While there was a fierce battle outside the city of Xiangguo, the city was also not very calm.

Shi Kun, as one of the many princes of the Kingdom of Xiang, has neither a strong maternal family as a backing, nor has he always been valued by his father Emperor Shi Hu, and now he is forced to stay in Xiangguo because of the current situation.

This feeling of being left out is no stranger to Shi Kun, and this is how he came over in Jiande Palace for more than ten years. If it weren't for the fact that he was taken away by the Jin State Fenwu Army in the autumn of last year, he didn't even know the nobility of his status as a prince, he didn't know that there was still a vast world outside the Jiande Palace, and he didn't know that there was already a war and chaos between heaven and earth.

Although Ma and Zhang have no lack of contempt for Shi Kun, the prince of the sect, they dare not completely ignore it, Shi Kun, a cowardly young man, has nothing to pay attention to, but since the lord arranged this son in Xiangguo, then Shi Kun represents the majesty of the lord.

Although these two people have their own calculations, and they will not ask Shi Kun for instructions on any plans and actions, they are still not mean in their basic false offerings. Although the entire city of Xiangguo was almost emptied, it was still possible to raise people and things to meet the needs of the prince's diet and daily life.

In fact, if you don't consider the precarious situation in Xiangguo, the life left in Xiangguo is not as terrible as Shi Kun feels.

Although this Shan Yutai, located in the north of the city, has not been completely built, it already has some complete palaces, which is much better than the remote palace where he lived in Jiande Palace in the old years.

And the second general in the city to collect some servants and dependents abandoned by the original power gate of the country, there are as many as hundreds of servants who serve Shi Kun on a daily basis, and everyone is centered on him, which makes him feel a kind of joy of being valued and cared for.

But after experiencing the torture of the war last year, Shi Kun knew that all this was just a hundred flowers in autumn, which seemed to be beautiful and flourishing, and withered only for a moment.

During the day, he saw the busy figures of waiters and guards coming in and out of the house, he could still be a little steady, but once it was night, he would become palpitating and anxious, and as soon as he closed his eyes, his ears sounded the chaotic sound of the night of the military disaster in Jiande Palace, and there seemed to be countless fierce murderers ready to attack in the cold night outside the door, once he fell asleep, he would show his hideous face, and he would be captured as he did last year and then run thousands of miles.

In order to dispel the heavy pressure in his heart, at night, he had the messenger put on a large display of lights, illuminating the inside and outside of the palace as if it were day, and before the guards were held by the armor, there were gentle women in the living room who hugged and caressed their backs to sleep with them. But even then, he rarely slept until dawn, or had nightmares, or was awakened by the slightest noise.

With the passage of time, the Jin army gradually approached Xiangguo, and the city was also poor in various uses, and all kinds of expenses needed to be saved. Although Shi Kun protested several times, Ma and Zhang Er's willingness to support him was already considered the limit, and he would not make a senseless waste in order to let this cowardly prince sleep peacefully, so most of his protests did not respond, and this cold winter night became a long torture for Shi Kun.

It's not a bad thing that people can be prepared for danger in times of peace, but for Shi Kun, a prince who is under house arrest, even if he has a sense of crisis in his heart, he doesn't know what to do to turn the situation around and avoid disaster.

The only way that his already unintelligent brain could think of was to befriend these armor soldiers who were guards around Shan Yutai, not only to generously reward the two generals with many goods and utensils, but also to share food and generously give women from time to time, and his attitude was so diligent that he was even a little humble, and he only hoped that when the military disaster came, these soldiers would be able to repay him and protect him at the cost of life and death.

But the same means, different people do it to give people different feelings. Shi Kun thought he was a corporal of Lixian, but in the eyes of those strong generals around him, His Royal Highness the prince was really timid and cowardly, and the respect he originally had because of his status was gone.

