Never Seen Anyone So Shameless

"Restoring the kingdom will be difficult, but not impossible," Jiang Hao said softly.

"What does the General have in mind?" Dilina Zha asked, unable to hide her urgency.

"I want to ask: how had your royal family governed Kucha before this? How much prestige did you have?" Jiang Hao asked.

Hearing this, Dilina Zha slightly lifted her chest and said, "My royal father had always loved his people. Taxes were light, and he was deeply beloved by the common folk. The people of Kucha lived prosperous, sweet lives, so naturally my royal family held great prestige in the kingdom."

"I've never understood this. Shache was originally inferior to Kucha, so how did Kucha end up being conquered by Shache in one stroke?" Jiang Hao asked, looking at the Princess.

A trace of silence flashed through the Princess's eyes. "My father was too careless. Kucha had always been a vital trade route, open to outsiders and free passage. Who could have expected Shache, far beyond the desert, to launch a surprise attack on us? They broke into the royal palace after a single battle."

"What about your soldiers? Were they all killed in battle?" Jiang Hao asked.

The Princess shook her head. "I had already fled Kucha City by then. Later, I heard that after taking control of the city, the King of Shache imprisoned the families of those generals and forced them to surrender. They could not bear to see their families destroyed, so they surrendered to the people of Shache."

Jiang Hao nodded, lightly tapping his fingers against the table. "The people of Kucha had always lived good lives. How could they possibly be willing to submit to Shache's rule? I imagine the people and the remaining troops must both harbor hostility toward the people of Shache."

"Definitely," the