I play the role of Jiajing in Zongwu: What crime have I committed?

"Report! The eastern flank has been breached and the city has been captured!" a messenger quickly reported.

Gu Siling sneered, "Continue to reinforce the east gate. Today, we must flatten Luozhou!"

"Yes!"

The battlefield is like a meat grinder, making everyone forget about time.

Before long, the blood-red setting sun enveloped the city walls of Luozhou.

The Gu family army surged onto the city wall like a tidal wave, their battle cries shaking the heavens and the earth.

The defending soldiers could no longer hold out.

"General, the east gate has fallen, and the west gate cannot be defended either."

The lieutenant's armor was shattered, and his face was covered in blood.

His voice was so hoarse that it was almost inaudible.

"The brothers can't hold on any longer."

The defending general was in no better shape; his silver armor was stained with blood, and his longsword had long been chipped and dented.

He cleaved an enemy soldier in two with a single sword stroke, gritting his teeth as he said, "Even if we can't hold on, we must!"

"The capital is right behind us. If we retreat today, the court is finished."

Before he could finish speaking, a stray arrow suddenly pierced through his shoulder.

The garrison commander grunted and snapped the arrow shaft in two, roaring, "Brothers, let's fight them!"

Upon hearing this, the remaining defenders roared like wild beasts and charged forward once more.

In the distance, Gu Siling squinted her eyes.

He never expected that this isolated city could unleash such astonishing fighting power.

He knew the garrison commander of Luozhou was a talented man.

Unfortunately, everyone was serving their own master.

"Pass on the order."

Gu Siling sighed inwardly: "Try to capture them alive."

In the last rays of the setting sun, the shouts of battle from the city walls of Luozhou gradually faded away.

Luozhou City ultimately could not be defended.

Not far outside Luozhou City, Baihu reined in his horse and stood still, coldly watching the Gu family's army surge into the city gates like a tide.

"hehe!"

A cruel smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

The time has finally come.

Meanwhile, on Pingdingshan Mountain.

Qinglong's thin lips also curled up slightly at the same time.

"Order the dike to be breached."

Those two simple words sent a chill down the spines of the guards behind him.

He knew what the breaching of the dike meant, but he dared not hesitate.

After all, the random passerby had just died right in front of him.

He then immediately turned and ran toward the pass that he had been preparing for.

Chapter 147 Oath by the Luo River

"Let's do it."

At Qinglong's command, hundreds of soldiers immediately dug open the dike completely.

The floodwaters, which had been accumulating for days, suddenly found an outlet and roared out like a wild beast.

The turbid waves, carrying mud, sand, and gravel, surged toward the Luozhou Plain with overwhelming force.

The water dragon bursting from the sluice gate was like divine punishment descending.

Boom! ! !

A deafening roar of collapse echoed throughout the heavens and earth.

It was like a post-apocalyptic wasteland.

On the other side, the air in Luozhou City was still filled with the smell of gunpowder and blood.

The most important barrier of the capital of Southern Chu has now changed its flag.

The large banner bearing the character "Gu" was planted on the city wall, fluttering in the wind.

Gu Siling slowly walked up to the top of Luozhou City and placed one hand on the crenellation.

Standing still and gazing into the distance, all I could see was the scorching heat.

"Los Angeles has finally been captured."

He took a deep breath and muttered to himself.

"General."

Gu Xichao strode up the city wall, his face full of excitement.

"The remaining stubborn enemies within Luozhou City have been completely wiped out. I personally led the men to clear out the last three strongholds, beheading over three hundred."

Gu Siling's gaze swept over the gradually extinguishing flames of war within the city, and she nodded slightly.

"Well done."

"Order all battalions to enter the city in batches for rest and reorganization, strictly enforce military discipline, and refrain from disturbing the civilians."

"Three days later, we will march on Pingdingshan!"

"Yes!"

Gu Xichao and the other generals echoed each other's voices, then turned to leave.

Just then, Gu Siling called out to him.

"Xichao, come here."

"Yes."

Gu Xichao was puzzled, but felt a tightness in his heart and quickly stepped forward to stand still.

The way the two were positioned at this moment was quite interesting.

Gu Siling was bathed in sunlight, revealing a resolute and righteous face.

Gu Xichao was below the city wall, which completely blocked the sunlight, hiding his figure in the shadows.

"Xichao, I've noticed that your attitude towards His Highness the Crown Prince has changed recently."

Gu Siling turned around, her gaze fixed intently on her son.

"Do you have a grudge against him?"

"This humble general has none."

Gu Xichao remained silent for a moment, then lowered his head and uttered four words.

Then, a long silence spread between the father and son.

Gu Siling finally spoke again.

"I raised you myself, I know your temper."

"You used to be inseparable from the Crown Prince, but now you won't even look at him directly."

"In your eyes, there is neither brotherly affection nor the duty between ruler and subject."

"That's right."

As soon as Gu Siling finished speaking, Gu Xichao suddenly looked up.

At this moment, his eyes burned with long-suppressed anger.

"It was Yuwen Quan who ruined everyone. My entire Gu family died because of him, all because of the infighting between Yuwen Quan and his sons."

"Why should our Gu family continue to support him, just because he is the crown prince?"

"In the end, he's just a piece of trash, unable to carry anything."

"We're attacking the city here, while he can simply sit back and command the central army. Why should he?"

"If you ask me, once we reach the capital, the throne should belong to our Gu family..."

Snapped!

A loud slap interrupted him.

Gu Xichao's cheeks immediately stung, and blood seeped from the corners of his mouth.

"You bastard!"

Gu Siling was so angry by his words that her hair stood on end.

"My Gu family has been loyal and virtuous for generations. How dare you harbor such rebellious thoughts?"

He grabbed his son by the collar and scolded him angrily.

"How am I supposed to face my ancestors in the afterlife?"

Gu Xichao forcefully broke free from Gu Siling's hand.

"Dad, don't give me that crap."

"You really think you're a loyal subject? If you seize the throne, will we be unable to face our ancestors?"

"What do you think 'purging the emperor's inner circle' means? Let me tell you, it means rebellion."

"Our whole family rebelled, so we can go down to meet our ancestors?"

"Even if you put Yuwen Quan on the throne, the historians will not record you as a loyal minister."

After Gu Xichao's angry rebuke, the city wall fell into a deathly silence.

Upon hearing this, Gu Siling lowered her head and stood there with a bitter smile on her face.

He knew his son too well. Seeing his expression, he knew the son was determined to rebel.

So he took a deep breath, suddenly pressed down on his son's shoulder, and turned him toward the ever-flowing Luo River.

"Xichao, swear an oath to your father before the Luo River."

Gu Xichao followed Gu Siling's finger and saw the Luo River shimmering with blood-red light in the twilight.

Like a winding blood vessel.

"I want you to swear that for all eternity, you will only serve as a subject of Chu."

Gu Xichao was shocked upon hearing this.

He never expected that his father would force him to swear an oath by the Luo River.

"father…"

"Kneel down."

Gu Siling kicked her son in the back of the knee, and the next second, Gu Xichao knelt down on the city bricks with a "thud".

Then he drew his sword and planted it in front of his son.

"If you refuse, take this sword now and kill your father first."

Gu Xichao remained silent for a long time, his fingers clenched tightly.

He looked up at his father and saw the same stubbornness and unyielding spirit that had remained unchanged for decades.

Finally, he suddenly loosened his grip and then slowly raised three fingers.