Ch. 97 - Xiao Wenlan: His surname is also Xiao

The palace, which had been peaceful for many days, suddenly became chaotic that night. Fires were set everywhere in the palace, and the raging flames illuminated the long night, melting the ice and snow. Everywhere there was the sound of chaotic collisions of armor as soldiers ran around.

Not only the palace, but the entire capital city was in chaos.

The rumors circulating among the rebels last night were not effectively curbed, but became increasingly difficult to suppress.

There was a big commotion earlier, and Prince An suppressed it. Unexpectedly, there was a small group of people who were loyal to Prince De. They pretended to be appeased, but they came out again at night, causing commotion in the rebel camp, and even let the civilians they used as shields escape!

Prince An was already troubled by the matter of the imperial seal, and when he received the urgent report, he rushed to Yongding Gate with a sullen face. He stood on the city wall, looking at the chaos and noise below, slowly stroking the ring on his thumb, his temple throbbing and his eyes filled with anger.

King Jing is such a villain!

Prince An's guard held his knife, his face not looking good: "Your Highness, this is definitely Prince Jing's doing. Last night's appeasement strategy didn't work. What do you think...how should we deal with it?"

Prince An put his hands behind his back and said slowly, "I don't have time to deal with them. Dead people won't cause trouble."

"I understand."

The guard bowed and was about to pass down the order to catch the rioters and behead them for public display, when suddenly, tiny sparks of fire lit up in the night fog in the distance.

Prince An immediately sensed something was wrong and called out to everyone, "Wait!"

The fire was getting closer and closer, appearing and disappearing in the mist, vaguely reflecting pieces of unique black armor, which came crashing down like a black torrent.

The guard's expression suddenly changed, and he cried out: "Is that the Black Armored Army? How is that possible!"

Isn't Prince Ding still in Mobei? Just yesterday, a message came that the spies saw Prince Ding inspecting the captured tribes!

The spies ran thousands of miles at night to deliver the message. Even if Prince Ding was as fast as he could, he should not appear outside the capital at this moment. What's more, there were spies watching along the way from Mobei to the capital. How could Xiao Nong appear out of thin air with the black-armored army without being discovered!

The reputation of a heartless and bloodthirsty madman that the old emperor had created for Xiao Nong had been accumulating for many years, like a dark cloud hanging over everyone's head.

Just as Xiao Nong said, the more others fear him, the better.

Not only the guards around Prince An, but all the guards on the city wall panicked when they heard Xiao Nong's name.

The rebels, who had already been deliberately caused chaos, became even more confused when they heard Xiao Nong's name. It was unclear whether it was the remnants of Prince De, Prince Jing's personal soldiers, or someone else who deliberately shouted loudly.

"The Black Armored Army... It's Prince Ding's Black Armored Army!"

"The Black Armored Army is coming, run away!"

"Prince An murdered His Royal Highness Prince De and desecrated his body, and he wants us to work for him!"

Prince An's facial features twisted for a moment, but he quickly calmed down, snatched the telescope from the guard next to him, and looked over there.

It is impossible for Xiao Nong and the Black Armor Army to appear here.

Someone must be deliberately making things mysterious.

The field of view of the telescope changed from dark to slightly bright, and in that faint light, a familiar face appeared in King An's eyes in a hurry.

Even in the dim firelight, that exotic face was particularly superior and eye-catching, handsome and indifferent. He seemed to have sensed the surveillance from the telescope and suddenly looked up. His dark blue eyes were like the cold night sea, dark and sharp.

It’s Xiao Nong.

The moment he met those eyes, Prince An's mind went blank.

But this only happened in a moment. In just a breath, he saw Xiao Nong in the telescope pull out an arrow, put the bow on, and slowly aim at him without deviation.

A faint light flashed at the tip of the sharp feather arrow.

The guards around him shouted "Your Highness, be careful" and threw the frozen Prince An to the ground. The next moment, an arrow pierced through the night and nailed to the wall in the direction where Prince An had just stood.

The surroundings became chaotic, and Prince An's temples were throbbing more and more violently. After being thrown to the ground, he suddenly reacted, grabbed the guard's collar, and said in a deep voice: "Go and bring my good nephew and Xiao Wenlan here!"

As soon as he gave the order, the guards from the palace rushed up to the city wall and brought bad news: "Report! Your Majesty, there was an unusual situation in the palace tonight. The guards who were watching the Lanqing Palace were diverted for a while. When they returned, the Lanqing Palace suddenly caught fire..."

Before the guard could finish, Prince An realized something: "Where are the people?"

"…Replying to Your Majesty, they are all gone."

