Ji Wan died, Ji Xi became regent

Unfortunately, willpower could not change reality!

Xiong Dun's personal fighting prowess had nearly reached the pinnacle of human ability. He could even capture tigers and leopards alive and wrestle giant bears.

How could ordinary soldiers stop such immense strength? Seeing that his Personal Guards could not break through, Xiong Dun took the lead and charged straight ahead like a bulldozer.

His Personal Guards protected his flanks while he gripped an exceptionally thick spear in both hands and lifted Zhou soldiers off their feet!

As he lunged left and right, not a single man could withstand even one exchange with him.

Even soldiers wearing bronze helmets had their headgear crushed inward by a single blow and died on the spot.

Such ferocious, invincible fighting power broke through the already precarious Zhou line almost instantly.

"It's Xiong Dun, the King of Chu!" a Zhou soldier shouted. "He's leading the charge himself!"

The elite Chu troops poured madly through the breach Xiong Dun had opened, and the entire formation collapsed in an instant.

The generals in several other sectors noticed what was happening and wanted to send reinforcements, but the Chu troops kept them tied down, while the troops farther back could not get through at all.

Following Xiong Dun's orders, the Chu troops drove the Zhou slave soldiers toward this sector, then had three thousand bronze-armored soldiers scatter them into a routed mob that would crash into the Zhou formations.

The tactic proved highly effective. The formation Xiong Dun had broken had already disrupted the coordination of the entire Zhou army. The reinforcements arrived in a disorderly mass, displaying virtually no organization amid the battle formations.

The consequences of Ji Wan's failure to appoint a central commander, and of the Marquis of Han-the only man with any remaining authority-not knowing how to command troops, were now fully exposed.

A Chu detachment drove slave soldiers through the breach Xiong Dun had opened, tying down the Zhou troops and forcing their entire line to contract.

Many Zhou soldiers suddenly discovered Chu troops all around them!

Xiong Dun had already withdrawn with his Personal Guards. After briefly recovering their strength, they followed him into another charge. This time, their target was the Son of Heaven's Grand Banner!

Ji Wan had not yet fully retreated to the central army, and the Son of Heaven's Grand Banner was terribly cumbersome. That extraordinarily fierce Chu force had swept all before it under the King of Chu's leadership, and now it was heading straight for the Son of Heaven.

"Protect the Son of Heaven!"

The officers and soldiers of the central army rushed to surround the Son of Heaven's great carriage. Amid the chaotic fighting, Xiong Dun drew his bow and loosed an arrow into the flag atop the Grand Banner. Without pausing, he fired another into its pole, making the entire banner sway.

This astonishing display of prowess raised Chu morale even higher. For a short while, they actually overwhelmed the Zhou troops, who had lost all their courage.

"Son of Heaven, we cannot keep fighting! If the Grand Banner falls and orders can no longer get through, the army will collapse like a landslide!"

Ji Wan could only stammer, too frightened to speak. The Marquis of You and the Marquis of Ji were likewise paralyzed with fear. Seeing that none of the three could be relied upon, the Marquis of Han immediately said, "Yu Bo, have the central army escort the Son of Heaven out at once. Cross the river first, then sound the retreat. The vanguard will cover our withdrawal. They must hold the Chu assault steady-we absolutely cannot let this become a rout!"

The timing of the retreat signal was critical. In their present circumstances, a single mistake could turn a withdrawal into a rout.

The Son of Heaven had to cross the river first. Only then could they rally the defeated troops and plan their next move.

Yu Bo immediately carried out the order. Xiong Dun could no longer reach the Grand Banner with his arrows, so he kept watching Ji Wan's movements. The moment he saw which direction they were heading, he knew Ji Wan intended to flee.

He immediately roared, "The Son of Heaven of Zhou is fleeing! Capture him alive!"

Across the battlefield, Chu soldiers took up the cry one after another: "The Son of Heaven of Zhou is fleeing! Capture him alive!"

The Zhou troops grew uncertain and alarmed, especially the vanguard caught in the melee. They soon realized that reinforcements had stopped coming. Without reserves to relieve them, even elite troops who could endure heavier casualties could only hold out a little longer.

As for the Son of Heaven's Personal Guards, the lords' guards, and parts of the central and rear armies escorting Ji Wan, the feudal lords, and the high ministers, all they wanted now was to board the boats and flee.

The main reason the Zhou troops could still keep fighting was that the Grand Banner remained standing. Although they could no longer see the Son of Heaven's great carriage, the generals commanding their units were still on the battlefield.

Xiong Dun's eyes blazed with murderous intent. He no longer tried to shoot down the Grand Banner directly, instead directing his troops to surround and attack the commanders of the vanguard.

On a battlefield, visible blades and spears were easy enough to evade, but arrows from an unseen direction were impossible to dodge-especially arrows fired by someone like Xiong Dun.

As Xiong Dun's arrow flew, a feathered shaft buried itself in Cai Bo's face. Still directing the battle, he fell to the ground with disbelief written across his features!

He was the highest-ranking noble killed so far: an earl and one of the commanders of the Son of Heaven's Six Armies.

