Da Tang: Father, can I resign?

Chapter 82 Li Shimin, I’m here!

Li Zhi was dragged out of the carriage and thrown to the ground like a dog.

The smell of blood filled his nostrils, and the bodies of his Jin Wang ceremonial objects and guards lay around him like torn sacks.

It was a one-sided massacre and no one survived.

A circle of imperial guards stood outside the corpses, holding armor-piercing crossbows and golden hammers.

They are all powerful weapons against armored guards.

These imperial guards who were supposed to protect the royal family were now looking at him in silence.

For the first time in his life, Li Zhi smelled the scent of death.

"Who are you and what do you want to do?" he asked calmly.

The imperial guards who dragged him out of the car said a lot of gibberish in Turkic.

Seeing his bewildered face, he changed into unfamiliar Chinese:

"I wanted to let you go. But you came back and wanted to die."

As he spoke, he swiftly drew out his sword and pointed it at Li Zhi's throat.

At that moment, a sharp whistle suddenly came from the distance.

The imperial guard subconsciously moved to the side.

An arrow hit him right in the wrist where he held his sword.

Ding!
There was a teeth-grinding sound of metal friction as the arrow was deflected by the arm guard, creating sparks.

"hiss!"

The Turkic guard felt a numbness in his wrist and his sword fell to the ground.

He looked angrily in the direction where the arrow came from.

In the darkness, there was the chaotic and rapid sound of horse hooves.

The man on horseback shouted in Turkic:
"Don't shoot, we're on the same side!"

Our own people? Did Ashina Khan call for other helpers?

The group of imperial guards looked at each other.

Two horses rushed into the light of the flames.

They were two adult Han Chinese men in ordinary clothes, with a chubby Han Chinese child sitting behind one of the big men.

Before everyone could react, the big man rushed to Li Zhi and lifted him onto his horse.

The man continued shouting "our own people" and rushed towards the gate of Jiucheng Palace which had not yet been completely closed.

"They're liars! Cunning southerners! Shoot them to death!"

The Turkic imperial guards realized belatedly that they had been tricked and hastily shot arrows at the people who had rescued Li Zhi.

However, the armor-piercing crossbow is very slow to reload.

By the time the arrows were shot, the two horses had already squeezed through the gap between the two doors and entered the inner palace.

Boom! The palace gate closed completely.

…………

Li Zhi was completely dazed after escaping death.

When he came to his senses, he found himself sitting on the horse's back, holding on to Li Ming's clothes tightly.

Li Mingze grabbed Li Daozon.

The person riding the other horse was also an acquaintance, Li Ming's pawnshop assistant Wei Daijia.

"Your Highness's idea is really good. It has fooled those Turks." Li Daozon shouted.

The one who just called out “our own people” in Turkic was Li Daozon.

He had fought in the Western Regions and knew some Turkic, so Li Ming asked him to shout along the way to confuse the enemy for a short time.

You know what, it really works.

Taking advantage of the other party's distraction, he not only broke into Jiucheng Palace, but also rescued Li Zhi who was almost killed.

"What happened? Why did the Imperial Guards rebel?"

Li Zhi shouted against the strong wind, his voice breaking.

After surviving the disaster, he now felt truly scared.

Li Ming also shouted in reply:

"Ashina led a rebellion! He was the one who killed Li Xiaogong, and he was also the one who poisoned Grandpa last time!"

Li Zhi's head buzzed.

The General of the Imperial Guards actually rebelled?
How did Li Ming know this? Wasn't he in Chang'an? Did he find out? And he traveled all the way from Chang'an to Jiucheng Palace to inform about this?
He felt unreal and couldn't say anything. He hugged Li Ming tightly like a koala.

Li Ming was not much better than him. His butt was cracked from the bumpy ride and his hands that were holding Li Daozon were numb as he was afraid of being thrown out.

It is over 300 li from Chang'an to Jiucheng Palace, which is not far, but not very close either.

The horses galloped for several hours in a row, and those that were too tired to carry people were simply thrown onto the road.

Wei Daijia's heart was bleeding.

"We must quickly notify His Majesty and mobilize the imperial guards!" Wei Daijia shouted.

Li Ming shouted in reply:

"It's too late! Let's shout all the way!"

I don’t know whether it was lucky or unfortunate, but I happened to run into Ash’s gang when they were taking action!
The noise they made quickly attracted the attention of the patrolling imperial guards, who blocked their way with torches in hand, drew their swords, and nervously questioned:
"who?!"

