The sinkhole where the Hall of Immortal Inquiries was located had the curved shape of a pig's kidney. Lush green trees ringed the rim, while clear, still waters flowed across the bottom. A shaft of skylight streamed down from above, illuminating a large round boulder right in the middle of the water.
This was the speaker's podium. The unique terrain acted as a natural amphitheater, projecting the speaker's voice in all directions.
The rocky walls of the sinkhole had been chiseled into tiered stone pathways, which served both as spectator seating and as paths in and out.
It was rustic, yet full of charm.
He Lingchuan and his companion had arrived late, and the seats were mostly filled. Looking from their vantage point, the circular cliff was teeming with people across more than ten tiers—a truly magnificent sight.
From eleven- or twelve-year-old boys to men in their fifties and sixties, every face was brimming with a thirst for knowledge.
"So many people!" One careless misstep or jostle, and someone would plunge into the deep pool at the bottom.
Hu Min whispered to He Lingchuan, "This is nothing! You haven't seen General Red hold a lecture—now that's truly packed. Two people have to squeeze onto every seat along the cliff, some would rather dangle in midair to listen, and even the pool below is filled with boats!"
He Lingchuan's eyes lit up. "General Red gives lectures too?"
"Not on a fixed schedule; it depends on luck," Hu Min said with regret. "Last time General Red held a class, I happened to be away on patrol duty and missed it."
He Lingchuan suddenly recalled something:
"Right, has any master ever lectured on the principles of hexagram divination and deduction?" If so, he could seek out a master in private to ask. Surely that would be better than relying on that unreliable old turtle demon.
Hu Min looked at him blankly. "I don't think so?"
"Are you sure?"
"The topic for each lecture is posted outside government offices and military barracks ten days in advance," Hu Min told him. "I've read those notices for so long, and I don't recall ever seeing anyone come to lecture on casting hexagrams and divination."
"Forget it, then." That was truly strange.
As they were talking, Commander Xiao Maoliang appeared. He stepped onto the large round boulder, clasped his hands behind his back, and said, "Good afternoon to my present and future colleagues. Entrusted by Commander Zhong, I am here to brief everyone on the developments across the Panlong Wasteland and the campaigns our army is currently engaged in..."
Who would have guessed that Xiao Maoliang—who was normally calm and composed in command on the battlefield, indifferent to life and death—would actually be so nervous while lecturing at the Hall of Immortal Inquiries that he began to stammer? Could this be his first time?
He Lingchuan could not help smiling. Still, the content Xiao Maoliang was presenting was too important. Even though his storytelling skills were barely passable, He Lingchuan listened with rapt attention.
"As everyone knows, Weicheng fell several months ago, and there are brothers among us today who hail from Weicheng. Now, the Baling Kingdom's front line continues to push eastward. Starting a month ago, they have been raiding Puxigou..."
...
Two days later, He Lingchuan went to visit Sun Hongye.
The young man's complexion had regained its color. Once the poison had been purged, only the flesh wound on his shoulder remained. The physician at Jinghe Hall had prescribed five days of medicinal herbs for him to take home and brew himself.
Seeing He Lingchuan again, his manner was far warmer than two days before. He bowed deeply. "Young Master He, I cannot thank you enough for looking after me while I was ill!"
He Lingchuan waved a hand. "It was the least I could do. You saved my family's lives."
Sun Hongye smiled. Since he was wounded at Luming Garden, He Lingchuan had been the only one to visit him.
He poured a cup of water for He Lingchuan.
He Lingchuan noticed that his home was a single-story cottage. The furniture was old, the windows were small, and the tiny half-courtyard was blanketed in snow because no one had shoveled it.
"You live alone?"
Sun Hongye nodded. "This is my third year since moving from the northern border. The distant uncle I came to rely on has also passed away."
"What are your plans for the future?" He Lingchuan asked. "Someone from the He family was at Luming Garden two days ago and already knows you recommended yourself to General Ke."
Sun Hongye gave a self-deprecating smile. "Indeed. My carriage broke down on the way down the mountain."
The two matters might have sounded completely unrelated, but he was sharp-witted. Having spent the past two days resting in bed, he had easily deduced that He Su had sent someone to tamper with his carriage that day to humiliate him on that snowy, windy night.
He Lingchuan walked over to the only square table in the room. "I have a question I'd like to ask Brother Sun to solve."
"Please, go ahead."
He Lingchuan dipped his finger in the water cup and began drawing a map on the tabletop.
"Puxigou lies a hundred li west of Panlong City, with a population of fifty thousand and a garrison of over two thousand soldiers. Formidable enemies raid Puxigou often. Each time they attack in force, Puxigou must send riders to Panlong City for reinforcements." He Lingchuan gave a brief explanation. "Over time, the enemy changed their tactics. They now send only small detachments to harass the surrounding areas, retreating swiftly the moment Panlong City's relief force arrives. Yet their harassment is frequent—roughly six or seven times every ten days. If Panlong City does not send reinforcements, they combine their forces and assault Puxigou directly.
"As a result, the residents of Puxigou can no longer carry on with their fishing, hunting, farming, or trade, suffering immense losses. Meanwhile, Panlong City is worn out from constantly dispatching aid, since a round trip covers more than two hundred li." He Lingchuan looked at Sun Hongye. "Brother Sun, please devise a plan for Panlong City."
"The enemy is employing low-intensity, high-frequency attacks." Sun Hongye pointed to a blank spot on the table. "Can Panlong City not establish a stronghold or satellite town near Puxigou to station garrison troops?"
He Lingchuan shook his head. "Apart from the site of Puxigou itself, those hundred-odd li of wasteland are flat and featureless, with no terrain to defend. Worst of all, there is no water source."
