Peach Blossoms in Chang'an

"Bugui, I saw him..." Wu Tao's voice trembled as she tightly grasped Hu Bugui's arm, "That guard, he's still alive..."

Hu Bugui followed her gaze and saw a man dressed in palace guard clothes walking among the crowd with a wine jug in his hand. His profile was blocked by the high brim of his hat, so his features could not be seen clearly, but Wu Tao clearly remembered the scar that ran across the corner of his eye.

The guard who tried to kill her on the night of the palace coup was still alive!

"Are you sure you didn't see it wrong?" Hu Bugui lowered his voice, frowning.

"It's not wrong, I will never admit it!" Wu Tao's tone was extremely certain. At the critical moment of life and death, that hideous face was deeply engraved in her mind and became an indelible nightmare.

"Calm down for a moment," Hu Bugui soothed him. "Since he dared to show up in the palace openly, there must be someone backing him up. We can't alert him yet. We must first find out his background before we can find a way to deal with him."

Wu Tao took a deep breath and tried to calm her panic. She knew that Hu Bugui was right and any rash action would only alert the enemy.

"Chun Tao," Hu Bugui called Chun Tao who had been guarding behind them, "Go follow that man and see who he contacts and what he says."

"Yes, sir." Chuntao took the order and followed the suspicious guard quietly.

"Let's go too." Hu Bugui took Wu Tao's hand and left the banquet calmly.

In the evening, Chuntao hurried back to their house on the outskirts of the city with an undisguised look of fear on her face.

"Sir, Miss, I followed that man out of the city. He went to a dilapidated temple and had a secret conversation with a man in foreign costumes." Chun Tao took a breath and continued, "I hid outside the window and eavesdropped. They seemed to be plotting something big. They also mentioned words like 'internal and external cooperation' and 'breaking the enemy in one fell swoop'..."

"Just as expected!" Hu Bugui's face became extremely solemn. It seemed that his guess was correct. The remnants of the opposition had not given up. They colluded with foreign enemies and tried to launch a surprise attack on the Tang Dynasty.

"How could this happen..." Wu Tao's face turned pale. She had not expected that the storm that she thought had been settled would come back in this way.

"We must stop them as soon as possible!" Hu Bugui made a prompt decision, "I will go to the palace to see the emperor and report this matter to him."

"No, you can't go!" Wu Tao grabbed his hand. "Since they dare to act so blatantly, they must have made all the necessary preparations. If you enter the palace now, you will be like a sheep walking into a tiger's mouth!"

Hu Bugui looked at Wu Tao's worried eyes. He knew she was right, but the matter was of great importance and he could not sit idly by.

"Don't worry, I know what to do." Hu Bugui patted the back of her hand gently, a gleam of determination flashed in his eyes, "Trust me, I will definitely prevent this disaster from happening!" Chapter 74 Storm Rising

Chuntao's words were like thunder, exploding in the ears of Wu Tao and Hu Bugui. They understood that a huge storm was about to sweep in, and the fate of the Tang Dynasty was hanging by a thread.

"We must act separately," Hu Bugui made a prompt decision, with a firmness in his deep eyes. "I will go to the border. Since they want to cooperate with us from the inside, the border defense must be empty. We must strengthen our vigilance as soon as possible."

Wu Tao's heart suddenly tightened. She knew what this meant. The journey to the border was long, the war was uncertain, and it was full of unknown dangers. But she suppressed her inner uneasiness and tried to force a strong smile: "Okay, I'll find someone who can help us."

Hu Bugui looked at her deeply. He knew who Wu Tao was referring to. Her wonderful ideas always solved problems unexpectedly. Maybe this time, she could create a miracle.

That night, Hu Bugui and his confidants rode to the border at full speed. Before leaving, he held Wu Tao's hand tightly, and all his words turned into silent promises, leaving only one sentence: "Wait for me to come back."

Wu Tao's eyes slightly reddened as she watched Hu Bugui disappear into the night, but she quickly calmed down and threw herself into the intense preparations. She knew that she had an equally important mission.

