The soldiers' shoulders were covered with snow, and they looked determinedly at the dense enemy troops under the city. Everyone was ready to fight to the death, but at this moment, the enemy suddenly retreated in a swarm. Fires were blazing in the darkness, and only countless shadows could be seen flashing.
On the tower, the cold wind blew the man's robe. A royal guard hurriedly jumped up, knelt in front of the man and said respectfully: "Your Majesty, General Li's men have surrounded all the rebels, and the regent is besieging the remaining rebels and seems to want to capture Prince Zhi and his men."
It was hard to tell who was on whose side in the fighting below. Xiao Jing looked at them for a moment and suddenly said, "Send a message to the Regent. They can only be captured alive. The lives of the Prince Zhi and the others must not be harmed."
He had just ascended the throne, and he must not have a reputation for fratricide. Even if his fifth brother and his men rebelled, he could just imprison them. This would make him appear to be a magnanimous monarch who could win the support of the people with his virtue.
"Yes!" Upon hearing this, the Royal Guards immediately turned around and retreated.
The besieged rebels did not struggle for long. As they were exhausted, they were no match for the reinforcements. The game did not last long. Seeing that their prince had left them, most of the soldiers gave up struggling and finally surrendered.
It was a dark night, with corpses strewn across the city gate and blood flowing like a river. Countless body parts were scattered all over the ground. Fortunately, the battle had stopped, and the imperial guards were cleaning the city walls in an orderly manner. They must not let the people who woke up early the next day see this scene.
A huge black wooden carriage was slowly driving through the city gate. When the imperial guards saw the man in blue driving the carriage, they all gave way and did not even dare to look at him.
A strong smell of blood drifted in from outside. Xia Tong lifted the car curtain slightly and saw broken limbs and corpses all over the ground outside. Her stomach churned and morning vomiting gradually set in.
Xifeng, who was outside, had sharp ears and couldn't help but ask nervously, "Is there anything wrong, Princess?"
After that, the person in the carriage said calmly: "Nothing, just a normal reaction."
Hearing this, Xifeng, who was driving the carriage, slowly breathed a sigh of relief. If something happened to the princess again, he would not be able to face the prince again. It was a pity that this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity was wasted. He could have reaped the benefits, but because of the princess's abduction, the emperor got the advantage for nothing.
Unlike the Shura hell outside the city, there was silence in the city. The carriage was driving quietly on the street. The guards following behind were always alert to the surroundings and would not allow any accidents to happen. Until then, a beautiful figure suddenly appeared slowly in front of the carriage. Xifeng narrowed his eyes, and immediately pulled the reins with a "whoosh", and the carriage gradually stopped.
Noticing something was wrong with the carriage, Xia Tong slowly lifted the curtain and saw a familiar figure standing outside. She was wearing a lavender fox fur coat, her black hair was tied up high, and her pearl hairpins were swaying slightly. She must be Princess Changyang.
"I just heard that something happened to the princess. Seeing that you are fine, I feel that good things happen to you."
Xia Tong was curious about why the other party was here, but she still smiled and replied: "It's so cold at night, why is the princess alone outside?"
Princess Changyang walked closer to the carriage step by step, a trace of helplessness flashed across her gentle and beautiful face, "I wanted to go to the tower to see the battle situation, but my brother wouldn't let me, so I had to walk alone. If you don't mind, would you be willing to walk with me in the snowy night?"
——
The cold wind blew countless swaying branches and leaves, and little flames flickered quickly among them. Then there were waves of chaotic footsteps running everywhere, the sound of horse hooves was endless, and behind a group of soldiers were densely packed soldiers chasing them.
There were sounds of fighting in the small valley. A small group of remaining forces were fighting desperately. The leader, a man in brocade robe, was moving quickly among the crowd. No one could get close to him as he swung his sword.
A row of archers were ready to attack from above the valley, staring down. The man was riding high on his horse, looking coldly at the scene below. His sharp features showed no emotion until a black-clad general stepped forward and said respectfully, "Your Highness, all the rebels at the gate of the city have been surrendered, and the princess has also entered the city smoothly."
The people below were struggling to resist. Looking at the swift movements of the man in brocade robe, Gu Qin suddenly stretched out his hand slowly. A bow and arrow was immediately placed in his palm. He took an arrow feather and placed it on the string. He lowered his eyes slightly. As he loosened the longbow, an arrow shot into the crowd. The man in brocade robe immediately covered his arm that was hit by the arrow and retreated step by step.
