Inheriting a Taoist temple, the story begins with Wu Zetian offering incense.

Chapter 229 Sun Tzu presents his military treatise, Xi Shi follows the will of Heaven! [Seeking monthly votes]

The best strategy is to attack the enemy's plans; the next best is to disrupt their alliances; the next best is to attack their army; and the worst is to besiege their cities.

This passage directly divides military means into four levels:

The best strategy is to subdue the enemy through strategy, followed by dismantling the enemy's alliance (diplomatic warfare), then open field battles (military campaigns), and lastly, siege the city.

Sun Tzu inscribed these four sentences on a stone tablet, intending to remind King Fuchai not to launch military campaigns at the drop of a hat, but to first engage in strategic battles.

Often, a monarch that a large army cannot subdue can be won over by a few spies spreading rumors.

The hundreds of large and medium-sized battles during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods all proved the importance of this saying. In particular, the alliances and counter-alliances of the Warring States period were all based on the saying "The best strategy is to subdue the enemy without fighting."

Since the gods have now specifically requested that he inscribe a phrase for the Temple of Generals, Sun Tzu felt that these four characters were very fitting and suitable for reminding future generations.

As for Fuchai, Sun Tzu knew very well that he wouldn't live for more than a few days.

This divine messenger was unbelievably beautiful. If the lustful King Fuchai saw her, he would definitely have impure thoughts. And the consequences of doing so were obvious to the military strategist.

Sun Tzu wanted to remind Fuchai, but he felt that Fuchai would definitely not listen to him.

Wu Zixu had been excluded from the core of power and was sometimes unable to participate in politics, while Sun Tzu himself was also neglected on several occasions.

If you tell him at this point that a divine messenger has come, Fuchai will definitely question it immediately.

Xi Shi took out a copy of "The Art of War" and a copy of "The Thirty-Six Stratagems" from the waterproof bag on her bicycle, and handed them to Sun Tzu:
"The immortal asked me to give you these two books. When I return this time, I hope to take the bamboo slips and stone tablet of the 'Thirteen Chapters' with me."

Sun Tzu accepted the paper with both hands, and upon seeing the pristine white paper and neatly printed characters, he was overjoyed.

"Are the books in the celestial realm like this? It's truly an eye-opener... The contents of this one book are better than ten volumes of bamboo slips!"

Seeing that Sun Tzu seemed unsophisticated, Xi Shi took out a tablet computer from her bag, turned it on, and showed it to him:

"These are the real books of the immortal realm. This thin plate, the size of a tile, can store at least 100,000 books. If it reaches the immortal, it can be downloaded online, and hundreds of millions of books can be consulted. It is very convenient."

Sun Tzu's eyes widened in astonishment; he had never imagined that reading would be so convenient in later generations.

When he first sought employment from King Helü, he carried thirteen scrolls of bamboo slips. Not to mention how disheveled he was, the journey he took to enter the palace alone left him drenched in sweat.

If you were holding a thin tile like this, it would surely be considered elegant and graceful, right?

Sun Tzu imagined a life of seclusion in the mountains, and thought it would be very interesting if Confucius were there.

Last year, he accompanied King Fuchai on his campaign against the State of Qi, where he decisively defeated the Qi army at Ailing. When passing through Zengyi, he summoned Duke Ai of Lu and demanded a hundred sacrificial animals. Ji Kangzi sent Zigong to persuade Bo Pi by citing the Zhou rites, and only then did Fuchai halt his advance.

That was the first time Sun Tzu met Zigong. He thought this man was very capable. With just his silver tongue, he managed to silence Fuchai, who then withdrew his troops.

This also confirms the idea that "the best strategy is to subdue the enemy without fighting." With an army of 100,000 pressing on the border, Lu State only sent Zigong, and Fuchai withdrew his troops... From this perspective, Zigong's words were as powerful as an army of 100,000.

If the disciples are all this capable, Confucius himself would probably be even more eloquent.

