Troubled times: Start practicing spiritual practice by taking care of your sister-in-law

Walking northwest from Wang'an County, Chen Jun had a smooth journey.

Not only a smooth road in a geographical sense, but also in a military sense.

After annihilating the Zhang, Gao and Yan families in Hexi and killing the chickens to scare the monkeys, the nobles of the aristocratic families in Hexi seemed to have their backbones broken. Not only were they very cooperative, they even did not dare to speak harshly.

Everywhere Chen Jun went, people lined the streets to welcome him.

On February 6, Chen Jun marched to Jushanguan.

This is the last line of defense before Luonan.

After breaking through Jushan Pass, Luonan is less than a hundred miles behind.

It's almost the same as saying that the army is approaching the city.

When King Qin of Huai and Xu Guozhong took the emperor to move the capital to Luonan, the coalition forces of King Qin and King Qin did not reach Jushanguan.

Chen Mo infiltrated the surveillance guard in Luonan, and recently there have been frequent reports of spying in Luonan, allowing him to understand all aspects of the situation.

The first is Jushan Pass.

I learned from the intelligence that Lu Sheng wanted to defend to the death based on his posture.

Because Jushan Pass was heavily guarded, not only the imperial army's imperial army, Lu Sheng's private army, but also Xiliang's army.

After Lu Sheng sent Huicheng to lead the army to destroy Xiliang, he also captured thousands of Xiliang troops. Now they are all transferred to Jushanguan by Lu Sheng.

In addition to these "regular troops", there are also "miscellaneous troops" whose exact number is unknown but exceeds at least 50,000.

These more than 50,000 people were prisoners in the prison, as well as strong men captured by Lu Sheng from Luonan and surrounding counties. In a short period of time, tens of thousands of soldiers and horses were dispatched directly to Jushanguan.

This move immediately made Chen Mo and others think that Lu Sheng was going to fight to the death.

By seizing young men so unscrupulously, it is obvious that he does not want to run Luonan.

Historically, there have been cases of large-scale capture of young men, but these were not captured in one's own base camp, but on the periphery of one's own influence.

Lu Sheng, on the other hand, directly captured young men in Luonan. This meant that Luonan was riddled with holes and the house was on fire.

However, this also confused Chen Mo, making him think that Lu Sheng and King Chong might be here at Jushan Pass.

Chen Mo was not careless. That afternoon, 30,000 Chen troops and 10,000 Yang Jia Tengjia troops formed a formation on the front line of Jushanguan. Fifteen red cannons were all pushed forward by the Suzaku guards, and fifteen tongues of fire spewed out. , accompanied by a loud bang, the powerful explosive bomb fell on the capital's key gate for the first time.

Jushanguan, which had been silent for nearly four hundred years, was once again in flames of war at the end of this winter.

It is said that one's own family knows one's own affairs.

Chen Mo thought that Lu Sheng and King Chong were at Jushan Pass, but in fact, these two people did not come at all.

Even the guard stationed at Jushan Pass was only a fifth-grade eunuch.

Even the generals and generals in the army are just veterans who were ordered to go up in times of danger, not even warriors.

Although there are many soldiers and horses, their combat effectiveness is simply insufficient.

Take the tens of thousands of "miscellaneous troops" as an example. These soldiers and horses are just mud-legged men who scavenge in the fields. Not to mention not wearing armor, even the weapons they hold are hoes and sickles brought from home.

It was okay to let them work as corvees to build the city defense, but when they met the well-equipped Chen army.

Chen Jun was not even ready to attack the city, but after just a few rounds of shelling, he ran away nearly half of the way, shouting that this was magic and divine punishment, thinking that Lu Sheng's retrograde attack made God angry.

Although the regular army was well equipped, they learned that the imperial court had not sent even a decent guard general, and they had no confidence and confidence. Without confidence, there is no morale.

As Chen Mo officially began to attack the city, the regular army also ran away by a third.

When Chen's army attacked the city, even the general and eunuch ran away.

The ones who defended the city most desperately were the prisoners pulled out of the prison, especially those on death row.

Because Lu Sheng promised them that as long as they took the head of a Chen Army soldier, they would be exempted from the death penalty.

It's just to kill Chen Jun, not to let them defeat Chen Jun, so naturally it's not that difficult, and the motivation is relatively high.

But no matter how hard we try, it's just a mantis trying to use his arms as a chariot.

That night, Chen Jun captured Jushanguan.

Upstairs at the city gate, Chen Mo looked down at the soldiers cleaning the battlefield. He never expected to capture Humen Pass so easily. Then Chen Mo frowned and said, "What kind of medicine did Lu Sheng and King Chong sell in this gourd? If you have so many people guarding you but you are not there, isn't this a waste of your strength?"

