Lin Zhengyong led his troops straight into the palace, and once all the troops were inside, the palace gates slammed shut.
The area outside the Dragon Saliva Hall was filled with Imperial Guards, while Mu Jin and Su Yi stood together on the city wall of the Dragon Saliva Hall, looking down at Lin Zhengyong's army of thousands of men standing on the ground in a dark mass.
Lin Zhengyong glanced up at Su Yi and shouted, "Su Yi, you little brat, you plotted against my Southern Shu Emperor! Why don't you come down here and face your death?"
Emperor Gaozong's personal eunuch, Yuan Lu, stood beside Su Yi and sternly addressed Lin Zhengyong downstairs: "How dare you people break into the palace without the Emperor's decree? Are you trying to rebel?"
Lin Zhengyong's face was gloomy as he sneered, "You rootless eunuch, you colluded with the Dongyue traitors to plot against the Emperor. Tonight, you will die with him!"
"How dare you! His Majesty is perfectly fine, how can you allow such slander against Prince Yi? General Lin, let me repeat myself, His Majesty is advanced in years and due to the complexity of state affairs, he has entrusted the management of state affairs to Prince Yi."
"Furthermore, His Majesty has told this old servant that if you leave now, he will not hold you accountable for your past actions. However, if you remain obstinate, you will all be executed as traitors."
After saying that, Lin Zhengyong drew his bow to its full extent and shot an arrow at Su Yi, but Su Yi easily cut it in half with his sword.
With a creak, the doors of the Dragon Saliva Hall opened from the inside, and Emperor Gaozong, who had not appeared for more than a month, stepped out.
Emperor Gaozong showed no signs of illness; in fact, his complexion was even rosier than usual. He was clearly in perfect health, not ill.
Upon seeing Emperor Gaozong, Lin Zhengyong and the soldiers behind him all showed expressions of terror. Some of them even collapsed to the ground, their legs going weak, while others tried to flee towards the palace gate.
But before they could escape two steps, they were shot through the body by arrows from behind.
Lin Zhengyong lowered his bow and shouted to the Lin family army behind him, "Anyone who dares to run away will die!"
Emperor Gaozong shouted at Lin Zhengyong, "Lin Zhengyong, are you trying to rebel?"
At this moment, Lin Zhengyong finally realized that he had been completely tricked by the father and son for more than a month. When Xia Miao went hunting, Emperor Gaozong was not injured at all. Instead, he pretended to be seriously injured and about to die, so that these wolves and wolves would think that they had an opportunity to rebel.
He was far too careless. He sent people to the palace to spy on the palace several times, but failed to obtain any information. He gradually lost patience and fell into the treacherous scheme of the grandfather and grandson.
Even if he did not intend to usurp the throne, he now held a high position of power and had a strong military force. Why would they not want to exterminate him?
Now that things have come to this, even if he surrenders now, Emperor Gaozong and Su Yi will definitely not let him go. He might as well fight back and perhaps there is still a chance of victory.
After all, the Imperial Guards of the entire capital city numbered only three thousand, while he had brought eight thousand elite troops, and ten thousand more were stationed outside Bianliang City. In any case, tonight he could only win, and he was certain of victory, Lin Zhengyong thought to himself.
His gaze was sharp as a sword, fixed on Emperor Gaozong, and he demanded, "Who are you, you scoundrel, daring to impersonate the Emperor of Southern Shu!"
Emperor Gaozong sneered: "Lin Zhengyong, you have truly disappointed me!"
Lin Zhengyong's sword-like eyebrows shot up, and he narrowed his eyes as he looked at Emperor Gaozong and shouted, "All soldiers, listen to my command! Tonight we have no way out! Take them down!"
"The traitors of Dongyue murdered their king and seized the throne, impersonating the emperor, intending to take over the land of my Southern Shu. Whoever can take their head will be rewarded with a hundred taels of gold when the great cause is accomplished! The one who takes their head will be awarded the rank of General of the Central Army."
