Chapter 688 Shocking the World
The sky had gradually darkened, with only a little bit of sunset glow left.
Along with the hurried footsteps of the messenger, the lights in the palace lit up one after another. The bright lights were like a star rain, magnificent and beautiful.
The young emperor sat on the dragon throne, his brows revealing an unquestionable determination.
Jiang Tangwen had been kneeling on the ground and his knees had long lost feeling.
The young emperor's eyes were filled with disdain and his tone was calm, but it carried a suffocating sense of oppression, as if everything was under his control.
Jiang Tangwen's heart tightened. He could see that the Emperor of Great Zhou was wary of Gu Nanxi, but he underestimated the Emperor of Great Zhou's confidence and the contempt he suffered from Western Xia.
Jiang Tangwen sighed secretly, fearing that the cooperation sought by Xixia and Tubo would not be realized.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty!"
The messenger's lips turned pale and beads of cold sweat appeared on his forehead. The sweat flowed down his temples like a stream, wetting the strands of hair at his temples and sticking to his cheeks.
His pupils dilated and his eyes were full of fear.
The young emperor frowned.
The eunuch standing in the corner shouted, "Watch your manners!"
As if awakened by the eunuch's sharp voice, the messenger finally remembered his duty.
He swallowed, knelt on the ground, and pressed his forehead against the ground, wishing he could lie flat on the ground.
He could fully imagine how furious the official would be when he learned the news he was about to say.
When a gentleman gets angry, his corpses will be scattered thousands of miles away.
Can he get out alive?
The young emperor glanced impatiently at the kneeling figure below. From his appearance, he knew that it would not be good news.
Eunuch: "Why don't you tell me now?!"
The messenger closed his eyes and trembled: "Your Majesty, General Xie suffered more than 3,000 casualties in the battle in Xinzheng County. General Li Jin suffered more than half of his casualties in Xuanzhen County."
The messenger took out the secret memorials from the two men and presented them respectfully.
The young emperor took the secret memorial handed over by the eunuch. He didn't understand how the two could cause thousands of casualties. What he didn't understand even more was why there was anything worth writing in the secret memorial?
The handwriting on the secret memorial was frivolous, with frequent pauses and revisions. One could imagine how restless the writer's mind was.
The young emperor fixed his eyes on a line of words and looked at it for a long time.
[Lightning roared, the sky collapsed and the earth cracked, and the nearby soldiers turned into a cloud of blood mist. When the dust settled, the ground was like a meteorite, with broken arms and legs everywhere.]
[All the survivors were terrified and trembling. Thousands of soldiers threw away their armor and weapons and fled in all directions.]
[After experiencing the power of Yunzhou Cannon for the first time, tens of thousands of soldiers no longer wanted to fight. Everyone said that this was a magical weapon that no mortal body could defeat.]
[Please Your Majesty, shall we withdraw? ]
A large part of Xie Yunzhang's secret memorial described the cruelty and bloodiness of the war, and how the soldiers were terrified.
Just keeping the army from being defeated or mutinous had exhausted Xie Yunzhang's entire attention.
Although his secret report asked whether to retreat.
But both he and the young emperor knew clearly that even if the young emperor asked them to continue attacking, these soldiers who had lost their will to fight would be useless.
The young emperor looked confused. Yunzhou cannon?
"Yunzhou Weekly" once said that they were able to successfully defend Hezhong Prefecture thanks to the Yunzhou cannons.
However, all the officials in the court believed that the Yunzhou cannon was just an excuse deliberately put forward by Gu Nanxi in order to undermine the morale of the Great Zhou court.
The Minister of Works also said that it is basically impossible to use gunpowder for weapons because it has little power and is uncontrollable.
Could it be that the Yunzhou cannon is real?
The young emperor sneered. He would rather believe that Xie Yunzhang underestimated the defender of Xinzheng County and suffered a defeat, so he was looking for an excuse.
He put Xie Yunzhang's memorial aside and opened Li Aotian's secret memorial.
Li Aotian's secret memorial is divided into two parts, one part was written by him and the other part was written by Li Jin.
The first thing the young emperor read was what Li Aotian wrote, which only had one sentence: "It is recommended to retreat to Suining County and Jianping County."
The young emperor's expression grew serious.
Li Aotian has never been a timid person. He is brave and resourceful.
Before Gu Nanxi came out of nowhere, Li Aotian was the head military officer of the entire Great Zhou.
Before Li Aotian set off, the young emperor had a secret conversation with Li Aotian.
Li Aotian's primary goal in this expedition was to defend Guangde Prefecture and ensure the safety of Kyoto.
The fact that Li Aotian said this proves that the situation is very critical and he has no confidence in taking back Xuanzhen County.
The young emperor pursed his lips tightly, making the cold lines on his face seem even more fierce.
He then continued to read what Li Jin had written. He wanted to read it carefully to understand what made Li Aotian make such a decision!
[I led more than 3,000 people to Qingping Town. The only chain bridge across the river was destroyed by thieves at night, so we had to take a detour. ]
[When they reached the county seat of Xuanzhen County, they were bombarded before they could organize their troops.]
The rest of the description is basically the same as Xie Yunzhang's.
What made Li Jin even more miserable than Xie Wenxuan was that Xuanzhen County was mountainous, and the soldiers were more concentrated, resulting in greater casualties.
There are many traces of water stains on Li Jin's handwriting.
The young emperor put down the secret letter and leaned weakly on his chair, feeling an unprecedented sense of fatigue sweeping over him.
He seemed to be looking up at a mountain. Every time he thought he was about to climb over it, he would look up and see another mountain beyond it.
His heart was empty. Yunzhou Cannon! Why did such a magical weapon fall into Gu Nanxi's hands? !
I am the emperor, I am the one who holds the power of heaven!
Why?
Why?!
The young emperor felt a deep sense of resentment in his heart, and his eyes unconsciously fell on Jiang Tangwen.
Jiang Tangwen keenly realized that something big had happened, something very big.
The Emperor of Great Zhou remained silent for a long time. Jiang Tangwen could not hold back his curiosity and raised his head slightly, only to meet the cold gaze of the Emperor of Great Zhou.
Jiang Tangwen quickly lowered his head, his heart beating wildly. The look in the eyes of the Great Zhou Emperor just now was too complicated, with contempt, humiliation, and weighing intertwined.
Jiang Tangwen intuitively felt that what he had prayed for was about to come true.
Sure enough, the young emperor dismissed everyone and left only Jiang Tangwen.
The emperor's cold voice echoed in the empty hall.
"Say what you asked for again."
…
"Defeated! Xie Yunzhang and Li Jin both lost!"
"I heard that they were all blown to pieces by Yunzhou's cannons!"
"The cannon in the Yunzhou Weekly? How is that possible? Didn't they say it was just a showpiece to shake our military's morale?"
Within seven days, the rumor about Yunzhou cannon became the hottest topic in Xiangzhou and Kyoto.
However, most people don't believe it.
How powerful can it be? Probably only slightly more powerful than a trebuchet, right?
However, all the doubts and debates were resolved after Li Jin returned to Kyoto with the remnants of his troops.
"General Li, where is my son? Why can't I see him?"
An old woman with neatly combed hair looked at Li Jin eagerly. Behind her was a young woman holding a child, her expression nervous and expectant.
My condition has relapsed, and it is very difficult to look at my phone. I will update once today, and then update twice before the evening.
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