"How could His Majesty be missing?"

Upon hearing the news, the Queen Mother came surrounded by the eunuchs and palace maids.

"Maybe he's going to take care of government affairs."

I feel somewhat relieved when I say this.

"Your Majesty is so diligent even though he is ill. This is a blessing in disguise."

The ministers echoed and wanted to say something, and a eunuch stumbled in from outside.

"Everything in the Qinzheng Palace has been cleaned up..."

They screamed and fell to their knees.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty has run away..."

There was dead silence in the emperor's bedroom and everyone was stunned.

"How could His Majesty have escaped!" The Queen Mother was the first to come to her senses and screamed, "Go find him again..."

Before she finished her words, the eunuchs raised their heads again.

"Your Majesty, the imperial seal is missing, the Jinyi Guards are missing, Eunuch Yuan Bao is missing, and people in the Third Prince's palace said that the Third Prince is missing too..." they cried.

Everyone in the hall understood what this meant, and their hearts turned cold.

The Queen Mother slumped down on her chair.

"She ran away?" she said, "She took the Third Prince away and left me behind... How is this possible..."

That's her son, her biological son.

She gave birth to him, raised him, and supported him to ascend the throne.

He actually abandoned her and ran away when the Jin army arrived?

No, he not only abandoned her, he did it on purpose. He even let someone lie to her and said he would come to greet her tomorrow.

Didn't he know what would happen to those people in the palace if the Jin people attacked?

He is not abandoning her, he is clearly going to give her to the Jin people.

This is her son and she is his biological mother!

The Queen Mother slumped down in her chair with a dazed and disbelieving look on her face, her mind feeling confused.

Before she could finish her mumbling and understand what was going on, an elderly eunuch screamed.

"Your Majesty has escaped! The Jin army is about to attack again!"

This word "again" awakened the palace people from their long-standing nightmare.

The memory of having experienced the imperial city being breached and the Jin army's iron hooves wreaking havoc instantly submerged the entire palace like a flood.

Screams and cries filled the entire imperial city as it fell into chaos, and the chaos and fear spread outward as the people fled.

…

The sky lit up with a blue light, and the darkness faded away. Light can always dispel fear and give people strength. However, the faces of the generals standing on the city wall did not improve at all, but turned pale instead.

There was another commotion in the city, with countless people rushing towards the city gates on all sides. Compared to last night when it was unclear in the dark, the crowds seen from a high vantage point at this moment were astonishing.

What was even more shocking was what they shouted.

"The emperor ran away?" a general murmured, turning to look at Ning Yan beside him, "Master Ning, is this true?"

Ning Yan is no longer an official and has been away from the court for a long time, but everyone is still accustomed to calling him "Sir" and regards his words as official.

Ning Yan's lips moved. He had followed the teachings of theology all his life and acted uprightly. There was nothing he couldn't say, but at this moment he really couldn't open his mouth.

The king they believed in and protected secretly ran away when the enemy was approaching the city.

The people were scattered and in chaos, the emperor had fled, and there was no one trustworthy in the government and the court. Not to mention him who was not an official, even if more officials came out to comfort the people, it would be useless.

What a waste! Ning Yan couldn't help but sigh to the sky.

Even if you want to escape, you have to make arrangements well, at least not let anyone find you, or discuss it with the officials. If the situation is really critical, they will certainly think about the country and advise you to go south or hide without you saying anything. Why would you run away secretly?

It's really a piece of rotten clay that can't be helped.

Now you are being so smart and now the crisis that we could have overcome with united efforts has been completely ruined by you.

The surging crowd approached the city gate. This time, there were not only ordinary people among them, but also many officials with their families. They were more ferocious than the common people.

I guess the government of the imperial court was in chaos and no one was in charge at that time.

What's worse is that most of the imperial guards and city garrison soldiers are from the capital, either children of the rich and powerful or native villagers. If they see their families fleeing, can they stop them?

Ning Yan looked at the city gate and saw many people running towards it.

A group of soldiers and city gate keepers shouted and tried to stop them, but their confidence was much weaker than last night, and one of them was even grabbed by the approaching crowd.

"San'er, what are you still afraid of? Don't you care about your parents? Your uncle took the opportunity to load all your family's dry food away." The citizen shouted, "When they rob the car, will you run away with your parents on your back?"

Upon hearing this, the soldier's face turned pale, he dropped his spear and ran towards the city.

The blockade in front of the city gate became loose, after all, everyone had family members to worry about.

"Open the city gate quickly, it will be too late if we don't run now."

"The emperor has run away, why are you still standing there?"

More and more people came, and the shouting and cursing became louder and louder. The soldiers guarding the city gate retreated step by step, and the wooden frame in front of the city gate that blocked the crowd was pushed aside by the surging crowd. It seemed that the crowd was about to rush towards the city gate.

"No, we can't open the city gates." Ning Yan shouted loudly, waving his hands at the people below the city. "The Jin people are approaching. If the city gates are wide open, it will be too late to close them, or the Jin spies may sneak in. Then the capital will be finished."

But this time no one listened to him.

"Lord Ning, the capital is finished!"

"The emperor has run away!"

"You liars! You want to trick us into staying in the capital to lure the Jin people into the city!"

"Everybody, run!"

