Chapter 1139: The Tide Turns

News of the battle reached the Qi capital: a great victory!

Five hundred thousand rebels had been routed in a single battle. Only the mopping-up remained, and the surviving remnants were no longer worth fearing.

The internal threat to Qi had been eliminated with one blow. Hao Yuntu was beside himself with delight, slapping the table and crying out in praise again and again.

...

Inside the underground chamber, Shao Pingbo stood before the map on the wall in silence for a long time.

Only after a long while did he finally force out a sigh. "Five hundred thousand rebels. I spent so much time and effort, and Blackwater Terrace sacrificed so many people, before I managed to conjure that force out of thin air for them. I meant for it to play a major role. Who would have thought it would prove so useless? Wiped out in a single battle! All that painstaking effort burned to ashes just like that. Everyone worked for nothing. Every sacrifice was wasted. Gao Pin, Gao Pin... Grand Marshal Gao, just how did you fight this battle?"

With that, he punched the map on the wall, striking the place where the two armies had clashed.

His whole bearing was dejected, his voice heavy with unwillingness and melancholy.

Shao Sansheng had arrived carrying a report and happened to witness the scene. He knew the Eldest Young Master had been brooding over this for a day or two already and still could not let it go.

He could understand. To ensure the campaign proceeded smoothly, the Eldest Young Master had racked his brains and planned meticulously for a long time, laying the groundwork for the Jin army in almost every conceivable respect. But no matter how well Shao Pingbo prepared everything, he could not compensate for defeat on the battlefield.

Shao Sansheng stepped closer and consoled him. "It cannot really be said that Gao Pin did anything wrong. Who could have imagined that Huyan Wuhen's defiance of the imperial decree was itself a stratagem to deceive everyone? Who could have imagined he had planted troops at Qingmu Valley so early? That man's grasp of how the battlefield situation would develop is almost frighteningly clear. He saw what others could not and reversed the whole situation with a single surprise force. His ability to plan and command on the battlefield truly cannot be underestimated. Even with Eldest Young Master personally sitting here in Qi, he managed to deceive us. Grand Marshal Gao is thousands of li away. Miscalculating once is understandable."

Shao Pingbo said, "But deploying armies and planning campaigns on the battlefield is Gao Pin's duty. It is not as though he has never crossed hands with Huyan Wuhen before. He should understand Huyan Wuhen better on the battlefield than we do. Did he truly fail to notice even the slightest sign?"

Shao Sansheng said, "After losing this battle, Lord Gao cannot be feeling well either, and he will have difficulty explaining himself before His Majesty. Lord Gao is still one of the foremost commanders beneath Heaven. If there must be blame, then blame him for having Huyan Wuhen as his opponent. Against a man like that, losing by a single move is understandable."

Shao Pingbo lifted his face and sighed toward the ceiling. "Yan has Shanming; Qi has Wuhen. Their reputations are well deserved! Now that Huyan Wuhen is personally leading a great army into the war, victory or defeat has become difficult to predict. Beating that man on the battlefield will not be easy. If we want the campaign to proceed smoothly, we may have to make an effort elsewhere and deal with Huyan Wuhen himself. If we can eliminate him, so much the better." His eyes narrowed slightly as he spoke.

Shao Sansheng smiled bitterly. Killing Huyan Wuhen was easier said than done. Experts clustered around him like clouds, and within the army he was guarded even more tightly. Getting close would be difficult enough. Assassination was probably not even worth considering.

He glanced at the report in his hand and said, "The battlefield defeat was not Eldest Young Master's fault. Besides, all the work you've done here was not entirely wasted. Making the Qi armies run back and forth earlier delayed them by several days, at least."

He raised a hand and pointed at the map. "That delay forced Huyan Wuhen to alter his battle plan as well. The eastern Qi army that was moving south to intercept Yin Chu had to abandon the interception and turn toward Xiping Pass instead, trying to arrive before Yin Chu's army. Judging by the routes and distances, Yin Chu still holds the advantage in time."

