Tang Dynasty Swordsman

Page 133

"Stop indulging in momentary desires and endure momentary anger, and you will soar freely in the high heavens. There are plenty of prey in the world, why fight this one rabbit alone? Although the heavens have given warnings, they cannot be fully revealed, otherwise you will surely suffer the consequences—I will stop here and observe for yourself."

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Meanwhile, Li Shi met with Di De in the military camp of Shannan East Circuit. Di De treated him with great respect because of Li Ji and Li Tan, which pleased Li Shi greatly. He immediately held a banquet to entertain him, talking about the customs of the Uyghurs and recounting the past battles in Longyou. They stayed until sunset before returning to the city.

As soon as he settled into the commander's residence, someone reported: "Inspector Yu has suddenly fallen seriously ill and is unable to go on the campaign. Therefore, he has ordered someone to send a letter to the commander-in-chief requesting that he be released and allowed to return to the capital to recuperate."

Li Shi took the document, read it quickly, and breathed a sigh of relief, saying, "Since he is too ill to handle affairs, I grant your permission." He then wrote his reply and asked, "When does Yu Chaoen plan to return to the capital?"

"If the Marshal agrees, we can set off early tomorrow morning."

Li Shi thought to himself, "Hurry up and leave! Every day you delay, the danger increases—not your danger, but mine! Although Li Ji claims to have planned ahead and won't really cause any trouble, don't push him too far..."

The news of Yu Chaoen's illness and subsequent retirement spread throughout the army the following morning. Not only Li Shi, but also Pugu Huai'en and other generals breathed a sigh of relief. Only Pugu Yang remained foolish, saying, "What a pity. Erlang should not have summoned Guo Yingyi to speak with him that day. He was probably the one who leaked the news, allowing Yu Chaoen to seize the opportunity and escape with his life."

As for Li Ji, upon hearing the news, he couldn't help but burst into laughter. He then stretched out his right hand, his five fingers curled up as if holding a horsewhip, and pointed it out, exhaling as he said, "I'll take away your military power!"

As the Military Commissioner, Yu Chaoen, though he could directly command a small number of troops, wielded considerable influence over the various towns and held a degree of command authority, essentially holding the reins of power. Having such a man, who repeatedly plotted against him, by his side… no, behind him, made Li Ji truly uneasy.

He had arrived full of enthusiasm, only to have his hopes dashed by Li Shi, who informed him that Yu Chaoen could not be executed for the time being. Li Ji had indeed considered inciting the troops to create a disturbance and besiege Yu Chaoen, even going so far as to ride forward himself and kill the eunuch with a single blow. However, this would be a lose-lose situation, and even with Li Shi's assistance and Li Bi's guarantee, he himself would not be safe—he had finally been appointed as a general, and to have his military power stripped before even facing the enemy would be utterly disheartening.

Yu Chaoen was unwilling to exchange his life for Li Ji's, and Li Ji was even less willing to trade his future for Yu Chaoen's death!

Therefore, he devised various schemes and made threats, betting that Yu Chaoen feared him and was also afraid of death. His fear was evident in the eunuch's eyes when they met in the main hall of the commander's mansion; as for his fear of death… he didn't believe Yu Chaoen would dare to die with him!

Of course, if he loses the bet and Yu Chaoen stubbornly refuses to leave, Li Ji may have no choice but to resort to a less desirable tactic... He's already made his promise, how can he back down now? How will he face people in the future?

However, Li Ji had also informed Li Shi that if Yu Chaoen showed no intention of leaving within four days, Li Ji should immediately order the vanguard and central army to set off, thus jeopardizing Li Shi's plans and causing his efforts to fail.

Ultimately, this act of insubordination severely disrupted military order, something not only deeply resented by Li Ji himself, but also intolerable to Li Mi, given his personality. If he were to actually do such a thing, his brotherly bond with Li Mi might be severed…

Fortunately, Chang Heng secretly reported to Li Ji yesterday, telling him in detail about his meeting with Yu Chaoen. Li Ji was slightly relieved—but he didn't expect Yu Chaoen to run away so quickly! This eunuch is quite decisive.

