of the cave, and gushing blood flowed down Prince Yong's back, the crimson blood beads drawing their escape route.

He was injured after all, and he was carrying someone, so he struggled to walk through the Taihu stone pile, and his pace became noticeably slower and slower.

After the turbulence, Ying Xi moved his body and gradually regained sensation in his upper body. He glanced back and saw that Jia Ruzhen had already raised her third sword!

"Put me down!" The voice finally broke through Ying Xi's throat.

Prince Yong gritted his teeth.

With a burst of energy, he stepped on the Taihu stones and pushed left and right, managing to climb up the artificial hill to the edge of the wall.

The moment Prince Yong's toes touched the top of the wall, he was already too weak to support himself and stumbled and fell over the high wall of the palace.

The fall aggravated the sword wounds on his body.

Blood seeped from between Prince Yong's teeth, and blood splattered on Ying Xi's front.

At this moment, Ying Dang was completely unable to speak. Excessive blood loss had turned his face deathly pale, and his limbs began to stiffen and turn cold. He could no longer resist engaging the rebels in battle again.

Jia Ruzhen naturally wanted to muster her courage and chase after him, but she couldn't get over the wall!

All that could be heard through the walls of the Prince's mansion was the sound of a body crashing down, followed by a loud thud as the ground was struck.

Inside the courtyard walls, Jia Ruzhen's disciples cried out, "Master, are you alright?" "Master..."

Not only was Ying Dang injured, but Jia Ruzhen also barely held on, thinking that she could finish off the brothers with two swords at most. However, her internal injuries flared up, and just as she was climbing the courtyard wall, her blood and qi surged, and she spat out a mouthful of blood.

He shoved his apprentice, who was helping him up, and yelled, "Jiang Guang, chase them! Catch them and kill them! Kill them! Leave no survivors!"

Jiang Guang was taken in by Jia Ruzhen after she came to Guangling. He had excellent martial arts skills and was a bit simple-minded. He answered in a hoarse voice, "Yes!" Then he led more than a dozen fellow disciples and climbed over the wall of the Prince's Mansion.

Jia Ruzhen coughed up blood intermittently, and dark shadows appeared before her eyes.

Jia Ruzhen barely managed to stand still: "Strengthen the defense of each city gate, and do not let a single fly escape. Also, order the garrison to search the entire city and inform the people that any spies who have infiltrated the city will be executed on the spot."

One of the apprentices asked, "Should their identities be revealed?"

Jia Ruzhen pondered for a moment.

"No need. If there are opportunistic commoners who hide the two of them well, they can simply wait for the imperial army to capture Guangling. That would be a meritorious act of protecting the emperor."

He had to put in a lot of effort when he fought against Ying Xi.

Although he didn't know why Ying Xi had infiltrated Guangling County, it was a perfect opportunity for him: the young emperor was in extremely poor health, and Prince Yong was seriously injured. The two brothers had no chance of escaping and couldn't go far.

Moreover, the Jiangnan army still holds the advantage, and Guangling City can still be defended...

After pondering this for a moment, his hope grew stronger.

Jia Ruzhen breathed a slight sigh of relief.

At that moment, a deafening roar resounded throughout the entire Guangling.

Wild birds in the bushes of Prince Yongning's Mansion were startled and took flight, and in an instant, the garden of the mansion was filled with the sound of fluttering birds.

As Jia Ruzhen looked around, dusk was falling and the setting sun had dyed the city a blood-red hue.

The clouds kept pressing into the city, giving him an ominous feeling. Then the loud noise came again, the second one louder than the first, the sound waves making a long, lingering buzz in his head.

boom-boom—

boom-boom—

The disciples all said in unison, "The commotion came from the south?"

What was that sound???

A soldier rushed into the garden corridor. He was dressed in the colors of a Jiangnan military uniform, his face covered in dust and sweat. He knelt down and reported, "Prefect, the main gate is under attack! Xie Meng is attacking the city again!"

***

The battering ram rammed into the city gate!

The newly repaired city wall was covered in handfuls of dust.

Outside the city, hundreds of soldiers struggled to push the battering ram into the city, while the defenders inside the city resisted the ram and continuously reinforced the city gate.

The booming sound of the battering rammed the city gate, mingling with the clattering of wooden planks being nailed to the gate.

The states of Jing and Yang have become blood feuds, and both sides are shouting slogans in a desperate struggle.

Outside the city gate, a watchtower stood a dozen arrow-widths away, where the deputy general was supervising the battle on behalf of Xie Meng.

