Tang Dynasty Mingyue Song Dynasty Pass

Chapter 808 A Farce

When Liu Xiong took a short rest and came out of the tent, he saw few people on the river beach and only a few scattered torches swaying in the night.

He bent down to pick up the torch, and with its faint light, he looked out at the vast river. He saw that the river was empty, and the scene of boats coming and going in the past was no longer there, along with the figures of the officers and soldiers, which had disappeared into the depths of the night.

"Where is my ship? Could it have evaporated into thin air?" Liu Xiong shouted loudly, but only the echo remained in the empty space with no one answering.

At this time, six or seven concubines and several palace maids walked slowly over. They were all dumbfounded when they saw this. The ship disappeared, and the gold, silver and jewels it was loaded with also disappeared. Even the only way of retreat seemed to be swallowed up by the night.

"This...what kind of sudden change has happened?" The concubines looked at each other, their hearts filled with horror.

"Could they have the audacity to escape secretly and take away our jewels?" Several concubines were almost out of control, their voices filled with despair and anger.

Liu Xiong was furious and continued to roar, "Gong Chengshu! You traitor, show up immediately and give me an explanation!"

However, the only response he got was the low hum of the night wind, and Gong Chengshu had long disappeared without a trace.

Just when everyone was in doubt, a faint whimpering sound was faintly heard. Gong Chengshu led several concubines and carefully followed the sound. Finally, they found something unusual behind a pile of miscellaneous items near a ferry.

There, dozens of people were tied up tightly, including guards, officials and palace maids, and strips of cloth were stuffed into everyone's mouth to prevent them from calling for help.

In front of these helpless captives, there were some dead bodies of guards lying on the ground, who had obviously been brutally murdered.

Liu Xiong signaled the palace maids to come forward and untie them one by one, pulling these survivors back from the brink of death.

"What exactly happened?" Liu Xiong asked anxiously.

"Your Majesty, something terrible has happened!" A guard who had been rescued reported in a trembling voice, "Gong Chengshu colluded with Commander Zhang of the Imperial Guards. They fled together on a boat and tied us up here. Some people tried to resist, but they killed them all."

"Moreover, the guards surrounding His Majesty's tent just now were all arranged by Gong Chengshu. They have cut off all contact with the outside world." Another official added.

"So that's how it is! Gong Chengshu, you are such a heartless person, I actually trusted a eunuch like you!" Upon hearing this, Liu Xiong was furious. He hated Gong Chengshu's betrayal so much that he cursed him.

Over the years, Liu Xuan had trusted Gong Chengshu and regarded him not only as a powerful official, but also as a favorite official. He granted him great power and made Gong Chengshu enjoy wealth and glory. However, at this critical moment of life and death, Gong Chengshu betrayed him and took away all his wealth, including precious gold, silver and jewelry, and even left no ship.

At this moment, Liu Xiong's heart was filled with regret and anger, but what could he do in the face of this sudden change?

"Your Majesty, what should we do?" Several concubines were extremely anxious, with tears welling up in their eyes. They were well aware of their current predicament - the palace was reduced to ashes, the treasures were looted, and now they were left with nothing.

Outside the city, dangers were lurking on every side. Although the nearly 200,000 Wu troops were not approaching immediately, once the scouts learned the news and sent cavalry to stop them, the consequences would be disastrous.

"Go back to the city, we must go back to the city!" Liu Xiong knew that he had no choice at this moment. Outside the city, he would either surrender or starve to death in the wilderness, because even the most basic food was hard to find. At least back in the city, he would still be the king, holding great power, and there was still a possibility of making a comeback and regaining wealth.

There were still 30,000 guards in the city that he could deploy, which was his last resort. Liu Xiong gave an order, and everyone nodded. In the current situation, the only way out was to return to Prince Xing's Palace.

During the journey, everyone was feeling anxious and angry. Some people cursed Gong Chengshu and his ancestors, as well as the imperial guards and eunuchs who left with him.

Their betrayal filled this group of people with endless hatred and resentment.

They had to travel dozens of miles back home, supported only by a few skinny horses. When they arrived at the gate of Prince Xing's mansion, the sky was already turning pale, but the gate was tightly closed because everyone in the city was afraid of an attack by the Wu army and were ready for battle.

Liu Xiong took out his golden waist badge and revealed his identity before he was allowed to enter the city. However, the palace had become a ruin and could no longer be used as a shelter, so he had to choose a royal garden to rest temporarily and sent eunuchs to quickly summon ministers and General Zhi to come.

Soon, Zhi Tingxiao, Guo Chongyue, You Pushe Xiao Yi, Zhongshu Sheren Zhuo Weixiu and other ministers hurried over.

"Your Majesty, why are you here? Didn't we hear that you left the city in the middle of the night and burned down the palace?" Everyone looked at each other, their surprise evident in words.

The officials in the city were already scattered, each with their own thoughts. Some were about to flee with their families, but were suddenly summoned, and they felt mixed emotions. At this moment, they looked at Liu Xiong in front of them, with doubts, helplessness and sadness in their hearts. After all, the country was in turmoil.

"I really had no choice. Last night, Gong Chengshu, a traitor, dared to lead his people to kidnap me and my concubines, looting countless gold, silver and jewelry. He even set the palace on fire and took me to the river. Fortunately, in the middle of the night, they were eager to board the boat and escape, so I took the opportunity to escape with others."

With these words, Liu Xiong cleverly packaged his absurd behavior last night as that of an innocent victim being held hostage. In this way, he not only preserved the emperor's dignity and image, but also put all the responsibility on Gong Chengshu.

Anyway, what Gong Chengshu did was a betrayal, so it was not wrong to say that he was wronged. So, Gong Chengshu became the culprit of the farce last night.

When the generals and ministers heard that this was done by the favorite minister Gong Chengshu, they were all dumbfounded and couldn't believe it.

"Gong Chengshu is a traitor and a national traitor!" a minister said indignantly.

"I have long seen that he seems to have rebellious intentions, but I did not expect that he would actually do such a treasonous act!" Another minister gritted his teeth.

"Gong Chengshu should be torn into pieces to serve as a warning to others!" The ministers denounced angrily, feeling extremely indignant at Gong Chengshu's betrayal.

Seeing his ministers getting emotional and scolding Gong Chengshu, Liu Xiong secretly felt lucky that he had successfully diverted the conflict. He knew very well that if he could not stabilize the army's morale at this time, the city would be in chaos.

"Let's not talk about the guilty minister Gong Chengshu for now!" Liu Xiong said in a deep voice, "At present, the Wu army of 200,000 is approaching. The disparity in strength between our troops in the city makes it difficult to resist. Xiao Qing and Zhuo Qing, you two should quickly prepare a surrender letter and follow me to the Wu army camp outside the city. I have made up my mind and am willing to surrender to save the lives of the people in the city."

As soon as these words came out, all the ministers were in an uproar. Surrendering to the Wu army meant the end of the Southern Han Dynasty. Although they were unwilling to do so, they had no other choice in the face of such a desperate situation. Xiao Yi and Zhuo Weixiu looked at each other, accepted the order and left, preparing to surrender.

Although Liu Xiong's move was to protect the people in the city and the remaining troops, surrender was ultimately a helpless choice for him as the king of a country.

He felt mixed emotions, anger at Gong Chengshu's betrayal and helplessness at the fall of the Southern Han Dynasty.

However, at this critical moment of life and death, he could only make the most realistic choice, at least to save his life.