The mountain fire burned through the night without extinguishing. When dawn approached, black smoke rising from between the mountain ranges could still be seen from afar.

Black crows circled above the Chen army’s marching column, cawing. Below, the soldiers’ expressions were dejected, their steps weary.

Dou Jianliang sat on horseback, his face still bearing the charcoal black marks from being smoked by the dense smoke in the mountain fire. His expression was gloomy and resentful. Listening to the cawing sounds in midair, he furiously ordered those below him: “Shoot down those broken birds for me!”

Immediately, soldiers skilled in mounted archery raised their bows and arrows. With several whooshing arrows released, the black crows in the air fell into the grass along the official road.

Only then did Dou Jianliang feel somewhat relieved, emitting a cold snort from his nostrils.

In this exchange with the Pei army, even though they had absolutely no intention of engaging in battle, when two groups of troops collided halfway up the mountain, how could there not be bloodshed?

Dou Jianliang lost several thousand troops before successfully shaking off the Pei army. Losing so many soldiers for nothing, he was naturally extremely furious in his heart.

But what made him even more hatefully gnash his teeth while being filled with trepidation was that the mountain fires ignited on both sides were too suspicious.

How did the fire just happen to burn from behind their ambush position? Forcing them down the mountain to collide with the Pei clan’s troops?

Was it Yuan Fang’s contingency plan?

But if Yuan Fang’s people could break through the encirclement, wouldn’t it be more appropriate to protect Yuan Fang and escape?

What puzzled him even more was that the other party clearly knew their hiding place like the back of their hand. If it wasn’t Yuan Fang’s contingency plan, but rather a fourth force present on the scene, why had they never shown themselves?

The more Dou Jianliang thought about it, the more he felt it was eerie. Could they have encountered ghosts?

As long as Yuan Fang was dead, then even if they had encountered ghosts, there was nothing to fear!

Dou Jianliang’s eyes turned fierce as he asked those around him: “Has Dou Jie returned?”

The generals following behind him all simultaneously looked back. Not seeing the confidant Dou Jianliang had sent to kill Yuan Fang, the personal attendant closest to Dou Jianliang said: “Haven’t seen him—he probably hasn’t returned yet.”

Everyone understood clearly that at this point, if he still hadn’t returned, he was probably in grave danger.

Dou Jianliang’s expression became even uglier. He didn’t care whether Dou Jie had died on the battlefield—what he cared about was whether Yuan Fang was dead.

But with matters having reached this point, he could only take things one step at a time. He could only hope the Pei army side hadn’t left Yuan Fang alive.

With his army’s current miserable state, returning to camp to report to Fan Yuan while playing the victim would certainly be sufficient.

Dou Jianliang steadied his mind and secretly calculated that as long as he played the villain who complains first, as originally planned, pushing all the fault onto Yuan Fang—saying he had ruined the grand plan for the sake of seeking merit, causing the Pei army to become alert, and moreover that the Pei army’s numbers exceeded their expectations by twenty thousand, so he had failed to provide rescue and had withdrawn troops to avoid adding more casualties—Fan Yuan wouldn’t be able to do anything to him.

After all, the error in the Pei army reinforcement numbers was an indisputable fact.

Even if Yuan Fang had fallen into the Pei army’s hands and later accused him, he could insist to the death that Yuan Fang was slandering him to shirk his own guilt!

After planning all his escape routes, Dou Jianliang finally let out a long breath on horseback. He ordered: “Full speed march—return to the garrison!”

What he was most worried about now was actually that dog traitor Yu Wenjing! He absolutely couldn’t let him escape!

–

For the convenience of command, the three camps of Liang, Chen, and Wei weren’t far apart. Dou Jianliang marched at full speed all the way, finally returning to the Chen camp garrison before the sun rose.

He stormed into the central military tent, heavily throwing his riding whip onto the table and shouting at those around him: “Bring that old traitor Yu Wenjing before me!”

Personal guards quickly went to fetch the person. A moment later, they ran back in a panic to report: “Report… reporting to the general, there’s no one in Yu Wenjing’s tent!”

Dou Jianliang had just received a cup of cool tea offered by an attendant and was about to drink when, hearing these words, his tiger eyes widened. In fury, he smashed the bowl and cup in his hand, shouting: “Useless! Didn’t I tell you to keep watch over him in his tent!”

