This chaotic situation continued until the Imperial Bodyguard left the palace and the capital soldiers entered the city to maintain order.
It was already dusk by then, and word came from the palace that all eight gates of the capital were shut and martial law was once more imposed.
The soldiers with weapons in their hands rampaged through the streets and alleys. They didn't have much skill against the enemy, but they were very good at fighting against the commoners. In just a few moves, they had the commoners beaten black and blue, hugging their heads and wailing in pain.
They declared that until the matter was investigated, no one was allowed to leave their homes. Anyone who left their homes would be charged with treason.
The fiendish soldiers roamed the streets and alleys, constantly shouting the latest decree of the Imperial Court, warning the commoners hiding in their homes not to go out and make trouble. If they did, they would be arrested and imprisoned, if they did, they would be executed on the spot.
On the other hand, the prisons of the capital, as well as the Imperial Prison of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, were filled with all kinds of unlucky fellows from all walks of life. They would kneel at the entrance of the prison and cry out that they were innocent, only to receive a whip or a knife.
They could be considered lucky. Those who were even more unlucky were now lying on the cold street, losing the ability to breathe and the strength to stand up. Their bodies had also become extremely cold, and their eyes were wide open as they stared blankly at the dark night sky.
Order in the capital was thrown into chaos and ultimately completely collapsed. All the districts were disrupted to varying degrees, and life that had just begun to recover was once more thrown into chaos. No one knew how long it would take for things to recover again.
And the culprits behind all this were finally brought before Shen Yicheng after sunset. Thirty-six of them. The rest had either been run over, trampled to death, or killed by the soldiers who had begun to maintain order.
"Now, can all of you explain to this old man what happened? Speak! Just which army is attacking the capital? Is it the Liaodong rebel army? Or is it the Japanese pirates? Or is it the Northern Barbarians? All of you, tell this old man everything. "
Shen Yicheng had an extremely unkind expression on his face as he stared at the thirty-six kneeling soldiers from the capital.
He was truly furious. He had been in the middle of making arrangements for the ten thousand cavalry and twenty thousand infantry under the command of Gansu Commander-In-Chief Dayun, who was due to arrive at the capital in two days, to be stationed in various garrisons and provisions. In the end, he was thrown into disarray by the sudden chaos in the city.
During this period, he also heard all kinds of sensational statements.
For example, the Northern Barbarians had once again invaded the capital.
For example, the Japanese pirates once again crossed the sea and headed straight for the capital.
For example, the rebel army of Liaodong had rebelled and attacked the capital!
In short, the capital was in grave danger. Daming, everyone had to run for their lives!
This made Shen Yicheng so angry that he felt like a Buddha ascending to heaven and two Buddhas leaving his body. The matter of the little emperor fainting after having just recovered from his lust had already made him extremely angry, and now this sort of thing had happened at his busiest moment. He almost suspected that Xiao Ruxun had sent a spy to disrupt the security of the capital.
But from the looks of it, these soldiers did not look like spies.
What they said was even more terrifying.
"Return to the Grand Secretary! Not the Northern Barbarians, not the Liaodong rebels, and not the Japanese pirates! It was Xiao Ni! It was Xiao Ni's army! On the night of the fifth of October, Xiao Ni's army launched a sneak attack on Yangzhou. Yangzhou has been destroyed, and our army has been wiped out! Only us who escaped back to report to you!! "
More than thirty people knelt on the ground and burst into tears.
Shen Yicheng was stunned on the spot.
Xiao Daheng opened his mouth wide and was stunned.
Liu Huangchang trembled all over, and his eyes were full of disbelief.
The rest of the ministers were full of disbelief and could not believe it.
Li Hualong was finished?
The very arrogant guy who even dared to confront Shen Yicheng was finished?
"This is impossible!"
Xiao Daheng immediately reacted and yelled at these soldiers, "Can a mere sneak attack take down Yangzhou? What about Li Hualong? What about the sixty thousand elite soldiers? Are they all pigs? Even if they are all pigs! Sixty thousand pigs! You can't catch all the rebels in one night! Not to mention the people! "
The soldiers trembled with fear. Finally, a braver one stammered, "I … I don't know … we … we were sneak attacked by the soldiers from Ji Town … they … they killed us as soon as they saw us …"
The soldiers of Ji Town attacked the soldiers of the capital camp?
The soldiers of Ji Town rebelled?
Chai Guozhu rebelled?
Such a terrible guess suddenly appeared in Xiao Daheng's mind. Then he looked at Liu Huangchang and saw the same expression on Liu Huangchang's face. He immediately had a bad feeling.
If Chai Guozhu rebelled and then colluded with Xiao Ruxun's navy to attack Yangzhou, Yangzhou would really be taken down! Ji Town had fifty thousand soldiers, while the capital camp only had ten thousand soldiers! How could they win?
But Chai Guozhu …
Xiao Daheng looked at Shen Yicheng.
Liu Huangchang also looked at Shen Yicheng.
Everyone looked at Shen Yicheng.
Shen Yicheng looked at Luo Sigong.
"Commander Luo, what about your news?"
Luo Sigong's face paled.
"When we sent back the news, we also received news that the Imperial Bodyguards in the south had suffered grievous casualties. Xiao Ni might be wary of the Imperial Bodyguards and have specially arranged for people to deal with the Imperial Bodyguards, making it very difficult to gather information. We …"
"This old man is asking you about the news? Don't answer these useless questions. "
Shen Yicheng looked at Luo Sigong with an extremely cold and sinister gaze. Luo Sigong felt his hair stand on end and felt a deep chill.
"This is this subordinate's dereliction of duty! The Imperial Bodyguards stationed on the outskirts of the capital did not accomplish this! This subordinate will severely punish them! "
Shen Yicheng pursed his lips and then turned his head, no longer looking at Luo Sigong.
He then looked at the soldiers.
"This old man understands what you have said. Withdraw for the time being and return to your original camps to await further orders!"
Shen Yicheng waved his hand.
The soldiers were instantly overjoyed.
"Many thanks, Grand Secretary! Many thanks, Grand Secretary! "
They all stood up and began to leave.
Before they had even left Shen Yicheng's line of sight, a large group of Imperial Bodyguards brandished their steel sabers and charged at them.
After a flurry of sabers and glints, not a single one of these soldiers survived. All of them died in the guard room.
The Imperial Bodyguards dragged the corpses away, and then another group of people came in with buckets of water to wash away the blood.
This sudden turn of events left the people in the guard room dumbfounded.
Luo Sigong in particular.
He clearly remembered that he had never ordered any of the Imperial Bodyguards to kill these soldiers, much less at a time like this.
Who had given the order? How could he not know?
At this moment, Shen Yicheng slightly tilted his head and glanced at Luo Sigong. This glance made Luo Sigong feel like he had been plunged into a pit of ice.
"If you don't do this well, someone will naturally help you!"
After saying this, Shen Yicheng turned his head and looked around at the people around him.
"It's the same for all of you! Several dozen defeated soldiers were enough to throw the capital into chaos and cause incalculable losses, so what use is there for all of you? If you can't do your job well, speak up as soon as possible. There are plenty of people who want to do it, and none of you are missing. "
Some of the people in the room were pale from fright, some were absent-minded, and some were worried.
Not only did they have to worry about their future, but they also had to worry about their lives in the near future.
At this moment, Minister of Rites Zhu Geng, who had been standing guard in the palace this entire time, rushed into the guard room.
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