My father, Li Shimin, please call me Crown Prince

Chapter 267: Forcing the Prince's Army to Retreat

Outside the Baekje capital of Sabi, the flames of war had been raging for days, with gunpowder filling every inch of the air. Wearing the armor that carried the glory of Baekje, although it was stained with blood, Buyeo Yici still stood in front of the battle, looking resolutely at the Tang army that was like a steel barrier.

The battles in the past few days have been extremely brutal.

Baekje's tens of thousands of troops suffered heavy casualties under the fierce attack of the Tang Dynasty's elite troops.

On the battlefield, the bodies of soldiers were lying all over the place, and the blood dyed the ground red, like a sea of ​​blood.

The sounds of shouting, screaming, and weapons clashing intertwined together, like a sad song of despair.

Buyeo Yici's heart was filled with grief and resentment. He watched his soldiers fall one after another, and his heart felt like being pierced by thousands of arrows. But as the king of Baekje, he knew that he could not retreat at this moment. Even if there was only a glimmer of hope, he had to do his best for the survival of Baekje.

"My lord, the Tang army's offensive is too fierce. Our left wing defense line is about to be broken!"

A general covered in blood hurried over and anxiously reported the battle situation.

Buyeo Yici frowned, a trace of worry flashed in his eyes, but he soon regained his determination: "Pass my order, transfer the reserve troops on the right wing to support the left wing, and make sure to hold the defense line! Our Baekje warriors must not retreat easily!"

"Yes!" After receiving the order, the general turned around and plunged into the fierce battle again.

Buyeo Yici looked at the bloodshed on the battlefield and thought to himself: "Is Baekje really going to perish in my hands? No, I won't accept that! I must find a way to protect Baekje!"

At this critical moment, a messenger came at full speed, dismounted, knelt on one knee, and said excitedly: "Your Majesty! Great news! The crown prince has sent a message that the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty has arranged for the censor to order the crown prince to withdraw his troops!"

When Buyeo Yici heard this, he was stunned at first, as if he couldn't believe his ears. Then, a ray of hope suddenly ignited in his eyes. He grabbed the messenger's shoulder and asked anxiously: "Are you telling the truth? Is the news confirmed?"

"Your Majesty, it is absolutely true! The Crown Prince sent me to travel day and night to convey this news to you as soon as possible!" the messenger replied firmly.

Buyeo Yici sighed to the sky, feeling mixed emotions, feeling relieved for having survived the catastrophe, but also confused about the future. "God will not destroy Baekje!" he muttered to himself.

After a while, Buyeo Yici quickly regained his composure, knowing that this was the perfect time to boost morale. He immediately summoned many generals of Baekje and told them the news.

"Generals! The Emperor of the Tang Dynasty has ordered the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty to withdraw his troops. We Baekje are saved!" Buyeo Yici said loudly, his voice full of excitement and excitement.

When the generals heard the news, they were stunned at first, and then they all showed surprise on their faces.

"Really? Your Majesty, this is great!" a general said excitedly.

"It seems that our persistence has not been in vain. The Tang Dynasty still has some concerns after all!" Another general also sighed.

Buyeo Yici felt a little relieved when he saw the morale of the generals, but he also knew that he couldn't let his guard down at this moment.

"Generals, although the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty is about to withdraw his troops, we must not let our guard down. Before they withdraw their troops, we must still hold our defense line to prevent the Tang army from making any deceptions. At the same time, we must also be prepared to welcome the Crown Prince's return and discuss the future of Baekje together." Buyeo Yici said solemnly.

"We will follow the king's orders!" the generals responded in unison, their voices loud and firm.
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Outside the solemn and dignified side hall of the Shenwu Palace, a strong wind was howling. The two imperial censors, Lin Zheng and Zhou Xian, were walking back and forth anxiously.

They were wearing official uniforms that symbolized the authority of the court, but at this moment, the uniforms fluttering in the wind did not add any confidence to them. The two of them looked so solemn as if covered with a layer of frost, and their hearts were filled with a complex emotion of helplessness and resentment.

Lin Zheng suddenly stopped, staring at the tightly closed palace door, as if he wanted to see through it. He lowered his voice, but could not hide his anger, and cursed with gritted teeth: "This prince is so arrogant! The imperial edict of His Majesty is in our hands, and he dared to refuse to meet us on the grounds of illness. This is clearly a blatant disobedience!"

