“Your Highness, I ask for a favor on behalf of my elder brother, Shen Yizhong.” Shen Yixiao said solemnly.
Xia Yu understood that, after all, they were brothers from the same mother.
But Shen Yixiao obviously forgot that they and Princess Shen Yuyao were born of the same mother.
If the Jingnan Rebellion succeeds, Shen Yixiao will naturally be the first to be rewarded, and pardoning Shen Yizhong will also be a very normal thing.
"Even if Second Brother doesn't tell me, I naturally know how to deal with it. However, if the court knew that it was Second Brother who helped our army cross the river, it would inevitably bring disaster to my wife and children."
At this moment, he was somewhat worried about Shen Yixiao's family who were still in Kyoto. Shen Yuyao had repeatedly reminded him to take care of their safety.
"Your Highness, all the ferry boats are now in place. I have handed over command to Ma Sanbao, and things are now secure here. I will return to Kyoto immediately, send my wife and children and their families out of Kyoto, and then I will be waiting to welcome Your Highness at the Imperial Palace."
Shen Yixiao naturally knew that if he stayed in Xia Yu's army, the news would quickly spread to the palace, and his wife and children would be in danger.
The only option now was to quickly return to Kyoto, send his wife and children out of Kyoto, and then go back to the palace to deal with Xia Chongwen.
After all, he was a descendant of a founding hero, so it would not be easy for Xia Chongwen to kill him without any evidence.
"In that case." Xia Yu said, "Then Second Brother must return to Kyoto as quickly as possible and get his wife and children out of the city first!"
......
Three days later, a heavy rain poured down.
Xia Yu's army has already crossed the Yangtze River and will arrive outside Kyoto in a few days.
Inside the Fengxian Hall of the Imperial Palace, the ministers all had sad expressions on their faces, as they knew that Xia Yu's cavalry would soon attack the Imperial Palace directly.
The rapid sound of raindrops outside the hall filled everyone's hearts with sadness and anxiety.
Qi Tai said: "Your Majesty, seeing that Xia Yu's army is about to reach the outskirts of Kyoto, Your Majesty should leave Kyoto as soon as possible."
Seeing Xia Chongwen sitting on the dragon throne, shaking his head and sighing, yet still refusing to leave the palace, Huang Zicheng advised, "Your Majesty, as long as you have the green mountains, you will never worry about having no firewood to burn!"
In the court, all the officials saw that the two cabinet ministers Qi Tai and Huang Zicheng both advised Xia Chongwen to take his family and leave the palace, and they all expressed their agreement.
Only Hanlin scholar Fang Ziru said: "Your Majesty, I think Your Majesty should personally recruit soldiers in Kyoto to fight against Xia Yu's army."
"I personally recruited soldiers?" Xia Chongwen's face showed an expression of disbelief. "Do you think that soldiers recruited in haste can withstand the fierce army of Prince Ning?"
"That's right! I believe Your Majesty must not be the first emperor in the world to flee!" Fang Ziru said righteously: "If Your Majesty personally recruits soldiers, there may still be a glimmer of hope!"
"The late emperor once said that Kyoto is the seat of the royal aura. Even though the imperial army has suffered repeated defeats in the four years since Your Majesty ascended the throne, most of the vassal kings have now been reduced to their vassal states."
"Now, only Prince Ning remains among the vassal kings. It is darkest before dawn, so Your Majesty should have confidence."
"Besides..."
When Fang Ziru paused for a moment, Xia Chongwen slammed his right hand heavily on the dragon-carved pearwood throne. He stood up suddenly, raised his head and said in a loud voice: "In our Great Xia Dynasty, how could an emperor abandon his country and flee?"
It was Fang Ziru's words that instantly ignited the blood in him.
"Pass on my decree, order Duke Wei Shen Yizhong to lead the troops to defend Kyoto City!"
After saying this, Xia Chongwen looked outside the Fengxian Hall.
It was already noon, and the sun was shining brightly after a heavy rain, as if everything in the world was exposed under the scorching sun.
After a while, Xia Chongwen withdrew his gaze, took a deep breath, and slowly sat down.
He said: "It's not that I don't trust you, but this Kyoto city..."
Sighing, Xia Chongwen continued, "My kingdom is here, and the innocence of all the noble families is here too! I will never be the king who abandons his country, and as for all the noble families..."
"If Kyoto falls, we will die!"
All the ministers in the hall responded in unison.
Only after all the officials gathered in the court and expressed their willingness to die for their country did Xia Chongwen feel a little relieved.
After leaving the court, he kept Fang Ziru and five other ministers.
"The five nobles are all those whom I rely on and trust the most. I naturally have no doubt about your wisdom and loyalty. However, since the Jingnan Campaign, my Great Xia army has suffered repeated defeats, which deeply puzzles me."
"For the past four years, all I have heard and seen every day are the failures of the imperial army. The Battle of Zhengcunba, the Battle of Baigou River, the Battle of Dongchang, the Battle of Jiahe, every defeat has caused me endless pain."
"Now that I have left you five trusted advisors here, I hope you can work with me to identify the problems of the imperial army and find a way to victory."
“…”
In Fengxian Hall, Xia Chongwen and five ministers discussed the matter for a full hour.
At noon, an official from the Imperial Astronomical Observatory came again and reported: "The White Tiger is moving, and the Purple Star is moving south. This seems to be an ominous sign."
Upon hearing this, Xia Chongwen's pace in Fengtian Hall began to become irregular. He suddenly turned around and asked Fang Ziru, "Which general is in charge of guarding Jinchuan Gate at this time?"
"Your Majesty, the ones stationed at Jinchuan Gate right now are Prince Gu Xia Zhu and Duke Cao Li Jiujiang," Fang Ziru replied.
Hearing that these two men were stationed at Jinchuan Gate, Xia Chongwen was visibly relieved. He turned around and sat back on the dragon throne, saying softly, "With these two men at Jinchuan Gate, General Sheng Yong stationed inside the capital, and Duke Wei outside the city, Kyoto should be safe."
"Now if we recall the troops from Jinan Prefecture, Dezhou Prefecture, Tai'an Prefecture and other places, and form a siege against Xia Yu together with General Shen, King Ning will definitely be defeated!" Xia Chongwen was suddenly full of confidence at this time.
At this time, it is the end time.
The hottest time of the year.
The soldiers of Xia Yu's army had not yet received Xia Yu's order to attack. They could only huddle together crampedly under the scorching sun, sweating profusely, but adjusting their breathing as much as possible. No one dared to complain.
This shows how strict Xia Yu was in disciplining his army.
They crossed the mountains of Tongzhou, crossed the hills of Shandong, crossed the grasslands, crossed the Yangtze River, and finally arrived at the feet of the emperor of the Great Xia Dynasty, outside the city of Kyoto!
At this moment, we are only one step away from the final victory.
All the soldiers of the Jingnan Army knew that the next few days would be a life-and-death bloody battle!
After tonight, someone will survive, and someone will die.
But no one is willing to continue waiting in this unknown.
At the time of Shen, the sun began to set, but the heat did not decrease at all.
The faces of Prince Gu Xia Zhu and Duke Cao Li Jiujiang were even more anxious than they were in the court during the day.
Prince Gu was the nineteenth son of the late emperor and the nineteenth brother of Xia Yu.
When he was still in swaddling clothes, Xia Yu once held him in his arms.
Now, inside and outside Jinchuan Gate, he and Xia Yu have turned from relatives into enemies.
At this time, Xia Yu's morale was too high and his troops were at the gates of the city. The two knew that the only way to win this battle was to fight to the death!
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