Chapter 550: The Tide Turns: Offense and Defense Reversed

"Woof woof woof! Arf—woof!"

The barking echoed on.

It was late autumn, harvest season, the fields a blaze of gold. Zhou Laosan gave a whistle, and the little yellow dog he'd picked up back then had long since grown up, sturdy and strong, a fat field mouse clamped in its jaws. It ran back and dropped the mouse at Zhou Laosan's feet.

Then it flopped down there, tail wagging so hard it left an afterimage, barked once as if presenting treasure, and Zhou Laosan laughed and rubbed its head, saying: "You, you—dog catching mice."

Big Yellow had no idea what Zhou Laosan was saying, just leaped up at once, both paws braced on Zhou Laosan's arm, barking "woof woof woof," licking him madly with its tongue. Zhou Laosan laughed out loud, then started cursing: "Crap!"

"That stink—did you sneak off and eat shit again?!"

Zhou Laosan flew into a rage, grabbed his iron saber and went chasing after Big Yellow. The saber in his hand, the one his brothers-in-arms had used, with a dog's head carved into the hilt, no longer needed to fight men now—it only cut grass, cut wheat.

After coming back from the battlefield, Big Yellow had become his good partner.

When Zhou Laosan came back carrying Big Yellow, he saw several boys of twelve or thirteen huddled in a row by the field ridges, digging around outside—they'd found a field mouse's nest. These past two years of bumper harvests meant the mice's nests held plenty of good things.

Several fat field mice nearby were scurrying about in frantic circles.

Big Yellow barked powerfully once and pounced in to "play" with these field mice.

Zhou Laosan, who had just washed his face, let his old partner go play. Suddenly a field mouse darted off, extremely agile, slipped away from Big Yellow, but a twelve-year-old boy chased after it in a few quick steps and caught it with an upraised hand.

No matter how hard the field mouse struggled, it couldn't break free of the boy's palm force.

Zhou Laosan couldn't help but call out praise: "Fine palm technique, fine lightness skill!"

The boy smiled shyly, but his friend beside him said proudly: "He's in the top five for lightness skill in our public school! His Motian Palm is already well practiced—even the teachers might not be able to beat him!"

Zhou Laosan laughed and nodded, feeling a touch of wistfulness and envy.

This man, the last surviving member of the Charge Battalion under Brigadier General Gui of the third year of Tianhe, had sheathed his blade and gone back to the land. His little days were lived with quite a bit of flavor, but watching these young children, he couldn't help feeling some envy in his heart.

Back in their day, they hadn't had this kind of systematic teaching.

Nor this kind of resources.

Just that one step he'd heard was the superior lightness skill Wind-Chasing Method from the Chen imperial armory back in the day, and that palm force of the Motian Sect was the core secret art of the Motian Sect, once the Diyida Sect of Chen's northern lands.

Nowadays it had all been broken down and opened up—children everywhere, after three to five years of tempering their foundations, once their qi, blood, and physical condition reached a certain level, could choose one technique from among many martial arts to study.

This was the stratagem of a certain Yan Daiqing…

Hm? Or should it be Western Regions Yan Daiqing, or perhaps Southwestern Yan Daiqing?

Zhou Laosan scratched his chin, for a moment unable to be sure which Yan Daiqing it was.

Though the world was vast, and it was common enough for different people in different places to take the same name, this Yan Daiqing seemed to be a bit too many of them.

Anyway, it was the stratagem of some Mr. Yan Daiqing.

Martial arts stronger than those of the Jianghu Sect were directly taught systematically to every single person. This broke one of the two great foundations the Jianghu Sect relied on to maintain itself—people joined the Jianghu Sect either to seek martial cultivation or to seek protection.

Now martial arts more powerful than those of most sects were being taught systematically.

And there were also the elixirs of the Hou Zhongyu lineage.

The Jianghu Sect had nothing left to attract people.

The result was that every major Jianghu Sect had a whiff of having no successors; one by one they all quieted down. Pulling the firewood out from under the cauldron, their vital energy was severely wounded, and incidents of Jianghu using martial power to break the law had decreased enormously.