As he spoke, he swung his sleeves vigorously, and the muscles on his face twitched slightly with anger.

Zhou Xian shook his head slightly and sighed heavily, his eyes showing helplessness and worry. He advised: "Brother Lin, don't be impulsive. The prince is now at the peak of his power and has a large number of troops in his hands. He has the final say in Liaodong."

"Since the Crown Prince is pretending to be sick, it is clear that he does not want to accept the imperial edict. We are really helpless for the time being."

After saying this, he raised his head slightly and looked at the gloomy sky, as if seeking a little comfort.

Lin Zheng turned around suddenly, his eyes wide open, his eyes revealing a hint of ruthlessness, as determined as a hungry wolf: "No, we must not let the prince succeed! If he successfully unifies Liaodong, and if he takes over Baekje this time, the position of the King of Wei in the court will be in jeopardy, and our King of Wei's party will also be in an irretrievable situation!"

After saying this, he clenched his hands into fists, and his joints turned white from the force.

Zhou Xian frowned tightly, like two entangled ropes, and said worriedly: "Brother Lin, I understand what you mean. But the prince has always been decisive and ruthless, and his methods are even more unpredictable. If we force the edict and completely anger the prince, he will definitely not let us go easily in the future, and he may even try his best to put us to death."

As Zhou Xian spoke, he rubbed his hands unconsciously, showing his extreme inner uneasiness.

The prince did not have a very good reputation in Chang'an. The Junior Secretary Zhang Xuansu and the magistrate of Wannian County beat him up at will.

Censors like them could be killed at will.

Lin Zheng frowned and paced back and forth hurriedly. Every step seemed to be stepping on his heart. He gritted his teeth and squeezed out a few words: "I can't care about so much! Since we are the party members of the King of Wei, we should share the worries of the king."

"If we cannot stand up for the King of Wei at this critical moment, how can we stand in the court in the future?"

"Besides, once the prince's power becomes really strong, those of us who oppose him will definitely not have a good ending. Instead of waiting to die, we might as well fight!"

There was a resolute light in Lin Zheng's eyes, as if he had made some kind of life-or-death decision.

Zhou Xian pondered for a moment, the worry on his face becoming more and more intense, as if a deep ravine was carved into it: "That being said, if this edict is passed to the front line, those generals are all the crown prince's confidants, they may not obey our orders."

"Besides, if the Crown Prince finds out about this and blames us, how are we going to respond? He might just find a random excuse to accuse us of disturbing the morale of the army, and then we won't be able to defend ourselves."

As Zhou Xian spoke, a hint of fear appeared on his face and beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

Seeing this, Lin Zheng hurried forward and patted Zhou Xian on the shoulder, trying to calm his nervous mood. He pretended to be calm and said, "Brother Zhou, since ancient times, wealth and honor have been sought in danger. This edict was issued by His Majesty himself, and they dare not openly disobey it."

"As long as we act decisively and swiftly, and quickly make the frontline commanders obey this order, the matter will be settled. No matter how dissatisfied the prince is, he will not be able to do anything to us."

There was a hint of confidence in Lin Zheng's eyes, trying to encourage Zhou Xian.

Zhou Xian gritted his teeth, a look of determination flashed in his eyes: "Okay, then let's do as Brother Lin says!"

"However, we must think of a comprehensive way to ensure that the generals on the front line can obey the imperial edict." "Also, we must always be careful of the crown prince's efforts to trip us up. Given his character, he will definitely not let us succeed easily."

As Zhou Xian spoke, he looked around vigilantly, as if the prince's spies were watching them in the dark.

Lin Zheng nodded slightly, with a hint of thought in his eyes: "Let's first find a few generals who are on good terms with the Cui and Lu families. Although they have limited say in the army, they can at least play a certain supporting role. Let them come forward to cooperate with us, and then, in the name of His Majesty, summon all the generals on the front line and read the imperial edict in public."

"In this way, under your majesty's majesty, they will not dare to disobey easily."

As Lin Zheng spoke, he gestured in the air with his hands, as if outlining the blueprint of this plan.

All the scholars in the world cannot escape from the aristocratic families.

In the Prince's Army, there are also some generals who have close ties with the Five Surnames and Seven Families.

