Imperial warlords: Cannons are the only truth

The capital city—the Imperial Palace, Chengtian Hall.

"Your Majesty, the capital's defenses are impregnable, and we still have 20 troops ready to fight. It will be no easy task for Zhuo Yongwang and his ilk to breach the capital."

Tian Chengbi, who had been appointed as the Grand Chancellor of the Great Qian Dynasty, looked at Xie Kangnian, who had a gloomy face, and comforted him, saying, "Moreover, the armies from all over the country are converging on the capital. As long as we keep Zhuo Yongwang outside the city, the situation can be reversed once the armies arrive!"

"A comeback? Armies from all sides coming to the rescue?"

Sitting on the dragon throne, Xie Kangnian gave a self-deprecating, bitter laugh: "Does anyone believe that?"

"Chengbi, do you even believe it yourself?"

"If those people were truly loyal to the emperor and wanted to protect him, how could Zhuo Yongwang's army have reached the capital in such a short time!"

"These bastards! They're all ungrateful wretches!"

"Seeing the situation was turning against them, they found a way out for themselves—if these bastards hadn't deliberately let Zhuo Yongwang pass and defected at the last minute, how could the battle have deteriorated so quickly......................."

Xie Kangnian gritted his teeth and said, "It really proves the saying—when the tree falls, the monkeys scatter!"

"The ridiculous thing is that—I haven't even fallen yet, and they're already eager to kick me when I'm down."

"The current situation is truly due to my misplaced trust in these treacherous and wicked men!"

"Cough cough cough................"

When he got excited, Xie Kangnian couldn't help but cough violently.

"Treachery and wickedness ruin the country! Treachery and wickedness ruin the country..."

Xie Kangnian's angry curses echoed throughout the entire Chengtian Hall.

It's no wonder Xie Kangnian was so angry—at least eight of his twelve most trusted military governors had quickly made connections with Zhuo Yongwang.

Although these people have not yet openly rebelled against the Xie faction, their actions have already shown their stance—in the face of more than a dozen telegrams of support from the capital every day, they have resorted to refusing to move forward and deliberately delaying.

Two others even defected on the spot and joined the anti-rebel army!

As for the other warlords who were affiliated with Xie's faction, they didn't need to be mentioned. They immediately switched sides when they saw that the situation was not going well.

Now, only Dong Ziming and Du Xinghuai are leading their troops back to reinforce the capital.

Dong Ziming and Du Xinghuai's troops numbered approximately 140,000.

Xie Kangnian's elite Royal Guard still numbers 6.

These 200,000 troops were Xie Kangnian's last trump card.

But the only force they could really rely on was probably the Royal Guard directly under Xie Kangnian's control.

Heaven knows whether Dong Ziming and Du Xinghuai will be turned by Zhuo Yongwang...

Therefore, Xie Kangnian arranged for Dong Ziming and Du Xinghuai's troops to be stationed on the outer perimeter of the capital.

However, seeing the formation Zhuo Yongwang had set up outside the city and the current predicament, Xie Kangnian had actually lost confidence in defending the capital.

He knew that, in this special period, foreigners were definitely unreliable.

It was no longer possible to hold the capital and wait for external forces to intervene and mediate.

Therefore, Xie Kangnian's dream of becoming emperor had actually entered its countdown.

Although the Georgian Embassy in Beijing privately expressed its willingness to provide Xie Kangnian with appropriate asylum if necessary.

However, Xie Kangnian was very clear in his heart—once Zhuo Yongwang entered the capital, even if he hid in the Gelian embassy, ​​it would probably be of no use...

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After venting his anger, Xie Kangnian slumped dejectedly on the dragon throne.

The atmosphere in the entire Chengtian Hall was oppressive and quiet...

It seems that Xie Kangnian's reign as emperor will not last more than nine months.

Just when everyone was feeling suffocated by the oppressive atmosphere.

The sound of cannon fire could be heard outside the palace.

Clearly, this must be an artillery attack launched by enemy forces outside the city against the capital...................

It is said that Zhuo Yongwang assembled over a thousand cannons outside the capital city.

The scene and momentum of thousands of cannons firing at once was indeed spectacular!

Listening to the continuous roar of cannons outside, and looking at the panicked ministers, Xie Kangnian couldn't help but give a self-deprecating bitter smile.

"Alright, everyone, go on your way..."

Xie Kangnian waved his hand weakly at everyone: "I want to be alone for a while."

Upon hearing this, everyone felt as if they had been granted a pardon, and without further hesitation, they immediately turned around and dispersed.

"Your Majesty! You............." Tian Chengbi looked at Xie Kangnian, who had aged considerably in an instant, and for a moment he didn't know what to say.

"Chengbi, you should leave too."

Xie Kangnian waved his hand again: "Take the imperial token I gave you and tell Gao Shengwu and the others—there's no need to fight anymore."

"Even if we wipe out the entire Royal Guard, it will be pointless."

"Zhuo Yongwang came for me, they shouldn't make things difficult for you."

Xie Kangnian's two sons had been secretly sent out of Daqian more than a month ago.

Therefore, Xie Kangnian has nothing to worry about now.

At this point, Xie Kangnian, who was at his wit's end, had a change of heart—he had enjoyed a long period of glory in his life, and at the end, he had even had more than eight months of being an emperor.

So, dying wasn't a bad thing...

"Your Majesty! As long as we're alive, we can always rebuild!"

Tian Chengbi reassured him, "Letting the Imperial Guards cover His Majesty's breakout might offer a glimmer of hope, perhaps in the future..."

"It's impossible now. The capital is completely besieged, and so many opportunists have switched sides. Where can I possibly break through to?"

"The people's hearts have been scattered, so how can we talk about making a comeback!"

"I'm done with this..."

Xie Kangnian shook his head slightly, his face full of self-mockery: "You should leave now."

"Delay brings change."

"Don't delay any longer..."

"If this continues, I'm afraid even the Royal Guard might be affected."

"If you surrender willingly, we might offer you a way to survive..."