Chapter 20 Chapter 66: A Year of Dust Dreams in the Imperial City

"Your Majesty, why are you so confused! Poisoned An Qingxu with poisoned wine, can you not drink with him? Even if the poisoning is successful, how can you escape with your whole body? Both of you will die!" Hold Shen tightly The person with the pearl wrist said in a deep voice. "You!—" Shen Zhenzhu turned her head and looked at the masked man in black in amazement.From his voice, she already recognized who he was. The masked man in Xuanyi gently let go, bowed his body slightly, glanced quickly to the left and right, and spoke quickly: "Your Majesty did not admit your mistake, I am Feng Yi. I am afraid that An Qingxu will come back soon. I am evenly matched in martial arts with him. You can't get close to him. It's not appropriate to go into details now, but my lady, don't listen to other people's words and act rashly, since I can enter Yecheng, I will do my best to keep my lady safe." Pausing for a moment, frowning and breathing, said in a low voice: "They're back, your mother must remember my words—" As soon as the words fell, the person flew up to the courtyard wall like a bird, and disappeared in a blink of an eye.

Sure enough, An Qingxu came back after a while, with a slightly annoyed look on his face, thinking that the Second Concubine Liu Lu made him very unhappy. Shen Zhenzhu felt worried, thinking about Cai Feng Shengyi's words and Chen Zhou's sudden appearance in the afternoon, she couldn't understand some things.Hearing Feng Shengyi's tone, he should have just sneaked into Yecheng by virtue of his outstanding lightness kung fu. He and Chen Zhou were both ordered to be with Li Yu, so why did they have different attitudes towards letting him poison An Qingxu?Besides, Feng Shengyi is not an ordinary official now, but he has been away from Chang'an for a long time, how can he explain it to the court?

This night, An Qingxu really only talked about the past with Shen Zhenzhu, nothing else. For a long time after that, Shen Zhenzhu never saw Chen Zhou and Feng Shengyi again.Chen Zhou is a very smart and prudent person, so he must not dare to use the method of pretending to be a beggar a second time. Besides, Chen Zhou and Feng Shengyi may have had a dispute over this matter. This is the way to poison An Qingxu.Feng Shengyi was afraid of An Qingxu's martial arts, and he didn't dare to venture into An Qingxu's "palace" at will. By mid-February, panic broke out in Yecheng following the shortage of food and grass.Shen Zhenzhu occasionally listened to the discussion of the court ladies, saying that Guo Ziyi did not know where he got the idea to build fortifications and dig trenches outside Yecheng, and let the water from the Zhang River flow into Yecheng, making the city flooded and waterlogged everywhere.There is no problem with the drainage of Yecheng, but because An Qingxu took over Yecheng and built a large number of construction projects, and the officials under him did not have access to water conservancy, so the original drainage function was half-wasted and half-abandoned. Drainage in ordinary years is not a big problem, but Guo Ziyi used this method of irrigation , so that the water level rises day by day, Yecheng is like a bucket, if it doesn't take long, it will surely collapse without attack.Feng Shengyi is probably the one who can bring out the ills of Yecheng and inform Guo Ziyi.

Under such circumstances, An Qingxu became even more decadent.The officials under the rule were firstly afraid of An Qingxu's sword, and secondly, they knew that after Suzong regained the two capitals, he would punish those who defected to the enemy severely. As rebels, they would die if they surrendered in Kaesong.Both left and right are dead, it is better to stick to it and ask Shi Siming to help Houbo have a chance of life.Therefore, several generals and officials under An Qingxu's command still devoted themselves to their duties and tried their best to protect Yecheng. At the end of February, the situation suddenly turned.Shi Siming personally led his troops to camp fifty miles away from Yecheng to reinforce An Qingxu.When she heard the news, Shen Zhenzhu was in the hall with An Qingxu, when she saw An Qingxu, she just raised the corner of her mouth and gave a sneer. Most of the other generals and officials in the hall were overjoyed, wishing to cheer.

At the fourth and third watch of March, Shen Zhenzhu had just fallen asleep when she suddenly felt someone pushing her.Opening his eyes, he saw Feng Shengyi standing beside the couch. Feng Shengyi was still fully dressed in black clothes, and said: "Your Majesty, hurry up and prepare, I will take you out of the city tonight." Shen Zhenzhu was puzzled: "Why are you in such a hurry? Can't Yecheng be captured?" Feng Shengyi looked worried: "The situation is urgent, and in just two days my Tang Dynasty will have a decisive battle with Shi Siming." "Shi Siming only has more than 100,000 horses, and I have more than 300,000 in Datang! You mean, Datang can't win?" Shen Zhenzhu said in surprise.

