"Son greets Imperial Father! Greets Imperial Mother! "
In the Li Zheng Palace, Li Tai, who had heard the attendant's words, quickly walked in and then bowed to Li Er and Empress Zhangsun, who were sitting high above.
"No need for formalities!"
Li Er waved his hand and asked impatiently, "Qing Que, why did you return to Chang 'an? What's the current situation on Cloud Mountain? "
Li Tai's eyes narrowed slightly as he cupped his fists and said, "Replying to Imperial Father, Wu Jie has already escaped from Cloud Mountain. At this moment, General Qiu and Chief Steward Zhao are leading troops to intercept him!"
"Escaped?"
Li Er's old face instantly became gloomy as he stood up and asked, "Why couldn't Dugu Xin's two thousand Imperial Army hold out until Zhen's reinforcements arrive? Could it be that two thousand Imperial Army soldiers couldn't stop Wu Jie? "
Subconsciously, Li Er thought that the main reason Wu Jie escaped was due to Dugu Xin's incompetence in supervising the battle, so his expression naturally became ugly.
Li Tai was a loyal person. Previously, the two brothers of the Dugu Family had risked their lives for Yanhuang College and were both seriously injured. He had seen it all and remembered it in his heart, so when he heard the dissatisfaction in Li Er's words towards Dugu Xin, Li Tai quickly explained.
"Imperial Father, it's not that General Dugu was defeated, but that the Yamachō didn't want to see too many people die because of the Academy's materials, so they ordered everyone to let Wu Jie go!"
Li Er's eyebrows rose as his expression changed, and he angrily said, "Bastard! The Academy's books and manuscripts are the secrets of our Great Tang, how could Li Zexuan give them to the Turks? What is this brat's intention? "
Although Li Er had always admired Li Zexuan, today, Li Zexuan actually ordered people to let Wu Jie go, which made Li Er quite angry. If Li Zexuan was in the hall right now, Old Li would definitely have him beaten thirty times and thrown into prison!
"Your Majesty, please don't be angry!"
Empress Zhangsun hurriedly said, "The Marquis of Yong 'an is benevolent. He just doesn't want to see more innocent people sacrificed. I hope Your Majesty won't blame him!"
Empress Zhangsun didn't have any ill feelings towards Li Zexuan's actions. On the contrary, she faintly admired Li Zexuan. In her opinion, people with a kind heart would be at ease to use!
Li Er snorted and said unhappily, "What innocent sacrifice? Pedantic! For the sake of preventing these books from reaching the Turks, even the sacrifice of five thousand people was worth it! If we allow the Turks to grasp the advanced technology of Yanhuang College, in the future when the Great Tang and the Turks go to war, there will be dozens of times more soldiers dying on the battlefield! "
Emperors were always ruthless, but at the same time, Li Zexuan was also far-sighted. It was hard to say who was right or wrong between him and Li Zexuan. It could only be said that both of them had their own considerations! In Li Er's eyes, the books and information of the Academy were more important than anything else. This was because he had seen the magic of the telegraph and the terror of gunpowder. He deeply understood that if the technology of the Academy fell into the hands of the Turks, it would bring a devastating disaster to the Great Tang!
After a moment of silence, Li Tai cupped his hands and said, "Imperial Father, Yamachō said on the telegraph that it doesn't matter if the secret documents of the Academy are lost. As long as he is here, as long as the teachers and students of Yanhuang College are here, these documents can be rewritten. The Academy can also achieve greater glory!
In tonight's battle, Teacher Mo and Teacher Zhang San were both seriously injured. More than ten guards of the Academy were killed or injured. Many students were also injured. Even Teacher Wen Ji was slightly injured! If Yamachō didn't give the order to let Wu Jie leave, with Wu Jie's strength, if he wanted to make a move on the weak students and teachers of the Academy, no one would be able to stop him. The teachers and students of the Academy would definitely suffer heavy losses!
As long as there's life, there's hope. Yamachō said that today's hatred, when he comes back, he will definitely repay it double! At that time, the two Dugu Generals, Teacher Mo, and Teacher Zhang San of the Academy were all seriously injured. If they continued to force Wu Jie to stay, there would definitely be rivers of blood on Yunshan Mountain. Therefore, this son feels that Yamachō's actions are not inappropriate. Imperial Father, please understand! "
After saying this, Li Tai bowed deeply. The hall instantly quieted down.