Shao Pingbo's gaze settled on Xiping Pass. His voice came out low and slow. "Xiping Pass absolutely cannot be lost. If Qin enters the war as well and the armies of three states join forces, Jin will have little chance of victory. We may be forced to withdraw, and everything will have been for nothing. Worse, Yin Chu's army has advanced deep into enemy territory alone. It would be surrounded, with almost no chance of escape."

Shao Sansheng offered the report with both hands. "Eldest Young Master, the Shopkeeper sent word. This is the information you wanted. I personally decoded the secret letter."

At the words "the Shopkeeper," Shao Pingbo's spirits immediately lifted. He quickly took the report.

"Shopkeeper" was the private nickname the two of them had given the mysterious man from Misty Pavilion.

Shao Pingbo sat behind the desk and carefully read through several pages. The contents laid out Niu Youdao's circumstances inside the Sacred Realm, with the timeline and sequence of events already organized for him.

Before he had formed any clear conclusion from the material, several words triggered an instinctive reaction. His pupils suddenly contracted as he stared fixedly at the words "Wuliang Garden." His Adam's apple moved several times. "Wuliang Garden? Wuliang Garden? That forbidden place? He entered Wuliang Garden... and before that, Wuliang Garden suffered a great fire..."

He rapidly flipped through the later pages. According to the timeline, Niu Youdao had made no other obvious moves afterward. It almost looked as though he had suddenly become idle.

But from what Shao Pingbo knew of Niu Youdao, was that the kind of man who wandered around aimlessly when he had nothing to do?

Abruptly, Shao Pingbo shot to his feet and blurted, "Not good! That bastard is almost certainly after the forbidden treasure!"

Shao Sansheng did not understand which thing he meant. Hesitating, he asked, "What forbidden treasure?"

Through clenched teeth, Shao Pingbo said heavily, "We absolutely cannot let him succeed! Send word to the Shopkeeper immediately. Ask him to come and meet me in person at once. Tell him I have an urgent matter of great importance that I must tell him face-to-face. He must come see me as quickly as possible!" Seeing Shao Sansheng still look as though he wanted to speak, he immediately waved a hand and barked, "No nonsense. Go!"

"Yes!" Shao Sansheng accepted the order and quickly left.

Shao Pingbo sat down behind the desk again. Holding the pages in his hands, he went over them carefully, repeatedly reconstructing the sequence in hopes of finding some clue hidden among the details.

After quite some time, Shao Sansheng came rushing back again. The moment he entered, he said, "Eldest Young Master, Blackwater Terrace sent word. Something has gone wrong at Xiping Pass."

"What happened?" Shao Pingbo abruptly looked up, visibly tense.

With the situation having developed to this point, Xiping Pass had become the most critical point in the entire war, ground every army had to contest. It was also tied to Shao Pingbo's own future after emerging from his long period of concealment. If Jin won, he would finally have room to display his abilities. If Jin lost, it would mean his plan had been flawed or incomplete, and he would inevitably bear part of the responsibility for the losses Jin had suffered.

Nothing could be allowed to go wrong.

For him, there was presently nothing more important.

Shao Sansheng said, "Blackwater Terrace already sent a persuader who secretly made contact with Chen Changgong, the commander of Xiping Pass. Chen Changgong was tempted and had almost been convinced. But not long ago, his attitude suddenly changed. He personally killed the Blackwater Terrace persuader, hung the man's head from a flagpole to declare his loyalty to the Wei court, and resolved to defend Xiping Pass to the death."

"According to Blackwater Terrace's analysis, the change is almost certainly connected to Huyan Wuhen's thirty thousand Valiant Cavalry routing five hundred thousand rebels and shaking all beneath Heaven. Chen Changgong saw the deterrent force Huyan Wuhen could exert, and with Qin joining the war as well, he decided Jin had little chance of victory."

"Under those circumstances, Yin Chu's advantage in reaching Xiping Pass first may actually have become a disadvantage for us. As Eldest Young Master said before, if Chen Changgong obeys the Wei court's order and simply hands Xiping Pass over to Qin, that can hardly be counted as a great achievement. He would probably fade from the stage afterward."

