The ginkgo leaves fell all over the ground, just like those words.
The two stood on the bridge and were silent for a while.
Ning Que said, "You are Eldest Brother's sworn sister and my friend. The Master of Calligrapher asked you to leave Mogan Mountain because he knows that helping the Tang Empire is helping the big river. No matter what, you have to work hard."
Mo Shanshan was a little confused and asked, "What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to have a good sleep."
Ning Que said, "I am not Eldest Brother or Second Brother. I will die if I don't sleep. I want to vomit after looking at this city for two days. I need to relax."
Mo Shanshan said, "Then go rest … But please don't feel frustrated and run away. Think about why you sat by the lake for half a day when monk Guan Hai challenged you."
Ning Que recalled the past and smiled.
Next, he drew a very detailed map for Mo Shanshan and explained the God-stunning Array. Then he irresponsibly left her and walked to Spring Breeze Pavilion in the Eastern City.
He did not really go to sleep, nor did he go to Yanming Lake in a daze.
The court had just calmed down and Li Yu was still under house arrest in the Princess Mansion. Many ministers were still against Ning Que and even strongly disliked him, so he could not be too close to the palace.
Now he needed to know the arrangements of the court and communicate with the Empress through the Chao Mansion in Spring Breeze Pavilion.
In the Chao Mansion, he received the latest military orders and military intelligence from various states. Looking at the military intelligence briefs, his expression became serious.
The Southern Battlefront Army was still on the way. The western army and the Yuelun Kingdom in the Pamir Mountains had not reported back yet. The Northern Battlefront Army shouldering the most difficult task was struggling under the attack of the cavalry of the Golden Palace. Even though the Northern Battlefront Army's numbers were reduced, it was not easy to reverse the situation.
Now the most troublesome situation was the war in the East and South, especially in the South.
The West-Hill Divine Palace led hundreds of thousands of troops north from Qinghe Prefecture. Sitting in Chang 'an, Ning Que seemed to be able to see the scene of flags waving all over the sky. He could not imagine what he would do if they attacked Chang' an.
His Senior Brothers and Sisters in the Back Mountain should be in the Verdant Canyon now. Were they all right?
Would they be able to hold on? How many days could they hold on?
At this moment, the prefectural magistrate of Chang 'an, Shangguan Yangyu, and Qi IV came to the Chao Mansion.
Ning Que wanted to see them.
"The chaos in Chang 'an has been quelled so quickly. Your Excellency, you have done a great job."
Ning Que looked at the wretched prefectural magistrate and said sincerely.
Old Master Chao passed by the door with a cat in his arms. Hearing this, he looked at Shangguan Yangyu who was bending down and said, "This lord likes to be humble."
Ning Que said with a smile, "You're right."
He waved at Old Master Chao, rubbed the cat's belly, and left.
Shangguan Yangyu said charmingly, "Not at all. It's all thanks to Her Majesty and Mr. Thirteen's good command."
Ning Que said, "At that time, the Empress and I were still outside the city. How could we command you?"
Shangguan Yangyu said seriously, "When the person is gone, the righteousness lives on. I can feel it …"
Ning Que waved his hand and said, "Forget it. I'm not a Grand Secretary and I'm not used to hearing such words. There are few officials in the Tang officialdom who would speak like you. Let's save some time and get straight to the point."
Shangguan Yangyu cleared his throat and said directly, "He Mingchi should have escaped from the Dongyang Gate. The City Gate Department is investigating internally and has arrested more than a dozen suspects. The Imperial Center Administration and the Southern Gate Temple have become much more well-behaved. Those who escaped from the Qinghe County club have all been arrested and are now temporarily detained in the club. "
Ning Que was very clear that the reason why the Imperial Center Administration and the Southern Gate Temple had become well-behaved had nothing to do with the exposure of He Mingchi's true identity. It was because the parents and relatives of those cultivators were now under house arrest by the Chang 'an Local Government and the Fish-dragon Gang. Under such circumstances, except for those who were truly cold-blooded, who would dare to make a move?
"The disciples of the Qinghe County families cannot escape the crime of treason. Although they have not been tried, why should they stay in the club and sleep comfortably? Send them all to the local government prison. "
Ning Que said.
Shangguan Yangyu seemed to be a little embarrassed and said, "The local government can't lock so many people."
Ning Que looked at Qi IV and said, "The Fish-dragon Gang must have many dungeons."
Mr. Qi shrugged and said, "It's not a problem to lock up a few hundred people."
