Chapter 20: Reborn as the Enemy's Heir, a Marquis (8)
A light rain pattered steadily outside. The sky hung low and gloomy. Yet to Su Chen, the weather had never felt better.
Yu Zhengde gritted his teeth. The old man's knees buckled, and he dropped heavily before Su Chen in a deep kowtow.
"Young marquis, I beg you—save Tianlu! He is my only son. I cannot stand by and watch him die!"
Yu Zhengde understood perfectly. The decision to retreat or press on did not rest with him. It rested entirely with the young man seated before him.
Su Chen's fingers tapped rhythmically against the arm of his chair—tap, tap, tap—blending with the steady drip of rain outside the tent. Each beat echoed in Yu Zhengde's chest, making his heart rise and fall in time.
The faintest trace of a smile curved Su Chen's lips. He spoke softly.
"I understand how Marquis Black Tortoise feels."
Yu Zhengde's face lit with desperate hope. Could it be—the young marquis was willing to order a withdrawal? But the next words plunged him straight into an abyss.
"Yet I also know that war is no child's game. Countless soldiers of the Heavenly Wind Kingdom have already given their lives. If we retreat so easily now, how could we ever face those who fell?"