Outside the tent, Xie Yue, Xu Weizhi, and the other advisors were helping the Jinghu Guards count the grain supplies.

Looking at the cart loads of grain, Xu Weizhi couldn’t help but sigh: “When the prince left the capital, the quality of those eight carts of grain His Majesty provided wasn’t even as good as this. A wealthy family like the Xies in just Jiuhe County can produce so much stored grain, yet His Majesty couldn’t. This shows the court truly is in dire straits.”

“Not necessarily. His Majesty just wanted to make things difficult for the prince.” The Jinghu Guards were already quite dissatisfied with Li Qitian’s behavior.

Xie Yue smiled. Their journey following Pang Xiao to the south had not only relieved disaster victims and won popular support, but also made everyone who followed Pang Xiao even more certain of their choice. Being able to follow such a benevolent person was their good fortune.

“His Majesty has just ascended to the throne. Though his scheming runs deep enough, his vision is ultimately limited. Moreover, as an emperor with no one daring to say half a word against his actions, plus those fawning villains egging him on from the side – no matter what His Majesty does, people follow behind flattering him. Over time, it’s predictable that His Majesty would become as he is now.”

“The court has already suffered successive natural and man-made disasters, yet His Majesty still acts willfully, thinking that having become emperor, everything under heaven belongs to him and he can do whatever he pleases. This is also a helpless situation.”

The words they spoke, if spread around, would be enough for the emperor to kill them several times over. But people have emotions, and they were currently full of dissatisfaction, unable to care about such concerns. Regardless of whether the prince rebelled or not, the current emperor was deeply suspicious. Even without crimes, he would fabricate charges against the prince. They were all the prince’s followers – once things went wrong, the emperor wouldn’t spare any of them.

While talking, they registered the grain supplies and noted after each entry when, how, and from whom they had obtained it.

Having a solution made their days carry more hope. After collecting grain in Jiuhe, Pang Xiao ordered people to continue investigating where else grain could be purchased while arranging for a team to wait with the grain for the Pingnan Army’s arrival.

When the Pingnan Army camped near Jiuhe, the grain obtained through Pang Xiao’s method had arrived in succession.

The hundred thousand-plus men of the Pingnan Army had originally been somewhat worried about provisions, especially those newly enlisted. They were all disaster victims who, though trusting Pang Xiao, needed their eating problems solved before they could have strength to do anything.

Seeing so much grain now, everyone felt relieved. Governor Feng and several officers spoke in louder voices than usual, leaving the newly joined civilians listening in amazement.

“What kind of person is the prince? Back when our Pingnan Army went through hard times, we’ve experienced that too. Once the prince arrived and led us, we started living good days. You ask how we managed it? When the court wouldn’t provide grain and pay, the prince led us to find our own meals. Back then, we brothers cleared out bandit nests one by one around the old Yan capital, eating the bandits’ food while protecting the common people. Who doesn’t give our prince a thumbs up when talking about him?”

The new recruits listened with boiling blood, all lamenting that they hadn’t had such good fortune earlier to follow the prince in suppressing bandits.

Meanwhile, the central figure of their conversation had already gone to the next place with grain supplies, still using the same method to secure grain and silver. Not only had they recovered much of the treasure’s silver, but they also had channels to purchase more provisions. Many more common people even planned to follow Pang Xiao, joining the Pingnan Army to fight the Tatars together, so the Pingnan Army’s ranks had grown somewhat larger.

Loyalist armies from various regions were now successively heading toward the capital. With the long mountain roads, their arrival times at the capital varied considerably. When Pang Xiao’s group had only traveled half their journey, some princely armies had already entered the capital. Li Qitian was greatly pleased and with a stroke of his brush assigned them to Ji Zeyu.

Ji Zeyu had grown much thinner these days. His originally handsome face, beautiful as an exiled immortal’s, had always been cold as frost and expressionless, but now his expression was even more scarce, and he spoke even less.

The Tatars were at the city gates, the court had no money or grain, yet he had to find ways to defend this final fortress. If the capital fell and was occupied by the Tatars, the entire capital would probably become a living hell.

This was the most difficult battle Ji Zeyu had fought in his lifetime, because he had nowhere to retreat. Besides desperately defending to the death, he had no other options.

Fortunately, the loyalist armies were arriving successively, preventing him from being caught completely off guard. But with insufficient military pay, all soldiers now, including Ji Zeyu himself, could only eat thin gruel to fill their stomachs. They were all young men in their prime – no one could endure three meals of thin gruel daily. Everyone was practically howling with hunger, yet helpless.

Ji Zeyu never liked to shortchange his soldiers, but with the national treasury empty and His Majesty’s private funds all spent on imperial tomb materials, the court truly couldn’t produce silver to buy grain, let alone pay military wages.

Ji Zeyu stood on the high city wall. The early spring cold wind cut like knives across his face, his bright red cloak billowing high behind him like a fluttering banner.