"A bunch of trash!" Prince An's chest rose and fell violently, and he uttered these four words from between his teeth. He kicked over with a gloomy face, "Keep an eye on Prince Jing's movements, find him immediately... and send someone to the Huai'an Marquis' Mansion to bring the Zhong family here."

Zhong Yansheng can run away, but Huai'an Marquis and his family cannot.

As long as his adoptive parents and brother are captured, Zhong Yansheng will have to come out.

“…”

The guard showed a hesitant expression.

Prince An's heart sank, and he said coldly, "Why, is there any bad news that you haven't reported to me?"

"Reporting, Your Highness." The personal soldier gritted his teeth and lowered his head. "The chief steward wanted to make up for his loss, so he sent people to the Huai'an Marquis's mansion on the way here. Only then did he discover that the Huai'an Marquis and his wife and the Huai'an Marquis's son...had disappeared long ago."

Zhong Sidu is very smart.

He had been preparing for this day since the day he informed Zhong Yansheng. With the tip-off from the secret guards, he took the Marquis of Huai’an and his wife and left the mansion quietly one step ahead of time.

The capital city is blocked and they cannot leave. They must still be in the city, but the capital city is too big. In the current situation, sending a large force to search for people door to door would mean that Xiao Nong’s attack on the city is not fast enough!

Prince An stood up with the help of the battlement. The night fog seemed to be getting thicker and thicker. The nightmarish name Xiao Nong seemed to appear before his eyes suddenly in the next moment.

His hands trembled unconsciously, and for a moment he couldn't tell whether it was a dream or reality.

How could such a good situation, with a high platform leading to the throne being built, collapse so shaky in just one night?

The people on the city wall hid. Xiao Nong narrowed his eyes, put down his bow, reined in his horse, and called out in a deep voice, "Zhan Rong."

Zhan Rong, who was following behind, responded tacitly: "Master?"

"This king has already shown his face, you will take over the rest."

The rebels are composed of the people of King An, King Jing and King De. How could these three groups be united as one? Especially since the conflict between King An and King Jing is deeper, and King An and King De are mortal enemies. After the catalysis, they are now like scattered sand.

The most important point in fighting a war is to have an unyielding military morale. Now the enemy's morale is low and their momentum is low. Even if only a small part of this army is the real Black Armored Army and the rest are Taiyuan reinforcements in disguise, there is no need for Xiao Nong to command and resolve the issue personally.

Zhan Rong understood what Xiao Nong meant, but still hesitated: "Master, can we really trust the tunnel map sent by the son of Huai'an Marquis? What if there is an ambush..."

"Even if it's an ambush from all sides."

Xiao Nong shook the reins, his handsome face expressionless: "I can also bring Tiao Tiao back."

Tiaotiao has been waiting for him for a long time.

He held him carefully in his palm, not wanting him to be bumped or touched. The timid and delicate Tiaotiao had been holding on by himself these days, and no one knew how much suffering he had endured.

Xiao Nong couldn't wait any longer.

Zhan Rong lowered his head and said, "I understand. Master, just go ahead and don't worry about anything!"

The tunnel was narrow and dark, with many branching roads leading to several different exits.

Zhong Yansheng's heart was beating like thunder. Fortunately, Xiao Wenlan's brain was not very good, but his body was fine. He ran faster and faster, holding the fire stick. When he saw a fork in the road, he collapsed and screamed: "Another fork in the road, which way should I go, little prince!"

Zhong Yansheng grabbed his sleeve and panted: "Right."

After running for so long, his hands and feet became weak, his black hair was slightly wet with sweat, and his steps slowed down.

But when he thought of Pei Hong's expression when he and Xiao Wenlan rolled into the tunnel just now, Zhong Yansheng felt a little numb on his scalp. He couldn't imagine what would happen if he was caught by Pei Hong.

He sent the few remaining secret guards outside the city and to the Huai'an Marquis Mansion, and only kept two of them by his side, responsible for starting fires in the palace to divert attention.

There is really no one around him at the moment, and it is really dangerous for him and Xiao Wenlan to face King Jing with their fighting power...

If someone had not rushed out to report when Pei Hong was about to catch up, blocking the sound of Pei Hong's footsteps, I'm afraid the two of them would have been caught up.

The voice of the personal soldier who came to report the news was chopped off, and Zhong Yansheng vaguely heard the words "the black-armored army suddenly appeared".

My brother took action.

As long as he and Xiao Wenlan could run out of the tunnel and meet their supporters, they would be safe.

When he thought of Xiao Nong, Zhong Yansheng's nose suddenly felt sore and a deep feeling of grievance surged in his heart.