However, they regarded guarding Shi Kun as a rare and good errand, not only to avoid the hard work of killing the enemy in front of the battle and guarding the night, but also to extract money from Shi Kun by exaggerating the enemy's situation and intimidating him with false words, and even to follow the name of the king of Wu'an to forcibly extort women in the city for sexual pleasure, and even some of the people and concubines of the Forbidden Yuan Palace who were originally placed in Shan Yutai before Jiande Palace had time to move out were divided and occupied by these bold soldiers as forbidden places.

Ma Qiu went out of the city for a decisive battle, although Shi Kun was not informed, but because the sound of the fight was too tragic, Shi Kun of Shan Yutai also quickly learned about it. The already trembling boy became even more frightened, and almost every once in a while he sent messengers to inquire about the battle.

After a period of guarding, these soldiers of the Qiang army also figured out Shi Kun's temperament, only saying that the war outside was tragic and unwilling to risk his life, and waited until Shi Kun rewarded his belongings before going out for a circle, and came back to prevaricate a few words.

It's not that they don't care about the battle situation, but they know in their hearts that no matter what the victory or defeat, Ma Qiu will definitely take the initiative to report the news, and now that the fierce battle is in full swing, even if they really go to investigate, they really can't get any useful information.

Although Shi Kun is young and cowardly, he is not a fool, after getting along for such a long time, he is not unaware of the small methods of these arrogant soldiers, but in addition, he has no way to suppress and drive these people.

Those floating wealth and women are of little use to him, and now that the Lord has put him in Xiangguo despite his pleas, and he does not dare to use his father's prestige to suppress the generals, if he really has a bad relationship, who can guarantee that these greedy and vicious generals will not harm him in turn?

The torment of waiting was the most torturous, and Shi Kun was terrified throughout the whole day, and he was not even in the mood to eat. As night fell, his mood collapsed even more, and all the hundreds of guards that Ma Qiu had arranged for him gathered in front of the room, including those attendants.

The panic is contagious, especially in the past, the pressure of the Jin army's slow approach has been shrouded in the sky over the city of Xiangguo. After nightfall, the two warring sides in the south of the city disturbed each other, and the movement inevitably came into this realm, and even the battle-hardened elite soldiers arranged by Ma Qiu in Shan Yutai became a little apprehensive, and began to take the initiative to investigate the news, and had no energy to deceive Shi Kun with this.

In the second half of the night, Shi Kun was already sleepy under the guards of the attendants around him, and suddenly heard a very real shouting and killing sound in his ears, and he was suddenly startled, and his sleepiness disappeared, and he shouted in panic: "The Jin army has already invaded this realm? ”

The soldiers outside the palace were also very nervous at this time, they had learned from the front line that a cavalry team of the Jin army was going around the city, and the main general Ma Qiu told them to protect King Wu'an. Originally, outside Shan Yutai, the troops belonging to the guard general Zhang Hedu also withdrew part of it and increased to the city defense, and it was obvious that the battle that occurred at this time should be that the Jin army was trying to attack the city.

"Where are the guards? Where is Mahou? Quickly summon them to enter the arch guard......"

After he came to his senses, the shouts and killings in Shi Kun's ears became more and more real, and he could even see the firelight flickering in the night in the southwest direction, as if the disaster of the night in Jiande Palace last year was repeated, and Shi Kun was suddenly pushed to the brink of collapse, and even the shouting carried a few hints of pleading and crying.

Although these soldiers of the Qiang army in Taichung alone were greedy and bold, they did not dare to ignore the military situation related to their own safety, and took advantage of Shi Kun's reason to send an envoy to Zhang Hedu's camp to inquire about the enemy's situation.

Zhang Hedu was busy responding to the enemy at the head of the city at this time, after the disaster last year, the city of Xiangguo was seriously damaged, and it had not been repaired in a unified way, and now the so-called defense of the city is just a line of defense that relies on the mansions of those high-ranking officials and magnates left in the north of the city.

Without a unified city wall as protection, Zhang Hedu was also busy at this time, and he was not in the mood to deal with Shan Yutai's inquiry.

At this moment, there is no lack of resentment towards Ma Qiu in his heart, because according to his cognition, there are not many cavalry in the south, and the Jin army has an absolute advantage in field battles, otherwise why would the Jin army advance so slowly?

