Chapter 65: Heavenly Might (III)

Under the careful care of various renowned physicians, Li Kuo’s health gradually improved. Though he still couldn’t engage in strenuous exercise, he was able to get out and do some simple recovery activities.

Nan Jiyun’s injuries were not severe, and thanks to his strong foundation in martial arts, he recovered significantly after taking just a few blood-tonifying medicines. However, Lei Wanchun’s eye disease posed a challenge to the physicians, as the poison he had been poisoned with was snake venom, one of the hardest to treat. Fortunately, Li Kuo and the other youths accidentally burned many poisonous plants, and the opposing properties of the poisons canceled each other out, reducing the effect significantly. With the full support of Lady Yang Huahua of the Guo State, Lei Wanchun took some mild medicines to detoxify and restore his health over a few days, and miraculously, he was able to see again.

Seeing his two elder brothers recover from their injuries, Li Kuo’s mood also lightened. Having plenty of free time while recuperating at Lady Yang’s residence, he set up a sand table in the courtyard with Pei Hui, her only son, and began to play a strategy game using tokens. (Note 1) Although Pei Hui appeared very refined, he had no interest in classical texts or Confucian studies. Besides loving mathematics, he was also very interested in military strategy. After much persuasion, Li Kuo agreed to play a game with him using the sand table and tokens to satisfy the boy’s interest.

“Brother Li, you go first!”
Pei Hui rubbed his palms together and nodded.
“Then I won’t be polite!”
Li Kuo adjusted the tokens and prepared to make his moves. This time, they simulated a battle between Tubo and the Tang Dynasty, with each of them representing one side. After the game, they would switch roles. The attacking army numbered 50,000, while the defending army had 20,000. Each token represented 1,000 soldiers, with red tokens representing the attacking army and black tokens representing the defending army.

Li Kuo was now controlling the Tang army. He divided the 50,000 red soldiers into three groups: 30,000 in the central army, represented by 30 tokens, and 10,000 each on the left and right flanks to protect the sides.

The young man gently pushed the tokens representing the central army toward Shanzhou (Note 2) and left them there. “This auxiliary force on my right will be split in two. Half will feign an attack on Shibao City, doing whatever it takes to hold off your 10,000 defenders! The other half will move from Linfan City to Suirong City, bypassing Chiling, crossing the Afeca Valley, and using Tuyuhun (Note 3) as a route to attack from Jishi Mountain, catching you off guard!”

The young man placed a flag on Jishi Mountain, instantly occupying half of the mountain range for the Tang army. “Huh.”
Pei Hui’s forehead was already covered in cold sweat as he quickly placed two black tokens in the valleys along Chiling, trying to block the Tang army’s path of attack.
“You can’t deploy that many defenders!”

Li Kuo smiled slightly and immediately pointed out the flaw in Pei Hui’s plan: “The terrain around Chi Ling is rugged, and supplies are difficult to obtain—there’s simply no way to accommodate so many soldiers. As far as I know, even the largest fortresses can only hold 300 soldiers at a time.”
“Then how can you get thousands of Tang soldiers to cross the snow-covered valleys without making a single sound? I’ve stationed three thousand troops at Da Fei Ling—there’s no way you can appear behind my lines!”
Pei Hui pouted in frustration and retorted. He had been caught off guard by Li Kuo’s move from the start; it was too risky and unconventional—nothing like what was described in military texts!
Li Kuo smiled and moved the “Tang soldiers” who had come from Chi Ling toward the direction of the Western Sea. “Don’t forget, I don’t have to take the mountain paths. If the Western Sea is frozen over in winter, I’ll order my soldiers to move silently—how could there be any noise?”
“Then your attacking forces to the west won’t be able to reach Shi Bao City either!”
Pei Hui shook his head, refusing to admit his mistake in deploying his troops. As long as Shi Bao City wasn’t breached head-on, relying solely on three thousand Tang soldiers to launch a surprise attack from behind was nothing but delusion.
“My right army will set out from Shan City, pass through Suihe Shouzhuo, cross via Jishi Jun Fort, and head straight for Wanxiu and Bai Gu cities.”
Li Kuo calmly sent ten thousand soldiers from his right army forward, smiling calmly.
Pei Hui’s face turned pale. If the Tang soldiers managed to capture Wanxiu and Bai Gu, his two southern defenses would be cut off. The defenders of Shi Bao City would only have supplies coming from the west!
But the Tang army was outnumbered, and they would surely face difficulties once they entered the interior. As long as he sent three thousand soldiers to firmly defend the line from Da Fei Ling to Mo Li Yi, the rear of Shi Bao City would be safe—no matter how hard the Tang soldiers tried, they couldn’t cross Chi Ling!
“What about your thirty thousand central army? Will you just stand by and watch?”
Pei Hui pointed tentatively at the thirty thousand Tang soldiers gathered in Shan City.
“As for my thirty thousand central army!” Li Kuo smiled slyly, “they’ll naturally besiege the city and attack your supply convoys!”
“Ah!”
Pei Hui exclaimed in shock and slammed his forehead. He hadn’t expected the enemy’s main force to stay idle and instead plan to besiege the city. Although Shi Bao City had a strategic location that made it nearly impregnable, its biggest flaw was its small size, which prevented it from storing large amounts of supplies. If the soldiers didn’t receive enough meat and water in time, even without the Tang army attacking, the defenders inside would starve to death within ten days!
“Brother Kuo, I lose!”
Seeing that all his plans had been anticipated by Li Kuo, Pei Hui bowed his hands in surrender.

