That night, Wu-Yue border, Changyi County.

The lights of thousands of homes have just been extinguished, the waning moon is in the sky, and the entire Changyi county is immersed in a quiet and peaceful atmosphere.

Xiao Shi stood on a hill five miles outside the city, looking forward to the entire county seat. Then, he turned around, smiled lightly at Li Zida and Li Shi's uncle and nephew, and asked, "Lord Li, I heard that you saved the king when you were the county commander in Changyi?" ”

Li Zida nodded again and again: "It's not enough to worry about it, it's not enough to worry about it, the king is blessed with all the sky, and the Ji people have their own natural appearance, so they just did what they had to do." ”

"Hehe, Master Li, you are really modest. Okay, let's talk about it, how did I do with what I told you? ”

"General Xiao rest assured that the general's subordinates have done what he has done. This afternoon, I asked my nephew Li Shi to bring people into the city in disguise, and poisoned all the wells, and now the people in the city should have been poisoned, and it is estimated that few are awake at this time. ”

"All wells? Are you sure? ”

Li Shi on the side hurriedly replied: "Sure, sure, hehe." I was born in Changyi County, and I am familiar with every corner of the city. General, please rest assured, it may not be possible for others to poison you, but if I Li Shi do this, there will be absolutely no problem! ”

"Okay, in that case, you go and give an order, order the large army to immediately detour back to the city, surround the county seat of Changyi, be sure to defend it to the death, and not let anyone escape."

"Order!"

Li Shi was just about to turn around, but was stopped by Xiao Shi again, "Come back." ”

"Hehe, what else does the general command."

"Li Shi, half an hour later, you will lead the brothers of Xingyue Hall to attack the city gate, remember, you must act in concealment and not leak the news."

"Whoa! The general can rest assured that his subordinates know all the weak links in Changyi County, and they will definitely win tonight! ”

"Okay, let's go."

After Li Shi left, Li Zida also looked at Changyi County, and couldn't help but sigh: "Changyi County, hum, I, Li Zida, have come back to take revenge!" ”

"Hehe, who is Lord Li's enemy?"

"Zhang Xun!" Li Zida gritted his teeth and said.

"Haha, General Zhang, he's my junior brother."

"Huh?" Li Zida was a little frightened, and hurriedly explained: "Subordinate...... My subordinates don't know......"

"It doesn't matter, I've always been at odds with this junior brother, and he hates me to the core. I don't have any opinion on you looking for revenge on him, but he is not in Gusu at this time. ”

"That's okay, I don't just hate him, I also hate all the people of Wu State, as long as I have the opportunity, I will definitely kill them all."

"Oh? Such a deep hatred? Isn't Master Li a native of Wu? ”

"Humph! Not since the day I left Changyi! I'm a Vietnamese now! ”

"Haha, good! What a loyal Yue Guoren! ”

Li Zida looked at the treacherous smile on Xiao She's face, and suddenly felt a little weak, hurriedly changed the topic, and asked, "General Xiao, there is something unknown about my subordinates." ”

"Say it."

"It is said that Fucha led the army to pour out, the country is empty and unmanned, our 20,000 troops are killed, why are you so cautious?"

"Well, the husband took Zhang Xun to Huangchi, leaving the prince on guard. Hehe, this prince friend is a waste, not to be afraid, but there is another person in the city, and that person is very good. Therefore, we had to proceed cautiously, and before reaching the outskirts of Gusu, we should try to march at night, keep it hidden, and not show the slightest rumor. ”

"Oh? Who is this man? ”

"Hmph, you'll know then."

Li Zida saw that Xiao Shi was unwilling to answer, so he didn't dare to continue to ask.

Half an hour later, on the low city wall of Changyi County, a soldier defending the city was sleeping and napping, probably because of poisoning, he could not maintain his consciousness at all. He barely held on to his halberd, his head drooped, and he couldn't open his eyes.

At that moment, a claw clung to the outer edge of the wall, and the soldier seemed to hear the sound, and he tried to push his heavy eyelids, but he could not wake up.

In the blink of an eye, a sturdy black-clad assassin climbed the wall along the rope beneath the flying claws. The assassin crept around behind the soldier, covered his mouth sharply, and stabbed the soldier in the heart, causing the soldier to struggle a few times, slipping and dying.

The Assassins beckoned to the city, and a dozen more Assassins climbed the walls.

It didn't take long for the gates of Changyi County to slowly open, and the assassins stood under the city beckoning the army to enter the city, their short blades still dripping with blood.

In the evening of the next day, Gong Wanran anxiously came to the palace to ask to see the prince's friend.

