The Young Swordsman of Dalu

When Wen Tao led his army to the city of Yulu, the entire city had already been sealed off by Zhou Moyao's order. The people in the city were not allowed to leave the city to work. The shops on the street were open, but there were almost no people walking around, which made people feel uneasy.

Zhou Moyao was already living the carefree life of an emperor, spending his days surrounded by beautiful women and drinking and having fun with his lackeys.

A message came from the Western Regions to Zhou Moyao: the Feng siblings were willing to help him ascend to the throne on the condition that the Wen family be handed over to them. Zhou Moyao happily agreed.

On this day, a guard at the city gate reported: "Your Highness! Prince Wen, Wen Tao, has led an army to the city gates."

"They arrived so quickly! Is it definitely Wen Tao himself? How many men did he bring?" Zhou Moyao asked.

“Your Highness is absolutely right! There should be 30,000 men,” the guard said.

"It's like my wish has come true. Wen Tao, you delivered yourself to my doorstep, so don't blame me for being ruthless. Issue my order: the garrison will seize the opportunity to strike him unexpectedly," Zhou Moyao said fiercely.

"Yes, sir!" The guard left.

“Your Highness! We should be cautious about this matter. The Wen family is known for its martial arts tradition, and Wen Tao should not be underestimated,” Zhao Botao said.

“Old Zhao, your Zhao family and the Wen family have a grudge. Now is the time for you to take revenge,” Zhou Moyao said.

“Although my son was punished for fighting with Wenfei, I think Wentao is still sensible. Your Highness can win him over to our side. Wouldn’t that give Your Highness another assistant?” Zhao Botao said.

“But the Feng siblings want me to use the Wen family as a bargaining chip. Fine, once I ascend this throne, I won’t care about them,” Zhou Moyao said smugly.

"Your Highness should send someone to persuade Wen Tao as soon as possible, lest things get complicated," Zhao Botao said.

"Who do you think would be suitable to go?" Zhou Moyao asked.

“Yunze,” Zhao Botao said.

“I always felt that old fellow wasn’t truly loyal to me,” Zhou Moyao said.

“This is a good opportunity to test his loyalty, Your Highness,” Zhao Botao said.

“You go with him!” Zhou Moyao said.

"I'm afraid Wentao will become violent towards me," Zhao Botao said fearfully.

“Coward! Didn’t you say you would die for me? Besides, there’s Yunze, isn’t there? You know what I mean,” Zhou Moyao said slyly.

"Your subordinate obeys!" Zhao Botao said helplessly.

Inside the military tent outside Yulu City, Yunze and Zhao Botao were trying their best to persuade Wentao.

“Lord Wen, we have always had a good relationship. That’s why I went out of the city to persuade you. You must recognize the current situation. Lord Zhou has already contacted the Northern Dynasty and the Western Regions to form an encirclement of our Great Lu Kingdom. At that time, we will be overwhelmed and will not even be able to resist,” Yunze said.

“What Prime Minister Yun said is true. Prince Wen must carefully assess the situation,” Zhao Botao echoed.

"Yunze, you old man, you are utterly despicable! You've actually associated with a despicable scoundrel like Zhao Botao! Zhou Moyao gave you a little benefit and you betrayed His Majesty! I, Wentao, was truly blind to have considered you my confidant and friend! Bah! Get lost! Go back and tell Zhou Moyao that you should stay in the city and not come out. If you do, I'll use my Wen family's golden spear to kill him!" Wentao said angrily.

“Wen Tao, don’t be ungrateful. Prince Zhou sent us here as envoys because he values ​​talent. If you know what’s good for you, hurry up and show your loyalty to Prince Zhou, or he will personally lead his troops out of the city to start a war,” Zhao Botao said.

"I'm waiting for Zhou Moyao to come and take my head! Men, throw this shameless traitor out of the tent!" Wen Tao said domineeringly.

Wen Tao noticed that while Zhao Botao was talking non-stop, Yun Ze kept giving him meaningful glances, and he thought that Yun Ze must have something to say to him.

After Zhao Botao was driven out of the main tent, Yunze quickly walked up to Wentao and said, "Brother Wentao, in this critical moment, I'll get straight to the point. We'll use the Xiangyun Arrow as a signal. When Zhou Moyao goes out of the city to start the battle, we'll work together from the inside and outside to capture him. The rest will be easy. Remember! Hurry up and get me out of here too!"

"Yunze, you old bastard, you're such an ungrateful subject! Get out of here! Don't let me catch you next time. If I do, I'll tear you to pieces to vent my anger!" Wen Tao shouted as he pushed and shoved Yunze out of the tent.