The disciples put out by Jianghu Sect nowadays couldn't beat a Qin youth who had undergone seven years of systematic training from childhood, whose configuration basically encompassed superior lightness skill, superior internal skill, one fierce external skill, one weapon skill, one fist-and-foot skill, and who was well versed in the Hou school of pharmacology.

Could fight, could run, and was also adept at poisoning and some medical arts.

Thus the Jianghu Sect gradually declined.

And the mortal world flourished.

Now it was the second year of Qin Huang, autumn. More than a year had passed since the last great war. Chen's territory had been brought under control, and this land occupying the rich heartland of the Central Plains finally revealed its true depth.

Everywhere was a bountiful harvest; under Qin Huang's governance there was the air of a great peace.

Zhou Laosan gripped his saber, looked at the dog's head on the hilt—ugly, but polished smooth from being rubbed—and thought of his brothers-in-arms who had died in battle. He murmured: "What a pity, if only you lot could have seen this day too."

"How wonderful that would be."

His eyes stung a little, but he just brushed it off and said loudly:

"Enough!"

"You lot had no luck! Only your old man gets to show you!"

"Hahaha, serves you right for being jealous—who told me I had the luck not to die!"

The children watched curiously at this middle-aged old fellow talking loudly to himself, unsure whether he was muttering to himself or talking to someone. Big Yellow lay on the ground, tail wagging, bright-eyed as it watched the few field mice huddled together trembling.

The second year of Qin Huang was also the second year of Ying.

Compared with Qin's prosperity, Ying likewise showed stability and development.

After Emperor Ying Jiang Yuan ascended the throne, with his ministers assisting him, he governed with diligence, lightened the burdens of tax and corvée, and Ying's national strength recovered to a certain extent. In the years before Jiang Wanxiang's death, he had eliminated many of the great clan powers within the state, making the officialdom clean and clear.

On such a foundation, with veteran ministers like Wei Yiwen still in place, the basics of governance wouldn't go seriously wrong. In the court, gradually there arose the reputation of praising sage rulers—yet Jiang Yuan was not happy.

The sound of the bowstring cutting the air was clear and sharp. Jiang Yuan held a bow, casually shooting arrows at the imperial family's martial practice ground. Beside him stood ministers and eunuchs attending with bowed heads. Seeing every shot of Jiang Yuan's hit the target, they all played along loudly: "Good, fine archery!"

"Your Majesty is divinely brave and invincible!"

"Your Majesty's divine might!"

A round of flattery, and Jiang Yuan tossed the bow in his hand aside, drank wine, then sighed with feeling: "The majesty of a king reaches this far—though it is satisfying, in the end it cannot be free and at ease."

Minister of Ceremonies Guo Yanjun, hearing the strings and knowing the refined intent, put on a look of feigned surprise:

"The world is vast, and the emperor's authority stands first. Within this great Ying kingdom, how could Your Majesty possibly be constrained?!"

"Who would be so bold!"

"Audacity beyond the heavens!"

Jiang Yuan smiled without speaking, and only after a long while finally sighed:

"Now I have sat on the throne for a year; all my deeds conform to the sages' teachings. Even among the wise rulers of antiquity, few surpass me. Yet the Grand Preceptor still guards the capital, and Wei Yiwen behaves as if the late emperor were still alive."

"Those two simply rely on their seniority and cannot bear to see me so sage and brilliant!"

"Detestable! Detestable!"

Who?

Grand Tutor Jiang Su?

Guo Yanjun clicked his tongue at the words, but truly did not dare to chime in.

Grand Tutor Jiang Su, today the undisputed Pillar of White Jade upholding the heavens, the Purple-Gold Beam spanning the seas of the entire Daying Kingdom, but for Jiang Yuan, after ascending the throne, he himself was bound within the court, unable to go out, and his heart was exceedingly stifled.

Becoming an emperor, yet being trapped here by such worldly affairs.