When he sees Xiao Nong, he will make sure Xiao Nong hugs him.

Thinking of this, Zhong Yansheng gritted his teeth, moved his legs, and directed Xiao Wenlan to run another distance.

Xiao Wenlan also gradually began to pant: "It's so far away, His Royal Highness Prince Jing shouldn't be able to catch up, right? Oh my God, his expression just now really... scared me to death!"

Zhong Yansheng's fingers were also soaked with sweat, and he could hardly hold onto Xiao Wenlan's sleeves. He hesitated for a moment after hearing the voice, and could not help but stop and take a breath: "We are almost at the exit, he should not be able to catch up."

As soon as he finished speaking, a flash of fire suddenly shone from the corner of the road behind him.

Xiao Wenlan's voice was so loud that the person who caught up with him obviously heard it. He answered in the same voice as always, with a gentle smile.

"Xiao Sheng, I'm catching up."

Zhong Yansheng and Xiao Wenlan both got angry and screamed, then turned around and ran away!

However, the footsteps of the pursuers were getting closer and closer.

Seeing that they were about to be caught up, if both of them fell into Pei Hong's hands at the same time, Xiao Nong would have to face two threats.

No, considering King Jing’s current abnormal state, he might just make fun of Xiao Wenlan!

Zhong Yansheng had no strength left, but Xiao Wenlan still had strength, and he was just holding on to him, so he couldn't run fast.

After making a difficult decision, Zhong Yansheng panted and said, "Second Young Master Xiao, just ahead, run a little further to the left and you will reach the exit."

No matter how dumb Xiao Wenlan was, he could tell something was wrong: "What? What are you going to do, young prince?"

Zhong Yansheng loosened his sleeves.

Seeing him stop, Zhong Yansheng kicked him anxiously: "What are you standing there for? Run! Bring someone to save me!"

Xiao Wenlan was stunned, his eyes burning with heat, and he ran forward with all his might, howling in tears: "Your Highness, hold on, I'll bring people back right away!"

The light from the tinderbox had become very dim. Xiao Wenlan's chest was shaking wildly. Seeing the fork in the road, he ran to the left without hesitation. However, he had not eaten anything at night and was exhausted. He was sweating all over and was crawling towards the exit when his head suddenly bumped into someone.

Xiao Wenlan was shaking with fear. He raised his head in despair and met the familiar blue eyes. He was stunned and called out stupidly, "My dear brother..."

Xiao Nong's face was gloomy. He supported Xiao Wenlan with one hand and interrupted his nonsense: "Which way?"

Xiao Wenlan did not dare to hesitate and answered without thinking: "Behind, behind, turn right!"

Xiao Nong helped him and threw him backwards, then quickly led his men into the tunnel.

Zhong Yansheng slowly took two steps back and tightly grasped the small dagger in his sleeve.

In the flickering flames, Pei Hong's figure appeared in his sight, getting closer and closer.

"Xiao Sheng." Pei Hong sighed slightly, "You are really disobedient and have complicated thoughts. What if you get lost?"

Zhong Yansheng took a deep breath and said with a stern face, "It's better than being taken hostage by you."

His face was cold, but after running for so long, his face was as red as peach blossoms, and his eyebrows and eyes were as clear as spring water. Pei Hong lowered his eyes and looked at his face. It was as if something soft was rubbing against his heart, and his tone became gentler: "But I didn't hurt you, Xiaosheng, don't you believe Brother Jingwang?"

Zhong Yansheng looked up at him, dazed for a moment, and shook his head: "Your Highness Prince Jing, if you hate me, then hate me more resolutely. Why do you have to do this?"

Hearing his words, Pei Hong's expression was indescribable for a moment.

Zhong Yansheng stood there, still clean and tidy, like a bright jade, making people reluctant to let him be stained by filth.

The little Bodhisattva in his heart grew up, but reached out to another person.

Now they want to cut off their past.

Pei Hong's eyes were extremely dark, staring at him intently for an unknown amount of time. Unexpectedly, he showed no anger, and only sighed softly, "Xiao Sheng, I am not a plant."

If he could purely hate Zhong Yansheng, the situation wouldn't be like this now.

Zhong Yansheng knew he had to buy time. Looking at Pei Hong's expression, he felt a little uncomfortable. He whispered, "Your Highness Prince Jing, do we have to do this? Do you want the throne so badly?"

"Xiao Sheng, you don't understand." Pei Hong said calmly, "Only when people hold power can they truly be themselves. Like Prince An, I don't want to live with a mask on anymore."

Besides, his bloodline is not pure, so he cannot be an idle prince, and no one will let him be an ordinary person.

