Chapter 259: The Flute Prince and Miss Mu Have Disappeared

Otherwise, how could a mere hostage of Prince Jia possibly win?

It must be because the allied forces are utterly useless!

Pei Shangyan immediately held a rally to boost morale, carefully selected an elite vanguard of eight hundred soldiers, preparing to strike the enemy by surprise!

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, is just eight hundred elite troops enough?"

"Of course not; the main army will reinforce from behind, the vanguard is eight hundred elite troops, and there are another ten thousand troops divided into three routes to flank and annihilate the rebel vanguard at Tonggu Pass!"

"Tonggu Pass? But I think it would be better to first wipe out the rebel advance force in Han Shui City."

Pei Shangyan: "Attack Tonggu Pass first; with so many civilians in Han Shui City, we cannot act rashly."

"Yes!"

That person was reluctant to withdraw.

"If you truly care about the people, you should surrender; now the people's voices are all for Prince Jia, and Prince Jia has also driven back the allied forces."

"Exactly, the Crown Prince wages war timidly, having never commanded troops before."

"As for His Majesty, we can't count on him either; he either tells us to retreat or to stay put."

"It really is……"

They didn't know Pei Shangyan was behind them, whispering among themselves, all expressing pessimism.

Pei Shangyan did not step forward to rebuke them, but instead stopped silently.

Surrender?!

How could they surrender to the rebels?!

Is this baton to be swung not because those rebels are raising arms to revolt?

He does not want to harm the civilians; if this time he can let the vanguard unit thoroughly crush the rebels' morale, that would be best!

We must win!

However, the news of the great defeat at Tonggu Pass arrived at noon the next day, and Pei Shangyan crushed his cup!

"What did you say?!"

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, Tonggu Pass suffered a crushing defeat, General Li was captured, and the remaining troops either died or surrendered!"

"Where are the reinforcements? Where are the ten thousand reinforcements?" Pei Shangyan asked unwillingly.

"All defeated!"

Pei Shangyan nearly lost his footing, the first battle ended in a crushing defeat……

Now morale will surely collapse……

"Your Highness, take care of yourself, don't harm your body; first have a cup of tea to calm your nerves." A Zi brought a cup of hot tea to Pei Shangyan.

Pei Shangyan, absent-minded, took the cup of tea, and under A Zi's gleaming gaze, drank it absent-mindedly.

Drink tea, drink up, sleep, sleep a nap, upon waking this world ought to have changed.

On the other side, the great victory at Tonggu Pass made the Jia army, whose morale had been somewhat low, rally again!

A bonfire gathering, singing and dancing, celebrating the victory of the first battle!

"We will pursue the victory, continue the northern expedition, after a half-day's rest on the spot we will press on." Prince Jia said.

Gu Rongjin raised his cup: "We follow only Prince Jia's lead!"

Mu Yuanzhi: "Cheers!"

"Cheers!"

In the following days, the Jia army won victory after victory, the northern expedition's advance was unstoppable, and after one month they had already approached Jingcheng!

In Jingcheng, the nobles' hearts were filled with panic, and the clan officials began to calculate each for themselves.

Prince Jia is also a descendant of the Pei clan; if he becomes emperor, it is still the Pei clan's realm, and their interests align; if the Emperor truly fails, replacing him is merely a matter of the Pei family's internal affairs.

The atmosphere in Jingcheng grew ever heavier, and many began to flee, yet the vast majority still chose to stay, for they had all witnessed the Jia army's advance; Prince Jia is benevolent and loves the people, undefeated in battle, defending home and country, and they too are willing to open the city gates to welcome the Jia army!

Since the great defeat at Tonggu Pass, the imperial army has suffered successive setbacks, with countless troops defecting to the Jia army; although the imperial court originally had a million troops, it has actually been cut in half!

Thus, the situation reversed; the Jia army's numbers now completely surpass the imperial army, and they march mightily toward Jingcheng.

The Emperor does not know how things have come to this pass.

He sat in Xuanshi Hall all night and day without closing his eyes; when he closed his eyes, he saw his uncle seated on the dragon throne while he knelt below!

Traitor!

How could this traitor have become so powerful?

He does not understand, does not understand how a mere hostage could have driven him to this point.

The Emperor rubbed his aching temples, pondering whom to send to reinforce the Crown Prince, yet still found no suitable candidate.

Why is this? Why does he have no usable men under his command?

"Your Majesty!"

"General Mu……?"

In a daze, the Emperor saw that long-unseen Grand General, clad in awe-inspiring armor, always the first to come to his aid, wherever he went unmatched.

"You have finally returned, coming to ease my burdens?"

"Your, Your Majesty?"

The visitor bore the surname Lu, a newly promoted general appointed by the Emperor, sent by imperial decree to Xuanshi Hall.

He was at a loss, wondering why the Emperor was calling for General Mu.

Could it be that the Emperor mistook him for the deceased General Mu?

"My loyal subject, you have finally come, I……"

"Your Majesty! Your humble servant Lu Yiming pays his respects!"

Lu Yiming broke out in a sweat, hastily clasping his hands in greeting.

A single remark from Lu Yiming shattered the emperor's fantasy; upon looking again, he realized it truly wasn't an old friend.

Right, Grand General Mu has already died……

He died eighteen years ago, leaving behind only his only daughter.

Zhi'er, Zhi'er also abandoned me……

The emperor's eyes flickered; upon looking again at Lu Yiming before him, he composed his expression and sternly said, 'What is it?!'

Lu Yiming stammered: 'It was Your Majesty who summoned this humble official.'

The emperor thought for a moment; indeed, that was the case.

Forget it, he also had no one he could use.

'Take my imperial edict to find the crown prince, and have him fight the rebels to the death at Weicheng! If you don't annihilate the rebel army, don't come back to see me!'

Weicheng is the last line of defense guarding Jingcheng; if Weicheng falls, Jingcheng will be in grave danger.

He must make the rebel army die at Weicheng!

'Yes! This humble official obeys the edict!'

The emperor immediately drafted the edict: aside from Mu Yuanzhi, everyone else need not be taken alive; they should die if they deserve death.

At this time, the Jia Army in Weicheng was making the final and greatest preparations; they all knew Weicheng would be the battlefield of a deathmatch, and the emperor would surely defend it to the death.

Gu Rongjin, Qi Shihuai, and Prince Jia talked through the night, leaving no spare time at all.

Only after they had finalized the marching plan did Gu Rongjin have time to go see Mu Yuanzhi.

Prince Jia patted his shoulder: 'You've been exhausted for two days; you should go keep your wife company.'

'Prince Jia, you're making fun of me.' Gu Rongjin indeed couldn't wait to see Mu Yuanzhi to replenish his energy; otherwise he'd have no strength.

'How come your sister-in-law hasn't come these two days to bring you food?' Qi Shihuai found it strange and teased: 'Could it be that you two had a fight?'

'Impossible, we are deeply in love; don't be jealous.' Gu Rongjin said proudly.

'Not good! Not good! Something serious has happened!'

A guard stumbled in, and Gu Rongjin shook his head: 'What's going on? Really inauspicious.'

'Your Highness, General Qi, Young Master, something serious has happened! Di Shizi and Miss Mu have gone missing!'

'What did you say?!'