As long as his military power is removed, the harm he causes will not be too severe, at least it won't affect the current suppression of the rebellion. We can wait until we win the battle and then find an opportunity to deal with that bastard.

On another note, while Yu Chaoen's removal from command of the Shence Army and his second deployment to Shaanxi outside the capital were certainly due to his refusal to align himself with Empress Zhang, Li Fuguo's machinations may also have played a part. The reason is simple: two tigers cannot stand side by side. If one is in the court and the other is outside the capital, they can support each other and rely on each other. But if both are in the court, how can they avoid conflict?

Although Li Fuguo was dead, a new powerful eunuch had risen in the palace—that was Cheng Yuanzhen. Cheng Yuanzhen and Yu Chaoen didn't have a deep relationship, and in terms of seniority, he was even subordinate to Yu Chaoen. How could they possibly get along peacefully? When two tigers fight, one will surely be injured. Perhaps before he even returned to the capital after suppressing the rebellion, one of the two powerful eunuchs would fall—most likely Yu Chaoen. Cheng Yuanzhen, after all, had the advantage of fighting on home ground.

Even if they remain unharmed for the time being, having them check and balance each other is beneficial to the country.

Four days after Yu Chaoen's departure, the grain and fodder supplies in Hedong were plentiful. Li Shi then ordered the vanguard to set off first, followed by the central and rear guards, each departing a day later. Thus, the 50,000-strong army marched majestically towards Henan. On the evening of the second day, Li Ji stayed overnight in the eastern suburbs of Mianchi. He received news that the vanguard had passed Xin'an, but the rebels showed no intention of blocking their path—presumably intending to hold Luoyang or find a decisive battleground near the eastern capital.

Yin Shen brought someone to see him, saying that Third Sister had just sent a message by fast horse from the capital...

Li Ji was slightly displeased upon hearing this—I already told you not to call me "Third Sister," call me Madam! Do you think your master's surname is Cui? Or do you think my leg isn't as thick as my wife's?

The news from Cui Cuo was that Yu Chaoen had reported to the Emperor that he had been summoned to Chang'an, and the Emperor had newly appointed him as the Military Commissioner for Inspection and Pacification. Li Ji thought to himself, "These eunuch traitors really are relentless, one after another, with no end in sight..."

Who will take the position?

"It is the king riding a crane."

Wang Jiahe had once served as the Inspector of Military Maneuvers for the Yingwu Army and had a fairly good relationship with Li Ji—since they were roughly on the same side at the time—however, Li Ji didn't know much about Wang Jiahe's character and abilities. He simply thought to himself that even if Wang Jiahe possessed extraordinary abilities or was arrogant and domineering, he had only recently left the capital and had a shallow foundation in the army; he probably wouldn't dare to act recklessly… As long as no one hindered him, the Tang army had a high chance of winning this campaign to quell the rebellion.

But if we can truly annihilate Shi Chaoyi in one fell swoop, and after accumulating some strength, we can turn around and repel the Tibetans who are increasingly approaching Longshang...

(End of Volume 5, "The Drums Cease and the Cold Mist Disperses on the Heavenly Street")

Author's Note: Volume 5 is finished. There will be a break tomorrow, and Volume 6 will begin the day after tomorrow.

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Chapter 1, The False Commander Yan

In the first year of the Baoying era of the Tang Dynasty, which was also the second year of the Xiansheng era of the pseudo-Yan Dynasty, in mid-October, in Wuqing County, Hebei Province.

This prefecture was originally named Beizhou. In the third year of the Tianbao era, the prefecture was changed to a prefecture, and it was initially named Qinghe Prefecture, with its seat in Qinghe County. After Shi Siming became emperor, he moved the prefecture seat to Wucheng, east of Qinghe, and renamed the prefecture Wuqing.

