Great Qin's High General, Meng Wu

Meanwhile.

The main camp of the Qin Army, a hundred li from Yiyang.

Inside the central army's command tent, the atmosphere was solemn.

On the huge sand table, black flags representing various passes and garrisons of Zhao State were densely planted.

An old general with white hair and beard, yet still standing tall and straight like a pine, stood with his hands behind his back before the sand table. He wore heavy, dark battle armor, his face etched with knife-like wrinkles. His cloudy old eyes seemed to pierce through people's hearts and foresee the future.

He was the supreme commander of this campaign to destroy Han and attack Zhao, the High General of Great Qin, Meng Wu.

"The terrain of Jingxing is too complex. If Li Mu holds the advantage of the terrain, our army will suffer heavy casualties in a frontal assault."

Meng Wu's voice was hoarse and steady, each word carrying the sound of metal striking stone.

"The diversionary attack by our army must be made to appear significant enough, so much so that the King of Zhao believes we are truly willing to pay any price to fight Li Mu to the death."

"Only in this way can all of Zhao State's attention be drawn to the northern front."

Beside him stood a tall and upright young general.

The youth had a heroic face, with sharp eyebrows and bright eyes. His silver armor made him appear even more distinguished. His gaze at the sand table was sharp and focused.

He was Meng Wu's son, the vanguard commander for the surprise attack on Han State, Meng Tian.

"Father is right," Meng Tian responded in a deep voice. "I have already dispatched three feints, moving towards Handan respectively. Zhao State's scouts should have already sent the news back."

Meng Wu nodded with satisfaction.

He had always been confident in his son.

Just then, hurried footsteps and a loud shout were heard from outside the tent.

"Report--!"

"Urgent military report from the southern front vanguard camp, eight hundred li!"

The tent flap was abruptly pulled open.

A scout, covered in blood and with soot-stained features, scrambled in and fell to his knees with a thud.

He held up a bamboo slip sealed with wax, his voice trembling with extreme fatigue and excitement.

"A... a great victory!"

"High General! A great victory!"

Meng Tian's eyes narrowed, and he immediately stepped forward, taking the heavy bamboo slip from the scout.

Meng Wu, however, still had his back to them, his gaze not leaving the sand table.

He spoke calmly, his tone unperturbed.

"What's the rush?"

"It's probably just a few Han scouts or a destroyed outpost."

"Tell Shi Meng to hold steady and not advance rashly. Our mission is to attract Zhao's attention, not to truly fight the Han to the death."

In his opinion, the ten thousand-strong force led by Shi Meng's primary role was to create chaos and keep Han on the run.

The real decisive battle would only begin after he had completely tied down Zhao.

However, he did not receive a response from Meng Tian.

The entire command tent fell into an eerie silence.

Meng Wu finally sensed something was wrong.

He slowly turned around and saw a scene he would never forget in his life.

His son, Meng Tian, who could remain unfazed no matter the military situation, even when Mount Tai collapsed before him, was now staring intently at the bamboo slip in his hand.

His lips were slightly parted, and his eyes, sharp as an eagle's, held four words.

Disbelief.

"Tian'er?" Meng Wu frowned.

Meng Tian seemed not to hear him. He raised his hand, rubbed his eyes, and then read the bamboo slip again, from beginning to end, meticulously.

"Impossible... How is this possible..." he muttered to himself.

"What exactly does it say!" Meng Wu's voice deepened.

Could it be that the entire vanguard camp had been annihilated for Meng Tian to lose his composure like this?

Meng Tian suddenly looked up, gazing at his father. His heroic face was filled with an extremely complex expression.

It was shock, ecstasy, confusion, and even a hint of... absurdity.

"Father..."

He took a deep breath, trying to steady his voice.

"The vanguard camp, at midnight last night, launched a surprise attack on the Han army's main camp at Yiyang."

"This battle..."

He paused, as if searching for the right words.

"We annihilated the defending army of thirty thousand, captured over twenty thousand, and killed... killed the Han High General, Bao Yuan!"

"What?!"

This time, it was Meng Wu who lost his composure.