From the top of the watchtower came the deputy general's uncontrollable shouts and curses, his voice like thunder.

"Your squad is practically nestling in front of me?"

"Don't gather in groups under the city walls, beware of the enemy setting fires!"

"Look left and right, the wolf fang is flying over here, I'll fucking fight you to the death..."

The wolf-tooth sledgehammer was like a huge, widened and thickened board of nails suspended from the city wall, with ropes hanging from it. In an instant, it swept away more than a dozen soldiers of the Jingzhou army, their deaths gruesome and unbearable to witness.

They were all brothers in arms, and the lieutenant, his eyes blazing with fury, nearly charged up the city wall.

The soldiers around him couldn't stop him at all, and could only grab the adjutant around the waist and cry out, "General, please don't! General..."

It turns out that no matter who stands in this position, facing the life and death of countless comrades, it is difficult to maintain emotional stability.

The watchtower swayed precariously.

Looking down from the tower, Xie Meng stood with his hands behind his back, his expression solemn. His armor was tinged red by the setting sun. Even though the battle was extremely tense, he could only focus on the more important matters at hand.

"You're saying His Majesty hasn't been found yet!?" Xie Meng asked, her voice trembling with fear.

Since you can't yell at someone with such a loud voice, you can only make exaggerated facial expressions.

Xie Meng's eyes looked twice as big.

"The Emperor personally appointed the Dragon Martial Army to protect him. The Dragon Martial Army has lost the imperial carriage twice, and they haven't even seen a single dragon scale yet. If this gets out, not only will our Xie family and the Dragon Martial Army be disgraced, but your father will jump out of his coffin and beat you to death!"

Xie Meng was not only the commander of the western front, but also his elder brother.

Even though Xie Qianli's rank was higher than Xie Meng's, there was only one commander-in-chief on the battlefield.

Since Prince Yong jumped ship and fled, Xie Qianli pursued him along the river, searching almost every part of the river, but still could not find any trace of Prince Yong.

He did not wish to explain.

The military rule is strict obedience to orders, including listening to reprimands. He, having joined the army as a young man, naturally adhered to this principle: "I will continue my search."

Xie Qianli's eyes, which had always been dark and clear, had become cloudy from lack of sleep. His tightly pressed lips were dry and pale, and his lips were already peeling.

Lian Qing, thinking he should uphold justice, quickly spoke up: "The first time, His Majesty ordered me to leave the fleet. It was all my fault. His Majesty didn't even instruct me to inform the general. The second time, His Majesty met Prince Yong, so he let the brothers go first..."

Xie Qianli: "Shut up."

Lian Qing had already been kicked hard by Xie Meng, who sent him flying two or three feet away!

Lian Qing clutched her stomach and stood up straight.

Xie Meng roared in fury, "Then who am I supposed to blame? Blame the Emperor for traveling so far? Blame the Emperor for deserving it???"

When Xie Meng shouted these words, she could no longer control her volume.

Fortunately, the noise from the catapults dropping rocks drowned out the noise, but the deputy general's cursing from the top of the watchtower continued unabated.

"Smash that crossbow on the city wall! Smash it hard, are you blind...?"

Xie Meng took a few deep breaths. He hadn't gone upstairs for a passionate argument today, so it shouldn't have taken any effort at all. Large beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

Xie Meng forced himself to remain calm and said, "His Majesty must have his reasons. He has managed to restore order to the country and is not a reckless emperor. It was not easy for us to gain His Majesty's trust, and we must not show any resentment."

The words were meant for Lian Qing's ears.

Even Qing didn't complain, but felt that General Xie was being wronged for taking the blame for them.

Lian Qingdao said, "Prince Yong is a fucking bastard!!!"

The Xie brothers let their words drift away in the wind.

Xie Qianli glanced at the city wall and said solemnly, "I have searched the entire river. If His Majesty is not on the river, he has most likely already landed. The nearest city on the shore is Guangling County."

Xie Meng said, "But the four gates of Guangling County are tightly closed. We have been stationed outside the city and have not seen His Majesty."

"Could it be that Prince Yong brought His Majesty into the city?"

Upon hearing this hypothesis, the two men's expressions became even more serious.

If this is true, the situation is extremely dangerous, as it would be tantamount to handing the advantage directly to the enemy forces in Jiangnan.

That "Prince Yong is a bastard" was not only not an exaggeration by Lian Qing, it was actually too mild!

Xie Meng slapped his sword. A crisp cracking sound rang out.