That Dou Jianliang could be sent by Southern Chen to Liang territory as the frontline main general naturally meant he wasn’t an incompetent person. His friendly overtures toward Yu Wenjing had always been half-believing, half-doubting. His choice to use tonight’s opportunity to eliminate the Wei army was also because he believed he had sufficient grasp of the situation.

But before the main army set out, he had still ordered those below to place Yu Wenjing under house arrest in his tent.

In the power arena, people appearing cordial in face-to-face conversations and hitting it off at first sight while secretly being on guard against each other was the norm.

As long as tonight he successfully intercepted the grain and buried the Pei and Wei armies, he would establish the primary merit. Upon returning, he could treat Yu Wenjing courteously. Regardless of what the other party thought privately, at least on the surface, he would still show respect and deference.

Dou Jianliang took his sword from the weapon rack and furiously charged toward the military tent where Yu Wenjing was under house arrest. As he swept aside the tent curtain, he was still shouting angrily: “The military camp’s guards are strict—with his old bones, could he have escaped by burrowing into the ground?”

When he clearly saw the half-person-high gash that had been cut open with a sharp weapon at the back of the military tent, he became even more furious. He kicked the guard responsible for watching the tent squarely in the chest and cursed: “Useless!”

Personal guards inspected inside the tent and discovered an unsealed letter on the table. They brought it over to Dou Jianliang: “General, that traitor left a letter for you.”

Dou Jianliang’s anger hadn’t subsided. He shook open the letter and skimmed through it rapidly. The further he read, the more obviously his facial muscles twitched, his expression becoming so ugly it was as if he wanted to devour someone.

At the very end, he even crumpled the letter, then swept over the long table in the tent, roaring: “Dog traitor! Old dog traitor Yu!”

The personal guards had never seen Dou Jianliang in such a loss of composure. Someone carefully stole a glance at the letter he had crumpled and thrown to the ground. They could see the first few lines written on it:

(Thanks to Duke Dou’s generous treatment, this one has returned to the Pei camp. My lord holds Duke Dou in high regard. If the Duke is willing to serve my lord, my lord will certainly value him. If the Duke remains steadfast in his integrity, my lord can only grieve at losing the Duke and will inform Liang in full detail of all that the Duke and I have plotted…)

–

The day had brightened, though the red sun had not yet risen.

On the Jincheng gate tower, there were dents everywhere from being struck by catapult stones and stray projectiles. Although the Liang army’s siege tonight had only been a feint, they still had to make it look authentic. Otherwise, if their intent was too obvious, it would instead arouse suspicion among the Pei army inside the city.

Black smoke billowed on the city walls. On the open ground below the city tower, several pitch-black stone craters had also been smashed out by catapult stones fired back by the Pei army.

Those catapult stones launched by trebuchets were all wrapped in rope nets brushed with a layer of pitch-black fire oil. When launched, the outer rope nets were ignited. Flying over the city tower had extreme deterrent power.

If soldiers were struck or injured by splintered stone fragments, even if they didn’t die on the spot, subsequent wound infections could send them through death’s door a second time.

Pei Song stood on the city tower, looking at the Liang army formation arranged like black ants below. His gaze swept toward the main commander’s formation surrounded by Liang troops at the very back, and a cool, thin smile emerged at the corner of his lips: “This Liang general—I’ve never heard his name before. His use of troops is actually quite commendable. It’s a pity.”

Han Qi, the main general responsible for defending the city, followed Pei Song’s gaze and glanced toward the formation where Fan Yuan was located before saying: “This person is named Fan Yuan. Previously, he was always kept by Prince Changlian in Pingzhou. With Chen Wei’s reputation overshadowing him, he never showed his talents. Over these past several months, in battles large and small, this subordinate has engaged with him no fewer than ten times. This person uses troops extremely cautiously. It can be said he never fights a battle he isn’t confident of winning.”

The smile at the corner of Pei Song’s mouth deepened slightly: “So I said it’s a pity.”

Han Qi looked at Pei Song’s smile, then looked at Fan Yuan on the battlefield. He frowned as if wanting to say something, but those below came to report: “Chief Minister, Mister Yu has returned.”