"Wen Tao, are you out of your mind? How dare you lay a hand on me! You wait for Prince Zhou to come and beat you up! Minister Zhao, let's go!" Yun Ze said angrily.

Zhao Botao believed it to be true, and he dared not linger there, fearing that Wen Tao would go mad and kill them. He quickly followed Yun Ze into Yulu City.

"What an arrogant and ignorant Wen Tao! I gave him a way out, but he didn't appreciate it. I won't be polite then! Issue my order: open the city gates and capture Wen Tao alive first thing tomorrow morning! Whoever captures him will be rewarded with a thousand taels of gold!" Zhou Moyao said.

When the emperor went to Nanshan to recuperate, he left Yunze to help the crown prince handle state affairs. When Zhou Moyao launched the palace coup, Yunze was assisting the crown prince in reviewing memorials. The crown prince was placed under house arrest. For the sake of the overall situation, Yunze compromised and outwardly submitted to Zhou Moyao. He knew that His Majesty would definitely send someone to deal with Zhou Moyao, and then he would work with the newcomers to capture Zhou Moyao.

That night, Yunze had his men send out the news that Zhou Moyao had gone out of the city to attack Wen Tao.

The next day, Zhou Moyao, brimming with confidence, led his 100,000-strong army of trusted men out of the city in a majestic and imposing manner, shouting resounding slogans: "Capture Wen Tao alive! A reward of a thousand taels of gold! Capture Wen Tao alive! A reward of a thousand taels of gold!"

Wen Tao left only 10,000 troops on his position, while he sent the remaining 20,000 troops to the west and east gates respectively. Yun Ze wrote in his letter that these two places were poorly defended and easy to break through.

The moment Zhou Moyao led his army out of the city, the battle between the east and north gates had already begun. In order to hold back Zhou Moyao's 100,000-strong army, Wen Tao bravely took the lead and fought his way to Zhou Moyao's side.

Although Zhou Moyao had experienced countless battles in his youth, Wen Tao's sudden appearance before him was quite a shock. He felt a tightness in his chest and said, "Wen Tao! How dare you confront me head-on! You worthless scoundrel!"

“Prince Zhou, it’s not too late to stop now and apologize to His Majesty, otherwise no one can save you!” Wen Tao said.

"To hell with your Majesty! I am the rightful heir to the throne. Zhou Muyao has been usurping it for so many years, it's my turn now." As he spoke, Zhou Muyao brandished his spear and thrust it at Wen Tao.

Wen Tao refused to be outdone, and he caught every attack from Zhou Moyao. He was thinking that if he could stall for a little longer, he would give the east and west goals a chance to attack.

The two armies faced off for an hour. Wen Tao's 10,000 men were quickly covered in wounds. Wen Tao gritted his teeth and fought Zhou Mo for hundreds of rounds. Just when Wen Tao felt that he was about to die there, he saw the Xiangyun Arrow rising in the city. He knew that Yun Ze had successfully occupied Yulu City.

“Prince Zhou! Your Yulu City has been lost, and you can no longer be emperor. Stop now! Look, my men are all over the city gate!” Wen Tao said, pointing to the military flags on the city gate tower.

"Nonsense!" Zhou Moyao turned around and saw a large banner with the character "文" (wen, meaning culture/literature) fluttering in the wind on the city gate.

"Your Highness! We have failed!" Zhao Botao cried out loudly from the city gate.

"Shut up! You piece of trash! Kill them!" Zhou Moyao went berserk.

"Brothers, Zhou Moyao is going to rebel. Are you willing to die for him? His power is gone. If you know what's good for you, lay down your weapons now, and I, Wen Tao, will spare your lives. Those who resist will be executed on the spot!" Wen Tao said sternly.

Many generals and soldiers dismounted and placed their weapons on the ground. Upon seeing this, Zhou Moyao cursed, "You treacherous bastards who break their promises! I misjudged you!"

“Prince Zhou! The situation is hopeless. Come back to the capital with me!” Wen Tao said.

"I refuse to accept this!" Zhou Moyao shouted.

“Look at all the people in the city, which side are they on!” Wen Tao said.

Zhou Moyao looked back and saw that at the city gate, all the people of the city, led by Yun Ze, were holding various weapons and vowing to defend Yulu City to the death.

“Your Highness Zhou, you have no choice but to accept it. This is the nature of human nature! You have been defeated by the nature of human nature!” Wen Tao’s words were like knives piercing Zhou Moyao’s heart.

Thus, the people of Yulu escaped a bloody and brutal battlefield.