Ji Zeyu’s face was stern as he gazed at the Tatar encampments on the distant plains under the pale morning light. Those tents stretched one after another, forming a magnificent sight outside the capital that felt like a blade pressed against one’s throat, completely destroying any mood for contemplation or reflection, leaving only panic and helplessness.

“Duke, Princess Imperial An’yang has arrived,” a personal guard approached and reported quietly.

Ji Zeyu didn’t turn around: “This is a battlefield. Tell the princess to return. This isn’t a place for her.”

“How is this not a place for me?” Li Helan’s voice was already behind Ji Zeyu.

Li Helan wore a silver fox fur coat with a bright red pomegranate skirt whose hem fluttered as she walked, revealing soft deerskin boots with fur trim at the toes.

She personally carried a food box, smiling as she said: “The prince consort has refused audiences for many days. Missing you terribly, I had no choice but to invite myself.”

Hearing this, the surrounding soldiers all lowered their heads, pretending not to hear such explicit words.

Ji Zeyu turned around expressionlessly and said sternly: “This isn’t a place for your amusement. Go back.”

Li Helan’s smile immediately cracked, her face darkening as she pressed her lips together. Just as she was about to speak, Ji Zeyu’s deputy general already said with a smile:

“Princess, please don’t be angry. Our duke is worried about the battle situation and has no time to consider much else. This place is indeed extremely dangerous, with stray arrows constantly flying from unexpected angles. Yesterday someone died on the city wall. The duke is also concerned for you.

“The Tatars have now seen that we lack provisions and are deliberately drawing things out to make us consume our limited food supplies. They may soon organize an attack to harass us. With swords and blades having no eyes, if the duke is unable to attend to you and the princess is injured by a stray arrow, how could the duke face himself? Please understand, Princess.”

These reasonable words made Li Helan feel somewhat better.

Anyway, since knowing Ji Zeyu, she had never seen him speak with a smile. He always looked impatient when facing her. She was angry and felt that Ji Zeyu’s coldness toward her in public was humiliating, so her words now carried barbs.

“Aren’t I afraid you’ll starve to death on the wall? If something happens to you, the common people will suffer. You think I want to come here and blow in the cold wind? Take this!” She thrust the food box forward.

Ji Zeyu still paid no attention, frowning as he observed for a moment, then suddenly turned and walked away. Passing by Li Helan without even a glance, he said sternly: “Everyone, be on alert.”

This announcement meant the Tatars were about to make another move.

Li Helan was first angry at being snubbed, then immediately frightened by the sudden battle situation.

The personal guards had no time for niceties and immediately escorted Li Helan down from the city wall with several men.

The exquisite food box was left forgotten on the wall.

After Li Helan descended the wall, she was half-forcibly put into a carriage and sent directly back to Princess Imperial’s mansion.

As the carriage gradually left the city gates, Tatar forces had already attacked outside.

For a moment, the battle cries of Great Zhou troops defending the city and the Tatars shook the heavens, frightening Li Helan so much she forgot to breathe.

This was the cruel battlefield – either you die or I live.

The carriage turned a corner, and even though Li Helan leaned half her body out the window, she couldn’t see the battle situation on the wall anymore. Yet Li Helan vaguely felt she had seen Ji Zeyu on the city gate tower.

Another fierce siege battle lasted only an hour before the Tatars retreated. This had been their pattern recently – they didn’t seem intent on directly capturing the capital, but rather on exhausting the limited supplies and energy of the capital’s defenders.

Upon receiving this news, Li Qitian was extremely anxious.

He paced back and forth alone in the Hall of Mental Cultivation. Even Xiong Jinshui, who personally attended him, didn’t dare approach, fearing that if His Majesty was displeased, he would use these eunuchs as scapegoats.

Though this place was still far from the city walls, Li Qitian seemed to hear the Tatars’ battle cries. He too was an emperor who had won his throne on horseback and had fought wars in his early years, but after years of luxury, Li Qitian had not only grown fat but had almost completely forgotten battlefield strategies. Thinking of going to war, where he once would have been excited, now filled him with strong resistance and even some revulsion.

“I only wanted to be a wise ruler. Why is it so difficult? As an emperor, why can’t I follow my own will…” Li Qitian murmured quietly. His words echoed in the room, making Xiong Jinshui and the other eunuchs all lower their heads.

Just then, a eunuch suddenly came running from outside, falling to his knees with a thud before the ornate door, his voice high and joyful: “Your Majesty, two princely armies have arrived at the south gate!”

Li Qitian was overjoyed: “Quickly, quickly, quickly! Open the city gates and let them go directly through the city to the north gate to support Ji Lan! Tell them everything should follow Ji Lan’s command!”

“Yes!” The eunuch turned and ran off stumbling.

“Heaven truly has eyes.” Li Qitian clapped his hands. He wanted to stay in the room but felt restless again: “Quick, prepare fast horses. I too want to go to the north gate to see the situation!”