Li Daozon and Wei Daijia reined in their horses just as lightning flashed across the sky.

The imperial guards recognized the other party, but still did not let down their guard:
"Why did the Prince of Jiangxia enter the palace in the middle of the night?"

Li Ming poked his head out from behind him:

"Ashina has formed a society to lead a rebellion. We will go inform Grandpa. You should quickly inform the other imperial guards to come to the king's defense and protect him!"

"What?" The imperial guards were stunned.

Behind Li Ming, Li Zhi popped his head out again:

"Do as they say!"

Now he understood, and the officer said in a panic:
"As ordered!"

Immediately, a flaming arrow was shot into the sky.

The shrill sound of breaking through the air had not yet faded away when the tower responded with heavy drums and trumpets.

alarm!

The sleeping Jiucheng Palace seemed to be awakened from a dream. Torches were lit everywhere, and the sounds of footsteps and horse hooves were orderly. The imperial guards from various units quickly moved towards the direction where the signal arrows were fired.

"Let's go to the bedroom first!"

Li Ming and his party continued to charge forward.

…………

The gate of the city wall separating the outer court from the sleeping palace was still open.

The two hundred soldiers led by Ashina Jieshe had just passed by, and his followers were clearing out the stubborn defenders in the city tower.

The rebels who climbed up the inner city tower heard the alarm and saw the beacon smoke lit by their accomplices outside Jiucheng Palace, and realized that their plan had been exposed.

Fortunately, with the isolation of the inner city wall, the unrest outside has not yet affected the sleeping area!
Moreover, the inner city tower, which was responsible for lighting signal smoke and informing the imperial guards and palace servants in the bedroom area, was also under their control!
In other words, the emperor of the Tang Dynasty had no idea what was happening outside and was sleeping soundly!

The Khan's warriors were already marching rapidly towards the Emperor's bedroom!

The chances of success are still great!
As long as we close the city gates in time and isolate the inside and the outside, we can catch the Emperor Tang and his son in a trap!
Just delay a little longer, just a little longer...

"Open the gate first!" shouted the rebel leader who was responsible for capturing the inner city gate.

The city gate has a two-layer structure, the inner layer is a gate composed of dozens of thick iron-core wooden bars connected horizontally and vertically.

The gate was usually chained to the groove above the city gate, and could be lowered immediately by releasing the capstan, enough to withstand the impact of heavy cavalry. However, this fatal gate was delayed in being lowered.

Because the remaining Tang troops in the tower also knew the pros and cons, they guarded the capstan at all costs.

There was thunder and lightning in the sky. With the help of the flash of lightning, the leader looked down at the city wall.

The imperial guards loyal to the Tang Dynasty have already discovered something and are marching quickly towards the sleeping area in an orderly manner.

At the front of the team were two galloping horses.

If we let them infiltrate and wake up the emperor in advance, everything will be too late!

The leader roared in frustration:

"Fuck it, I'll take down the winch even if I die!"

The Turks rushed forward.

The Tang army fought desperately.

The elite among the elites collided violently, with blood and flesh flying everywhere.

Both sides were people of a dynasty with great martial virtues. The corridor leading to the capstan was filled with corpses wearing the same armor and carrying the same standard weapons.

However, the corridor was very narrow and could be completely blocked by two fully armored Tang soldiers standing side by side.

If we keep dragging on like this, the Tang army outside will pour in before the city gates are closed!

The leader decisively ordered:

"Abandon the gate and close the main gate!"

The main gate of the inner palace consists of two copper-core iron-clad doors, strong enough to withstand the impact of battering rams.

Without professional siege equipment, no matter how elite the imperial guards are, they will not be able to break into the city in a short period of time.

The only downside is that the door is so heavy that it takes time to close.

The two leading horses of the Tang army were almost reaching the city gate!

"Shoot the arrows and close the city gates!"

…………

"Get down! Get down low!"

Li Daozon shouted to the two princes behind him, while skillfully controlling the horse and dodging left and right in the rain of arrows.

In this situation, if we rashly let the two short-legged little princes get off their horses, they would become sitting ducks, which would be even more dangerous.

Wei Daijia had less to consider and could just rush forward with his eyes closed.

Their two horses, one in front and one behind, rushed to the forefront of the Tang army, gradually widening the distance between them and the large force behind.

The door is slowly closing.

At the same time, several rebels walked out of the door.

