"Master, we are now calling for the reconstruction of Chu State, and more and more people are joining our righteous army. As the saying goes, ’The taller the tree, the more exposed to the wind.’ We’ve developed so quickly, the court will definitely react." Another general voiced a different opinion. Indeed, as the old saying goes, "The gun shoots the bird that sticks out," now there are many uprising armies across the country; the court’s army cannot annihilate them all at once, but they will certainly send heavy troops to encircle to prevent some forces from becoming too powerful.

"General Chen is right, I think so too. Therefore, we cannot rush to expand but must recruit soldiers, gather funds and provisions, consolidate our territory, and stand up to the court." Hua Liandie said indifferently, she knew very well that they have defeated the Qin Army in surprise attacks and ambushes. Moreover, this was Chu Territory, and the local people supported these Chu State nobles. But future battles would not be so easy.

"I have already sent people to prepare the wealth and provisions I have earned over the years through commerce. These assets are scattered across the country and managed by my trusted confidants. I’ve ordered them to use these resources to forge weapons and armor, purchase warhorses, recruit soldiers, and quickly develop our strength. In this way, righteous armies frequently active behind Qin lines also gain us more time here."

"Indeed, the master’s foresight is admirable, sir."

"Alright, two generals, leading troops into battle is not something this woman excels at. The affairs at the front lines still need the two of you to give your all." 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

"Rest assured, Master, to overthrow the tyrannical Qin rule, for the great cause of Chu State, we would die a hundred times without hesitation."

"Good."

East County.

"Old Ye, look at these villages." Shangguan Jian pointed toward the village ahead. Ye Shikai’s face was grave. The scene in front could only be described as ’hell on earth’; large and small houses of the village were on fire, and many houses had already been burned to ruins.

"Squad, follow me into the village for a look." Ye Shikai rode slowly into the village. It looked like there had been fierce fighting here recently. Perhaps there were still remnants of enemies lying in ambush; thus, his personal guards closely followed, not daring to be careless in the slightest.

Seeing the bodies on the ground, in the houses, and in the river ditch, Ye Shikai’s heart felt as if it had been fiercely hammered by an awl—an appalling sight that was unbearable to look at. It seemed the villagers of this village had been slaughtered completely.

"In recent months, those uprising armies and countless bandit raiders have repeatedly harassed nearby villages and towns. Villages with fewer inhabitants have fought back vehemently, but... alas..." Shangguan Jian sighed heavily. A village with several hundred men, women, and children brutally murdered; anyone seeing this scene would feel extremely oppressed.

"Moreover, whenever our army and the uprising army clash, it is often in the village, resulting in frequent accidental injuries during fighting." Shangguan Jian continued. The uprising army broke into the village intending to use the villagers as ’human shields.’ However, some Qin soldiers simply do not care about these innocent people.

"This is simply outrageous." Ye Shikai cursed coldly, punching the wall.

"It’s nothing short of treating human lives like grass."

"Old Ye, it’s not entirely the fault of those Commander Generals. The situation is becoming more severe; they don’t have your outstanding command ability and choose to sacrifice civilian lives to complete their tasks."

"This is utter bullshit." Ye Shikai’s face was solemn. The current situation was indeed turbulent; Shangguan Jian wasn’t wrong about that. To eliminate these uprising armies, the Qin army uses every possible means. Ye Shikai had repeatedly urged caution whenever civilian safety was concerned, but soldiers under his command obeyed orders; it didn’t mean other generals were as ’considerate.’

"Old Ye, there is warfare everywhere now. Many villages and even towns are affected, civilian strength reduced, and taxes have dropped significantly, troubling the Prefectural Governor."

"They only care about how many uprisings have been subdued, not about the lives of civilians." Man Cang was angry just now but held back all along. After hearing this, he couldn’t hold back anymore and interrupted directly.

"The uprising army is different from Wolf Clan invasions; one is external warfare, the other internal. Winning external warfare ends the war, but even if the uprising army is annihilated, it only treats the symptoms, not the cause. If the court doesn’t change, the uprising armies will emerge incessantly."

"Old Ye speaks very correctly."

"General, what should we do now?"

"All troops are ordered to search the village, quickly find any surviving villagers." Ye Shikai immediately commanded.

"Understood."

The days of warfare always pass quickly. In recent months, Ye Shikai has led troops outside, suppressing uprising troops and robbers. Unknowingly, each day just slipped by. This feeling is like playing a game where you ’clear monsters’; it’s not difficult to lead tens of thousands of troops to suppress uprising armies, but their quantity is overwhelming—unknowingly, time just passed...

Deep night, military camp.

"I heard from hometown folks in other troops that their pay is reduced by one-third. Why is it that only our pay hasn’t been reduced?"

"You don’t know how capable our General Ye is; even the Prefectural Governor and Commander respect him a lot. Now the taxes in the county have drastically decreased, but they don’t dare to reduce our military pay."

"So that’s it; it seems we’ve followed a good general."

"That’s not the point. The amount of pay is just external; the key is our general’s might. He always wins battles, enabling us to survive. Otherwise, if we lost fights, we might not even stay alive; what use would money be?"

"Now that you’ve mentioned it, it makes sense."

When Ye Shikai passed by the military camp, he saw many soldiers sitting around the campfire discussing something and stood nearby listening. Upon hearing soldiers discussing him, Ye Shikai became interested.

"You know, our general is different from those other incompetent ones. He has courage and strategy, and isn’t greedy for money; crucially, he cares for us soldiers and takes good care of us."

"You say General Ye is powerful. What battles has he fought before?" A soldier inquired, looking like a new recruit just joined.

"There are too many to count. Back when I was at Stone Peak fortress, I personally saw General Ye dealing with the Wolf Clan. At that time, over ten thousand Wolf Clan surrounded the outside of the fortress. General Ye personally directed us on the city wall to defend, and he deliberately let four thousand Wolf Clan members enter the fortress, then closed the gates, an ambush leading them to surrender completely." A squad leader spoke excitedly, and Ye Shikai thought he looked familiar, likely a soldier who had followed him for a long time.