“Your Majesty need not worry. I have my own way of dealing with the Peng family. Now Your Majesty only needs to tell me their specific situation, and also which route they will take if they go to the capital,” Zhao Xian said.
"The Peng family's sphere of influence basically covers half of the Golden Kingdom, and over the years they have been continuously developing their military strength."
On the surface, the Peng family has two thousand soldiers, but in reality, their military strength is at least five thousand, or even more, and the momentum of their growth is getting stronger and stronger.
They control several key towns in the western region of the Golden Kingdom, and if they were to send troops to attack the capital, they could arrive in just two days.
The Peng family's main military force was concentrated in Shucheng. There was only one main road from Shucheng to the capital, requiring crossing a large mountain along the way.
Zhao Xian nodded and said, "Since they are heading to the capital and have to cross that mountain, I will go there and see if I can stop them outside the mountain."
Upon hearing this, the emperor found it unbelievable. This junior official was merely a civil official; wasn't this a bit too much to say?
Unexpectedly, Li Ru, who was standing next to him, immediately became excited after hearing this.
In the past two days, Li Xue has told him a lot about Zhao Xian. Not to mention making money in business, more importantly, he can make bombs. No matter how powerful the opponent is, they will definitely be defeated when they encounter a bomb.
He stood up, looked at Zhao Xian, and said, "Lord Shaoqing, I know where that mountain is. I'll take you there to see it. I know you want to use the terrain of the mountain to block the Peng family's forces."
"Yes, General Li is absolutely right. We should not delay. Let's head to that mountain immediately, find out the situation there, and then make a plan."
The two bid farewell to the emperor, mounted their warhorses, and headed to the mountain to investigate the situation. They did not return until nightfall.
The next day, the Crown Prince finally received definite news: in the past few days, the Peng family had arranged for three thousand people to enter the capital in batches.
On the day of the princess's wedding, another two thousand people entered the imperial city under the pretext of bringing gifts. The large wooden chests used to hold these gifts were filled with swords and knives.
Once the three thousand men who had entered the city obtained their swords, they began to take action, controlling the royal family. The five thousand imperial city guards would have no choice but to surrender, and then the entire imperial city would belong to the Peng family.
Peng's rebellion plan was flawless. Fortunately, the informant planted by the Crown Prince played a crucial role; otherwise, the royal family would have faced dire consequences.
Two days later, the princess will be married, and the Peng family will send their congratulatory gifts on that day.
Zhao Xian said, "The Peng family has mobilized almost all of its troops for this operation. The initial three thousand people entered the capital in small groups. They were not armed and were not a threat. The key is the two thousand people who came to deliver gifts two days later."
These people will pose a huge threat once they enter the capital; they must be dealt with on the way.
"Your Majesty, please entrust the handling of these two thousand members of the Peng family to me. I will eliminate them all quietly, without anyone knowing."
The emperor was overjoyed. With the help of the great celestial empire, there was no need to worry about the Peng clan's demise.
"How many men does the Junior Minister need? I will have them arranged immediately."
"The emperor only needs me to give him a hundred men. Too many men will only make it easier to expose our position," Zhao Xian said.
"A hundred people are enough?" The emperor found it unbelievable.
"One hundred people are enough. This time, dealing with the Peng family's two thousand men is to set up a huge trap for them, not to fight them to the death."
The emperor nodded, as if he understood something.
At this moment, Li Ru spoke up: "Your Majesty, there are still three thousand members of the Peng family in the city. Leave them to me, and I will capture them all."
The emperor nodded again. Li Ru was a general, and the emperor knew his strength.
"You will temporarily be in charge of the five thousand guards in the imperial city. This time, you must wipe out the Peng family's forces in one fell swoop. Once the Peng family is destroyed, the Xie family will be much easier to deal with."
The emperor was full of confidence at this time. He would only feel comfortable ruling once the two major domestic powers were eliminated.
Finally, the day of the princess's wedding arrived, and the Peng family's gift-giving procession set off in a grand procession towards the capital.
Two thousand people escorted two hundred boxes of congratulatory gifts, making a great commotion with music and drums along the way, attracting passersby to stop and watch.
"The princess is getting married today, and this is a congratulatory gift from the Peng family."
"So many large wooden chests, so many people escorting them, they must be filled with gold and silver treasures. They're incredibly wealthy."
The people on the road were all talking at once. The people leading the group were all soldiers, and they were fully armed. This was understandable, since they had to protect such valuable gifts.
The gift-giving procession didn't seem to be in a hurry; at this pace, they wouldn't arrive at the capital until dark.
It seems these people have planned it all out. They arrived before dark, just as the princess's wedding had begun, which was the busiest time for the royal family and also when they were least on guard.
At this time, the sun began to set in the west, and the large group of people arrived in front of a large mountain. Although the mountain was not small, it was not very high.
There are two routes through this mountain. One is to go directly over it, which would save a lot of walking and time.
There is also a main road that winds around the mountain. The road is very easy to travel, but you have to take a lot of detours.
With so many large boxes, it's really not easy to carry them over the mountain. Taking the main road at the foot of the mountain is the best option. Besides, they're not in a hurry, so there's no need to go over the mountain.
The large group of people traveled along the main road, winding around the mountain. The section ahead was very steep, hugging the mountain closely.
People dare not travel here on rainy days because this section of the road is prone to landslides, but there is no problem today.
Upon reaching this spot, the mountain's slopes blocked the sunlight, making the place very shady. Seeing that it was still early and there was no need to rush, the team leader decided to rest here.
Everyone was overjoyed to hear this. They had been traveling for a day and a half and were exhausted, so they really needed to rest.
Once they reached the capital, there was even less time to rest; they had to risk their lives.
Everyone rushed to the shade. Since there weren't many shady spots, people tried to move closer to the mountainside. Soon, everyone found a shady spot and began to rest.
After settling down, some people chatted, some took out their dry rations and started eating, while many others lay down on the ground to take a nap first.
There was no one else on the road at the time, and it was relatively quiet. Soon, some people fell asleep.
Just then, several muffled loud noises came from halfway up the mountain. Without warning, the mountain collapsed, and a large number of boulders mixed with sand rushed down with overwhelming force.
The people resting at the foot of the mountain were stunned by the sudden scene. They got up and tried to escape, but it was too late.
In the blink of an eye, the two thousand men, along with the two hundred large wooden crates they brought, were buried by the collapsed mountainside.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