“Actually, you’re not bad either. All these of mine are just theoretical!”
Li Kuo waved his hand to comfort him.
“Hui is still here calculating strategies!”
Yang Zhao had somehow arrived in the backyard and stepped forward quickly, touching Pei Hui’s forehead and speaking.
“Uncle Zhao!”
Seeing Yang Zhao approach, Pei Hui immediately stood up and bowed respectfully to him.
“You!”
Yang Zhao shook his head with a wry smile. His third sister was right—this nephew of his was too reserved and needed more experience.
“It’s good for you to spend more time with my nephew Kuo. He’s one of the outstanding young talents in our Tang Dynasty.”
Yang Zhao glanced at Li Kuo beside him and nodded slightly. “By the way, I’ve come here to bring good news to my nephew Kuo!”
“Please speak clearly, Lord Yang.”
Li Kuo frowned slightly at Yang Zhao’s deliberate behavior but still replied with respect as the younger one.
“Hehe, it’s like this. The Tibetan demon monk has been proven by the Dali Temple to be spreading false teachings in the Zhongnan Mountains. My nephew Kuo is brave and fearless, and has won the Emperor’s high praise. However, since you’ve been promoted too quickly recently, the Emperor, fearing gossip, has specially conferred upon you the title of County Lord!”
“Oh, then I must thank the Emperor for his great kindness.”
Li Kuo bowed in the direction of the Daming Palace, his expression very calm.
Seeing Li Kuo’s indifferent reaction, Yang Zhao felt somewhat frustrated. In his view, it was a huge fortune for this poor boy to receive an actual noble title—it meant he had the Emperor’s favor and had officially joined the ranks of the aristocracy, though their status was as humble as duckweed.
“I know my nephew Kuo is indifferent to fame and fortune, but there’s one thing he’ll surely be interested in!”
Unwilling to let this plan fail, Yang Zhao’s eloquent lips moved again. Seeing Li Kuo’s nod of agreement, Yang Zhao paused, swallowed, and said, “Didn’t the Tibetan prince get assassinated some time ago? The Emperor ordered the Jingzhao Prefecture to solve the case within a set time. I don’t know who stirred up trouble, but during yesterday’s court session, censor Cao Yong submitted a shocking petition accusing the Prince of Guangping of being arrogant due to favoritism and hiring someone to commit murder!”
“What!”

Li Kuo suddenly shouted loudly in surprise. This news was indeed explosive—the Prince of Guangping was the emperor’s most beloved grandson and also the eldest son of the crown prince. The Censorate’s sudden action to impeach the Prince of Guangping was clearly aimed at the imperial palace. Whether he admitted it or not, in the eyes of others, Li Kuo was now tied to the imperial palace—sharing its fortunes and misfortunes. In such a situation, what truly mattered was the emperor’s attitude. Such cases could be made big or small; if the emperor decided to investigate thoroughly, it could cause a great stir in the city, but if he preferred to keep things quiet, it would end without further consequence.

“I knew you’d be interested!”

Yang Zhao smirked proudly. “Actually, things aren’t as bad as you think. Although the emperor ordered a thorough investigation, I heard from General Gao that this time it’s more of a show than anything real. Who doesn’t know how much the emperor loves this grandson? How could he go against his own flesh and blood just because of a few rumors?”

Note 1: Sand tables and strategy boards: In ancient times, sand tables and strategy boards were used in military campaigns. Detailed sand tables included rivers, mountains, and fortresses, while strategy boards were used to represent armies, allowing the commander to simulate routes and other intricate details.

Note 2: Shanzhou: The administrative center of the Longyou Military Region at that time, corresponding to today’s Ledu.

Note 3: Linfan City and Suirong City were both border towns; there’s no need to get caught up in the literal meaning. For reference, one can consult Chinese historical atlases, which contain detailed topographic maps.

Note 4: Xihai: Today’s Qinghai Lake.

Note 5: County Lord: A title established during the Tang Dynasty, ranking sixth in the hierarchy and equivalent to a salary of 2,000 dan.