Montage Wu's Triumphant Report Stunned the Ages; Ying Zheng Gazed North, Awaiting Chehou

Li Si stepped forward, unfurled the military report, and read it aloud before the court.

"Your Majesty, your subject Meng Wu bows his head in salute:

In the campaign against Zhao, General Wang Jian and I stationed our forces at Xingkou and Tongdi, facing Li Mu's thirty thousand Zhao troops for months.

Relying on Jingxing's natural defenses, Li Mu held fast and wore down our forces, leaving not a single opening. We searched in vain, and all believed this campaign would drag on for a long time.

Then urgent news arrived: General Zhao Cheng had launched a swift attack on Fanwu, taken Handan in three days, and captured King Qian of Zhao!

When I learned that Zhao's capital had fallen, I surmised Li Mu would abandon Jingxing and retreat to defend Dai Commandery, hoping to prolong the inevitable.

So I led my troops in pursuit, hoping to slow him down until the general could ride north and join forces with me to annihilate him.

But Li Mu was cunning. He laid an ambush in Wolf Tooth Valley, stationing elite archers on the heights and hiding cavalry on both flanks. He used a formation of interlocking goose-shaped shields as bait, luring me into his trap.

Once my men had gone deep into the valley, ambushers sprang from every side and arrows fell like rain. Elite Zhao troops closed in around us, and our formation nearly crumbled.

I led my men in a desperate fight, but Li Mu himself charged into our ranks, wielding the Zhenyue Sword, while Sima Shang attacked from both sides. I was on the brink of defeat; my back was about to break and our command flag was about to fall. At that moment, an arrow shrieked through the air, and Sima Shang was struck dead!

To my