Liu Ji and Wu Fusheng couldn't figure this out either.

The previous battle situation should have made Lu Sheng realize that if he did not personally guard the area, he would not be able to stop Chen Jun.

But knowing clearly that Hushan Pass cannot be defended, they still send so many soldiers and horses to defend it. Why do they do it for nothing?

Isn’t this a waste of one’s strength?

"Sun Meng."

"The end will be here."

"Take a small team out of the personal camp and go to the front to investigate, especially the mountains and forests on both sides. Check carefully to prevent the enemy from ambush." ​​Chen Mo did not relax his vigilance to avoid falling into the enemy's trap. .

"No." Sun Meng retreated.

"Xia Zhining, Yue Ruyan, Jiang Li, Wu Yanqing, Nangong Xian." Chen Mo said.

"The general is here." Xia Zhining, Yue Ruyan, Jiang Li, Wu Yanqing, and Nangong Xian each took a step forward.

"My general ordered the three armies to stop and recuperate. They will break out of camp on time tomorrow and march into Luonan."

"promise"

The news of the fall of Jushan Pass spread to Luonan like the wind that night, and the court could not conceal the huge news at all.

People in Luonan City were panicked.

As the capital of a country, it should be solemn and solemn, but at the moment it is in chaos.

The most frightened people are the ministers.

As an official, they see more comprehensively than the common people.

Throughout the ages, almost all the wars to support the king were fought by ambitious people who wanted to overthrow the current regime or even change the dynasty.

But no matter which aspect, the court will undergo a major reshuffle.

After the success of the loyalists, the three provinces and six ministries will be replaced by their own people.

The court has already experienced two major reshuffles.

Almost all the civil and military officials now are Lu Sheng's people, a small number are from the Liang family, and there are only a handful of people who are truly loyal to the emperor.

If Chen Mo breaks in, those who are deeply in collusion with Lu Sheng will inevitably be liquidated.

Whether they are asleep or not, the ministers can't sleep at this moment. They put on their clothes and rushed to the prime minister's residence to discuss countermeasures with Lu Sheng.

Among them, the fastest one is King Chong.

King Chong came to the prime minister's residence angrily. The guards of the prime minister's residence wanted to report, but King Chong broke in directly and shouted that he wanted to see Lu Sheng.

Lu Sheng knew that King Chong would come, and he came out after hearing the noise.

But as soon as the two met, before Lu Sheng could speak, King Chong started to yell at him, calling him by his name:

"Lu Sheng, what on earth do you want to do? I originally thought that you had been arresting able-bodied men everywhere recently, intending to defend the capital and fight the Chen army to the death, but you sent them all to Jushan Pass. That would be fine, but you actually sent a eunuch, and he ran away as soon as the Chen army attacked the city.

Are all the generals under your command dead? Tens of thousands of soldiers and horses were wasted just like that."

King Chong was really angry, and even forgot that he was now living under someone else's roof.

But facing the angry shout of King Chong, Lu Sheng was not angry, but smiled and said: "Don't worry, my lord, everything is in my plan."

King Chong frowned: "What are you up to? It's come to this point, are you still going to hide it from me?"

"Don't worry, my lord, you will know tomorrow. You came at the right time. I need your help." Lu Sheng said.

The most frightened people in Luonan are the civil and military officials, and the second are the palace maids in the harem.

Every time the court changes dramatically, those who suffer are those who are inseparable from the royal family. It is very likely that as soon as the army enters the city, they will have to change from palace maids to slaves.

The luckier ones will become slaves or private favorites of generals.

The worse ones may be abused by the lowest-level soldiers, or they will be abused in turn.

The current emperor, Emperor Yong'an, is also in a panic.

Even though he was born to a slave when the deposed emperor was still the crown prince, he knew clearly what the king's support represented.

If the king's support was an order issued by the central government, requiring local governments to raise troops to support the king, it would be better.

But if the local governments took the initiative and raised troops to support the king without receiving the central government's order, it would be a rebellion in essence.

And Chen Mo's "king's support" was obviously without the central government's order.

Then Chen Mo came in and there were three outcomes waiting for Emperor Yong'an.

The worst outcome was that Chen Mo directly proclaimed himself emperor, then he would be a stumbling block and would definitely not survive.

The second outcome was to continue to be a puppet like now.

The last outcome was to become a deposed emperor like his father.

Emperor Yong'an hoped that he could be deposed, at least he would have more freedom and dignity than being a puppet.

What he feared most was the first outcome.