There were shouts and curses at the gate.

"Open the gates! Open the gates!"

The shouting grew louder and louder, and seemed unstoppable.

The soldiers in front of the city gate retreated step by step and were about to be dispersed.

There was the sound of hurried horse hooves, accompanied by the loud cracking of whips.

"Don't open the city gates!"

At the same time, a female voice shouted.

Ning Yan heard the shout the first time, and a fiery red figure appeared in his sight. Although he couldn't see the face clearly, his clenched hands loosened inexplicably.

Yes, she is also in the city.

This shouting and blocking made the people very angry.

"Who are you? What's it to you?" Countless curses rang out, splashing in his face.

But the visitor was not frightened by this.

"I am Jun Jiuling." Miss Jun reined in her horse in the crowd and looked at everyone, "Do you believe me?"

You are nine years old.

Miss Jun.

The people who were about to continue cursing subconsciously swallowed their words, and more people looked over.

Miss Jun did not dismount.

"I am Jun Jiuling." She said again, "Listen to me, don't leave the city, don't open the city gates, stay here."

"Miss Jun." Someone said with a sad and angry look, "What can we do if we stay here? The emperor has run away, the Jin people are about to invade, and we are all going to die."

"You won't die." Miss Jun said before he finished speaking, "You won't die if you stay here. The emperor has fled, and the Jin people can't invade. We won't die."

There were many people in front of the city gate and the noise was loud, but Miss Jun did not speak at the top of her voice. Her voice was as gentle as ever, neither anxious nor impatient, and it inexplicably made people feel calm when heard by the people around her.

You won't die, and the Jin people won't invade, she said it so firmly and with such certainty.

The people looked at her, stunned for a moment.

Where does she get the confidence to give such a guarantee to everyone?

"I am Jun Jiuling, you all should trust me." Miss Jun looked at the crowd and said, "I never lie when I say something."

She is Jun Jiuling, and what she says is never false.

She is Jun Jiuling, and what she says is never false.

She said she could bring people back to life and cure incurable diseases, and Jiulingtang became famous in the capital.

She said that acne can be cured and that a good remedy has been found to curb this terrible disease.

As for the fact that the Jin people could not attack, she had fought against them personally. It was she who rescued and escorted the people of the three northern counties from the Jin people who had already negotiated peace. It was she who led the troops to the Jin people's territory to rescue the trapped Duke Cheng.

These achievements were not false; they were not only announced by the imperial court, but also witnessed by the people and passed on by word of mouth.

It’s Miss Jun.

It’s Jun Jiuling from Jiuling Hall.

Miss Jun turned over and jumped off the horse.

"You believe me."

She looked at the crowd around her and moved forward step by step.

The people slowly stepped back and made way.

"I will defend the city."

Miss Jun walked through the crowd and headed towards the city gate.

"I won't let the Jin people come in."

She walked towards the city gate and stood in front of the overturned wooden frame.

"I won't let you die. None of us will die."

She stood in front of the city guards who were holding their spears with nervous expressions, then turned around and looked at them.

"Please believe me."

At the same time, at the other three city gates, different people were passing through the crowd and shouting to stop them.

…

In front of the South City Gate, Fang Jinxiu rushed in surrounded by a group of colleagues and placed the plaque of Jiulingtang heavily on the ground in front of him.

"She said that we can definitely defend the city." She shouted loudly, pointing at the plaque, "You don't have to believe me, you have to believe her! She will take care of everything!"

…

...In front of the West City Gate, Chen Qi was feeling a little lacking in confidence. The plaque had been taken away by Fang Jinxiu, and he had nothing to take. He could only bite the bullet and show his face.

"I, I am Chen Qi from Jiulingtang." He said, "You all listen to me..."

Having said this, looking at the strange looks of the people in front of him, he swallowed again and reached out to pick up a porcelain bottle.

"Look, these are pills made by Miss Jiulingtangjun herself. She said these pills can cure diseases. Who among you has tried them? Can you tell me if she really keeps her word?" he said loudly.

The people in front of him shook their heads.

"I haven't eaten it." Someone even answered loudly, "I can't afford it."

Chen Qi was choked. Yes, the medicine from Jiulingtang is worth a fortune, and not everyone can afford it.

"Well, then you guys..." He stuttered.

"Is Miss Jun here?" the people in front of him interrupted him and asked.

Chen Qi nodded.

"Yes, she has gone to the East City Gate." he said loudly.

There was a slight commotion among the people, which made Chen Qi a little nervous. If these people rushed over, he would not be able to stop them and would be crushed immediately.

"Miss Jun said that we can defend the city?"

But the people did not rush forward, instead they stood quietly where they were, and voices of inquiry were heard from the crowd.

Chen Qi clenched the porcelain bottle in his hand.

"Yes!" He nodded heavily.

"Miss Jun, how can she do it alone?" said an old woman, wiping away her tears.

Chen Qi took a step forward and looked at the old woman.

"No, Miss Jun is not alone!" he shouted with bright eyes.

Miss Jun is not alone? Then who else is there?

…

In front of the north city gate, Manager Liu reached out and heavily inserted a large flag onto the overturned wooden frame.

"And there's the Qingshan Army." He pointed at the fluttering flag and said.