Uncle Wen handed all the troops under his command over to Zhang Guifang. Delighted to be free of the burden, he rode his Ink Qilin at a leisurely pace to Sishui Pass.
Life at Sishui Pass was leisurely, too: drinking, reading the newspapers, occasionally playing chess or mahjong, or else patrolling the pass and joining in a few shouts with the soldiers rehearsing the Ten-Thousand Dance.
Zi Shou walked beside Wen Zhong as they patrolled the pass together. Although he stood a head taller than the old man, he was as meek and deferential as a grandson at his side.
After hesitating for a long while, he finally spoke. "Venerable Grand Tutor."
Wen Zhong kept walking.
"Venerable Grand Tutor...?"
"Hmm?" Only then did Wen Zhong stop. He bowed and asked, "What is it, Your Majesty?"
"Venerable Grand Tutor... is there nothing you wish to say?" Zi Shou lowered his head slightly. He had been stirring up trouble in the army for so long. Lu Xiong was caught up in it, unable to see the truth, so it was perfectly normal for those seemingly glorious victories to have fooled him completely. But Uncle Wen was an outsider. Perhaps he could spot the clues.
That... would be terrifying.
Besides, he had never expected the main force sent south to appear at a time like this. If they dealt the Zhou Army a fatal blow, he would be in trouble.
By ordinary reasoning, these troops had appeared at precisely the right moment. Together with the northern and southern columns of the Western Expedition Troops, they could very well surround the enemy in an Ambush on Ten Sides and capture Ji Fa alive. But reality was another matter entirely.
*Was Ji Fa someone ordinary men could capture? This was a fucking world of mythology,