Chapter 406 Outbreak
After seeing the secret room, Youshi's heart was completely at peace. She even thought that it would be great if Chunli and Chunfeng could also take refuge there.

The Marquis and Chun Yu were doing their duty, but what did it have to do with Chun Li and Chun Feng? Chun Li actually said that he wanted to stay at home with his father. This reason was quite comforting. As the eldest son of the Marquis, Chun Li had been muddle-headed for so many years, and finally made a responsible decision.

As for Chunfeng, he said calmly that he still had to go to the Dali Temple to be on duty. There was nothing going on in the Dali Temple right now. This kid was obviously just joining in the fun in the city. The enemy was about to arrive at the city, and he was still thinking about joining in the fun. Youshi was furious.

Ye Jiayao sat in a rocking chair by the window, looking at the mottled shadows of bamboo outside the window, and a faint fragrance floating in the gentle night breeze.

Qiao Xi wanted to close the window to prevent the fragrance of flowers outside from making the Second Young Madam uncomfortable.

"No need, just leave it open and get some fresh air." Ye Jiayao stopped him.

"But……"

Ye Jiayao smiled slightly: "It's okay."

Strangely enough, ever since the emperor suffered a stroke, the situation suddenly became tense, and her adverse reactions suddenly disappeared. It seemed that this brat also knew that this was an extraordinary period and had become honest.

Ye Jiayao stroked her slightly bulging belly, and a soft light naturally appeared in her eyes.

"Is the lady at rest?"

"I just went there, and the lady has gone to bed."

Ye Jiayao nodded and looked out the window again. Song Qi should be here soon!
Just as they were thinking about Cao Cao, he arrived. Xiang Tao led Song Qi to see him.

"Is everything settled?" Ye Jiayao asked as soon as they met.

Song Qi replied, "They have been properly arranged. Zhong Xiang's family lives in a remote valley. Even if a war breaks out, it will not have much impact there. Moreover, Zhong Xiang's father said that they have a cellar in the mountains where they store sweet potatoes. If the situation is really critical, they can hide in the cellar. Uncle Jiang and Aunt Jiang should be safe there."

Ye Jiayao was obviously relieved. She originally wanted to invite Uncle Jiang and his family to come over, but Uncle Jiang refused and wanted to go to his in-laws' place. She couldn't argue with him, so she had to let Song Qi go over to take a look.

At night, Song Qi and Zhu Wang took turns to keep watch. Although there was the defense line of the Northwest Camp ahead and the rebels could not get through, they also had to guard against bandits and the like. There would definitely be people who would take advantage of the situation to rob at this time.

Three days passed without incident.

Every day there was news coming from the city that the relationship between Prince Yu and the Crown Prince was tense, but both maintained their bottom line. Everyone wanted to make a move, but Prince Yu had to act like a victim, and the Crown Prince had to convince others with reason. How could they make their move justified and honorable? Therefore, neither side dared to act rashly unless it was absolutely necessary.

On the fourth day, fighting finally broke out at the front, with more than 200,000 soldiers from several armies fighting against 100,000 elite soldiers from the northwest camp. The battle lasted for two days and two nights, and even the flames could be seen rising into the sky from the farm.

Song Qi suggested that everyone hide in the secret room.

Ye Jiayao deeply agreed with this. The reinforcements had not arrived yet and the rebels had overwhelming strength. No matter how powerful the Northwest Camp was, it could only hold on with difficulty and the defense line could be breached at any time.

So, everyone hurriedly moved all the things into the secret room and hid inside.

Song Qi also made some arrangements outside, designing the place to look deserted for quite some time.

This hiding lasted for several days.

Ye Jiayao was in the secret room, but her heart was in the city. She didn't know how Chunyu and Xiaojing were doing now. She envied Naya, who had good martial arts and could fight alongside everyone, while she could only hide like a turtle.

At this moment, Xia Chunyu was patrolling the imperial palace. Three thousand guards were stationed at the four palace gates. The Zichen Palace was even more heavily guarded. The imperial city was originally a solemn place, but now there was an even more solemn and tense atmosphere. If the city was broken, then this would be the last line of defense. Hopefully, it could hold out until Helian Xuan came back and until reinforcements arrived.

"Second brother..."

Xia Chunfeng walked hurriedly and shouted from afar.

Xia Chunyu stopped.

"Second brother, you asked me to keep an eye on Datonghui, and today there really is some movement."

Xia Chunyu's eyes were stern: "Speak."

"These past few days, there were a few people coming to Datonghui every day, just passing by. But after the closure notice was posted at the door of Datonghui yesterday, these people have not appeared today," said Xia Chunfeng.

"Have you targeted these people?" Xia Chunyu's expression became more and more solemn. Although he had arrested many unfamiliar faces recently, Xia Chunyu guessed that Datonghui had been rooted in Jinling City for many years. Maybe its power had already infiltrated. It was unknown how strong this power was, but at a critical moment, a straw could break the camel's back. Internal strife, what he was most worried about was internal strife. If there were powerful enemies besieging outside and spies causing chaos inside, it would be really dangerous.

Xia Chunfeng said confidently, "I caught up with them. Jiu Ye's people played a big role this time. According to Jiu Ye's people's report, those people, including ironworkers, bamboo craftsmen, tofu sellers, tea shop owners, and even fortune tellers, but today, without exception, all of them have closed their businesses and closed their doors."