Without water, they could neither build a stronghold nor station troops.
Only then did Sun Hongye's interest truly pique. "Then, why not simply station more troops directly inside Puxigou?"
The name Puxigou sounded vaguely familiar, but he could not recall where he had heard it.
"They already reinforced it with a thousand men and transported a large amount of grain there. But that stretch of wasteland is barren, and water is precious. It simply cannot sustain any more soldiers and horses."
This time, Sun Hongye pondered for even longer before asking, "Then how far is the enemy's base from Puxigou?"
"A mere thirty li to the west of Puxigou—far closer than Panlong City." Fortunately, He Lingchuan had paid close attention in class the previous night and was able to answer fluidly. "A few months ago, Weicheng was captured by the enemy, becoming their bridgehead for pushing eastward. That is how Puxigou became the front line."
Deploying from Weicheng required a round trip of only sixty li—less than an hour on horseback. Naturally, it was far more convenient than operating from Panlong City.
"What is Weicheng's population and garrison strength?"
This lad was certainly thorough. "When Weicheng fell, its people fled with their families to Panlong City. As a result, there are very few civilians left inside; it has become a military garrison town. The exact garrison size is uncertain, but it should be between fifteen hundred and three thousand."
"Can Puxigou and Panlong City not negotiate peace with the enemy?"
"There is no such possibility at present." At least not in the part of the dream he had seen.
"Which means the enemy will not give up a prize like Puxigou." Sun Hongye raised a finger. "I have one final question. Does Puxigou produce any specialty goods that are highly sought after elsewhere?"
"Yes. Several precious medicinal herbs are native to that wasteland and can be refined into potent tonics. In addition, Puxigou produces high-purity saltpeter. The court needs it to make gunpowder for cannons, while wealthy families and merchants buy it to produce ice. Merchant caravans are therefore willing to risk traveling through the wasteland."
Having asked everything he needed, Sun Hongye said, "Very well, then I have two strategies.
"The inferior strategy solves the immediate crisis. Succeeding once will keep the enemy quiet for a while."
"Tell me."
"Disguise troops as a merchant caravan, or lay an ambush using a caravan as bait, luring the enemy in to plunder and striking them hard," Sun Hongye said. "You said Weicheng has fewer than three thousand troops. Suffering an ambush will severely deplete their strength, forcing them to remain quiet for a long time. That will buy Puxigou time to recover and recuperate."
"Mm, a standard tactic." He Lingchuan had heard many in the audience at the Hall of Immortal Inquiries suggest the exact same thing, so he was not surprised. "What about the superior strategy?"
"A thief can scheme every day, but one cannot guard against a thief forever. Passive defense is ultimately second-rate. The best way is to take back Weicheng in one decisive strike, removing this thorn in their side once and for all."
"How would they accomplish that?"
"By offering tribute to the enemy a few more times, letting them return loaded with plunder each time to lower their guard. To throw them off, stage a few fierce skirmishes to make it look convincing, and then spread word that Puxigou is organizing a large-scale outbound caravan and requesting dedicated escort troops from Panlong City." Sun Hongye shrugged. "The enemy must have informants planted in Puxigou, right?
"This shipment must be of immense value, and the escort force must number at least a thousand men—the grander the spectacle, the better."
He Lingchuan understood. "Luring the snake out of its hole?"
"Precisely. To swallow a haul like that, the enemy would have to deploy at least two thousand elite soldiers to feel confident. That leaves Weicheng with only a few hundred defenders, its fortifications nearly empty. If Panlong City sends a surprise detachment to launch a stealth assault, there is a very high probability of taking it!"
"Sounds simple enough," He Lingchuan said with a chuckle. "But what if the sneak attack fails? Not only would they fail to capture Weicheng, but the entire caravan acting as bait would likely be swallowed whole by the enemy. That truly would be losing the bait along with the fish."
"Victory and defeat hang by a single thread; whether a plan is brilliant or foolish is decided solely by the outcome." Sun Hongye smiled as well. "Leading troops into battle, who can claim they will win without fail?"
He added, "I have only laid out the outline of the strategy. The tactical details of deceiving, disrupting, and eliminating the enemy must be worked out by the commanding general. In war, a single move affects the entire board. Unforeseen events are beyond my foresight."
He Lingchuan nodded. "Success or failure, the detachment acting as bait will have a brutal fight on their hands."
Sun Hongye's expression remained impassive. "Of course. How could there be war without cost?"
He Lingchuan looked at him, remembering the boy's earlier advice to General Ke about taking Bao Pass and blowing up Qing Embankment—a strategy that would also have cost widespread destruction of homes and lives.
In other words, it defied the natural order and courted karmic disaster.
Sun Hongye continued, "My role is only to devise the plan. As for weighing the pros and cons and deciding whether to execute it, that is the commander's duty."
He Lingchuan gave a slight nod. "Well said."
Looking once more around Sun Hongye's bare walls, he finally extended an invitation: "We will set out for Xiazhou in four hours. Brother Sun, come with me. I will treat you with the respect due an advisor."
Sun Hongye was not surprised. "Did my strategy meet with Young Master He's approval?"
During his two days of recovery, he had also heard rumors in the streets that the newly appointed Chief Administrator of Xiazhou was posting notices everywhere to recruit talented men.
"No plan is without flaws, and taking risks in war is nothing unusual—it was very good." He Lingchuan smiled faintly. "Remaining in Shihuan, you will either be marginalized by petty men or waste your prime years watching your life drift away. Only in Xiazhou will you find a stage to put your talents to work."
Chapter 185