Three Kingdoms: My Strategy Simulator.

Meanwhile, the Yellow River's waters, ceaselessly surging from the breach, relentlessly surged south and east.

Zhou Yu, a hundred li from the Yellow River's embankment, watched the turbulent waters under the night sky, his expression a mix of gloom and a hint of relief.

Though the distance lessened the immediate impact, preventing the waters from instantly sweeping everything away,

the suddenness of the event at night, catching the army unprepared, was bound to cause chaos.

With the rising water levels, preserving the army's meager supplies and equipment would be impossible, and even finding higher ground to escape the flood would be a challenge.

The ultimate outcome, he feared, would be the entire army's watery grave…

The thought sent a shiver of fear down Zhou Yu's spine.

Even though Taishi Ci's warning had allowed Zhou Yu to lead his army to higher ground, narrowly escaping the disaster,

the flooding of Jinan State meant Zhou Yu's original plan to reach Dongchao Ford was now impossible, and his entire army was stranded within Jinan State, facing imminent starvation.

Even with Zhou Yu's extraordinary talent, he was thrown into disarray, unsure of what to do.

…

As the Yellow River raged through the night, the people inside the city fared relatively well, but many outside were engulfed by the flood.

The northern part of Jinan State became a vast swamp, the water levels relentlessly rising, swallowing everything in its path.

The swamp's reach continued to spread southwards, deeper into Jinan State.

Many Jinan citizens, belatedly realizing the danger, scattered in a desperate escape, but countless others perished in the waters or were trapped in cities, watching helplessly as everything outside turned into a watery wasteland.

Roads, fields, houses…

Everything was quickly swallowed by the murky river water.

Jinan State, once governed by Cao Cao as its Chancellor, was now a scene of utter devastation.

Even though Xun Yu had long ago relocated or transferred many Jinan citizens under various pretenses, over two hundred thousand people still resided within Jinan State.

News of the Yellow River's breach and the resulting flood in Jinan State spread rapidly throughout the surrounding commanderies and counties, causing widespread shock.

…

Near the breach, Sun Ce, tirelessly investigating the surrounding terrain, spent the entire night racking his brains but could not find any way to seal the gap.

As dawn approached, the breach had widened to nearly twenty zhang, filling Sun Ce with even greater anxiety and rage.

If the breach could not be sealed in time, not only would countless Jinan citizens suffer, but Zhou Yu's army would also be trapped within Jinan State.

Finally, Cheng Yu, still tightly bound, was brought before Sun Ce once more.

Sun Ce grabbed Cheng Yu by the collar, hauled him up, and roared,

"Speak! How can this breach be sealed?"

"Cough, cough…"

Cheng Yu, still recovering from Sun Ce's kick, coughed uncontrollably before sneering.

"Don't delude yourself; this breach is impossible to seal."

Taishi Ci, his eyes bloodshot, retorted,

"Impossible! The Cao thief styles himself as the Governor of Qing Province. If he allows the Yellow River to flow unchecked, not only will Jinan State be flooded, but the Ji River will inevitably be completely blocked."

"Furthermore, large amounts of Yellow River water will flow down along the Ji River's course, successively affecting Le'an Commandery, Qi State, and Beihai State."

"Unless the Cao thief is prepared to abandon Qing Province, how could he possibly allow the Yellow River to flow within Qing Province? You must know a way to seal the breach."

Cheng Yu, now a captive, understood his fate.

He knew that even if he surrendered to Liu Bei now, he would never be accepted and would eventually have his head chopped off for vengeance.

Therefore, Cheng Yu sneered, adopting an attitude of resignation, completely refusing to answer.

"Good, good, good!"

Sun Ce said, his anger turning into laughter. "I hope the hardness of your bones matches the extent of your wickedness."

Without waiting for Cheng Yu to say anything defiant,

Sun Ce threw Cheng Yu to the ground, causing him immense pain, and before he could cry out,

Sun Ce stomped down on Cheng Yu's wrist.

"Crack!"

With a single stomp, Cheng Yu's wrist bones shattered, causing him to scream in agony.

Another stomp, and the other wrist was similarly crushed.

Bound tightly, Cheng Yu writhed in pain like a shrimp, his face flushed crimson.

"Go, fetch some fine salt."

When Sun Ce's voice sounded again, Cheng Yu trembled.

Those who are most ruthless to others are often the most protective of themselves.

Jia Xu was like that, and Cheng Yu was hardly a man of fortitude.

Therefore, even though Cheng Yu understood his fate after being captured, he was now completely overwhelmed by terror.

"I'll talk, I'll talk…"

Cheng Yu pleaded repeatedly.

Sun Ce's gaze grew even more contemptuous as he squatted down in front of Cheng Yu and questioned,

"Speak! How can the Yellow River's breach be sealed? Cao Cao must have made preparations for this."

Tears streaming down his face, Cheng Yu replied in a mournful voice,

"I truly don't know about this."

Before Sun Ce could press further, Cheng Yu blurted out everything he knew,

"Digging the Yellow River was a secret order given to me by Xun Yu with Lord Cao's tacit approval. My task was to create a breach twenty to twenty-five zhang wide."

"As for how to seal the breach…"

Cheng Yu instinctively tried to deny knowledge, but under Sun Ce's aggressive and furious gaze,

Cheng Yu quickly explained,

"I was only acting under orders. I truly don't know how to seal the breach."

"But my guess is that Xun Yu will later organize the affected people of Jinan State, using the 'work-for-relief' method used by Marquis Guoshi in Wu Commandery to gradually seal the breach."

Taishi Ci angrily shouted, "You still dare to deceive us?"

"I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare…"

Cheng Yu said, throwing caution to the wind.

"Xun Yu had previously made corresponding preparations around Jinan State under the pretense of dredging the river, in order to prevent the flood from affecting the other commanderies and counties of Qing Province."

"According to my judgment, in this way, after the Yellow River floods Jinan State, it will flow southwards, passing through the northern part of Mount Tai Commandery, and flow into Langya State along the terrain."

"At that time, the northern part of the entire Langya State will be flooded by the Yellow River, effectively cutting off the possibility of sending troops from Xu Province to Qing Province for the next two or three years."

"Now that the flooding of Jinan State is a foregone conclusion, and Xun Yu has made preparations to avoid affecting other commanderies and counties, intending to let the Yellow River flow southwards and flood Langya State, why would he rush to seal the breach?"(End of Chapter)