Nirvana in Fire 2: The Wind Blows in Chang Lin Episode 48 Recap
> Nirvana in Fire 2: The Wind Blows in Chang Lin Recap
Under the Changlin Army banner, the royalist army grew increasingly vast. Xiao Pingjing analyzed that the emperor's life was in imminent danger, so he decided to personally lead five hundred cavalry of the vanguard to rush to Jinling City first. The purpose was to make the Changlin Army banner appear outside Jinling City as soon as possible to deter Xiao Yuanqi. In the imperial court, the young emperor sat on the imperial throne, but he was merely a symbol.
Affairs in the court no longer concerned him; the abdication and yielding to a worthy successor was nothing but a play orchestrated by Xiao Yuanqi. Just as Xiao Yuanqi was smugly about to accept the edict of abdication, a soldier burst in to report that a Changlin banner had appeared outside the city.
Xiao Yuanqi ultimately did not pick up the edict of abdication but instead sternly shouted that Xiao Pingjing was far away in Mount Langya, and there was no longer any Changlin Army in the world. Although the emperor held back from making a sound when he heard the news, tears streamed down his cheeks. Xiao Yuanqi and Di Ming rushed to the city wall.
Outside the city, the vanguard cavalry led by Xiao Pingjing lined up, and the Changlin Army banner fluttered in the wind. Di Ming frankly stated that he had never thought he would one day be an enemy of the Changlin Army, but Xiao Yuanqi declared that it was not the Changlin Army.
He clamored that the Changlin Army's organizational structure had been completely dissolved and dispersed years ago, and those below the city were merely a disorganized rabble cobbled together by Xiao Pingjing in an emergency, flying the Changlin Army banner. He ordered Di Ming to immediately lead troops out and crush this cavalry force. Xiao Pingjing and Xiao Yuanqi, once good friends, now gazed at each other from above and below the city wall.
Di Ming was confident that he could definitely eliminate Xiao Pingjing. However, Xiao Pingjing suddenly drew his bow and shot a document onto the city wall. Just as Xiao Yuanqi was about to read the document, a vast, dark mass suddenly appeared on the distant horizon. It was the main force of the royalist army summoned by Xiao Pingjing, which had arrived.
Looking from afar, countless banners and flags waved, and the dust kicked up by the men and horses obscured the sky. Xiao Yuanqi looked at the Changlin Army corps, so mighty in military appearance, completely disbelieving his eyes, exclaiming that it was impossible.
At night, Xiao Yuanqi sat at home, looking at the letter Xiao Pingjing had shot to him, and said that his meticulously planned years and his most glorious moment had been shattered by Xiao Pingjing in one blow. Xiao Pingjing only gave him three days. Di Ming advised him, saying that Xiao Pingjing relied on the prestige of his father and two generations of ancestors, while Xiao Yuanqi relied only on himself.
He also stated that when he first followed Xiao Yuanqi, he had prepared for the worst, as there was no one else left in his family; all he had was his own life. However, Xiao Yuanqi retorted that as long as he held the young emperor, he could wait for Xiao Pingjing to walk into his trap. He was certain that Xiao Pingjing would come to rescue the emperor.
Xun Feizhan asked Xiao Pingjing why he gave Xiao Yuanqi three days, as he wished he could immediately rush in and kill Xiao Yuanqi. Xiao Pingjing, however, said that the emperor was still in Xiao Yuanqi's hands, so he had to hesitate to act for fear of hurting someone innocent. He told Xun Feizhan that he planned to sneak into the imperial palace and spirit the emperor away.
Just as the two were discussing, Yue Yinchuan escaped from Jinling City amidst the chaos and arrived at Xiao Pingjing's camp. He pulled out the Imperial Seal of the Son of Heaven he carried and handed it to Xiao Pingjing. Xiao Yuanqi dispatched heavy troops to completely surround all places Xiao Pingjing had been, vowing to capture or kill him when Xiao Pingjing entered the city to take the emperor.
At the same time, Xiao Pingjing and others were also gathered around a map planning their infiltration route. Xiao Pingjing decided that only he and Xun Feizhan would sneak into the palace. Yue Yinchuan, however, reminded Xiao Pingjing that he should not personally take risks.
Xun Feizhan also said that it would not be difficult for the two of them to see the emperor, but to rescue the emperor from a city guarded by a seventy-thousand strong army was utterly impossible. Xiao Pingjing then said, "Why must we take him out of the city?" Xiao Yuanqi found the young emperor and drank with him. He stated that he could kill the emperor at any time, but he did not want to yet.
He had not expected Xiao Pingjing to be able to muster so many forces overnight, but he had guessed that Xiao Pingjing planned to rescue the emperor. So he told the emperor that Chaoyang Palace, inside and out, had been thoroughly surrounded by his troops, just waiting for Xiao Pingjing to walk into the trap. The emperor was his greatest bargaining chip and bait.
He could not prevent experts like Xun Feizhan and Xiao Pingjing from entering, but he was confident that once they entered, they would absolutely not be able to leave. Yue Yinchuan also understood Xiao Pingjing's plan. Although rescuing the emperor might be too fantastical, hiding the emperor in a place Xiao Yuanqi could not immediately find was feasible.
Moreover, although Di Ming was a brave general, the Donghu Royal Guards had no real combat experience, and their morale would certainly collapse once fighting began. He believed that within three hours, this seventy-thousand strong army would completely collapse. Xiao Pingjing left Yue Yinchuan to command his royalist army. He was confident that Xiao Yuanqi would certainly not be able to guess the place where he and Xun Feizhan were hiding. Indeed, deserters began to appear in Jinling City.
Xiao Yuanqi had all soldiers who deserted during battle beheaded and displayed to the public, and he also ordered military officers above the rank of captain to come and witness the execution. Although he curbed army desertions with swift and decisive means, he clearly knew that if things continued this way, the army he controlled would not last long. Xun Feizhan stopped Yue Yinchuan.
Yue Yinchuan frankly stated that what he opposed was not rescuing the emperor, but Xiao Pingjing going personally. After all, the emperor's life was currently in imminent danger, and if he were unfortunately killed, then in the world, only Prince of Changlin Xiao Pingjing could take the throne.
If he also died, then there would be no one in the imperial family capable of stabilizing Daliang's territory, which would inevitably lead to civil unrest in Daliang and the grievous suffering of the common people. Xun Feizhan was influenced by Yue Yinchuan's words, but Xiao Pingjing stated that when the one hundred thousand strong royalist army approached the city walls, Xiao Yuanqi had already lost.
Even without him, Xiao Pingjing, the people of the world would not let this treacherous villain off. The two then set off, dressed in black, easily infiltrating the heavily guarded imperial palace like drifting shadows. Xiao Yuanqi and Di Ming personally guarded the young emperor. Xiao Yuanqi felt that the time before dawn was too quiet; the quieter it was, the more hidden dangers there were. He felt that Xiao Pingjing should appear.
Just then, Xun Anru suddenly made a commotion wanting to commit suicide. Xiao Yuanqi immediately rushed over upon hearing the news. He persuaded Xun Anru, saying that as long as the young emperor was in his hands, he was confident he could fight Xiao Pingjing, and at the very least, secure their lives and flee far away.
Upon hearing these words, Di Ming finally understood Xiao Yuanqi's intentions, and with a cold face, he immediately turned and returned to the hall to look for the young emperor. Although Xiao Yuanqi desperately tried to persuade her, Xun Anru still believed her sins were too grave and resolutely and decisively jumped from the gate tower, committing suicide.