"Your Highness..." The black-clad general at the side seemed to be hesitant to speak, as if His Highness was willing to give the Fifth Prince a chance to live.
Somehow, the man in brocade robe found an opportunity and passed through the crowd. He disappeared in the blink of an eye. A team of soldiers immediately surrounded him.
Suddenly, a soldier covered in blood came forward, bowed and handed over a sheepskin map, "Your Highness, this fell from Prince Zhi."
After taking the item, Gu Qin looked at it for a while, his eyes gradually deepened. The black-clad general beside him also changed his expression, "Isn't this a topographic map of Beijing?"
This thing is like a jade seal, which only the kings of all dynasties have. How could King Zhi have this thing?
Gu Qin tightened his palms, glanced at the mess in front of him, and suddenly turned his horse's head, saying in a cold voice, "Don't leave any one alive."
It was snowing heavily and the streets were covered with thick snow. Two figures of different sizes walked on the snow, one in front and one behind, leaving a line of winding footprints.
The surroundings were so quiet that only the sound of falling snow could be heard. Looking at Xifeng following behind him, Xia Tong felt relieved and looked at the woman beside him curiously: "Princess, why are you in such a refined mood tonight?"
The street was silent. Xifeng was following the two of them closely from two meters away, always alert to any movements around them.
"I just think that things in the world are unpredictable. I didn't expect that Fifth Brother would be so confused."
The woman raised her head slightly, raised her hand to catch a slowly falling snowflake, and frowned slightly, "In terms of talent, Fifth Brother is indeed outstanding, but he is too selfish and often ignores the overall situation for his own benefit. I think that the emperor would choose Big Brother to inherit the throne in the end, but it's a pity that Fifth Brother can't see through all this."
Looking at the footprints left by herself on the snow, Xia Tong said nothing. Everyone has their own selfish desires. Doesn't Princess Changyang also want to marry Gu Qin? The winner is the king and the loser is the bandit. History has always been written by the victors.
"When we saw the prince for the first time that year, my mother and I were terrified because the ground was covered with the corpses of assassins. My mother said that the prince wanted to rebel and was disloyal, but I didn't think so because I knew his life experience. Anyone would seek revenge for themselves, let alone a vengeful man like the prince." Princess Changyang murmured suddenly.
Xia Tong was startled and couldn't help but take a deep look at the woman next to her. Her profile was beautiful and gentle, and her eyes were complicated, as if she was recalling something from the past.
"I told my father that I wanted to marry the prince, but he was furious and wanted to demote me to a commoner. My mother drank poisoned wine to save me, but my father was not sad at all. I asked to guard the imperial mausoleum for my mother, and was only called back to the capital by my father not long ago." She sneered at the sky, her voice cold, "Because my father knew that he was dying, he finally remembered us, his children, but in his eyes there were only the country and the people, so he did not hesitate to demote several of my brothers to fiefdoms, and even let me marry into the palace just to help my brother."
Xia Tong suppressed her shock with a faint tone of sighing. She did not expect Princess Changyang to tell her such a secret. The old emperor was really disgusting. He was still trying to annoy Gu Qin before his death. Maybe in his heart, the male protagonist was the only son, and the rest were just tools.
"I used to hate him, so I thought that even if the prince rebelled, I would stand with him, because I hated this royal family and the identity of a princess." She suddenly turned her head slowly and looked at Xia Tong steadily with empty eyes. "But when I came back, everything changed."
Their eyes met, Xia Tong opened her lips slightly, "Princess, there is actually a better choice, it's not that the prince is the only choice."
She didn't understand why the other party said so much to her today. Maybe he was stimulated by Xiao Ming. However, he could choose a better life and spend his life with a handsome and talented young man from a noble family. Why did he have to follow Gu Qin? With Gu Qin's character, even if she didn't ask, he would not allow a royal woman to approach him. After all, this was the daughter of his father's murderer.
Looking at the beautiful woman in front of her, Princess Changyang was in a trance. She paused, a complex look flashed in her eyes. She just looked at her calmly and said, "But I don't have a chance to look back."
The author has something to say: The princess doesn’t intend to do anything to the heroine now. After all, Xifeng is here, and the heroine will not be in any danger. It’s just a foreshadowing of some plot later.
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