Li Tai stared at Li Tai. After a while, he said in a bad mood, "Qingque, it hasn't even been a year since you entered Yanhuang College, and you're already speaking up for that brat Li Zexuan? You even dare to disobey this Emperor's orders? "
At this moment, Old Li's mood was very complicated. On one hand, he felt that what Li Tai said was not completely unreasonable. In the current situation of Yunshan Mountain, if they forced Wu Jie to stay, it was likely that Wu Jie would become desperate and make a move on the weak students and teachers of the Academy. But on the other hand, Old Li also felt a little jealous. This little fatty in front of him was his most beloved son, but now he was speaking up for someone else. As a father, how could he be happy?
Li Tai bowed and said, "This son is not speaking up for Yamachō, but in the situation at that time, Yamachō's decision was undoubtedly the most correct! "More than ten days ago, the Mountain Elder and Mister Zhang San left Cloud Mountain one after another. Originally, there were three Evolved Jing masters in Yan Huang Academy, but in an instant, only Mister Mo was left. Although Mister Zhang San unexpectedly returned tonight, when he arrived, Mister Mo was already seriously injured. That was why Wu Jie was able to kill so many people in the academy. Under such circumstances, other than letting him leave Cloud Mountain, we have no better choice! Imperial Father, please understand! "
Hearing this, Li Er finally fell silent!
On the side, Empress Zhangsun asked doubtfully, "Teacher Zhang San? Qing Que, if Imperial Mother remembers correctly, didn't Teacher Zhang San leave the Academy a few days ago and sail out to sea? "
Li Tai replied, "Replying to Imperial Mother, Teacher Zhang San originally wanted to go out to sea, but before he left, he felt uneasy. He thought that there were many secrets hidden in Yunshan Mountain that the world coveted, so he stayed around the Academy for a few days. For a full four days, everything was calm and peaceful. On the fifth day, when Teacher Zhang San was about to leave, he suddenly felt a faint aura locking onto the Academy. Teacher Zhang San felt that something was wrong and postponed his plan to go out to sea. As a result, Wu Jie attacked the Academy at night today!"
"So that's how it is!"
Empress Zhangsun nodded thoughtfully and sighed with relief, "I have heard that Teacher Zhang San is unparalleled in chivalry. Last year, he was forced to agree to your Yamachō's condition of guarding Yunshan Mountain for a year. Who would have thought that even before he left, he would still risk his life for the Academy. The reputation of the Feng Chen Three Heroes is indeed well-deserved!"
Li Tai agreed, "Imperial Mother is right! Tonight, if Teacher Zhang San hadn't returned in time, Teacher Wang Ji of the Academy would have been killed by Wu Jie! "
"Hmph! No matter what, the Academy's things cannot fall into the hands of the Turks! Send a telegram to Li Zexuan and tell him to take responsibility for the disaster he caused. Tell him to take back the things Wu Jie took! "
At this moment, Li Er coldly snorted and interrupted.
His words contained a tone that would not allow anyone to object, and the atmosphere in the hall instantly became heavy.
Li Tai couldn't help but feel his heart sink, and he hurriedly advised, "Imperial Father, you must not! Your son heard Teacher Mo mention that the Yamachō is only at the middle stage of the Grandmaster realm, while Wu Jie is at the Great Grandmaster realm. If you let the Yamachō chase after Wu Jie, wouldn't that be sending him to his death? Your son asks Imperial Father to reconsider! "
Empress Zhangsun couldn't help but reveal a trace of anxiety, but she didn't say anything. Presumably, she felt that with Li Er's trust in Li Zexuan, he definitely wouldn't send Li Zexuan to his death.
Sure enough, Li Er raised his eyebrows and said, "Who said that We would let him go alone? We will order all the soldiers along the way to be under his command. Not only will we take back the Academy's materials, we will also make sure that Wu Jie remains in the Great Tang! "
To have all the soldiers between the Great Tang and the Turkic Khaganate under one person's command, Li Er's arrangement was completely based on his trust in Li Zexuan. Otherwise, he, who had taken the throne through a coup, wouldn't have so easily handed over more than a hundred thousand soldiers to someone who wasn't a member of the imperial family.
Hearing this, Li Tai let out a sigh of relief and said, "But the Yamachō has already rushed back to Chang 'an from Shouyang County. The journey is bumpy, and if your son sends a telegram now, the Yamachō might not be able to detect it!"
Li Er waved his hand and said, "Then send it until he notices! No matter what, we absolutely cannot let the Turkic Khaganate leave the Great Tang with the Academy's top-secret materials! In addition, We will send the Imperial Army and cavalry to pursue along the way, and cooperate with Li Zexuan to capture Wu Jie! "
Li Tai knew that there was no turning back, and besides, this seemed to be the best result. He bowed and said, "Your son obeys Your Majesty!"
After saying this, seeing that Li Er had no other orders, Li Tai quickly excused himself and left the Li Zheng Hall. Now, he had to return to Yanhuang College as soon as possible and send the message to Li Zexuan through the telegram.
