The black clouds instantly dissipated in the city. Wu Rong quickly called on everyone to retreat. The gun and shield soldiers still protected them and quickly returned to the defense line.
Murong Xue asked Dong Tianxing: "Does the poison take longer?"
Dong Tianxing responded while staring closely at Ruzhou City: "Wu Rong said, it won't take too long. The Gu insects will find their targets on their own, and once they get on those poisonous soldiers, they will be able to work immediately. "
Murong Xue nodded: "I hope it can happen this time."
Dong Tianxing also nodded, praying secretly in his heart, asking God to bless him.
However, this time they were disappointed again.
Thousands of flying Gu insects cover the entire city. On average, a poison soldier can have hundreds of Gu insects to attack it. However, unfortunately, the effect is not obvious at all.
Wu Rong, who had a hot temper, was so angry that he stamped his feet and couldn't help but pointed at Ruzhou City and cursed.
Murong Xue also felt helpless. He turned to Dong Tianxing and said, "How about it? Do you want to try? If not, I will send troops to attack."
Dong Tianxing frowned and waited for a long time before saying, "Hey, let's attack."
The bugles sounded, and two thousand soldiers formed ten square formations, equipped with the same number of spear and shield soldiers, ax soldiers and archers, and marched towards Ruzhou City.
For a time, the sound of killing was loud in the city, and the roars of monsters were heard endlessly. Fierce fighting lasted from morning to sunset. Two thousand people entered, and nearly a quarter of them failed to come out. More than three hundred corpses of poison soldiers with no heads or broken heads were dragged out of the city and piled outside the east gate, and burned completely in a fire.
Of course, there were ten corpses that were carefully and properly wrapped and handed over to Wu Rong and the others.
Murong Xue comforted her kindly: "Master Dong, two seniors, there is no need to be too depressed. In war, it is difficult to complete the battle in one battle. Let's take our time."
Wu Rong and Amenta frowned, and neither of them said a word. Dong Tianxing, on the other hand, had returned to his usual calmness and calmness, and responded with a smile: "I mean, I have gained valuable experience this time, and I will do more next time." It’s safe.”
He turned around and patted Wu Rong and Amenta on the shoulders: "Go back to Luoyi, let's think about what happened to those poison soldiers. These corpses contain both Turkic poison and Amenta's antidote. There are also Wu Rong’s Gu insects, which are excellent research objects.”
Murong Xue handed over the Ruzhou city defense to the new defenders, and then led the team back to the Eastern Capital.
When they arrived in Luoyi, Murong Xue didn't even bother to go home before she was stopped by Shen Lie's people at the city gate.
Hearing that Shen Lie was looking for him anxiously, Murong Xue knew that something was unusual, so she asked Dong Tianxing and the others to go back to the library to rest first, while she turned around and headed towards Shen Lie's official office.
As soon as he saw him, Shen Lie asked: "How is it? Are the poison masters' methods effective?"
Murong Xue shook her head: "It's of no use at the moment, and more than five hundred people have been killed. By the way, you called me here in a hurry. Is there anything important?"
Shen Lie said nothing, took out a piece of paper from a book on the desk and handed it to Murong Xue.
Murong Xue took it and took a look, and was immediately shocked: "When did this happen?!"
"The news was just received an hour ago," Shen Lie said in a deep voice: "The incident happened three days ago. The military leaders in Jingxiang deliberately blocked the news, so my people were the second person after the incident. Genius knows the details.”
Murong Xue slapped the note on the table: "Have you reported it to His Highness?"
Shen Lie shook his head: "Not yet. I heard that you are coming back soon, so I want to discuss it with you before telling His Highness."
"Damn it, who did it?" Murong Xue frowned and stared at the note.
The note clearly read: Li Chenglin, Prince of Anping County, was assassinated.
Shen Lie said solemnly: "Anyone is possible. Tu Jue, Li Kuang, Lao Jianhua, or those in the Yizhou court who are hostile to Li Chenglin, or those in the Jingxiang army who oppose him."
Murong Xue looked away from the note and looked at Shen Lie: "Should we analyze the consequences of the death of Prince Anping?"
Shen Lie asked him: "What do you think will happen?"
"First of all, the 500,000-strong army is leaderless and is going to cause trouble." Murong Xue said with a solemn expression: "Especially at this time, some people may choose to side with Li Kuang."
Shen Lie nodded slightly: "It's not possible, but there are already signs. My people have heard that at least five or six troops have the idea of taking refuge with King Huaiyang, and the total strength is about 30,000."
Murong Xue was heartbroken: "There are so many?"
"If someone takes the first step, there will be more." Shen Lie sneered: "However, the good news is that there are also many troops who want to join the prince."
Murong Xue shook her head: "That means that the Shengtang's largest military force is in danger of splitting, and a direct conflict is likely to break out. This is what the Turks want to see most."
He paused and then continued: "The second impact of Li Chenglin's assassination is exactly about the Turks. Once the threat from the south is relieved, the Turks will no longer have to fight on two fronts, but can concentrate their forces against us. Poison Soldiers The turmoil that has been going on for several months has depleted our troops badly. The soldiers have been defending day and night, and are now exhausted. If the Turks suddenly attack at this time, it may not be easy to deal with them."
