The army of hundreds of thousands of humans advanced toward Xuelao City. They walked in silence, not making much noise, but there was no other atmosphere, only tranquility.
This did not seem like the march of the victors, but more like a wanderer returning home. It truly was a rather strange sight.
The honor of being the first to enter Xuelao City had been bestowed upon Guan Feibai.
The Mount Li Sword Sect had played an extremely important role in this war, achieving countless achievements, but it had also suffered many casualties among its disciples.
Of course, this was also very dangerous. There might be an ambush at the city gate, some red-eyed wolf cavalry.
Guan Feibai raised his sword and walked toward the city gate.
The city gate that had been destroyed by the fire of Sangharama Temple now only had its frame left, and it had been continuously damaged by the catapults over the last few days.
Guan Feibai walked in.
Everything was so casual.
There were no sneak attacks, no ambushes, no battles.
He stood in the empty city gate, slightly tilting his head as if he was also rather surprised.
Then, he turned around and waved his hand at the plains behind him.
Cheers rose up and soared into the heavens.
With a thunderous thundering of hooves, the cavalry entered the city.
Under the protection of the Red Falcons, the flying carriage slowly ascended the city walls.
The moment they entered Xuelao City, many people, including Chen Changsheng, couldn't help but turn their heads to the south.
What was happening to the capital?
… …
… …
"I've never seen such a shameless person!"
The Prince of Luling stared at the distant square-faced man exuding an aura of dignity and resentfully said, "Even his own nephew wants to rebel. Just what is going on in his head?"
The Prince of Cheng followed his gaze and realized that it was Tianhai Chenwu. He bitterly smiled and said, "That old fox is more shrewd than anyone else. He won't stand on the wrong side."
No one had expected that the Tianhai Clan, which had been cautious and low-key for ten-some years, would be the first to respond to the Prince of Xiang's rebellion.
Many people were just as confused as the Prince of Luling. It had to be known that the blood of the Tianhai clan flowed in the emperor's body.
The Prince of Cheng saw the Prince of Luling's expression and realized that he still did not understand. He could only patiently explain, "Last year, His Majesty went to the Hundred Herb Garden three times."
The Prince of Luling froze, then asked, "So what?"
Prince Cheng lowered his voice and said, "There's always been a rumor that His Holiness the Pope buried the Divine Empress's body in the Hundred Herb Garden."
The Prince of Luling finally understood. Sucking in a breath of cold air, he said, "Could it be that His Majesty really intends to reverse the verdict?"
County Prince Cheng shook his head and said: "Your Majesty and Dao Master have a deep relationship, it shouldn't be like this. But in the end, he and the Empress are mother and son. If he goes to the Hundred Herb Garden to pay his respects, no one will be able to say anything. I'm just worried that his feelings for the Empress will grow deeper and deeper. That will be troublesome. "
The Tianhai Divine Empress had died ten-some years ago. Before this, Yuren did not have many memories of her, and logically speaking, he should not have had much affection for her. However, feelings were the most wonderful thing in the first place. Just a few words from a bystander and some scenes could make it flood again.
His Majesty developing feelings for the Divine Empress was a very natural matter. No one would worry, except for the Tianhai clan.
When the entire world rebelled against Tianhai, the emperor could not hate Shang Xingzhou, could not hate the princes of the Chen clan, could not hate those ministers of the court, but he could hate the Tianhai clan and Xu Shiji.
That old fox Tianhai Chenwu could clearly see that the deeper His Majesty felt for the Divine Empress, the more he would hate the Tianhai clan, because they were traitors.
If Xu Shiji could still barely survive in the court because of Xu Yourong, what would happen to the Tianhai clan when the time came?
On the Luo River in early autumn, the two banks were lined with green trees, the sky high and the air cool.
The armies returning from the north, the princes of the Chen clan, and the experts raised by the Tianhai clan stood on the banks of the river in two dense rows.
If several thousand ballista bolts were fired in unison, this rebellion might end in a comical and bloody fashion.
But let alone the capital, even if all the provinces and counties were added together, they still would not be able to muster so many ballista bolts.
It was precisely because of this that the rebel army was so unorganized, that the princes and the rebel generals were still in the mood to chat.
The rebel army did not surround the city, because the capital had no walls, so it was simply impossible to surround it.
In the silent wait of the last few days, the vast majority of the common people had already fled. The capital was probably very deserted, with not a single person to be seen on the streets.
This did not seem like a rebellion at all, but more like an outing. The rebel army seemed very relaxed, but from certain details, one could still see that they were very nervous.