The pass general who brought Xi Shi had already left by carriage. Sun Wu led Xi Shi to the military camp at the foot of the mountain and showed her the carved stone tablet.

The entire stele is about 1.5 meters high, and the full sentence of "The best strategy is to subdue the enemy without fighting" is written on it in bronze script in the style of the State of Qi.

The bronze script of the Qi State is slender, more three-dimensional and elegant, and can be considered a variant of the bronze script of the Western Zhou Dynasty... The main purpose of using this script is to indicate Sun Wu's status as a nobleman of the Qi State.

As for the thirteen volumes of military treatises, they were all in the military camp. Sun Tzu also wrote some annotations, making a total of fifteen volumes of bamboo slips, which looked quite impressive when piled together.

Xi Shi would not be able to return to Hunyuan Palace for several more days, so Sun Wu assigned her a spot on one side of the military camp and had her set up her own small tent.

While Xi Shi was busy with her work, Sun Wu began studying bicycles:
How far can this thing travel in a day?

Xi Shi thought for a moment and said:
"If the road conditions are good, it's not a problem to travel 100 li a day. In Xianchang, there is also a type of bicycle that can be ridden on the road. Professional athletes can ride 600 to 700 li a day."

Sun Tzu was immediately taken aback:
"Could they run faster than horses? If we had over a thousand bicycles, we could launch a surprise attack on another country's capital."

Xi Shi said:

"Is there such a tactic in the Immortal Master's possession, called Blitzkrieg? It coincides with your military strategy of 'speed is the key to war'."

The two chatted like that. In the evening, Xi Shi continued to cook noodles, while Sun Wu had people guard the area and went to continue training his troops.

Meanwhile, inside the Hunyuan Palace, Zhou Yi drove back from the Dragon King Temple, bought some food in town, and went back to the mountain to have dinner with Wu Meiniang and Li Qingzhao. After dinner, the three of them went to the Wenxuan King Hall to take a look. The Confucian scholar's brush on the offering table seemed to have grown a bit longer, and the brush tip was no longer messy; it was somewhat smooth.

Li Qingzhao asked:
"Master, if we use this brush to write the character for 'illness' on the Western Xia army, will they immediately fall ill?"

Zhou Yi's eyes lit up, and he thought this was worth a try.

Well, when Zhao Xu personally leads the army, he can just take the Confucian scholar's pen and buff his own forces; the war should go much more smoothly... Actually, Zhao Xu already buffed his forces during the previous Battle of Pingxia City:

"The children of all fallen soldiers will be allowed to attend county and prefectural schools for free. The monthly salary of soldiers will be increased from 900 cash to 1,500 cash. It must be guaranteed that this amount will be paid to the soldiers, and no official may deduct it."

If soldiers wanted to fight to the death, they could simply increase their pay. After Zhao Xu took power, the Song army was able to expand its territory by 5,000 li in just eight or nine years, which was largely due to the increase in military pay.

According to the records of the Western Xia people, during the Battle of Pingxia City, some Song soldiers had their arms cut off, yet they still shouted "Long live the Emperor!" and fought to the death without retreating. This shows just how powerful the buff Zhao Xu provided was.

Of course, now that the Song Dynasty has horse-breeding lands in the Miaochuan and Hehuang areas, coupled with the buff of receiving ten acres of fertile land upon joining the army, the Song Dynasty's Imperial Guards will continue to improve their combat effectiveness.

That evening, Li Qingzhao left Hunyuan Palace with a box of lychees and dozens of horses.

The next day, Zhou Yi drove Wu Meiniang to see Uncle Ming's new home, and they also went to the mall to pay their respects to the statue of Houtu Niangniang.

Meanwhile, in the world of Emperor Yuan of the Western Han Dynasty, Chen Tang led his troops through Xiaoguan Pass and officially entered the Guanzhong region.

If you continue along the Jinghe River valley for a while, you will reach the Guanzhong Plain.