Shen Lie did not answer, but his expression became even more grim.
Murong Xue continued: "The third point, and the point I am most worried about, is that someone will pour this dirty water on the prince. The prince of Anping County has been unwilling to lead his troops northward according to His Highness's order. Not long ago, he sent his subordinates to meet him. Li Kuang's secret envoy, this can easily make the outside world think that the prince is very dissatisfied, so he sent someone to get rid of him."
"Well, this kind of plot is in line with our Nilin Division's work style." Shen Lie smiled mockingly to himself.
Murong Xue, on the other hand, had a sad face: "This is the most troublesome issue. It's simply impossible to argue with anyone. If it is used by someone with intentions to incite a mutiny, then we will have another enemy."
Shen Lie agreed with his analysis and asked: "So what are the countermeasures? How to deal with these three crises?"
Murong Xue pondered for a moment and said: "Let's talk about the second one first. It's the easiest. Reduce the strength of the troops and strengthen the defense. Ignore the poison soldiers for the time being and be ready to resist the Turks' attack at any time. Please pay more attention to Ashina. The movement of Zhijin allows us to have a plan in advance."
Shen Lie nodded slightly: "Very passive, but I have no choice."
Murong Xue smiled bitterly and continued: "The first and third items can be viewed together. While we are actively searching for the real culprit to prevent His Highness from being wrongly accused, we are also secretly contacting those troops who are interested in the prince. If it doesn't work, we will just If they pull over, they can keep as many troops as they can."
Shen Lie frowned: "You know that this will lead to division, but you don't care?"
"Otherwise, what else can we do?" Murong Xue sighed helplessly: "If division is inevitable, then losing the army in vain would be an even worse outcome."
"I have an idea, maybe I can give it a try," Shen Lie said lightly, "but the risk is extremely high."
Murong Xue was very curious: "What's your idea? Tell me quickly."
Shen Lie thought for a while and said word by word: "The enthronement ceremony will be advanced, and then the imperial envoys will be dispatched in the name of the emperor to Jingxiang to calm the situation! On the surface, it is to investigate the assassination of Li Chenglin, but in fact it is to eliminate People with different intentions! In this way, Western Xinjiang will also launch an offensive in advance to hold back the Turks. Three thorny problems should be solved together. "
Murong Xue was dumbfounded after hearing this. After a long time, she said: "This strategy is indeed feasible, but as you said, it is extremely risky. If you are not careful, not only will the Jingxiang army be unable to suppress it, but the imperial envoy will also die. .”
"That's why I discussed it with you," Shen Lie said, "Before meeting His Highness, we have to think about everything, including who will be the imperial envoy."
Murong Xue said without hesitation: "Don't think too much, I'll go!"
Shen Lie shook his head: "You can't."
"Why?"
"You are a close minister of His Highness, and you have been leading troops. You go..." Shen Lie smiled: "The first thing those military leaders thought was that someone came to seize military power. Who would be willing to listen to what you say?"
Murong Xue asked unwillingly: "Are you going?"
Shen Lie shook his head again: "It's impossible for me to go. Nilin Director Shi, the biggest secret agent in Shengtang, has an unknown amount of military blood on his hands. If I go, I will be killed by those grandsons in less than three days. If you kill him, nothing can be done."
Murong Xue had a headache: "If you don't go, and I won't go, then who will go?"
"What do you think...how is Dong Tianxing?" Shen Lie asked.
"Old Dong?" Murong Xue was a little surprised: "Why did you think of him?"
Shen Lie explained: "I specifically checked Lao Dong's background. Did you know that Wu Rong and Amen rebelled eight years ago? Dong Tianxing went deep into the tiger's den by himself, came forward to recruit people, and finally succeeded in persuading him to surrender without any bloodshed. This guy , there is really some information. More importantly, Lao Dong is from Yizhou and is a serious official of the Ministry of War. Because of his relationship with the Ordnance Department, he often interacts with Jingxiang's troops, so his identity will be very convincing. .”
Shen Lie smiled and continued: "Furthermore, Old Dong is over sixty years old and holds a fifth-rank official position. He is not a threat in the eyes of any military leader and is the best lobbyist."
"Thank you for thinking it through," Murong Xue felt both angry and funny: "Are you trying to trick the old man like this? That was a fool's errand. To put it bluntly, Dong Tianxing has no status and no backing. Others If you really want to kill him, you won’t have any worries.”
Shen Lie waved his hand: "I think exactly the opposite of what you think. When it comes to killing someone, you have to consider whether it's worth it. Although killing you has a price, it's very worth it. The same goes for killing me. And what about Lao Dong? Kill him. What's he doing as a bad old man with a genuine fifth grade?"
Murong Xue thought about it carefully and realized that this was indeed the case, so she nodded hesitantly and said, "Okay then. Let's prepare two plans, one is what I just said, and the other is what you suggested, to ascend the throne in advance, Send Dong Tianxing as the imperial envoy. Report both plans to His Highness and ask him to make the final decision."
