Chapter 709: Surrender (1)
Hearing the young man’s words, a middle-aged man added, "Not only that. Don’t you hear that the Wen Clan has rebelled, and the Prince Regent was assassinated! This... this is truly shocking!"
A woman swallowed hard and whispered in fear, "What will happen to us?"
When an old man heard this, he replied, "With the Feng Army and the Great General protecting us, we will be fine."
At his words, the fear and panic that shrouded the crowd slowly dissipated.
"You are right. We are the citizens of Xiqiang City. We have the Great General and the Feng Army!" a middle-aged man responded with trust in his eyes.
"That’s right!"
The moment he said this, the crowd shouted in agreement, then continued what they were doing. In less than two minutes, the streets regained their bustling energy.
As the news spread like wildfire across the western border region, Xue Ruhong and the other generals gathered for an emergency meeting.
Standing on the rooftop of the Great General’s Mansion, Feng Yi fell into deep thought. After a brief silence, he ordered, "Send someone to report this news to the Master."
At his command, a masked man in black appeared behind Feng Yi. Clasping his fists, he lowered his head and responded, "Yes, Commander."
Receiving the order, the shadow guard disappeared from the rooftop.
Looking at the peaceful but excited crowd below, Feng Yi pondered for a moment before vanishing from the rooftop.
While the common people in the western border region lived peaceful lives under the Feng Army’s protection, chaos and despair spread across the entire Central Continent.
As news of the rebellion in the Yu Empire and the destruction of the Jin Empire spread widely across the Central Continent, the Liang Empire, the Han Empire, and the ten kingdoms fell into panic.
Sitting high upon the dragon throne, the Han Emperor looked at his ministers and generals standing below.
After a long moment of silence, he finally opened his lips and asked, "Beloved subjects, do any of you have suggestions on what we should do now?"
At his question, everyone lowered their heads, praying that the Han Emperor would not notice them.
Looking at his useless ministers and generals, the Han Emperor grew furious. Pointing at them, he shouted, "Speak! Did a mouse steal your tongues?! Why is no one speaking?!"
At his outburst, the ministers and generals immediately fell to their knees.
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Clasping their hands and bowing deeply, they said in unison, "Please calm down, Your Majesty."
Hearing this, instead of calming down, the Han Emperor became even angrier.
Standing up, he paced back and forth in front of the dragon throne, asking anxiously, "Calm down?! How can Zhen calm down?!"
"Now that the Jin Empire has been destroyed by Feng Xiyan and the Prince Regent of the Yu Empire has been assassinated, it won’t be long before Feng Xiyan takes the throne!"
He stopped pacing and looked at the ministers and generals kneeling below.
Taking a deep breath, he gritted his teeth and slowly asked, "You tell me—how can Zhen remain calm in this situation?"
At his question, no one dared to make a sound. In an instant, only the Han Emperor’s heavy breathing could be heard in the spacious hall.
The Han Emperor did not truly expect an answer. Closing his eyes, he slumped back onto the dragon throne. Pinching the bridge of his nose, he let out a tired sigh.
Waving his hand, he said weakly, "Forget it. Since none of you have any suggestions, Zhen will make the decision."
Hearing this, the prime minister glanced up and cautiously asked, "Your Majesty, do you have a plan?"
The Han Emperor remained silent for a long time before saying, "Zhen will write a surrender letter and send it to Feng Xiyan."
The moment his tired voice echoed through the silent hall, the ministers and generals were stunned.
Raising his head, the prime minister hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, please reconsider!"
Hearing this, the others also said in unison, "Your Majesty, please reconsider!"
The Han Emperor snapped at them. Glaring at the ministers and generals kneeling below, he demanded, "You all want Zhen to reconsider? Fine! Then give Zhen a solution!"
Hearing this, the ministers and generals did not dare meet his eyes.
Gritting his teeth, the prime minister fell into a dilemma. After a brief moment of thought, he opened his mouth.
Before he could speak, the Han Emperor waved his hand dismissively. "Enough. Zhen had decided on this matter. All of you, leave."
Seeing that the Han Emperor had no intention of continuing the morning court, the chief eunuch announced, "The morning court is adjourned."
Leaving with no choice, the prime minister swallowed his words. Bowing his head, he and the others said in unison, "Long live the Emperor for ten thousand years."
Waving his hand, the Han Emperor dismissed everyone.
Before leaving the hall, the prime minister paused on his tracks, then turned back to look at the Han Emperor.
Seeing the middle-aged emperor sitting alone on the dragon throne, looking lonely and defeated, the prime minister could only sigh helplessly and shake his head in regret.
Left alone in the vast hall, the Han Emperor closed his eyes. A tear rolled down his cheek as he let out a shaky breath.
While the Han Emperor made this difficult decision, the Liang Emperor and his court came to the same conclusion.
Standing below the dragon throne, the great general of the Liang Empire said, "Your Majesty, our Liang Empire’s military power is no match for the Feng Army. Instead of suffering the same fate as the Jin Empire, we should consider the future generation."
Understanding his meaning, the Liang Emperor looked at his ministers and generals.
"What do you all think?" he asked calmly.
After a moment of thought, the grand chancellor stepped forward and clasped his hands.
Bowing slightly, he said, "Your Majesty, the great general is right. As long as the green hills remain, there will always be firewood to burn. If we insist on going to war against the Feng Army, the Jin Empire’s fate today will be our fate tomorrow."