really!
The water level below appeared to be dropping, almost at a visible rate.
In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, we had gone from the halfway point to the foot of the mountain, revealing the rocks below that had been completely eroded. In the end, there was hardly any water left at all.
This almost made Nan Ke jump for joy; he felt he had been saved.
"Haha, my son has finally come to save me!"
Nan Ke was almost in tears. It must have been his second son Nan Yu, who had cleared the waterways below, causing the river to flow away so quickly. He truly was a good son.
I haven't raised you for nothing, you've saved my life this time, the position of crown prince is yours.
"Waaaaah, thank goodness! The floodwaters have finally receded!"
"Let's hurry down the mountain, I'm about to faint from hunger, I'm going to starve to death if this continues."
"The floodwaters have finally receded; it's nothing short of a miracle!"
A group of soldiers, starving and disoriented, no longer cared about the king; they turned and ran to find something to eat. If this continued, they would all starve to death.
Forget about being a king; nothing is more important than eating right now.
"Wait!"
Just as everyone was preparing to descend the mountain, Lu Donghuchen showed no joy whatsoever; instead, he looked back with a solemn expression.
Under the puzzled gazes of the king and his entourage, he said in a deep voice, "If the second prince were to dredge the waterways, at most the river level would drop; how could there be no water at all?"
"The only possibility..."
No water?
At first, everyone dismissed it, but upon closer examination, they realized there was indeed something wrong with it.
No matter how fast the river flows, there's still some water moving around; it's impossible for it to just disappear completely. That's absolutely unrealistic.
This is definitely not a rescue operation by the second prince!
"The only possibility is that the Great Liang is coming!" Nan Ke collapsed to the ground, feeling like he had fallen from heaven to hell, utterly despairing.
My son, why haven't you come to save me yet?
Has the Great Liang arrived?
The crowd, who had just felt a glimmer of hope, suddenly turned deathly pale, their faces filled with utter despair as they stared blankly behind them.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!!!
Just then, several loud explosions rang out in the sky, shattering the tranquility.
"Drive!!!"
The next moment, a dense clatter of hooves thundered in from afar. Stepping across the waterways washed clean by the rushing current, the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry charged forward first.
"Puff!"
Seeing that familiar flag, Nan Ke couldn't help but spit out a mouthful of blood, roaring, "The people of Great Liang have come! Why aren't they my son's men?"
Waiting for hope only to be met with despair is incredibly painful, like having your heart torn apart.
The leader was none other than Zhang Liao. He charged straight towards Nan Ke's location, having already confirmed the identity of the Zhennan Dynasty's royal banner through the Net). Now, he was simply coming to their doorstep.
"Kill!"
Zhang Fei, standing beside him, roared and charged out, heading straight for the remaining several thousand men.
"Protect His Majesty!"
Lu Donghuchen gritted his teeth and headed straight for Zhang Fei.
The remaining soldiers exchanged glances, most of them dropped their weapons, and only a few hundred followed him into the fray.
"How dare you!"
Seeing that Lu Donghuchen still dared to accept the challenge, a trace of regret flashed in Zhang Fei's eyes. Such a valiant general was actually in Zhennan; it was truly Mingzhu.
He brandished his twelve-foot spear and charged straight at the enemy.
He showed no mercy from the start, unleashing a devastating blow that seemed to shatter the demoralized Lu Donghuchen with sheer force.
"Kill!" Lu Donghuchen didn't hesitate and rode up directly.
Faced with Zhang Fei's all-out attack, he dared not be careless in the slightest and parried with all his might. Even though he was prepared, he was still knocked back a few steps before he could regain his balance.
"Good!"
Zhang Fei's eyes lit up. This guy had some skills; he had actually caught his attack.
Driven by his eagerness to fight, he immediately engaged in combat with Lu Donghu. In the blink of an eye, the two had fought for more than thirty rounds before Lu Donghuchen was at a disadvantage.
He stopped what he was doing, and said with admiration, "I see you're a man of character. If you pledge allegiance to my Great Liang, I, Zhang Fei, as the former Grand Commander, will guarantee your survival!"
This is a real man who hasn't surrendered even in this desperate situation. If he were one of our own, he would definitely be the most trustworthy person.
"Hmph, don't even think about it!"
"At worst, I'll just die. I, Lu Donghuchen, have killed more than a thousand people. To die at the hands of a strongman like you is not a loss!" Lu Donghuchen snorted coldly and charged forward.
Bang!
The next moment, a sound of someone kneeling rang out, almost causing Lu Donghuchen to drop the knife from his hand.
To everyone's astonishment, Nan Ke pulled a pair of white underwear from his pocket, held it above his head, and shouted, "Stop! I, Zhennan, am willing to surrender!"
Now that things are clearly hopeless, why let more people die inside and anger the generals of Great Liang?
In this situation, it's better to surrender sooner rather than later. He had already done his research; Ase had used this trick to escape death, so he was prepared and had always kept a pair of underwear on him, which was finally proving useful.
"Your Majesty!" Lu Donghuchen closed his eyes in anguish!
While they were still fighting, His Majesty actually knelt down; this directly extinguished the last glimmer of hope.
As long as the capital still stands, there is still hope.
Nan Ke smiled bitterly, "The tide has turned, Zhennan is destined to fail. So many people have died because of me, Nan Ke, how can I bear to let Huchen die for me as well?"
"Your Majesty, our capital still stands, as do three other major cities, and the Second Prince!" Lu Donghuchen sighed.
Nan Ke sighed and remained silent.
He wasn't afraid of Lu Donghuchen's death, but rather that Lu Donghuchen's resistance would anger Zhang Liao and lead to his own death.
However, those words were too hurtful, and he was too embarrassed to say them.
Hearing their words, Zhang Fei sneered.
Others might not understand, but he, having served as the Grand Chancellor for so many days, understood a thing or two. He couldn't help but sneer, "What are you waiting for, Second Prince? According to the Net's information, your Second Prince has already ascended the throne with the support of Minister Zan Rihong!"
Strictly speaking, you are all traitors to Zhennan now, so what's with all this talk of hope and hope!
"What?"
Upon hearing this, Nan Ke and Lu Donghuchen changed simultaneously. They stared at Zhang Fei in disbelief and exclaimed, "How is this possible? Zan Rihong was also trapped by you. How did he get back?"
"It's said he hid inside a wine barrel, was carried downstream by the current, and returned to Zhennan Capital the next day," Zhang Fei said with a strange expression.
To be honest, he also found it outrageous, but that's the information from Net, so it seemed very real.
It can only be said that evil deeds live on for a thousand years!
Nan Ke was completely dumbfounded.
He was still waiting for his second son to rescue him, but Nan Yu actually ascended the throne with Zan Rihong's support. He gritted his teeth and said, "What a second prince! I, the king, am still here!"