"But things are different now. If he believes Wei is going to win, then so long as he holds Xiping Pass, no one could deny that he earned the foremost merit in determining Wei's fate."

"With the five hundred thousand rebels routed, they can no longer prevent Qi's eastern reinforcements from reaching Xiping Pass in time. Chen Changgong need defend it for only a few days at most, perhaps only a single day. So long as he holds until Qi's main reinforcements arrive, Yin Chu will have great difficulty taking the pass. Then Qin's main army will arrive behind them, and the foremost merit for determining Wei's fate will be his. His future will be brilliant."

"If he betrays his state, he will carry infamy and be despised beneath Heaven. Even if he marries His Majesty's most beloved Seventh Princess and keeps his wealth and honor, he will still be an outsider in Jin. Would Jin truly entrust him with important authority? Compared with securing the foremost merit in saving Wei, the advantages and disadvantages are not difficult to weigh. That should be the key reason Chen Changgong changed his mind. The battlefield situation changed. Huyan Wuhen destroyed the five hundred thousand rebels and ordered Qi's eastern army straight toward Xiping Pass, and that changed Chen Changgong's calculation."

Shao Pingbo dropped the pages in his hands and snatched the new report from Shao Sansheng.

He read while comparing the movements of the different armies on the map. His breathing gradually grew heavy, and his expression turned increasingly ugly.

Everything had been proceeding smoothly before. Now, under counterattacks from every side, misfortune seemed to be arriving in a cluster.

First came Qin. Xuan Wei's move had disrupted the plan to delay Qin and forced it to dispatch troops quickly, increasing the pressure on Xiping Pass.

Then the five hundred thousand Qi rebels he had poured so much effort into were destroyed in one stroke by Huyan Wuhen, again increasing the pressure on Jin's attempt to seize the pass.

Not long ago he had learned of Niu Youdao's potentially deadly objective.

And now Chen Changgong, commander of Xiping Pass, had changed sides again.

The tide was turning. Everything was beginning to move against Jin. All of Shao Pingbo's painstaking effort might yet fail at the final step.

"Xiping Pass absolutely cannot be lost!" Shao Pingbo suddenly punched the map. Blood split across his knuckles and seeped into the paper, showing just how much force he had used.

Shao Sansheng looked troubled. "Eldest Young Master, everyone understands that. Precisely because Xiping Pass is so important, nearly every state that does not want Jin to benefit has secretly sent cultivators to help defend it. Add the pass's dangerous terrain, easy to defend and difficult to attack. Without Chen Changgong cooperating from within, even if Yin Chu's army is exceptionally fierce and Qiyun Sect supports him with everything it has, taking Xiping Pass will still be extremely difficult."

"Even if they do take it, Yin Chu's force is an isolated army with no reinforcements for the moment and no supply line. Under a joint attack by Qin and Qi, holding the pass would still be extremely difficult. We must have Chen Changgong's cooperation. We must preserve as much of Xiping Pass's provisions, defensive equipment, and other supplies as possible. Only then can we hold it."

Shao Pingbo whirled around in fury, his face almost savage. "What is Blackwater Terrace good for? They've studied Xiping Pass for so long and know Chen Changgong inside and out, yet Blackwater Terrace, backed by the strength of the entire State of Jin, cannot even handle one insignificant Chen Changgong. What use does His Majesty have for that pack of wastes?"

Shao Sansheng said, "With the situation like this and the greater momentum against us, Chen Changgong has changed his attitude. What can Blackwater Terrace do about it? Even killing him would be useless. Wei would simply send some Li Changgong or Wang Changgong to defend the pass instead."

"Changed his attitude?" Shao Pingbo gave a cold laugh. Then he suddenly said sharply, "Send word to Blackwater Terrace. Arrange for me to go to Wei immediately. I will meet this Chen Changgong myself. I want to see how he plans to jump out of the palm of my hand!"

"This..." Shao Sansheng tried to dissuade him. "Eldest Young Master, wouldn't it be too dangerous for you to go personally?"

Shao Pingbo barked, "Go!"

[End of Chapter 1139]