The guard stopped Gong Hui Ran and said, "Lord Gong Hui, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is playing chess with Dazai-sama, and I don't want to be disturbed, so please come back tomorrow." ”

Gong Wanran's face showed a hint of anxiety, and he saluted the guards and said: "Lao Jia will report again, there are 100,000 urgent military situations to report to His Royal Highness the Prince!" ”

The guard's face was embarrassed, but seeing that Gong Wanran was so eager, after hesitating for a moment, he still nodded and said, "Okay, please wait a while, and I will go and report." ”

After a while, the guards came out and said to Gong Huiran: "Lord Gong Hui, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is invited." ”

Gong Wanran saluted the guards again: "Thank you! ”

Gong Wanran walked into the cabinet quickly, and saluted the prince and Bo Yao: "His Royal Highness the prince, Lord Dazai, I have something important to report below. ”

The prince ignored Gong Wanran, holding a chess piece in his hand, staring intently at the chessboard, he was just about to drop the piece, but he raised his hand and shook his head, and after a while, he dropped the chess piece in his hand.

It was Bo Yao's turn to fall into the son, but he smiled and said to the prince: "His Royal Highness the prince, Lord Gonghui looks anxious, hehe, it seems that there is indeed something important, why don't you listen to what is the matter first?" ”

The prince nodded impatiently, turned around and asked: "Lord Gonghui, my father Huangchi will be in the alliance, leave me to accompany you to guard the city, hehe, the princes of the world gather together, the biggest things in the world are over there, what can we do here?" ”

Gong Hui saluted again and said, "There may be military intelligence at the border. ”

Bo Yao smiled: "Maybe? Hehe, Lord Gonghui, you have always acted cautiously, and your words have always been well-founded, why are you so abnormal today? ”

"The subordinates have not yet been determined, but the matter is urgent, and I have to come and report without conviction."

"But, Lord Gonghui, why do you want to meddle in military affairs as a civil official who manages government affairs?"

"My subordinates happened to find an abnormality in their spare time, so they came to report!"

Prince Friend raised his hand, "Okay, okay, let's talk, what's the matter?" ”

"Wow. Since the king led his army north, the minister increased the frequency of public reports in important border towns, and used this as an early warning. The early warning officer will report to me on the border situation every day. At present, most of the border warnings are in a normal state, but the early warning in Changyi County has been interrupted. Normally, the early warning personnel in Changyi County would set out in the evening and arrive in Gusu the next afternoon to report to me, and there has never been a mistake in the past month. But today, the early warning has not yet arrived, and the minister is worried that there has been an accident in Changyi County. ”

After hearing this, Bo Yao smiled and said: "Hehe, Lord Gonghui is too worried, it's not a big deal to interrupt once in a while, it is estimated that there was an accident on the road." Relax, maybe that early warning person you arranged will show up in a moment? ”

The prince also nodded and agreed: "Yes, Lord Gonghui is too nervous. Military intelligence, you say? What kind of military information can there be? Who will attack him? The princes were busy celebrating their father's becoming the overlord of the world, how could they come to seek death at this time? ”

The prince wanted to send Gong Hui Ran away, but Gong Hui Ran said solemnly: "Of course it's possible!" It is very likely that the offender is Yue Guo! Changyi County is located on the border of Wu and Yue, is an important border town in our country, if the Yue country wants to attack Gusu, it must first occupy Changyi County! ”

"Yue Guo?" The prince suddenly raised his eyebrows, slapped a few cases, and said unhappily: "Don't mention Yue Guo to me!" What threat can Viet Nam have? I think among these princes, the most peaceful is the Yue Kingdom! Three years ago, Wu Zixu's party was wiped out because they were staring at Yue Guo. Hmph, in that rebellion, even Prince Ben was implicated! I think my father still has a grudge in his heart, otherwise, why didn't he take me to the Huangchi Alliance! ”

Bo Yao hurriedly appeased the prince and said: "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is angry, but I think that the king is because he trusts His Royal Highness the Prince, so he has entrusted His Royal Highness with the responsibility of defending the country." ”

"Huh, the heavy duty? No matter what heavy task, it is simply impossible for a foreign enemy to attack. The Huangchi Alliance is the biggest thing in the world, if my father really wants to entrust me with a heavy responsibility, he should take me to Huangchi and talk and laugh with the princes of the world! ”

Gong knew that since the so-called rebellion, the prince had been completely depressed. Now he has long lost the heroic appearance of ten years ago, nor the long-term planning of three years ago, only the desire to inherit the throne remains. However, the king was in good health, and his expectations for the throne gradually turned into a hopeless wait.

