"Shang Mozheng, what are you up to?"
Hearing the word "settle accounts", Zhang Chengen couldn't help but feel a pang of uneasiness in his heart. His expression changed, and his body instinctively struggled, but all in vain.
"Why is the prime minister so tense? Are you afraid that this king will eat you?"
Shang Mozheng calmly sat down on the other side of the round table, looking relaxed. "Don't worry. During my imprisonment, you didn't kick me when I was down like others. I'll remember this 'kindness'."
"From now on, I hope the prime minister will keep it up. Is that okay?"
For sixteen years, they had colluded with each other. Even though Zhang Chengen had tried his best to avoid getting involved in some matters or simply stayed out of them, Shang Mozheng still managed to drag him into the mess, which led to the current situation.
The prime minister had evidence that could put Shang Mozheng to death, but Shang Mozheng also had something on him. They were mutually constrained, thus achieving a delicate balance.
"Enough. That's all I have to say today. I hope the prime minister will remember it well!"
The candle went out, and darkness returned. Zhang Chengen sat in the draft, shivering in the cold.
On the other side, Yang Li and the others escorted Shang Mozheng towards the South City Gate. The guards there had already been taken out by their men in advance, leaving no survivors. The gate was now open, and they could leave at any time.
The two groups met, and a herd of horses galloped across the moat and disappeared into the distance. Shang Mozheng's army was still on the way. For safety, they had to join up with the army first and then march back to the capital.
"Your Highness, why did you let the prime minister off so easily?"
The sky had dawned, and they had long left the capital behind. Yang Li finally couldn't hold back his curiosity.
If his master was still the regent king before, he could understand the mutual constraint between his master and the prime minister.
But now that his master had been imprisoned and then escaped from the capital, the balance between them had been broken. It should be his master who had the upper hand, but his master actually wanted to spare the prime minister?
This really puzzled Yang Li.
"Spare him? Do you think he deserves it?"
Extreme inferiority often breeds arrogance, and Shang Mozheng was no exception. His childhood experiences had made him overly conceited as an adult. He had always regarded Zhang Chengen as a mere dog by his side.
But one day, this dog not only refused to follow his master's orders but also tried to seize his master's handle. Wasn't this asking for death? But Shang Mozheng didn't want him to die so easily.
Now the evidence in Zhang Chengen's hand no longer posed a threat to him. Instead, what he had would scare Zhang Chengen. In that case, why not let him live in constant fear?
He could deal with him later after he had achieved his great cause!
Of course, Shang Mozheng wouldn't tell Yang Li about this. With a glance, Yang Li knew he had said something wrong and immediately shut up wisely.
The morning court today was unusually dull.
The news of the former regent king's escape had spread throughout the court. After receiving the news last night, the young emperor had quickly ordered people to track him down, but all they found were a pile of corpses at the South City Gate.
Currently, Zhou Kou was leading his men to continue the pursuit to the south, and there was still no news back.
"You fools! All of you are fools!"
Finally, the emperor on the dragon throne lost his temper. But apart from scolding and throwing things, he seemed to have no other way. The rebel army was about to reach the capital, Shang Mozheng had escaped, and there was also the bloodline of Shang Luoshu...
Any of these things was a threat to his throne! He was the real fool!
"Your Majesty, may I speak?"
As if he didn't see the angry young emperor, Lu Wenhan calmly stepped out of the queue. He was completely different from the angry prime minister yesterday.
"Your Majesty, now that the traitor Shang Mozheng has fled the capital, if he remains unrepentant, he will surely join up with the 200,000 rebel troops. If so, the capital will be in great danger.
Therefore, in my opinion, the top priority now is how to get through this crisis."
As soon as these words were spoken, it was clear to everyone that the rumors among the people yesterday were not false.
The whole court was in an uproar. The officials were in a state of confusion and disbelief. They all looked at the emperor on the throne, hoping that he could deny the prime minister's words.
Unexpectedly, they saw the anger on the emperor's face gradually fade away, and there was a hint of determination in his eyes. It seemed that he had been influenced by Lu Wenhan?
The prime minister was right. The most important thing now was to get through the crisis in the capital! Realizing this, Shang Luoze gradually calmed down and said, "Dear ministers, the prime minister is right. Shang Mozheng is indeed leading the rebel troops he secretly recruited towards the capital."
"Since I ascended the throne, he has always coveted my throne. He has tried all kinds of tricks. Now that those stupid tricks have failed, he wants to start a rebellion."
"I won't hide it from you. In a few days, his rebel army will arrive at the foot of the capital. But I also want to tell you that I won't run away!"
"As long as the capital stands, I'll be here!"
After the morning court, Shang Luoze personally wrote a notice called "A Message to the People of the Capital". In the notice, he openly admitted the news that Shang Mozheng's rebel army was about to reach the capital. At the same time, he ordered that anyone who wanted to leave the capital to take refuge could do so at any time within three days from now.
If they exceeded this time limit, they would be regarded as voluntarily defending the city and willing to share life and death with the emperor and the capital!
Unexpectedly, after this news was announced, although some people immediately went home to pack their things and prepare to flee the capital, the vast majority of people still chose to stay.
Maybe it was because their roots were in the capital. If their homes were gone, where could they flee to? Or maybe it was because of the emperor's attitude. The young emperor was willing to share life and death with the capital. What did they have to be afraid of?
In any case, compared with the expected chaos, the capital was relatively calm. People's lives continued, but the undercurrent hidden within would surely surface one day.
Shang Luoshu and Lu Yinxi had no idea about the situation in the capital. They were now rushing to the capital desperately. They spent the whole day on the road except for sleeping. They even had their breakfast and dinner on horseback.
During this period, Lu Yinxi had also thought about using her magic words to send them directly to the capital, but maybe because Shang Luoshu was with her, her magic words didn't work. Helplessly, they had to continue relying on the horses.
Fortunately, Su Anhe knew they were in a hurry and had brought the best horses from the capital. There were also post stations along the way where they could change horses, so Shang Luoshu and his group were moving very fast. They had already reached Longxi, but they had no intention of entering the city.
Lu Yinxi had a premonition that once they entered the city, the Su family would surely stop her from returning to the capital, and it would take time to argue with them. So she suggested bypassing the city.
Shang Luoshu knew what was on her mind and followed her suggestion.
The night was as black as ink, and the moonlight shone through the forest like winter snowflakes, falling on the ground in dots. Lu Yinxi and Shang Luoshu finally had a rare moment together.
"Luoshu, do you think what's going on in the capital now?"
Since they left Yuheng Pass, they hadn't received any news from the capital. Now they could only make inferences based on the information they had obtained before.
After thinking for a moment, the man slowly said, "If His Majesty can get Shang Mozheng's life in his hands, the situation will be okay. But if he escapes..."
It would mean that a big battle was inevitable, and in this war, the capital would obviously be at a disadvantage.
"So when we get back to the capital, they..."
"No,"
Shang Luoshu tightened his grip on Lu Yinxi's hand, as if giving her strength. "The capital learned about the movement of the 200,000 rebel troops earlier than we did. Prime Minister Lu and His Majesty must have made preparations in advance."
"The 10,000 troops guarding the imperial mausoleum and the troops from the prefectures near the capital. As long as they are gathered in the capital, Zhou Kou and Chen Guang will surely hold on until Fang Qinhu leads his troops to arrive."
But how much of a price they would have to pay for this, Shang Luoshu didn't dare to say.