The king and queen had been in the temple for less than ten days before Angkor Thom was breached.

By this time, the Siamese army had been besieging Angkor Thom for several days. Due to the lack of troops in Angkor Thom, and the king took a large number of elite guards, the Siamese finally found a hole in the walls of Angkor Thom, where the defenders were thin; Late last night, the Siamese sent warriors to sneak up the city walls, and then the situation was out of control.

After the Siamese warriors took advantage of the night raid to take a gate and a large number of troops poured into the city, the defense of the royal city collapsed like a river dam.

When Queen Isuva heard this, she hurried up to the top of a scripture tower in Angkor Wat, in the northwest corner of the cloister on the first floor. She was immediately shocked by the scene in front of her, and her whole body was frozen on the stone wall.

A fire had burned in the royal city to the north; Even though there is still some distance from this place to the royal city, the screams and commotion in the city can be heard.

In addition, there are fires everywhere outside the city, which illuminate the sky. Angkor Thom, the capital of the kingdom of Chenla, was home to many people, and the villages were much denser than elsewhere. After countless houses were set on fire, the flames were sparkling, and the battle was amazing.

What Issuva saw before her eyes was a sea of fire.

In the endless sea of fire, the shouts and screams of the people were very fierce. Under the darkness of the night, the earth seemed to have turned into eighteen layers of hell, filled with endless blood and fire.

The ancient royal city, once the glorious land of the Zhenla Kingdom, became like this overnight.

Ixuva stared at the distant scene for a long time, unable to say a word. She seemed to be settled, but her deep eyes changed quickly and subtly, as if there were thousands of emotions rolling in her eyes.

In the complex and unpredictable changes of expression, there is a dream-like daze from time to time that cannot believe reality.

Yes, who would have believed that the long-standing and powerful Kingdom of Zhenla would suddenly change its situation in just over two months, and then fall into such a rapid depravity overnight?

I don't know when, the palace minister has already walked to the top of the scripture building. Izuda had no idea when he was standing behind her, or how long the minister had been standing.

"Prosperous and prosperous, always like a dream." The Minister of the Palace said, "It seems that Angkor Wat, which took decades to build, is now so deserted." ”

Ixeva's hands and feet were cold, and the consequences were too great for her to accept. For so long, she suddenly had an epiphany and wanted to admit her mistake...... But she was speechless. What's more, even if she is sorry, she should not show it in front of the palace minister.

The palace minister was also a little dazed, and after a while, he looked suddenly awake, folded his hands and bent over, "Queen, we should go." The king sent his servants and took the queen out of the land. ”

Izuda asked in a daze, "Where to go?" ”

The palace minister said: "Phnom Penh City." Is there anywhere else else we can go? ”

Without thinking, Issova casually asked, "Can you still get away now?" ”

The Minister of State replied, "Abandon most of the things and personnel, and flee immediately, we should still have time." Most of the Siamese army did not come, and they did not seem to have discovered that the king and queen were not in the royal city for the time being; At least not know that the king was in Angkor Wat. ”

So the royal family escaped from Angkor Wat overnight with the guards, and the trip was very hasty. Everything that the ancestors of the Chenla royal family, who had operated in Angkor Thom for at least hundreds of years, was almost lost tonight. Fleeing like this will inevitably make the strength of the Zhenla royal family a big devastation......

However, the king and the ministers and nobles finally saved their lives and came to the road to Phnom Penh in a hurry.

The immediate imperative they are facing is that the city of Phnom Penh may not be safe either.

At present, the kingdom of Chenla is unable to gather enough troops for a while, and the Siamese may take advantage of the victory to continue their march towards Phnom Penh; When the Ming fleet returned, it would be easy to threaten Phnom Penh, and their fleet could be driven straight from the Mekong River. There is no one on the water who can stop the Ming navy.

The proposal to immediately submit to the Ming people and seek the help of the Ming became the mainstream of the king's courtiers.

Ixuva also stopped mentioning Ahn's skull. But things have come to the point where they are now, and this does not mean that they will end easily. First of all, after the ministers and nobles proposed to abolish it, they blamed everything on Issuva, believing that she was the one who influenced the national policy and led to the catastrophe of the Zhenla Kingdom.

This time Isseva did not refute, she did not even have anything to say.

She seemed to understand something. In the past, her only brother acted mischiefly, and as a relative, she defended An En, thinking that it was just human nature; But she felt that she was still thinking too simply. The aristocrats didn't care about their family affection, which certainly couldn't be compared to the catastrophe of Angkor Thom.

The main reason is that Issuva's family is completely finished; If the strength of the descendants does not exist, the other ministers and nobles no longer need to fear the queen. She didn't even have the strength to protect herself, so she didn't want to take revenge.