In the Tang Dynasty, the position of Jiedushi (military governor) was theoretically only responsible for military affairs. However, it was common practice to also hold the titles of Prefect of a certain prefecture or Observer of several prefectures, thus gaining control over military, civil administration, and even financial power. The pseudo-Yan regime, on the other hand, was a purely military regime. Therefore, as long as one held the title of Jiedushi, one would naturally become the highest military and political official of one or several prefectures, effectively establishing a separatist regime.

Today, Wuqing County and the neighboring Pingyuan County (Dezhou) are under the jurisdiction of Qin Rui, the military governor of Wuqing.

It was just after nightfall, and in the rear chambers of the Wucheng Military Governor's Office, Commander Qin was diligently serving the emperor, working tirelessly. On the wide couch, the brocade quilt was piled high and trembling incessantly. After a while, Qin Rui finally let out a long sigh and turned over to lie down.

He casually swept away most of the quilt, revealing half of a snow-white, soft body. Then, the body moved slightly, arms outstretched, and embraced Qin Rui's neck, a sweet, delicate voice calling out, "Marshal..."

Qin Rui glanced at the woman, and suddenly felt a surge of inexplicable irritation. He immediately bent and straightened his hairy, thick leg, kicking the woman completely out of bed and onto the floor.

"roll!"

The woman was terrified, her face turning pale. Ignoring her naked state, she hurriedly bowed before the bed and asked, "General, General, has this servant failed to serve you properly?"

Qin Rui glared at him: "If I tell you to get lost, then get lost! Why all the nonsense? Do you think I'm too kind to kill you?"

The woman was so terrified that she almost cried out on the spot. She could only grit her teeth, desperately endure it, and kowtow again before standing up, bowing her back, and running out the door in small, hurried steps.

Qin Rui lay back on the couch, slightly raised his head, and looked at the woman's back—her buttocks were too big and her legs were too thick; they shouldn't have been allowed to eat their fill!

He immediately curled his lip and clicked his tongue, saying, "I really am sick."

It turns out that this Commander Qin was not actually surnamed Qin, but was named Zhen Sui...

Zhen Sui was ordered by Emperor Suzong Li Heng to go to Yingyang to welcome Li Bi and escort the brothers Li Bi and Li Ji westward to join Li Heng. However, on Tanshan Mountain, he encountered a dozen or so brave men sent by Tian Qianzhen. He told the Li brothers to escape while he stayed behind to cover their retreat. Outnumbered, he was almost killed, but he eventually managed to break through the encirclement, though he was covered in wounds and looked like a bloodied man.

Fortunately, after Cui Guangyuan escaped from Chang'an, he left Cui Qi and others to lie in wait near the capital to gather intelligence on the rebels' movements. Cui Qi happened to be near Tanshan when he encountered Zhen Sui, so he gave him medicine and saved his life.

From then on, Zhen Sui couldn't forget that little girl... He himself found it strange. Cui Qi was only of average appearance and thin, with neither breasts nor buttocks. Although she was of marriageable age, she seemed to have not yet started to develop. What exactly did he see in her?

For example, the woman he kicked off the bed just now was considered one of the most beautiful women in the two states. Apart from being a little plump, she was an absolute beauty in terms of appearance and figure. Why was he so excited when he was doing this, but once the excitement wore off, Cui Qi's image involuntarily appeared in his mind, and he couldn't stand the woman no matter how he looked at her?

I'm really sick, and I'm seriously sick!

Unfortunately, I was a bit rash back then, intending to force things, which seems to have offended that little girl… I originally thought that although my status wasn't high, I was still worthy of a maid in the Cui household, and perhaps I could even use this to curry favor with Cui Guangyuan. However, upon arriving at the temporary capital in Ding'an, I was stopped by Li Fuguo and Cui Guangyuan, who neither allowed me to see the Emperor nor let me show my face in public—fearing that the Emperor would find out about their reckless actions that nearly cost Li Mi his life…

Actually, these small matters might not affect their power, but in front of the emperor, even the slightest bit of dislike could accumulate and suddenly escalate at any time... In comparison, it's just sacrificing a Qianniu bodyguard, which is incredibly beneficial and cost-effective.

