Tang Dynasty Swordsman

Page 117

But just as Cheng Yuanzhen was about to send someone out, the Chongxuan Gate opposite him suddenly burst open with a "boom," and a troop of soldiers filed out. The first man, clad in splendid armor and riding a tall horse, called out loudly, "Is His Highness the Crown Prince in the Flying Dragon Stable? Your humble brother has come to greet you!"

As soon as Li Yu entered the Flying Dragon Stable, Cheng Yuanzhen ordered the gate to be closed. He then fetched a ladder, climbed over the wall to peek over, and turned back to report, "It is the Prince of Yan."

Li Yu frowned deeply, then immediately instructed Cheng Yuanzhen: "Ask him why he entered the palace and what changes have occurred there?"

Cheng Yuanzhen asked as instructed, and Prince Yan, Li Xian, replied: "It was Li Fuguo who rebelled and wanted to harm the Emperor and the Empress. Therefore, the Empress summoned us and His Highness the Crown Prince to the palace to express our grievances. Now that I have taken command of the Divine Strategy and control of all the gates, I heard that His Highness is in the Flying Dragon Stable, so I came here to welcome him and enter the palace to make a decision on the grand plan."

Li Yu instructed Cheng Yuanzhen to convey the message: "Your Majesty, please do your best. However, in the darkness, it is difficult to distinguish friend from foe, and there is a risk of failure. It would be best for Your Highness to remain here for the time being and wait until things have calmed down before entering the palace. Your Majesty need not come to greet us; please go and kill the traitors yourself."

Upon hearing this, Li Xian knew that Li Yu was indeed in the Flying Dragon Stable—he couldn't hide it from him for long anyway—so he raised his voice and said, "Although His Highness the Crown Prince has given the order, please forgive my foolish brother for not daring to obey. Who am I? How could I preside over the plan to quell the rebellion? It is only right that I go in personally to welcome His Highness—please forgive my foolish brother for offending you!" He then ordered the soldiers to break down the stable door.

Cheng Yuanzhen was so frightened that he tumbled down from the wall, his face contorted with grief. He ran back to Li Yu and asked, "There are no soldiers in the Flying Dragon Stable. What should we do?"

Li Yu asked him, "How many men do you have under your command?"

"They are just grooms and minor officials, less than a hundred men, and they have no weapons. How can they possibly resist the Divine Strategy outside the stables?"

Upon hearing this, Li Yu's expression changed drastically. He stamped his foot and sighed, "My son's plans of many years have all come to naught... I told him long ago that matters concerning the state should be handled with virtue and prestige, and with non-contention as the means of contention. Those who rely solely on scheming and trickery will ultimately fail to achieve great things. Now it seems that I am unworthy to assist the emperor and father and eliminate the villains, and thus I deserve to die here..."

Cheng Yuanzhen stamped his feet repeatedly: "Where is the Prince of Fengjie at this time? Where is Li Ji?!"

The words had barely left his mouth when a loud shout came from behind—"Here I am!"

Chapter Twenty-Five: Horizontal Sword and Powerful Crossbow

According to modern timekeeping methods, it was approximately three hours ago.

As Li Ji jumped down from Wangchun Tower, his gaze swept across the scene, and he was immediately shocked.

It was already completely night by then, but fortunately the weather was good that night. It was a full moon, with no clouds in the sky, the silvery moon hanging high, and the clear light covering the ground, so the visibility was barely acceptable.

Li Ji had long anticipated—and confirmed it from the noise—that Jingjing'er's henchmen would be swarming downstairs. He had initially thought that even if they numbered, they would be nothing more than江湖豪客 (jianghu heroes) wielding short knives and clubs. However, to his surprise, as soon as he landed, he saw enemies surrounding him from three sides. Within his sight alone, there were at least ten people, and although they were dressed in plain clothes, they were—

A shield in his left hand and a sword in his right—both standard military weapons!