It must be that Ma Qiu was not angry with his previous many persecutions, so he deliberately let go of the containment of the Jin army along the way, so that the Jin army could attack the city itself in a roundabout way, so that even if the battle was unfavorable later, Ma Qiu could also use this to bite him!

Although there is no lack of chaos in the city defense of Xiangguo, after all, there are still nearly 20,000 soldiers on guard to fight, and the Fenwu army was able to easily break the city last year, which was to take advantage of the chaos and turmoil of Xiangguo itself, as for this time, there is no such good luck.

These mansions of the magnates in the north of the city were built as well as fortified forts, and many soldiers held on to them, and even if the Fenwu army was brave and brave, it was difficult to break through the city defenses in the night battle. However, Shen Yun led his troops to this point, and he didn't plan to easily break through the city, but just took the opportunity to create chaos to exhaust the guards of the country.

After all, the current strength of Wang Shi does not occupy an absolute advantage compared to the defenders of the Kingdom of Xiangguo, and these defenders in Xiangguo City are also a big hidden danger for Wang Shi, once they participate in the frontal battlefield as a new force, it will also bring great pressure to Wang Shi. Shen Yun's task was to surround the city and prevent these defenders from leaving the city at night.

With the experience of breaking through Xiangguo last year, the Fenwu Army disturbed the enemy this night and revisited the old place, and there are still relatively vivid memories of the Xiangguo city defense system.

Shen Yun led his troops to the west of Xiangguo City, deliberately creating chaos, throwing fire, and after alarming the pawns and rushing into the defense line, he led his troops to continue to travel north along the range of Xiangguo City.

He also tried to find the old path last year, to see if there were any loopholes that could be exploited, and found that the amusement garden hunting ground on the northwest side of Jiande Palace had long been deserted.

There was no success here, but Shen Yun unexpectedly found that a building in the north of Xiangguo City, which he had not set foot in last year, was brightly lit, and the left and right were disturbing the enemy, so he led his troops to continue north, deliberately creating noise chaos all the way, in order to disturb all the remaining forces of Xiangguo.

As the general of the northern city, Zhang Hedu was also busy like an ant on a hot pot at this time, although Ma Qiu had previously summoned the Jin army to go north with only 3,000 cavalry, but he naturally would not believe Ma Qiu's nonsense.

With his own life, he will not believe that Ma Qiu is honest in sharing military information, and only by being cautious and careful can he not make big mistakes. Although Zhang Hedu himself did not care much about the gains and losses of Xiangguo City, the premise was to ensure his own safety, and he also had to bring back the military strength he had at the moment back to Xindu, as a bargaining chip for power and profit in the future.

Therefore, with the movement of the Fenwu army, Zhang Hedu also led thousands of elite soldiers under his command to wander within the defense line, and finally came to the north of the city outside the platform. Shi Kun sent people to summon several times in Taili, but Zhang Hedu was in the mood to deal with the cowardly and useless prince at the moment, so he refused to respond, but was careful not to let the Jin army wandering outside the city break through the defensive line.

If it was a night of panic, it finally ensured that the defense line of the city was not breached, and as the sky became brighter, the Jin army wandering outside the city also retreated and disappeared.

On the one hand, Zhang Hedu sent ranger scouts to track the direction of the Jin army's withdrawal, and on the other hand, he sent people to the south of the city to express his dissatisfaction to Ma Qiu, and also took advantage of the situation to stay in the camp outside Shan Yutai to rest.

However, Zhang Hedu had not rested for long here, and an urgent report suddenly came from the south of the city, saying that Ma Qiu led the army to attack the Jin army, but he fell into the formation and was surrounded by the Jin army.

After learning this news, Zhang Hedu naturally couldn't be calm, although he and Ma Qiu were not on good terms and had many disputes, but they were grasshoppers on a rope on the issue of fighting against the Jin army, if Ma Qiu was defeated, he would naturally not be able to escape the benefits.

"The thief is stupid and worthy of his name!"

