The Prince of Donghai had sent troops to probe several times and actually won a few small victories. Moreover, after waiting all these days, only Gou Xi’s forces were on the opposite bank—the Yuzhou army was nowhere to be seen.

This made the Prince of Donghai certain that Zhao Hanzhang had already left.

If it were only him against Gou Xi, he was quite confident he could defeat Gou Xi.

Not only did he have more troops here than Gou Xi, but the forces behind him were also greater. Luoyang wasn’t far from here, and he could continuously dispatch reinforcements from Luoyang.

He didn’t believe Gou Xi could compete with him.

Therefore, after Gou Xi’s several provocations, the Prince of Donghai’s confidence soared. He finally couldn’t restrain himself and chose an auspicious day on the almanac to launch an attack on the opposite shore at dawn the next day…

At the break of dawn, both banks were very quiet. Many boats were dragged out from the Prince of Donghai’s camp and quietly launched into the water to cross the river.

The scouts watching the river channel on the opposite bank immediately reported this. Gou Xi, who had been waiting all along, immediately rose and ordered, “Deploy troops!”

Their camp wasn’t far away, and the men were already on constant alert. At his command, they immediately formed ranks and reached the riverbank. Gou Xi watched the situation on the river channel. When the first boat had crossed more than halfway and was almost touching the bank, he gave the order, and ten thousand arrows were released. The arrows flew into the air and fell, striking the men on the river who had nowhere to hide. Screams arose.

Some soldiers threw themselves into the water. Although Gou Xi’s army was using longbows with great power at this time, the force was somewhat dissipated upon entering the water. Soldiers who fell into the water might also be shot, but they wouldn’t die immediately.

However, they had to swim to shore, where spear teams were waiting…

Most soldiers sank before reaching shore due to loss of strength, blood loss, and hypothermia…

The Prince of Donghai had chosen a river channel that wasn’t deep for crossing. Now that it was nearly winter, the river was already shallow, so as soldiers continuously sank, the river became chaotic. Some fallen soldiers’ toes could even touch their comrades’ corpses, while others were grabbed by panicked soldiers and pulled down together.

Seeing this, the comrades nearby became even more panicked in their already frightened state.

The Prince of Donghai wasn’t someone who could inspire soldiers. The troops were already reluctant to fight, and in this battle, aside from his own perception, they truly lacked favorable timing, geography, and popular support.

Zhao Hanzhang was upstream, watching this scene from afar with her telescope. She sighed and then ordered, “Let’s move.”

Here, there was a shallow water area where they could cross on horseback.

However, this river channel had mountains on both sides with only a small path leading out. Although the channel was wide and shallow, it couldn’t station large numbers of soldiers.

If the Prince of Donghai had been diligent, he could have sent troops quietly across here last night. Even if he couldn’t completely evade Gou Xi’s notice, Gou Xi wouldn’t have been able to trap him in mid-river.

If both sides had fought fiercely here, who would win or lose was truly uncertain.

So as Zhao Hanzhang carefully guided her horse across the river, she taught Zhao Erlang, “This is why information is so important in warfare. When I first crossed the river back to here, it’s been so long, yet the Prince of Donghai still hasn’t found this place. You can see how poorly he gathers intelligence.”

Zhao Erlang asked, “But what if he had found it?”

He didn’t understand what use finding this place would be.

Zhao Hanzhang glanced at him. “If he found it but first, didn’t station anyone to guard it, and second, didn’t use the geographical advantage for military purposes, he’s clearly a fool. This is a difference in intelligence, and even Heaven can’t help with that.”

Zhao Erlang, who similarly hadn’t thought of how to use this geographical advantage, lowered his head and pretended he hadn’t heard.

Fu Tinghan at his side glanced at her, feeling she wasn’t being a very competent teacher. So he said to Zhao Erlang, “Although Heaven can’t help you, people can.”

He said, “One person’s intelligence is limited, which is why we need collective wisdom. Even if a superior can’t think of how to use this geographical advantage, surely someone among their subordinates can, right?”

“When someone thinks of it and proposes it, you can then take their advice. This is another meaning of popular support, which can compensate for your own shortcomings.”

Zhao Erlang nodded repeatedly, extracting the most essential part directly: “From now on, I’ll listen to brother-in-law.”

When Zhao Hanzhang’s gaze swept over, he quickly added, “And to sister too.”

Zhao Hanzhang: “…What if Tinghan and I aren’t with you?”

Zhao Erlang was stumped.

Zhao Hanzhang used her eyes to drift toward Wang Nie and Xie Shi behind them.

Zhao Erlang finally had a clever moment and said, “Then I’ll listen to General Wang and General Xie.”

Zhao Hanzhang, upon hearing this, immediately said, “Good! I appoint Wang Nie and Xie Shi as Left and Right Assistant Generals.”

The two men, who had recruited soldiers, expelled the Xiongnu, and commanded troops for Zhao Hanzhang without receiving official appointments, suddenly had proper positions.

Wang Nie and Xie Shi were stunned for a moment. After recovering, they immediately bowed slightly on horseback in thanks. “Thank you, Commander. Thank you, Young General Zhao.”

The two had always been treated as staff without official positions, and they thought they would follow the same path as Advisor Ji.

Managing affairs without official rank.

They hadn’t expected Zhao Hanzhang to give them positions so readily.

Coming from aristocratic families, both had been evaluated for rank and didn’t have great attachment to official positions, so their feelings were moderate. What they cared about was the meaning behind Zhao Hanzhang’s current appointment.

The two looked at Zhao Erlang simultaneously, eyes narrowing.

So it seemed Zhao Hanzhang wanted them to cultivate Zhao Erlang.

The two scrutinized Zhao Erlang from head to toe and reluctantly accepted.

Though the boy was a bit slow, he wasn’t entirely without merit. At least his mounted combat skills were decent, and they had also heard what Zhao Hanzhang and Fu Tinghan just said.

As long as he was willing to take advice, the benefits of cultivating him wouldn’t be small.

Zhao Erlang was Zhao Hanzhang’s only biological younger brother. Currently, among her civil advisors she had Zhao Ming and Ji Yuan, with Zhao Ming backed by a string of Zhao clan descendants; among military officers she had Zhao Ju, Qiu Wu, Xun Xiu and others. They couldn’t squeeze in, so taking a roundabout route to Zhao Hanzhang’s side wasn’t bad either.

The two slowed their horses, falling back another step, then moved behind Zhao Erlang to follow.

Zhao Erlang turned back curiously to look at them.

Wang Nie wore a stern expression, while Xie Shi looked up and smiled at him.

Sister had said that people should be polite, so Zhao Erlang smiled back. Comparing him to the serious Wang Nie beside him, he decided he preferred Xie Shi.

Wang Nie, unaware of his thoughts, was thinking about how to train Zhao Erlang.

Although they had little interaction, this Young Lord Erlang was quite famous in the army. He reportedly couldn’t recognize a single character and got headaches when learning to read, but became energetic on horseback and went wild when holding a blade.

His scholarly learning deteriorated the more he studied, but his martial skills improved rapidly. He was simple-minded with a somewhat hasty temper, but had decent character, never mistreating soldiers and even able to eat and sleep alongside them.

If he could take advice, he was indeed worth cultivating.

After considering this, Wang Nie felt reassured. Together with Xie Shi, one on the left and one on the right, they protected Zhao Erlang as they moved forward.

Since Zhao Hanzhang had given them to Zhao Erlang, from now on they would have to fight for all benefits for Zhao Erlang.

Seeing their actions, Zhao Hanzhang’s lips curved up, quite satisfied.

—