After the court was dismissed, Liu Ziqi left Xiao Ning, Gu Wei and Yu Qizhe to discuss how many soldiers Xiao Ning should take to Xianyang. Although Ji Wudao's current intention was to retreat to Shanxi, once the capital went to war with Xianyang, the defense would be weak and the thief Ji might not necessarily make a comeback.
"I only need to lead 20,000 Weining troops, and leave 10,000 troops to garrison Kyoto." This was Xiao Ning's idea after careful consideration.
Gu Wei disagreed: "If we want to take Xianyang in one fell swoop, it would be better for all 30,000 Weining troops to follow General Xiao. There are more than 50,000 troops stationed in Xianyang, and they are more familiar with the terrain of Xianyang. They will have an advantage in combat over the Weining troops who came from afar."
Xiao Ning said: "But once all the Weining troops follow me to Xianyang, Ji Gou will get the news..."
Liu Ziqi smiled and whispered, "Don't worry about leading the Weining Army to Xianyang. Gu Yun will be back soon."
"Really? He still has a few days to come back. Otherwise, after he comes back, Zhan Xing and I will go to Xianyang." Xiao Ning understood that since Liu Ziqi mentioned Gu Yun's return at this time, he must have returned with soldiers.
Liu Ziqi shook his head: "No need, after the discussion, you and Zhan Xing will lead the troops to set off." He could not feel at ease as long as his third sister was in Xianyang.
Yu Qizhe shared the same idea as Liu Ziqi, and he was eager to rush to Xianyang.
After discussing the purpose of leading troops to Xianyang in the name of clearing the emperor's side and capturing corrupt eunuchs, as well as the deployment of troops in Xianyang, Liu Ziqi asked several people to leave the palace. He did not go to see Xiao Ning and Yu Qizhe off, as there was still a lot of things in the palace that needed to be dealt with. The palace maids and guards of each department needed to be replaced.
After Xiao Ning and Yu Qizhe left the palace, Xiao Ning went straight to the camp where the Weining Army was stationed outside the city. Yu Qizhe handed over the military power of the three camps to Lu Jin and asked him to obey Liu Ziqi's orders. Lu Jin was worried and insisted on going to Xianyang with Yu Qizhe, but was stopped by Yu Qizhe.
He went to the Dali Temple to explain the situation and rushed outside the city to meet Xiao Ning. Then the two of them led 30,000 Weining troops to break camp and set off for Xianyang.
At the back door of the Shen residence, Xue Qingshang, who was dressed modestly, knocked gently on the door. After the servant opened the door crack and recognized her, he hurriedly opened the door and invited her in.
"Where is the elder?" Xue Qingshang asked softly.
"The elder is in the pavilion in the middle of the lake." The servant led Xue Qingshang to the lake in the garden.
Xue Qingshang walked to the pavilion and saw Shen Tian sitting in the pavilion in the middle of the lake with a fishing rod in his hand. He was fishing with a calm expression. It seemed that he thought the person behind him was a servant, and Shen Tian did not look back.
She said, "Lord."
Hearing the voice, Shen Tian turned around and saw that it was Xue Qingshang. He frowned and asked, "Why are you back?"
Xue Qingshang straightened her lips and said, "I heard that the rebellion had been quelled and Kyoto was safe, so I rushed back."
Shen Tian put down his fishing rod, his face not looking good: "You shouldn't have come back."
"I know, but I can't let go of my sister." As long as her sister is in the palace, she can't hide outside and only care about herself.
Shen Tian stood up and sat down at the stone table in the pavilion, motioning Xue Qingshang to sit down and talk.
Xue Qingshang said, "I just came out of the palace. My sister heard about what happened in Fengtian Palace and is very worried about you. She asked me to persuade you not to go against Liu Ziqi."
As soon as she returned to Beijing, she went to the palace to see Xue Rong. The palace had been in chaos these days, and many palace maids took the opportunity to escape from the palace. She stayed with her elder sister in the palace for a while, and kept persuading her to leave the palace during the chaos. Their father was unreliable, and there was nothing worth staying in this capital city. It would be better for them sisters to leave Kyoto together and settle down in the south of the Yangtze River.
