Emperor Chai always acted unexpectedly. He decided that no one could stop the situation. He sent people to the gate of Shouzhou City to inform the defenders that he wanted to meet with the general. Unexpectedly, Liu Renzhan actually readily agreed.

Chai Rong was overjoyed, and hurriedly left his tent and headed towards Shouzhou City. Xu Xian and Lao Mu Tou followed with hundreds of elites. As they walked, Lao Mu Tou looked at the city head nervously and asked Xu Xian softly: "You

I have also dealt with the enemy general in the city, do you think he will take the opportunity to launch a cold arrow?"

"I think Liu Renzhan is quite moral. Such people most cherish their reputation and would not launch cold arrows to sneak up on His Majesty." Xu Xian asked him again, "Do you think Your Majesty can persuade Liu Renzhan to surrender?"

Old Mu Tou said categorically: "No, as the saying goes, I know how to do things but not very good at talking."

"A gentleman is slow in words but quick in deeds!"

"Yes, that's what I said. I heard that when Your Majesty was young, you couldn't hit a person with three sticks, but you could choke someone with your mouth. Later, when you learned to do business, you became more flexible with your words. Your Majesty went to persuade you to surrender seriously.

Why don't you call me, and no matter whether you succeed or not, in just a few words you can call me Liu and call me brother."

"Bullshit, you think that persuading surrender is a matter of friendship and friendship, while persuading surrender is about morality and interests."

When he spoke, he was less than two hundred steps away from the city wall. Chai Rong suddenly turned around and said to everyone: "You all wait here, I can go by myself."

Old Mu said anxiously: "No, Your Majesty cannot go into danger alone."

"I know what's going on, just obey the order!" After Chai Rong said that, he strode forward towards the city gate.

Last year, the Zhou army was defeated at the foot of Shouzhou City and was in a state of disgrace. I originally thought that the Zhou Dynasty would give up its troops, but I didn't expect that they would come back and fight in person.

Liu Renzhan rose through the ranks based on his true skills. He held positions both in the capital and local governments. His understanding of the Southern Tang Dynasty was deeper than that of the emperor Li Jing.

The Southern Tang Dynasty seemed prosperous but was actually fragile. Although the emperor had great ambitions, he had high ambitions and low abilities. He was usually fond of romantic affairs and loved to listen to flattery. With such emperors and ministers, they were naturally educated and well-educated. Most of them were full of food and corruption. In the country of Fujian, corruption was common.

Rebellions continued in the old land, and the Southern Tang Dynasty was plagued by internal and external troubles. As for the combat effectiveness of the Tang army, it could not compare with the Zhou army...

The unsatisfactory Tang State faced the menacing Zhou army. Even though Liu Renzhan was determined, he was not absolutely sure that he could withstand Shouzhou City. When he heard that Chai Rong wanted to see him, he immediately wanted to persuade Chai Rong to retreat.

thought.

Looking at Chai Rong walking up from the city, Liu Renzhan couldn't help but say in his heart: "He is indeed a hero who rides alone in front of thousands of troops. What a courage!"

He waved his hand and said: "You all stand down, just leave me here alone."

Liu Chongjian gritted his teeth and said, "Father, why don't you take the opportunity to shoot him dead?"

Liu Renzhan immediately scolded: "You are shameless, I want to be shameless, stand down immediately!"

The soldiers on the city wall immediately retreated to the other side. Only Liu Renzhan stood behind the female wall. Chai Rong at the bottom of the city smiled when he saw this. If the Tang army had not acted like this at this moment, he would have turned back.

Chai Rong stopped a hundred steps away from the city wall. This position was enough for the two of them to talk. Even if the Tang army shot him with arrows rashly, with the tenacity of his armor, his life would not be in danger. If he was shot by Fangzi's crossbow or

If he was hit by a trebuchet, he could only blame himself for his bad luck.

Seeing Chai Rong standing still, Liu Renzhan on the top of the city cupped his hands and said, "The foreign minister has met the Emperor of Zhou."

"No courtesy!" Chai Rong held a hand across the empty space and said straight to the point: "Liu Linggong, do you know why I want to see you."

Liu Renzhan replied loudly: "If the foreign minister's prediction is true, your Majesty should have persuaded us to surrender."

"Exactly! Since the rebellion of the nest thieves, the world has been in turmoil and falling apart. Countless people have been displaced. Countless people have died from freezing and starvation. Countless people have been killed and taken captive. Some have even been ground into minced meat and reduced to rations. It can be described as a cruel and cruel world. .

…

The most unfortunate thing is that we attacked each other, but the foreign barbarians took advantage of it, and the land of Youyan fell into the hands of the barbarians. However, the Hu chief Yelv Deguang was greedy and led his army southward. He killed my brothers and raped my sisters. We were also picked up on the flagpole. In the Chongyuan Hall, Chief Hu was crowned with monkeys, but we had to bow down and proclaim ourselves. This is an eternal humiliation...