Ning Que looked at the expression on Shangguan Yangyu's face and said, "What's the problem?"
"I don't have any problem, but there are many officials in the imperial court … Maybe there will be problems."
Shangguan Yangyu said, "There are two opinions in the imperial court about how to deal with the families of Qinghe County. One is to try them as soon as possible to give an explanation to the imperial court and the people. The other is to let the disciples of the families stay in Chang 'an City alive, so that they can be used as a bargaining chip when negotiating with the West-Hill Divine Palace in the future."
Ning Que was silent for a moment and said, "These people must die."
Shangguan Yangyu said worriedly, "What if the officials in the imperial court object?"
"Even if we want to negotiate in the future, there are some problems that cannot be discussed."
Ning Que said, "The problem of Qinghe County is a problem that cannot be discussed. Of course, it is indeed a pity for these people to die now, so let them suffer first."
Qi IV said, "I am better at this."
Shangguan Yangyu said, "The prefectural government is more professional."
Ning Que said, "You can discuss these small things yourself. I called you here today because the Empress has decided to hand over the City Gate Department and the temporary law enforcement power to His Excellency. The Fish-dragon Gang will also temporarily be under His Excellency's command. Mr. Qi, you have to cooperate with His Excellency and do this well."
Shangguan Yangyu was very clear that as long as he could survive this war, he would definitely be promoted after the war. However, he did not expect that he would suddenly have such a great power. He could not help but feel a little excited and a little scared.
Mr. Qi also felt a little strange. This arrangement was a little strange.
"Chang 'an City is very empty. If the West-Hill Divine Palace Coalition Army … No matter which side the enemy is from, there is nothing we can do if they come to the city. So you have to be prepared in advance after the city is breached."
Hearing Ning Que's words, Shangguan Yangyu and Mr. Qi were shocked and speechless.
Just like all the Tangs, they had never thought that Chang 'an City would be breached one day.
"Don't spread this news."
Ning Que did not look at Qi IV, but looked at Shangguan Yangyu's eyes.
That pair of wretched triangular eyes flashed with a complicated look.
Ning Que looked at him and said calmly, "If something goes wrong, there will be no Shangguan in the world."
…
…
He said he wanted to rest, but how could he rest? How could he sleep with such a heavy stone in his heart? Ning Que walked along the Vermilion Bird Avenue to the south gate. He felt the subtle changes in the aura of heaven and earth and observed the blocked areas along the way. He looked more and more tired and his footsteps became heavier.
When he came to the city wall, he looked at the top of the city wall.
The city wall of Chang 'an was as high as a cliff. Standing on the ground, it was difficult to see the picture at the top.
His eyesight was far sharper than that of ordinary people, so he could see the girl in the white cotton dress.
She was looking at Chang 'an City and thinking hard.
Just like him before.
Ning Que thanked her silently.
"She can recognize the Stone Array Tactics. This girl is indeed more talented than you in tactical arrays. But since the teacher has handed Chang 'an City to you, I think you need to figure it out yourself."
A little girl walked to his side and looked up at the city wall.
The little girl was about twelve or thirteen years old. Her black ponytails swayed at her waist. She looked young and cute, but her tone was calm, gentle and mature. It was not inappropriate to call Mo Shanshan a little girl.
She was the current leader of the Devil's Doctrine, so she was qualified to call the Calligraphy Addict a little girl.
"Senior Sister, I really can't think of any way."
Ning Que said.
Yu Lian looked at him and said, "So you have already started to plan to break the city."
Ning Que said, "I don't think about winning, but about losing first. This is my habit."
Yu Lian said, "If it is a normal time, this is not a problem. But the situation now is that the Tang Empire will lose, so we must only think about winning, not about losing."
Ning Que did not understand.
Yu Lian said, "We can only think about how to win, but not how to face failure."
"But … if failure is destined, how can we win?"
"Then we have to win before we lose."
Yu Lian said, "The final result of a war depends on many aspects. Maybe Second Brother can't defend the Verdant Canyon, maybe the Northern Battlefront Army will be defeated by the Golden Tribe, maybe Chang 'an will be broken. But as long as we can win in one aspect before these failures come, we can prevent these failures from happening."
Ning Que understood and said, "The most important thing is to win."
"Yes." Yu Lian said, "In your opinion, what will be the outcome of this war?"