Every day reviewing memorials, poring through archives, discussing great matters with the civil and military officials.

What meaning is there left in this throne?!

The frustration in his chest grew, and he became all the more displeased.

Fortunately, there were still people like Guo Yanjun to keep him company in his amusements, which could barely relieve the angry discontent in his heart. This day, Grand Tutor Jiang Su came again, and Jiang Yuan put on a diligent and conscientious appearance. The Grand Tutor, clad in a black robe and great cloak, white-haired and standing solemnly, was a full head taller than Jiang Yuan.

This emperor, wearing the dragon robe, could only reach Jiang Su's shoulder.

Though he bore the dignity of a sovereign, before Jiang Su he felt himself ruthlessly pressed down a full head, which made his heart quite displeased, yet he did not dare show such displeasure.

Every gesture and movement conformed perfectly to propriety.

Jiang Su could see through Jiang Yuan's pretense and did not mind. After only a brief idle chat, he got straight to the point and said: "Your Majesty, now after a year of rest and recuperation, the nation has recovered its foundations. The fate of the country rests on you and me. This old man shall set out to campaign against the bandits before long."

Joy rose in Jiang Yuan's heart, but his face showed a worried expression as he said: "Grand Tutor, I have only just completed one year on the throne. Though I have been diligent, with the assistance of the various ministers, the four directions have been somewhat stabilized, but a year ago there was just a great war. To now open another front—is it not unwise?"

Jiang Su looked at Jiang Yuan.

Jiang Yuan, who had put on a falsely modest appearance, felt his heart suddenly seize.

Looking at the tall old man before him, it was as if he beheld mountain ranges, beheld the myriad phenomena of heaven and earth, as if the old man's frame had suddenly become incomparably towering, his gaze cold as a deity's, looking down upon him with utter disdain.

Jiang Yuan's body stiffened slightly.

He felt his mind go blank, as if even in the seat of a sovereign, this tall, solemn elder could raise a hand and with a single strike erase him. An indescribable fear seized his heart.

He did not know how long had passed—perhaps only an instant, perhaps a long while.

Jiang Su withdrew his gaze and said: "Li Guanyi's Wu Gong is unrivaled under heaven. He is eight years younger than Your Majesty, yet he already swallows the world whole. Even the former Red Emperor, the Hegemon, could not compare with him."

"And given his age, he is still far from reaching a martial man's limit."

"Wait a few more years, until Li Guanyi's Wu Gong grows another step stronger, until the great army under his banner is strong in men and horses. By then, even this old man will no longer be his match. So then, Your Majesty, will you bind your own hands and go offer the city in surrender?"

Jiang Yuan forced a smile and said: "Grand Tutor jests."

Jiang Su said: "This old man's temperament has never favored jesting."

He turned and said: "Your Majesty shall remain in the capital, handling political affairs. Wei Yiwen and the others are this old minister's loyal servants, devoted to our Great Ying. Your Majesty may heed their counsel more often." Jiang Su departed, carrying a fierce, unyielding resolve.

Jiang Wanxiang's death, the expenditure of those two great battles, the new emperor's accession, and many other matters—even with Ying's deep foundations—had consumed a full year and more before they could catch their breath.

After Grand Tutor Jiang Su had healed his injuries, he scarcely hesitated before raising his blade once more to campaign against the Qin Wang. He knew his time was running short; his natural lifespan and the times themselves were like beasts that could not be conquered, pursuing him.

The God of War knew his time was short, knew his peak was gradually slipping away. The divine spear, long stilled, had not tasted blood in ages and had grown somewhat dull. He had to keep galloping forward in the time remaining, to smash through the enemy.

Even when strength no longer answered his will, he still had to prop up this half of the world.

Yet when he went to seek Gao Xiang, Gao Xiang did not directly join Ying. At that time, the Ying Emperor went to invite Gao Xiang, promising all manner of gold and silver, beauties, high rank and generous emoluments, but Gao Xiang refused them all.

Gold and silver, beauties, and Jiang Yuan's recruitment.

