At the fourth watch, it was dark outside Lin'an City. Several streets in the city were still brightly lit, and the sound of silk and bamboo could be heard.

It was still early before dawn at this time, and most areas in the city were completely dark.

Various shops in the city will gradually open until the fifth watch, and the city will be full of life.

At this time, outside Lin'an City, there was a rapid sound of horse hoofbeats. A large group of Song soldiers with crooked helmets escorted Jia Sidao and others and rushed to the city gate in a hurry.

"Open the city gate quickly!" A general stepped forward and shouted immediately.

At the top of Lin'an City, the soldiers guarding the city had long discovered this dark figure.

"Which troop are you waiting for?" The guard leaned out and shouted down.

During the battle between Qi and Song, Lin'an was far behind, but it still strengthened its defenses.

Normally, even if a few messenger cavalry came over, the defenders would check them carefully, not to mention the huge crowd of people.

The Song troops gathered below seemed very anxious. Someone shouted impatiently: "We are from the front office of the palace. Why don't you open the door quickly?"

There was no reason for them to be impatient, because the Qi army had cavalry, so they ran all the way and managed to escape back to Lin'an City.

Now that the Qi army's cavalry was behind them, they naturally wanted to enter the city quickly.

"From the front office?" The city guard was a little frightened.

At this time, a man came to the city wall with a horse and shouted loudly: "Liu Tongzhi is my official!"

The general looked down and recognized it carefully. He was shocked and said, "Mr. Jia!"

······

The city gate was slowly opened by the defenders, and the defeated troops outside the city immediately swarmed in.

Jia Sidao ignored the retreating troops behind him and, surrounded by several cavalry, rushed directly to the imperial city.

Along the way, the rapid sound of horse hooves like raindrops attracted the attention of people on both sides of the street. Everyone was muttering in their hearts that something big had happened.

Not long after, Jia Sidao arrived in front of the palace. His subordinates had already dismounted and hurried forward to report, "The military situation is urgent. Mr. Jia needs to meet with the officials immediately!"

······

Inside the palace.

Zhao Yun, the Emperor of the Song Dynasty, was sleeping with Concubine Jia in his arms when he was suddenly woken up by his beloved concubine beside him.

After the war between Qi and Song, Zhao Yun was forced to work diligently in order to understand the situation and find a sense of security.

However, the more Zhao Yun learned about the war these days, the more miserable he became. He was exhausted physically and mentally. Only with Concubine Jia could he barely relieve himself of his fatigue and have a good sleep.

"Guan Family! Guan Family!"

Zhao Yun opened his eyes tiredly, "What's going on?"

Zhao Yun was a little confused. He didn't often go to morning court. It was still dark outside. He didn't understand why Concubine Jia would wake him up.

"Officials, it is said that the military situation is urgent, and Si Dao has returned from the front line!"

After hearing this, Zhao Yun woke up instantly and sat up from the bed suddenly.

He knew that Zhao Tai had clearly rejected his request for peace a few days ago, and counting the time, Zhao Tai should be facing off against the Song army who came to intercept it.

This made Zhao Yun's face look ugly for a moment. He got off the bed and asked urgently, "Where is Master Jia Sidao?"

Concubine Jia quickly got up, brought a gust of fragrance, caught up with Zhao Yun and put on his robe.

At this time, outside the palace, the internal official who was kneeling to ask for instructions heard the voice inside and quickly replied: "Go back to the official's house, Prime Minister Jia is waiting outside the palace!"

Zhao Yun thought about why Jia Sidao returned to Lin'an, and felt very uneasy, so he hurriedly ordered, "Let him wait in the study!"

······

In the imperial study room, Jia Sidao, who was quite embarrassed, sat half-assed on a chair, waiting for Zhao Yun to come over.

I don't know how long it took, but Zhao Yun, who had put on his regular clothes, came to the imperial study. Jia Sidao came to his senses and quickly stood up and saluted, "Your Majesty!"

Zhao Yun looked ugly, waved his hands and sat down. He took a deep breath, and finally mustered up the courage to ask, "Is the front line defeated?"

Jia Sidao nodded feebly, "Failed!"

When Zhao Yun heard this, he felt as if he was struck by five thunders, his vision went dark, and he could no longer sit still in his chair.

Jia Sidao said with difficulty: "After Zhao Tai refused to negotiate for peace, he led his army eastward and encountered our army at Dingjiazhou. Zhao Tai's men used fire ships to tire our army, and then launched a sudden attack. Our soldiers were afraid of the Qi army, and the generals fled before the battle.

, and eventually the entire army was wiped out."

Zhao Yun's face was pale and his body was shaky, as if he could fall over even while sitting.

······

In March, while Zhao Tai defeated the main force of the Song Army at Dingjiazhou, the Qi Army's Eastern Route Army also forcibly crossed the Yangtze River and defeated the Song Army in Zhenjiang and other places.

The two armies of Qi State's Middle and East Routes entered the south of the Yangtze River and joined Jinling. Zhao Tai did not give the Southern Song Dynasty a chance to reorganize its defenses.

The two armies, with a total of 150,000 troops on horseback and foot, rushed directly towards Lin'an City.

At the end of March, the Qi Army's forward cavalry arrived outside Lin'an City. The soldiers and civilians in Lin'an City were shocked and screamed. However, the Qi Army's cavalry did not stop. They just circled the city for a while and then went back to report to Zhao Tai.

On the first day of April, at the top of Lin'an City, the Southern Song Dynasty gathered 30,000 defenders and tens of thousands of civilians, who were rushing to carry arrows, gunpowder, and stones to the city head.

While they were busy, the soldiers of the Song Army at the top of the city discovered the situation.

At this time, a soldier straightened up, turned his head unconsciously and glanced outside the city, and stood stunned on the spot.

A few miles away from Lin'an City, a black line suddenly appeared, then turned into a gray cloth, covering the ground and moving forward quickly.

The soldiers looked at the overwhelming figures, saw the billowing dust, and were shocked, "Cavalry, Qi Army's cavalry!"

The Qi army rolled forward in the wilderness, with tens of thousands of cavalry galloping in front of them. Countless infantry and civilian soldiers marched in a mighty manner, which was so powerful that it gave people the feeling of being pressed by black clouds.

At this time, under the banner of the Qi army, Zhao Tai stood proudly on his horse and looked at Lin'an City in the distance.

"Your Majesty, when we approach the city, shall we attack or appease?" Wang Bin followed Zhao Tai on horseback.

Zhao Tai stroked his beard and said, "Just think about it!"

Wang Bin stopped talking when he heard the words and quickly analyzed the meaning of Zhao Tai's words in his mind.

According to the rules of the Qi army, they rarely attack the city directly. They almost always send a letter of surrender to the city first. If there is no response from the city, they finally attack the city by force.

Now that Zhao Tai said he wanted to consider it, Wang Bin narrowed his eyes, probably guessing what Zhao Tai meant.

Zhao Tai was the king of the Song Dynasty, and Zhao Yun was the emperor. After Lin'an City was destroyed, how Zhao Tai could seize the throne was a difficult problem.

If Zhao Tai considers his reputation, he cannot harm Zhao Yun, but Zhao Yun will always be a hidden danger if he is not dead.

Therefore, the best ending for Zhao Yun is to commit suicide after the city is destroyed, so that Zhao Tai cannot be blamed.

Thinking of this, Wang Bin seemed to understand.

At this time, the Qi army approached Lin'an in great strength. After receiving the news, Zhao Yun hurried to the city.

As soon as he climbed onto the city wall, he only glanced outside the city, and immediately his legs gave out and he almost fell to the top of the city.
Chapter completed!