She wrote several letters overnight and sent them to several different places. One of them was sent to the Minister of Works, a respected old minister and one of the few people who knew her true identity. In the letter, she described in detail the opposition's plan to collude with foreign enemies, as well as the weapons and tactics they might use.

Wu Tao knew that it would be difficult to withstand the enemy's fierce attack with only the existing weapons and equipment of the Tang Dynasty, so she had to find a way to enhance the combat effectiveness of the Tang army. And a bold idea had emerged in her mind, an idea that could change the direction of the war.

Time was running out, and she didn't have time to think too much, so she immediately began to prepare. She gathered a few trusted craftsmen and described the idea in her mind to them bit by bit. She wanted to create a brand new weapon, a weapon that was unheard of in this era, but could turn the tide of the war...

As time goes by, the war on the border is about to break out, and Wu Tao has also reached a critical moment...

Wu Tao's room was brightly lit, reflecting her busy figure. She didn't care about resting, and buried herself in the drawings and tools for several days. Chun Tao knew that she was doing her best for Hu Bugui and Datang, but she felt sorry for her sleepless nights. She brought ginseng tea and gently comforted her: "Miss, you haven't slept for several days. Eat something and take a rest."

Wu Tao rubbed her sore eyes, took a sip of the ginseng tea, and shook her head: "I can't rest yet, time is running out, I must finish it before they launch an attack." The "it" she mentioned was a brand-new weapon she designed based on modern knowledge and the existing technology of the Tang Dynasty - a simple but powerful catapult.

She handed the design drawings to the craftsmen, and explained in detail the structure and principle of each component, striving to make every detail perfect. The craftsmen had never seen such a wonderful design before, and they were all fascinated by it, looking at Wu Tao with admiration. Under her guidance, the craftsmen worked day and night, and finally built this batch of new catapults in just a few days.

At the same time, Chun Tao, under Wu Tao's instruction, began to organize the people in the city to prepare for the upcoming war. Women sewed clothes and tents and collected herbs; the elderly donated their own stored food, hoping to do their part to help the soldiers defending their homes. The entire Chang'an City was filled with a tense atmosphere and a firm belief in sharing the same hatred and the same enemy.

Everything is going on in an orderly manner, however, danger is approaching quietly.

A secret letter was like a bolt from the blue, shattering the apparent tranquility of Chang'an City. The messenger ran all the way, sweating profusely, into the secret room of the opposition official, and handed the letter to him tremblingly: "Sir, this is bad! The plan has been leaked, and the border guards have already taken precautions!"

The official was originally sipping tea leisurely, but upon hearing this, the teacup in his hand fell to the ground, and the pieces splashed everywhere. The tea soaked the expensive carpet, but he was unaware of it. He snatched the letter and read it ten lines at a glance. His face suddenly changed, and his already sinister eyes seemed to be able to spit fire.

"Damn it! Who leaked the news?!" He gritted his teeth and slammed the letter on the table fiercely, "Pass the order down, take action in advance! Tonight, I will make Chang'an City a river of blood!"

As night fell, the once bustling and bustling Chang'an City was now shrouded in an oppressive atmosphere of impending storm. Outside the city, shouts of killing shook the sky, flames shot up into the sky, and the enemy troops surged in like a tide, with unstoppable momentum, fiercely attacking the city gate.

On the city wall, Hu Bugui, wearing armor and holding a long sword, commanded his soldiers to fight hard. He scanned the battlefield with a sharp gaze and gave orders calmly. Wu Tao stood beside him. Although her face was nervous, her eyes were extremely firm.

"Fire!" With Hu Bugui's order, the catapult designed by Wu Tao made a deafening roar. Huge stones, with the power of wind and thunder, smashed towards the dense formation of the enemy. Suddenly, screams and wails resounded through the night sky.

"What kind of weapon is this?!" The enemy's formation was in chaos. They had never seen such a powerful weapon and were caught off guard for a moment.