"…A man like this does not deserve to sit here."

"Was Jiang Wanxiang blind, to have chosen such a person?"

Divine General Gao Xiang's words were cold; it was plain to see he utterly looked down on Jiang Yuan. He turned his mount, gripped his divine bow, and said: "If it is so, then Ying's national fortune ends here. I have no interest in serving as a general under a worthless fool."

Jiang Yuan could still suppress his anger.

But after returning to the palace, he was especially displeased; his fury had reached an extreme.

Jiang Su knew he had to step onto the battlefield as soon as possible, seize the initiative of the battlefield, and could not allow Li Guanyi's side to continue resting and recuperating. In fact, during this past year, though no great battles had erupted, the struggles along the borders of the two nations had never ceased.

And when Jiang Su had finished settling matters within the country and intended to march his army out—

News from the front arrived—

The Qin Huang personally led an army of two hundred thousand to invade the border!

Jiang Su's expression turned cold and hard.

Such a change was within his expectations, but he had not thought it would come so quickly. The Qin Wang was no longer the little youth of those days. Indeed, after Jiang Wanxiang's death and the Qin Wang's seizure of Chen Kingdom's former territory, the balance of national strength between the two sides had shifted.

The Qin Wang had already, faintly, risen above Ying's national strength.

So-called spirit that swallows mountains and seas is nothing more than this.

Jiang Su knew that, according to the principles of the military strategist, he absolutely could not follow Qin Huang's rhythm and act accordingly. Rather, he had to break free of Qin Huang's strategic influence and strike at a place the enemy must rescue; only then might he turn the situation around.

But the present situation was—

Under all of heaven, apart from Jiang Su, there was no one who could stop the Qin Huang's blade.

Once Jiang Su went to another direction—

Then the Qin Huang would swiftly breach the passes and invade the country.

Repeating the strategy of the Yu Langwang Chen Fubi of those days, the God of War Jiang Su had no choice but to lead an army of two hundred thousand to intercept Li Guanyi's advance. Because of the Qin Huang's resolve, the two sides erupted in a medium-scale clash within Ying's borders.

The great armies faced off; the Qin Huang did not retreat.

But Jiang Su, for the moment, also had no way to swiftly defeat Li Guanyi.

At the same time, there was also an overt deployment: Yue Pengwu led a great army north, already arriving at Zhenbei City. The great army held its ground, faintly carrying a sharp blade of military might, pointing from the north toward Great Ying.

One above and one below—precisely the same pattern Ying had used to attack Qin last year.

Now it had been turned against them, applied in reverse to Ying, and it pressed Ying extremely uncomfortably. One must understand that with a famed general like Yue Pengwu, there was no need to truly march out; merely arraying his troops here, about to move yet not moving, already compelled Ying to be on guard.

Jiang Yuan was delighted in his heart, and so issued an order, dispatching the Divine Might Grand General Yu Wen Lie to the northern lands to guard against Yue Pengwu.

Yu Wen Lie looked at the imperial edict, laughed coldly, and claimed illness, refusing to go.

He only looked to those beside him—Yuwen Tianxian and Yuwen Hua—and said: "If I go, then the Zhao Wang will be in peril." The former Crown Prince Jiang Gao, now enfeoffed as Zhao Wang, was merely an idle prince without real power, not dispatched to garrison any region, but stayed in Jingcheng writing essays.

Jiang Yuan urged him several times, but Yu Wen Lie each time claimed illness and refused to go.

Jiang Yuan was deeply displeased; he wanted to send He Ruo Qinhu away, yet remembered how his father had been assaulted by Yu Langwang, and still hoped to keep a fierce general by his side for protection—but Qin Yulong was Xue family's son-in-law.

He further suspected Qin Yulong might defect to the Ying state, so he hesitated to send him out; after much deliberation, and upon He Ruo Qinhu's assurance, he issued orders to appoint Qin Yulong as general to lead troops abroad, while keeping his wife and children in the imperial capital.

He said: "General, go fight for your homeland and country!"