He has no way out.

Zhong Yansheng is very important to him, but... the throne is more important.

Zhong Yansheng's heart darkened. Just as he was about to say something to delay, he felt a tightness on his shoulder and was taken away by Pei Hong. His neck felt cold.

Pei Hong's voice turned cold: "Your Highness Prince Ding, I don't want to hurt Xiao Sheng, and I'm sure you don't want to either."

Zhong Yansheng was stunned and looked in the direction he was looking. After a moment, a familiar figure came into his sight.

It was only less than two months, but it felt like many years had passed.

All those plots and calculations seemed to have disappeared in an instant. Zhong Yansheng's nose felt sore and his vision became blurry: "Brother!"

Xiao Nong's gaze lingered on the sword hanging on Zhong Yansheng's neck for a moment, then he raised his eyes to look at Zhong Yansheng, curled his lips, and said in a calm tone: "Brother is here."

Hearing Xiao Nong's voice, Zhong Yansheng wanted to run towards him, but Pei Hong was not paying attention and the sharp blade left a line of blood on his neck.

Zhong Yansheng felt that the hand pressing on his shoulder seemed to be stronger, so strong that it hurt a little.

Pei Hong's expression was almost gloomy: "Xiao Sheng, don't move, the blade is very sharp."

Zhong Yansheng just wanted to run into Xiao Nong's arms and cry at this moment. Hearing this, he sniffed and was angry and confused: "Then don't put it around my neck."

Why remind him of this? Doesn't he know that the blade is sharp?

Pei Hong: “…”

Zhong Yansheng's neck was thin and white, with a streak of blood red on it that was particularly eye-catching. Xiao Nong's eyes were already terrifying, revealing a cold murderous aura, but his speech was still slow, comforting Zhong Yansheng: "Tiao Tiao, don't move."

Zhong Yansheng blinked his tearful eyes and stopped struggling.

Pei Hong had never seen such an obedient Zhong Yansheng. Even before they had a falling out, Zhong Yansheng had never been so well-behaved in front of him.

Rage burned in his chest. Perhaps this anger had been burning since the day at Yannan Mountain. It finally had an outlet at this moment. Pei Hong sneered and said indifferently, "Your appearance here shows that the useless Prince An can no longer control the situation above. Your Highness Prince Ding, have your people exit the secret passage and take off your sword."

Just as Zhong Yansheng was about to stop him, he heard a clanging sound.

Xiao Nong casually threw down his sword, raised his finger, and made a gesture to retreat.

Zhong Yansheng felt that Pei Hong was leading him forward. He could see the unfriendly look on Pei Hong's face when he looked at Xiao Nong from the corner of his eye. He became anxious.

Now he is in Pei Hong's hands, and Xiao Nong is restricted in every way in order to protect him.

He could sense that Pei Hong disliked Xiao Nong very much, or rather, hated Xiao Nong and had a strong desire to kill him.

In a moment of urgency, Zhong Yansheng suddenly had an idea and shouted, "Brother King Jing!"

Hearing this unexpectedly, Pei Hong paused and suddenly looked at Zhong Yansheng. Zhong Yansheng did not hesitate and continued to shout: "I'm going to trip you!"

"What?"

Pei Hong was still in shock. He didn't react for a moment after hearing the latter sentence. The next moment, he suddenly tripped.

A very familiar scene.

Zhong Yansheng even kept his promise and reminded him before tripping him.

It was just a momentary flaw. Xiao Nong received the warning from Zhong Yansheng in advance. His eyes became fierce. He seized the opportunity and kicked away the sword that Pei Hong had placed on Zhong Yansheng's neck.

Pei Hong's reaction was not slow either. As soon as the sword slipped out of his hand, he immediately pulled Zhong Yansheng back. At the same time, he felt a sharp pain in his forearm and he loosened his strength uncontrollably.

The flexible and warm body in his arms ran towards Xiao Nong resolutely.

Pei Hong felt a panic as if something valuable was completely lost in his hands. He stretched out his hand to grab it in a daze, but he only caught a handful of faint orchid fragrance, which disappeared in an instant.

Zhong Yansheng grabbed the bloody dagger and rushed into Xiao Nong's arms with tears in his eyes: "Brother!"

Xiao Nong opened his arms and hugged him tightly, comforting him in a gentle voice: "It's okay, Tiao Tiao."

Wrapped in the familiar breath and embrace, Zhong Yansheng felt a choke in his throat. He didn't want to cry anymore, but his tears kept falling, wetting a part of Xiao Nong's clothes.