Therefore, Zhen Sui was almost silenced, but fortunately he was clever enough, and with Cui Qi's help, he was expelled from the capital and ordered to sneak into Luoyang to infiltrate the rebel army as a spy. Thereupon, he changed his name and took his mother's surname, becoming Qin Rui.

Qin Rui went to serve under Zhou Zhi—this was also arranged by Cui Guangyuan, because Zhou Zhi had a past relationship with him—and gradually gained his trust, accumulating merits and rising through the ranks. He originally planned to wait until his false position was high enough to command more troops, then defect to the Tang Dynasty on the battlefield, hoping the Tang family would give him a fourth or fifth-rank official position, and then he could go to the Cui family to ask Cui Qi for a wife.

But he could never have imagined that if Zhou Zhi hadn't died, he would have been nothing more than a minor official, and he would only have a chance to seize power after Zhou Zhi died.

Last year, Shi Chaoyi launched a coup, not only murdering his father but also summoning Zhou Zhi and Xu Shuji to his court, where he executed Zhou Zhi on the spot—firstly, because Zhou Zhi was his father's trusted minister; and secondly, because he merely suspected that Zhou Zhi might favor his younger brother, Shi Chaoqing. Upon hearing the news, Qin Rui immediately rallied all of Zhou Zhi's former subordinates, pressuring Shi Chaoyi to give an explanation.

When Shi Chaoyi first ascended the throne, his power base was unstable, and many of his former generals and ministers were not convinced. He was worried that the rebellion of Zhou Zhi's old subordinates would trigger a chain reaction. In the end, he had no choice but to agree to Qin Rui's request and appoint him as the military governor of Wuqing, so that he could assume the responsibility of the region.

After Qin Rui took control of Wuqing and Pingyuan prefectures, he immediately began to prepare his troops, waiting for the Tang army to launch another campaign so that he could find an opportunity to defect.

However, marrying that young maid Cui Qi is probably out of the question... Firstly, several years have passed, and at that age, she should be married by now, right? Secondly, if I were to offer the two prefectures to the Tang Dynasty, I should at least be given a third-rank military position. Marrying a maid as my principal wife would be an inappropriate match, and I fear it would cause public criticism...

This only added to my frustration. I wondered where I could find another lady with a slender figure like Cui Qi? Hmm, if she were under 12, there might still be a chance, but she would eventually develop...

Lost in thought, a voice suddenly came from outside the door: "Greetings, Commander, I have important matters to report."

Qin Rui recognized the voice, hurriedly put on his clothes and stood up, calling out, "Mr. Guo, please come in."

The door opened, and a scholar bowed as he entered.

This man was named Guo Mo, a native of Yingchuan. He was the middle son of Guo Na, a Tang Dynasty official who served as the Inspector of Chenliu. He was fond of swordsmanship from a young age and traveled extensively. After the uprising, he joined Zhou Zhi's forces, becoming the commander of the "Divine Machine Guard." After Zhou Zhi was killed, the martial arts masters within the "Divine Machine Guard" fled, leaving Guo Mo without support. He then joined Qin Rui. However, Qin Rui did not underestimate him, addressing him only as "Sir" and treating him with the utmost courtesy.

The purpose was to hope that Guo Mo could rebuild the "Shenji Guard" and make it a powerful ally for his family.

It wasn't yet time for bed, but Guo Mo rushed over to see him. However, upon entering, he found General Qin dressed only in his undergarments, having just put on a long robe and was tying its belt. Guo Mo thought to himself, "He's sleeping with another woman..." He looked around but couldn't find anyone else in the room. He thought to himself, "Thank goodness, I haven't disturbed the General's rest."

Qin Rui invited Guo Mo to sit opposite him, and then asked, "Has Chang'an already launched an eastern expedition?"

Guo Mo nodded, but started with another matter: "Reporting to the commander, Jingjing'er has returned."

Upon hearing this, Qin Rui's eyes lit up—that Jingjing'er was incredibly skilled in light-footed martial arts and adept at throwing darts with invisible, traceless precision. He was originally a core member of the "Divine Machine Guard," but unfortunately, he happened to be away on business when Zhou Zhi died and never returned. He probably wandered for over a year, unable to find a good place to stay, and thus had no choice but to return to Guo Mo.

