The war has started so far, and the defenders of Lishan Pass have done their best. They see their comrades falling one by one around them. It is obvious that they have put their lives behind them and are determined to fight with the Lishan Pass they guard. Guan was destroyed by the Yunmeng coalition forces, preserving their integrity as a soldier.
The pressure on General Houqing to defend the city became greater and greater as the soldiers fell one by one. At this time, he had no generals available and no troops to mobilize. The fall of Lishan Pass was inevitable. , it’s just a matter of time.
"General, has your Majesty never thought of sending troops to rescue us? We have been struggling here for five days and five nights. Does your Majesty intend to just hand over Lishan Pass to the Yunmeng Alliance Army?" General Houqing said without a trace. Asked Chimu-kun helpfully.
Chimu Kun looked at the soldiers lying in a pool of blood, with a look of grief on his face, "Logically speaking, the king should send troops to help, but... now I can't guess what the king is thinking, and I don't know what the king's intentions are. ?”
At this time, the Yunmeng Allied Forces were still launching a fierce attack on Lishanguan. Seeing that Lishanguan was about to be breached, in this situation where the enemy was strong and we were weak, Chimukun said dejectedly: "Everything, do your best, and obey fate." ! Now, we can only fulfill the duties that a soldier should do, and being shrouded in horse leather will always be our final destination."
At this desperate moment, Song Yunhe suddenly arrived from Jiuli City and brought Chimukun and General Houqing the will of the Jiuli ancestor.
Chimukun and Houqing were overjoyed when they heard that Song Yunhe had suddenly arrived. They thought that Song Yunhe must have brought reinforcements for them. In this way, the crisis at Lishan Pass could be resolved.
As soon as he saw Song Yunhe, Hou Qing couldn't wait to greet him and asked Song Yunhe, "Did your Excellency bring reinforcements for us?" Before Song Yunhe could reply, Hou Qing continued: "The war is tense. Where are the reinforcements? I Arrange deployment immediately."
Song Yunhe shook his head and replied: "There are no reinforcements. I only brought the king's will to the two generals."
When Hou Qing and Chi Mukun heard this, they felt like a thunderbolt from the blue, making them tremble. After a moment of silence, the two of them showed expressions of despair and helplessness.
"What's the purpose of the king sending you here alone?" Chimu Kun asked Song Yunhe in a stiff voice.
"I bring the king's decree."
Hou Qing asked: "A decree? What decree? What Lishanguan needs now is not a decree, but reinforcements, otherwise Lishanguan will not be protected."
Chimu Kun heard the disrespectful remarks made by Hou Qing towards Patriarch Jiuli and knew that he was anxious about the current situation, so he did not blame him more, but hurriedly touched his arm and reminded him not to be rude to Patriarch Jiuli.
Song Yunhe took out the imperial edict from Patriarch Jiuli, and Chimu Kun and General Houqing immediately knelt down to receive the imperial edict from Patriarch Jiuli. According to the imperial edict, Patriarch Jiuli asked Chimukun and Houqing to let General Yunmeng enter the pass and not to stop them.
Chimukun and General Houqing turned to look at the soldiers whose corpses were still cold, and asked in confusion: "Why? What is this? Did these soldiers sacrifice themselves in vain?"
Song Song Yunhe heard this and said: "When I came to Lishan Pass, the king knew that you would have this question. The king asked me to tell the two generals that there is another disaster in Jiuli that is greater than the Yunmeng coalition forces entering the pass. This disaster will not stop, and Jiuli will not be able to survive. Only by letting the Yunmeng coalition troops go straight into Jiuli City can we solve the Jiuli disaster. On my way here, I have conveyed the king's decree to all the pass guards, so that They gave the Yunmeng coalition troops a pass and must not be stopped."
When Chimukun and Houqing heard this, they looked shocked. What happened in Jiuli City? It was more serious than the Yunmeng coalition army's capture of my city.
"Master Song, you just came from Jiuli City. Do you know what happened in Jiuli City?" Chimu Kun asked uneasily.
"I don't know what happened in Jiuli City, because there were no catastrophic changes in Jiuli City now before I came here."
When the Queen heard this, she said with a puzzled look on her face: "In that case, why did your Majesty say this? I wonder what the great calamity your Majesty refers to?"
"It seems like something big is going to happen in Jiuli City?" Chimu Kun said uneasily.
The queen asked: "Why did the general say this?"
"Based on my understanding of the king, he will not say anything that shakes the foundation of the country unless it is absolutely necessary. The current calm in Jiuli City is a precursor to the coming storm." Chimu Kun continued: "Since His Highness Chi You was imprisoned , and then was assassinated in the Tianlao, and now his life and death are uncertain, and then Elder Furukawa was banned from the house. All these things are enough to show that Jiuli City is actually not peaceful, and the seemingly peaceful Jiuli City is actually undercurrent."
After hearing what Chimu Kun said, Hou Qing had some thoughts in his mind and said: "General, what should we do now?"
Chimu Kun looked at the Queen and asked the Queen seriously, "Does the general believe the king?"
Hou Qing looked at Chimu Kun's solemn eyes, nodded, and said: "Since the king ascended the throne, he has led the people of Jiuli City through countless difficulties and obstacles, allowing us people in Jiuli City to live a better life. A prosperous life, I believe, this time will be no exception.”
Chimu Kun said: "In this case, we will follow the king's decree and let the Yunmeng coalition army pass through Lishan Pass and march into Jiuli City."
Hou Qing ordered the soldiers guarding the city to withdraw their troops. A group of soldiers on the city tower heard the shouting of gold from the tower of Lishan Pass and withdraw their troops. King Yanlong also ordered his soldiers to suspend the attack. He wanted to see what tricks the Hou Qing wanted to play after the situation was over.
