Chapter 67 - 61: Affection and Loyalty
Mr. Chen said, "The Xiongnu’s massive army will not head south; they will probably plunder in the Luoyang area and then leave."
He continued, "Prince East Sea’s army is not to be trifled with. Once his army returns for defense, the Xiongnu army will naturally retreat, and there’s also the army of Prince Nanyang."
Zhao Hanzhang pondered, "In this case, Your Majesty and the others will soon return to Luoyang."
Mr. Chen sighed, "Yes, once the army returns for defense and the reinforcements from various regions head to the capital, we can return to Luoyang. It could be as short as two or three months or as long as a year."
Next to him, Chen Erniang couldn’t understand, "Father, since Prince East Sea will return in at most a year, why are we going through so much trouble to flee?"
"Don’t speak nonsense, if we don’t flee, in a year we’ll all be skeletons."
Currently, Luoyang’s gates are wide open, and armies from three routes are swarming in. Whether it’s the armies of the Qiang Hu or the Xiongnu, their goal is to plunder wealth. If they can capture or kill the emperor, all the better. If not, looting once in Luoyang City and the Imperial Palace is still worthwhile.
Even the Jingzhao County’s government forces are likely entertaining thoughts of the same.
Staying in Luoyang offers a slim chance of preserving their lives; at best, they’ll only be robbed of their possessions, and at worst, they could face massacre of their clan or the entire city. So if you can run, you run.
Zhao Hanzhang has limited sources of information. As the head of the family, Mr. Chen had access to more information, and she warmly kept him around with plans to invite him for dinner.