Chapter 252: Bringing Out the Shadow Guard

Wang Jiantao breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the two grandmasters wearing black armor entering the Beiwang Mansion. His heart was almost in his throat just now.

One of the two masters just glanced in their direction, and they felt the threat of death, which sent a chill down their backs.

In addition to Zhuge Chongguang, the great master in the Northern Kingdom, there are actually such terrifying master generals!

Just when Wang Jiantao had just recovered, another shadow guard's voice came from beside him, "It's another grandmaster!"

Upon hearing this, Wang Jiantao immediately looked at the door of the North Palace. At this time, a strong man in cloth got off his horse, handed the horse to the servants of the Palace, and then entered the Palace directly.

Although the aura of the strong man was not as terrifying as the two men wearing armor before, the power emanating from him could also be seen from the power that he was a master-level strongman.

Shadow Guards have been trained since childhood and have been performing various tasks in secret all year round. Basically, they can easily judge the general state of a warrior.

At this time, Wang Jiantao frowned. There were actually four grandmasters in the Northern Palace. This was something they did not expect at first.

Just when Wang Jiantao was thinking about reporting the information about the North to Emperor Xia later, he suddenly discovered that another grandmaster had appeared at the door.

At this time, Wang Jiantao's eyes suddenly opened wide and he looked at the man at the door of Beiwang Mansion in disbelief.

That is……

Mu Changtian? ? ?

How can this be!

Wasn't Mu Changtian killed when he was exiled to the northwest?

How come you are in this place?

Wang Jiantao's face instantly darkened. He was very sure that he had seen the right person. The man at the door of Beiwang Mansion was Mu Changtian himself.

Counting Mu Changtian, there are five grandmasters in Beiwang Mansion!

It doesn't matter that there are five grandmasters. What matters is that the person Emperor Xia wants to get rid of is not dead, and he also appears in the North Kingdom.

It is impossible for the Northern King not to know who Mu Changtian is. He actually dared to take in Mu Changtian, and Mu Changtian appeared here. This means that many of the soldiers who died in the inn were the Northern King's men. Killed.

Is the Northern King going to rebel?

Now is a critical time for the imperial army to suppress the rebellion. If the Northern King leads the Northern Army southward and cooperates with the rebels, the capital will be in danger.

Thinking of this, Wang Jiantao immediately said: "Let's go!"

Everything they saw today must be reported to Emperor Xia quickly so that Emperor Xia can prepare.

After Wang Jiantao and the others left, Wei Siyuan rushed to the North Palace. If Wang Jiantao saw another grandmaster coming, he would definitely feel even more uneasy.

About half an hour later, except for the generals guarding Yancheng, all the important generals from the North Kingdom arrived at the North Palace.

In the political hall.

Lu Chen sat on the throne, and Zhuge Chongguang sat next to him. When Lu Chen saw that everyone was almost here, he said directly: "I just received urgent military information from the North. King Tianqi led the barbarian army of 400,000 to march eastward. It is suspected that they are going to attack the North Country.”

After hearing this, everyone in the hall looked at me and I looked at you. The generals in the North were not like the civil servants. They were more stable.

Although the news sounded very urgent, none of the generals showed panic on their faces. On the contrary, they could not wait to go north.

They have been training in the use of firearms since the Northern Kingdom's firearms were installed in the army. Now their use of firearms has reached the point of proficiency, and they have even developed many firearm-related formation methods.

Although fighting involves death, for these generals, their inner desire for war is very strong. In fact, it is not just generals. Under the existing military merit system in the North, many soldiers have also longed to fight. , only by fighting can they gain more military merit.

At this time, Mu Changtian said: "Your Majesty, the army of the Northern Kingdom is already ready to fight the enemies of the Northern Kingdom. As long as you give an order, they will march north without hesitation."

Lu Chen said: "It takes a thousand days to raise an army but only a short time to use it. The army of the Northern Kingdom has been training for such a long time. It's time to try the sword."

Wei Siyuan asked at this time: "Your Majesty, do the 100,000 troops from Fengyun Island need to be mobilized? They should have arrived in the North Kingdom."

Lu Chen said: "No need for the time being, let them station themselves at the seaside. I have already asked people to build a military base at the seaside."