His usually calm, impassive old face instantly filled with shock. He lunged forward, snatching the bamboo slip from Meng Tian's hands!

Inside the command tent, the other deputy generals who had been discussing matters also stood up in surprise, craning their necks, their faces filled with disbelief.

Meng Wu scanned the words on the bamboo slip at lightning speed.

The battle results, written in vermilion ink, struck his heart like heavy hammers.

"Night raid on Yiyang, destroyed their camp..."

"Over ten thousand decapitated, twenty thousand captured..."

"Our casualties... less than five hundred?!"

Meng Wu's hands began to tremble.

He had spent his life on the battlefield, fought countless difficult battles, yet he had never seen such an exaggerated casualty ratio!

At the cost of five hundred men, they had crushed a camp of fifty thousand?

This was no mere great victory! It was a legend!

As his gaze fell upon the last line, his pupils contracted sharply to the size of needle points.

"...Killed the enemy chieftain Bao Yuan, the enemy army surrendered at the sight of us, and our vanguard has already reached the city walls of Yiyang."

"Good! Good! Good!"

After a brief, dead silence, Meng Wu slammed the bamboo slip onto the table and burst into laughter.

"Hahahaha! Well done, Shi Meng! Well done, Shi Meng!"

Laughter echoed through the command tent, filled with endless exhilaration and pride.

"I knew this stubborn old rock would be reliable when it mattered most!"

He turned and said to the generals in the tent, his spirit soaring.

"Did you all see? This is one of Great Qin's veteran generals!"

"Without a sound, he has opened the gates of Han State for our Great Qin with one battle!"

"Issue my order! The first merit for this battle goes to Shi Meng! After this war ends, I will personally request a marquis title for him from the King!"

The generals in the tent also chimed in.

"General Shi is valiant beyond compare! Truly a model for our army!"

"Congratulations, High General! Congratulations, High General! With a fierce general like General Shi, why worry about not conquering Han?"

Amidst the chorus of praise, only Meng Tian stood silently to the side, his expression growing increasingly strange.

Meng Wu noticed his son's unusual demeanor.

"Tian'er, this is a momentous occasion, why aren't you smiling?"

Meng Tian looked up, meeting his father's gaze, his eyes filled with an unusual complexity.

"Father, please... take a closer look at this battle report."

"Hmm?"

Meng Wu frowned and picked up the bamboo slip again.

This time, he read more carefully.

Soon, the smile on his face began to freeze, little by little.

Because he saw that at the end of the report, Shi Meng, with almost fanatical strokes, had described another person in detail.

"...The Tiger and Wolf Army's acting Centurion Wei Zhe, leading a hundred Elite Warriors, descended like gods from heaven, pierced the enemy formation amidst ten thousand troops, and directly struck the central army..."

"...He fiercely severed over a dozen spears and halberds, decapitating four Han soldiers with a single blow..."

"...Single-handedly fought the Han army's personal guards, killing over a hundred, unstoppable..."

"...His body became a flash of lightning, covering dozens of paces, and under the gaze of tens of thousands, he killed the enemy chieftain Bao Yuan in battle, causing tens of thousands of enemy soldiers to surrender..."

Meng Wu's breathing grew rapid.

His eyes were fixed on that name.

Wei Zhe.

He reread the two words repeatedly, finding them utterly unfamiliar.

This report was written by Shi Meng.

He knew Shi Meng's character well; he was as straightforward as an ox, never one to exaggerate or claim merit for others.

But what was written in this report...

This is too bizarre!

This is no longer something achievable by human strength!

"Father," Meng Tian's voice echoed softly from the side, "Shi Meng said in the final battle report that he dare not take credit for this battle."

"He said the true primary credit belongs to someone else."

"Without this person, the best outcome for the Vanguard Camp in this battle would have been a Pyrrhic victory. It would have been impossible to achieve such a mythical result at such a minimal cost."

Meng Wu put down the bamboo slips and closed his eyes, falling silent for a long time.

Within the command tent, you could hear a pin drop.

When he opened his eyes again, his cloudy old eyes were filled with only cold solemnity.

"This Wei Zhe..."

He spoke slowly, his voice hoarse.

"What is his background?"

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