The Southern Dynasty was also helpless; the tide had turned against them.
They couldn't conquer it when they were outnumbered, and now that reinforcements have arrived, there's even less chance.
Strangely, even when the Northern Dynasty's reinforcements arrived, they did not open the city gates to meet the enemy.
Could it be that they've been hiding like a coward for so long that they can't even stick their head out anymore?
Just when the morale of the Southern Dynasty soldiers was low, an imperial edict urgently summoned them back.
Although General Wu and his soldiers were completely bewildered, they still obeyed and left.
Inside the border town.
"My lord, the Southern Dynasty has withdrawn its troops."
"Could there be some kind of conspiracy?"
"Yes, let's not open the city gates yet."
Meng Jiujiu nodded in satisfaction; these soldiers had finally learned to be vigilant.
However, this might actually be a genuine withdrawal of troops.
The reason, I suppose, is still related to His Majesty's imperial edict.
The capital city, the imperial palace.
Wei Wangqing looked at the letter in his hand and smiled with satisfaction.
Thankfully, she made the right bet!
She received a letter from Nanlin, but the letter she sent should arrive soon as well.
At this point, all the civil and military officials had nothing to say to His Majesty.
One has to admire His Majesty's foresight.
Who would have thought that the Southern Emperor was truly unaware of the situation? This whole affair was actually caused by internal strife within the Southern Dynasty.
No, their emperor had already thought of that.
Although the Great Wei was in a state of gentle breeze and light rain.
The Southern Dynasties, however, were a time of bloodshed and turmoil.
The generals who attacked the Northern Dynasty were all captured as soon as they returned to the capital.
General Wu was still puzzled. Even if he hadn't fulfilled His Majesty's orders, there was no need for this. His soldiers were innocent.
Until Wu Quan was tied up and brought to the main hall.
Nan Lin coldly stared at the man, "Speak, why did you attack Northern Wei?"
"What?" Wu Quan exclaimed in surprise. "Didn't His Majesty order me to attack Northern Wei?"
Nanlin frowned.
Immediately, a courtier with keen insight said, "What nonsense are you talking about? When has His Majesty ever issued such an order?"
Wu Quan was shocked. How did he receive the news? He clearly saw it with his own eyes.
"Tell me what happened."
"Yes. I was on patrol when a soldier came to report that there was a secret decree from His Majesty. I took the decree and read that it ordered me to immediately send troops to attack Wei, and that I must do so secretly so that no one would know about it."
What was the name of that soldier?
"Liu Changgui".
"Send someone to look for it."
"yes."
In a short while.
"Your Majesty, there is no soldier named Liu Changgui in the army."
Nan Lin frowned. "What else do you have to say?"
But he pondered to himself, if he were lying, there would be no need for him to lie in a way that would be so easily verifiable.
Wu Quan was filled with disbelief. The scene was still vivid in his mind, and he clearly remembered that there was such a person in the army. How could it have turned out like this?
“Your Majesty, everything I have said is true,” Wu Quan said, kneeling on the ground.
"Is there any other evidence?"
After much deliberation, Wu Quan replied, "Yes, my deputy is Ma Zhaolin."
"After receiving the imperial edict that day, I ordered the entire army to assemble and set off. However, he questioned my order. In order not to delay the military mission, I showed him the secret edict."
"Where did you put the secret decree?" Nan Lin suddenly thought of this.
"This humble servant placed it, this humble servant placed it..." Why couldn't he remember?
"Wu Quan, stop making excuses and just confess," a minister said, unable to bear his foolish behavior any longer.
They can't even come up with a better excuse, they can't even improve their approach.
"Bring Ma Zhaolin here first."
"yes."
As soon as the person came up, Wu Quan hurriedly said, "Tell me quickly, did you see it? You saw that secret edict."
Ma Zhaolin looked puzzled: "What secret decree?"
Wu Quan was struck dumb and collapsed to the ground.
It was obvious that one of the two was lying, but he felt that the one lying was not Wu Quan!
"Wu Quan said that on the day the army set off, he showed you a secret edict from me. What do you have to say about that?"
Ma Zhaolin looked completely aggrieved and said, "This humble general did not. On that day, General Wu said that he was going to send troops to Great Wei immediately. Although some soldiers asked him why, General Wu refused to say it and only ordered us to follow orders. I have always obeyed military orders, so how could I have questioned them?"
"General, I have always been loyal to you, why would you want to harm me?"
Some ministers echoed, "The army always obeys orders; how could anyone dare to question your military orders, Wu Quan?"
It seemed that Wu Quan was full of flaws, while Ma Zhaolin was right in every way.
But this is very unusual.
"Both of them will be detained for now, and dealt with later."
That night, Nanlin went to the dungeon alone.
"Your Majesty?" Wu Quan asked in surprise. Why would His Majesty come to see him so late?
"Tell me carefully, was there anything unusual before and after you received the imperial decree?"
“Abnormal?” Wu Quan pondered.
"Does a headache count? I felt a terrible headache both before and after receiving the order."
Nan Lin had a hunch; this matter was probably related to the Wu Clan, just like last time.
"Wu Quan, although this was not your intention, you are suspected of negligence and dereliction of duty. You are hereby exiled to the frontier and will never be allowed to return to the capital." Although he had been bewitched, he was unaware of how the person entered the military camp. He didn't even know that someone had infiltrated the army, nor did he know that his deputy had betrayed him.
How did he become a general?!
"Thank you, Your Majesty." General Wu, a valiant man, couldn't help but shed tears at this moment.
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