Li Ji thought to himself, "This is terrible." If it were just sticks or something, he could rely on his thick skin and take a few hits and still have a chance to break through the encirclement. But now, they were all facing long swords and shields, making it extremely dangerous. The key problem was that he was unarmed. Although he could seize the enemy's weapons for his own use, the enemies were all very close together, and with them supporting each other, how could he possibly get a chance to grab them?

I reckon I'm doomed to die here today... Why did I panic so much as soon as I heard Qingluan had been kidnapped? If I had brought my armor pouch with me and put it on before going upstairs, I wouldn't be in such a passive position. At least with the armor's strength, I dared to take a couple of Jingjing'er's throwing knives head-on!

However, wearing armor would inevitably reduce my agility considerably. I might not have been able to dodge that dart from five steps away, and it would have been unlikely that I could have successfully flipped down the stairs...

However, when faced with life and death, some people may become weak and unable to move, while others may become disheartened and resigned to their fate. But that is definitely not Li Ji. If he had a similar mindset, he would have died several times over. At least at the beginning of his transmigration, he might not have been able to protect Li Bi and leave Tanshan.

So no matter how turbulent her heart was, filled with regret, her body still moved instinctively.

The enemies opposite were naturally caught off guard by Li Ji's leap down the stairs, and instinctively froze. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Li Ji rolled over, then launched a flying kick from his back, striking the man in front of him squarely in the shin. With a "crack," the man screamed and fell sideways.

Li Ji reached out to snatch the knife and shield from the man's hand, but several knives slashed down at the same time, forcing him to quickly withdraw his hand and roll back to the edge of the building. However, although the enemy lost one person, they pressed closer, and the encirclement almost closed in, with several shields joining together to form a wall.

Li Ji threw a punch, striking a shield on the side. His opponent's wrist jolted, almost losing his grip on the shield's handle. However, a blade came slashing from the opposite direction. Li Ji dodged to the side, but a shield slashed through him, nearly hitting him in the face.

Li Ji raised his arm to parry the shield, but couldn't help but be secretly shocked—this guy was very skilled with his shield. Most people would definitely use their swords first when given the chance, but this guy was wielding his shield instead. This was not a military skill, but a martial arts technique. But... what kind of weapon did this guy use in the martial arts world?

As the enemy drew ever closer, and his room to dodge and weave dwindled, with footsteps approaching from afar—Jingjing'er's henchmen certainly wouldn't just block this side, but would be scattered around Wangchun Tower, intending to encircle it, and reinforcements would arrive from other flanks, as expected. Even if he were lucky enough to defeat the enemy in front of him, there were probably three or five more layers behind him; how could he possibly break through?

Jingjing'er didn't take the opportunity to throw darts. Did he think that victory was in his grasp and that he didn't need to lift a finger?

Just as they were at their wits' end, they suddenly heard a shout: "Who goes there?" followed by the sound of a crossbow twang.

Li Ji instinctively felt that he was saved.

If the enemy had crossbows—given that they possessed standard military weapons, it wouldn't be surprising if they had several crossbows—they wouldn't need to block themselves up with shields like this. A single volley from multiple directions would surely kill them. Therefore, it's clear that the person using the crossbows is not one of Jingjing'er's accomplices.

But who exactly are they? Who will come to their rescue? Could it be that Jingjing'er and her group's infiltration of Chang'an has already been discovered by the authorities, who are now taking the opportunity to encircle and suppress them?

Several crossbow bolts rang out, followed by screams of agony, causing a commotion among the enemies in front. However, Li Ji's attention instantly shifted, focusing primarily on what was above him. Sure enough, a gust of wind came from above. He hurriedly dodged backward, his entire body pressed against the building wall, only to see a dart embedded itself firmly in the ground, less than an inch from his toes…

Yes, reinforcements did arrive, making it difficult for Jingjing'er to control the situation, so she had no choice but to take action herself.

Li Ji crossed his fists in front of his chest, concentrating on his guard—if you dare to charge, then come at me. As long as you can't kill me in a short time, judging from the current situation, I still have a chance to escape.

She heard Jingjing'er's voice coming from upstairs: "Who is it, ruining my plans?!"

