gnovel Chapter 072: All-Out Attack
Chapter 072: All-Out Attack
The study was quiet for a moment.
"Therefore, Xiao Jinluo will not be in danger for the time being, and Qin Hui will not make any move to restrain Xiao Bieli."
Qin Keqing pointed her finger at the location of the Dali Temple on the map. "But the deputy commander of the Imperial Guard is different. He knows the intelligence network structure in the city. Once he speaks, all the dead letter drop points will be wiped out in blood."
"The deputy commander of the Imperial Guard won't speak," Liu An suddenly said, as if he had already confirmed it.
"How did you know?" Xin Qizong asked.
"Manager Wang tested him when he was in Xiuzhou." Liu An's voice was not loud. "Manager Wang deliberately left a false intelligence report in the tea shop, which contained a very subtle flaw."
If the deputy commander of the Imperial Guards were Qin Hui's man, this false intelligence would have appeared on the Imperial City Guard's desk the next day, but it didn't—it returned to me intact.
What does this mean?
"This shows that he never intended to betray us from the beginning. A person who never sold us out when we were at our poorest and hungriest wouldn't talk in the interrogation room."
Liu An spoke in a calm tone, but his grip on the hilt of the knife was noticeably tighter.
Zhao Bozong nodded. "The second thing is, what do we still have on hand?"
Xin Qizong spoke first: "The 36-man rapid response team from the old camp in the southern suburbs has completed the first phase of the fire alarm line modification and assistance mission, and their light crossbows and wooden swords are ready."
Jiao Qiong's valiant patrol team is taking the route at the second quarter of the night. If anything changes in the city, they can reach the outer perimeter of Beiwa within the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, following the official road of Houchao Gate.
Qin Keqing thought for a moment and continued, "Four of the seven dead message drop-off points in the city have been suspended, and I activated the dead point change route for the remaining three last night—only receiving messages, not sending them."
Each delivery point was staffed with messengers newly transferred from Xiuzhou. These messengers had never met the old codgers and were unfamiliar with the old routes; even if they were arrested, they wouldn't be able to provide any useful information.
"What about Xiuzhou and Zhenjiang?" Zhao Bocong asked.
"Manager Wang has burned all the contact records of the Xiuzhou clan's branch offices, but he has kept a list of seven households that are willing to come forward if necessary."
In Jinbao, Li Bao's three teams have dispersed into the fishing village and will not engage in any water activities for ten days.
Then it was Feng Yi's turn. The old eunuch took out a palace duty roster from his sleeve and spread it on the table. "Consort Wei already knows about the Dali Temple's affairs. Last night, she sent Zhang Quwei to deliver a message—"
He paused, looking at Zhao Bocong.
"The eight words I uttered at the Imperial Ancestral Temple were not said only once."
Everyone in the study fell silent.
The eight words spoken by the Empress Dowager were: "Serve the country with utmost loyalty, as clear as day and night."
When she said those words, it might have been for the winter solstice ritual, or it might have simply been a prayer for a loyal minister.
But now she says "it's not just a one-time thing," which means she's ready to make a public statement.
When an empress dowager expresses her support for overturning the verdict, those in the court who are still observing will immediately receive a signal.
Zhao Bozong remained silent for a few moments, then turned to Yuwen Xu. "Mr. Yuwen, how is the modification of the fire alarm bell progressing?"
"The first section of the bell line from the Observatory to Deshou Palace and then to the East Watchtower of the old camp in the southern suburbs has been completed and tested once. It was rung at noon yesterday and no abnormalities were found at the Observatory."
Yuwen Xu lowered his voice, "The second section of the bell line from Deshou Palace to the outskirts of Dali Temple is being erected, and it will take at least three days."
"Three days is too long, two days is fine."
"Your Highness," Yuwen Xu's voice was somewhat urgent, "to set up the bell, we need to go into that abandoned watchtower outside the Dali Temple. That tower is inside the Imperial City Guard's control area, and my men need to sneak around at night—"
"Feng Yi." Zhao Bozong turned to Feng Yi, "Tomorrow, Cining Palace will send a batch of winter clothing and bedding to Dali Temple. It was given by the Empress Dowager to the prisoners awaiting trial. The vehicles transporting the clothing and bedding will enter the Dali Temple prison area."
Feng Yi's eyes lit up. "Your Highness means—"
"The clothing and bedding cart contained not only clothing and bedding, but also the smallest parts of Mr. Yuwen's modified copper bell, which were disassembled into the core of the cotton quilt and transported into the outer watchtower of Dali Temple."
Feng Yi, arrange for a eunuch to accompany you to the Dali Temple in the name of the Cining Palace. During the handover of clothes and bedding, have him enter the second floor of the watchtower, where the north window faces the Dali Temple prison wall.
After listening, Yuwen Xu remained silent for a moment, then folded the bell distribution diagram on the table and put it into his pocket.
"Two days later, at noon, I will use the outer bell line of Dali Temple to send the first test signal."
Next, Zhao Bocong had to deal with Xiao Bieli.
Liu An stated the information he had: "Xiao Bieli disappeared in Wazi Lane last night and did not leave the city. The guards at Houchao Gate have not seen anyone matching his characteristics leave, so he should still be inside the city, but his location is unknown."
Xin Qizong slowly stroked his beard. "I had heard of this person back in the army. He was originally from Xihe and later transferred to Yue Fei's command as a vanguard."
"In the tenth year of Shaoxing, I heard that he was the first Song soldier to see the walls of Bianjing. A man like that wouldn't abandon his sister and flee alone."
"Yes, he didn't leave the city," Zhao Bocong said. "He's probably somewhere preparing to storm the Dali Temple alone."
General Xin, you now send a rapid response team, three people per team, to search along the three main alleys surrounding the Dali Temple.
After finding Xiao Bieli, do not act or shout; you must subdue him before he rushes in.
Then he looked at Qin Keqing.
Qin Keqing was the only one among them who did not speak.
"Miss Qin, things could change at any time in the next two days. You need to ensure that communication between Lin'an and Zhenjiang is smooth. Jinbao and Libao's troops should be on standby from now on."
"Understood." Qin Keqing wrote down the final instructions in the booklet.
After the meeting ended, everyone left the study one after another. When Qin Keqing reached the door, she suddenly stopped and looked back at Zhao Bocong.
"Your Highness, my father has captured the deputy commander of the Imperial Guard and Xiao Jinluo, but so far all his attacks have been on the periphery. He's working on your lines, but hasn't yet struck at your heart. I know him; he's been waiting for the perfect opportunity to deliver a fatal blow."
Qin Keqing paused for a moment and whispered her instructions.
"Your Highness, please be careful."
Then he turned and walked out of the study.
Zhao Bozong sat alone at his desk, flattening out the bell distribution diagram on the table again.
The map shows a section of the outer ring road from Cining Palace to Dali Temple marked with a dotted line, indicating that the project is still under construction and will be completed in just two days.
Once the bell line is connected, the hidden bell tongue of the Observatory can strike the predetermined rhythm outside the Dali Temple.
Yuwen Xu's code can transmit the simplest instructions: retreat, attack, wait, or incident.
But the prerequisite is that no more accidents happen in the next two days.
But Zhao Bocong also knew very well that Qin Hui would not wait or give him enough time.
This prime minister, who held the Imperial City Guard and was in charge of the Three Provinces and Six Ministries, never started his campaigns from a single point.
He simultaneously captured the deputy commander of the Imperial Guard and Xiao Jinluo. This seemingly haphazard approach was actually a process of calibrating his aim with every move, targeting only one specific enemy.
That was Prince Puan himself.