Xiao Nong gently stroked his back while looking at Pei Hong. Their eyes met and there was a coldness in both of them.

"Tiao Tiao." Xiao Nong stroked his tear-stained face with his fingertips, and said softly, "Don't cry, brother will help you kill him."

Zhong Yansheng shook his head.

Seeing Zhong Yansheng's hesitation, Xiao Nong raised his eyebrows, and Pei Hong couldn't help but look at Zhong Yansheng.

After a moment, Zhong Yansheng raised his red eyes and looked at Xiao Nong, and said in a hoarse and soft voice: "Don't kill him first, help me beat him up first."

Zhong Yansheng added: "Please use more force."

Xiao Nong narrowed his eyes: "Okay."

Pei Hong's lips, which were half bent, froze for a moment.

The next moment, a terrifying force broke through the air.

Xiao Nong said "OK" but he actually kicked with enough force to break a person's bones.

Pei Hong could be considered a half-martial artist, but he was no match for Xiao Nong, who had been trained on the battlefield. The tunnel was narrow and it was difficult to hide. After being hit several times, he gritted his teeth and said nothing.

Xiao Nong raised his lips coldly.

It’s better to keep quiet. If he is beaten to death, just tell Tiaotiao that he didn’t know how he died.

But at this moment, a fierce look flashed across Pei Hong's eyes, and he suddenly counterattacked, his fist brushing against his face, leaving a scratch.

Xiao Nong touched his cheek, and the murderous intent in his eyes became stronger.

Tiaotiao likes his face the most.

Two pairs of murderous eyes met, and both wanted to kill each other at this moment.

The rebels, like scattered sand, had no ability to resist.

Zhan Rong had been through many battles as a follower of Xiao Nong, so commanding this small battle was no problem for him. It would take little effort for them to capture Yongding Gate.

The guards escorted Prince An down from the city wall: "Your Highness, we can't hold on any longer! We, we will escort you out of the capital immediately!"

"Leave Beijing? Where to go next?"

It is impossible for them to return to their fiefdom, Xiao Nong will definitely send troops to hunt them down to the ends of the earth.

“There’s nowhere to go.”

Prince An's eyes were indescribably gray, and he said in a hoarse voice: "This prince will either ascend the throne or die."

The guard was speechless for a moment.

It is naturally impossible for him to achieve his ambition of ascending the throne at the moment, so the only thing waiting for Prince An is... death.

At this moment, the personal soldiers sent to follow Prince Jing came back and ran over with the news: "Your Majesty! The people sent to Prince Jing followed him into the imperial city's underground tunnel. Prince Ding and Zhong Yansheng are also down there!"

Prince An's originally gloomy eyes suddenly lit up, sweeping away his dejected look, and he couldn't help laughing out loud: "It seems that God is on my side! Bring all the gunpowder and spread it on the top of the tunnel immediately. I want to detonate the gunpowder myself!"

"yes!"

The tunnel leads to the outside of the city. Most of Xiao Nong's men are probably guarding there, so they have to be careful. When they go over, they see the black-armored guards and a familiar figure sitting on the ground gasping for breath.

Prince An recognized at a glance that it was the useless second young master of the Xiao family.

After the gunpowder is detonated and those people are buried in the tunnel, what should the remaining people be afraid of?

As soon as Xiao Nong died, he skinned the last member of the Xiao family, stuffed him with straw, and hung him on the city wall.

Taking advantage of the thick fog, Prince An turned away his gloomy gaze and began to speak impatiently: "Hurry up."

After estimating that they were near the section of the tunnel where Xiaonong, King jing, and Zhong Yansheng was staying, the guards began to place explosives. Because there was no map, they could only place them in approximate locations.

After it was almost put away, Prince An took the fire starter presented by his guard with a smile.

He personally destroyed all the troublesome people.

Once the fuse is lit, he will be the final winner.

Prince An's eyes were filled with pleasure. He was about to throw the tinder in his hand towards the fuse when he suddenly felt a pain and a chill on his body. He heard the guards shouting in surprise, "Your Majesty!"

After a moment, Prince An realized something. The fire starter fell beside him and touched his chest.

An arrow hit him squarely in the left chest.

The night fog seemed to have dispersed a little, and the vision was no longer so hazy. Prince An covered his chest, which was rapidly spreading blood, and raised his head. He saw in the distance that the waste of the Xiao family whom he despised had put down his longbow.

Xiao Wenlan's heart was so fast that it almost jumped out of his chest. His fingers were still shaking uncontrollably. He wiped the sweat off his face and said in a trembling voice, "I told you... the people of the Xiao family are good at riding and shooting."

His surname is also Xiao.

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