Although the barbarians had an army of 400,000 this time, Lu Chen did not think that these 400,000 troops would be a match for the Northern Army.

For now, there is no need for the 100,000 soldiers who came from Fengyun Island. Those 100,000 soldiers have not learned to use firearms and have no relevant training. Transferring them now will not be of much use.

At this time, Zhuge Chongguang said: "Your Majesty, I suggest that the soldiers from Fengyun Island be transferred to Yancheng."

"After the Northern Army moves north, the rear will be empty. If Dayue or Qi State has other ideas, the Northern Kingdom is likely to be faced with enemies from both sides. By then, the 100,000-strong army will also be able to act as a deterrent."

Hearing what Zhuge Chongguang said, Lu Chen realized that he had just received the news that the Jiangnan family sent someone to visit King Qi, so how could he forget about King Qi.

If the army of the Northern Kingdom goes north, it is very likely that King Qi will think this is an opportunity. King Qi may actually mobilize the soldiers in Qi Kingdom to go south and attack the capital.

Instead, some of the 200,000 troops that Dayue Dynasty had transferred not long ago have returned to the border area with the North Country to station. The Queen of Dayue seems to have been guarding against the North Country all the time. It is hard to say whether Dayue Dynasty will take advantage of the emptiness of the North Country's rear and suddenly send troops to attack the North Country.

Thinking of this, Lu Chen said: "What the Grand Secretary said makes sense. General Wei, if the 100,000 soldiers have arrived at the seaside, you should let them rush to Yancheng as soon as possible."

Wei Siyuan said: "Yes, Your Majesty."

Xuanyuan Chen asked at this time: "Your Majesty, how many black cavalry do you plan to send north?"

Lu Chen thought about it. Although the Piercing Cloud Bow that can threaten heavy cavalry has appeared in Daxia, they are not going to deal with the court or the rebels in the south this time. Their enemies are the barbarians from the northwest. Those barbarians probably do not have weapons to deal with heavy cavalry.

Before the powerful cold weapon such as the Piercing Cloud Bow is popularized, the heavy cavalry can still exert strong combat effectiveness.

Thinking of this, Lu Chen said: "Let's send 40,000 black cavalry north, and leave 10,000 to guard Yancheng."

Speaking of this, Lu Chen looked at Xiao Pengtian.

"General Xiao, I wonder if you have heard of the Apocalypse King of the Barbarians?"

Xiao Pengtian replied: "My Lord, I have heard that when the old Wolf King was still there, the Apocalypse King once sent people to the Wolf King Tribe to try to recruit the Wolf King Tribe under his command, and I also heard that the Apocalypse King also sent people to the Northern Xian King Tribe, but in the end both of our tribes refused."

"It is rumored that the Apocalypse King has reached the level of Grandmaster. He is very ambitious. He thinks he is the one favored by the Barbarian God, so he changed his previous title to the Apocalypse King. He also wants to unify the entire Barbarian Tribe and become the Barbarian Emperor."

Hearing Xiao Pengtian's words, Lu Chen frowned slightly.

Grandmaster?

This is the first time that the Northern Kingdom has faced an enemy Grandmaster entering the battlefield.

In this case, they must also send a Grandmaster here.

Although the Grandmaster may not be able to withstand the bombardment of the cannons, he can still disrupt their formation and destroy their cannons.

If the Grandmaster approaches their cannon positions, their cannons will most likely be destroyed by the Grandmaster.

Thinking of this, Lu Chen said: "This time, I will personally lead the troops to the north to fight against the army of King Tianqi."

Hearing this, Zhuge Chongguang said: "Your Majesty, it's not appropriate. You are the king of the North Country and you have to manage the entire North Country. You should not appear on the battlefield."

Lu Chen is the son of destiny. How can he appear in a dangerous place? If something happens to him, how can he lead the world?

From Zhuge Chongguang's personal perspective, he definitely doesn't want to see Lu Chen go to the battlefield.

Lu Chen said: "Firearms were invented by me. This is the first time for the soldiers to fight with firearms. How can I not go to the front line to instruct the soldiers on how to use firearms?"

"There is no need to discuss this matter. I have to go to the front line for this battle."

Seeing Lu Chen's firm attitude, Zhuge Chongguang couldn't say anything more. "Since the prince insists on going, then I will follow the prince to the north."