I came to the throne by luck, and am determined to unify the world, but it is difficult to fulfill my ambition alone. I have admired your Duke for a long time, and I came here to meet you today. I hope that your Duke will follow me and save China from disaster and relieve the suffering of the people..."

Chai Rong's voice was loud and clear, and Xu Xian could hear it clearly even though he was far away. Who said Chai Rong was good at words and quick at actions? This mouth he spoke was a sign of justice. Anyone who listened but did not follow him would feel guilty. Feeling coming.

Even a man with a firm mind like Liu Renzhan could not help but be moved by Chai Rong's impassioned speech, but he was only moved. He supported the parapet and replied: "The foreign minister admires your majesty's ambition, but my lord Li They are the royal family of the Tang Dynasty, practicing royal principles in the east of the Yangtze River, protecting thousands of people, and only waiting for the opportunity to revive the prosperous age of the Tang Dynasty.

Most of the previous rulers of the Central Plains were mediocre and cruel or flattered the barbarians. They could neither protect the territory of their ancestors nor protect the safety of the people. They have lost their royal ways. Your Majesty, why don't you surrender to the Tang Dynasty? My lord will wait for you with high officials and nobles. Then you and I As ministers in the same palace, we work together and work together, so why worry about the loss of the northern frontier! Even if you cannot, your majesty should withdraw your troops and go north, you can avoid the loss of life and do your best for the revival of the Tang Dynasty."

Chai Rong couldn't help but smile when he heard this. The Central Plains Dynasty did have a bastard emperor like Shi Jingtang, but the Southern Tang Dynasty also flirted with the Khitans. He sighed and asked again: "Your Majesty, you really don't think about the people in the city."

Liu Renzhan pointed behind Chai Rong, "Your Majesty should also think about those innocent people!"

Seeing Liu Renzhan's words, I knew that he probably wouldn't surrender. Chai Rong was not a talkative woman like Aunt Liu, so there was no need to chatter endlessly with Liu Renzhan.

He was about to leave when suddenly a man ran up to Liu Renzhan, raised his bow and shot towards the city. Liu Renzhan subconsciously raised his hand and touched the man's arm, and the arrow deviated from the direction and fell on Li Chai. A dozen steps away.

Liu Renzhan was so angry that he raised his hand and knocked his son to the ground, "You bastard, do you want me to become the laughing stock of others?"

Seeing this, Xu Xian and Lao Mu Tou quickly raised their shields to protect Chai Rong. Chai Rong remained motionless, watching Liu Renzhan teach his son with interest, and suddenly said: "I hope that when the city is destroyed one day, I can see your father again."

However, Liu Renzhan pulled out his sword and replied sternly: "The day the city is destroyed will be the day Liu will die in battle!"

Facing such a respectable opponent, Chai Rong's eyes were filled with excitement. Under the protection of everyone, he immediately ordered: "Attack!"

The rumbling war drums sounded, and countless stone bullets flew towards the Shouzhou City Wall, round after round, like a violent storm. The stone fragments flew and smoke billowed, and the tall city gate tower did not know when.

Half of it has collapsed, and the solid wall stacks have been blown apart and debris is flying. As for the Tang army, there is nowhere to show up...

Xu Xian was stunned. He didn't expect that wars in the cold weapon era would have such momentum. The effect was no worse than that of artillery. Suddenly he saw two stone bullets colliding together in mid-air. What he saw was

Noticing that there were a lot of stone bullets being reflected towards him, he quickly looked at Chai Rong on the side, only to see that Old Mu Tou had pulled Chai Rong away.

About twenty stone bullets rushed into the Zhou army's trebuchet position. The tall trebuchet was immediately smashed into a pile of wood chips, but the stone bullets did not stop and ran rampantly. Any Zhou soldier who was hit by the stone bullets would

Most of them died on the spot, and those who survived suffered broken bones and tendons.

Xu Xian saw that the soldier Zhou who was not far away from him had his legs pinned down by a stone bullet and could not move. His mouth was wide open and he was wailing in pain. Xu Xian was about to step forward to help him when he saw a stone bullet fall without any bias and hit him.

On the soldier's upper body, he bounced and flew past Xu Xian's eyes.

He stretched out his hand to wipe the unknown liquid that splashed on his face, and hurriedly hid behind his back. Not far away, someone with a gun stopped him, "You are too timid in battle. If you don't go back, I will stab you to death!"

Xu Xian grabbed the tip of his gun, slapped the soldier on the face and flashed his badge, "I'm from the Damn Front Division!"

The soldier covered his face in grievance and said, "You...what are you doing here, the front officer of your palace!"

"Didn't you see that His Majesty was here just now!" Xu Xian left the trebuchet position and finally felt relieved. He took a look at the trebuchet position and found that there was not much damage. But just now the bullet was fired.