Although Gong Wan Ran can understand the prince's friend, both of them have responsibilities, Gong Wan Ran must fulfill the obligations of a courtier, and the prince should not sink in vain at such a critical juncture.

Gong Wanran took a deep breath and said righteously: "His Royal Highness the Prince, an hour ago, I sent a horse to Changyi to investigate, and I can get accurate information in one day at the earliest. However, Changyi is not far from Gusu, and if the army marches in, it can be reached in about three days. If we don't pay attention now, then by the time the news is confirmed, we will only have one day left to prepare! ”

The prince still didn't think so, and laughed: "Hehe, isn't there another day?" What's the hurry? ”

"Your Highness! As the saying goes, take precautions, and be prepared! We can't afford to sit still! ”

The prince was extremely annoyed by what he said, waved his hand and said: "Okay, okay, you can do what you want, anyway, there are no troops in the city, even if you confirm that the enemy army is coming now, what can you do?" Whatever you want. ”

Bo Yao stretched out his hand, pointed out the door, and said with a smile: "Okay, Lord Gonghui, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has already promised you to deal with it, please take care of it." ”

"His Royal Highness Prince Xie! Thank you, Dazai-sama! ”

With that, Gong Hui saluted and turned to leave.

Gong Wanran didn't feel too much surprise, the reaction of the prince friend had already been expected by him, in fact, he had already decided before, no matter what the attitude of the prince friend was, he would do his duty as a courtier and defend the capital with all his might.

Gong Wanran walked straight to the drunken willow tower on the side of Mingxin Lake, and at this time, Yu Xianyao had already summoned the wealthy merchants in the city to wait in Lanshui Pavilion.

Gong Wan saluted the wealthy merchants, and the wealthy merchants also returned the salute.

Without waiting for Gong Wanran to speak, Yu Xianyao asked anxiously: "My lord! What is the attitude of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince? ”

Gong Wanran nodded slightly, "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has promised me to guard the capital, but it is also a fact that the city is empty. ”

"My lord, did the Yue people really call?"

"It's not sure yet, but it's very likely that the Yue people have taken the county seat of Changyi and are secretly marching towards Gusu. If the situation is true, then in three days at the earliest, the Yue people will be able to reach the city of Gusu. ”

"That'...... How can that be good......" Yu Xianyao was anxious, and the rest of the rich businessmen also exchanged their heads and panicked.

Gong Wanran continued: "The king went north to meet the alliance and took all 30,000 elite soldiers away, and now there are only more than 3,000 wounded and disabled soldiers left in the city, and there are only 2,000 palace guards. Moreover, there is a shortage of arrows and broken weapons in the city, and judging from the current situation, it is difficult for us to hold Gusu. ”

As soon as the words fell, the rich businessmen were in chaos.

"Oops! The Vietnamese people are coming, let's hurry up and pack up our belongings and run for our lives! ”

"Flee from what? The Yue people are our defeated men, isn't this just sending them to death? ”

"You know what?! The people of the Yue country have worked hard in the past ten years, and they have been fighting hard for a long time, which should not be underestimated! ”

"You can't run away from that! No matter what, we all have to contribute to the country! We are all Wu people! Can't escape! ”

"That's right! Can't escape! There must be a way for the princess! ”

Gong Wanran raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet, and then said earnestly: "Ladies and gentlemen, over the years, my country's economy has prospered and its national strength has increased significantly. In the past ten years, the country has fought countless battles and never been defeated, although you have not fought on the battlefield, but the strength of the country is still inseparable from your efforts. ”

All the wealthy businessmen nodded one after another, their faces filled with pride.

"Of course, the strength of the country has also allowed you to obtain more benefits and have greater wealth. It can be said that the strength of the country and the prosperity of the people complement each other and rely on each other. If the Yue Kingdom breaks through Gusu this time, then your family property will also be burned. Therefore, when such a country is in danger, we must stand up and do our best to defend Gusu and our own homeland! ”

As soon as the words fell, the rich businessmen were in an uproar again, but this time, no one wanted to escape, everyone hated the same enemy, and the momentum was high.

Yu Xianyao got up and said, "Lord Gonghui, we businessmen have always had a humble status. But now in this crisis, we are also willing to be loyal to the country! If there's anything that can work, I'd like to see what you want! We are the only ones who look forward! ”

The wealthy businessmen agreed.

"Okay, then it's time for you!"

"My lord, please tell me, how should we behave?"

Gong Wanran nodded and said, "I don't need you to fight, but I need you to lend me money." ”

"Borrowing money? My lord, what is the use of money at this critical juncture? ”

Gong Wanran smiled slightly: "Hehe, it's very useful, and it's very important!" ”