Xia Chunyu's heart moved. This was going to be a big move!

"Keep watching and report to me immediately when you have any news." Xia Chunyu said solemnly.

"Yes." Xia Chunfeng took the order and left. Damn, this kind of work was what he loved to do. His ambition was to fight on the battlefield like his father and second brother. As a result, the emperor issued an edict and he became a son-in-law and went to the Dali Temple. What a waste of talent and time. He had long been impatient. After this crisis, he would ask the prince to find him a new job, preferably to go to the front line to kill the enemy.

Watching Chunfeng leave, Xia Chunyu thought that it was impossible for the Jiangzuo League to accomplish anything big with just its power. There must be someone to back them up. There were suspicious people among the imperial guards, and people had been sent to keep an eye on them, but it was not certain that all the spies were under control. And the Five Cities Patrol Department, if they acted together, it would be extremely dangerous.

Xia Chunyu thought about it, then went to the East Palace and discussed with the prince for half an hour before leaving.

That night, the enemies outside the city launched the most fierce attack, finally breaking through the defense line of the Northwest Camp and marching straight in, truly laying siege to the city.

The prince personally went up to the city wall and looked at the huge army below and the torches like a galaxy of stars. He felt extremely heavy-hearted.

The other side suffered losses, but still had more than 100,000 troops, while there were only 23,000 troops in the city. Together with the troops voluntarily organized by the people, there were only 25,000 at most. The disparity in strength was like an ant against an elephant.

How long can it last? No one dares to think about it, they can only hold on for a while.

The enemy army rushed to the city and launched a siege without stopping, determined to capture the imperial capital in one go.

"Charge, kill... capture the traitors alive, protect the country and serve the king..." The one who raised his arms and shouted loudly was the fifth uncle who had escaped death.

The failure to successfully kill the Fifth Uncle was the biggest failure in the plan. The prince gritted his teeth in hatred, but it was too late to regret now. He had thought about it and tried his best. If he could not succeed, it could only be attributed to God's will.

In Prince Yu's mansion, Prince Yu's aides and loyal soldiers all had solemn expressions, but their eyes were determined. Whether the great event would be accomplished or not depended on today.

"Everyone knows that life and death, success or failure depends on today. If you succeed, everyone present here will be a hero who will go down in history. If you fail, you will be a traitor and your head and body will be separated. It depends on you whether you will be a hero or a villain." Prince Yu said in a loud voice.

Everyone responded in unison: "We will serve our Lord even if it means death."

Prince Yu nodded slightly. "Okay, everyone listen to my orders. Yu Hai, you lead 600 people to ambush in the tunnel. Luo Kewu, Zhang Qiao, Zhao Xiang, Guo Li'er and others will each lead 300 soldiers to pretend to attack the four city gates in the north, south, west and east. Luo Kewu, there is another team of 300 people who will join you. At that time, the enemy will think that the north gate is the focus of attack. There are people in the imperial guards to support you. If you can break through, it would be the best. Go straight to the Purple Palace, protect the emperor, and capture the prince and the queen alive. If you can't break through, try to create momentum over there, attract troops, and delay time..."

Prince Yu already had a plan in mind, having rehearsed it countless times. There were only three thousand guards, and as far as he knew, there were five hundred guards at each of the four city gates, and another one thousand, all stationed in the Zichen Palace, to be guarded by Xia Chunyu himself. Xia Chunyu was a battle-hardened, brave and resourceful general, and should not be underestimated.

On his side, there are only two thousand men compared to the others, and there is a disparity in strength, but as long as there is internal and external cooperation and proper coordination, this battle is still very likely to be won. What's more, there are several top masters of the Jiangzuo League, each of whom is able to fight one hundred people. It should not be difficult for these people to kill Xia Chunyu. As long as Xia Chunyu dies, the so-called Huai Song's first elite force will become a group of scattered sand and will be worthless.

This is just a battle against the imperial palace. The people from the Five Cities Patrol Office will also seize the opportunity to open the city gates and let the Fifth Uncle's troops enter the city. The city and the palace will be captured today.

After this night, Huaisong will welcome a new sun, and he will be that rising sun.

By then, he will restore the country's prestige, unify the country, and establish unprecedented achievements.

For a time, Prince Yu was full of confidence.

There was a tense deployment of troops here, and Ah Ruan was also on pins and needles. So many people came to the palace tonight, and none of them came in through the main gate, but through the secret passage. She only then knew that there was a secret passage in the palace.

The siege outside had already begun, and Prince Yu was clearly trying to take advantage of the opportunity to attack from both inside and outside. Ah Ruan walked around the room for a few times, his mind conflicted, and he finally made up his mind.

"Ah Man, go out of the house quietly and find Prince Jing. Tell him that something has changed tonight. Prince Jing will understand."

Ah Man asked worriedly, "Princess, what about you?"

"Don't worry about me. Prince Yu is an ambitious man. Once he comes to power, he will definitely attack our southern Xinjiang. Not only southern Xinjiang, but also the surrounding countries will have no peace." Aruan said hurriedly.

"Princess, why don't we go together? I can take you out." Ah Man said.

"No." Ah Ruan refused without hesitation. Ah Man was very good at Qing Gong, and she had never used it since coming to Jinling. This was her trump card. Ah Man could leave alone, but it would be a problem if she took him with her. Maybe both of them would not be able to leave. The most important thing now was to spread the news.

(End of this chapter)