Feng Shengyi nodded: "I have been going back and forth inside and outside of Ye City, and have been observing all the soldiers and horses of the Tang Dynasty. Shi Siming should not be underestimated, but our soldiers and horses of the Tang Dynasty...have their own way, Yu Chaosi dictates, how can we be undefeated." Said hurriedly: "If the Tang Dynasty is defeated and Shi Siming enters Yecheng, then An Qingxu will be unable to protect himself and the situation will be chaotic. Madam, you are extremely dangerous. Tonight, I will carry Madam on my back and cross the city gate."

Shen Zhenzhu's heart was depressed, she sighed secretly, she had already stood up, but she sat down on the couch again.He said softly, "Feng Yi, to be honest, you came to Yecheng without anyone's permission, right?" Feng Shengyi was taken aback for a moment, thought for a while, and then replied: "My Lady Mingjian, I received a letter from Yan Ming, saying that My Lady was trapped in Ye City, but Your Highness..." paused, and bypassed the topic: "Yan Ming Knowing that only my martial arts can overcome the city wall of Ye City, I made my own claim—” Actually, Yan Ming stood behind Li Yu at the Sorrows Hill that day, and he also recognized Shen Zhenzhu. After Zhang Hanruo's conversation, after guessing that Li Yu would not save Shen Zhenzhu, he sent a letter to Feng Shengyi overnight.Feng Shengyi happened to be not in Chang'an at the time when he returned to his teacher's door, he only returned ten days ago, he opened the letter and hurried to Yecheng.He knew about Chen Zhou's sneaking into Yecheng, and after entering the city, he met Chen Zhou first, and learned that Chen Zhou wanted Shen Zhenzhu to kill An Qingxu. Seeing that the situation was urgent, he had no time to argue with Chen Zhou, so he rushed to the "palace" in Yecheng Prevent.

Feng Shengyi has always called himself "subordinate" when speaking, only this time when he came to Yecheng, he always called himself "I". Although it is a different title, Shen Zhenzhu had already secretly guessed that Feng Shengyi did not come here by order. Shen Zhenzhu looked at the person in front of her, who was also a pillar of the country with sword eyebrows and star eyes. Although He Lingyi kept saying that he wanted to compete with him for life and death, she had already secretly agreed with him. Although Su Ci had no destiny with him, she could never forget her love.He carried her out of the city on his back, and his tone was relaxed. If it was really easy, why didn't he rescue her early on? How could he make a decision at this time?

Shen Zhenzhu's thoughts circulated, thinking about ideas in her head, and asked: "The idea of ​​pouring water into the city must have been passed on to old General Guo Ziyi by you." Feng Shengyi said "Yes", and said: "Old General Guo Ziyi knew that Chen Zhou was ordered by His Royal Highness to sneak into Ye City half a year ago as an internal response. Your Highness...has a good intention. If Chen Zhou succeeds in responding, he will be able to The merits are over, and I will return to my official position." After speaking, he held his breath and listened to the surroundings quietly, and once again urged Shen Zhenzhu to tidy up and run away with him.At that time, the defenses in the "palace" of Yecheng were not strict, and it was not difficult to sneak out of the palace.

When Feng Shengyi mentioned Li Yu, his words were ambiguous, Shen Zhenzhu looked at his expression, and guessed what Li Yu was thinking and doing, now Feng Shengyi was afraid that she would be sad, so he couldn't bear to mention it. How can she be sad. He should be like this, she has become a stranger to him, he is responsible for the country, he will no longer play favoritism for her, and take risks. He should be like this, this is the way of the emperor.She seeks benevolence and obtains benevolence, so what's the matter? However, when she heard the word "His Royal Highness", her heart was still beating like a thousand drums, and the past came to her in a faint way. Only by giving up thinking about it can she not feel sad.