While scolding Ma Qiu's incompetence, Zhang Hedu urgently adjusted his defense, gave up some insignificant strongholds on the periphery, focused on defending several areas, and sent people to pay close attention to the battle situation in the south of the city. He didn't care much about Ma Qiu's victory or defeat, but if he really lost, he would have to make another plan.

At this time, the guards in Taichung came to inquire about the military situation again, since last night this is not known how many times, Zhang Hedu is also annoyed, and is about to rebuke sharply, but his heart suddenly moved, and said: "Please Your Highness wait for a while, I will report the battle situation in person after I finish patrolling the camp." ”

It wasn't that he suddenly cared about Shi Kun's situation, but realized that this was also a rare opportunity for him.

Although he carved up tens of thousands of pawns from Ma Qiu's hands, there were still more than 20,000 elite cavalry soldiers under Ma Qiu's command that he coveted. Previously, he had no chance to meddle in this part of the cavalry, but now that Maqiu has fallen into the enemy's formation, the cavalry in the south of the city is leaderless, and he, as one of the two generals of Xiangguo, is being ordered to take over the responsibility of his army.

However, these cavalry troops were all brought back from Ye by Ma Qiu and commanded for many years, and naturally there were many of their henchmen. Zhang Hedu's disagreement with Ma Qiu was known to the whole city, and he didn't dare to rush to grab military power, and Shi Kun, who didn't care much about it before, was now a very important bargaining chip.

No matter how unbearable Shi Kun is as a prince, he is the lord's biological son, and he is also the nominal supreme governor of Xiangguo, if he can take Shi Kun to the south of the city, those cavalry soldiers in the south of the city will not dare to disobey the military order even if they are reluctant in their hearts.

If Zhang Hedu can take over this part of the cavalry military power, then there is no need to continue to stay in Xiangguo, and he can use these cavalry forces as a force to intercept the broken and escort his garrison back to Xindu.

As for the lord to investigate the responsibility for the loss of Xiangguo, it is also because Ma Qiu underestimated the opponent, went out of the city to fight but was killed by the Jin army, Zhang Hedu took into account the overall situation, in order to retain the precious troops of Xiangguo before giving up the city, even if he was implicated, it would not be too heavy!

With this thought in his heart, Zhang Hedu no longer had the mind to arrange a defensive line, but ordered the army to continue to shrink inward, and began to use some of the remaining instruments and materials in the city, in order to bring back as many letters as possible.

At the same time, he sent people to contact the nails that had been developed in the Maqiu army before, so that these people could be ready to cooperate, and then they entered the single Yutai under the bow guard of nearly a thousand soldiers.

Shi Kun was a dispensable puppet prince, and it was not difficult for Zhang Hedu to control his people, but because Ma Qiu had previously sent many henchmen to guard Shi Kun's left and right, it made things a little tricky. Zhang Hedu didn't dare to storm Shan Yutai to avoid those Ma Qiu's cronies jumping off the wall in a hurry and trying to fight to break the net.

At the moment, he has a full advantage, after all, Ma Qiu is trapped in the Jin army's big array, and his life and death are unknown, how many of the henchmen he arranged around Shi Kun can be foolish and loyal?

However, at such a critical moment, Zhang Hedu did not dare to take risks easily, and first let the guards around him rush into Shan Yutai to ensure that there was no danger, but there were obstacles to the implementation of the plan, Shi Kun was too cautious and spared his life, and all the guards in Shan Yutai had been summoned to the periphery of the room and gathered together, and it was difficult for the soldiers sent by Zhang Hedu to approach Shi Kun's side.