However, Li Tai also knew that for Li Zexuan, there would be several very difficult battles ahead, and if he was not careful, he could easily lose his life! Although Li Er had ordered the soldiers of the various provinces to be under Li Zexuan's command, when it came to a real fight, the role of these soldiers was very limited. For example, in the battle in front of the Academy, Wu Jie had single-handedly slaughtered everyone. Although the Imperial Army was well-trained, they were unable to effectively surround Wu Jie, and the two thousand Imperial Army soldiers were unable to display their full strength!
In comparison, the soldiers of the various provinces were definitely not as elite as the Imperial Army, so they were of even less help to Li Zexuan. Unless Wu Jie stood still and waited for the soldiers of the various provinces to completely surround him, in that case, there was a chance he would be exhausted to death by the local soldiers!
But was that possible? Obviously not! The moment Wu Jie discovered that there were soldiers around him, his first reaction would definitely be to use his movement technique to escape, not giving the army a chance to surround him!
Thus, in a battle with Wu Jie, the key to victory was still a showdown between peak experts. If the Great Tang's elite soldiers could effectively contain Wu Jie and create an opportunity for the soldiers of the various provinces to surround him, there was still a high chance they could defeat the Turks!
… … …
"The Turkic Imperial Teacher is severely exhausted and has also suffered some injuries. He definitely can't have run far! Search! "
Lantian County, at the foot of Cloud Mountain, Zhao Song was leading several thousand Imperial Army soldiers to search for Wu Jie's whereabouts with torches. Even the remaining one thousand Imperial Army soldiers had joined the search! The Cloud Mountain was surrounded by bright torches, and from a distance, it looked like fire dragons were dancing at the foot of the mountain!
"General Dugu, immediately take some men to Lantian County Seat and inform County Magistrate He to send out all the bailiffs to guard the city gates. This is to prevent Wu Jie from sneaking in and harming the people!"
Zhao Song ordered Dugu Xin as he rode forward on his horse.
As for Qiu Xinggong, he had already led one hundred cavalrymen to the counties that Wu Jie would have to pass through in order to return to the Turks. He had to inform the counties along the way to tighten their defenses. Once Wu Jie passed through, they had to immediately send out soldiers to surround him!
Dugu Xin had expended a great deal of energy in the battle just now, and he had also suffered internal injuries. However, he had been unable to hold down Wu Jie, and he felt very guilty. Thus, after some simple treatment, he joined Zhao Song in searching for Wu Jie.
"… This general obeys!"
Dugu Xin cupped his fists and turned his horse around to gallop toward the Cloud Mountain.
Cloud Mountain had made a big fuss and carried out a carpet search in all directions. With such a big commotion, it was naturally impossible for people to not notice. When the villagers in Plum Village and Han Manor who had woken up at night saw the torches, they were all shocked.
"Master! Come out and see! Did something happen at Cloud Mountain? "
"Oh! It's the middle of the night, what could happen? I'm not looking! "
"Something really did happen! Look, there are so many torches at the foot of Cloud Mountain! "
"So many torches? I'll go out and take a look … Heavens, there really are so many torches? Could it be that some bandits had looted the Yanhuang Academy? No, I have to go and take a look myself! "
"Master, what are you going to do?"
"What else can I do? I'm going to help! Not only am I going alone, I have to call the rest of the villagers as well! If bandits really dare to attack Cloud Mountain, we can also lend a hand, can't we? "
"Master, won't that be very dangerous?"
"Pei! What do you know? Marquis is out there killing locusts, so we villagers should help Marquis protect Yanhuang College! Alright, I'm not going to waste any more time with you. Go and get me a hoe, I'll call the others! "
Similar scenes were playing out everywhere. Half an hour later, almost every household in the two villages had lit up their lights. Then, two groups of strong youths, each carrying shovels, hoes, and other 'weapons', could be seen marching toward the torches not far away.
"Reporting!"
"Butler Zhao, the villagers of the Han Family Villa and Plum Village saw the torches here and thought that Yanhuang College was robbed, so they came over to help!"
The search area was slowly expanding. At this moment, an Imperial Guard trotted over and bowed to Zhao Song.
Zhao Song frowned when he heard that. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Inform the villagers that the Turkic Grand Tutor has snuck into the college tonight. Ask them to gather the people around to search. Anyone who finds traces of the Turkic Grand Tutor will be rewarded handsomely!"
"Yes!"
The Imperial Guard received the order and left.
Zhao Song ordered the rest of the Imperial Guards around him loudly, "Keep your eyes open and look around for fresh blood or traces of footsteps. We must finish searching the entire Lantian County before dawn!"
…
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