Xiong Dun led his soldiers forward and cut down the vanguard's Grand Banner with a single stroke. Its thunderous crash drew everyone's attention. The Zhou soldiers, already battered by repeated setbacks, could endure no more. They broke at once and fled toward the central army.

There were only three crossing points along that stretch of the Han River. The Zhou troops had naturally known where to retreat ever since they landed.

Seeing this, Yu Bo could only assign some archers to cover the army's withdrawal. Although the vanguard had completely collapsed and its flight had left the central army dangerously unstable as well, they could still spread out to provide covering fire.

Xiong Dun simply drove the routed Zhou troops onward, mixing slave soldiers into their ranks to destroy their unit organization completely and sweep everyone along in the fleeing mass. Meanwhile, the Chu troops formed small squads and pursued them from behind.

The archers inflicted the most important casualties. As the fugitives discarded their helmets and armor, they became fat sheep waiting to be slaughtered beneath the arrows.

"A pity this terrain doesn't suit chariots. Otherwise, if we charged them with chariots during a rout like this, very few would make it across the river."

As he spoke, Xiong Dun instructed his attendants, full of triumphant confidence, "The Zhou army has suffered a crushing defeat. They must be running like homeless dogs by now. Order our rear units to board the boats at the crossings. The remaining combat troops will follow me in pursuit of the Zhou army. We must seize the lands of all five states on the strength of this great victory.

"Back then, I repeatedly shattered the allied armies organized by the southern frontier lords. How glorious those days were! Yet one moment of carelessness let them lure me into a trap. These five states have pressed me so hard over the years that I could scarcely breathe. Now, at last, I can break the rope they have tightened around Chu State's neck."

Chu's ministers and grandees smiled and said, "The Zhou People are cowards. They dare not face our great Chu in open battle and can only resort to sinister schemes. Now that they face Your Majesty's heaven-bestowed might, they have still been defeated."

Xiong Dun laughed heartily. "Begin! Set our people in motion. By tonight, I will have Ruo State in my hands. Then we will advance on Tang and Sui, sever communications between the five states, and cut off the Zhou army's overland supplies. They will have no choice but to flee in terror toward Shen and Lü. Our army will pursue them all the way, killing their troops and seizing the wealth of the states."

"Your Majesty is wise!"

Xiong Dun's strategies were always sound, but Ji Wan always managed to come up with something unexpected and give him a tremendous surprise.

If someone had previously asked Xiong Dun what counted as a surprise, what would he have said?

He would certainly have thought it over carefully. After all, he possessed so much, and there was still so much he wanted.

But now, if someone asked him what counted as a surprise, what would he say?

He would certainly say that a surprise was Ji Wan suddenly dying while he was pursuing him.

It happened through a remarkable coincidence.

Amid successive crushing defeats and the deaths of countless comrades, the soldiers could no longer contain their resentment. They vented their dissatisfaction with the Son of Heaven to their own lords.

The army's junior officers were almost all minor nobles whose fiefs measured less than fifty li. Although they did not belong to the Five Ranks of Nobility, they were numerous and crucial to maintaining control of the army.

These men resented the Son of Heaven even more. They had suffered devastating losses on this campaign, and many had not even returned alive.

They might have accepted it if they had simply been outmatched. But in the present circumstances, their defeat was no fault of the fighting men. Who could accept that willingly?

With so many minor nobles voicing their dissatisfaction, they petitioned the Son of Heaven to execute the Marquis of You and the Marquis of Ji, the two chief culprits behind the army's defeat, and restore the soldiers' confidence.

Naturally, the Son of Heaven refused. He was already like a bird terrified by the twang of a bowstring. There was no chance he would execute his trusted ministers at such a time.

That answer certainly did not make them back down, so they chose to take matters into their own hands!

As marquises, the Marquis of You and the Marquis of Ji naturally had their own troops. Thus, without anyone knowing who had started it, a massive armed clash broke out.

Arrows filled the sky, and the noisy military camp descended into complete chaos.

The chaotic clash stopped amid cries of "The Son of Heaven is dead!" Ji Wan, the Marquis of You, and the Marquis of Ji had all perished beneath the arrows.

Now everyone was utterly dumbfounded.

How could the Son of Heaven have died?

What were they supposed to do next?

That was the question confronting them all. Most importantly, they did not even know exactly how the Son of Heaven had died. All they knew was that some of the arrows flying wildly about must have struck him.

At this point, the Marquis of Han and Yu Bo, who had hidden themselves away long before, emerged. The Marquis of Han was now the man of highest rank and status in the army. He cast an indifferent glance over Ji Wan's body, without the slightest trace of grief.

The Sage King had once said, "When a ruler treats his ministers as his hands and feet, they regard him as their heart and soul; when he treats them as dogs and horses, they regard him as an ordinary countryman; when he treats them as dirt and weeds, they regard him as an enemy."

His relationship with Ji Wan as ruler and subject had ended completely on the day Ji Wan pointed a sword at him and humiliated him.