Lu Chen immediately said: "This won't work. The Northern Palace and Yancheng still need you, the Grand Secretary, to protect them. Once I leave Yancheng, it is very likely that some villains will deal with the Northern Palace."

What Lu Chen is most worried about is his wives and concubines. Although the Northern Palace already has a grandmaster, Chen Wanrong, Lu Chen still feels unsafe.

Zhuge Chongguang said: "Prince..."

Seeing that Zhuge Chongguang was about to say something, Lu Chen suddenly thought that this was his first time dealing with a grandmaster, and he was not sure if he was the opponent of that grandmaster, so it was not wrong to be on the safe side and prepare more.

Since Zhuge Chongguang has to protect the Northern Palace and cannot move, Chen Wanrong can always go north with him.

For now, Xuanyue Palace should not come to Yancheng to take Chen Wanrong away.

Thinking of this, Lu Chen said: "This king knows that the Grand Secretary is worried about this king's safety. Why not do this? This king will bring a Grand Master to follow this king, so that the Grand Secretary does not have to worry."

Zhuge Chongguang said: "Your Highness, as far as I know, there seems to be no third Grand Master in the North Kingdom?"

Lu Chen smiled and said: "Why not? It's just that you don't know, Grand Secretary, the Palace Master of Xuanyue Palace is a Grand Master, who broke through not long ago."

"This king is a Grand Master himself, plus a Grand Master, so the Grand Secretary should be relieved."

Zhuge Chongguang said: "If there is a Grand Master to accompany the prince to the north, then this old minister will be relieved."

At this time, Mu Changtian was in "Your Majesty, do we need to tell the people about our march north this time?"

"After all, the other side has 400,000 troops. Although the Northern Kingdom has defeated two barbarian tribes, if the people know about this, it will probably cause panic."

Lu Chen said lightly: "This time we march north, we should let the people know. Not only should we let the people know, we should keep promoting it so that the people of the Northern Kingdom understand that the soldiers of the Northern Kingdom are fighting against the barbarians to protect them."

Lu Chen's idea is very simple. If the people are not told that these soldiers of the Northern Kingdom are fighting against the barbarians for their safety, how can they respect those soldiers?

As for whether it will cause panic, Lu Chen is not too worried. Some people will definitely be afraid. Fear is human nature, but the Northern Kingdom has often faced the looting of barbarians before, and some people have long been accustomed to it.

Therefore, in Lu Chen's opinion, letting the common people know that the barbarians are heading south will not bring much trouble to the Northern Kingdom, even if the common people feel panic.

After hearing what Lu Chen said, Mu Changtian thought about it and felt that it made sense.

Lu Chen opened the map in front of him at this time, and then said: "Everyone, come here. We won't discuss the details for now. King Apocalypse's army will arrive in the North Kingdom soon. We must seize the time to deploy."

Hearing Lu Chen's words, the generals in the hall immediately gathered around the table in front of the throne and began to discuss how to deploy.

After the military meeting, Lu Chen asked Mu Changtian and others to go back to the military camp and gave the soldiers a day off to say goodbye to their families.

Although the war is imminent, the soldiers must still be given the opportunity to say goodbye to their families. These soldiers cannot be allowed to die on the battlefield. Their families still don't know where they have gone and whether they will come back.

In addition to letting the soldiers go home and say goodbye to their families, Lu Chen also asked Qin Yushan to clean up Yancheng's spies Xizuo. They were about to go north. He was not in Yancheng. Those spies might cause trouble, so he let him go in advance. It would be better for Jin Yiwei to clean up one side.

Speaking of cleaning up the spies of other countries, Lu Chen thought of what Bai Qingqing said some time ago. Emperor Xia had sent people to clear out the traitors in the Shadow Guard, and those who wanted to assassinate Bai Qingqing were most likely still in Yancheng.

Lu Chen planned to lure out these shadow guards and then eliminate them before going north. If he continued to let them stay in Yancheng, they would definitely take action against Bai Qingqing when he left. This time, he would not bother taking Bai Qingqing with him when he went north. Qingqing's, and there were Emperor Xia's shadow guards in Yancheng. Lu Chen was also very worried. He was worried that these shadow guards would cause trouble.