Those untimely chats had always been evidence of their nervousness.
If the Prince of Xiang did not win his gamble, they would all die without a grave.
At this moment, a Red Goose flew over.
The news from the front lines had been sent back to the capital.
The human army had finally broken into Xuelao City.
Cheers rose from the two banks of the Luo River.
Whether it was the princes or the rebel soldiers, all of them revealed sincere smiles, which quickly turned into awkwardness.
It now appeared that they no longer needed to worry about becoming the greatest sinner in history and bearing eternal infamy, but why did they feel that their faces were even more unsightly?
"Your Highness, do you really not care about becoming infamous for ten thousand years?"
In the carriage at the very front of the rebel army, Cao Yunping rubbed his round cheeks and smiled at the Prince of Xiang.
After stealthily returning from the front lines, the Prince of Xiang had stayed in Snowhold Pass for a while. He had already recovered from his two previous injuries, but he was clearly much thinner than before.
"And you?"
The Prince of Xiang indifferently glanced at Cao Yunping and said, "If the Elder of Heavenly Secrets were still alive, he would probably tear you apart."
Cao Yunping chuckled. "I don't care about eternal infamy, because I'm a fool."
The Prince of Xiang smiled. "That's reasonable, then I'm a madman."
After a while, his smile faded. As he gazed at the Imperial Palace in the distance, he sighed and leisurely said, "In truth, it's just that I'm not willing."
He had always believed that of Emperor Xian's sons, he was the most outstanding, and his filial piety to the Divine Empress was commendable.
In every aspect, he should have been Emperor, and he had an even more outstanding son.
If he did not seize this chance, once the demons were exterminated and the humans unified the continent, Yuren would obtain unprecedented prestige and he would lose all hope.
It was just that simple.
Cao Yunping ruefully said, "I don't know if we can win this gamble."
The Prince of Xiang rubbed the fat on his belt and said, "His Majesty wants to reverse Imperial Mother's verdict. How can the venerable Daoist tolerate him?"
Cao Yunping shook his head. "In the end, it's something that hasn't happened, so how can it be hidden from the venerable Daoist?"
The Prince of Xiang replied, "Even so, the venerable Daoist might not support His Majesty. In truth, many people have never thought that his attitude towards His Majesty is actually a reflection of his attitude towards Emperor Taizong. To put it another way, he likes His Majesty because he likes Emperor Taizong's benevolent, wise, and wise side of Emperor Taizong. So why can't he like me?"
Cao Yunping pointed at the Prince of Xiang's round belly and said, "Could it be that you also have Emperor Taizong's good points?"
The Prince of Xiang sternly replied, "Of course, isn't my daring and extremely shameless behavior just another side of Emperor Taizong?"
Cao Yunping clutched his belly and laughed, but it didn't take long for his laughter to stop.
He looked at the Prince of Xiang and very seriously said, "I suddenly feel that your words are very reasonable."
… …
… …
The rebel army encountered no resistance when they entered the capital, and the deserted streets truly were devoid of pedestrians. Only the occasional stray cat would warily raise its head from a pile of trash.
The capital's garrison was very small, numbering around three thousand Imperial Guards and Orthodoxy cavalry. They had long ago retreated to the Imperial Palace and the Li Palace. The soldiers participating in the rebellion were naturally extremely loyal to the Prince of Xiang, but their numbers were not very high. Thirteen thousand cavalry did not have much of an advantage over the Imperial Guards and Orthodoxy cavalry, who had the geographical advantage, much less control over the entire capital.
The rebel army's true chance of victory rested on the Prince of Xiang and Cao Yunping, two experts of the Divine Domain.
The majestic Imperial City was right in front of them, and the ginkgo trees that had begun to shed their leaves were extremely conspicuous on the flat ground of New North Bridge.
The Prince of Xiang and Cao Yunping stood amidst the yellow leaves, gazing at the Imperial Palace, paying no attention to the mighty divine crossbows on the walls.
Sensing the powerful Qi in the Imperial Palace, Cao Yunping slightly creased his brow and asked, "This is the Imperial Design?"
The Prince of Xiang also creased his brow. "The Lingyan Pavilion has been destroyed, and I'm sure that the White Sun Flame was sent to Xuelao City, so this should only be a part of the Imperial Design."
Cao Yunping squinted his eyes, which were like two slits on a large steamed bun. "This is rather troublesome."
At this moment, another very troublesome piece of news came from the rebel army.
The Prince of Xiang's complexion turned rather nasty, but Cao Yunping began to laugh. (To be continued …)
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