His face remained calm and composed, still bearing the demeanor of a wise and virtuous monarch.

Qin Yulong, having traveled the martial world, knew he could not refuse when duty called for his country; he visited Yuwen Lie to entrust his family's safety, and Yuwen Lie replied succinctly: "When His Majesty passed away, he said General Qin is a loyal and virtuous minister of the state."

"Do not worry—your wife and children are under my protection, Yuwen Lie."

"Absolutely no cause for concern."

Qin Yulong bowed again in thanks, then led his troops out, marching northward; the armies faced each other in formation, confronting Yue Pengwu at a distance, their energies clashing—but no actual battle erupted, only a stalemate.

…………………

Li Guanyi bit into a fruit.

The Fire Qilin crouched on his shoulder, its mouth stuffed with three fruits; on the camp table lay a large military map, and Li Guanyi, one hand holding a brush, calmly traced out a series of marks.

They were crosses.

Beside him, the white-haired girl stared expressionlessly, tiptoeing to look.

The Qin Huang lazily rested his elbow on top of the girl's head.

He pressed her tiptoes down.

The silver-haired girl raised her tiptoes again.

Li Guanyi pressed them down once more.

The silver-haired girl gently shook her head, showing slight displeasure—but did not shake off Li Guanyi's arm.

If some silver-haired man still working overtime with Master Siming to reinforce the city's defensive arrays had seen this, he would have burst into tears of blood and let out a long, mournful cry.

Precisely because of Yao Guang's miraculous arts, Li Guanyi led this band of brothers in playing hide-and-seek with the Divine General Jiang Su along the Ying state's border.

The current standoff occurred within Ying state territory, but close to Jiangnan; rear support was ready, allowing for rapid retreat; after a year of rest and recuperation, Chen state's territory and legacy had been largely absorbed.

To detail all the events involved would consume immense effort and ink, exhausting countless Juan Sect records.

But in short—

The Qin Huang.

Has money again!

While harvesting grain, Li Guanyi assessed the situation and launched a surprise attack on the Ying state, using Marshal Yue as the spearhead to remotely pin down Ying's forces and prevent Jiang Su from surrounding them.

He had tinkered with Jiang Wanxiang's tactics and turned them against the Ying state.

When Li Guanyi led his troops into the Ying state—

The opposing army was first struck with utter shock.

They could not possibly be a match for the Qin Wang.

Originally, when they saw twenty thousand enemy troops approaching, they had already stopped smiling; then they saw the leader of those twenty thousand—a young man with white temples, clad in Ink-Black Weight armor and crimson Fire Qilin cloud-patterned military robes, wielding a battle halberd.

The entire garrison commander's skull went numb.

He retreated faster than he had marched out, slamming the city gates shut!

Cast in bronze and iron.

Locked tight!

Facing the Qin Huang, the undisputed greatest divine general in the world—among the greatest.

What other choice was there?

Over these years, they had studied countless tactics, and finally discovered the optimal response for ordinary generals in such a situation: immediately following the strategy of the former Chen general Lu Youxian, they stacked armor and fortified walls.

At this point, defend the city!

Then they watched as the Qin Huang's face broke into a smile.

Then he reached behind his back—CRACK—and pulled out a gleaming, icy—

Scythe.

The Ying garrison commander stared, dumbfounded, as the Qin Huang personally led his band of Fire Qilin bandits, cutting down all the grain fields surrounding the city; the Fire Qilin's tradition forbade harming civilians, but they had cleanly and thoroughly reaped the wheat planted in the city's military farmlands.

Like a bunch of beggars reborn.

Then a man named Fan Qing emerged and began speaking to the civilians about something incomprehensible.

The garrison commander sent men to investigate.

Brilliant.

Fifteen men went out; three returned.

What Fan Qing explained was simple.

Centered on three points.

【Distribute land】. 【Distribute land】. And again, 【Distribute land】.

The garrison commander flew into a rage: "With the Qin Huang's majesty and the Fire Qilin Army's might, you come here to seize our wheat fields and sow chaos among the people! How dare you!"