Then several more crossbow bolts rang out, half of which hit near Li Ji, while the other half were clearly fired upstairs.

The enemy in front was thrown into complete chaos. Several of them turned around hastily, and Li Ji seized the opportunity to leap forward and tackle one of them to the ground. As soon as he fell, he twisted his waist, lay on his back, and hoisted the other man onto his back—the sound of blades piercing flesh and the man's screams rang out at the same time.

Taking advantage of the situation, Li Ji snatched the horizontal sword from the opponent's hand, immediately leaped up, and with a twist of the long sword, deflected several weapons. Then, he slashed sideways, hitting the enemy squarely in the face, and blood fell like rain.

With his sword in hand, Li Ji regained his vigor, leaping and slashing at anyone in sight. Indeed, his opponents were all martial arts practitioners who, for safety's sake, had abandoned their usual weapons and switched to swords and shields. Their movements were either clumsy or too elaborate, unlike Li Ji's bold and decisive style in the military. He would seize any opening and strike with a straight cut or a horizontal slash, using clumsiness to overcome skill, and no one could withstand him.

So after taking down four people in succession, the remaining enemies finally couldn't hold on any longer and turned around to flee in panic.

Li Ji, holding his knife to the shadows, wary of the darts flying overhead, called out, "I am honored to have been rescued. May I ask who you are, my friend?"

Footsteps sounded, and a dark figure rushed closer, but stopped five steps away from Li Ji and did not move forward—what if Li Ji instinctively slashed at him when it was still difficult to distinguish friend from foe?

"Please rest assured, Chief Secretary Li, your concubine has been rescued."

Li Ji stared intently at him: "Who are you?"

The figure was indistinct, dressed in black and masked, with only his eyes visible, almost blending into the darkness. In the distance, several people were running and chasing, some likely Jingjing'er's henchmen, others dressed similarly to him—it was too dark to see clearly.

Where did this group of people come from? Although they seemed to be fewer in number than Jingjing'er's gang, they brought seven or eight powerful crossbows and launched a surprise attack, so they quickly gained the upper hand.

Looking at the man in black in front of him, he had his arms outstretched to show no hostility—although he was still holding a crossbow in one hand, the string was clearly taut and not drawn—then he slowly approached Li Ji, and when he reached him, he reached out and pulled the veil down to his chin, revealing his true face—

"Does Chief Secretary Li still remember me?"

Li Ji stared intently. The other person was quite young, only in his early twenties, with a fair complexion and short beard. His appearance seemed somewhat familiar, but he couldn't quite place him... This person... I seem to have seen him once before, several years ago, on some occasion. Where was it? Who was he?

He shook his head blankly: "Please forgive my poor eyesight, but who exactly are you...?"

Judging from the other person's expression, he seemed somewhat embarrassed and disappointed, but then he interrupted Li Ji's question with a shout.

The shout came from a high place, but not from Wangchun Tower; it must have come from a nearby... tree? The words came from Jingjing'er; that fellow certainly jumped fast!

"So it was you, you wretched maid, who came to ruin my plans!"

Li Ji understood. The person Jingjing'er could call a "lowly servant" must be a complete stranger, and the rescue must have been purely coincidental. Who else could it be? He immediately asked the young man, "Has my concubine really been rescued?"

"Don't worry, Chief Secretary Li, your concubine is unharmed."

Li Ji nodded, then looked up and called out in the direction Jingjing'er had just shouted, "No need to chase after them, lest we lose something."

A sudden thought flashed through his mind, and he abruptly turned back to face the young man: "So it was you!"

He finally remembered that when he first went to Lu Miaozhen's house in Pingkangfang for a banquet, he was forced to compose a poem and had plagiarized a poem called "Sympathy for the Peasants." But before him, a scholar at the next table had also written a poem called "Ode to Roasted Lamb Chops," which went something like this: "The meat is tender and the bones are soft, the taste is delicious, pepper seasons the fat and it is fragrant. Who took the loyal servant from the North Sea and gave it to the cook to accompany with millet and sorghum?"

