Changsun Wuji, his face beaming with joy, felt out of place witnessing the somber expressions of the Skyfire Army. He thanked Wu Yong and led his men towards the granary.
Empress Changsun and the others had stayed awake all night, anticipating the end of the coup with the dawn. The tremendous explosion that ripped through the granary terrified everyone within. Several accompanying palace maids even wet themselves, yet no one blamed them for their cowardice. After all, they themselves were not much better. The sound was as if the heavens themselves were collapsing!
"Greetings to the Duke of Zhao!"
Suddenly, Empress Changsun heard the voice of the Imperial Guard outside the granary. Was her brother here? She quickly pulled up her ceremonial robes and ran out of the granary. The moment she saw Changsun Wuji, Empress Changsun's eyes reddened, but she managed to hold back her tears. The night had been a devastating blow to her.
Changle, dragging Hao Ha along, followed her out. The instant she saw Changsun Wuji, Changle threw herself into his arms and began to cry loudly.
"Wuwuwu~~~~ Uncle, there are bad people, so many bad people! They wanted to kill Lizhi, and even Prince brother!"
Changsun Wuji held Changle tightly, gently patting her back. "Alright, alright, Changle, don't cry. Those bad people have been driven away."
After comforting Changle, Changsun Wuji turned to Empress Changsun. "Empress, I have something that I must tell you. The Retired Emperor, he, the Retired Emperor has been murdered!"
Hearing this, Empress Changsun froze. Ever since Li Shimin ascended the throne, Li Yuan had rarely appeared in public, unwilling to witness Li Shimin's majesty. It made him feel inferior to his own son. However, they were still father and son, so Empress Changsun often visited on behalf of Li Shimin to pay her respects. Now, the Retired Emperor had been killed in this coup. She could already imagine how heartbroken and enraged her Erlang would be upon hearing this news. The ensuing fury would likely lead to widespread bloodshed.
"Brother, you and the other officials can make the arrangements. I am merely a woman, and it is not appropriate for me to interfere in matters of state."
Changsun Wuji nodded. "Then, will the Empress return to the palace?"
Empress Changsun looked towards Chang'an, her heart filled with lingering dread. It wasn't that she feared for her own safety, but rather she was worried about Li Chengqian and his siblings. "For the time being, I will reside here at Fang Family Village, and Chengqian and the others will stay with me."
There is a saying that the eldest brother is like a father. And another saying, no one knows a son better than his father. Therefore, Changsun Wuji could guess Empress Changsun's thoughts. "Very well, then you shall stay here. I will dispatch more men to this location."
Last night's events were not due to a lack of guards in Chang'an, but rather the interference of the Four Great Clans. Changsun Wuji only learned of this later when the various military detachments arrived at the palace. The Four Great Clans, leveraging their extensive connections, had managed to divert the commanders of the various detachments from their posts through various means. By the time they realized something was amiss, it was already too late.
Empress Changsun took up residence in the Fang residence. In the Fang residence, Chen Xuelian, Xiao Huan, and Xiao Mi were also terrified by the sounds of fighting that had continued throughout the night from the workshop. When Empress Changsun arrived, the faces of the three women were still pale.
Empress Yang, Consort Yin, and the other consorts were sent back to the palace by her. Only the princes and princesses were kept at the estate. After all, the Fang residence could not accommodate so many people. The consorts understood that even if similar incidents were to occur again, they would not be the targets of the enemy. Therefore, they returned to Chang'an under the escort of guards.
There were many matters to attend to after the battle. After returning to the palace, Changsun Wuji and the others gathered in the Liangji Hall. The first order of business was to announce the death of the Retired Emperor to the world. Such matters had to wait until Li Shimin returned, but from Shenyang to Chang'an, it was at least a ten-day journey round trip, and that was factoring in Li Shimin and his party driving back. After all, the messengers sent to Shenyang had no vehicles to use. Changsun Wuji had to ask Sun Simiao to intervene, using various medicinal materials to preserve Li Yuan's body, preventing it from decaying before Li Shimin's return.
The losses at the workshop were also tallied. Over four hundred craftsmen were lost, some found as bodies, while others were abducted by Hou Junji. Particularly, Zhao Gang's assault team suffered half their personnel lost. If Zhao Gang had not been leading a portion of the craftsmen to recruit students at the newly established Xindongfang Technical School, they might have been completely wiped out by Hou Junji!
The Fourth Battalion suffered minor losses, with only a few dozen casualties. However, the Defense Army was directly decimated. The original four companies, nearly five hundred men, could now barely muster a hundred combined. The most tragic was Shi Zhen's Second Company, with only eight survivors.
Besides personnel losses, there were also losses of materials in the workshop. Excluding the finished goods, over sixty machine tools were stolen, with nearly twenty taken. The remaining ones were all destroyed in the explosion!
Zhao Gang, arriving from the technical school with his subordinates, stared at the workshop reduced to ruins and the bodies of craftsmen being collected on the ground. He was utterly dumbfounded! The machines he had cherished like wives were all gone! And the brothers with whom he had drunk and boasted, researched technology, and worked together, so many of them were gone in an instant. With bloodshot eyes, he looked at Wu Yong. "Fourth Battalion Commander, can we rescue the brothers who were abducted?"
Wu Yong shook his head. "Those people left by boat, and we couldn't catch up. I went to the shipyard, and their losses were also significant. The people who stole the diesel engine boats didn't know how to operate them, so they went on a rampage at the shipyard, forcing those who could operate boats to come forward, promising handsome rewards. In the end, some people, either unable to bear seeing their companions killed or tempted by wealth, stepped forward and left with the ship thieves." Li Shun also had his teeth knocked out during the resistance, and now spoke with a lisp.
Upon hearing Wu Yong's words, Zhao Gang could only reluctantly accept the reality. Qi Sui walked over. "Alright, this revenge will be avenged sooner or later. Let's first think about how to report to the Marquis."
After a discussion among the three, it was decided that Lan Yue from Wu Yong's command would lead a company, and Qi Sui would find a guide from the Defense Army. Over a hundred men, riding at full gallop, would first head to Bisha City, then set sail from there to find Fang Er in Wa Country. After the personnel were finalized, they, along with the messengers sent by Changsun Wuji to report the demise in Shenyang, departed from Chang'an City that very day.