It was really scary in the rain. He would rather have his head chopped off than be smashed into a pulp.

He looked at the dilapidated Shouzhou city wall. The stone bullets flew from behind the city wall. Based on the number of flying stone bullets, it was estimated that the Tang army had at most a hundred or ten catapults, while the Zhou army had a thousand.

, presumably there must be a more tragic scene in the city.

The two sides were still going back and forth with no intention of stopping. More and more trebuchets were destroyed by the Zhou army, and more and more soldiers were injured and killed. In addition, they were gradually exhausted, and the offensive was far less than before.

Chai Rong ignored the dissuasion and walked up to a trebuchet. He personally picked up a stone bullet and put it into the trebuchet's leather pocket. The gunners were a little at a loss and looked at him in confusion.

Chai Rong said: "What are you doing in a daze? Throw it out quickly. Don't be afraid, I'm with you!"

Only then did the soldiers come to their senses, and when they pulled the rope together, the stone bullet flew far away and hit the female wall impartially. A huge gap immediately appeared.

Chai Rong seemed to have a sense of accomplishment. He laughed proudly and bent down to lift another stone bullet.

Xu Xian originally thought he was just putting on a show and gave the soldiers some encouragement before retreating, but Chai Rong had no intention of giving up. When the accompanying officials saw this, they all looked at each other. The emperor himself went into battle and it was hard for them, ministers, to stand aside.

Stare.

I don’t know who took the lead, but the officials rolled up their arms and sleeves and went into battle in person, carrying stone bullets and deliberately passing by Chai Rong, fearing that Chai Rong wouldn’t see him.

The five or three powerful military generals can do it, but the civil servants who are usually self-satisfied and only use pens also join in the fun. The young people still have some strength, and the two older people cannot move a stone.

"Oh, you must have been smashed to death!" Xu Xian turned around and looked up to see a civil servant standing behind him, looking at him with ridicule and contempt, and shouted loudly: "Everyone else has gone to help, you are His Majesty's relative

Wei, why are you standing here?"

"Oh, it turns out to be Li Yushi. I haven't seen him for a long time, and he looks even better than before."

Li Dai waved his hand and said: "Don't befriend me. I asked you a question and you haven't answered me yet."

"Having His Majesty alone there is enough to boost morale. The others will only add to the chaos. I am very afraid of death. Let others do this kind of publicity and publicity! On the contrary, Li Yushi has always been upright and motivated. Why?

Not going?"

"I was afraid that my official robe would be stained, so I changed into ordinary clothes so that no one would think that I was deliberately showing my face in front of His Majesty."

Only then did Xu Xian realize that he had changed into short clothes and was dressed like a civilian husband. Xu Xian immediately extended his thumb and praised: "Li Yushi is not only upright but also indifferent to fame and wealth. I will turn around and report this to Your Majesty!"

"Seriously? Well, this is the duty of a minister, and your Majesty does not need to know!" He said, walking to a trebuchet with his hands behind his back, gritting his teeth and holding the big stone ball on the ground in his arms.

The stone bullets in the trebuchet were thrown out, and he gasped and stepped forward: "Wait a minute and ask me to install it..."

Before he finished speaking, the stone ball in his hand fell to the ground and rolled onto the feet of a soldier. The soldier fell to the ground crying in pain. Upon seeing this, the soldier next to him immediately pressed Li Dai to the ground and said, "Where did you come from?

, why are you joining in the fun here!"

"I am not a civilian husband, I am a censor!"

"Return to the damn censor, I think you are a shit-eater!"

Several soldiers gathered around him and greeted him, and a sad voice could be vaguely heard shouting, "I am sworn in with sin!"

Chai Rong finished firing the stone bullets in one breath. The Shouzhou city wall on this side was in a mess. The once intact and neat wall was as pitted as a pockmarked face. The huge towers were almost razed to the ground. The most important thing was the tower on the top of the city.

Most of the arrow stacks on the parapet wall were destroyed and could no longer provide cover for the soldiers of the Tang Dynasty.

Chai Rong gave an order, and the civilians who had been preparing for a long time rushed over with a cart, dumped the earth and rocks in the cart into the moat, and then quickly evacuated. However, the Tang army's stone cannons did not stop, and stone bullets continued to be fired.

Come, the civilian husband who was unfortunately shot immediately crashed his car and died.

More soldiers of the Tang Dynasty also began to appear on the top of the city, using bows and arrows to greet the civilians pushing the carts. The carts were covered with hard cowhide, so as long as their luck was not too bad, they would probably not be hit by arrows.

The most dangerous moment was when the earth and rocks were dumped. Several soldiers of the Tang Dynasty would hold the stone bullets scattered on the top of the city and throw them down with all their strength, or throw down the spiked rolling logs, or even directly use green bricks to throw them down.

It rained down, and it was as dense as falling rain.
Chapter completed!