Chapter 90 Chapter 90 "She's waiting for me."
The sound of heavy armor colliding and horse hooves hitting the ground finally woke up all the sleeping people in Chang'an City.
Almost every soldier held a torch, and the flames filled the sky, illuminating the entire sky of Chang'an City with a scorching orange-red color.
But everyone can only watch this change through the window at home.
The noise was all heading towards one place.
At the foot of the palace, Su Shang returned with a large number of soldiers. He also wore soft armor, with his sleeves tied up and wrist guards.
The troops under the palace wall are ready to go.
Gu Chou, who was guarding the Que Tower, gripped the hilt of his sword tightly, his eyes darkened, and he looked intently at the army below.
Su Shang shouted, "Gu Ance, how dare you, using your position as the Lieutenant General of the Jinwu Guard, collude with other thieves to launch a palace coup and place His Majesty and the Queen Mother under house arrest!"
"You should know that rebellion against superiors is one of the ten heinous crimes. The ringleader shall be sentenced to death and the nine generations of his clan shall be exterminated. How dare you be so rebellious!"
"If you turn back now, I can still save your life, otherwise no one can help you anymore!"
Gu Chou stood on the city wall, looking down, his expression calm and without a word of response.
Su Shang suppressed his anger: "Gu Chou!..."
As soon as he said this, his angry eyes suddenly showed shock.
Gu Chou slightly turned sideways and stepped aside, and Shangguan Xu walked out from behind him.
Shangguan Xu looked calm and composed, her posture dignified. She spoke in a deep and steady voice, "What did Lord Su just say?"
The light in Su Shang's eyes paused at the sudden appearance of someone on the palace wall. Under the gaze of everyone in the city, he spoke after a long while, "Your Highness, are you willing to come out and see me now?"
Shangguan Xu smiled faintly, a hint of sarcasm in his understanding: "If I don't come out soon, will Lord Su lead his men to attack the city?"
"I am merely concerned for your safety."
"I'm doing fine now."
"It was Lord Su," Shangguan Xu added, "who led his troops to the palace gates twice late at night. It really kept me awake and left me exhausted."
"Your Highness, are you blaming me?"
"Let's go back. It's too late."
The night was as dark as ink, but because of the torches high above and below the city, the two men could clearly see each other.
Shangguan Xu drew the line clearly, but Su Shang still did nothing.
His eyes gradually turned cold and fierce: "Your Highness has been threatened, right? It doesn't matter. As long as I am here, I will definitely protect Your Highness and eliminate all those evildoers from Your Highness's side."
"Sushan!"
Seeing that he was about to wave his hand to give an order, Shangguan Xu immediately shouted loudly.
"It's not enough that you led troops to force the palace. Even if you saw me with your own eyes and heard me say that I was fine, would you still brazenly fabricate excuses for your rebellious behavior? Before you did this, did you ask the opinion of your husband in the mansion?"
As soon as the words fell, before Su Shang could respond, the generals around him also hurriedly spoke to persuade him: "Sir Su, before the troops were dispatched, Lord Su repeatedly emphasized that now in the capital, many people are watching from all directions, so before doing anything, we must not leave any room for rumors, and we must have a legitimate reason. Now that the Queen Mother has come out to emphasize that she is not threatened, I am afraid..."
Su Shan had to stop.
What he cared about was not the four words "just cause". There were only so many imperial guards in the palace. Even if she brought those generals in to preside over the battle, they would not be able to hold out for long given the huge difference in numbers between the two sides. As long as he wanted to attack, he would be able to take it down. It was only a matter of time at best. Thinking of the changes in the capital, he was even more worried. He felt that only if he could control her as soon as possible could he get a sense of security.
But his father would not agree to his attack on the city, and the generals who accompanied him eventually obeyed his father's arrangements.
He couldn't help but sneer and mutter, "It has come to this, what's the point of those empty names?"
A general standing nearby advised, "What you're saying is, if you can use this to reassure some people, then do it. Otherwise, if the news gets out, we'll lose the support of the people and even some neutral forces, giving others an opportunity to take advantage."
Su Shang closed his eyes and took a deep breath to adjust his breath, then opened his eyes and said, "I remember that the food in the palace needs to be transported in from outside every day."
"Yes, in addition to the imperial guards, there are also many palace maids and eunuchs in the palace. With so many people, the amount of food needed for three meals a day is huge, so it needs to be supplied from outside every day."
"What if that supply is gone? How long can they last?"
"It turns out that the food supply will be cut off in just one day."
Su Shang chuckled, then raised his eyes to look at the city wall again, and saw that the man's eyes were still focused on him.
"Then I'll give you two more days. After two days, I'll open the palace gates wide, and I'll control everyone entering and leaving."
The general lowered his eyes, it must be difficult.
On the palace city wall, Shangguan Xu looked at the cold gazes from below the city wall, and her brows were not relaxed for a long time. She watched Su Shang riding away on his horse, and saw that the soldiers below the city were still deployed tightly. She knew that he wanted to cut off all supplies in the palace by besieging the city, so that the imperial guards would be unable to resist in the end.
She watched the man leave and asked Gu Chou beside her softly, "Have the palace's food supplies been prepared as planned?"
