"Your Majesty wants to give me justice? Can you bring my sister back to life?" Long Bo's words effectively shut down Li Longji's options. After all, the dead cannot be brought back to life.
“My Great Tang owes you a debt. You can ask for anything. I will definitely grant your request.” Li Longji continued to try to negotiate.
"Is that so? Then I'll speak up." Long Bo glanced at the silent courtiers.
"Back in the Western Regions, our Eighth Regiment held out in a besieged city, but no reinforcements came. In the end, out of several hundred brothers, only three remained. This matter should be under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of War. In that case, you might as well execute everyone in the Ministry of War."
With a clang, Long Bo casually tossed a horizontal sword in front of Li Longji.
“Cut them all down, and include Li Linfu too. He’s definitely involved in that affair. After that, I’ll commit suicide right here, and that will be the end of it. No one else will be hurt.”
"Insolence! Do you know what you're saying..." Before another unnamed minister could speak, he was struck in the abdomen by a heavy warhammer. He coughed up blood and collapsed to the ground.
"See? I knew you wouldn't do it. The lives of you big shots are precious. We commoners, we're no big deal if we die. I understand what you mean, so let's do it my way. Everyone here tonight... kill them all."
At his command, the swarm of assassins charged toward the group.
.............
Outside the imperial city.
The commanders of the Imperial City Guard are negotiating with several commanders of the Dragon Martial Army.
"The Dragon Martial Army is ordered to guard the area around the Imperial City. How can we withdraw from here just because of your words?"
"What do you mean by 'my word'? General Zhao, this isn't my word, it's the Right Chancellor's word. Have you thought this through? The Imperial City doesn't need a few soldiers like you. The Right Chancellor's side is surrounded by real Turkic assassins. The Dragon Martial Army has the responsibility to assist the Imperial City Guard in handling cases. Tonight, if those Turks cause any more trouble, the responsibility will fall on your shoulders."
The adjutant surnamed Zhao's expression was a mixture of anger and uncertainty. He was ordered to assist on the eastern side of the imperial city and absolutely could not leave. However, the orders from the Imperial City Guard and the Right Chancellor were something he could not defy. Moreover, theoretically, they were justified. For a moment, he felt a headache coming on. He wished he could quit being this damned adjutant.
After much deliberation, he decided to go with them. For no other reason than that if he remained stationed there, he would gain nothing but empty promises. However, the Right Chancellor had just been attacked. His timely arrival would allow him to curry favor with the Right Chancellor. He would have a legitimate reason to go, and he could also ingratiate himself with the Right Chancellor—a win-win situation. Besides, the place he was stationed at was just a small side entrance for purchasing supplies. It could only be opened from the inside, so it wasn't particularly important.
.............
With a clang, one of the ants' swords was deflected by a tremendous force. It was Lu Xuan who suddenly darted out from the crowd, picked up the sword from the ground, and used it to block the first ant that charged at him.
In the dim firelight, Lu Xuan slowly straightened up, standing before the ants and numerous court officials. He alone was both a wall and an army.
"Good, good, good..." Long Bo clapped his hands and shouted "Good" three times in a row. "There is still one official with some backbone in this Tang Dynasty. State your name and let me hear it."
"I am Lu Xuan, a captain of the Crown Prince's Guard."
"A captain, that's a very low-ranking official here. What, now even a captain can come here to admire the lanterns?"
Lu Xuan didn't respond directly, but instead took a few steps back, moving closer to Li Longji. Taking advantage of the dim night, he spoke softly.
"Your Majesty, we need to buy time and wait for the Dragon Martial Army to change shifts."
Upon hearing this, Li Longji immediately understood and spoke up.
"Commander Lu once traveled thousands of miles from the Western Regions to escort national treasures back to the capital. Along the way, he killed countless Turkic soldiers and was stabbed dozens of times. He is one of the top generals of our Great Tang Dynasty. Why can't he come here to enjoy the lanterns?"
"Well said. Then let's all come and enjoy the lanterns."
As Long Bo spoke, he clapped his hands lightly. Immediately, even more swarming assassins rushed forward. Fifty or sixty assassins cornered the fifty or sixty court officials.