The morale of the Tang army was greatly boosted, and under the leadership of Hu Bugui, they fought bravely. On the city wall, Wu Tao kept adjusting the angle and strength of the catapult, throwing huge stones accurately at the enemy, buying the Tang army a precious breathing space.

After a fierce battle, the enemy's offensive was finally contained, leaving behind corpses all over the ground and fleeing in a panic. Looking at the defeated enemy, the Tang army soldiers cheered, and the joy of victory appeared on their tired faces.

However, Hu Bugui and Wu Tao did not dare to relax at all. They knew that this was just the beginning and greater challenges were still to come. At this moment, a fast horse came galloping, and the soldier on the horse turned over and knelt on one knee, presenting a secret letter with both hands: "Report - urgent military information!"

Hu Bugui took the letter, unfolded it and read it carefully, his expression gradually becoming serious. Wu Tao's heart also began to lift, she had never seen Hu Bugui look so serious, and an ominous premonition came to her heart.

"What's wrong?" Wu Tao asked softly.

Hu Bugui took a deep breath, handed the letter to Wu Tao, and said in a deep voice: "Take a look."

Wu Tao took the letter and read it carefully. The content of the letter made her pale as if struck by lightning. It turned out that this raid was just a cover, and there was a bigger conspiracy behind it, a conspiracy that was enough to subvert the entire Tang Dynasty...

"How could this happen..." Wu Tao's hands trembled slightly. The letter was like a heavy burden on her heart, making her almost unable to breathe. The handwriting on the letter was sloppy, and it was obvious that the writer was in a hurry, but this did not affect Wu Tao's understanding of the content of the letter.

It turns out that the border attack was just a cover, and the real target was Chang'an! The remaining opposition forces colluded with the Turks, attempting to attack Chang'an and overthrow the Tang Dynasty. And the time they chose was tonight!

Wu Tao's mind instantly emerged with the scene of the people in the city living and working in peace and contentment, children chasing and playing in the streets, vendors shouting enthusiastically, a prosperous scene. But will all this beauty be destroyed in an instant?

"What do they want to do? Are they going to drag all the people of the Tang Dynasty into the war?" Wu Tao's voice trembled slightly, with a hint of anger and disbelief.

Hu Bugui held Wu Tao's hand, which was warm and powerful, as if it could give her unlimited strength. "Taotao, I know you are scared now, but you have to believe me, we will stop this from happening."

Wu Tao looked up at Hu Bugui, his eyes full of determination and confidence, as if any difficulties were insignificant in front of him. At this moment, the fear and uneasiness in Wu Tao's heart gradually dissipated, replaced by a kind of determination and courage.

"I believe you, Bugui." Wu Tao held Hu Bugui's hand with his backhand and said with a firm look in his eyes, "We will protect Chang'an together and protect the people of the Tang Dynasty."

"Okay!" Hu Bugui nodded vigorously, turned and looked into the distance. In the night sky, flames were still rising into the sky, reflecting his determined profile.

"Chun Tao!" Hu Bugui shouted in a deep voice.

"I'm here!" Chuntao had been waiting nearby. When she heard the call, she immediately stepped forward.

"Invite General Xu and General Li to discuss this matter immediately, and tell them that this is a matter of great importance and cannot be delayed any longer!"

"I obey your command!" Chuntao did not dare to be negligent and turned around and left quickly.

"What should we do now?" Wu Tao looked at Hu Bugui, his heart full of worry. The enemy was coming with great force, and they knew almost nothing about the enemy's plan. This battle was full of difficulties and obstacles from the very beginning.

"If an enemy comes, we will fight him; if a flood comes, we will block it with earth." Hu Bugui took a deep breath, a gleam of light flashed in his eyes, "Since they want to play, then we will play with them! I will let them know that it is not easy to shake the Tang Dynasty!"

As the night deepens, the flames above Chang'an City still flicker, illuminating this ancient capital as bright as day. A bigger storm is brewing, and at the center of this storm are Wu Tao and Hu Bugui. How will they resolve this crisis and protect the Tang Dynasty?