Chapter 1042: 1043 The Farce of Ascension to the Throne

Chapter 1042: 1043 The Farce of Ascension to the Throne

 Chapter 10421043 The Farce of Ascension to the Throne

Under the congratulations of gunfire from the south of the city, Zhao Ji desperately held the enthronement ceremony the next day. Because the preparations were very hasty, the whole ceremony had a strong taste of make-shift.

Originally, there was a plan to renovate the palace, but in the end, the entire work was just about repairing the collapsed walls.

Places such as the hall that collapsed when Zhao Kai was injured were just left there indifferently, and no one asked about them at all.

Zhao Ji was really scared. What he was afraid of was nothing more than that he would be kicked out of here and lose the throne before he could ascend the throne in the imperial capital.

For him, even if he only sits on that throne for one day, it is a very happy thing, and it is also something that can make him happy for a lifetime!

So he held the ceremony without hesitation, and walked into the position that belonged to him amidst the sound of blessings and the sound of distant gunfire.

Due to the advancement of technology, cameras recorded the entire process in detail: citizens lined up to receive some moldy flour cakes and reward money, and then they gathered outside the palace as required and shouted long live the mountain in the direction of Zhao Ji.

 Then these people dispersed amidst the gunfire in the south of the city and disappeared into the streets. Only some rags hanging high in the air that could not be snatched were left floating in the wind.

Zhao Ji exercised his power as an emperor: he appointed many imperial concubines. Although most of these women were maids during his father's reign, he kept them for himself without any scruples.

Immediately afterwards, he ordered the body of the late emperor Zhao Kai to be transported out of the city and sent to the imperial mausoleum for burial. Just as the ceremony continued, news came that embarrassed everyone: Fengjiang's troops had crossed the railway to the north and had actually encircled two-thirds of the imperial capital with Zhao Jie's army in the south of the city.

Everyone was frightened by the news. Only Li Mingshun knew that this was definitely going to happen: the defense line he deployed along the railway was too hasty and there was no way to resist the attack of Fengjiang troops.

You must know that these troops are elites who have been fighting fiercely in Fengjiang City for more than half a year. They may have more experience in offensive and defensive warfare than the troops of the Tang Empire. The defense line that could stop them must be strong and thick, but in fact the northern defense line only had some trenches.

Luo Xiao, who was ready, did not delay at all. He directly dispatched his armored troops, broke through Li Mingshun's northern defense line, and then began to attack the north gate.

The Fengjiang Army with heavy artillery in place quickly destroyed a section of the city wall. Although the imperial capital's defense forces also had heavy artillery, the two sides launched a fierce artillery battle. But in the middle of Zhao Ji's enthronement ceremony, the Fengjiang Army's tanks Entered the imperial capital city.

The street fighting started, and the people in the city were completely in chaos. Countless people rushed out of the city. People crowded at the east gate and west gate completely blocked the road.

Li Mingshun, who had to quickly return to his headquarters to organize a counterattack, left Zhao Ji's enthronement ceremony, which made the entire ceremony a complete joke.

Zhao Ji did not allow the ceremony to be canceled. He gritted his teeth and ordered the ceremony to continue. Then he brought his harem and a group of waiters and guards to pretend to continue the game.

  The sound of artillery outside the city could be clearly heard. Although Fengjiang's troops were restricted to the northern area of ​​the city, in fact the entire imperial capital's defense line had completely collapsed.

The defense line Li Mingshun built based on the urban area was shaky. He originally planned to defend the outer defense line for a month, but only blocked the Fengjiang Army for less than 2 hours.

Amid the chaos, another slap in the face happened. Someone found a body in a well in the imperial city...

 Due to the popularization of the tap water system used in the Tang Empire, the imperial palace of the Great China Empire has not used the wells that were often used in the past for many years. Therefore, no one has cared about what is going on in these wells for a long time. This time, someone also discovered something in the well for no apparent reason, and called the guards before discovering the body.

Soon, the identity of the corpse was confirmed: he was Shen Chuan, the Minister of the Ministry of War of the Dahua Empire who had not been found since the melee in the imperial capital...

 Although the man has lost his shape due to soaking, his clothes and accessories are easily identifiable.

This middle-aged man, who had been serving as the Minister of War of the Great China Empire, died for the Great China Empire in his own way: he committed suicide. If he had not committed suicide, he would not have died in the palace of the Great China Empire. He died inexplicably.

He was unwilling to surrender to the Tang Empire like Chu Muzhou, and also lost all hope for the future of the Dahua Empire. So when Zhao Jie's troops appeared near the imperial capital, Shen Chuan, who already knew that the situation was over, jumped into the well himself in the chaos of Zhao Kai's death.

This incident has cast a shadow over the Zhao Ji's coronation ceremony that has become a joke: Zhao Ji insisted on carrying out the ceremony, while the new ministers below had begun to whisper and discuss how to escape from the city.

In fact, these people thought clearly: if they leave the imperial capital with their official status, they can still cheat in the local areas, but if they stay here, they can only be buried with Zhao Ji's dynasty.

On the other side, Li Mingshun, who was fretting about dispatching troops and generals in the headquarters, also learned that Shen Chuan had committed suicide and died for his country.

 He sighed, and then sat there in silence for a long time: now he felt the pressure on his shoulders that made him breathless, and he even understood Shen Chuan's thoughts.

At this moment, his troops were retreating. They had to give up block after block, trading space for time.

After all, Li Mingshun’s main force is the Imperial Guard stationed in the imperial capital, and they don’t have that much main battle equipment: Wouldn’t it be unhealthy for a city defense army to be equipped with tanks and anti-tank guns?

 But now, the Fengjiang troops have tanks participating in the battle, which suddenly highlights the shortcomings of the Great China Empire's garrison troops: they do not have so many heavy weapons, and the only number of large-caliber artillery is not enough.

 That night, another shocking news came: Zhao Jie ran away overnight!

Just when Li Mingshun wanted to take the opportunity to regain the lost ground in the south of the city, he was informed that the Fengjiang troops outside the city had occupied most of the south of the city, and the east gate was also lost that night!

Early the next morning, when Zhao Ji got up among the white and tender bodies of several women, he learned that his palace was only two or three kilometers away from the front line...

This news almost scared the new emperor to death: "General Li...then, now, what should we do now?"

Li Mingshun could only bite the bullet and replied: "Retreat, Your Majesty... before we are surrounded yet, retreat to Wangdu before making plans."

"How can that be done?" Zhao Ji subconsciously retorted: "I only ascended the throne yesterday, and today I lost the imperial capital. Wouldn't this make me the laughing stock of others?"

Li Mingshun glanced at Zhao Ji and thought to himself, do you still know that you have become a laughing stock? But he thought so in his heart, but he couldn't say it with his mouth. He could only lower his head and persuade: "Your Majesty! Keep the green hills and don't worry about running out of firewood. Stay here...your safety is..."

"I don't care what method you use! Hold on here for a month! You can't retreat! No!" Zhao Ji ordered fiercely.

 (End of this chapter)