They stayed outside the door as a death squad, raised their spears and formed a horizontal line, trying to block the two riders in the front.

As long as they can stop the two of them, Ashina Khan will have enough time to kill the Tang Emperor!
Li Ming poked his head out from behind Li Daozon and saw the shiny silver gun tip blocking the gate, thinking to himself that something was not right.

"what to do?!"

If unarmored light cavalry charges heavy armored infantry, they will surely die!

At this point, Li Daozon had no better idea and could only grab the reins and charge forward.

Wei Daijia whipped his horse and galloped forward, bidding farewell to Li Ming and his party resolutely:
"I will go and dig the formation first. See you later, Your Highnesses!"

A Wei, wait... Li Ming's shouting was drowned out by the whistling wind. He watched Wei Daijia, who was not wearing any armor, rush towards the heavy infantry formation in a suicidal manner.

However, the sound of crossbows and bowstrings from behind even broke through the sound of the wind.

The Tang army's armor-piercing crossbows drew a perfect parabola in the air, just passing over the two riders' heads, launching later but arriving first, and heading straight for the rebels blocking the door.

It was like a sharp stone piercing paper. After a round of volleys, only one or two people were left standing on the opposite side.

What a good cooperation, they are worthy of being the Tang Dynasty’s battle-hardened soldiers… Li Ming breathed a sigh of relief and waved his fists excitedly.

However, although the obstruction of the inner city gate was gone, the speed of closing the gate also increased.

"Hurry, the inner city gate is about to close!"

Wei Daijia took the lead, drew out his iron sword, and rushed straight towards the two rebels who were still standing.

"roll!"

With the powerful impact force, he smashed the rebel's helmet with one hammer, and blood spurted out like a burst can.

Another rebel was hit straight by his horse.

A warhorse with a man on it weighs half a ton, and its powerful impact is unstoppable by any armor.

The Turk was easily knocked into the sky like a rag and lay on the side like a sack.

Wei Daijia also took advantage of this momentum to squeeze through the gap between the two doors and rushed into the bedroom area first.

However, Li Daozon's horse, carrying three people, lagged behind by several body lengths.

"Oh no, we can't catch up!" Li Daozon whipped the horse desperately.

There is a large group of rebels inside, and Wei Daijia alone is not enough!

However, the horse under his crotch had started to foam at the mouth from running so hard, and its power was getting weaker and weaker.

No matter how hard Li Daozon whipped, the speed had slowed down visibly.

The door was about to close completely.

"It's too late. Wei Daijia can't handle it alone!" Li Ming shouted without hesitation:

"Throw me through the gate!"

Li Zhi was shocked and grabbed Li Ming tightly:

"Xiao Ming, are you crazy?!"

"Let go! My dad is in there!"

Li Ming was completely overwhelmed with passion and rudely opened Emperor Gaozong's hand.

Li Zhi was stunned.

Li Daozon did not answer, nor did he even turn around, pretending not to hear.

Li Ming pounded Li Dao Zong's back wildly:
"Can you bear the responsibility after the emperor dies?!"

Li Daozon still didn't answer and just continued on his way.

Li Ming's voice suddenly became quiet, with the confidence that is unique to this age when he is fearless.

"Uncle Zong, have I ever disappointed you?"

Li Daozon took a deep breath, stretched out his right hand, and grabbed Li Ming's collar tighter than usual.

"No!!!"

He roared and threw Li Ming out with force.

Li Ming tried desperately to recall the rolling tutorial from his junior high school physical education class. He curled his body into a ball in the air, rubbed the gap between the two doors, and landed accurately into the sleeping area.

He rolled a long way like a ball, losing energy along the way.

When he stopped, he was already several feet deep into the city gate.

"Damn, that Minister of Rites really understands physics." Li Ming complained in his heart and suddenly realized that he was in a no-man's land.

The main force led by Ashina Jieshe was still moving towards Li Shimin's bedroom. The rebels near the city gate were attracted away by Wei Daijia, while the rebels on the city wall were still fighting fiercely on two fronts.

Because he was small, and it was dark and noisy, he managed to get away with it without being discovered!
After all, the Turks would never have imagined that the Tang people would be so unethical as to directly throw a prince in to tip off the enemy!

He brushed the dust off his body, stood up, and, taking advantage of the brief flash of lightning, moved towards the tallest hall.

Li Shimin, don’t sleep, I’m coming!

(End of this chapter)