"How can we fight this? Even if you and I were to destroy this city right now, and that Jia guy were to hold a knife to His Majesty and His Highness's necks, I would immediately have to lead my brothers to retreat."

"Wang Yong must have been kicked in the head by a donkey! Why didn't they kick him to death?!"

For such words to come from a subject is already an act of disobedience.

But emotions need an outlet, and Xie Meng couldn't understand why Prince Yong would kidnap His Majesty and take him to Guangling.

"Could it be that Prince Yong is colluding with the enemy and is on Li Yilong's side?"

With his elder brother in power, it was only natural for Ying Dang to become a prince.

What kind of treatment would one receive by joining Li Yilong's side? Even better than a prince?

Xie Meng had been in Jiangnan for a long time, and he didn't know much about the influential figures in Chang'an. He didn't understand Prince Yong's mentality at all, and he couldn't agree with it.

Xie Qianli knew that Prince Yong had ulterior motives in taking Ying Xi away, and that the reason he abducted her to Guangling was most likely because Prince Yongning's mansion was located there.

Xie Qianli would never expose his despicable thoughts.

Xie Qianli analyzed, "If Prince Yong were to collude with the enemy, Jia Ruzhen should have reacted long ago. It's impossible that he could remain calm even with his troops at the city gates."

"Perhaps Prince Yong has infiltrated the city, and His Majesty is trapped inside."

"Then we should show that the emperor is supervising the battle outside Guangling City, so that His Majesty's situation is safer."

Lian Qing whispered, "If His Majesty could contact us, or if someone could send a message to His Majesty, that would be great..." The emperor was good at seizing opportunities. The first half of his statement was reasonable, but the second half was pure fantasy, so Lian Qing simply shut up.

But then Lian Qing felt a tightness in his scalp.

As he recalled a memory from his time outside the bandit stronghold in Luoshan that he still dared not recall, even Qing broke out in a cold sweat.

A glint of light appeared in Xie Qianli's eyes, but it vanished in an instant as he turned his gaze elsewhere.

As the setting sun drenched itself like blood, Lian Qing felt a renewed sense of unease.

He had a gut feeling that General Xie was hiding something.

Lian Qing stole glances at the other party's upright appearance, but the more he thought about it, the more frightened he became. He suddenly remembered the time when he fought Jia Ruzhen on the dragon boat, and Jia's furious comment: "A merciful general cannot command an army, and all warfare is based on deception."

Everyone in Chang'an knows that Xie Qianli was lively in his youth, but became aloof and upright as an adult; he was a gentleman.

Is that really true?

Lian Qing's fear reached its peak.

A shout came from the outskirts of Guangling City: "The kerosene blankets are down again—"

"Scatter, they're almost scattered..."

The area outside the city was in an uproar.

On the watchtower, the deputy general had been overseeing the battle for more than half an hour, and by then he was hoarse and exhausted.

Xie Meng had to take control of the battle personally, and he shouted sternly, "Xie Qianli, listen to my command!"

Xie Qianli and Lian Qing were solemn.

Xie Meng solemnly said:

"It is now known that the Emperor is in Guangling City. You must obtain accurate information and plan a rescue strategy."

"Even if you don't eat, drink, or sleep, you must find the Emperor first. If anything happens to His Majesty, we will both atone with our deaths!!!"

"yes!"

He had long since stopped eating and drinking and had not rested. His determination to find the person was even greater than Xie Meng's, and the cloak with the Qilin pattern on his body was also gone.

Xie Meng vaguely sensed something was amiss, but with a formidable enemy at hand, she had no time to ponder it further and waved her hand, urging Xie Qianli to leave quickly.

Lian Qing also rode off on horseback.

The horses' hooves clattered, and Lian Qing's heart was still pounding as he followed Xie Qianli westward from the south gate, gradually moving away from the siege site and getting closer to the vast, deserted reed marshes.

Xie Qianli suddenly tightened the reins: "Whoa—"

He raised his arm and released the falcon. The black falcon spread its wings, circled and cried out, and disappeared into the reeds.

Before Lian Qing was General Xie's handsome back, but he looked around nervously. He saw countless reeds swaying, and at first he didn't react at all, but then he suddenly felt a familiar sensation.

The dense reed marshes seemed to be inhabited.

Lian Qing couldn't even pinpoint the other person's direction, and his back was soaked with sweat.

Suddenly, a clear yet unfamiliar voice rang out from the reeds:

"As you command."

Lian Qing's brow twitched!