Chapter 1015 – Surrender Might Be Better (Part 2)
The Seventh Prince spoke gloomily, “We’ve been captured by the Liu Thief… now we’re her prisoners…”
He was gravely injured, the arrow wound on his shoulder festering with dirt. If left untreated, it could turn gangrenous.
The Eighth Prince felt a jolt in his heart, seemingly unable to believe this reality.
“We’ve been captured?”
He was no fool; falling into enemy hands meant a grim fate.
The Seventh Prince nodded heavily, “Yes.”
“In that case…” the Eighth Prince anxiously pressed, “Is there any news from the Northern Border Royal Court?”
Both he and the Seventh Prince were princes of the Royal Court, representing its dignity and authority. If they were humiliated, the Royal Court would lose face as well.
The Royal Court wouldn’t permit the enemy to insult them; they would surely send someone to negotiate with the Liu Thief, agreeing on terms for their exchange.
The Seventh Prince was aware of the Eighth Prince’s thoughts and slowly shook his head, dashing his hopes. He said dismally, “The Liu Thief hasn’t shown any intention of meeting us, and with Old Sixth calling the shots, he’d prefer us dead. Why would he send someone to rescue us?”
The Seventh Prince had unwittingly supported the Eighth Prince without any expectations, as the latter was a strong contender for Dai Wang.
The two of them were a thorn in Old Sixth’s side—there was no way he would relinquish his advantage to save them.
Little did they know, chaos was erupting within the Royal Court.
Old Sixth hadn’t slept in two days, terrified that if he closed his eyes, the enemy would break through the royal city and storm into the court.
His nerves were frayed from the lack of sleep, and the incessant chatter of the ministers below was giving him a headache.
“Yap yap yap—other than making noise, is there anyone who can help me out here?”
Old Sixth exploded, his voice laced with rage forcing the ministers into momentary silence, too frightened to speak.
“You! Step forward!” Old Sixth randomly pointed at a minister. “If you can’t give me a proper report, I’ll take your life!”
The ministers fell silent as chickens, none daring to be the scapegoat.
Only Old Sixth’s father-in-law had the guts to step up, being a pro-war faction, wanting vengeance for their only son who had died on the battlefield.
Old Sixth felt a bit guilty facing his father-in-law, so he struggled to control his temper and patiently listened to him.
The father-in-law had only one core message throughout — War!
Yet he didn’t mention strategy or planning, coming off as a brute with only muscles in his head.
War?
What are we going to use for war?
Are we going to hit the Liu Thief with our heads?
They were already cornered in the royal city, feeling as helpless as a turtle, morale at an all-time low, incapable of fighting back.
Old Sixth suppressed the urge to spit blood in frustration while trying to put on a calm front for his father-in-law; he still needed his support.
“A report for Dai Wang—the enemy shot an arrow from outside, with a letter from the Liu Thief.”
Old Sixth perked up, quickly saying, “Read it aloud, let’s see what it says.”
There were few in the Northern Border who understood the Han language, so the letter was eventually passed to the Third Prince to read on behalf of everyone.
The Third Prince opened the letter, his face darkening like ink, as if he was choking on something, unable to read a single word.
“Old Third—are you also defying this king’s command?”
Old Sixth’s temper flared, his anger causing him to breathe heavily, his chest heaving like a bull.
The Third Prince hesitated, then forced himself to read the contents aloud.
The Seventh and Eighth Princes had become prisoners of the Liu Thief, and if the Northern Border Royal Court wanted to redeem them, they must open the city and surrender—if they surrendered, the Royal Court would also be reduced to prisoners—if they agreed to these terms, she would only clean out the Royal Court and spare the other noble families.
This was Jiang Pengji’s ultimatum, and if the Northern Border remained ungrateful, she would show no mercy.
“Get out—everyone get out—” Old Sixth lost control, leaping from his throne, striding furiously toward the Third Prince to snatch the letter from his hands, ripping it into shreds in just a few motions. “Who does that Liu Xi think she is to threaten us like this?!”
The Northern Border Royal Court was the most noble lineage of the Northern Border.
According to the family records, they were descendants of the deities worshipped by the Northern Border, with an incredibly noble bloodline.
Don’t think that only the families of the Central Plains value their bloodlines; the Northern Border tribes care even more about them.
The Northern Border Royal Court was composed of divine offspring, born to command the earthly beings; how could mere mortals think they could dictate their lives?
Absurd!
However, invoking divine ancestry was, to put it straightforwardly, just a way to flatter themselves.
If not, how could they overpower other families in the Northern Border to become the royal family?
The Third Prince observed Old Sixth’s furious state and coldly asked, “If we don’t agree, what will happen to Old Seventh and Old Eighth?”
Old Sixth furiously drew his dagger and pointed it at the Third Prince, saying, “I am Dai Wang; you are merely subjects. If you don’t relieve me of my worries, how dare you question my intentions? Useless—you’re all useless—what good are you to me?”
The Third Prince observed him with cold eyes, knowing that his brother was nearly driven to madness.
The court was a mess, the ministers squabbling without a coherent idea.
The next day, a mobile arrow tower was pushed to within a few hundred steps of the royal city, atop it were two barely conscious figures.
Of course, it was the barely alive Seventh Prince and Eighth Prince.
They wore cloths around their necks with bold, provocative lettering.
One read—[The Day of the Two Princes’ Execution]
The other read—[The Day We Break the City and Decapitate You All]
The end of the letter displayed the emblem of the Liu Clan, radiating arrogance.
The guards on the city wall saw this and were so scared they almost fell over, quickly relaying the news back to the royal court.
Old Sixth sat in a daze, his face growing darker by the minute, and the squabbling ministers failed to bring him back to his senses.
“Dai Wang, the Old Minister is willing to lead a charge.”
“…Rather than suffering humiliation, it’d be better to reorganize and break out to fight the Liu Thief to the death!”
His father-in-law was single-minded in avenging his son, the only heir of the family line.
Now that his sole son was dead, he felt like he’d lost everything; rather than living in humiliation, it was better to fight and die honorably.
The father-in-law was ready to fight to the death for the royal family, but other nobles were reluctant.
Why die when you can live?
What is pride worth?
They didn’t care about honor, integrity, or loyalty.
As long as they survived, they could continue enjoying riches; it was merely a change of allegiance.
If surrender could save their lives, why would they bury themselves along with the royal family?
“How about—just surrender—” a certain old minister spoke timidly, his voice low but catching everyone’s attention as he gathered courage. “Right now, the Liu Thief is riding high; breaking the city is only a matter of time. Rather than increasing casualties, it’d be better to surrender early—”
Before he finished speaking, a flash of white light zipped through the air, and he felt a chill around his neck, warm blood splattering everywhere.
The Third Prince sheathed his dagger, his expression dark. “Surrendering before fighting—are you still men of the resolute Northern Border?”
If only Wu Libai were still here, he would certainly fight to the last; how could anyone even think of bowing down to their enemies?
