North of Anyang Prefecture, the Jizhou army suffered a crushing defeat. The Yuzhou forces closed in from behind, battering the already shattered army mercilessly.

Left with no alternative, Jizhou Military Governor Zeng Ling petitioned Prince Yu to abandon the conscripted rebel forces gathered from various regions and lead only the Jizhou elite in a desperate race back home.

Only by relying on the protection of strong walls and fortifications could they withstand the Yuzhou army’s surge of momentum and high morale.

In the half-month that followed, the Jizhou army was in constant flight, running for their lives. Along the way they had absorbed various rebel contingents until, at the height of their numbers, they claimed an army of five hundred thousand.

But the sudden catastrophic defeat had stripped away the fig leaf covering that five hundred thousand strong. Those rebel forces, capable only of bluster and empty shows of strength, were no match at all for the battle-hardened Yuzhou soldiers — they collapsed at the first contact, in utter disarray.

Prince Yu kept leaving these rebel forces behind to cover the retreat while he fled frantically with the Jizhou troops. After half a month of running, what remained of his vaunted five hundred thousand was just seventy to eighty thousand Jizhou soldiers.

Yuzhou Military Governor Liu Li, drunk on the slaughter, pursued with increasing ferocity, intent on eliminating Prince Yu’s remaining strength outside the walls of Jizhou City.

Those rebel forces no longer obeyed Prince Yu’s orders. He told them to hold the rear — and they could see with their own eyes what had become of the units that had held before them, torn apart and devoured. How could anyone still be willing to fight to the death?

They fled, they scattered — rabble in arms, no more than that.

Meanwhile, word of Prince Yu’s catastrophic defeat reached Qingzhou Military Governor Cui Yanlai, who had until now been unwilling to coordinate with the Yuzhou army. He smelled opportunity.

He reorganized his forces, and with well over a hundred thousand Qingzhou soldiers, came storming back with savage momentum.

Those rebel forces that had fled off to the side, thinking they had escaped the battlefield and saved their skins, found themselves running head-on into a Qingzhou army burning with the desire for revenge.

They were set upon again and slaughtered in droves, bodies carpeting the earth.

To guard against a strike at his rear, Yuzhou Military Governor Liu Li took an extra precaution and ordered his senior general Meng Kedi to hold Anyang Prefecture — not so much out of any other concern as to guard against the Qingzhou army cutting behind him.

In a world like this, where were the ironclad alliances? Everyone was looking to seize more territory.

By the twentieth day of the pursuit, the Jizhou army’s remaining forces numbered fewer than sixty thousand. Their wretched state was not hard to imagine.

And then, at that very moment, Liu Li received word that Prince Wu had personally led his army into Yuzhou and declared it under his administration.

Liu Li was thunderstruck.

He had been so busy guarding against the Qingzhou army flanking him from behind — he never expected that his mentor had arrived and, in one stroke, cut off his every line of retreat.

Prince Wu had positioned his forces on the Nanping River. For the Yuzhou army, already deep inside Jizhou, to attempt a withdrawal meant facing Prince Wu’s hundred thousand men.

Liu Li could look down on Yang Jixing, could look down on Zeng Ling — but no matter how full of himself he might be, how could he dare to look down on Prince Wu?

Everything he knew, Prince Wu had taught him.

Liu Li now found himself riding a tiger and unable to dismount. If he tried to return to Yuzhou, how would he face Prince Wu?

Not that he was certain he would lose — it was simply that he truly did not dare to fight.

He knew Prince Wu’s character too well. The moment they came face to face, Prince Wu would kill him on the spot. There would be no second possibility.

Prince Wu detested betrayal above all else. Liu Li could argue his case — he could reasonably claim he had led his army to attack Prince Yu’s rebel forces — and nominally it would hold up. But Prince Wu would not believe it.

After much hesitation, Liu Li ordered the pursuit of the Jizhou army halted, and instead dispatched troops to consolidate and fortify the Jizhou territory he had already taken by force.

He had sacrificed Yuzhou for Jizhou. Whatever happened next, he might have to make do with what he had just captured.

On the other side, Qingzhou Military Governor Cui Yanlai cared nothing for any of this. Prince Wu’s position blocked Liu Li’s retreat, not his. Cui Yanlai’s only purpose was vengeance — to strike as hard as he could, to pursue the Jizhou army all the way into Jizhou if he must.

