745 What do you want to do tonight?
Xuan Shaoqi was indeed talented. Just based on the practice with Feng Qingchen during the day, he was able to arrange the formation with ease and even thought of several countermeasures in advance to deal with the opponent's attacks.
Because he was the attacking party during the exercise, he knew the other generals very well and knew the strategies and attack methods that might be used. Before the other side took action, Xuan Shaoqi had already made a complete layout.
The coalition forces of the Three Kingdoms had a total of 100,000 people, a large number, but they were not commanded by the same general. Although they communicated with each other before the action and agreed to advance and retreat together, everyone began to retreat in the face of the huge death toll.
They were only trying to break through the third line of defense, but only 80,000 of the 100,000 horses were left. Looking at the broken limbs on the ground, the three generals' eyes turned red.
"Did the Ninth Prince's 30,000 troops really rush to Xuanxiao Palace?" The general of Xiling said with disbelief.
They lost more than 20,000 men in the third line of defense, but the 30,000 men under the Ninth Prince could hold on.
"We arrived too late. If we had followed the Ninth Uncle and the Eldest Young Master and prevented Xuanxiao Palace from having the opportunity to reinstall the trap, our losses would have been greatly reduced." The general of Dongling regretted his mistake and was thinking about how to explain to the emperor when he returned.
"It's unnecessary to think about those things now. Let's be practical. The three of us should sit down and have a good discussion about what to do next." The generals of Nanling were the most practical. They did not ask for territory or the other side's submission, but only for money.
"That's fine. It's getting late. Pass the order down and rest here." How can you have the strength to fight if you are not full?
So, the coalition forces of the three countries rested on the spot and started cooking, while Xuan Shaoqi and his men in Xuanxiao Palace watched in amazement.
What the hell is going on? How can you eat in the middle of a battle? Why not continue? Isn't this giving them time to reinforce the trap?
It was the Whitebeard boss who had the most insight: "Soldiers are also human beings. The other side is a general who leads troops on the battlefield. They treat this as a battlefield. Resting at this time will benefit both sides."
It's dark now, if the other party wants to fight, they will only suffer losses.
"Should we launch a surprise attack?"
"No, because our people also need to rest and eat. Besides, didn't you see that they deliberately retreated to an open area and dug trenches? They are already prepared. Even if it is a sneak attack, there will not be much obvious results." Xuan Shaoqi refused without thinking.
"Pass the order down and rest on the spot." Xuan Shaoqi gave the order. Although some people could not understand it, no one dared to question it.
Even if they are not soldiers, they understand what it means that military orders are as heavy as mountains.
Although it was a rest period during the battle, no one would waste time. After a quarter of an hour, everyone had finished eating and became alert, staring ahead.
Torches illuminated the entire Xuanxiao Palace. No one could sleep tonight. Even though the coalition forces of the three kingdoms showed no signs of attacking, the people of Xuanxiao Palace did not dare to be negligent. They stared at the front intently. As long as there was any movement from the other side, they would take action immediately, as if they were seeing enemies everywhere.
Xuan Shaoqi was also agitated by this atmosphere. He believed that if the enemy was smart, they would not choose to attack at night. After all, they were not familiar with the road, and if they attacked at night, their casualties would be even more severe. However...
What if the other party goes crazy and we attack at night?
Therefore, no matter what the opponent does, they must be prepared to fight. No one in Xuanxiao Palace could sleep that night. They were all waiting, waiting for the big battle tonight, or the bloody battle at dawn tomorrow.
When everyone in Xuanxiao Palace was focusing on the war, it was a good idea to explore Xuanxiao Palace at night. Lan Jiuqing, dressed in black and with a silver mask, walked out from the darkness again and went straight to the courtyard where the old palace master and Lu Yiran lived.
As for Bu Jingyun? He had already mixed into the 30,000-strong army and would not appear in Xuanxiao Palace. Xuan Shaoqi would not know that a martial arts master had sneaked into the heavily guarded Xuanxiao Palace.
Lan Jiuqing had witnessed Xuan Shaoqi's cruelty, but when he saw the guards standing every three steps, Lan Jiuqing realized that Xuan Shaoqi was better than he had imagined. Once he became cruel, he would definitely not recognize his relatives.
These guards are definitely not there to protect the old palace master and Lu Yiran, but as Xuan Shaoqi said, they want to imprison the old palace master, Lu Yiran, Xuan Fei and Xuan Shaojie until death, and they must not take even a single step out of their guard except death.
A gleam of light flashed in Lan Jiuqing's eyes, and he took out a thunder bomb from his arms: "Xuan Shaojie, I'll help you this time."
As soon as he finished speaking, Lan Jiuqing lit the thunder bomb and threw it towards the southeast corner of the courtyard where the old palace master was imprisoned.
"What?"
A flash of fire appeared in the air, attracting the attention of the guards, but when the guards rushed over, the thunder bomb exploded.
With a loud "boom", sparks flashed in the air and the familiar smell of gunpowder filled the air.
"Ah..." A shrill scream sounded, and the guards who were close to them were instantly blown away. The guards who rushed up a step later saw the situation and turned pale with shock on the spot: "Oh no, oh no, the enemy has sneaked in."
This was just the beginning. Just as the guards were in a panic, Lan Jiuqing threw out another thunder bomb. Taking advantage of the explosion of the thunder bomb, Lan Jiuqing rushed into the courtyard.