In a moment, an old man in dark red robes was led up to the city tower.

Pei Song smiled lightly and bowed to the old man: “Mister, this journey was arduous for you.”

Yu Wenjing hurriedly returned the courtesy: “To scheme for my lord is this old one’s fortune.”

Pei Song then looked toward Pei Fifteen who had come along with the old man and asked: “We didn’t let Mister get injured, did we?”

Pei Fifteen clasped his fists: “Fortunately, the mission was not dishonored.”

Yu Wenjing, seeing how much Pei Song valued his safety, was moved in his heart. He felt even more that the risky trip to the Chen camp was worthwhile, saying: “This old one has already left a letter for that Dou clan youngster. As soon as his main army returns to camp, the Liang camp will become lively.”

Pei Song’s gaze returned to the battlefield below. He smiled with a light and breezy manner: “This Chief Minister looks forward with keen anticipation.”

Han Qi, who had been holding back words ever since Yu Wenjing returned, seemed to show a struggle on his face. Finally, he still stepped forward with clasped fists and said: “I hope the Chief Minister will allow this subordinate to lead troops to engage that Fan Yuan. This subordinate will certainly bring back his head.”

Pei Song didn’t respond, only raising his hand to press on one of his shoulders, saying: “I know you want to compete with these military generals. But this person isn’t worthy of you personally taking action. Don’t worry—I’ve reserved an opponent worthy of the Han family’s nineteen spear techniques for you at the rear.”

Hearing this, Han Qi couldn’t help but reveal surprise in his eyes: “There’s still such an expert in the Liang camp?”

Before Pei Song’s eyes again appeared that moonlit night in Yong City.

That long saber that had slashed down almost touching his own face, and those eyes that in the darkness of night seemed like a demon from hell.

His expression was still indifferent, but the smile at the corner of his mouth had already slightly receded as he said: “You’ll know when you encounter him.”

Pei Fifteen naturally knew who Pei Song was talking about. Pei Song’s order for him to personally bring Yu Wenjing back also had the meaning of secretly investigating the Liang camp to see if they were hiding Xiao Li as a trump card.

After all, back in Yongzhou, Zhou Sui had been rescued by Xiao Li, so clearly their previous alienation scheme hadn’t succeeded.

But since then, Xiao Li had seemingly vanished without a trace. They had secretly inserted quite a few more spies into the Liang camp, but none had been able to gather any news concerning Xiao Li.

No matter how one thought about it, this matter revealed strangeness—the Liang camp had such a capable general yet kept him hidden without using him.

If they weren’t secretly plotting something, then at some point they didn’t know about, some unexpected development must have occurred.

Pei Fifteen’s covert investigation of the Liang camp had yielded nothing. He was very clear this couldn’t be considered good news. After all, not knowing Xiao Li’s movements meant they were still very likely in a passive position regarding the Liang camp.

Therefore, when Pei Song’s gaze swept over no differently than usual, Pei Fifteen imperceptibly shook his head slightly.

Pei Song’s face still revealed no emotion. He only said to Han Qi: “Just watch the current spectacle.”

–

The Liang camp.

This year, the autumn tiger’s imposing power was slow to recede. Only each day’s early morning could provide a few moments of coolness.

The tent door of the Liang camp’s central military tent was wide open. Li Xun and a group of advisors were inside. Those eagerly waiting sat waiting eagerly; those resting with closed eyes rested with closed eyes. There were also impatient advisors who had been anxiously pacing back and forth inside the tent.

The Chen and Wei sides had gone to intercept grain and set traps to lure and kill the Pei army. Fan Yuan had led the Great Liang’s main force to feint an attack on Jincheng as cover. To know the battle situations on both sides at the first moment, they naturally dared not sleep through the night.

One of the advisors looking outward waiting for news couldn’t help but say: “Old He, rest for a bit! Your pacing back and forth is making my eyes blur!”

That advisor pacing back and forth spread his hands: “Can’t stop—these legs won’t obey orders!”

Another advisor pressed his own eyelid saying: “It’s bad—this morning my eyelid has been twitching non-stop. Could something have happened?”

