"Liu Song...has he really rebelled?"
His face turned deathly pale, and he suddenly coughed violently, coughing up a mouthful of black blood.
"Your Majesty! Summon the imperial physician! Summon the imperial physician immediately!" The eunuch cried out in panic.
Li Jingang pushed aside the eunuch and asked in a hoarse voice, "Where is the Jingxiang Army now?"
Feng Liang replied in a trembling voice, "They...they have already moved north, and the vanguard is less than a hundred li from Nanyang..."
"Ha...hahaha..." Li Jingang laughed bitterly, "Fine, they've all rebelled, they're all forcing me...Summon Ma Zongliang! Summon Ma Zongliang!"
Half an hour later, at the Zichen Palace.
Ma Zongliang knelt in the hall, not daring to raise his head.
Li Jingang sat on the dragon throne, his face flushed and his eyes bloodshot.
"Minister Ma, didn't you say you wanted to fight Zhao Muyun to the death?" Li Jingang's voice was icy. "Now Nan Yue has rebelled, Jingxiang has rebelled, Hebei has rebelled... Tell me, how do you plan to fight?"
Ma Zongliang was drenched in cold sweat: "Your Majesty, please calm your anger. I...I am currently mobilizing troops..."
"Mobilize troops?" Li Jingang suddenly stood up, sweeping all the memorials off the table. "Li Sheng of Youzhou is isolated outside! In Luoyang, besides the 50,000 Imperial Guards, who else can we mobilize? The common people?"
He staggered down the steps, staring intently at Ma Zongliang: "Tell me, what is Zhao Muyun waiting for? Why hasn't he attacked yet?"
Ma Zongliang gritted his teeth: "I believe Zhao Muyun is waiting for four things..."
Which four items?
"First, the Western Regions will return; second, Jingzhou and Xiangyang will submit—this has now been achieved; third, Youzhou in Hebei will change hands; fourth, Yunzhou will completely defeat the Northern Di."
Ma Zongliang said with difficulty, "Once the four things are accomplished, he will launch a general offensive."
Li Jingang froze, then after a long while, suddenly burst into wild laughter: "So...so I was waiting for him to be fully prepared before coming to take my life?! Hahaha..."
The laughter abruptly stopped, and he gripped Ma Zongliang's collar tightly: "Then what are you waiting for?! Before he accomplishes his four things, strike! Strike!"
"Your Majesty, our army is insufficient in strength. If we were to engage in open battle outside the city..."
"Then let's hold!" Li Jingang released his grip, his eyes unfocused. "Hold on...hold on until the last soldier is left."
He turned and staggered towards the rear hall, muttering to himself, "I am the true Son of Heaven... I will not lose... I will not lose..."
Ma Zongliang knelt on the spot, watching Li Jingang's departing figure, his heart turning cold.
He knew that this once powerful and influential figure was on the verge of a mental breakdown.
And how long can the capital hold out?
......
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com