Guo Mo then recounted Jingjing'er's whereabouts over the years in general terms—the key point being that it involved internal strife within the Tang Dynasty, and much of the information had been distorted by the time it reached Hebei. On the contrary, Jingjing'er had uncovered quite a few secrets.

"...Xuan Jingjing'er went to Chang'an, intending to seek refuge with Cui Guangyuan, but unexpectedly encountered the eunuch Ma Yingjun, whom she had met before..."

Guo Mo, under Zhou Zhi's orders, led Jingjing'er and others to infiltrate Ding'an to assassinate Li Heng. Li Fuguo, having learned of this, took the initiative to send someone to contact Guo Mo, intending to lure them into the palace and capture them all—it was Ma Yingjun who opened the door for Jingjing'er and the others.

Fortunately, Guo Mo discovered Li Fuguo's plot in time and ordered Jingjing'er and the others to enter the palace but not to seek out Li Heng and walk into a trap. Instead, they were to pass through the palace and head to the Marshal's Mansion to assassinate Li Yu.

However, a fierce battle broke out in the commander's mansion. Li Ji fought against several people with unparalleled bravery, resulting in heavy losses for the Shenji Guard. Guo Mo had no choice but to hastily flee the city...

During her time in Chang'an, Jingjing encountered Ma Yingjun. Knowing that he was an extraordinary person in the Divine Machine Guard and that Zhou Zhi was dead and Jingjing had no one to rely on, Ma Yingjun immediately tried to win her over and asked her to do things for the Empress—as long as Empress Zhang gained power, he would grant Jingjing whatever she wanted.

His task for Jingjing was to kidnap Zou Qingluan, lure Li Ji out of Chang'an, and then equip the dozens of strong men he had secretly recruited with armor and have them lie in ambush near Wangchun Tower...

"...Unfortunately, Cui Guangyuan's extraordinary men arrived, preventing Jingjing'er from achieving her goal..."

Upon hearing this, Qin Rui frowned: "An extraordinary person under Cui Guangyuan's command? Is there a... petite and thin woman named Cui Qi?"

Guo Mo nodded: "Jingjing did mention this woman, saying that in terms of seniority she is his junior disciple and the leader of the Cui clan's extraordinary people. Moreover, before Cui Guangyuan passed away, he had already revealed the woman's true identity, that she was his illegitimate daughter, and that she was betrothed to Li Ji."

Upon hearing this, Qin Rui's brows furrowed deeply, and a look of regret appeared on her face—she really did get married, but... why did she marry Li Ji? If I didn't recognize her husband, that would be one thing, but how am I supposed to meet Li Ji in the future? Will I be unable to hold back and throw a punch at him?

"I've heard that Li Ji was a great contributor to the ascension of the new Tang emperor?"

Guo Mo nodded: "That's right. Since Jingjing couldn't stop Li Ji, Li Ji returned to the palace at night and thwarted Empress Zhang's plot..."

Qin Rui sighed, "In that case, Li Ji will be put to great use."

"Indeed, Li Ji was among those who led the Tang army on this eastern expedition, serving as the defense commissioner of the four prefectures of Xiang, Deng, Sui, and Ying, and commanding the troops of the Shannan East Circuit..."

Qin Rui thought to himself, "He's just a defense commissioner? I'm already a military governor! But Li Ji commands the troops of four prefectures, compared to my two... I'm not worried. Hebei is populous and wealthy; we might not be inferior to him." But why did Cui Qi marry him?

Guo Mo, unaware of Qin Rui's thoughts, continued, "Since Jingjing'er failed to serve Empress Zhang, she wandered around the capital region and finally discovered the Tang army's detailed deployment. That's why she returned and offers this as a gift, earnestly requesting... earnestly requesting the General to take her in. Would the General be willing to employ this person?"

Qin Rui hurriedly said, "Of course we'll use it, why wouldn't we?"

