sjar Chapter 14 War and Life-or-Death Choices
Chapter 14 War and Life-or-Death Choices
Wanru paced anxiously in her cell. The sounds of the enemy attack outside grew louder and louder, and her heart clenched tighter and tighter.
"What are we going to do? We finally had a glimmer of hope to get the bead back and save Huanmo, but now this has happened." Wanru clenched her fists so tightly that her nails dug into her palms, but she felt no pain. Her heart was filled with worry for Huanmo and the helplessness of being trapped here. Through the gaps in the cell bars, she looked at the chaotic scene outside. Soldiers were running around hurriedly, and the shouts and the sounds of clashing weapons mingled together, creating an atmosphere of apocalypse.
The general led his soldiers to rush to defend the city, leaving the prison temporarily unguarded. Wanru knew this might be her only chance to escape, but she was unwilling to leave empty-handed; that bead was the key to saving Huanmo.
"I can't just leave like this. Even if there's only a sliver of hope, I have to try and get the bead back." Wanru gritted her teeth and made up her mind. She began searching the cell for tools to open the door, but the dark and damp cell contained nothing but a pile of old straw and a few stones.
Wanru was frantic. She picked up a stone and smashed it against the lock of the cell door repeatedly until her arm went numb, but she didn't stop. "It has to open, it has to open!" she kept repeating to herself.
Finally, through her persistent efforts, the lock was broken. Ignoring the soreness in her arm, Wanru rushed out of the cell. The chaos outside had intensified; people were fleeing in all directions, their cries echoing everywhere. Wanru weaved through the crowd, relying on her memories of being escorted into the city, and ran towards the general's residence. She remembered that the general had taken the pearl there.
Along the way, Wanru saw many soldiers lying in pools of blood, some still fiercely fighting with the enemy. She was terrified, but the thought of Huanmo gave her courage.
They finally arrived at the mansion's gate, only to find it in complete chaos, with many servants busy moving valuables in preparation for their escape. Wanru took advantage of the confusion to slip inside, carefully avoiding the crowd as she made her way towards the general's quarters.
When she arrived outside the general's room, she could faintly hear arguing coming from inside. Wanru quietly approached and peeked through the crack in the door. She saw the general and his strategist arguing fiercely.
"Now that the enemy is attacking, this bead is probably an ominous object. We should return it to the woman and let her take it away, so as to quell this disaster," the strategist said anxiously.
"Hmph! What do you know? How can such a treasure be easily given away? After we defeat the enemy, I will study it carefully." The general gripped the bead tightly, his eyes filled with greed.
Wanru was extremely anxious listening outside the door; she wished she could rush in and snatch the bead back. But she also knew that if she rushed in rashly, she would definitely be no match for them.
Just then, a loud bang was heard, as if the enemy had breached the city gate, and the shouts of battle outside became even more deafening. The generals and strategists were also startled by the sudden commotion. They could no longer hold their argument about the beads and hurriedly turned to prepare to go out and deal with the situation.
Seeing this opportunity, Wanru suddenly pushed open the door and rushed in. The general and strategist were startled by her sudden appearance and stood there stunned for a moment.
Without a word, Wanru rushed towards the general, reaching for the bead in his hand. The general reacted quickly, forcefully swinging his arm and throwing Wanru to the ground. But she quickly got up and pounced on him again.
"Give me back the beads!" Wanru screamed, her eyes filled with determination.
The strategist, seeing this, wanted to step forward to stop her, but hesitated, since he had originally planned to help Wanru get the bead back.
Just as Wanru and the general were entangled, an enemy soldier suddenly rushed into the room. Seeing the chaotic scene, he raised his knife and slashed at them.
To avoid the blow, the general loosened his grip on the bead. Wanru reacted quickly, grabbing the bead and holding it tightly in her hand.
"Haha, I finally got it!" Wanru was overjoyed, but she knew that this was not the time to be happy. She had to leave this place as soon as possible.
She turned and ran toward the door, but just as she reached it, several enemy soldiers rushed in and blocked her way.
Wanru's heart leaped into her throat again. Holding the beads, she looked at the enemy soldiers in terror.
"Don't come any closer!" Wanru shouted, but the soldiers ignored her and approached her step by step.
Just as Wanru was in despair, the strategist suddenly rushed over and stood in front of her.
"Girl, hurry! I'll hold them off," the strategist shouted.
Wanru looked at the strategist in surprise, a surge of gratitude welling up in her heart. "My lord, thank you!" Without thinking twice, she took advantage of the moment when the strategist was holding off the enemy soldiers and hurriedly ran to the side.
Wanru ran desperately through the city streets, clutching the beads tightly in her hand, not daring to slacken her efforts for a moment. But the city was swarming with enemy troops, and she couldn't find a safe way out.
Just as she was panicking, she suddenly saw a familiar figure in front of her—Huanmo!
Wanru stared in surprise, thinking she was seeing things. But the figure became clearer and clearer; it was indeed Huanmo, though he looked pale and swayed slightly, but his eyes were fixed on Wanru with unwavering determination.
"Huanmo, what are you doing here? Weren't you unconscious?" Wanru ran excitedly towards Huanmo, her heart filled with doubt and surprise.
When Huanmo saw Wanru, a relieved smile appeared on his face. "I don't know what happened either. I woke up and found myself here. I've been looking for you."
Wanru and Huanmo hugged each other tightly. At that moment, she felt that all the suffering had been worth it.
But just as they embraced, a dark shadow suddenly swept over their heads, and then a huge flying beast appeared in front of them. The beast opened its blood-red maw and let out a roar, as if it wanted to devour them.