Li Ji immediately thought the poem was quite good. Although it was still somewhat doggerel, it contained profound meaning and was far superior to the previous rubbish. He then paid more attention to the scholar. Later, in Longyou, he discussed poetry with Du Fu. Du Zimei said that Li Ji's poem "Sympathy for the Peasants" was "said by a minor official under my command when I was in the Censorate, who said he heard it at the home of Qu Lü Miaozhen in Pingkang." Upon returning to Chang'an, Li Ji learned that the poem "Sympathy for the Peasants" had also reached the ears of Cui Guangyuan and Yan Zhuang.

Several years had passed, and his impression of the scholar had become quite faint. Although the face seemed somewhat familiar, he couldn't recall it at all. Unexpectedly, the phrase "lowly servant girl" made Li Ji realize who had come to his rescue. Following this line of thought, he connected the three events, and finally, the face of the young man in black matched the white-clad scholar in his memory.

Li Ji felt a chill run down his spine... So Cui Guangyuan had already sent people to watch me back then! This young man entered Lü Miaozhen's house before I did. Could it be that when I asked around in Pingkangfang about where to find good food, they had already made arrangements... I only knew that Cui Guangyuan kept some strange people in the martial arts world, but I didn't know that he was so skilled in espionage!

Fortunately, Old Cui wanted to win me over, not harm me, otherwise... I wouldn't even know how I died!

Just as he was feeling a chill, he suddenly heard a "whoosh" and a small figure landed in front of him. The young man immediately took half a step back and bowed, saying, "Third Sister."

"I told you not to call me that!"

This was naturally Cui Qi, also known as the "lowly maid" in Jingjing'er's words. She originally held an important position in Cui Guangyuan's secret organization. When Cui Guangyuan recognized her as his daughter, her companions all changed their address to "Third Sister"—because there were two legitimate daughters of Cui Guangyuan who were already married—but Cui Qi was extremely disgusted by this title.

Upon seeing Cui Qi, Li Ji instinctively opened his arms, intending to rush forward and embrace him. Cui Qi quickly dodged backward, avoiding him, and said with a hint of anger, "Chief Secretary Li, please have some self-respect!"

Li Ji smiled and said, "Anyway, we'll be husband and wife soon..." Of course, although he acted on impulse, he knew that he should remain respectful in front of others. In fact, he instinctively stopped halfway through his pounce and then asked seriously, "Were you staring at me or at Jingjing?"

Cui Qi said, "You have everything... How come you were like a lost soul when Zou was kidnapped? You didn't even wear armor or bring any weapons, yet you dared to go upstairs to see Jingjing?"

Li Ji laughed and said, "If you are in danger, let alone armor, I will rush to your rescue without even having time to put on my clothes!"

The young man next to him coughed and voluntarily stepped back to a distance.

Cui Qi spat, "Stop talking nonsense!" He paused, then said, "It's a pity that Jingjing escaped, but we did capture two people alive. Zou Shi has been rescued. Come with me to meet her and interrogate these assassins—who they are and how they obtained the standard military weapons?"

Li Ji's expression darkened: "But you have crossbows..."

Obtaining Tang army swords and shields wasn't particularly difficult, especially since the rebels were likely originally Zhou Zhi's "Shenji Guard," meaning their weapons were almost identical in form and quality to Tang weapons—of course, the fact that they infiltrated Tang territory so deeply, carrying so many swords and shields, all the way to the outskirts of Chang'an, makes the matter even more perplexing. However, compared to that, obtaining a powerful crossbow was an impossible task.

Ultimately, while craftsmen could forge swords and shields, virtually none of them knew how to make a proper crossbow.

Cui Qi sneered, "Is Chief Secretary Li going to denounce us?"

Li Ji thought about it for a moment. Cui Guangyuan had served as military governor three times and held military power. So stealing a few crossbows from the treasury would be a piece of cake for him. He naturally wouldn't delve into this issue. He looked around, frowned, and took two steps closer to Cui Qi.

