Emperor Jingcheng had already made arrangements for the court officials to deal with this matter, and secretly recalled Li Yannian's father, General Li Yan, to continue training troops.

Although Emperor Jingcheng was often absent from court, Emperor Jingyuan was no fool; he was well aware of the actions of Beixiang and Dongyang. Assassinations and kidnappings were just minor incidents.

Otherwise, Xijing's dominant position would likely have been lost long ago. Beixiang and Dongyang had planted many spies in Xijing, and Xijing also had secret dealings with both countries.

Di Jingcheng's strength lay in his loyalty, exceptional abilities, and the fact that he was a reincarnation, possessing a thorough understanding of the courts of Beixiang and Dongyang. Therefore, he deliberately placed the Li family father and son, along with capable military generals from the court, on the frontier, making them believe that the capital had no one else to rely on.

After he completed his deployments in both countries, he recalled his troops ahead of time and ordered the Imperial Guard to guard the capital, thus creating an encirclement.

The two countries launched a fierce attack late last night, hoping to catch Xijing off guard. However, they did not expect that Xijing's borders were impregnable, and Liu Xinqi and Yang Mingyue were in Xijing's capital, far away and unable to provide immediate relief.

Soon, the seemingly peaceful and allied soldiers of the two countries failed in their assault, launching four attacks, all of which ended in failure. The Xijing border troops then pressed their advantage, burning the grain supplies of both countries, causing widespread panic and chaos among their ranks. They also seized dozens of cities in Beixiang and Dongyang.

All of this took only five hours.

Emperor Jingcheng remained inactive in the capital, and coincidentally, the matter of Prince Yuan in the capital served as a cover, leading everyone to believe that Emperor Jingcheng was already overwhelmed with problems.

Di Jingcheng also cut off communication between the two countries, and all information ended up in his hands. Naturally, the information that reached Liu Xinqi and Yang Mingyue was false.

So Yang Mingyue stayed at a brothel drinking, and Liu Xinqi was invited into the palace. At this time, the two countries seemed confident of victory in launching the siege, but when Liu Xinqi saw the calm and collected Emperor Jingcheng, he became increasingly uncertain.

Especially with the sudden appearance of Caiyun, Liu Xinqi didn't know how to handle it.

Cai Ning was imprisoned in the dark dungeon where Mu Wanyu died. Liu Xinqi did not hand over the antidote and was thrown into the water dungeon by Cheng Er.

The fighting outside was fierce, but the battlefield was mainly in the outer palace. The inner palace was quiet, and the palace servants stayed obediently in their own palaces, guarding the lights.

Yang Mingyue led his men in and stormed in, easily breaching the city gates. Along the way, only the Imperial Guards shot down a dense barrage of arrows from the city walls.

Yang Mingyue and his troops easily blocked the arrows with their shield formation, with only a few cavalrymen injured.

Yang Mingyue watched the Imperial Guards flee after firing their arrows, and couldn't help but feel smug. It seemed that Emperor Jingcheng truly had no one to rely on in the court. The palace was guarded by only a few people, and he had even abandoned his own capital, sending his men to the frontier.

He sat high atop his Akhal-Teke horse, clad in silver armor, a ruby-inlaid sword at his waist, exuding confidence and charisma. A huge red banner bore a striking black character for "Yang," and Liu Xinqi's men were among its ranks.

The fiery torches crackled and popped in the air, illuminating the soldiers' faces with a rosy glow.

At this moment, Yang Mingyue looked at the retreating Western Jing Imperial Guards, a triumphant smile on his lips, and roared, "Kill them all!"

He drew his sword, a bloodthirsty smile creeping into his eyes as he greedily surveyed the retreating imperial guards. With a command, he unleashed his full power.

"Kill—" The soldiers stormed into the imperial city, charging towards the Western Jing Imperial Guards, and the two sides clashed. Cheng Er led his men out of the imposing main gate of the Qiankun Hall, their attacks swift, precise, and ruthless.

The Imperial Guards were no pushovers; even the weakest soldiers were no match for them. Although Yang Mingyue had the numbers, he did not have the upper hand.

Seeing that it was almost time, Cheng Er ordered his men to retreat into the Qiankun Hall and lock all the doors, leaving only the main gate, which was usually used by ministers to enter and exit the court.

He stood expressionless at the doorway, facing an army of thousands alone. The torchlight cast its reflection on him, keeping him company.

Yang Mingyue wondered, "Where is Di Jingcheng?!"

Cheng Er stood with his hands behind his back, his black robes fluttering, unperturbed by Yang Mingyue's words.

"Hmph, you're not going to talk, huh? Fine, I'll take your head first, then go and capture Di Jingcheng." Yang Mingyue was somewhat annoyed that a mere subordinate dared to show her such contempt.

Sun, the leader, hid behind the door and listened to Yang Mingyue's provocation. Although he was gritting his teeth, he remained as steady as a mountain.

"How's it going outside?" Chief Sun turned to look at his deputy.

"It'll be here soon."

The two had just finished their conversation when the black-clad guards appeared and nodded to Chief Sun.

Suddenly, a commotion erupted outside, and General Li Yan led his troops in with overwhelming force. Yang Mingyue and his men were startled and became chaotic.

"What's going on!" Yang Mingyue roared angrily.

"Your Majesty, we have been surrounded by troops outside!"

Yang Mingyue cursed viciously, "Damn it! Damn Di Jingcheng, kill him right now!"

Li Yanyan led his men in and stormed in. The two sides fought again, and within a short time, all of Yang Mingyue's men were captured. The area in front of Qiankun Hall was littered with bright red corpses.

Yang Mingyue's eyes were bloodshot. He raised his sword and flew towards Li Yan. Li Yan, who had been through many battles, exchanged a few blows with him before being trapped by the formation set up by the soldiers.

Yang Mingyue was trapped between the halberds and forks, unable to move, and it looked like he was about to use his internal force to break the formation. Cheng Er rose into the air, caught the chain thrown by Chief Sun, and put it around Yang Mingyue's neck, fastening it tightly.

Yang Mingyue felt utterly humiliated. Were they treating him like a dog? He glared at Cheng Er, his eyes blazing with a murderous rage: "Despicable! Di Jingcheng is utterly despicable, a damned scoundrel! Ah!"

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