“It’s good that you’ve come.” Khan Jieli spoke with a gentle expression, walked before Li Jiancheng, and said kindly, “Many years ago, I met Your Highness. Though it was only a brief encounter, Your Highness’s bearing has remained in my mind. I originally thought Your Highness would succeed to the Tang Dynasty, but I never expected such events to occur. It truly grieves me. I hope this Khan’s arrival is not too late.”

Li Jiancheng performed a bow according to their customs and said, “The Khan extends his helping hand when I am in dire straits, which fills me with endless gratitude. This kindness from the Khan, I shall remember in my heart.”

“This Khan has always regarded the Crown Prince as a kindred friend. When a friend is in trouble, how could this Khan sit by and ignore it?” Speaking thus, he gestured for Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji to sit, then said, “We have besieged Chang’an for several days but have been unable to attack into the city. On the contrary, we lost quite a few men in the last battle, and their reinforcements are already on the way. The situation is very unfavorable to us. Does the Crown Prince have any way to make them open the city gates?”

“Chief Zhishisili mentioned this to me earlier. I’ve thought of a method that we can try with all our effort, but before that, we must first contact someone.”

Khan Jieli’s eyes brightened, and he pressed, “Who?”

Zhishisili answered from the side, “Khan, the person he wants to contact is the Great Emperor—that is, Li Yuan!”

Upon hearing this, Khan Jieli immediately showed a troubled expression, “Now that Chang’an is sealed, it’s difficult even to get messages into the city, let alone the imperial palace.”

Li Jiancheng said directly, “I know this matter greatly troubles the Khan, but to speak truthfully, without Father Emperor’s help, I cannot make them open the city gates.”

Faced with his words, Khan Jieli remained silent in contemplation, his fingers fidgeting with his sleeve, thinking about something unknown. Zhishisili walked to his side and whispered, “Khan, your subordinate remembers that we have someone in the palace…”

Jieli raised his hand to interrupt him. After another period of silence, he said, “Let the Crown Prince write down what he wants to say. This Khan will do his best to deliver it for you. As for whether it can reach Li Yuan’s ears, this Khan cannot guarantee. I hope the Crown Prince has better methods besides this. Whether or not Chang’an can be captured is not so important to this Khan, but for the Crown Prince, this is the only opportunity. I believe the Crown Prince understands this point.”

“I know. Thank you for everything the Khan has done for me. I’ll go write the letter now.” After Khan Jieli nodded, Li Jiancheng and Li Yuanji followed the attendants to their assigned tent.

After confirming no one was monitoring them outside, Li Yuanji whispered, “Although Zhishisili only said half of what he meant earlier, from the sound of it, they most likely have an inside agent in the palace.”

Li Jiancheng ground ink while saying, “Isn’t that quite good?”

“Good?” Li Yuanji shook his head repeatedly, “Elder brother, think about it—that’s the Taiji Palace, the most heavily guarded place in the entire Tang Dynasty, and yet spies have infiltrated it. Just thinking about it is frightening.”

Li Jiancheng dipped his brush in some ink and said calmly, “If we were currently in the Taiji Palace, we would naturally be afraid, but we’re not, so… what is there to fear? Besides, in such a vast palace with many people and mixed loyalties, having a few spies infiltrate is nothing strange.”

Li Yuanji said urgently, “But once we attack Chang’an, the Taiji Palace will belong to elder brother. What then?”

Li Jiancheng said lightly, “You also say ‘what then’—so we’ll worry about it then. Right now, the most urgent matter is…” His eyes turned sharp, and he said coldly, “To seize Chang’an!”

The letter was quickly written. After Khan Jieli received it, he had Li Jiancheng and his group return to their tents to wait for news. As for whether the letter was sent out and whether it reached Li Yuan’s hands, they didn’t know.

While the Türks besieged Chang’an, in the Eastern Palace, Li Shimin and his generals repeatedly discussed methods to deal with the Türks. Most generals proposed defending Chang’an and waiting for reinforcements, while only a few heated individuals suggested going out to fight a decisive battle.

“The city has sufficient grain supplies. Not to mention a mere ten-odd days—even defending for half a year or a year would be completely no problem.” Before this general finished speaking, Yin Kaishan, sitting across from him, loudly said, “What do you mean no problem? Our Tang Dynasty’s capital is being besieged by enemies, yet not one person dares to go out and fight. If this spreads, where will our Tang Dynasty’s dignity be?”

The general replied unceremoniously, “Do you think dignity is more important than the lives of officers and soldiers, more important than Chang’an’s safety?”

Yin Kaishan said angrily, “People fight for their pride, Buddhas fight for their incense. In any case, I don’t agree with cowering in the city like this.”

The general scoffed at his words, “The view of a reckless man!”

Upon hearing this, Yin Kaishan immediately stood up and said angrily, “What did you say?!”

“Enough!” Li Shimin interrupted their dispute, pinched the bridge of his nose, and said to Liu Hongji, who had remained silent, “What are your thoughts on this, sir?”

Liu Hongji raised his eyebrows and said, “Based on the current situation, staying in the city without fighting is undoubtedly safer, but… there’s one thing I’ve never been able to understand.”

“Please speak, sir.” At Li Shimin’s indication, Liu Hongji said, “According to what I know, Jieli is different from his two elder brothers. This man is cruel and tyrannical, like Xue Ju of years past, but at the same time, he’s also extremely careful and meticulous. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have received news of the Yanmen Pass massacre so late.”

“So what?” Yin Kaishan said dismissively, “Wasn’t Xue Ju defeated by His Majesty in the end? What’s so great about a mere Jieli? We’ll beat him until he flees in defeat just the same.”

Liu Hongji’s brow furrowed slightly, “General Yin seems to have forgotten the defeats you suffered at Xue Ju’s hands back then.”

Hearing this, Yin Kaishan’s old face immediately turned red, while Liu Hongji continued, “Given Jieli’s mindset, it’s impossible he doesn’t know we’re mobilizing troops. As long as we defend the city without going out, once our main forces arrive to reinforce, they’ll certainly be defeated. According to the Türk nature, since there’s no profit to be gained, they should immediately retreat and wait for the next opportunity. Yet he shows not the slightest sign of retreating. Don’t you find this strange?”

Zhangsun Wuji listened carefully to his words and said, “Now that you mention it, it is rather strange. Moreover, in these days they’ve besieged Chang’an, they haven’t challenged us to battle or attacked the city at all. It’s as if… they’re waiting for someone.”

Du Ruhui’s heart skipped a beat, and he blurted out, “Could it be that the forces they brought to attack Chang’an aren’t limited to what we’ve seen?”

Zhangsun Wuji shook his head, “Although all Türk people are soldiers, mobilizing the large army we’ve seen is also not easy. More than this… I think it’s unlikely.”

“But besides that, what else could he be waiting for? He can’t possibly be waiting for us to voluntarily open the city gates and let them in, right?” Du Ruhui’s words undoubtedly voiced everyone’s confusion. Yes, if not waiting for reinforcing armies, what else could Jieli be waiting for?