The Marquis of Han knew that, with Ji Wan dead, the army had no will to fight left. Xiong Dun's troops were still pursuing them, keeping the royal army constantly exhausted by flight.

Only by abandoning everything that was inconvenient to carry and traveling light could they bring back as many men as possible.

Now that Ji Wan was dead and none of the princes had undergone their coming-of-age ceremony, bringing the Marquis of Luo back to the Royal Domain might even create the legend of a second Sage King.

The allied army stationed at Qiyan continued its daily drills.

Luo Su and the others received news of Ji Wan's defeat and learned that Xiong Dun was pursuing and sweeping up his troops along the way. They immediately announced that they would march to the king's aid. The Marquis of Qi would serve as supreme commander of the relief army, Duke Shuang of Song would manage documents and provisions, and Luo Su would enter Luoyi to stabilize the situation. They would march from Song State toward Zheng State and Xu State, then turn south. Under no circumstances could they allow the Chu army into Luoyi.

Hearing that the Son of Heaven was in danger, the lords were filled with righteous indignation and volunteered to lead the vanguard. Yet while they were marching, news arrived that the Son of Heaven had died. Now everyone grew anxious.

Moreover, the news had already reached Luoyi. The beacon fires had been lit, and lords everywhere were raising troops to aid the king. As long as they could hold the Chu army in Ying Land and Kang Land until all the relief armies arrived, Xiong Dun would certainly withdraw. He was not yet strong enough to challenge the combined relief forces of the realm.

The allied army of the eastern lords had already reached Ying and Kang and begun establishing defensive lines. Following the mountains and rivers, they blocked every route along which the Chu army could advance.

The Marquis of Qi was a veteran of many years of warfare, and Luo Su trusted his military ability.

Luo Su himself took a contingent of guards to Luoyi. When the general guarding the city saw him, it was as though he had found someone to rely upon, and he immediately opened the gates.

That was the advantage of great prestige. At a critical moment, one became the person everyone looked to, a banner around which people could rally.

Luo Su wasted no words. "Come with me to see the Crown Prince!"

The group went straight to the crown prince's palace. Someone had already informed Crown Prince Xi that the Marquis of Luo had come to see him. Hearing that his teacher had arrived, he hurried out of the palace and cried tearfully, "Teacher!"

Luo Su reassured him, "Crown Prince, do not worry. The Zhou State has the protection of the mandate of heaven. Once the beacon fires are lit, the lords from every direction will surely come to our aid. The state stands as firm as the mountains and rivers!

"The Marquis of Qi and the Duke of Song have already led the relief army to Yingkang, south of Luoyi. That Chu villain Xiong Dun cannot enter the Royal Domain. Once the other relief armies arrive, we will surely defeat him in one stroke.

"The crucial matter now is for you to assume the regency. Otherwise, when the lords of the various states arrive in Luoyi to aid the throne, who will oversee everything?"

In truth, the most appropriate course now was to proclaim Ji Xi's accession directly, but Luo Su could not do that. Many lords had yet to arrive. Installing the king on his own now would be like putting himself over a fire to roast. Besides, as the Marquis of Luo, he was already one of the most honored lords in the entire Zhou State. He had no need to strengthen his own state through the mere credit of enthroning a king.

Fortunately, Ji Xi was different from Ji Yun back then. Ji Yun had been only eight years old and completely incapable of ruling the realm. Ji Xi, at least, was already fifteen. After years of education, Luo Su considered him far superior to his father-a tiger of a son born to a dog of a father.

Ordinarily, a crown prince assumed the regency by decree of the Son of Heaven, but Luo Su could hardly chase Ji Wan into the underworld and ask him to issue one. Fortunately, the Sage King had established a fairly comprehensive set of ritual regulations for the Zhou Dynasty.

Naturally, a matter as paramount as succession to the throne received extensive treatment, with solutions provided for every possible circumstance.

Luo Su found the provision covering their present situation and soon completed the regency ceremony before the nobles and troops of Luoyi.

As the only senior minister currently in Luoyi, Luo Su unhesitatingly took full authority into his own hands and began assigning tasks.

First and most importantly, they had to inventory the valuables, grain, weapons, armor, and horses in Luoyi's storehouses. Once the relief armies arrived, these supplies would be vital.

Second, they had to call up the nobles who had not joined the campaign from among the Son of Heaven's directly subordinate vassals. Their losses this time were certainly devastating, and no one knew how many troops would escape home. They had to restore the Royal Domain's military strength to a reasonable level before the relief armies returned victorious.

Xia and Shang had each endured for six hundred years, yet the Zhou State had suffered such a terrible disaster less than a century after its founding. How could order in the realm be maintained from here on?

Jie of Xia, Zhou of Shang, and Li of Zhou were stripped of the title Son of Heaven and called solitary tyrants.

All three inflicted evil upon the realm and harmed multitudes. Thus Heaven brought calamity upon them, and ten thousand generations condemned them, taking them as cautionary examples. -Records of the Grand Historian: Annals of Zhou

I have not heard of a ruler being murdered. I have heard only of the execution of a solitary tyrant named Zhou.