As soon as these words left his mouth, they drew condemnation from all the advisors: “Go, go, go! What nonsense are you spouting! Can’t you say something auspicious?”

“Exactly! We’ve deduced this plan to intercept grain, set traps, and bury the Pei army how many times? What could go wrong!”

Li Xun sat in the main seat on one side of the long table. Listening to the clamor of the advisors below, he only sighed and raised his voice slightly to shout: “Stop arguing, stop arguing. Just wait for news.”

The advisors all sat back in their original positions. After being quiet for a while, thinking of Southern Chen’s unreasonable stubbornness in refusing to lend grain to the Wei army earlier, they couldn’t help but ask Li Xun: “Lord Li, when will Lord Ling arrive at the army? In the future, if Lord Ling sits in command of the army, surely the Chen camp side will quiet down somewhat.”

Although Liang and Chen had already formed an alliance, just in case, Chen Wei still had to remain in Pingzhou guarding the major pass at Bairen Pass. Moreover, it was also for better management of the three provinces and one commandery. After all, once war started, no one knew when it would end. Grain and military provisions were all bottomless pits. If the rear didn’t have sufficient supplies, the frontline battles couldn’t be fought.

Before Great Liang had fallen apart, Fan Yuan couldn’t be counted among the generals of notable reputation in the court. That he could be recommended as the main commander of the allied forces was mainly because neither the Chen nor Liang sides were willing for the other’s troops to serve as this main commander of the Southern Border allied forces, so they unanimously declined in favor of Fan Yuan.

Fan Yuan and the Wei army’s Yuan Fang at least had the friendship of having previously served as officials in the same court. When presenting a united front to outsiders, they could entrust their backs to each other.

The Chen army’s main general Dou Jianliang, however, was a difficult character. Fan Yuan and Li Xun had endured no small amount of headaches.

That Li Yao had decided to come to the Jinzhou frontline was also partly for this reason.

Li Xun said: “Lord Ling said that recently he discovered the whereabouts of an old friend and went to invite that old friend to come out of retirement.”

Some days ago, he had been unable to find any trace of Xiao Li. In his heart, he had a vague suspicion about Tongzhou but wasn’t certain. He could only first send people to secretly watch Tongzhou, planning to wait until he had definite news before reporting to Li Yao. It just so happened that Li Yao had heard news of his old friend, so he first went to visit that old friend.

The advisors all knew Li Yao’s position in the court—the former “Chancellor of the Central Secretariat” naturally wasn’t called that for nothing. If he hadn’t been thoroughly disappointed in the court and retired to seclusion, there probably wouldn’t have been any business for the later Grand Tutor Yu.

But he had, after all, been far from the court for many years and had never taken disciples. Compared to Grand Tutor Yu, who had widely accepted disciples to suppress the Ao faction and had an extremely high reputation among scholar-officials, his reputation was already insufficient.

Some shallow people presumptuously compared the two, speaking shortsighted words that were treated as golden rules by others who were equally empty in their bellies and empty in their brains.

Therefore, when Li Xun said it was Li Yao’s old friend, the advisors couldn’t help but beam with joy and hurriedly asked: “For Lord Ling to personally go invite him, he must certainly not be a simple person. Does Lord know who it is?”

But Li Xun kept them in suspense, saying: “He’s been retired for many years. Whether he can come out of retirement is still hard to say, but if the other party is willing to come out of retirement…”

Li Xun smiled. His nerves, taut all night, rarely relaxed somewhat as he said: “After defeating Pei Song, then defeating his Wei Qishan also won’t be a difficult matter.”

These words successfully hooked all the advisors’ curiosity. They all exclaimed: “It’s actually an old general?”

“An old general who exchanges friendship with Lord Ling… that must be someone who followed the Mingcheng Founder in conquering the world back in the day!”

The advisors’ emotions became increasingly elevated. Just as they were about to ask more details, outside the tent, soldiers indeed hurried over: “Report—the Chen army’s main force has returned to camp!”

Li Xun immediately rose from his seat and asked: “What about the Northern Wei people?”

“Report—”

Another messenger soldier rushed over urgently, holding a bloodstained cloth in both hands: “Lord, someone shot this object into the camp!”

Li Xun’s heart jumped. He hurriedly said: “Quickly present it for me to see!”