Just when the Yanlong King and others were trying to figure out the intention of the Hou Qing to withdraw his troops suddenly, the closed city gate of Lishan Pass was suddenly opened, and there was no soldier guarding it.
When Yanlong King and Yanhua and others saw this, they were even more puzzled. An idea emerged involuntarily in the minds of Yanlong King and others. This was a trap set by Houqing and Chimukun for them. They vowed to live and die with Lishan Pass. How could the empress allow them to pass through the gates and enter the city so easily, and at the cost of the lives of countless soldiers guarding the gates? This made the Flame Dragon King, Yan Hua and others have to be on guard and enter with caution.
After discussing with everyone, King Yanlong decided to let King Yanlong come forward to negotiate with Houqing and find out whether Houqing was true or not. King Yanlong rode his horse forward and shouted loudly under the tower of Lishan Pass: "General Houqing, you What does this mean? Do you want to tell us an empty city strategy, or do you want to catch a turtle in an urn?"
General Houqing poked his head out from the city tower to look at King Yanlong below, and said: "Don't your Majesty want to clear the customs and send troops to Jiuli City? I will grant your wish now, open the city gate wide, and release the troops you lead. The army entered the Pass. What? Your Majesty sacrificed so many people in order to enter the Pass, but now you are too afraid to enter the Pass?"
Yanlong King inquired: "Why did General Houqing suddenly become so enlightened and willing to let my Yunmeng coalition enter the pass?"
The queen didn't want to say anything, and just replied calmly: "Is this important to the king? All you want is the result."
Seeing the indifference of Hou Qing's words, King Yanlong was afraid that there would be no results if he continued to ask questions, so he had to ride his horse back and tell Yan Hua and others what he saw at Lishanguan and what he found out from Hou Qing.
Yan Hua said: "From now on, you will treat death as if you are home. You are very fond of people who value honor and integrity. How could you unconditionally let my army pass the customs after so many soldiers died? Is there some kind of deceit in this? You want to do it for us." It is a 'close the door and beat the dog' strategy, so it is better not to act rashly before we understand the enemy's intentions, so as not to cause the tragedy of annihilating the entire army."
Nu Ba said: "In my opinion, you are overthinking it. After several rounds of our fierce attacks, the city defenders led by Hou Qing have been wiped out by our army. He knows that it is impossible for him to continue to resist stubbornly." It's all in vain, as the saying goes, those who know the current situation are heroes, and the Queen is not stupid. Seeing that the situation is over, he has to bow his head to our army in order to protect himself, so he opens the city gate and obediently lets us pass."
Lonely said to the female tyrant: ""I don't agree with General Nuba's words. Houqing is a famous general of his generation who has killed countless enemies in battle. When have you ever heard that he was greedy for life and afraid of death? "
General Qingping said: "I think General Lonely is right. General Houqing values his reputation very much and wants him to abandon the city and surrender. He would rather die on the battlefield than let himself be in danger later in life, so I think this There must be fraud in it.”
Yao general Yin Lingzi said: "I agree with General Nuba. Since everyone thinks this is a trap, does this trap definitely make us fall into a trap? Could it be that the queen has lost the ability to defend the city? Did you tell us a trick to make us suspicious and dare not advance, delaying our time until backup?"
Yan Dragon King and others looked at each other, allowing Hou Yan Dragon King to focus on Yan Hua, wanting to hear his opinion on Yin Lingzi's words.
Yan Hua thought deeply for a moment and said: "What General Yin Lingzi said is not unreasonable. Hou Qing has always used his troops in a deceitful way. Under this situation, it is not ruled out that he will take risks and use this suspicious tactics against our army."
King Yanlong said: "In the opinion of you generals, what should we do now? Should we enter or not enter at this level?"
…
On top of the Lishanguan Gate Tower, Song Yunhe saw that the Yunmeng Alliance Army was reluctant to pass through the city gate that they had not opened. He asked General Houqing doubtfully: "General, you have opened the city gate for them. This Yunmeng Alliance Army has opened the city gate for them." Why has it been so reluctant to pass?”
General Houqing replied with disdain: "Because of the word 'suspicious'."
Song Yunhe asked in confusion: "Doubt? What is the word 'suspicious'?"
"Yes, the Flame Dragon King and others suspect that we are deceitful, that's why they are so hesitant. They are afraid of becoming our prey."
Song Yunhe said: "As the general said, the Yunmeng coalition is not planning to enter the pass to attack Jiuli City?"
Chimu Kun laughed coldly and said in a contemptuous tone: "What do you think? They have paid the price of such a fight, but will they stop because you suddenly opened the city gate?"
General Houqing continued: "I believe it won't be long before they enter the pass and head towards Jiuli City. That is their ultimate goal."
Looking at the soldiers lying in pools of blood inside and outside Lishan Pass, Hou Qing said in a slightly reproachful tone: "These soldiers died unjustly. If the king's decree could have arrived earlier, maybe they would all have died." No need to die."
Song Yunhe was not stupid. He knew that what Hou Qing meant was that he was late, but he had tried his best. Along the way, he worked hard without any hesitation. He only arrived after the two fast horses were exhausted. Lishan Pass.
Song Yunhe did not refute Hou Qing about his difficulties along the way, because he felt that what Hou Qing said was reasonable. If he could have brought the will of Jiuli Patriarch to Lishan Pass earlier, these soldiers who had lost their lives would not have died. Facing General Houqing's accusation, Song Yunhe remained silent, like a man who felt he had sinned deeply and was listening to his confession in front of God.
