After leaving the hall, Zhao Bin asked Lu Biao behind him, "Where are Dayong and Zhou Hu?"
"They are training the shooting of the three-bed crossbow with their own troops. When Dayong saw the three-bed crossbow, he almost couldn't put it down," Lu Biao replied.
"Have the three crossbows on the city wall been installed?"
Qin Fang stepped forward and replied: "It was arranged overnight last night. A total of twelve racks were arranged on the north wall, and eight racks were arranged on each of the other three walls.
In addition, the rolling wood and thunder stones used for defense were also transported to the city wall. The newly made steel knives were also replaced as a priority. Zhuge's crossbows and replacement quivers were also transported to the city wall. "
Zhao Bin nodded slightly after hearing this, and then ordered: "Send someone to notify Cao Li and Wei Xiang, and order the whole city to be under martial law. No one can go out without any reason! All the doctors and government officials in the city must gather near Beicheng and stand by."
After explaining the matter, Zhao Bin walked towards the gate: "Let's go to the North City Gate!"
Then, under the protection of fifty guards, Zhao Bin and others headed towards the north gate.
Cao Li, Wei Xiang and others who received the order were all shocked. They originally thought that even if the Jie people could break through Xiguan, they would not be able to do so quickly, but they did not expect that Zhang Da actually fled before the battle and handed over Xiguan.
But the matter was urgent, and there was no time to think too much, so I had to act as instructed, and soon the sound of gongs sounded in the streets and alleys.
"Everyone goes home, the whole city is under martial law, the whole city is under martial law"
The government officials carried gongs and shouted loudly in the streets and alleys. The people who heard the news suddenly became commotion:
"Are the Jie people coming again?"
"Go home quickly, there's definitely going to be a war!"
. . . . .
The people ran towards their homes in panic, and soon there were fewer and fewer pedestrians on the street.
Near noon, Wei Xiang climbed up the north city wall and came behind Zhao Bin.
"I'm sorry to see you, Your Majesty!" Wei Xiang said with cupped hands.
"Have the people settled down?" Zhao Bin asked without looking back.
"Don't worry, Your Majesty, everything has been settled. I've even arranged for two people to guard each street!"
Time passed little by little, and through the telescope, one could see that a large army was rushing towards Yancheng in a dusty place.
"My lord, are they coming?" Xiao Chu reminded.
"Lu Biao, please pass on the order. As soon as Zhang Da appears, all crossbows and crossbows will be aimed at Zhang Da. As soon as I give the order, Zhang Da must be shot on the spot!"
"It's the prince!" Lu Biao turned around and left after receiving the order.
Xiao Chu reminded from the side: "Your Majesty, after all, Zhang Da is the imperial guard general. If he shoots like this, what if the imperial court blames him?"
"We can't worry about so much now. The Jie tribe has captured Xiguan, so that the army can march straight in. At this time, we must not let Zhang Da take away these 40,000 troops. What we have to do is not only to defend Yancheng, but also to think about We have to find a way to take back Xiguan."
"But what if there is a rebellion in the army?" Xiao Chu continued to ask.
"An ordinary man cannot seize the will, but the three armies can seize the commander. Do you understand that to capture the thief first, capture the king?"
"My subordinate understands!"
Tens of thousands of troops arrived outside the city and stopped fifty feet away from Yancheng. This position was basically outside the killing range of bows and arrows. Zhang Da looked at the defenders on the city wall with a solemn expression.
"General, it seems that Yancheng has been prepared for a long time! Do you already know about the Jie tribe's attack on Xiguan?" Hou Tai, Zhang Da's deputy general, said aloud.
"The Jie tribe just started attacking Xiguan yesterday, and we didn't send anyone to deliver the message. How could they know?" Zhang Da asked doubtfully.
"The general is just guessing, but I heard that Yancheng has now formed a scout team. Some time ago, a thousand Jie tribe soldiers entered Yancheng territory over the mountains and were ambushed by King Yan.
Moreover, the entire army was destroyed, so the emperor handed over the military power of the Yancheng defense army to King Yan. Hou Tai said,
"I see, King Yan probably doesn't know about the Jie tribe's attack on Xiguan yet. They are so on guard because they are afraid that another Jie tribe will attack again, so they sent someone to call the door!"
"Yes!" A soldier behind him ordered, and the soldier trotted towards the bottom of the city wall.
The soldiers came to the city wall and shouted loudly: "Captain Qin, we are the defenders of Xiguan. After receiving the imperial order, we changed defenses with the defenders of Zijingguan. We passed by Yancheng and asked Captain Qin to open the city gate."
Several people on the city wall looked at each other and thought to themselves, "You are such a fool, why are you switching defenses?"
Zhao Bin asked Wang Wu to put an iron trumpet on the city wall. He said to the soldiers below the city: "How do you prove that you are the defenders of Xiguan?"
This question is like how do you prove that your mother is your mother? The soldier looked stunned when he was asked. Can't you tell that his thoughts are so obvious?
"We are the defenders of Xiguan. What more proof do we need? Can't you tell?" the soldier replied with a harmless expression.
"Damn, you said you are who you are, and I also said that I am. What if you are pretending to be someone from the Jie tribe? I don't know you. Unless you ask General Zhang Da to come in person, I won't believe you. ." Zhao Bin joked.
The soldiers had no choice but to run back to the army. Zhang Da also heard Zhao Bin shouting from the loudspeaker not far away, but he didn't know that it was Zhao Bin who was speaking on the top of the city.
"General, what should we do?" Hou Tai asked.
"Since you want to see this general, let him see you," Zhang Da said nonchalantly.