Cui Qi instinctively wanted to back away, but Li Ji stopped him with a look. Then Li Ji lowered his voice and said, "I won't go see Zou Shi for now. Please take good care of her for me and send her back to her home in Pingkang Lane after dawn... Zou Shi is pregnant, so please be careful..."

Later, he felt somewhat embarrassed and ashamed, but Cui Qi didn't seem to care—she already knew her future husband had a concubine, so after so many years together, was it strange that his concubine was pregnant? Could she force her to have an abortion?

Cui Qi simply asked, "Then where are you going?"

“Tonight’s events are definitely not simple,” Li Ji said in a low voice. “To be honest, the Emperor is seriously ill, and there is a risk of unrest in the palace. At this critical juncture, Jingjing’er lured me out of the city, and her men are armed with many military weapons. This cannot but raise suspicions. I would better hurry back to the palace.”

Cui Qi frowned, thought for a moment, and said, "During the chaos of battle just now, your horse ran away..."

"Do you have a horse? And give me a sword."

"The city gates are closed..."

“I will not enter the city, but go straight to the Daming Palace and enter through the Taihe Gate or the Zuoyintai Gate—the guards are all my Yingwu Army soldiers, and they will let me in.”

"How many people do you need to help?"

Li Ji shook his head: "The situation is still unclear. Bringing more people would be pointless. Besides... if there's nothing wrong, entering the Forbidden City privately is a serious crime. Don't worry, as long as the Yingwu Army lets me into the city, they will have their own manpower. If they don't let me in... there won't be any more danger outside the palace."

Chapter Twenty-Six: Brotherly Love and Respect

Li Ji asked Cui Qi for a horse and a sword, and galloped toward the nearest gate, Taihe Gate, in the central court of the Daming Palace.

Upon reaching the gate, he called out loudly, "Who's on duty tonight?"

Unexpectedly, a strange voice rang out: "Who are you?"

Upon hearing this, Li Ji realized something was amiss. This person didn't seem to be one of his men. He immediately became alert, stopped asking questions, and rode away.

He headed for the Left Silver Terrace Gate again, but this time he didn't dare to shout. He carefully observed the area from below the gate for a while, but it didn't seem safe either. Li Ji thought to himself, "Maybe I should go to the Chongxuan Gate instead."

There's an acquaintance at the Flying Dragon Stable outside Chongxuan Gate—Cheng Yuanzhen, whom I knew back in the imperial court. He's an old servant of Li Yu, so he's probably trustworthy. We can discuss it with Cheng Yuanzhen and have him send someone to scout out the movements of Chongxuan Gate and Xuanwu Gate before deciding on a strategy. That would be a safer approach.

Ultimately, he was alone and the enemy's situation was unclear, so he dared not take any risks at this moment.

Fortunately, Cui Qi and Qing Luan are both outside the city. At worst, I won't go to the palace. If I find that the situation is not good and I can't defy fate, I'll just take my two wives and run to Longyou to seek refuge with Li Tan.

The main gate of the Flying Dragon Stables was on the south side, directly opposite the Chongxuan Gate. Before Li Ji even got close, he could already see the palace gates wide open and a troop of men rushing out, heading straight for the Flying Dragon Stables. He was forced to ride quickly around to the side of the stables, climb over the wall, and enter. He originally planned to hide in the shadows and observe the situation first, but he immediately heard Li Yu's voice—although they hadn't seen each other for several years, he hadn't forgotten that voice.

Then came Cheng Yuanzhen's voice: "Where is the Prince of Fengjie at this time? And where is Li Ji?!"

Li Ji felt his blood boil, and he immediately leaped out, shouting, "Here I am!"

The "Six Stables" were located within the palace, while the "Six Stables" led by "Flying Dragon" were located outside the palace. However, due to repeated wars and upheavals, all the stables in the palace were abandoned, leaving only the "Flying Dragon Stable" outside the palace. The number of horses raised also plummeted from over a thousand at its peak to less than two hundred.