He then asked, "What is the Tang army's deployment like?"

Guo Mo took out a scroll of paper from his pocket, unfolded it, and explained it to Qin Rui in detail: the Tang army was divided into three routes, which garrisons each route had, who the generals were, how many men there were, and what the estimated marching routes would be.

Qin Rui feigned listening, but was actually somewhat distracted. He pondered whether he had a chance to kill Li Ji on the battlefield and then try to take his wife. Hmm, no, with Li Ji's abilities, even if he hadn't improved since the breakup, he probably wouldn't be easily defeated; moreover, he was deeply favored by Li Yu and his son Li Shi, and if he killed him, he probably would never have another chance to return to Tang.

Qin Rui knew the inside story of the pseudo-Yan better than anyone else. Shi Chaoyi had murdered his father and seized power, losing all popular support. Many regional military governors were secretly plotting rebellion—it wasn't just him—so the regime couldn't last long. Unless he intended to betray his original intentions and sink with this sinking ship, it would be better to voluntarily return to Tang.

Well, then we can't kill Li Ji, nor can we get Cui Qi back... Could we consider playing along with Li Ji first, and then finding an opportunity to abduct Cui Qi? After all, I knew Cui Qi before Li Ji, so surely the little girl wouldn't be completely indifferent to me?

He only paid half his attention to Guo Mo's words, and soon saw Guo Mo finish explaining the Tang army's deployment, then pull out a second scroll of paper from his robes and slowly unfold it: "There is also the Tang emperor's edict summoning those who surrender to the rebels..."

In fact, this was a general amnesty decree copied by Jingjing'er. After Li Heng's death, Li Yu first served as regent as crown prince. Before ascending the throne even before the coffin was laid to rest, he issued an amnesty decree, which clearly stated: "Those who surrender or lead their followers to submit to the rebel Shi Chaoyi and below shall be granted extraordinary rewards."

Qin Rui said, "This is a strategy to win hearts and minds!"

Guo Mo laughed and said, "If the General thinks so, his vision is rather shallow. The Yan government is in dire straits, but the Tang Dynasty is not necessarily in a better position either—the Tibetans have already captured Shan and Kuo prefectures, besieged Lan and Wei, and are approaching Longshang. The Dangxiang tribes are also causing trouble between Jing and Ning. If we still concentrate our heavy troops in the eastern part of the capital, we may not be able to destroy Yan first, but instead be taken advantage of by the Tibetans. That is why the new emperor issued a general amnesty, hoping to pacify the Guandong region in one fell swoop..."

At this point, he leaned forward slightly: "Then, Commander, you must plan carefully to get a good price!"

Guo Mo was unaware of Qin Rui's true identity as Tang Jian. In fact, even Qin Rui himself had almost forgotten about it... Espionage was still very primitive in those days, and the discovery of Zhen Sui was merely a spur-of-the-moment decision by Li Fuguo and Cui Guangyuan; they hadn't arranged a complete intelligence transmission line for him. Now that Li Fuguo and Cui Guangyuan were both dead, even if Qin Rui claimed to be Zhen Sui, acting as a spy under orders, there might not be anyone who could or would testify against him.

Besides, what's so great about being a spy? It always reminds people of petty thieves and scoundrels, those low-class江湖人士 (jianghu figures), who are far less desirable than military generals who defect to the enemy.

After An Lushan was killed, Neng Yuanhao surrendered to the Tang Dynasty and was appointed as the military governor of Tianping Army; Linghu Zhang surrendered due to Shi Siming's suspicion and was appointed as the vice censor-in-chief, the silver-green light-gold grand master, and the military governor of Yicheng Army... These are all precedents.

Therefore, Qin Rui characterized his subsequent actions as surrender rather than return—of course, this meant bidding farewell to the name Zhen Sui completely, but it was not something to regret—and then discussed in detail with Guo Mo the movements of the surrounding warlords: "Xue Song, Zhang Zhongzhi, Zhang Xiancheng and others all intend to return to Tang, but I don't know what Tian Chengsi and Li Huaixian are thinking..."