But in the blink of an eye, the situation outside changed, and Liu Ziqi directly proclaimed himself emperor and entered the palace.
Although Xue Rong was imprisoned by Emperor Mingzheng, she treated her servants well in the past and there were still some maids and eunuchs who were loyal to her, so the news from the previous dynasty soon spread to Changle Palace.
When Xue Rong learned that Concubine Rong and the Fourth Prince were planning to compete for that position, she did not care. But later, when she heard that Shen Tian was also involved, Xue Rong had to pay attention. She immediately sent Xue Qingshang out of the palace and asked her to give a message to Shen Tian.
"My sister asked me to tell you that she doesn't want to fight anymore, and she doesn't have the life to fight anymore. You have fought for her for most of her life, and she can never repay you in this life. She only hopes that you can live a stable and stable life in the future." When Xue Qingshang said this, the corners of her eyes were a little red. It has only been a little over a month, and her sister has become haggard, with only a bag of bones left, and there is no trace of her former glory.
She was willing to sacrifice her life for that child, but that unscrupulous Zhu Kuang took him away to be used as a medicine.
After listening to this, Shen Tian's face turned pale, and his hands, which were pouring tea, trembled slightly. He put the teapot down, and perhaps because he was absent-minded, there was a loud clinking sound.
"How is your sister's health?" Shen Tian asked in restraint.
Xue Qingshang's nose felt sore, thinking of Xue Rong's emaciated appearance lying on the chaise longue, and she forced herself to say, "I think Sister is not well, but she said she is fine and will be able to hold on until the day Zhu Kuang dies."
Shen Tian's dry lips turned pale. He hadn't been to the palace for quite some time. Xue Rong refused to see him. Even when she asked him to escort Xue Qingshang away from Beijing, she only asked her personal maid to pass the message to him.
"I wanted to take my sister out of the palace and go to Jiangnan together, but she refused. She said she wanted to see Zhu Kuang go to hell with her own eyes."
Xue Qingshang blamed herself. She became sensible too late. In the past, she thought her elder sister would always be the most favored in the harem, and she lived contentedly under her elder sister's protection.
Later I found out that the umbrella above her head, called Ajie, would also be broken after being exposed to wind and rain. She was not invulnerable and also needed someone to shelter her from the wind and rain.
But it's too late.
She used to think highly of herself, but after she went to see Ji Wudao that night, she realized her own incompetence.
She remembered that when she left the palace just now, she saw Yu Qizhe from afar. He was becoming more and more powerful and imposing today. He stood out in the crowd in his crimson official uniform, and his face was still as handsome and elegant as before.
She will still have the same heart-pounding feeling as before, but that is only for a moment. She will no longer feel that love is a big deal to her, the most important thing in the world, and she will not be willing to die for the love of someone.
There are many things in this world that are more important than love, such as sister.
But she would also envy those who devote their entire lives to love, like the one in front of her.
Shen Tian closed his eyes. He kept thinking back to that year when he was in such a mess and had blocked the carriage of the Marquis of Jingyuan's mansion with full of scheming. The girl lifted the curtain to reveal her eyes that were as clear as water. She had obviously seen through his little thoughts, but still asked people to give him porridge and silver.
When he opened his eyes again, Shen Tian's expression had calmed down. He said calmly, "When your sister leaves the palace in the future, you can take her to Jiangnan. When she was young, she said she wanted to see the beautiful scenery of Jiangnan. You can accompany her to walk around."
"What about you?" Xue Qingshang asked subconsciously. She thought for a moment and said, "You might as well resign. It is the right choice to retreat while the tide is at hand. Don't fight with the Liu family."
Shen Tian just said: "I have my plans."
How could he retreat in this position? It was not something he could do if he wanted to. He had so many people under his command, and only if he was an eyesore enough could he leave a way for those people to survive.
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