Even Li Chengqian could not avoid such a situation.

Before coming, Lin Zheng got a list.

Zhou Xian was still a little hesitant, frowning even more tightly, with worry written all over his face: "But those generals who are on good terms with Cui Lu have very limited influence in the army. If other generals don't listen to their advice at all, we will still be in trouble."

"Moreover, once the prince finds out that we have sent the imperial edict to the front line, he might secretly send someone to stop us, or even attack us directly. This risk is too great, Brother Lin, do we really want to do this?"

Zhou Xian's voice trembled slightly, and it was obvious that he was still struggling fiercely in his heart.

Lin Zheng looked at Zhou Xian firmly, holding his shoulders tightly with both hands, and said seriously: "Brother Zhou, we have no other choice! The situation is urgent now, and we can't afford to hesitate any longer."

"We can only try our best to persuade those generals with reason and emotion, and then use your majesty's majesty to put pressure on them. I believe they should cooperate with us."

"As for the prince's obstruction, we can only speed up our actions and catch him off guard so that he doesn't have time to react."

Lin Zheng's eyes were like torches, trying to ignite the dying fighting spirit in Zhou Xian's heart.

Zhou Xian took a deep breath, as if he had mustered up all his courage, and said, "Okay, let's give it a try! But we have to be fully prepared. Once the truth is revealed, how are we going to get out of this?"

"This is no small matter. If we are not careful, our lives will be in danger!"

There was a hint of fear in Zhou Xian's eyes, but more of it was a determination to fight to the death.

Lin Zheng thought for a moment, a sly look flashed in his eyes: "If the matter is unfortunately exposed, we will immediately ask His Majesty for help."

"Your Majesty will surely not sit idly by. After all, this edict was issued by Your Majesty, and we are just following orders."

Moreover, we can collect some evidence of the prince's disobedience in advance, such as the news that he refused to accept the imperial edict, as well as the various situations outside this side hall, so as to defend ourselves."

"As long as we can prove that we are loyal to His Majesty, I believe His Majesty will not make things too difficult for us."

As Lin Zheng spoke, he nodded confidently, as if he had already seen the response plan after the matter was exposed.

Zhou Xian nodded, his expression still solemn: "That's the only way. However, the risk of this operation is too great. We must be cautious and take every step carefully."

"Brother Lin, why do you think His Majesty suddenly issued this edict? Is there any deeper meaning in it that we haven't figured out?"

As Zhou Xian spoke, there was a hint of doubt in his eyes, as if he was searching for the truth in the fog.

Lin Zheng frowned, thinking deeply, and said slowly: "I have been thinking about this too."

"Your Majesty may have realized that the Crown Prince's power has grown too fast and has threatened the imperial power, so he wants to take this opportunity to suppress the Crown Prince's arrogance."

"But no matter what your majesty thinks, this is undoubtedly a great opportunity for us to prevent the crown prince from unifying Liaodong."

"As long as we can grasp it well, we may be able to change the whole situation."

As Lin Zheng spoke, he stroked his chin, with a hint of anticipation in his eyes.

Sometimes, all it takes to achieve success is an opportunity.

Lin Zheng felt that this was a turning point in his life.

Zhou Xian said worriedly, "But what if Your Majesty just wants to test the prince to see his attitude towards the imperial power? If we act in this way, will it backfire and make Your Majesty dissatisfied with the King of Wei?"

"After all, what your majesty hates most is fighting between princes."

"If your majesty becomes angry with the King of Wei because of our reckless actions, we will be guilty of a great sin."

As Zhou Xian spoke, the worry on his face grew more intense, as if he had already seen things heading in the worst direction.

Lin Zheng was silent for a while, his expression changing constantly, and finally he said slowly: "This is indeed a problem. But now that things have come to this, we can only take a gamble."

"We will pretend that we don't know your Majesty's intentions and just act according to the edict."

"If we can successfully stop the prince, the King of Wei will surely speak well of us in front of His Majesty, and we may even receive His Majesty's reward."

"If unfortunately we fail, we can only leave it to fate and pray for your majesty's forgiveness."

Lin Zheng said this, sighed helplessly, and a trace of sadness appeared in his eyes.

Zhou Xian sighed, "Well, forget it, let's just act according to the plan."

"I hope everything goes well."

(End of this chapter)