And this outcome was the most likely.

Chen Mo was not Xu Guozhong or Lu Sheng.

Now most of the world has fallen into Chen Mo's hands.

After eradicating Lu Sheng, there will be nothing in the world that can threaten him, so he doesn't need to "support" the royal family anymore, and he can change the dynasty and become the emperor himself.

On the other side, the Queen Mother's bedroom.

Ever since she knew that her father was captured by Chen Mo and his life or death was uncertain, Liang Ji seemed to have a serious illness. She lay in bed all day in a daze and had no energy. After a period of time, her face turned pale and she became very haggard.

But after all, she has been the queen for more than ten years. Even if she becomes like this, she still retains her nobleness and grace.

As a queen and a queen mother, Liang Ji is naturally a first-class beauty. In addition, she has been well maintained in the palace. Even if she looks haggard and weak, she can still arouse men's lust.

At this moment, a palace maid hurried in, walked around the screen, and her steps became steady again. She squatted down by the bed and whispered in Liang Ji's ear.

On Liang Ji's pale face, her neatly trimmed eyebrows slightly raised, and then she sat up with some effort.

When the maid saw this, she hurriedly came forward to help her, and when Liang Ji sat up, she put a pillow behind her.

Liang Ji said weakly: "Lu Sheng and King Chong are not in harmony, and they can't get along at all. They have their own ulterior motives. I have long expected that they are not Chen Mo's opponents. Now that Chen's army is at the gates of the city, what plans does the family have?"

"The family has actually sent someone to contact Chen Mo. The head of the family is still alive, but he is imprisoned by Chen Mo, and Chen Mo said that if he wants him to release the head of the family, it depends on the sincerity of the family." The maid's answer was irrelevant.

"Sincerity? It's nothing more than asking for money and food." Liang Ji said coldly, and then asked: "How does the family want to express sincerity?"

The maid glanced at Liang Ji, and then became hesitant.

"What's wrong?" Liang Ji frowned.

"What the clan means is to prescribe the right medicine. If Chen Mo really breaks into Luonan, the queen mother needs to show mercy to him in order to save the family master." The palace maid's voice became weaker and weaker. After finishing speaking, she immediately lowered her head.

Hearing this, Liang Ji was shocked at first. After continuing to speculate on the meaning of these words, she laughed at herself: "Honest and self-deprecating? I believe that rescuing my father is just one of them. Preserving the interests of the family is the hope of the family." Yes."

How could she not understand.

I just want her to be like the former Princess Huai.

The palace maid did not dare to respond.

…

February 7th, early morning.

Luonan ushered in a heavy rain at the end of winter, and the temperature dropped a lot.

The originally bustling capital was now under martial law. On the streets of the city, houses, shops, and doors were all closed. Apart from patrolling soldiers, no one could be seen on the streets.

The Zhou Mansion in the south of the city.

Several carriages were parked on the street at the back door, and dozens of armored guards, wearing raincoats and bamboo hats, were guarding the carriages, looking at everything around them vigilantly.

Just then, the back door creaked open.

"Hurry up, Chen Jun is about to attack. The south gate belongs to us. Let's get out of the city through the south gate. Hurry up."

A muscular Zhou Qin, dressed in fur clothes and a cloak, walked out of the back door.

Zhou Qin is one of Lu Sheng's confidants, a fifth-grade warrior who is in charge of the Imperial City Department, the palace confinement, and the Zhou Lu residence guard.

It stands to reason that at this critical moment, Zhou Qin, as Lu Sheng's confidant, should accompany Lu Sheng to help each other and tide over the difficulties together.

However, Zhou Qin had long lost confidence in Lu Sheng and thought that Luonan could not be defended.

Taking advantage of his right to guard the south gate, Zhou Qin wanted to take his family and escape from Luonan.

After a large family got on the carriage, they headed toward the south gate in a panic.

When he met a patrolman, Zhou Qin took out the Imperial City Division's token and the journey was smooth.

But when they were about to arrive at the south gate, Zhou Qin and the others were surrounded by a group of soldiers.

The leader of the team is the music manager of Xiangguo Mansion, a fourth-grade warrior.

"General Zhou, where are you going?"

"Oh, it's Butler Le. This general is leading people to guard the south gate."

"Are you dragging your family with you to guard the south gate?" Butler Yue's eyes turned cold and he said, "Xiang Lu has an order. Anyone who escapes from the battle will be captured and brought to me."

There were dozens of court officials who met the same fate as Zhou Qin, but they were all captured by Lu Sheng's people.

And these people, Fei Dan were not executed or imprisoned, but were all taken to the Prime Minister's Mansion.