"Attendants! Bring me my weapon!"

The captains brought forth a large axe with ornate patterns; the general strode forward.

He climbed the city wall, and from afar saw the Qin Huang himself speaking; sensing his gaze was too glaring and conspicuous, the young man looked up, smiling faintly.

He even waved cheerfully.

The general fell silent.

He turned, walked back, and saw his captains gaping in shock; he roared:

"That's the Qin Huang! So go fight them yourself!"

He hurled his weapon to the ground, extended his hand, and barked: "Bring me the falcon! I'll send a falcon message to Ducheng—tell Master Siming Jiang Su to come; you and I, with the Grand Tutor inside, will strike from both sides and crush them in one blow!"

The flying eagle shot out.

Then got its head lopped off by the auspicious beast of the grasslands and added to the meal.

The Fire Qilin spat a mouthful of Qilin fire, medium-rare.

Exactly the texture those auspicious beasts love most.

So when Jiang Su led his army to arrive, all he saw was a harvested wheat field, bald as that great general's scalp, and commoners whose minds had been filled with certain ideas. Fury smoldering in his chest, he gave chase, and only then did he fight Li Guanyi in one engagement.

Neither side could get the better of the other; it was simply two great armies facing off.

Jiang Su only had to think that all this Qilin army was eating grain from the Great Ying.

And an unnameable fury began to burn in his heart.

………………

Mr. Pojun flipped through the records of this campaign and said: "Grain and fodder are more than enough for our use. Attacking in autumn, my lord—surely you're not doing this to save on provisions?"

Li Guanyi's expression didn't change as he said: "How could that be!"

"When I was young, I passed by a street stall where an uncle surnamed Sun told me about the art of war. He said a line: 'Therefore a wise commander makes the enemy supply his food. One zhong of enemy provisions equals twenty zhong of ours; one dan of enemy fodder equals twenty dan of ours.'"

"What we are doing now is in perfect accord with the essential teachings of the military school."

"How could it possibly be to save on provisions?!"

"Impossible. Absolutely impossible."

"I am Qin Huang!"

From the side came a cricket's chirp: "An impoverished Qin Huang."

Pojun's mouth twitched as he watched His Majesty Qin Huang reach out a hand, seize, and—channeling the Chen state's signature art, the Six-Circulation Force—yank a certain beautiful woman out, tuck her under his elbow, and flick his finger against her forehead, drawing out a string of weak-chicken shrieks.

Li Guanyi's expression didn't change: "It's nothing."

"It's just…"

"Before this, we were always the ones Jiang Su raided at the borders. The world is vast—how can our Tiance Prefecture be a place they come and go as they please?! Now, it's simply that the roles of attacker and defender have switched!"

Nangong Wumeng said stubbornly: "Then why don't you fight?!"

Li Guanyi smiled and said: "Because we can't win."

Nangong Wumeng stared blankly: "Huh?"

Li Guanyi said: "Three hundred years of dynastic fortune, plus Jiang Wanxiang's decades of painstaking work—the foundations of the Ying Kingdom run far too deep and far too thick. If we fight a grinding, bloody war, there is only one outcome: both we and the Ying Kingdom bleed each other dry, every last drop spent."

"The world falls into ruin."

"Better to wait for them to make their own mistakes."

Nangong Wumeng was puzzled: "Make their own mistakes?"

Li Guanyi said: "Yes. Three hundred years of dynastic fortune, just like the Chen Kingdom back then—even a giant, once dead, doesn't rot away so quickly. Killing from the outside, you can't finish them off in one go; only decay from within can do it."

"For example, the noble houses. For example…"

Pojun said softly: "Jiang Yuan."

In the Ying Kingdom's imperial palace, the Emperor sat upon the throne.

Jiang Su marched out on campaign, Qin Yulong headed north, Yuwen Lie pleaded illness.

And so the Ying Emperor shifted his body.

Feeling there were no longer any restraints.

Free at last to act as he pleased!

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