knife

Chapter 475 Hope
"What are the conditions?" Ren Duobao asked, looking at Xi Fengke.

Xi Feng shook his head.

Rendobo blinked, not understanding what the other person meant.

After a long pause, Xi Feng said, "Submission can preserve the lives and property of the clan. The direct descendants of the Renduo clan can choose to settle in one of the following cities: Baoping City, Tai'an City, or Zhenwu City. The next generation of the Renduo clan can serve as officials through the formal selection process of the Northern Court."

"that's it?"

"that's it!"

"What about our territory and our people?" Rendobao asked loudly.

"Under the whole heaven, all land belongs to the king; on the shores of the land, all people are subjects of the king." Xi Fengke said, "This is what that man from Beiting named Mao Daxian told me."

"This is outrageous!" Rendobo slammed his fist on the table and stood up. "What if I don't want to?"

“Brother, when I arrived, the Eagle Bandits of Guanshan were already mustering their troops. Their destination is Changgan Mountain!” Xi Fengke said, “Along with them is an entire heavy infantry force from the Zhechong Prefecture. Surrender or perish! This is the choice the Northern Court is giving you; there is no third option!”

Eagle thief!

Ren Duo sat back down with a thud.

He had fought against the Eagle Bandits before, so he was quite familiar with them.

He subconsciously touched his ear; the missing half was the work of the eagle thief.

Back then, even the powerful Rendo clan was no match for the Eagle Bandits, let alone now that he has become a phoenix with its feathers plucked and a tiger descending from the mountain.

"Let me think, let me think!" he murmured to himself.

"The Great Yuan is dead!" Xi Fengke sighed deeply. "I saw with my own eyes Jebe die in battle, Akdun surrender, and thousands of Yuan warriors lay down their weapons, like a flock of docile sheep locked in the camp awaiting the enemy's disposal!"

"Do you know anything about the Second Prince?" Ren Kebao asked.

"His Highness is besieged in Qingtongxia City. His attempts to break out have been repeatedly thwarted. Now, with no food or reinforcements, he won't last many more days!" Xi Feng sighed deeply. "Brother, make a decision soon. Beiting implements a military system where soldiers aren't paid. Their income comes entirely from war spoils. Therefore, the lowest-ranking officers and soldiers are extremely eager for war. If they arrive before you respond, the war will begin immediately. At that point, even the Beiting Protectorate won't call a halt. They can't afford to disappoint their men. Then, you will lose even more!"

"How did our Great Yuan Dynasty fall to this state?" Ren Duobao looked at Xi Fengkedai across from him, covered his face with his hands, and his voice was choked with emotion.

Xi Feng slumped in his chair, silently staring at the ceiling.

Yes, how could the mighty Yuan Dynasty have fallen to this state in just a few years?

The Beiting Protectorate's intentions were clear: if these people surrendered, their wealth could be preserved, but this wealth would only be limited to disposable assets such as gold, silver, cattle, and sheep. As for their land and people, these would be confiscated.

They could choose where to live, but they could only become wealthy recluses.

In theory, their next generation could re-enter officialdom through examinations, but the selection systems on both sides are completely different. How could their descendants possibly adapt to the selection model of the Beiting Protectorate in a short period of time?

Therefore, it will be at least the grandchildren's generation before they will have a real chance to enter officialdom.

After decades of decline, when they finally had the chance to re-enter officialdom, they could only struggle step by step from the bottom up. Restoring their ancestors' glory was truly an impossible task.

But what can we do?

At least we can survive.

At least it gave you hope.

Rendobo knew that calling it a choice was less accurate than calling it an ultimatum.

A day later, Rendo Bao followed Xifeng Kedai out of Changgan Mountain.

With the surrender of Renduobao, all the most influential families in the Yuan Dynasty surrendered to the Beiting Protectorate. As for the rest, it was more or less possible to expect them to be settled by issuing a proclamation. If not, then they would have to be pacified by force.

A snake cannot function without a head. Without influential figures, it's uncertain when the Yuan dynasty could rebuild its former glory.

What are the officials that Li Dachui brought out best at?
It's assimilation!

"Barbarians enter our China, and China is conquered." Li Dachui and his men are truly putting this policy into practice.

In Qingtongxia City, the Tiele people stood on the city wall, looking at the banner of the Beiting Protectorate fluttering in the distance.

This is his twentieth day of being trapped here.

There are still more than 20,000 soldiers in Qingtongxia City, including his last 5,000 elite troops.

The rest were either killed, captured, or scattered during the previous twenty days of fierce fighting.

They had considered breaking through, but Chen Liang, who was commanding the battle on the other side, was no ordinary man.

His only task is probably to trap himself here!

Therefore, no matter how he tried to tempt him, he remained unmoved.

The defenses they created were impregnable.

Each attack, besides causing more casualties, failed to break through the opponent's defense.

The enemy's forces are increasing.

As the number of banners increased day by day, Tiele became increasingly silent.

He is now completely cut off from news from the outside world and doesn't know what the situation is like. Attracting more troops from the Northern Court seems like a good thing, but Tiele feels something is amiss.

Because so far, he has not seen important generals such as Xiao Changche, Xia Zhi, and Xiao Dongwei from Beiting.

The only ones who consistently opposed him were Chen Liang, Chang Xin, and Xiao Chenggong.

These three people were not the most important figures in the Beiting Protectorate.

Where did those people go?
Especially Xiao Changche.

There could only be one other place that could make Xiao Changche abandon him, and that place would be Yandu, where the value of his life would be greater than his own.

So what is the current situation in Yandu?

Tiele hoped his sacrifice would be worthwhile.

It doesn't matter if I lose or die, as long as the Great Yuan can be unified again, then everything will be worthwhile.

Suddenly, another person appeared in my field of vision.

Tiele's pupils contracted slightly.

The next moment, the person got even closer.

Dressed in all black, with a slender build, this was a figure that Tiele was all too familiar with.

That's Granny Duanmu.

Tiele's heart sank to the bottom.

One moment she was still far below the city, the next moment Duanmu Miaomiao had already appeared on the city wall.

"Mommy!"

Suppressing his intense unease, Tiele stood up.

"Come with me!" Duanmu Miaomiao's eyes were filled with pity. "The Great Yuan Dynasty is gone!"

"Gone? What do you mean gone?" Tiele stood rooted to the spot, staring blankly at Duanmu Miaomiao.

"The Great Yuan Dynasty is gone! Jebe and Yeli died in battle, Akdun surrendered, and Yandu has been completely occupied by the Beiting Protectorate!" Duanmu Miaomiao said slowly.

(End of this chapter)