"prick……"
The guard had just said one word when Lan Jiuqing stabbed him in the throat with his sword. He then pulled out the sword and cut the neck of the guard who was rushing forward.
When he arrived at the residential courtyard, Lan Jiuqing did not go directly to find the old palace master, but rushed to Xuan Shaojie's room. Xuan Shaojie did not look well, his face was deathly pale, but this had nothing to do with Lan Jiuqing.
"Who are you?" Xuan Shaojie asked.
"I'm here to save you. Stop talking nonsense. I've already dealt with the guards outside the yard. Let's go." Lan Jiuqing stood at the door and signaled Xuan Shaojie to move faster.
"Why should I believe you?" Xuan Shaojie was tempted, but he didn't know the person, so he had to ask cautiously.
Humph... Lan Jiuqing sneered and glanced at Xuan Shaojie with contempt: "Whatever you want, I don't have time to chat with you."
Lan Jiuqing turned around and walked towards another room and released Xuan Fei and Lu Yiran. These two people were not as wary as Xuan Shaojie. When they heard someone coming to rescue them, they immediately followed out.
Under the mask, Lan Jiuqing showed a mocking smile. When Xuan Shaojie came out, Lan Jiuqing said, "You take the wife and the young lady first. I will go to rescue the palace master. I will cover you. You just need to run."
As soon as these words were spoken, Xuan Shaojie's doubts faded. He nodded to Lan Jiuqing to express his gratitude, then ran out with his mother and sister, but the two women refused to leave.
"Xiao Jie, we can't leave. If we leave, we can never go back to Xuan Xiao Palace. If we leave, we will be nothing."
"Second brother, I don't want to leave either. I want to stay. I am the eldest daughter of Xuanxiao Palace." Xuan Fei also started complaining.
"Yes, Xiaojie, let's wait for the Palace Master. Once the Palace Master comes out, we can take it back to Xuanxiao Palace. What do you think?" Lu Yiran's eyes sparkled with hope.
In the past few days, the Palace Master had been much friendlier to her. She believed that even without Xuan Shaoqi and Feng Qingchen, she could still hold on to her position as the Palace Master's wife.
"Mom, Xiaofei, do you think Xuanxiao Palace is still the same Xuanxiao Palace? It is impossible for us to take back Xuanxiao Palace if we stay here. We will only be imprisoned again. Mom, Xiaofei, if you don't want to be imprisoned, come with me, otherwise..." At the end, Xuan Shaojie paused.
He didn't want to abandon his mother and sister, but he had had enough of these two people during this period of time. If they refused to leave, then he would leave alone. He didn't want to spend the rest of his life in this yard.
"Come on, come on, Xiaojie, mother will go with you." Lu Yiran was a smart woman. She saw what her son was thinking. Now she could only rely on her son. If it weren't for Xuan Shaojie, the old palace master would not listen to her.
"Mom, second brother..." Xuan Fei still didn't want to leave, but Xuan Shaojie didn't intend to care about her anymore. He took Lu Yiran and ran out. Seeing this, Xuan Fei stamped her feet and had to follow.
The family of three walked away, and Lan Jiuqing and the old palace master watched the whole scene. After they left, Lan Jiuqing spoke: "I can let them go, I can catch them back and let them accompany you until you die. How about that? You still don't plan to tell me?"
"That map is incomplete, what's the point of you coming here?" The old palace master was no longer as crazy as before. His face was full of worries, showing his old age. He no longer had the ambition he had before.
"This is my business. You have no right to ask. You just need to tell me where the map is." Lan Jiuqing's sword was always on the old palace master's neck. This obviously threatening action angered the old palace master.
Ever since he took over Xuanxiao Palace, no one dared to point a sword at him, and Lan Jiuqing was the first.
"What if I don't give it to you?" The old palace master showed a strange smile on his aged face: "Do you think I care about the life and death of that woman and her children?"
He hated Lu Yiran for making him a joke and making all his twenty years of hard work go to waste. Whenever he saw Xuan Shaojie and Xuan Fei, he hated them. Why weren't they Yi Mo's children? Why weren't they...
They were allowed to live because being imprisoned here is more painful than death.
"I think you will give it to her. You don't care about their life or death, but you care about her." Lan Jiuqing took out Lu Yimo's portrait from his arms and unfolded it.
“Yi Mo…” The old palace master’s face changed. He ignored the sword on his neck and reached out to grab the painting, but Lan Jiuqing dodged him: “Palace Master, don’t get excited. If you move one more step, I will tear up this painting.”
Lan Jiuqing retracted his sword and threatened.
The sword was useless against this crazy old man. The old palace master's neck was scratched by the sword and was bleeding, but he didn't care at all. He stared at the painting in Lan Jiuqing's hands with a fanatical light in his eyes.
"What do you want?" This was the only thing he had that could prove Yi Mo's existence, and it must not be lost.
"I'll give you the map." Lan Jiuqing readily stated his purpose again.
"The map is not with me. Give me the painting and I will tell you where the map is."
"Tell me the whereabouts of the map first." Lan Jiuqing could see that the old palace master cared about this painting. How could he give away such an important bargaining chip casually?
However, his words angered the old palace master. A fierce light flashed in the old palace master's eyes. Looking at the portrait of Lu Yimo swaying in Lan Jiuqing's hand, he was so angry that he slapped Lan Jiuqing hard without thinking.
"I said, give me the painting!"
Sweetness will come...