"No, General, it's too dangerous." Hou Tai hurriedly stopped him.
"It doesn't matter, if you shoot the generals of the imperial court, will they still dare to rebel?"
However, Zhang Da had a guilty conscience and did not dare to step forward alone. He waved to the ten personal guards beside him and motioned for them to gather around him, and then he boldly headed towards the city wall.
"I am Zhang Da, the imperial general who conquers the north, and the guard of Xiguan. Please come out and speak to His Majesty the King of Yan!" Zhang Da put his hand on his forehead to block the sun and glanced sideways at the defenders on the city wall.
Zhao Bin stuck his head out of the city wall, glanced down and said, "Are you Zhang Da?"
"It's me, general. Who are you?"
"Hahaha, I am the Yan King Zhao Bin you are looking for!" Zhao Bin said with a smile. However, Zhao Bin signaled Lu Biao to send an order to aim.
Zhang Da looked at the young man on the city wall, with a smile on his face and said: "It turns out to be His Highness King Yan. I have seen His Highness. Please forgive me for not getting off your horse to salute because I am busy with official duties."
"It doesn't matter, it doesn't matter. I wonder why General Zhang comes to Yancheng?"
Zhang Da sat on the horse, tilted his head and looked at the city wall and said: "I am ordered to change defenses and replenish some food and grass in Yancheng. I also ask the prince for your convenience."
"According to the order? Huh, may I ask who General Zhang is ordering from? The emperor? The prince? Or the Zhang family or the Jie clan?"
"King Yan, you..."
Before Zhang Da could finish speaking, Zhao Bin suddenly raised his voice and interrupted: "Shut up, Zhang Da, you are so brave. The Jie people besieged Xiguan, and you actually escaped from the battle, abandoning Xiguan and ignoring the people of Hebei.
How can you be worthy of the emperor, how can you be worthy of the soldiers who died in Xiguan after you, how can you be worthy of the hundreds of thousands of people in Hebei Province?
Today, I will kill you on behalf of my father and the people of Hebei. "Zhao Bin waved his hand.
Zhang Da was shocked: "Zhao Bin, if you want to rebel, you..."
Before he could finish his words, countless arrows were fired at them rapidly.
Two spear-like crossbow arrows shot through the body of the guard at Zhang Da. His body was pierced by two thick arrows, and he was nailed to the ground together with the sitting horse.
A dozen personal guards were also shot into pieces without warning.
Hou Tai, who was in the formation not far away, was so shocked by this scene that he almost fell off his horse. No one expected that Zhao Bin would suddenly attack and shoot the imperial general.
But before he could recover from the shock, the loud trumpet at the top of the city sounded again.
"General Hou Tai, I know that this matter must have been done by Zhang Da alone, and it must have nothing to do with the general.
The general must have been threatened by Zhang Da and had to submit to him.
As long as the general turns around, I guarantee that my father, who reported this matter to me, will never implicate the general. "
Hou Tai calmed down and looked at the city wall. Seeing that there was no response from the formation, Zhao Bin said loudly: "General Hou, do you know that abandoning the pass and escaping is a serious crime of beheading?
Now that Zhang Da is dead, if you still persist in your obsession, then this crime will definitely fall on you. Not only will the emperor kill you, but public opinion will also kill you, and some people will not let you go. As long as If you are willing to dismount and surrender, I will never let the past go. "
Hou Tai cursed angrily: "Surrender to you? Then my whole Hou family will definitely die a good death!"
Because he was too far away, Zhao Bin couldn't hear clearly what Hou Tai said, so he turned to ask others: "What did he shout just now?"
Wang Wu scratched his head and said, "My lord, he seems to say that you will not die well."
"No, he said that if he surrendered to the prince, the Hou family would die badly," Qin Fang said.
Zhao Bin thought for a moment and shouted into the loudspeaker: "General Hou is confused. If you escape now, you will be charged with fleeing in battle just like Zhang Da.
You are worthless to the Hou family, but a burden.
The Hou family will give up on you without hesitation and choose to annihilate your relatives for justice. The emperor will not let you go, and neither will those people.
On the contrary, if you surrender to me, I will ensure your safety.
Your Hou family will not be charged, and others will have no reason to attack your Hou family. There will be room for maneuver in the future. "
"If you still can't trust me, you can leave on your own. I won't mention the general in my memorial to my father. How about that?"
In fact, Hou Tai had already understood, or he should have understood from the beginning, that if this move failed, he would be dead.
Even Zhang Da, who is a descendant of the Zhang family, may not die well in the end.
Hou Tai, who had figured it out, slowly walked out of the formation on horseback. He stared at the city wall. Maybe King Yan was right. This was his only chance.
"Hou Tai! Do you want to betray the prince?" A voice shouted from behind Hou Tai.
"Take them down!" Hou Tai shouted without looking back.
Dozens of soldiers swarmed forward and surrounded the five men on horseback.
"Hou Tai, the prince and the Zhang family treat you well, how dare you betray them?" a man shouted and drew out the saber from his waist.
"Take it, and those who resist will be killed without mercy!"
Following the order, dozens of soldiers fought with five of Zhang Da's personal guards. However, it was difficult for them to fight with two fists, and the five personal guards were quickly chopped to the ground.
Hou Tai jumped off his horse and walked slowly towards the city wall. When he came to the foot of the city wall, Hou Tai knelt down on one knee and said, "The last general Hou Tai pays homage to His Highness King Yan."
When the tens of thousands of soldiers behind him saw their generals being killed and their lieutenants surrendering, they naturally had no other thoughts, so they followed Hou Tai and knelt down and shouted: Pay homage to His Highness King Yan.