She frowned slightly, and suddenly got an idea, and said: "Don't be too busy! I have lived in the palace of Yecheng for a long time, and knowing some inside information about Shi Siming will definitely be beneficial to me in the decisive battle between Datang and Shi Siming!" Feng Shengyi was overjoyed upon hearing this.Shen Zhenzhu said again: "Wait for a while, let me record what I know, and send it to General Guo Ziyi immediately." After speaking, Shiling Feng Shengyi fled to the dark place in the room, lit the candle again, Sure enough, a palace lady knocked on the door and came in to visit. Shen Zhenzhu only said that she couldn't sleep and got up to read a book. Shen Zhenzhu lit the candle, thought about writing, and wrote a letter in a short time, sealed it with wax and handed it to Feng Shengyi, saying: "Go and come back quickly, this matter cannot be delayed." Feng Shengyi nodded and said: "Okay, it doesn't take a stick of incense to go back and forth this time, the empress is ready, the clothes should be simpler, wait patiently for now." Shen Zhenzhu said with a smile: "If the Tang Dynasty wins, it doesn't matter whether I can escape from Yecheng." Seeing Feng Shengyi turned around, she hesitated a little, couldn't bear it, and suddenly asked: "Shi'er——" Feng Shengyi immediately understood, and said with a smile: "Don't worry, Madam, Your Highness loves Xiao Shizi very much, Xiao Shizi now has-" He compared his stature with his hand, "Someone is taller here-" There were tears in Shen Zhenzhu's eyes, she nodded and said: "I know - I knew a long time ago that Your Highness will never treat Shi'er badly - Feng Yi, thank you." She turned around and said, "Let's go." After Feng Shengyi resigned, his figure disappeared into the room, Shen Zhenzhu wiped away the tears from his eyes, and breathed a long sigh of relief. She knew that Feng Shengyi would not come back again. Although she stayed in Yecheng for a long time, even An Qingxu didn't know the secrets of Shi Siming's weaknesses. How could she know the "insider information"? The letter she wrote to Guo Ziyi only stated three points: first, she was once the princess of Guangping and the wife of Zhenguo of the Tang Dynasty; It will surely cause the country to mourn, and His Royal Highness will lose his left and right arms. I beg Guo Ziyi to prevent Feng Yi from re-entering Yecheng for the sake of His Royal Highness. Third, Feng Yi is very skilled in martial arts. , can not be strong enemy. At this moment, she can only preserve Feng Shengyi like this. On the sixth day of March, Tang Jun and Shi Siming launched a decisive battle on the north bank of Anyang River.Shi Siming and his subordinates Zhang Tongru, Li Tingwang and others led elite soldiers and adopted guerrilla tactics to attack Li Guangbi, Wang Sili, Xu Shuji, and Lu Jiong's four groups.Although the Tang army suffered heavy losses, the total number of soldiers and horses was still much stronger than that of Shi Siming.Seeing the situation, Guo Ziyi wanted to lead his troops to attack Shi Siming's troops in the middle of the road. Unexpectedly, he did not set up a battle in time. Suddenly, a hurricane suddenly rose, dust was flying, and the sky and the earth were dim. Guo Ziyi shouted: "God will not protect my Tang!" Retreating, the Tang army discarded their helmets and armor and retreated to the south. They retreated to the lack of gates to check the troops, but there were only tens of thousands left. So far, the Tang army was defeated. The "good news" spread to Yecheng, and the generals and officials under An Qingxu's rule all shouted long live, and secretly took a breath.An Qingxu just sneered, showing no signs of excitement, and said to Shen Zhenzhu after being drunk that day: "My end is approaching." Shen Zhenzhu said: "Why do you say that?" An Qingxu fiddled with the wine glass in his hand, full of drunkenness: "Of course. The officers and soldiers of Yecheng fought to the death, just because the strong enemy was the Tang Dynasty. If it was Shi Siming, they wished they could open the city to welcome them. Now that the Tang army is driven away, that old man Shi Siming will definitely drive straight in. Yecheng, take over all of my affairs. Hahaha... Those generals and officials, don't look at them worshiping me and calling me emperor today, but tomorrow, they might worship someone else... This is the benefit of being a courtier—— —They can surrender to the enemy. After surrender, they will still be courtiers, receive salary, and set up a family temple. But I, I, I am the emperor, of course I can’t surrender, I can’t surrender... Haha, I would rather die than surrender. If I surrender, I can only die... ..." Shen Zhenzhu looked at An Qingxu silently.He is sober, and therefore sad.She couldn't persuade, couldn't persuade.Reading history books since I was a child, watching Wu Yue's struggle for hegemony, and the Three Kingdoms' slaughter, how many strange people and strangers thought they could conquer the world, but after all they couldn't withstand the torrent of history, annihilated and dispersed, leaving only the sighs of future generations.A general has fought many