Ning Que was very clear that the Tang Empire had suffered a series of setbacks at the beginning of the war. The gap between the two sides had widened. Even if the Verdant Canyon could be defended and the God-stunning Array could be repaired, it would still be difficult to change the final outcome.
"We will probably still lose." He said, "But I believe that when the Tang Empire is destroyed, there will not be many countries left in the world."
"Yes, this is the truth that everyone in the world can understand. The royal families and the generals of the various countries are stupid, but they should be able to understand this."
Yu Lian said, "The Tang Empire and the Academy have begun to show their power. People are dying everywhere. I believe the Yuelun Kingdom is in a miserable state in Chaoyang City. The Yan Kingdom has also crippled itself. Who would want to die with the Tang Empire?"
Ning Que said, "I heard that the Emperor of the South Jin Kingdom is a little crazy because of the death of his son."
Yu Lian said, "If the Emperor wants to drag the entire South Jin Kingdom into the swamp of madness, the royal family and the generals will come out to stop him. Because there are more people who are not crazy."
"Only the West-Hill Divine Palace wants to destroy the Tang Empire at all costs." She continued, "Xiong Chumo has been crippled. The Divine Hall of Revelation and the Hall of Judgement will be seriously injured or even killed after the battle of the Verdant Canyon. What else does the Divine Hall have?"
Ning Que was deep in thought.
"A few days ago, Eldest Brother and I have been thinking about a problem. How to win in a certain defeat, at least a temporary victory and a temporary peace. Until we figured it out."
Yu Lian looked at him and said, "Kill the Abbey Dean and this war will end."
Ning Que did not know what to say.
This inference was correct. If the Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey was killed by the Academy, the West-Hill Divine Palace would suffer a great loss and its influence on the countries in the secular world would be weakened. Then, which country would be willing to be destroyed with the Tang Empire?
More importantly, if the Abbey Dean died, Taoism would no longer have any restraints on the Sword Garret and Liu Bai.
However, the problem was … the Abbey Dean was the most powerful and unfathomable powerhouse in the world after the Headmaster of the Academy ascended to Heaven. The difficulty of killing him was not much different from the Tang Empire winning this tragic war.
Ning Que looked at her and said, "Senior Sister, did you stay in Chang 'an and not go to the Verdant Canyon because of this?"
Yu Lian said, "I am not confident that I can defeat him. The Abbey Dean is more powerful than you and most people in the world can imagine. He is even more powerful than we can imagine."
Ning Que knew that Eldest Brother was competing with the Abbey Dean in the Distanceless State. In his impression, the Abbey Dean was not worthy of his Senior Sister's description no matter how powerful he was.
Yu Lian said, "You will know when the Abbey Dean makes his move."
Ning Que said, "What can I do?"
Yu Lian said, "Repair the city."
Ning Que finally completely understood what Eldest Brother and Third Sister meant.
If Chang 'an was destroyed, it would be a failure.
If the Academy could kill the Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey before Chang 'an was destroyed, it would be a victory.
When Eldest Brother brought the Abbey Dean to Chang 'an, he needed to repair at least a part of the city.
— the part where he killed people.
If he could not do that, he would not need to repair the city anymore.
This was the last light of night before dawn. It could also be the last step before the abyss.
Ning Que felt more and more stressed, so much so that he had difficulty breathing.
…
…
At night.
Mo Shanshan stood by the city wall. Her cheeks were slightly red from the cold autumn wind.
She crossed her arms and looked at the lights in front of her. Suddenly, she understood something.
But the divine light disappeared immediately. She did not know where it went.
She frowned slightly and continued to look at the city.
…
…
Ning Que was also looking at the city.
He sat on Yanming Mountain and looked across the lake.
The scene across the lake was a fragment of Chang 'an City.
His and Sangsang's house was also there. No one lived there for a long time. It was dark and cold.
He looked at it for a long time and remembered many things.
When he received the challenge from Monk Guan Hai, he pondered for a long time by the lake and learned a lot.
Of course, most of the past was related to Sangsang.
But he did not feel anything.
He was very tired.
He fell into a deep sleep in the cold night.
When he woke up, there were still no lights across the lake.
Because it was dawn.
The sound of peddlers came from the morning fog.
After the morning fog dispersed, the residential streets were occupied by the steam from the bun shops.
People gradually came to life.
It turned out that the other side was not so cold.
Ning Que looked in that direction and vaguely captured something.
…
…
(Have a good weekend. See you tomorrow.) (To be continued.) If you like this work, please come to Qidian.Com to vote for me. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
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