The Nanping River.

On the bank, Prince Wu looked across at Anyang Prefecture’s walls and frowned slightly, as though turning something over in his mind.

A subordinate came running from the distance to report that the men dispatched to Anyang Prefecture had returned.

In a short while, a fourth-rank general, Pei Wujiu, arrived before Prince Wu and bowed: “Your Highness — your subordinate has returned.”

Prince Wu gave a sound of acknowledgment. “What did Anyang’s Meng Kedi have to say?”

Pei Wujiu replied: “Meng Kedi deliberated at length and asked Your Highness to give him some time. He said he had received great favors from Liu Li, and that if he were to betray Liu Li now, he… could not bring himself to do it. So he asked to first send someone to try to persuade Liu Li to come back.”

“Ha ha ha ha —”

Prince Wu laughed heartily. “I knew all along that Meng Kedi would say exactly this. And I wanted precisely this.”

Pei Wujiu said: “Your Highness — what do you mean by that?”

Prince Wu said: “The men I trained — don’t I know them? Liu Li fears me and does not dare come back. He will certainly order a hold on the territory he has just taken, and wait to see my attitude.

“The people I have trained all know how to repay a debt of gratitude. Liu Li fears me precisely because he feels he has failed me. Meng Kedi is the same — he feels that betraying Liu Li would make him dishonorable in his own heart, but he also does not dare to stand against me. So he will spare no effort in trying to persuade Liu Li to come back and admit his fault.”

Prince Wu said: “Now I can move on with ease. Liu Li will continue to stall. And when Meng Kedi sends someone to persuade him, Liu Li will assume Meng Kedi has already surrendered to me — and will be all the more afraid to come back.”

He turned to Pei Wujiu and said: “From this day forward, you will remain here. The camp’s size does not change, the banners do not decrease. I will give you my golden armor — every morning and evening, you are to make a circuit along the riverbank.”

Pei Wujiu was taken aback. “Your Highness, you are —”

Before he could finish asking, Prince Wu smiled: “Taking Yuzhou alone cannot ensure sufficient stability. I intend to take back Qingzhou as well.

“If the court recovers both Qingzhou and Yuzhou, the coming year will be far easier. Both regions produce grain in abundance — they are the true granaries of Great Chu. Survive this year, and next year the court can catch its breath, rebuild its armies, and sweep the land clean.”

He looked at Pei Wujiu: “Qingzhou Military Governor Cui Yanlai will certainly seize this opportunity to strike at Jizhou. His home territory — I will go and take it.”

With that, Prince Wu laughed loudly, turned on his heel, and left the riverbank.

Back at camp, Prince Wu removed his golden armor and handed it to Pei Wujiu. He left Pei Wujiu with ten thousand men, then personally led ninety thousand troops in a night march away from the south bank of the Nanping River, heading in the direction of Qingzhou.

Two months later.

Jizhou City.

Li Chi and the others had long since returned. They were all aware of the situation in Jizhou, which was now caught in the grip of a gathering storm.

Xiahou Zuo had departed the very day Prince Yu fled back to Jizhou. He did not wish to stay — if he stayed, he would be compelled to do things he did not want to do.

Xiahou Zuo knew his own temperament well. If he truly remained and did not leave, and the enemy forces came to lay siege to Jizhou again, how could he, as his father’s son, not give his life for Prince Yu?

But he did not want to. He would rather be called a disloyal son by others than remain here even one more day.

Li Chi understood his feelings, so he arranged for men to escort Xiahou Zuo back to the northern frontier.

Now Jizhou City was gripped by anxiety. No one knew whether, when they woke tomorrow, the city would already have changed hands.

The Surveillance Bureau’s former compound had by now been fully renovated. Prince Yu was constantly preoccupied with other matters, too troubled in mind to concern himself with it. Since he neither managed it nor asked about it, Li Chi found the timing perfect.

The large compound had been renovated, and Li Chi had converted more than half of it into a medical hall. Before that, Shen Rujian had already worked out the terms with him.

She would operate the hall herself — Li Chi was not to interfere — and would give him three-tenths of the revenue. Li Chi naturally had no reason to refuse.