"You dogs, are you trying to hold the king hostage? Quickly retreat, I have important military information to face Your Highness! ”

Zhang Hedu marched outside Shi Kun's residence surrounded by soldiers, first reprimanded the guards who were gathered and did not disperse, and then shouted towards the door of the palace: "Please Your Highness temporarily retire the guards, Rong Mo is close to the bow, detailed military situation, the current situation is urgent, and I am afraid that a catastrophe is coming!" ”

Shi Kun was already frightened to the extreme, and when he heard Zhang Hedu shouting like this, he couldn't help but be even more frightened, but although he was as timid as a frightened bird, he was not lacking in impatience on matters related to his own life, so he just stood in front of the door and said in a trembling voice: "Since it is a military emergency, the guards please enter quickly, as for the guards around them, they are all loyal warriors who I can trust life and death, nothing to say!" ”

At the critical moment, he still believed more in the guards around him who had already been bribed by him with money and goods, and he still had some reservations about Zhang Hedu.

Zhang Hedu naturally refused to enter these cronies left by Ma Qiu lightly, and the situation was a bit stalemate for a while, and the guards who stayed in Shan Yutai saw that Zhang Hedu said that the military situation was urgent but it was not as good as that, and they were also vigilant in their hearts, and they were even more unwilling to release Shi Kun easily, and the situation was stalemate for a while.

At this time, Zhang Hedu was also anxious, worried that the situation would be even more unfavorable once it dragged on, so he simply turned his heart sideways and said loudly: "Ma Qiu is stupid, he went out of the city to fight with the Jin army without authorization, and now he has been trapped in the south of the city by the Jin army. There is no one in his army to dominate, the collapse is imminent, the military situation is like fire, and the last general is asking His Highness to save the army and save the city, and it will be difficult to save it! ”

"What?"

"How can it be so ......?"

When Ma Qiu's henchmen around the room heard this military situation, they all changed color in panic for a while, and they exclaimed again and again.

"You soldiers, do you want to stop me from doing great things? Once the Ma Qiu army is defeated and killed, the fighter plane will be delayed, and there will be no redemption for a hundred deaths! ”

Taking advantage of the panic of Ma Qiu's cronies, Zhang Hedu led more than a dozen personal soldiers around him to rush to the door of the room, and those Ma Qiu's henchmen were all panicked at this time, worried about the safety of the master, and no longer blocked them, allowing Zhang Hedu and others to rush into the room.

Shi Kun was even more unbearable at this time, his face was already pale, if it weren't for the waiter's nearby support, he would almost be paralyzed on the ground, seeing Zhang Hedu rushing in, he said in a trembling voice: "Ma, how can Mahou ...... Is it that the Jin army has broken the city? I—I don't want to stay here anymore, and quickly retreat to Xindu!" I, I am the Lord's son, and if I die in this realm, you and all of you will die, all of you......"

Zhang Hedu lowered his eyes and looked at Shi Kun, who was no longer possessed, and couldn't help but sigh in his heart, this kid is so cowardly, he doesn't even have the slightest demeanor of the master, and he really doubts whether it is the master's species.

But at the moment, he still needs to rely on Shi Kun to collect the military power of the cavalry in the south of the city, stepped forward and scooped up Shi Kun's arm, and said sharply: "Please Your Highness quickly follow me to the south of the city, rectify the remaining guards, now there are still tens of thousands of elite soldiers in the city, and the Jin army is difficult to shake. ”

"No, no...... I, I'm leaving, I'm going to Sindu, I'm going to see the Lord ......."

Shi Kun was already limp at this time, tears flowed, one arm was grabbed by Zhang Hedu's hand, and his whole body was almost hanging on Zhang Hedu's thigh, just waving his hand and shouting to abandon the city and escape.

Seeing that Shi Kun was so unbearable, Zhang Hedu was even more disdainful in his heart, if it weren't for the special identity of this son, he would have drawn a knife to threaten and intimidate, how could he let others spill, and now he can only say patiently: "Even if you want to return to China, now is not a good time." The Jin Fenwu army has bypassed the front and wandered the back of the city, if the army is not renovated, there will be ...... out of the city"

"Fen, Fenwu? The Fenwu army has already attacked the city? ”

Shi Kun was about to collapse at this time, but he still keenly grasped this keyword, and Zhang Hedu was still frowning and patiently explaining: "The Fenwu army did not enter the city, but only surrounded the city to attack and disturb ......."