Gu Chou nodded, but with an awkward expression, he said, "We've tried our best to prepare before. However, there are enough people, and in order to avoid being discovered during the preparations, the amount left over each time was controlled. So, we can probably only hold out for one more day."
"One more day..." Shangguan Xu murmured, "That should be enough."
The farthest scout patrol point of the Shen Ce Army from the capital is a full 120 miles away, and the army can travel at most 50 miles a day without any interference from other forces. Judging from the situation tonight, the army from the north should be within 120 miles of the capital. Taking into account the possible obstructions of the Shen Ce Army camps on this section of the road, they should be able to reach the outskirts of Chang'an within three days.
——
The bright moon hangs high in the sky, and the thin clouds are blown away by the breeze, brushing in front of the moon and then brushing past the moon.
Inside the capital, thousands of fires were blazing, and the night sky was illuminated in other colors. However, outside the capital, stars were shining, and night travelers were making their way in the dim light.
In the mountains and fields, the sound of horse hooves could be heard, and the strong winds caused by the galloping horses swept through the leaves on the roadside, making rustling sounds.
However, mixed in with this, there were also constant voices of persuasion.
"You just took off the gauze, so you should rest for a while."
"It's okay, I'm not feeling unwell right now."
"But... riding in the wind is too strong, and your eyes will be damaged after a long time..."
"That's okay, I'll just blink more."
The clear voice was particularly clear amid the chaotic noise, just like an orchid blooming leisurely among the withered grass and trees on the mountain, attracting the water vapor emitted by the distant mountain stream.
The young man leaned over the horse's back, holding the reins tightly in his hands. In the mountains and fields, he walked against the wind under the moonlight, letting the bitterness in his eyes fade, and he only wanted to get to her as soon as possible.
——
Following Su Shang's arrangement, the soldiers in the palace guarded the city wall like an iron barrel for a whole day and night. During the entire period, no one entered or left the palace, and no supplies were brought in or out.
Su Shang did not sleep all day and night after returning from the palace, because he always felt that even if he cut off all the supplies in the palace, as long as he could not completely control the Taiji Palace, all his methods would be in vain. Moreover, the news of the Shen Ce Army's resistance outside the capital was constantly sent to the capital.
The main camp of the Shen Ce Army was destroyed, the leading general was captured, and the rest were in other directions. The Shen Ce Army camp near the capital was on its way back to the capital, while those Shen Ce Army troops who went to meet the rebel army fought with them on various important roads in the capital.
But there was no good result.
There was less and less news about the Shen Ce Army in the north. At noon on the second day, the gaze that had been fixed on the hand on the table suddenly left, and Su Shang's eyelids suddenly opened.
As if he had thought of something, he stood up and strode out of the door, immediately calling the soldiers over.
"Where is the Shen Ce Army that was transferred back to Beijing?"
"Why is it that several hours have passed and there is still no news from the Northern Shen Ce Army?"
"Where have all the chaotic troops gone?"
"And!" he asked finally. "What's the situation in the palace? Logically, their food has run out. Even if they want to save food to delay the attack, without enough food, people's spirits will always be low. Do those who are guarding there have any countermeasures for the siege?"
"No matter what happens, the palace gates must be opened once the two days are up!"
“Oh no!”
As soon as Su Shang gave the order, the imperial guards came running over anxiously: "Sir Su, there are rumors in the city."
"What rumors?"
The imperial guards looked up at him, seeming to want to say something but stopping themselves.
"explain!"
"Your Majesty is not... not a son of the royal family. He is... a puppet that Lord Su brought from somewhere else and allows him to control..."
——
Outside the capital, in a dense forest no more than ten miles away from the city wall, the young man's eyes were covered with white gauze again. His tearful look just now really scared the servants beside him.
"My dear, are you feeling better now?"
"Well, it's not as sour as before."
The attendant could not help but advise: "Although my lord is in good health, the doctor said that he still needs to take good care of himself."
The young man smiled and said, "I've confirmed this time. The remaining ones are not a big problem. They will recover sooner or later. You don't have to worry too much."
"But you suffer." The attendant said helplessly.
However, the young man's smile faded, and he said gravely, "She's waiting for me."
"I can't slow down."
After a pause, he asked again, "How is the situation?"
The attendant said, "We've already split off three teams. The Shen Ce Army from the capital that hasn't arrived yet will have to pass through those essential roads if they want to reach the capital. We'll be in the front, and His Highness the Fifth Prince and his men will be behind. Once the encirclement is formed, the Shen Ce Army won't have a chance to surprise attack."
"Okay, then our time is up."
Zhou Jingzhi pulled the white veil, his face still slightly flushed, and his eyes, sparkling with tears, cast their gaze on the bow on the horse's back. After he climbed onto the horse, he placed his hand on the bow, drew an arrow from the quiver, and placed it on the bowstring with a decisive movement.
The arrow is pointing to the sky and the bow is fully drawn.
With a sudden sound, the firecracker shot up all the way and exploded into fireworks in the sky.
Standing outside the door, Su Shang, who had just heard the shocking news, looked up at the sky at the same time as the explosion.
The flare arrow clearly could not be seen in the capital, but Shangguan Xu's heart inexplicably moved, and he stared in the direction of the flare arrow.
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