As soon as Chen Zhennan and Feng Zirou stepped out of the south gate, a cloud of dust rose behind them, and a cavalry unit appeared as if following them closely—the Imperial Guards of the palace.

Chen Zhennan curled his lip slightly and snorted disdainfully. This Wu Yunyin was truly incorrigible and determined to kill him.

Feng Zirou and Gu Siyao also saw the pursuers behind them. Feng Zirou raised her eyebrows and scolded, "Wu Yunyin has gone too far. Helping her to sit back on the throne is truly repaying kindness with enmity. Does she really think we are easy to bully?"

Gu Siyao also looked indignant, gripping the reins tightly as if they were the object of her anger.

"Chen Zhennan, you can't escape!"

The Imperial Guard captain behind him shouted loudly, but Chen Zhennan remained calm. He looked firmly ahead, spurred his horse, and galloped away with the two of them.

After fleeing non-stop for about fifteen minutes, the three of them arrived at a grove of trees in the south of the city.

The forest was lush and green, with its branches and leaves intertwined, forming a natural barrier.

Chen Zhennan suddenly pulled on the reins, and the horse neighed and stopped.

The pursuers behind him were secretly delighted when they saw Chen Zhennan stop by the woods, thinking that he was about to surrender.

Just as they slowed down to prepare for the encirclement, a commotion suddenly erupted from the seemingly tranquil woods, followed by hundreds of men in black rushing out like ghosts.

These men in black were dressed in rags and had disheveled hair; at first glance, they looked like a group of bandits.

The men in black surrounded the Imperial Guard. The leader of the men in black, holding his sword in reverse, quickly ran up to Chen Zhennan.

"General, the brothers who escaped Song Xuan's encirclement are all here. The rest of the brothers have almost all been beheaded."

Upon hearing this, Chen Zhennan took a deep breath, wishing he could go and grind Li Yan to dust right now.

The network of contacts in the capital had more than 500 people, but now only a little over 100 remain. It's all my fault for trusting that beast Li Yan too much.

"Song Xuan is already dead. Let's give those brothers a proper burial when he returns in the future."

Upon hearing this, Feng Zirou's eyes lit up, and her murderous intent surged. She drew the sword from her waist, its blade gleaming coldly in the sunlight.

"Today, we will make sure these Imperial Guards never return!"

Gu Siyao was not to be outdone. She clenched her fists, her knuckles turning white from the force, and shouted, "Yes, kill them! Avenge our fallen brothers!"

The two were about to lead their men forward when Chen Zhennan raised his arm and stopped them.

Feng Zirou looked at Chen Zhennan with a puzzled expression and said urgently, "General, these are all lackeys of the imperial court. It would be best to kill them all!"

Chen Zhennan smiled slightly, shook his head, and slowly said, "One should be lenient when one can. Although these Imperial Guards were ordered to come and capture me, they were just following orders. There is no need to sacrifice their lives to commemorate our fallen brothers."

With that, Chen Zhennan turned to the Imperial Guards and raised his voice, saying, "I, Chen Zhennan, can let you go today, but when you go back, you must not reveal my whereabouts. You can only say that you didn't catch up. Otherwise, next time we meet, I won't be so polite!"

The Imperial Guards numbered only about thirty men, and they were already intimidated by the more than one hundred men under Chen Zhennan.

The Imperial Guard leader was quite surprised to hear Chen Zhennan's words, not expecting Chen Zhennan to be so magnanimous.

After thinking for a moment, he quickly clasped his hands in a salute and said, "Marshal Chen, you are so forgiving of my past mistakes. I am deeply grateful and will certainly comply."

After saying this, the leader led his men back to the capital, fearing that Chen Zhennan might change his mind.

"Alright, everyone disperse and split up. Everyone head to Cuiming Mountain inside Tianyang Pass. I'll be waiting for you there!"

"yes!"

...

In the capital city, in the imperial court.

Wu Yunyin sat high on the dragon throne, her eyes sweeping over the officials below, and said in a deep voice, "Gentlemen, please tell me in detail what is happening in the court today."

An old minister stepped forward, his face full of worry, and said with his hands clasped, "Your Majesty, the 100,000 troops at Tianyang Pass have lost contact with the court for several days."

Wu Yunyin's heart sank, and she frowned as she asked, "How could this be? Tianyang Pass is the gateway to our Great Wu. Once it falls, the Great Yan army can easily march straight in. Send someone to make contact immediately!"

"Yes, Your Majesty. In addition, of Zhou Xiang's three armies, the army led by Zhou Xiang himself has disappeared, while the other two armies are still forming an encirclement around the capital."

Upon hearing this, Wu Yunyin clenched her fists tightly. "What about the capital? How many troops are left in the capital?"

"Your Majesty, the army that Song Xuan sent to the west has already engaged in battle with Zhou Jianjia's Great Zhou army, and the capital... the capital is currently only guarded by eight thousand imperial guards, with no other troops available."

Wu Yunyin's face turned pale instantly, and she suddenly felt a suffocating sensation in her chest.

"What about the national treasury? What is the state of the national treasury?" Wu Yunyin asked again.

"Your Majesty, the national treasury is even emptier than when Song Xuan rebelled, and food supplies are extremely scarce. Winter is approaching, but we can't even procure cotton-padded clothes for the army."

Hearing these words, Wu Yunyin felt a chill run down her spine.

With Chen Zhennan's help, he finally regained the throne, hoping to achieve great things and restore order. However, he never expected that Song Xuan would leave him with such a mess, riddled with problems and rotten to the core.

The Great Wu's empire is now like a leaky, dilapidated ship, fraught with danger and in utter chaos.

Song Xuan, you bastard, why didn't Chen Zhennan kill you sooner?

The court was deathly silent. The ministers all bowed their heads, not daring to speak. Only the oppressive atmosphere spread like a thick fog, enveloping everyone.

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