battles on the battlefield, but one day he will face the swarms of enemies with no one around him. On the seventh day of March, dawn broke, and the palace in Yecheng was in chaos. Shen Zhenzhu opened the door, and saw the maids running around, some of them were carrying their burdens, and some were shouting. The guards had disappeared long ago, and the other maids in the court looked as if they had never seen her, they bowed their heads and went about their business.Shen Zhenzhu felt strange, could it be that Shi Siming had already entered the city so quickly?Why didn't the sound of siege and killing be heard?He casually grabbed a little maid and asked what was going on. The little maid said: "Shi Siming has already arrived at the gate of the city, and I want the emperor to go out of the city to welcome him immediately, otherwise he will be killed without mercy after he captures Yecheng. All the generals guarding the city gate want to sell him and let him enter the city. How can Yecheng be defended?" Stay here. Who knows how Shi Siming will treat us old palace people after he captured Yecheng, so hurry up and pack up your clothes and hide for a while, Madam, you also run quickly, it will be too late!" I didn't expect Shi Siming to come so quickly, it seems that he is already impatient to covet the throne of "Emperor Dayan".This is her chance to escape, let's escape from the palace first. After looking left and right for a while, seeing the most people flow to the right, I put on my skirt and ran out among them. Who would have thought that just after turning a corner, someone stood in front of him like a stone pillar: "Madam, there is an order from the Holy Spirit, ordering you to see me immediately!" Shen Zhenzhu saw that it was a guard next to An Qingxu. He will never let her go. Under the supervision of the guards, Shen Zhenzhu walked into the main hall step by step. The first ray of sunlight in the morning slanted into the hall, reflecting An Qingxu's iron armor shining brightly. Shen Zhenzhu looked up, An Qingxu's face was as cold as iron, standing in the middle of the hall with his whole body draped. He stared at her from afar.She couldn't catch a single bit of information from his eyes, only deep and cold. "You do it." She tried her best to keep herself calm, and said lightly: "It's best to stab me to death with a sword." An Qingxu didn't answer, and looked at her with weird eyes, sometimes cold, sometimes sad, sometimes vicious, sometimes absent-minded, unpredictable.There was a lot of noise and shouts outside the hall, and it was like a world apart from the inside of the hall. Here, everything was suffocatingly quiet. "Boom", An Qingxu suddenly drew his sword out of its sheath, raised his sword and cut off the dragon chair behind him. All the guards in the palace were shocked: "Your Majesty!" An Qingxu had put his sword back into its sheath, tilted his head, and waved to Shen Zhenzhu: "Let's go!" "What?!" Shen Zhenzhu couldn't believe her ears. An Qingxu didn't look at her, ordered the four guards in the hall, and ordered: "I will go to see Shi Siming immediately, and when the city gate is wide open, you can escort her back to Wuxing from the side path." At that time, there were less than a hundred guards in the palace, and they were all from the old department of An's father and son for many years.Immediately, someone knelt down and said: "The ministers are willing to protect His Majesty and fight a bloody path. Or, as long as Your Majesty cheers up and uses His Majesty's peerless martial arts, Shi Siming may not be able to capture Yecheng." An Qingxu held his sword and solemnly said: "My situation is gone. You have followed me for a long time, and you are all gone today. There are still many jewels and coins in the back room of the palace. You can distribute them yourself." The old bandit is approaching the city, how can I be a coward, even if I don't have a single soldier by my side, I still want to join his thousands of horses, death is no problem!" The guards in the palace knelt down one after another: "The ministers are willing to follow His Majesty out of the city!" An Qingxu raised his eyebrows and moved slightly, Shen Zhenzhu shouted loudly: "No!" He stepped forward a few steps and said to An Qingxu: "Since you are willing to let me live, why do you want to die yourself? Why can't you let yourself live ?” An Qingxu looked up to the sky and laughed, his smile faded away, his face sank, and he said: "This is the honor and shame of our men, you don't understand!" He called "Let's go", and all the guards answered "Yes" in unison, together Huo Huo walked outside the hall. "Second Brother An!" Shen Zhenzhu called him in vain behind him. An Qingxu's footsteps faltered, as if he wanted to turn his head back, but finally he said coldly without turning his head: "Hurry up and follow. These four guards are loyal and will definitely escort you back to Wu Xing safely. Wu Xing...is a good place , I... can never go back. After you go back, never come out again. " After saying this, he slapped the long sword on his waist, and without stopping, he stepped out of the palace gate first.