There are too many ruthless, domineering women who are considered "losers"!

The gate to the village was indeed open.

Xuan Yuan Qingfeng's gaze toward Lu Chang'an revealed a hint of approval.

Everyone now looks down on this emperor, but he now has a different opinion of this young emperor.

They managed to open the gates of the village in no time; they must have some skill.

Gu Wushuang's expression remained aloof, but looking at the man's back, she felt a strange sense of reliability.

Upon seeing the slightly overweight man before her, whose clothes were disheveled.

Lu Chang'an raised an eyebrow and asked in return, "So you're Zhang Ze?"

This Zhang Ze was the very culprit who guarded the city walls for three days, causing a breach in the capital's defenses.

Ultimately, this resulted in more than half of the people in the capital being killed or injured, with rivers of blood flowing.

This man had a plump face, a small mustache, and eyes full of ingratiating smiles.

He's obviously a petty person.

He belongs to the type of person who is extremely unreliable.

Such people are usually not suitable for employment.

However, he was the nephew of the Empress Dowager's family and a powerful figure in the army; no one dared to provoke him.

"Zhang Ze, how dare you! You even disregard the Empress Dowager's Phoenix Decree?"

Lu Chang'an immediately questioned the other party about why they hadn't opened the gate.

Zhang Ze looked terrified and hurriedly explained, "My men don't know the rules, how would they recognize any Phoenix Token? I promise, it will never happen again!"

Lu Chang'an sneered, "A next time? This is clearly a result of your lax discipline of your subordinates!"

Zhang Ze's head banged repeatedly: "I will definitely punish them, Your Majesty, please calm your anger!"

Lu Chang'an, his face cold, sat on the main seat of the tent and announced, "I am here on the orders of the Empress Dowager to inspect the army and check the defenses. Demons will soon be attacking the city. If there is any mishap, you will all be held accountable!"

"Now, beat the drums to assemble the army!"

Zhang Ze was shocked upon hearing this. His eyes darted around as if he were thinking of a solution. He smiled wryly and said, "Your Majesty, the soldiers have already rested. Now is not the time. How about we talk about it tomorrow?"

Lu Chang'an roared, "Didn't you understand? I want it now!"

Zhang Ze secretly groaned in despair.

He saw that behind Lu Chang'an there was only a woman in purple and a middle-aged man in green robes. Their auras didn't seem very strong, probably no more than the first level of the Divine Power Realm.

With this, he spoke with much more confidence: "Your Majesty, although you are acting on the Empress Dowager's orders, you must still abide by the rules of the army when you come here. There is absolutely no reason to disrupt them."

Lu Chang'an could tell he was hiding something, so he narrowed his eyes and said, "The Empress Dowager's words are orders; my words are rules."

He winked at Xuan Yuan Qingfeng.

Xuanyuan Qingfeng understood immediately and sent someone to beat the drum.

Upon seeing this, Zhang Ze immediately became anxious and shouted sharply, "I bet no one dares to beat the drum without my order!"

Xuanyuan Qingfeng ignored him and had already ordered the Western Shu soldiers to leave the camp.

"—Zheng!"

Zhang Ze gritted his teeth, drew his long sword from his waist, and wanted to establish his authority.

But the next second, the expressionless woman in purple beside Lu Chang'an slightly drew her sword out from its sheath.

Although it was only three points, it still unleashed a terrifying sword-wielding killing intent.

In an instant, Zhang Ze saw piles of bones and mountains of blood and corpses.

The next moment, he was so frightened that he broke out in a cold sweat and collapsed to the ground.

Xuan Yuan Qingfeng, who was standing to the side, was slightly surprised when he saw this.

The woman in purple was even more skilled in swordsmanship than he had imagined.

He is probably no less impressive than he was in his youth.

"Knock knock knock!"

"Knock knock knock!"

As the dull war drums resounded in the camp.

Many soldiers were awakened by the sudden awakening.

It's been so long since I've heard that thunderous drumbeat.

Some hurriedly dressed, some hastily donned armor, and some were completely bewildered...

A full quarter of an hour later, not everyone had arrived.

Only two-thirds of the soldiers had arrived.

Of these people, only one-third were properly dressed.

Only a tiny fraction, about one-tenth, were wearing armor.

Upon seeing this awful military camp, Lu Chang'an's face turned ashen.

No wonder.

No wonder the capital couldn't be defended.

With such a bunch of good-for-nothings on your roster, it's no wonder you can't hold on to them.

In such a vast city as the capital, with a population of several million, the entire population is supposed to depend on these good-for-nothings.

Thinking of this, Lu Chang'an felt that even if he deduced it ten thousand times, it would be useless.

It's still a loss.

He soon discovered that a large area of ​​the Tiger Guard's positions was vacant.

It can be said that almost all of the missing people were members of the Tiger Guard.

Lu Chang'an coldly stared at the few remaining Tiger Guard soldiers and asked icily, "Where are your men?"

The soldier, seeing Zhang Ze, the captain, constantly giving him meaningful glances, stammered, "I...I don't know."

Lu Chang'an said coldly, "You'd better tell the truth, otherwise, you'll be subjected to military law and torture, and the Empress Dowager will not spare you either."

Upon hearing about torture, the soldier turned pale: "They...they've all gone to the city to drink and carouse..."

"Some went home to be with their families."

Upon hearing this, even the gentlemanly Xuan Yuan Qingfeng couldn't help but frown: "With a formidable enemy at hand, how dare they act like this? Aren't they afraid of demons entering the city and their entire clan being wiped out?"

Zhang Ze collapsed to the ground, as if his spine had been removed, his face as pale as paper.

Gu Wushuang glanced at Lu Chang'an, seemingly very curious about how he would deal with these soldiers.

Lu Chang'an sat in the main chair, his fingers clenched tightly, his face twitching to the point of being expressionless, recalling the red exclamation mark above everyone's head these past few days.

Thinking about the behavior of these beasts tonight, it is simply intolerable!

He remained expressionless, slamming his fist on the table and shouting, "Guards, dismiss Zhang Zehu from his position as First Commander of the Imperial Guards, strip him of his armor, and give him eighty strokes of the cane!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Ze's chubby face flushed red, and he shouted, "Your Majesty! This humble general knows his mistake, this humble general truly knows his mistake!"

Lu Chang'an didn't want to look at him anymore, and waved his hand instead.

He gestured for it to be dragged away.

Zhang Ze immediately became agitated and roared, "Your Majesty! You cannot treat me like this! I am the Empress Dowager's nephew!"

"Add one hundred."

Lu Chang'an said expressionlessly.

"His Majesty......"

"Add two hundred!"

"What are you beasts standing there for? Help me!"

It was accompanied by Zhang Ze's pig-like screams.

The officers of the Tiger Guard were all sweating profusely, exchanging bewildered glances, yet dared not move. They glanced at the eight hundred armored soldiers behind Xuan Yuan Qingfeng, all standing in full armor, their hands on their swords, exuding a chilling aura. Each of them possessed at least the strength of a Grandmaster Level 3, making them top-tier elites.

In the camp, the commanders of the other tents shuddered when they saw Zhang Ze, who was like a tyrant in the army, end up in such a state.

He felt a deep respect for this new emperor whom he had never met before.

Among the many guards and personal troops, Chen Zhihu was in the back rows, but she was very tall and recognized the handsome man at a glance as the current emperor.

A bowl of hot water is a kindness I will never forget.

Moreover, the pure sword energy she witnessed during her night of guarding the forbidden area was genuine.

It definitely came from His Majesty's bedroom.

......