Chapter Two: The Heart of Benevolence

The Tang army launched a three-pronged eastern expedition, aiming to recapture Luoyang, the eastern capital. Li Huaiguang, the military governor of Luze in the northern route, easily captured Huaizhou and then marched south to Heyang, blocking Shi Chaoyi's escape route to the north. Meanwhile, Li Guangbi, the deputy marshal of Henan and commander-in-chief of eight military regions including Henan, Huainan, Jiangnan, and Zhejiang, captured Xuzhou but was blocked by the rebel military governor of Suiyang, Tian Chengsi. He then dispatched Ma Lin, the military governor of Zhenxi, to lead his troops northward via a secret route to provide reinforcements.

The central army of 50,000, under the command of Pugu Huai'en, captured Xin'an and marched straight towards Luoyang. However, Pugu Yang was soon ambushed by a large rebel force, suffered a minor defeat, and was forced to join forces with the Uyghur army and retreat back to Xin'an.

The rebel army gradually gathered near Hengshui County, northeast of Xin'an, and Zhaojue Temple, south of Hengshui. It was reported that the enemy at Hengshui numbered over 40,000, while those at Zhaojue Temple numbered nearly 100,000. Pugu Yang dared not advance any further and urgently informed his father, requesting to join forces with the main army for a decisive battle against the rebels west of Luoyang.

However, within a day or two, the main force of the Tang army arrived one after another and formed a battle line north of Xin'an City. Pugu and his son were in the center, with Wei Boyu and Guo Yingyi on the left and Li Ji and Ma Lin on the right, making an aggressive stance.

However, with hundreds of thousands of troops clashing, it's impossible for them to immediately engage in battle upon meeting. They must each set up camp and consolidate their foundations before choosing a day—mostly a sunny day, not a rainy or snowy one—to engage in combat and determine the victor.

After Li Ji had properly deployed his 8,000-strong Shannan East Route Army, he toured the camp for half a day, finally returning to his own tent at dusk. Upon entering, he first gestured with his hand, and the guards, understanding, quickly prepared tea and presented it with both hands.

That day, Li Ji gathered his generals outside Shanxian City for tea. Although he abandoned the cumbersome tea ceremony procedures of yesteryear, he still added some fancy touches, such as adding tea leaves when the water first boiled and filtering the tea after the second boil. However, this was merely to demonstrate that his improved "simplified tea ceremony" still had its own set of rules for appreciating the pure taste of tea.

If one doesn't prepare tea in person, which is much simpler than in later generations, how could one possibly catch the eye of nobles and dignitaries? For nobles, a sense of ritual is very important; it can make them appear superior, and even if it's just a humble offering, they can still taste the flavor of new Longjing tea.

As for Li Ji drinking tea in private, he keeps it as simple as possible.

Every day after setting up camp, he would inspect all the areas, never eating or resting before his soldiers. As a result, upon returning to his tent, he would always be exhausted and thirsty, needing to drink a few sips of tea to moisten his throat and calm his mind. The guards knew this habit of his and had prepared boiling water in advance. When the commander returned, they would pour tea into the water and serve it to him without filtering it.

As for the fact that it wasn't just not twice-boiled water, but possibly had been boiled a hundred or even a thousand times, Li Ji didn't care—in the military, who cares about such things? As long as it's boiling water that can be used to make tea, that's fine.

The guard presented him with both hands a white porcelain teacup with a saucer. This was a common tea-drinking utensil in this world, with the saucer placed underneath to prevent the cup from getting too hot from boiling water and to make it easier to hold. But Li Ji was thick-skinned and didn't care. He casually used his thumb and forefinger to lift the cup from the saucer, blew on it to cool it, took a small sip, and then placed it on the table.

A guard came over and helped him remove his helmet and armor. Li Ji felt much lighter and was about to sit down when he glanced behind the table and couldn't help but frown slightly and snort coldly. The guard hurriedly apologized and brought a folding chair from beside the tent, setting it up behind the table.

Li Ji then stretched his tired legs and sat down.