As soon as he finished speaking, Lin Zhengyong was surrounded by guards with shields. Lin He led the Lin family army to charge towards the Dragon Saliva Hall. The Imperial Guards, who were blocking the entrance to the Dragon Saliva Hall, were also ready to charge forward and engaged in fierce fighting with the Lin army.
Shouts of battle and the clash of weapons echoed throughout the palace.
Whether they were the Imperial Guard or the Lin Family Army, they were all soldiers of Southern Shu. Perhaps they were relatives, perhaps they were neighbors, or perhaps they had enlisted together, fought side by side, and were close comrades-in-arms.
However, at this moment, they stood on opposite sides, one side standing on the high ground of justice, and the other side, whether forced or willing, standing on the side of evil, raising their knives against each other, fighting to the death.
In the fierce battle, the Lin family army, with its superior numbers, gradually overwhelmed the Imperial Guards. Su Yi and Mu Jin, their hearts tightening, leaped up and joined the Imperial Guards in the fierce fight against the Lin family army.
The shouts of battle filled the air as Mu Jin and Su Yi fought bravely side by side.
However, the Imperial Guards were less than half the number of the Lin Family Army, and they usually stayed in the safe area of the palace, so how could they compare to the Lin Family Army, which trained hard in the military camp every day?
Many of them were sons of wealthy families who entered the capital as imperial guards thanks to the good deeds of their ancestors, enjoying generous salaries and prestige.
Mu Jin looked around and saw the Imperial Guards around him fall down, and the Lin family army surrounded him warily.
Before them stood figures who appeared as celestial beings, yet when they killed, they were like demons, seemingly capable of slaying gods and Buddhas alike!
The soldiers of Lin Family Army witnessed him killing people as easily as cutting melons and vegetables. Fearing that they would be the next to fall, they hesitated and dared not step forward.
However, they were numerous and gradually surrounded Su Yi and Mu Jin.
Mu Jin and Su Yi leaned against each other back to back. "Tonight, you're not just preparing these Imperial Guards for the palace, are you? What about the other reinforcements? When will they arrive?" Mu Jin asked coldly.
Su Yi smiled and said, "If I had said from the beginning that there were no reinforcements, would you still have come with me into this palace and gotten involved in this mess?"
Mu Jin was furious and said, "Get involved in this mess my foot! If it's really as you say, then I'll definitely kill you before I die so I can take you down with me."
Su Yi grinned smugly: "Alright, then we'll live together and die together!"
"Bastards!" Mu Jin said, then raised his sword and charged at the Lin family army that had surrounded him.
Countless Imperial Guards and Lin Family Army soldiers fell before them, their corpses lying haphazardly on the ground, piled up like mountains, leaving no place to even step.
Blood, like a red carpet, covered every brick in front of the Dragon Saliva Palace.
The Lin family army pressed forward again. The two sides fought with their backs against the wall. Whoever dared to take a step forward into the Dragon Saliva Hall would die!
As Mu Jin continued killing, he grew impatient. The thousands of Lin family soldiers stretched as far as the eye could see, and even a war of attrition could exhaust them to death here.
Suddenly, the ground began to shake, getting closer and closer, and the sound of horses' hooves grew louder and louder.
Mu Jin stared at the direction of the palace gate, her heart filled with joy, and said to Su Yi, "Is it your reinforcements that have arrived!"
Su Yi smiled like a fox and said, "Guess?"
Mu Jin glared at Su Yi, but she held her breath and dared not relax. As she charged toward the Lin family army, she kept her eyes fixed on the direction of the palace gate.
Thud—
The palace gates were pounded, making a dull thud.
Lin Zhengyong's face lit up with joy. "Quick! My son Jingtian has arrived with reinforcements! Open the palace gates immediately!"
Thud—Thud—Thud—
A series of impacts rang out, and with a final boom, the palace gates opened.
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