From their departure for the Western Regions before the Lunar New Year to their return to Chang'an, the two had traveled over ten thousand miles. Chen Tang's thighs were calloused from riding the horse so much.

When Xiao Guanwei saw Chen Tang and the others, he greeted them warmly and bowed. Then, when he saw the Imperial Guards who had been stripped of their armor, he wished he could disappear into the ground. Seeing his comrades' disgraceful state, he thought that if he fell into their hands, he would be silenced.
Chen Tang introduced himself generously:

“These Imperial Guards, led by Wang Shang, actually attacked our side. I killed the ringleaders and took them to Chang'an to ask His Majesty to punish them.”

With each word he spoke, Xiao Guanwei's body trembled... Good heavens, if only I had pretended to be sick and not shown up!
If you accidentally get caught up in the power struggle between meritorious officials on the frontier and the emperor's relatives, can you still survive?

Chen Tang led his men through the pass, and the scouts immediately used drones to scout the area ahead before continuing onward. Gan Yanshou kept nagging about the rules for entering the capital:
"Wait at the post station outside the city for now. We can only lead the troops into Chang'an when His Majesty summons us... We finished counting the women's hometowns yesterday, and half of them want to go home. When should we send them away?"

Chen Tang calmly popped a mint into his mouth:

"No rush, let me go to Hunyuan Palace to ask the immortal master first... With so many people, I hope the Hanfu shops in town have enough stock, otherwise we'll have to go to the county to buy them."

These women are barely clothed; even if we send them home, we need to change them into clean clothes first.

It's difficult to buy ready-made clothes in the Han Dynasty, so Chen Tang plans to go to Hunyuan Palace and ask Zhou Yi to help buy some clothes. After arriving in Guanzhong, they will find a calm river so that the women can wash up, change into new clothes, and go home looking beautiful.

As for the money to buy clothes, Chen Tang planned to give the Imperial Guard's flag to Zhou Yi. This thing had been ruined along with the Imperial Guards, so it would be better to put it in the Wu Cheng King's Palace.

Gan Yanshou strongly agreed with this arrangement:
"Buy more, those who are homeless also need to have new clothes to wear, we can't favor one over the other."

After speaking, he handed the imperial eight-sided Han sword to Chen Tang:
"This sword was bestowed upon us by His Majesty when we set off for the Western Regions. Now that we have the Wild Goose Feather Blade bestowed upon us by the Immortal, this sword is of little use. Take it and present it to the Immortal. When we set up camp tonight, I will write a letter of offering... More than a hundred sets of clothes must have cost a lot. We cannot let the Immortal suffer a loss."

The two men, like elders, prepared clothes for these poor women, fearing they would be looked down upon when they returned home.

As for the homeless women, after finishing their audience with the emperor, they began planning group matchmaking and group weddings so that they could have a warm home as soon as possible.

They walked until evening, then set up camp to rest in a flat area of ​​the valley. Chen Tang also arranged various sentry posts to prevent any mishaps.

On the other side, in the Spring and Autumn Period.

After a day of rest, Xi Shi polished her bicycle until it shone, and also aired out the sleeping mat inside the tent to prevent it from getting damp.

Now she is just waiting to return to Hunyuan Palace, to bring back all the fifteen bamboo scrolls and stone tablets given to her by Sun Wu, and also to bring back a comparison table of modern Chinese characters and seal script for Sun Wu to use.

With nothing to do, she picked up her tablet, about to learn some outdoor knowledge, when suddenly a commotion broke out outside.

Xi Shi quickly packed the tent into her bag, secured her bicycle, and prepared to run away at any moment.

While we were busy, Sun Tzu sent someone to deliver a message:
"The king suddenly came from Gusu to inspect the army and prepare for the northern expedition against Lu."

Upon hearing this, Xi Shi silently took out the token of Hunyuan Palace from her bosom... She hadn't planned to go to Gusu City, but you insisted on coming here. It seems I can only submit to fate!

(End of this chapter)