"How could His Majesty possibly be missing!"
Upon hearing the news, the Empress Dowager arrived surrounded by palace maids and eunuchs.
"Perhaps he went to handle state affairs."
There was a hint of relief in the voice.
"His Majesty still works diligently even when sick, which is a blessing in disguise."
The ministers echoed, trying to say something, when a eunuch stumbled in from outside.
"The Qingzheng Hall has been emptied..."
They shouted hoarsely and fell kneeling to the ground.
"His Majesty, His Majesty has fled..."
The emperor's bedchamber was deathly silent; everyone was stunned.
"How could His Majesty flee!" the Empress Dowager was the first to recover and screamed, "Go find him again..."
Before she could finish, the eunuchs had already lifted their heads again.
"Madam, the Jade Seal is gone, the Jinyiwei are gone, Yuan Bao the eunuch is gone too, and those in the Third Prince's quarters say, the Third Prince is also missing..." they cried.
They all understood what this meant, and their hearts turned cold.
The Empress Dowager collapsed into her chair.
"Fled?" she said, "He fled with the Third Prince and left me behind... How can this be..."
That was her son, her own flesh and blood.
She bore him, raised him, and supported him to ascend the throne.
Could it be that when the Jurchen army arrived, he abandoned her and fled?
No, it's more than abandonment, it was deliberate; he made someone deceive her, saying he would come tomorrow to greet her.
Does he not know what would happen to those in the imperial palace if the Jurchen attacked?
It's not just abandoning her; he's clearly offering her up to the Jurchen.
That's her son; she is his biological mother!
The Empress Dowager sat in the chair, dazed and incredulous, her mind in chaos.
Before she could finish her mumblings, a senior eunuch let out a piercing scream.
"The emperor has fled! The Jurchen are coming again!"
The word "again" awakened the longstanding nightmare of the palace staff.
Memories of the Imperial City being overrun by the Jurchen's iron hooves flooded the entire imperial palace like a torrent.
Screams and cries echoed, plunging the entire Imperial City into chaos, the fear spreading as people fled.
...…..
...…
The blue light in the sky signaled the retreat of the night, and light typically dispels fear and gives strength, yet the faces of the generals standing on the city walls showed no improvement; they were ashen.
Soon, the city echoes with clamorous noises as countless people surge towards the city gates in all directions. Unlike the previous night when visibility was poor, the masses were heart-stoppingly visible from above now.
What was even more shocking was what they shouted.
"The emperor fled?" a general murmured, turning to look at Ning Yan beside him, "Lord Ning, is this true?"
Ning Yan was no longer an official, having left the court long ago, but everyone habitually called him 'Lord' and regarded his words as official statements.
Ning Yan's lips moved; his entire life had been guided by the path of sage learning, conducting himself with integrity, nothing ever left unspoken, yet at this moment, he truly could not utter a word.
The monarch they revered and protected, when enemy forces were at the gates, had secretly run away.
Hearts scattered and unraveled; even the emperor had fled. The feudal authority and dynasty held no remaining credibility. It would be futile for him, a non-official, or even more officials, to try to pacify the people.
What a fool, Ning Yan couldn't help but look up and sigh.
Even if you wanted to flee, you should have arranged it properly, at least ensuring no one found out, or discussed it thoroughly with the officials. When the situation truly became critical, the ministers surely would have considered the nation's interests, advising you to head south, to hide. Why flee secretly!
Truly a hopeless case.
Your so-called cleverness has destroyed a crisis that could have been overcome with unity.
The surging crowd approached the city gate, and among them were not only ordinary civilians but also quite a few officials with their families, fiercer than the civilians.
By now, the feudal authority's office was likely in chaos, unmanaged.
Worse, the capital's Imperial Guard and garrison soldiers mostly were natives of the capital, either noble offspring or local villagers. Seeing their families in the fleeing crowd, would they dare stop them?
Ning Yan watched beneath the city gate as many people ran closer.
A group of soldiers and gatekeepers shouted to block them, but they had considerably less confidence than last night; one was even grabbed by the approaching crowd.
"San'er, why are you blocking? Don't you care about your parents? Your uncle took the chance to pack away your family's dried food," a civilian shouted, "When they drive off with the carriage, will you carry your parents and escape alone?"
On hearing this, the soldier turned pale and dropped his long spear to run back into the city.
The obstruction at the city gate weakened, as everyone had family they were anxious about.
"Quickly open the city gate; it will be too late if we don't flee."
"The emperor has fled; why are you foolishly stopping us?"
The crowd grew larger, and shouts and curses grew louder. The soldiers guarding the gate retreated step by step, the wooden barricades blocking the crowd at the city gate were pushed and toppled to the side as the masses charged toward the gate.
"No, the gate must not be opened." Ning Yan shouted loudly, waving his hand at the citizens below the city wall, "The Jurchen have already approached. If we open the gates, they can't be closed in time, or spies might slip in, and the capital will be finished."
But this time, no one was listening to him anymore.
"Lord Ning, the capital is finished!"
"Even the emperor fled!"