However, the size of the "Flying Dragon Stable" remained unchanged, still covering a vast area. The government office was located to its south, a three-courtyard complex, with the courtyard gate only a dozen steps away from the stable gate. After Li Yu entered the stable, he was invited to the stable office. Cheng Yuanzhen invited him to sit in the hall, but Li Yu was uneasy and only agreed to stand at the front of the hall, waiting for news.

Afterwards, Prince Yan, Li Xian, called out outside the stable. Cheng Yuanzhen climbed over the wall to look, and Li Yu also took a few steps closer to the door. At this critical moment, it was not appropriate for him to show himself. Cheng Yuanzhen had to speak to Li Xian. But he could not stray too far from Cheng Yuanzhen. How could he ask a little eunuch to help relay the message?

Li Ji responded and darted out of the shadows. Li Yu spotted him immediately, and was both surprised and delighted. He instinctively wanted to step towards Li Ji, but suddenly felt his legs go weak, and with a twist of his waist, he stumbled and fell to the ground. Cheng Yuanzhen was alarmed and rushed over to help him up, but Li Yu waved his hand, saying, "I've been standing for too long, and my legs are a little numb."

Struggling to his feet, he looked at Li Ji and smiled slightly: "Changwei, you've finally arrived."

Li Ji clasped his hands in greeting and hurriedly asked, "Who is outside the stable?"

Cheng Yuanzhen replied, "It is the Prince of Yan and Shence."

Li Ji gritted his teeth in resentment: "Shence is indeed unstable!" He then asked Cheng Yuanzhen: "How many soldiers and how many weapons are in the stable now?"

Cheng Yuanzhen spread his hands and said with a wry smile, "We only have some servants, where would we get soldiers and horses? We only have some horse feed, where would we get weapons?"

Upon hearing this, Li Ji was taken aback.

He thought to himself, "Why didn't you say so earlier? I thought Li Yu was here, with at least dozens or hundreds of guards by his side, which is why I dared to rush out and answer... If I had known there were no soldiers or troops, I would have preferred to stay hidden! No matter how important the Li Tang dynasty is, is it more important than my own life? Besides, even if the Li Tang dynasty changes its crown prince or even its emperor, it might not collapse. I haven't even married yet, and I don't even know if Qingluan is carrying a child!"

But now that he had revealed himself, he couldn't just turn and run, or simply surrender to the Prince of Yan. Gritting his teeth, he drew his sword with a clang and shouted, "Your Highness, please take a seat in the hall, and watch me, Li, slay the traitor!"

By this time, the Shence Army had already broken through the stable gate and were now trying to break through the courtyard gate. The courtyard was small, and the gate was even smaller, with only a single leaf, making it incomparable to the stable gate. Li Ji glanced at it casually and thought—I could break it open by myself.

He immediately darted forward, and just as the door swung open with a loud bang, dust billowed up, and Li Ji, shielding his face with one hand and brandishing his knife with the other, shouted, "Li Erlang is here! Who dares to come and fight to the death?!"

Firstly, since the passageway is narrow, fighting in front of the gate can guarantee a one-on-one, or at most one-on-two, situation, and Li Ji is confident in defeating the enemy. Secondly, he fears that if he retreats even a step or two, the enemy soldiers can bypass him and attack Li Yu—look at that poor crown prince surrounded by pale-faced eunuchs, how could he possibly stop the Shence Army?

Li Yu, seeing this from behind, was taken aback. Fortunately, he wasn't stupid and didn't raise his voice to ask, "Changwei, did you come alone? Where is the Yingwu Army?" He simply asked Cheng Yuanzhen in a low voice. Cheng Yuanzhen looked around, his face contorted with worry, and said, "I'm afraid Li Ji received the news at home and couldn't go directly into the palace, so he was forced to ride alone around to the back of the palace..."

He quickly ordered his men to summon all the eunuchs, grooms, servants, and even horse doctors from the stable, to use pegs as weapons and saddles as shields, and to surround Li Yu in the middle.

Li Yu shook his head: "It's no use... If Li Ji can defend against the bandits, then so be it. But if Li Ji is in trouble, you should all go and escape for your own lives. There's no point in dying for me."