Yu Jiuling felt three-tenths was too little, but Li Chi did not care in the slightest.

On the day the hall opened its doors, Li Chi and the others all came to celebrate. The red cloth over the signboard was drawn back to reveal the hall’s name — three characters.

Shen Medical Hall.

The two characters “Shen Yi” — “Shen Medical” — carried a pleasant double meaning; spoken aloud, they echoed “divine physician.”

The Carriage Agency.

Li Chi sat there leafing through a booklet Mister Yan had given him. Tang Pidi returned from outside and settled down beside him, letting out a sigh.

“I just gathered some intelligence,” Tang Pidi said. “The situation is even more complicated than I had anticipated.”

Long before this, Tang Pidi had predicted to Li Chi: if Prince Yu were defeated, the Yuzhou army would press north to seize territory. Prince Wu, brilliant in strategy, would certainly take the opportunity to occupy Yuzhou — which would force Liu Li to remain in Jizhou, creating a standoff with Prince Yu inside the city walls.

“Qingzhou has also been taken by Prince Wu,” Tang Pidi said. “Now neither Liu Li nor Cui Yanlai can go home.”

Li Chi was taken aback, and could not help but sigh himself. “Three powers in balance — Jizhou is certainly lively now. Cui Yanlai can’t go back and neither can Liu Li. Each holds their own corner.”

He looked at Tang Pidi: “With Prince Yu holding Jizhou City, sooner or later there will be more upheaval.”

Tang Pidi said: “I am told that the relationship between Military Governor Zeng Ling and Prince Yu has been growing increasingly strained.”

Li Chi nodded: “Elder Ye came back yesterday and told me that Prince Yu flew into another rage at Zeng Ling, blaming the entire defeat on him and threatening severe punishment. Many people pleaded for a long time before Prince Yu was finally persuaded to let the matter rest for now.”

Tang Pidi sighed: “Something major is coming to Jizhou.”

Li Chi said: “Fortunately, we have been preparing for this on our end. Even if Jizhou falls into upheaval, we can hold on.”

Tang Pidi said: “While Jizhou can still be exited, send men quickly to Yanshan Camp — tell the chief, Yu Chaozong, that he must on no account dispatch troops here at this time.”

Li Chi said: “All right. I’ll have Elder Zhuang arrange for men to go back.”

Tang Pidi rose and looked at the Flowing Cloud Formation nearby, smiling. “It’s been a while since I played with this. Let me go loosen up.”

Li Chi said: “Master is sleeping. I’ll operate the formation for you.”

Not far away, Dantai Qi, who had been watching his divine hawk, glanced back toward Li Chi and his companions. Seeing Tang Pidi standing before the strange array of wooden figures, his curiosity was immediately piqued.

“What is that?”

He walked over as he asked, turning to Yu Jiuling beside him.

Yu Jiuling said: “That thing is called the Flowing Cloud Formation. It was created by Li Chi’s master to train a person’s reflexes and agility. Anyone who passes through the Flowing Cloud Formation — in our terms — becomes a fellow disciple.”

Dantai Qi asked curiously: “Fellow disciple? Why would it be put that way? And what school or sect?”

Yu Jiuling said: “The Crotch-Covering Sect.”

Dantai Qi paused, then shook his head: “That joke of yours is not even slightly funny.”

He went over and, seeing that Tang Pidi had not yet entered the formation, smiled and said: “Might I try it first?”

Li Chi glanced at him and pointed to a chest nearby: “Put on the protective gear first. Trust me — it helps.”

Dantai Qi went over and opened the chest for a look. He took out the iron object inside, held it up, and examined it carefully. Then, with a puzzled expression, he said: “If I am not mistaken… this is a pair of iron underpants?”

Yu Jiuling advised him: “Put them on. Otherwise, tomorrow you will find it a bit… obstructed when you try to relieve yourself.”

Dantai Qi said: “I would rather die than wear those.”

He looked at Li Chi: “I am entering the formation!”

Li Chi sighed and made a welcoming gesture: “Be my guest.”

A short while later, Dantai Qi emerged from the Flowing Cloud Formation with a gretched expression, walked to the chest, and quietly pulled on the iron underpants.

“Again!”

He shouted, and charged back into the formation.

*Clang, clang, clang — clang, clang, clang — clang clang clang clang clang…*

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