Long Bo didn't act immediately, seemingly enjoying the grim expressions on Li Longji and the others' faces. As time passed, their expressions grew increasingly grim. They had realized that the Longwu Army, who were supposed to relieve them on duty, might not be coming.
"What a pity. After waiting for so long, only you dare to step forward. Your Majesty, your Tang Dynasty is nothing more than this. Let's make our Emperor go and suffer a little more pain."
Long Bo's words were directed at Lu Xuan. In a sense, it was a warning to Lu Xuan. However, Lu Xuan only gave a subtle smile, then stepped forward and stood in front of the crowd.
"Your Majesty, please leave quickly. I'll hold them off here."
------------
Chapter 83 Holy crap...
"Your Majesty, there's a back path after you climb over the railing behind you. It's used by the craftsmen. Your Majesty, leave from there quickly," Lu Xuan whispered a few words. He then turned to face the swarm of soldiers rushing towards him.
There was no holding back whatsoever; it was a true, life-or-death struggle. These assassins from the Ants gang didn't even recognize Lu Xuan. And at this point, Lu Xuan naturally wouldn't hold back either. Because he knew that Long Bo wouldn't hold back either.
The wooden planks beneath his feet cracked, and Lu Xuan's body was propelled forward. Before the foremost ant-like assassin could even raise his hand, Lu Xuan's horizontal blade had already swept across. A fine head flew into the air, accompanied by gushing blood, completely igniting the bloody carnage of the night.
The rooftop wasn't large enough to accommodate a hundred people fighting. Lu Xuan only faced five or six ant-like assassins at a time. To be honest, these were indeed the strongest group of opponents he had faced since his transmigration. The group that Long Bo had selected from veterans of the frontier possessed combat power high enough to crush most of the current Tang army.
Li Longji wasn't one to hesitate or be indecisive; he knew the situation was hopeless. He turned and pulled Yang Guifei along, vaulting over the back door. Seeing his emperor's actions, the remaining court officials scrambled towards the narrow staircase. However, the staircase only allowed one person at a time. In the chaos, several unnamed ministers were pushed off the roof.
With a few screams that quickly faded away, the people who had fallen soon fell still.
Li Longji, dragging the pale-faced Yang Taizhen, ran to the next level. But to his despair, he saw that even on this level, there were swarms of assassins on guard. In his despair, Li Longji grabbed a bamboo pole and charged forward. Li Longji was no ordinary artist-emperor like those in the Song Dynasty.
Although not the founding emperor, he seized power in the Shenlong Coup and was undoubtedly a man of both literary and martial prowess in his youth. However, now that he's older, and armed only with a bamboo pole about the length of an arm, his fighting ability is severely lacking. Within two rounds, he was kicked to the ground by a mere assassin.
Without hesitation, his opponent swung his blade, which Li Longji dodged with great difficulty. But the next blow followed. In despair, he could only embrace Yang Taizhen and close his eyes, awaiting death. But then, a loud crash came from above.
The ant-like assassin was startled. Instinctively looking up, he saw the wooden floor above him shattered by a tremendous force. A figure plummeted from the sky, crashing heavily onto him.
Lu Xuan sprang to his feet the instant he landed, not even glancing at the ants beneath him. He swung his blade and charged at another assassin. The other assassin, having just felled an unknown minister, turned around to see an incredibly fast blade flashing towards him. Before he could react, Lu Xuan beheaded him with a single stroke.
"Your Majesty, run!" Lu Xuan shouted, trying to make his presence known even as he hacked at people. Just then, a loud shout came from upstairs.
"Kill that old emperor first, then chase after him!"
Upon hearing this, Li Longji's expression was priceless.
Lu Xuan's expression also changed drastically, and he frantically rushed downstairs with Li Longji. However, while Li Longji was still relatively agile, Yang Taizhen was not. She stumbled and staggered, unable to run fast. Assassins relentlessly pursued them from behind, and were also blocking their path from the front. It was only through Lu Xuan's valiant fight that a path was carved out, risking his life.
After killing more than ten people, the three finally reached the bottom of the stairs. By this time, none of the court officials could keep up. Fortunately, most of the assassins had come to hunt down Li Longji. The ministers upstairs weren't completely wiped out. After all, there were still a few military officers among them who could put up some resistance.