"You liars! You want us to stay and draw the Jurchen into the city!"
"Everyone, run quickly!"
Shouts and curses erupted at the city gate.
"Open the gate! Open the gate!"
The clamor was growing louder and seemed unstoppable.
The soldiers at the gate were retreating step by step, about to collapse.
The urgent sound of horse hooves came, accompanied by the sharp crack of a whip.
"Do not open the city gate!"
At the same time, a woman's voice shouted.
Ning Yan heard the shout immediately, and a fiery figure appeared in his sight. Although the face wasn't clearly visible yet, he inexplicably loosened his clenched fist.
Indeed, there she is in the city.
The shout stopped the people, causing great anger among them.
"Who are you! Mind your own business!" Countless curses followed, surging like waves.
But the newcomer wasn't intimidated.
"I am Miss Jun." Miss Jun reined in her horse among the crowd, looking at everyone. "Do you trust me?"
Miss Jun.
Miss Jun indeed.
The people who were about to continue cursing instinctively swallowed their words, and more turned their attention.
Miss Jun did not dismount.
"I am Miss Jun," she said again, "Hear me, do not leave the city, do not open the gates, stay here."
"Miss Jun," a distraught citizen spoke, "What can staying here do? The emperor fled, the Jurchen people are breaking in, we're all going to die."
"You won't die," Miss Jun interrupted before he could finish, "You won't die if you stay here. The emperor may have fled, but the Jurchen people won't break in, none of us will die."
The number at the gate was large, the sounds were loud, yet Miss Jun spoke without straining her voice, her tone as always gentle and calm, reaching the ears of those around, inexplicably steadying them.
You won't die, the Jurchen people won't break in, she said with such certainty, so confidently.
The people stared at her, momentarily dazed.
Where does her confidence come from to reassure everyone like this?
"I am Miss Jun, trust me," Miss Jun addressed the crowd. "I never speak false words."
She is Miss Jun, she never speaks false words.
She is Miss Jun, she never speaks false words.
She claimed she could cure incurable diseases, and Jiuling Hall became renowned in the capital.
She said smallpox could be treated, and even devised remedies to curb this dire illness.
As for saying the Jurchen people can't break through, she personally faced them, rescuing the people of the three northern provinces from Jurchen hands, escorting them back safely, and leading troops to save Duke of Chengguo.
These achievements aren't fabricated, not merely proclamations from the dynasty, but witnessed and widely spoken of by the people.
It's Miss Jun indeed.
It's Miss Jun from Jiuling Hall.
Miss Jun gracefully dismounted from her horse.
"You must trust me."
She looked around at the crowd, stepping forward.
The people gradually retreated, making way.
"I will protect the city."
Miss Jun walked through the crowd towards the city gate.
"I won't let the Jurchen people break in."
She approached the gate, standing before the overturned wooden scaffold.
"I won't let you die, none of us will die."
She stood before the anxious, nervous garrison soldiers holding their long spears, turning to face everyone.
"Please trust me."
Meanwhile, at the other three gates, there were different individuals passing through the crowd, loudly stopping them.
.......
......
At the South City Gate, Fang Jinxiu, surrounded by shop's staff, rushed in, placing Jiuling Hall's sign heavily in front.
"She said she can indeed defend the city." She shouted, pointing to the sign, "You don't have to trust me, trust her! She will take responsibility for everything!"
........
..........
At the West City Gate, Seventh Chen seemed a little lacking in confidence, as Fang Jinxiu took the sign, he had nothing to present but his face.
"I, I'm Seventh Chen from Jiuling Hall," he said, "Listen to me..."
When he reached this point, seeing the eerie looks of the people in front, he swallowed hard, then reached out for a porcelain bottle.
"Look, these are pills personally made by Miss Jun from Jiuling Hall. She said these pills cure illnesses, has anyone here tried them, is it true what she said?" he shouted loudly.
The people shook their heads.
"I haven't tried them," someone loudly replied, "can't afford them."
Seventh Chen was momentarily speechless, indeed, Jiuling Hall's medicines were worth a fortune, not everyone could afford them.
"So, so you..." he stammered.
"Is Miss Jun here?" The crowd interrupted him, asking.
Seventh Chen nodded.
"Yes, she's already at the East City Gate," he announced loudly.
A mild commotion arose among the people, making Seventh Chen a bit nervous; if everyone rushed over, he wouldn't be able to hold them back.
"Did Miss Jun say she can defend the city?"
But the crowd didn't surge; instead, they remained silently standing, as querying voices arose.
Seventh Chen tightened his grip on the porcelain bottle.
"Yes!" he nodded firmly.
"How can Miss Jun manage on her own?" an elderly woman sobbed.
Seventh Chen stepped forward, looking at the old lady.
"Not, not just Miss Jun by herself!" he exclaimed with his eyes shining.
Not just Miss Jun alone? Who else is there?
.....
At the North City Gate, Manager Liu forcefully planted a large flag into the overturned wooden scaffold.
"And the Qingshan Army," he pointed at the flag waving said.