However, Zhang Hedu's excuse, Shi Kun had already been unable to listen to it, and the hideous voice that had frequently appeared in nightmares in the past year woke him up in his mind: "I'm going to kill you inch by inch!" ”

Zhang Hedu was carrying Shi Kun, while patiently advising him to follow him to the south of the city, suddenly the cold light flashed at the bottom of his eyes, and he felt a sharp pain in his ribs and abdomen, and looked at it, only to see that Shi Kun, who was still crying bitterly, had a bloody short-bladed dagger in his hand at some point, and the weak part of his side armor had already been pierced by the short-bladed, and the blood was gushing!

"You, you...... Is the shaft hurting me? ”

Zhang Hedu raised his hand to cover the intercostal wound, looking incredulous, this timid prince, this poor boy who was so frightened by the enemy that he couldn't stand still, dared to assassinate himself!

At this time, Zhang Hedu's personal soldiers rushed up to isolate the two, and Shi Kun took out the short blade he had carried with him for many days and stabbed Zhang Hedu, and also took advantage of the situation to get rid of his control and roll into the hall, and he was still scolding: "Traitor, traitor!" You will harm me, and you will not let me live...... Whoever wants to harm me, I will kill him. The Fenwu Army is here, and Shen Shi is here! He's going to kill me, he's going to kill me alive......"

Zhang Hedu was suddenly stabbed, and those Ma Qiu's cronies outside the door were also dumbfounded, and after a moment of stunnedness, one of them suddenly shouted: "Help, help!" The traitor wants to harm His Highness......"

Then there was a scuffle, and Shi Kun, who caused the commotion, had already gotten into the room among the terrified waiters, and shouted loudly: "Zhang Hedu wants to kill me...... The traitor wants to harm you! Shen Shi is here, and he is going to kill you alive......"

Poor Zhang Hedu, who thought he was smart, was first stabbed by Shi Kun in the exhaustion, and then besieged by the influx of Ma Qiu's henchmen, although there were more than a dozen personal soldiers around him, he finally died on the spot and was killed by the sword!

Ma Qiu's henchmen were also a sudden reaction under stress, even if Shi Kun had bribed a little gain for many days, he was also at a loss after killing Zhang Hedu, seeing that those soldiers under Zhang Hedu outside the hall were attacking here, they could only defend the corridor, and they were fighting chaotically with each other.

After the initial panic, several military commanders who were forced into the living room also had an opinion in their hearts, and they swung their knives and slashed in the living room to disperse the screaming waiters, and then grabbed Shi Kun in their hands, and after setting up the young man, they shouted outside the bureau: "Zhang Hedu wants to harm the king, and he has been ambushed, and if the rebels dare to make trouble, they will all be killed!" ”

On the way to shout, they cut off the head of Zhang Hedu, who was not blind, and threw it outside, originally Zhang Hedu planned to rely on Ma Qiu's life and death to take his pawns first, but he didn't expect that he would die in front of Ma Qiu. As their heads were thrown out, the guards who besieged the palace were also dumbfounded, and the lord was dead, why did they fight?

In this way, the melee in Taiwan alone came to an end, Shi Kun was held hostage by Ma Qiu's henchmen, and the whole person was already delirious and completely collapsed.

And Ma Qiu's henchmen are also in a dilemma at the moment, the main is trapped in the Jin army, life and death are unknown, but they killed Zhang Hedu again, and they are Zhang Hedu's troops inside and outside Taiwan, even if they temporarily hold Shi Kun hostage, how much protection can the prince, who has been terrified into a puddle of mud, provide them?

"Vote for the promotion! We, we finally killed a major enemy of the Jin Kingdom, should it be regarded as a righteous act? ”

Suddenly, one person proposed, and then the atmosphere suddenly froze, and the person who initiated it was also stunned, and then everyone present showed a thoughtful expression, a general of the town guard of the kingdom, a living prince and king, maybe half of the ruined city, these should be able to save their lives, right?

As for Shi Kun still crying and shouting there, who would rather die than fall into the hands of Shen Shi in the Southern Kingdom again, who cares?