We have fought to the Arctic Circle, and you want me to inherit the throne?

The wilderness was desolate, and the cold wind blew through the dry grass, making a rustling sound.

A bonfire jumped and burned in the darkness, bringing a little light and warmth to this vast world.

Li Che sat by the fire, stretched out his leather-gloved hand, and gently stroked the Saker Falcon standing on his arm armor.

This trip back to Beijing was an emergency, and they had to travel at full speed all the way, so Li Che only brought Xiaoqing with him, and not Xiaosong or Xiaotuan.

After all, even elite cavalry need to rotate three horses per person to maintain the endurance of high-speed galloping. Polar bears and Siberian tigers do not have the endurance of war horses.

"call--"

Li Lin let out a long sigh, unbuttoned a few buttons on his collar, sat next to Li Che, and wiped his forehead with his sleeve.

"It's still warmer in the south. I'm actually sweating after running all the way here."

Li Che nodded and raised his arm slightly.

Xiaoqing let out a low cry, spread its wings and leaped into the sky, silently blending into the night and continuing to stand guard in the air.

Li Che then asked, "Are those 'tails' still there?"

"Here," Li Lin grabbed a dry branch, broke it off angrily, and threw it into the fire. "From the moment we entered their territory, these guys have been following us, hanging around three or five miles behind us, like a pack of hounds that can't be shaken off."

At this point, his face showed disdain: "It's not that I look down on them, they are really a bunch of useless people who can't even ride a horse properly."

"I saw at least ten people fall off their horses while trying to keep up with us. It was truly disgraceful."

Li Che shook his head and remained noncommittal.

The soldiers in the south had little training in horseback riding, not to mention that these scouts were just ordinary soldiers temporarily transferred from various counties.

And these two thousand elite cavalrymen are the elite among the elites. In the future, each of them will be a military king. I am afraid that even the most outstanding nomadic peoples cannot outrun them.

"In two days, we should be within sight of the imperial capital's walls." Li Lin dropped the branch, his expression turning serious. "Li Huan and those aristocratic family thugs will never allow us to enter the city with two thousand cavalrymen."

"Sixth brother, what are your plans? We can't just surrender our weapons at the gates of the city just because they say one word, right?"

Li Che poked the campfire aimlessly with a thick branch, and sparks flew everywhere.

He was silent for a moment, then slowly shook his head: "There is no perfect solution yet."

Li Lin almost jumped up when he heard this: "I haven't thought about it yet, what should we do? Can we really attack the imperial capital with only 2,000 people?

Attacking the imperial capital is no different from rebellion.

Of course Li Che couldn't do that. He took such a big risk to come back, not to give others an excuse to launch an attack.

Coincidentally, Li Huan and the aristocratic families seemed to have the same concerns.

Otherwise, they would not have just sent these crappy scouts to follow them from a distance, but would have mobilized a large army to encircle and suppress them long ago.

At the moment, the two sides were like two chess masters, separated by a chessboard called "Imperial Capital", both trying their best to remain calm, to see who would lose patience first and place a flawed piece.

If the party that strikes first fails to act with overwhelming force and with a legitimate reason, it will inevitably be at a disadvantage morally and lose the support of the people.

The key to the problem is, if this is a game of chess, what are your chess pieces?

Li Che did not think that the people in the imperial capital were spineless and all succumbed to the tyranny of Li Huan and the aristocratic families.

Military honors, Jinyiwei, imperial guards, some court officials...

There must be some among them who are loyal to him, or who can be won over to his side.

If I don't come back, they will be met with a ruthless reckoning.

And Emperor Qing...

Li Che has complicated feelings towards this cheap father.

Judging from the original owner's memories and emotions, Emperor Qing was the direct murderer who forced the original owner to death. He was cold and tyrannical, and there was no reason to forgive him.

But from his own perspective, since the uprising in the northern border, although Emperor Qing has not lacked the checks and balances of imperial intentions on him, he has generally given him full support.

If asked for money, they give money; if asked for status, they give status. It seems that this is out of a sense of indebtedness, and thus a desire for compensation arises.

This is simply a great irony - he is so cruel to his own son, but he shows fatherly expectations to a soul from another world.

Li Che took the risk to come to the imperial capital with the intention of seeing him for the last time.

There are many doubts about the affairs in the capital, but Li Che always feels that Emperor Qing is not the kind of emperor who cannot even control the capital.

Could it be that he is really senile and confused, like Emperor Xuanzong of Tang?

"Sixth Brother? Sixth Brother!" Li Lin's voice rose eight octaves, and he waved his hands vigorously in front of Li Che.

"Ok?"

Li Che came back to his senses from his chaotic thoughts.

"What are you thinking about? I've called you several times." Li Lin said helplessly.

Li Che took a deep breath of the cool night air and threw the branch in his hand into the fire.

He stood up, dusted off his armor, and his gaze returned to its usual calmness.

"Nothing, I've rested enough. Pass the order and assemble the troops to set off."

. . . . . .

Two days later, the towering city walls of the imperial capital finally appeared on the horizon.

However, the scene outside the city made everyone feel a chill in their hearts.

There were flags covering the sky outside the city, and camps were connected to each other, with no end in sight.

Countless military tents sprang up like mushrooms after rain, densely covering the area outside the city.

Smoke from cooking fires rises, people and horses make noise, and a solemn and murderous atmosphere hits you in the face.

With the ordinary eyesight, it is impossible to judge how many troops are stationed here.

But Li Che roughly estimated that the number was no more than 100,000.

Li Lin knew the composition of the Daqing army better than Li Che.

His face was solemn. He raised the telescope and looked carefully, identifying the general flags and camp flags fluttering in the wind one by one.

After a moment, he put down the telescope, moved closer to Li Che and said, "As expected, there are no flags of the Imperial Guards. They are all flags of the Southeast Army and the Zhennan Army of the Southern Border."

"Li Huan must have disbanded the Imperial Guards and replaced them with these more easily controlled southern troops."

The Southeast Army has close ties with aristocratic families, and many of the generals in the army have aristocratic family backgrounds.

The Southern Army was a border army that had been confronting Tubo for many years. Since its military pay came from the southern counties, it had close ties with the aristocratic families.

When Li Che heard this, a cold light flashed in his eyes.

In order to win the internal struggle, these noble families dared to transfer border troops to Beijing without authorization.

This move will inevitably lead to the emptiness of the southern border defense. If Tubo takes the opportunity to invade the border, who knows how many border soldiers will bleed on the battlefield and how many people will be displaced.

"How strong are they?" Li Che asked in a low voice.

Li Lin thought for a moment and replied, "The Southeast Army is well-paid and well-equipped, and their equipment is undoubtedly first-rate."

"The Southern Army has been fighting for years and is even more ferocious. Both armies are powerful."

Then, a confident smile appeared on his lips, "But they alone can't stop our two thousand elite cavalry!"

"If you want to break through, it's as easy as pie!"

Li Che nodded slightly, not looking at the army outside the city again, and shook the reins:

"Come on, follow me into the city."