After her great grief and resentment, Ixuda is now in a state of despair and helplessness. She didn't bother to fight, she was the only one left in the family, what else was there to struggle?

However, the king withstood the pressure of the nobles. He didn't speak for Issuva, but he never gave his head to the end.

Esuda was on the back of an elephant and cast a grateful glance at the king. She could feel that King Benhaya had always been very fond of her, though he was relatively silent. And Benhaya also has his own helplessness.

As long as you stay up for two more days, when the team arrives in Phnom Penh City, you will be slightly better. Phnom Penh still had part of Chenla's army, and most of the local nobles and officials remained loyal to the king. As soon as there are many forces on all sides, these nobles can't act too recklessly at the moment.

Things didn't go so smoothly at the last minute. The next day, I don't know who instigated it, but there was a mutiny in the King's Guard. Many soldiers surrounded the king's guards, and their own men met each other, armed with weapons. The mutinous soldiers declared that Issuva was guilty and unworthy to be their queen.

In order to avoid bloodshed and scuffle, Benhaya could only act expediently, and finally nodded in public and agreed to abolish the queen. As a result, the turmoil subsided slightly.

Soon news came that the guards of the palace had fought with the Siamese pursuers. But by the time the Siamese followed, the king and a large group of others had reached the fortified city of Phnom Penh......

Phnom Penh City has been affected by the situation, and people are also panicking at this time. Ministers and generals are anxious to find a way to defuse the crisis while deploying defense. The most important thing for the Zhenla Kingdom is to end the war as soon as possible, so that it can breathe a sigh of relief and stability from the embarrassing situation of defeat after defeat.

Most people persuaded the king to keep his promise and to abolish it immediately, in order to preserve his shaky prestige. Benhaya kept his promise and soon announced the abolition of the queen's throne.

The kingdom of Chenla is an ancient kingdom where people are experienced and have rules to follow in the internal struggle, so as to eradicate political enemies step by step. Those who have long been dissatisfied with the descendants will wait for the first abolition before they can continue to fall into the ground; Now Isuva's situation is going in this direction.

Sure enough. Soon, someone proposed that the sinner Isuva, who had been abolished as a concubine, and the head of An En, be sent to the camp of the Ming people to ask for peace with the Ming Dynasty.

And this ridiculous proposal was immediately supported by countless people.

There are only a few people in the country who are dissatisfied with the descendants, but most of the remaining people only care about their own interests and do not care about Issuva's life or death. At present, the city of Phnom Penh is not stable, and no one in Zhenla can be relied on; The country of Burma is too far away, and the war between Champa and Chenla in the first two years continues. Only the people of the Ming Dynasty can interfere in the situation at present, but they must first win the protection of the Ming Dynasty.

How many people are unwilling to sacrifice a person who everyone doesn't care about to win more opportunities for peace?

Only Benhaya was reluctant.

The Kingdom of Chenla had previously renovated Phnom Penh City, and had already planned to move the capital, so a royal palace was also built in Phnom Penh City; Benhaya lived in this palace. Issuva, who was no longer the queen, finally entered the palace and saw Penhaya again.

The two looked at each other without saying a word. Benhaya looked at Issuva greedily, as if he wanted to remember everything about her at once. His eyes were full of reluctance. If he explains that everything is not his will, then it is also sincere; Benhaya, however, said nothing, he was a relatively silent man.

Seeing his eyes, Issuva's heart became more resolute, and she said, "Please agree with the ministers, and send me to the Ming people to plead guilty." ”

Benhaya shook his head constantly.

Issuva said coldly: "In Phnom Penh City today, the situation is very difficult. If the king loses his throne, I will still be unable to escape this outcome. ”

Benhaya was silent, he had never said much. He must have known that what Issuva said was the truth.

Seeing this, Ixuva sighed to herself, turned around and walked slowly out the door. She felt that her steps were a little difficult, as if she couldn't exert all her strength. The hatred at first seems to have solidified in the depths of the heart; Countless things that had been covered up by great hatred gradually came to mind at this time. Among them, the most obvious feeling is undoubtedly regret and despair.

At this moment, Benhaya's voice said, "Ixuva." ”

She stood still, then turned her head to look at him.

Benhaya said, "In the name of the king, I have appointed you as one of the noble envoys to follow the envoy to negotiate peace. ”

Ixuva turned, tears welling up in her deep, pool-like eyes. She suddenly knelt on the ground, folded her hands and said, "I already know what I did wrong." ”

Benhaya looked at her and nodded slightly.

The woman kneeling on the ground, the former arrogance and arrogance have disappeared. In just a few months, she seemed to have been decided.