After deciding what to do next, the whole Yancheng became busy.

After Lu Chen held a military meeting in the morning, in the afternoon all the people in Yancheng knew the news that the barbarian army of 400,000 was about to move south.

Of course, Lu Chen asked the newspaper to release this news, and he wanted to publicize this war.

As soon as they heard that another barbarian tribe was heading south, the people of Yancheng instantly panicked, and some even planned to run away. However, more people chose to believe in the Northern King and his army.

The victories in the previous two wars gave the people of the North great confidence. Although there were rumors that the heavy cavalry of the North was destroyed during the battle with the King of North Xian, the soldiers of the North still defended Tianguang City that time and did not let the North King Xian went south.

For most people living in the North, as long as the soldiers of the North guard the north and prevent the barbarian cavalry from going south, it is a great victory.

At this moment.

In a private room of a certain restaurant.

Wang Jiantao looked at the newspaper in his hand and pondered for a long time.

He finally understood why so many masters went to the North Palace in the morning. They were probably discussing how to resist the 400,000-strong army of King Tianqi heading south.

At this time, a shadow guard said: "Commander, I heard that King Bei will go to the military camp east of Yancheng to inspect later. Bai Qingqing liked to follow King Bei in the past, and there is a high probability that she will follow him this time." It’s a great opportunity for us to go together.”

Wang Jiantao thought for a while and said nothing.

Zhuge Zhongguang is the Grand Master. A person of the Grand Master level should not follow a prince everywhere. If Bai Qingqing really follows the King of Bei to inspect the military camp later, and Lu Chen does not have many strong masters around him , that was indeed an excellent opportunity for them to get rid of Bai Qingqing, and they could even take action directly against King Bei.

Of course, getting rid of King Bei is not what he should do now. Before Emperor Xia's clear order, even if he knew that King Bei was now Emperor Xia's biggest concern, he, the commander of the Shadow Guards, could not take action against Lu Chen. .

After a while, Wang Jiantao picked up the bamboo hat on the table and said, "Let's go!"

…

At this time, Wang Jiantao and the other shadow guards didn't know that Lu Chen had deliberately let out the news about Lu Chen's inspection of the military camp. He just planned to lure out the shadow guards who wanted to kill Bai Qingqing, and then deal with them directly to avoid these shadow guards. After Wei left, he would jump out to cause trouble for Bai Qingqing, or create chaos in Yancheng.

Around four o'clock in the afternoon, Lu Chen sat in the carriage and let Bai Qingqing ride the horse. He casually took a few guards with him and left the city to the east military camp.

The military camp on the east side of Yancheng is some distance away from Yancheng, and there is a part of forest in this distance.

The forest is a perfect location for assassins like Shadow Guard.

Lu Chen believed that those shadow guards would definitely take action.

Not long after, Lu Chen's carriage entered the place where the shadow guards were ambush. Wang Jiantao felt a little strange when he saw that Lu Chen only brought Bai Qingqing and a few fifth-grade guards.

It stands to reason that Bai Qingqing should have noticed that Emperor Xia was already clearing out the shadow guards of the Northern Kingdom, and she was also one of the targets. So why did Bai Qingqing dare not let Lu Chen bring a few more experts to accompany him?

Could it be that Bai Qingqing didn't tell Lu Chen about the shadow guard? Or maybe Bai Qingqing didn't take Shadow Guard seriously from the beginning and thought no one would do anything to her?

After all, she is a master, and it is indeed not easy to kill her. It is normal for her to have this confidence.

Seeing that Wang Jiantao had not issued the order for a long time, a shadow guard next to him said: "Commander, if they are allowed to go some distance further, they will see the military camp of the North Kingdom, and then it will be too late for us to take action!"

Hearing this, Wang Jiantao asked the shadow guard who had been following the carriage out of the city from the Beiwang Mansion, "Xiaoqi, are you sure that the Beiwang was the only one in the carriage?"

"I am sure. I saw the Beiwang in the carriage with my own eyes."

Wang Jiantao thought to himself that if it was only the Beiwang and a few guards, there would be nothing to be afraid of.

Although it is rumored that the Beiwang is also a warrior, the Beiwang is so old that he can't be much stronger.

Thinking of this, Wang Jiantao no longer hesitated.

"Do it!"